Long overdue Comic Days 6/3/2010.

Lots of comics over lots of weeks. This week I was finally able to get some more boards and bags (4 each), so I have some storage work to do. This week itself was a nice and light week, though the copy of Wednesday Comics hardcover they were holding for me was accidentally sold. No biggie, they said some more should be in next week. Well, lets get to the comics shall we?

4/15/2010

Siege Captain America One-Shot
Siege Loki One-Shot
Siege Young Avengers One-Shot
New Mutants #12
Deadpool Team-Up #894
DareDevil #506
Web of Spider-Man #7

Doc Savage (Firstwave) #1
Batman #698
Gen 13 #35
Atomic Robo #2 of 4 Vol. 4
S.H.I.E.L.D. #1 Variant
Punisher Max #7

4/21/2010

Amazing Spider-Man #628
Siege Spider-Man One-Shot
Dark Wolverine #85
X-Men Legacy #235
X-Factor #204

Deadpool Merc with a Mouth #10
Hercules Fall of an Avenger #2 of 2
Captain America Who Won't Wield the Shield One-Shot
Tales of the TMNT #69
Spirit (Firstwave) #1
Justice League of America #44

4/28/2010

Mighty Avengers #36
New Avengers #64
Thor #609
Thunderbolts #143
Siege: Secret Warriors One-Shot
Secret Warriors #15
Captain America #605
Fantastic Four #578

X-Force #26
Wolverine Origins #47
Deadpool #22
Punisher #16
Amazing Spider-Man #629
Justice Society of America #38
Teen Titans #82
Batman Detective Comics #864

5/05/2010

Halo Blood Line #5 of 5
Spectacular Spider-Girl #1 of 4
Amazing Spider-Man #630
Hellbound #1 of 3
Uncanny X-Men #524
Deadpool Team-Up #893
Deadpool Corps #2

Gold Digger #117
Gold Digger Peebri's Big Adventure #2
Fearless Dawn #1 Free Comic Day
The TICK Free Comic Day
Storm Lion #0 Free Comic Day
Atomic Robo Free Comic Day
Love and Capes #13 Free Comic Day
Mouse Guard Free Comic Day

5/12/2010

Astonishing X-Men Xenogenesis #1 of 5 - The art style makes Emma Frost look like a mutant.
New Mutants #13
Wolverine #900
New Avengers Finale One-Shot
Dark Avengers #16
Siege Embedded #4 of 4
Siege #4 of 4
Avengers Initiative #35

Amazing Spider-Man #631
Web of Spider-Man #8
Hulk #22
Incredible Hulk #609
Punisher Max #7
First Wave #2 of 6
Batman #699
Batman: Return of Bruce Wayne #1 of 6

5/19/2010

X-Men Legacy #236
X-Factor #205
Deadpool #23
Avengers #1
Invincible Iron Man #26

Galacta Daughter of Galactus One-Shot
Atomic Robo #3 of 4 Vol. 4 - This book just gets better and better.
Justice League of America #45
Zatanna #1 - Fishnet stalkings are hot and that's my reason for buying this book.
Spirit (Firstwave) #2

5/26/2010

Teen Titans #83
Batman Detective Comics #865
Batman: Return of Bruce Wayne #2 of 6
Tales of the TMNT #70
RoboCop ('10) #4
Chimichanga #2 - It's a little bearded girl with a pet monster, what's not to love?

Dark Wolverine #86
Wolverine Origins #48
Wolverine Weapon X #13
X-Men Origins Emma Frost One-Shot
Deadpool Merc with a Mouth #11 - Best Deadpool homage cover yet.
X-Force #27
Blind Science One-Shot

Fantastic Four #579
Secret Avengers #1
Thunderbolts #144
Secret Warriors #16
Thor #610
Amazing Spider-Man #632
Amazing Spider-Man Annual #37

6/3/2010

Franken-Castle (Formerly Punisher) #17
Spectacular Spider-Girl #2 of 4
Avengers Prime #1
Gold Digger #118
Justice Society of America #39
The Pro TPB Vol. 1 - Holy hell, how did I miss this? A hooker gets superpowers. It's funny as fuck.
Mouse Guard: Legends of the Guard #1 of 4

Like I said, a lot of storage work to do. Both of those boxes are full of comics that need boarding and bagging, going to need at least two more boxes.

OK, so Marvel has their new Heroic Age thing going now, cool, but I really hope they drop the Heroic Age banners on everything. It makes it feel like another huge title crossover event. Of which I have enjoyed but am tired of, both financially and interest wise.

