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- So on Friday, we all got signs that Toby was indeed still alive when he posted some sketches over at this journal. What off? Me. It’s for Toby’s contribution to the Unlucky anthology, and I was pretty elated to discover that it’s still on its way!

- I also picked up those tapes that K Thor were getting rid off, material from which his series of Evil DVDs are derived from. Included in the batch was…

… Turkish Star Trek, the full feature, and which I’ve been dying to see for literally years now.
… a pair of backyard wrestling tapes, hailing from the late 90′s, which many including myself consider the true golden age of backyard wrestling.
… a trio of cable access tapes, including Grave Robbing For Morons which has been described by at least one person over at Insert Credit as “legendary”.
… the annual Urban Nerd Slam which took place earlier this year in Brooklyn which I’m afraid to even think about watching.
… plus a really old and obscure video game movie that K Thor threw in as a treat for my GameSetWatch article.

I was also supposed to get Strange But True Football Stores, which I’m guessing is precisely what the title implies, and hosted by Vincent Price, but K Thor accidentally gave that one away to someone else. Bummer.

Though I still haven’t watched any of them since my VCR is still unhooked after converting what little I’ve digitized for YouTube. Plus I’ve been waiting for a possible Xbox 360 to arrive before finalizing on a new A/V set-up. Plus I’ve been hoping to throw little get together when viewing each vid. Like MK said, you don’t just pop in Urban Nerd Slam tape late one night to enjoy by yourself, you throw a viewing party.

- And speaking of parties, Dave (Gilbert) threw one for Doctor Who on Saturday, but I had to take a rain check. Instead MK & I had dinner with Joe where we discussed my grand debut in Japan in the coming months (oh man, its gonna be SOOOO good), then we saw some flicks.

First, Michel Gondry’s latest, the Science of Sleep. It is the movie that every Gondy diehard has been waiting for; its practically an hour and half Bjork music video, just without the Bjork music. Science is basically a return to the same esthetic in which Gondry first made his mark, with the playful use of yarn, felt, and other found objects, all stitched, glued, and stop motioned together. Its basically about this dude that dreams a lot, so much so that he mixes up the real world and dream world. Nothing makes sense, but there’s a logic to everything. Again, like your average Gondry music vid. He’s a pissed off artist that is somewhat tricked to move back home by his mother and has to take a crappy job, but at least he has a really cute neighbor, though his inability to communicate with her makes him awkwardly endearing during moments, and rather creepy the rest of the time.

The basic underlying themes and structure are actually quite similar to Gondry’s previous film, Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind, but Science of Sleep is simply superior on every conceivable level. First off, since its not a product of Hollywood, the scale and the budget of the film is far less then before, which means less CGI and more cardboard, and in the case of Gondry is a very good thing, since its an environment that’s a lot more complimentary to his personality and creativity. Also, the entire cast is simply top-notch, which are mostly unknown actors (at least to most Americans), whereas Jim Carry and Kate Winslet sorta stunk up the last movie with their over-acting (and I consider myself a fan of Winslet). Like the previous motion picture, it’s filled with characters that do stupid, frustrating shit yet they come off far more endearing and identifiable this time around. Plus things are more subtle and not as preachy as before, elements that are supposed to be frustrating are but not to such an annoying degree… the bottom line is that that everything simply works.

Immediately afterwards MK & I decided to see Jackass 2. Now, I had never seen the first movie, let alone the television series, and I’m not sure why… I was watching MTV regularly when it was on, which was during the era of Sifl & Olly if I’m not mistaken, which was actually the last time I actually gave a damn about the network… maybe because of everyone saying “hey, here’s something up your alley” which 9 out of 10 times is never the case, and often times an insult (see: Family Guy). Basically: holy fucking shit amazing. I almost don’t even want to go into why the movie is so god damn brilliant, since it might be almost impossible to put into words (I’ve yet to read any of the reviews its gotten, so I’m curious to see how others have described the movie). I guess its just one of those things that you either get or you don’t, but I honestly can’t understand how anyone could not like this movie. There’s just something in all of us that finds something funny about someone getting shot in the face, or bitten by a huge snake, vomiting while wearing a fish bowl, or a small child smoking.