Oh, and here's another multi comic image. This time it's the Siege One-Shots together.

Alright, that's that and hopefully I won't have another gap like that again.

Crap, been a few.

So... I've not been here for almost two months, well lets see if I can change that. I don't know when I'll get back around to the Back in the Day thing, I've got a buttload of comics to post up and.. oh yeah, my house caught fire.

Fire, that word gets people's attention, especially if you yell it in a crowded building (try it at your own risk kids!). Well, let me tell you, a house fire is no fun, no fun at all. Even if it's not a major fire that brings a house down, even if it's just a fire that toasts 1/3 of the attic and roof. That's the damaged done to my home, all thanks to the wiring saying "screw you guys, I'm out." So with it being an electrical fire there is no power in the house except for the power of your mind... which doesn't do much, so you have to rely on the rest of your muscles to clear your shit out of the house so it can be fixed.

The fire happened on April 30th and I've been living in a motel room since. Not a bad place really, but it's no home. Eh, I have basic cable, wifi, A/C, a microwave, a mini fridge and all the other typically amenities of a motel room so I'm not really roughing it or anything.

Alright, since things like this bring out the best in people, here's some pictures of the damage to drool over.

And if you want to see more handy work of the fire and how the house sits empty now, go on over to the photobucket page I keep all the damning evidence of the fire's criminal activity.

Damn it, almost forgot, once again I'd like to thank the Southwood volunteer fire department for arriving quickly and putting the fire out quickly as well. If it wasn't for them there would be no house to fix. Also, it was a very good thing that we had the ventilation fans in the attic, they helped to pull the fire out and slow it's rate of spreading further than it did (so the firemen said).

Aight, that's all for now, hopefully I can get some pictures of the comics and get that all posted up. Little by little I plan to get caught back up on this thing.

Figure collection.

Well, a thread over on A-P got me to take a look at MyFigureCollection.net. So I made a profile and have added almost all the figures I have onto that profile. No personal pics save but one that I tossed up there after adding the Gunsmith Cats statue to the site's database. Not a bad site I have to say, a little rough here and there, but it seems improvements are made on a regular basis. I'd recommend it for keeping track of your anime figure collection if you have one.

Comic Day 4/7/2010.

A light week that was well needed. Had to change the engine oil, transmission filter/fluid and differential gear oil on my truck this week. Still need to wash the poor thing, hasn't been washed in months. At least it has a full tank of fuel for once. OK, so on to the comics.

Gold Digger Peebri's Big Adventure #1
Ultimate X #2
S.H.I.E.L.D. #1
World War Hulks #1
Deadpool & Cable #25
Deadpool Corps #1
Wolverine Weapon X #12
Uncanny X-Men #523

Loaded Bible Book 1 The 'Jesus Vs. Vampires' Gospels

Video Girl Ai Vol. 10 Rough Cut

Back in the Day - Assemble Insert 04/03/2010.

If only we had some way to combat the evil Demon Seed. Oh wait, lets just get a pop idol!

No worries, it works, she has unexplained super human strength and she’s cute to boot. All little Maron Namikaze has to do is fight Demon Seed and be the next big pop idol at the same time. No pressure at all. Assemble Insert came about in December of ‘89 (part 1) and then later Janurary ‘90 (part 2). It was also the OVA of the 1985 manga of the same name, which was created by Masami Yuuki, creator of the “Patlabor” manga. So while it may seem this was a planned article, it wasn’t. This week was the first time I saw Assemble Insert and only learned of the connection while writing this article… neat how that works sometimes. Assemble Insert is a fun romp through the clichés of pop idols & anime and, even though it breaks the 4th wall on more than one occasion, it acts as if everything is within the norm. It will be blatantly obvious to the viewer that everything is more than a bit odd, yet it all flows together and makes for an enjoyable watch.

Once again Tokyo is faced with a menace that it’s normal police can’t handle; this time it’s the mecha gang Demon Seed lead by the evil (quite so) genius (not really) Professor Kyozaburo Demon. In order to try and find a way to defeat Demon Seed, the Demon Seed Task Force has been formed. Unfortunately it’s filled with misfits who are more concerned about watching music videos rented from the video store conveniently located downstairs from their office. That may explain why even though shocked at the idea, they all go along with the Project Idol plan to use a pop idol to fight Demon Seed. This idea, admittedly a foolish plan submitted by Chief Hattori while drunk, was still approved by his superiors. Being the only plan anyone has, they go through with it.

Down at City Hall, the hero audition finals are taking place. After 27 other contestants, Maron Namikaze comes on and is hired on the spot after exhibiting impressive strength. While fidgeting nervously, she manages to turn the mic stand into a twisted wreck and unwittingly proves to be the perfect pick. Maron being the 28th contestant is a small nod to both Testsujin 28 and Akira. She is quickly pushed into pop idol training via a video montage. Before all that though, they better take a commercial break from their sponsor, Supovitan C! A fake live-action energy drink commercial featuring the voice actresses for Maron, Hiroko Kasahara, and her pop idol non-rival Kagiri, Maria Kawamura. This is in place of the usual eye catch found at the middle of an anime episode. Of course everyone acts as if everything is normal, Chief Hattori even breaks the 4th wall by saying “isn’t there a rule about putting in a live action sequence?”

Once Maron has her training out of the way she eventually faces off with Demon Seed & Prof. Demon for the first time after the Task Force learns of the next planned attack by Demon Seed. However, Prof. Demon mistakenly called a ramen shop thinking it was police headquarters to announce his heist - good thing that ramen shop passed the word along. Finally we get to see her and DS in battle, and as usual with such fights, property damage is key. This includes the very exhibit DS was trying to steal and Maron protect.

In the aftermath of Maron’s first outing, the Demon Seed Task Force gets complaints from every group imaginable. It’s tough to run a specialty division such as DSTF for society does not love you. After months of not hearing from Demon Seed, the Task Force has to turn Maron into strictly a pop idol in order to make money and keep the group alive. This does not sit well with Dr. Shimokobe, the creator of Maron’s costume, er… Power Suit. He believes she is a champion of justice, not a pop idol, so he delivers the original Power Suit design to Demon Seed to give them the capability of challenging Maron again. This is horrible timing for the Task Force. Demon Seed’s announced return (cancelled if it rains) falls on the night of the Music Awards where they hope Maron will win debut singer of the year. What to do, what to do? In a gamble on the weather, the Task Force hopes to pull off both events.

All throughout Assemble Insert is sprinkled with parody and comedy. While the characters act as if everything that is happening is inside the norm, the show as a whole knows better. Part of the comedy is that nothing is ever really explained, beginning with everyone’s acceptance of Chief Hattori’s drunken plan to fight Demon Seed with a pop idol. Then there is Maron’s super strength, which she just happens to have. Dr. Shimokobe also explains that he changed the Power Suit design after learning the idol was going to be a girl. That’s it, every one goes along with it. They don’t have time for explanations, honestly; it’s only a two 30-minute episodes long OVA. So the fast pacing is a must and works completely in Assemble Insert’s favor. Another part of the comedy is the spot on satire of pop idols and anime. Secret villain hideout? Sure, a giant mansion in the middle of an otherwise normal Japanese neighborhood. The family address name is even Demon. So it’s totally a secret, except from two young kids and Dr. Shimokobe. Before Assemble Insert itself starts, a quick parody of sentai shows is tossed at us, using the characters of Masami Yuuki’s “Ultimate Superman R” to fill the roles out. The references to other anime and clichés is abundant. I’d go on and on about a few of them if I had the liner notes in RightStuf’s re-release of the US DVD.

The first thing you will notice about Assemble Insert is it’s character designs. Mostly the eyes of the Task Force members. After that, it’s the fact that none of them, beside Chief Hattori, have noses. All of them are actually caricatures of some of the staff from Patlabor. After all that it may look as if the show is from the mid 80s because of it’s lackluster animation. It’s not the worst, but it certainly doesn’t live up to being something made in ’89/’90. The music, on the other hand, is great which makes it a shame the songs weren’t translated on the US DVD. They’re catchy, fun, upbeat and carry the attitude of the show wonderfully.

So where to get said DVD? Great news this time around; while it is out of print, it can be found on Amazon for the cheap. I’m talking under a buck cheap. You’ll pay more on the shipping than the DVD itself. At least while the 3rd party sellers selling it so cheap still have it. Even then it’s going to be a cheap buy. So there’s not much in the way of excuses why you shouldn’t add this to your collection. There’s not much to the DVD itself, the bonus material comprises of the commercial, English credits and DVD credits; that’s it. That’s if you get Right Stuf’s original ‘01 release of the DVD. The 2003 re-release includes snazzier packaging and liner notes, which from my research, are pretty detailed and informational. While Assemble Insert isn’t an unforgettable anime classic, it easily deserves it’s place on your shelves.