- Going back to the first movie, and earlier in the afternoon; MK & I also stopped by the Deitch to check out the Science of Sleep exhibit, featuring assorted sets and props from the movie. I took a ton of pictures, which one can check out here (I know my camera sucks, hence why I took so many, and I’m a bit too lazy and busy to edit them, so I just put them all online, though some of the them seem to be missing… I started the upload from work before heading out… something must have happened… check back a bit later for the rest).

MK & I got home late on Saturday night, which meant that I missed the season premier of SNL, which I really wanted to check out since I believe its the first Tina Fey-less SNL in years (once again, I’m pretty glad to see her go). So instead Mk & I watched some SCTV on DVD (I just got the third collection earlier this week) till get grew sleepy. The next morning I spoke with Dave (Roman) on the phone, and we were too loud, because MK ended up making a pillow fort just for her head to block out the noise, and I took a picture of that, but since its sorta embarrassing I will respect my her wishes and not post it.

- After a lunch and a trip to Rocketship, we went over to Robin‘s to check out his just completed comic’s snazzy slip cover (which is sure to make all the gamer dorks out there go ga ga). We also discussed SPX plans. The big show is now less than two weeks away, and… we couldn’t be any less excited.

SPX has been my personal favorite comic show for a long while now. I have just so many fond memories of years past, either hanging with friends like Dave and John, or chilling with folks whom I only see at shows like Todd and Toby. Each show I always meet a ton of cool people (hell, that’s where I got acquainted with MK) and I always walk away with a mini-mountain of awesome books as well. I know San Diego is the big show in the comics biz, and while I had a blast the one time I was able to make it out there, I just enjoy the vibe and feel that SPX offers. I also enjoy it far more so than even the hometown show, the MoCCA art fest, which to me has become somewhat of an annoying “scene”; aside from quality comics and great people, it?s also no-nonsense.

Or at least it used to be. This year’s is going to be very different. First off, many of my friends will be missing in action. John will be off in Oregon getting married (to the wonderful Marion), and since Dave is the best man, both him and Raina will be absent at this year’s show. Also missing will be Todd, Toby, and Travis, mainly because everyone’s been doing less than stellar in recent shows, so along with the rising cost of everything, they’ve all decided to sit this one out. So yeah, many peeps will be gone… Hey at least Katie will still be on-hand, as will Pat. And I might actually take up on Farel‘s yearly invite to go strip club hopping in Baltimore. But also, the venue is changing locations. It?s supposed to be at a bigger and better spot, but where it used to be at was just really nice. I’m gonna miss the burritos at that one place that we’d all hit on Sunday night, and hanging out in the lobby on Saturday, getting drunk and munching on the free finger food. Goodbye diner with the really cranky wait staff, goodbye secret pink lemonade stash…

I don’t follow comics politics as closely as my friends, but from what I understand, the whole show is being run by some new folks, and they don’t seem to be doing a stellar job (actually, most will agree that they flat out suck). First off, no one understands why its happening so late this year (John and Marion set the date before the show date was announced since it was assumed that they would never hold it in late October…. hmmm). Secondly, for some whatever dumb reason they’ve also decided to get rid of the SPX Anthology, which is a yearly collection of comics from various talents that is always the highlight of each and every show (and almost a yearbook to a certain extent). They’re also got rid of the yearly softball and picnic and in its place everyone is supposed to go to a Dave & Busters for some billiards. Oh great. Instead of capping off a weekend of hanging out in a crowded convention hall and selling comics by running around in a field and breathing fresh air, how about some expensive pool instead? MK on the other hand has other plans and is organizing a post-show soccer match. Plus they’re behind this brilliant television ad.

Plus, I just found out that there’s going to be a whole bunch of middle school kids let into the show that are taking some local cartooning class. That should be… interesting. The “Yeah, we know that SPX has always had mostly adult fare, BUT…” email to all the vendors was also interesting to say the least. Though the biggest problem, at least for us, will be our location om the show floor. It seems that we’re going to be stuck right in the middle of folks that we not only don’t know, but do super hero books. Just awesome. So we’ll be in the stinkiest part of the whole convention.

Beforehand, I was pretty upset with the fact that I just won’t have enough time to put together a new book for the show. But given what we might have to look forward to, I’m really not that concerned at the moment, sadly. Oh well… at least there’s always APE.

- One primary reason why I’m so busy is that I’m trying to do more freelance work. Though to be honest, that’s not going so well since I’m having a hard time acquiring new gigs outside my immediate circles. I guess you could say it?s partly my fault. For example, a while ago I tried getting a spot at a major anime and manga portal that was looking for some new writers and couldn’t understand why they didn’t seem at all interested. That was until I realized that if anyone does a casual search of my site, they’ll find out that I can’t stand 90% of all the anime and manga out there (and if you take into account only the stuff that this company produces alone, bump up the number to 97%).

Recently I was approached by a major sci-fi news and fandom site, and when they asked what I could do for them, I basically suggested that I could do what they’re already doing, which is report the news, but be a heck of a lot better, and be far more mindful of the audience, by questioning why a game like World Championship Poker is being written about, while the two new Star Trek games that are coming out haven’t even been mentioned once. Maybe that wasn’t such a smart move since I haven’t heard from them since.

Though I do know what would really help me get jobs, but I’m afraid that I’m not some hot gamer grrrl. Though I have been interested in adopting a female alter ego and seeing what happens. Oh well. The beat goes on….

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Time for a quick mid-week update…

First off, for those who might be wondering about my new GameSetWatch gig, my movie review column is going to run bi-weekly and on Wednesdays, so everyone can expect the next installment this time next week.

As for what its going to be, I maybe shouldn’t say, but why the hell not: I’ll be covering 8 BIT, the new documentary about art and video games. I actually got the chance to talk with Justin Strawhand, the producer and co-director recently, and also met the director Marcin Ramocki, who not only dropped off the movie but also the film’s poster (“Fresh from eBoy’s press!”). So maybe it was a good thing I was still feeling sick last night and decided to stay home; the original plan was to attend some IGDA NY social mixer, but I just wasn’t up for drinking, especially after last weekend (more on that in a moment).

The funny thing is, I always knew it would be a challenge to find movies that most of the world doesn’t know about (yeah, I could do a scathing review of Bloodrayne, but that would be too easy… though that’s not to say I won’t do one eventually, since I’m gonna have to do a Uwe Boll movie sooner or later), but tracking them down has been made somewhat easier thanks to friends. I’ve got Robin who says he’s going to send along something I’m pretty sure no one else has heard of either, and K. Thor is also passing along something special, as a “bonus” of sorts along with my recent purchase. K Thor recently decided to unload all the Evil DVD source tapes, and I picked up a bunch. Mostly cable access and backyard wrestling stuff, naturally. Believe it or not, Turkish Star Trek is included in the package, but it’s not even the highlight!

Anyway, back to this past weekend, and…. the Philly Zine Fest. Which was alright I guess. I hate to be mister negative, but virtually 97% of all the zines on-hand fell into one of three categories: A) how much college sucks (well, duh), B) how much President Bush sucks (once again, no friggin’ duh), and if it was from a girl, C) how much having periods suck. And the crowd was… not my crowd, so I don’t think I really fit in that well, and same with my comic, hence why I didn’t do so well sales-wise, but considering how cheap the tables were, I still did well enough to cover the cost of being there. Most folks were pretty nice, except for this one table manned by three Suicide Girl wanna-be’s who had a bunch of zines that were all women’s lib, which had really nice covers so I picked one up to check it out, and one girl gave me a stone-cold “what the fuck would you do with a book like that?!” state, which was so retarded, and most certainly not the best way to handle a potential customer (hey, I could have been interested getting it for a friend, so whatever).

I did make two new friends, a couple who ran a neat little arts and crafts table (and website), who also each had zines that were breathe of fresh air from everything else: the girl had one that was all about robots, and the guy?s was about jug bands. I also picked up a neat little zine called Steve’s Guide To Shit Jobs by some guy names Steve Please who I was told is a drummer for some local Philly band. Also. MK, Robin, Liz, and myself weren’t the only ones with comics… there was at least one other available, from Nate Powell! His latest book, Sounds Of Your Name, which is a massive collection of assorted comics he’s done over the years, was there at the Microcosm table (the book’s publishers) and naturally, MK & I snatched up copies the instant we saw them. And as happy as we were to finally get our hands on it, the book unfortunately has a number of printing errors and issues, though we were given slips to receive the corrected edition later this fall. Though I was just happy to finally get the guy’s email address!

The only other big downside is that I caught a nasty cold that afternoon. Actually, I’ve had one brewing since last week and had been keeping it at bay, but because I hardly got any sleep the night before the show due to a very rambunctious evening of boozing, my defenses were lowered, which gave the cold a chance to finally take over. Which has really sucked since I’m SO busy right now and my schedule is more screwed up than ever (hence why I’m here at home at my computer… taking a break from work… and not at movie night). Case in point: I’m supposed to check out Final Fantasy XII at some press event tomorrow and I haven’t had a chance to put anytime into the demo that came with Dragon Quest 8 at all. EDIT: It’s actually next week. Phew.

That also means that I haven’t had any chance to check up on any of Tokyo Game Show coverage from over the weekend or any other bits of news since then. Though I do know that MTV bought Harmonix, the makers of Guitar Hero 2. I have no idea if will affect the release of that game (maybe it will and the details have been announced… again, I’m really out of the loop news-wise), but I highly doubt there’s enough time for MTV to do anything… thank God. Not for nothing, but if the sale had gone down a year ago, I’ll be you anything that 75% of the songs that are on GH2 would not be there. I’m fairly sure that MTV could give a rat’s ass about songs from Cheap Trick, Rush, and Dick Dale.

But even though I haven’t had any chance to check out gaming related items at the “usual places” I did get a heads up about a thread over at the Gaming Age Forums. Basically video game/internet forum humor + cats = this.

Still no idea where that image originated from (I thought it was the creation of Kevin Gifford’s now defunct video game blog, Video-Fenky).

And speaking of animals, the internet, and all around awesomeness, I normally don’t link to porn, but this shit has to be fucking seen to believe. It?s basically one woman screwing a bunch of dinosaurs. Seriously.

Yes another reason why I’m so please with the internets today is that Slonie gave the head’s up that a super high quality version of Monster Squad is floating around the web! Apparently they’re playing it on one of the HD channels, hence where it comes. Anyhow, I’m currently BitTorrenting it, and since its so hot and fresh, its coming along quite nicely! Wish I could say the same for the Idiot Box torrent that I’ve had up for days… You know, that old Alex Winter MTV show he had? And who’s Alex Winter? You know… Bill S. Preston from Bill & Ted?

Oh and a couple of things that MK passed along. First, check out this crazy guy’s “free ideas” for the rest of the comics world to run with. My fave has to be: “Uncle Scrooge and Captain America team-up in a WWII adventure (naturally predating Christmas on Bear Mountain), wherein it is revealed that Flintheart Glumgold made his fortune as an arms manufacturer for the Axis powers. Meanwhile, Donald is trapped behind enemy lines and only Sgt. Fury and His Howling Commandos can save him.”

Second, check this person’s absolutely amazing artwork…

Third, MK passed along a link to yet another girl’s work, and also mentioned in the email: “This is who you have to marry if I die in some sort of horrible car crash or freak cake factory accident.” Why? Because, “She does comics about hot dogs & robots & apparently lives in Seattle.”

Make sure you navigate her site with the sound turned way up and with headphones.

And finally, earlier today I had a very interesting business-related lunch and some upcoming plans were discussed. Unfortunately I really can’t go into too many details at the moment since everything is still up in the air, BUT, there is a very good chance that I might be going to Japan sometime next year! And doing what you may be asking? Again, I can’t really say, at least not right now, though I will mention that it might involve me running around on a stage in front of 15,000 screaming Japanese kids, dressed in a suit made out of cheese and throw blocks of cheese at the audience. Stay tuned for details…

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