With the dawn of a new decade comes another exciting year of comic book and pop culture fan gatherings - and 2010 is already shaping up to be one of the biggest and best convention seasons on record! With both the San Diego Comic Con and New York Comic Con events already on the schedule for July and October respectively, we're excited to announce our attendance at what is sure to be the largest and most extravagant convention in the Midwest - the first annual Chicago Comic & Entertainment Expo - C2E2!
Operated by convention veterans Reed Exhibitions (of New York Comic Con fame) and housed in downtown Chicago's spacious McCormick Place, C2E2 is already shaping up to be one of the year's premier shows thanks to an all-star guest list, special event programming and a host of convention exclusives - including two from Diamond Select Toys!
DST's exclusive delivers two of the stars of this spring's upcoming blockbuster Iron Man 2 in Minimate form! The Iron Man 2 Stark Expo Minimates Two-Pack will only be available at this show and features Robert Downey Jr's Tony Stark and Scarlett Johannson's Natalie Romanova as they appear during the fictional Stark Expo event. Each Minimate two-pack will retail at the show for $8.00.
A second convention exclusive will also be available through Action Figure Xpress in the form of the Iron Man 2 Battle Tactics Minimates Box Set. This con-only set includes battle damaged versions of both Iron Man and War Machine plus Racecar Tony Stark and the first-ever Iron Man 2 Nick Fury!
As always, DST will have personnel manning the booth to interact with fans and showcase upcoming releases - including a few surprises like our daily 2010 C2E2 Minimate giveaway! Stay tuned for more updates and programming announcements as this monumental geek event approaches!
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BOOM! Town, a new imprint of BOOM! Studios, announced today the R. CRUMB TRADING CARDS.
R. CRUMB TRADING CARDS are presented to you by BOOM! Town through an arrangement with Denis Kitchen and Denis Kitchen Publishing.
“I’m pleased have the R. CRUMB TRADING CARDS kick off my new distribution deal with BOOM! Town,” said Kitchen. “I originally published this card set in the 90s. They were a big hit, but Kitchen Sink Press went under and they’ve remained out of print. Robert Crumb gave me permission to bring them back with some updates and cosmetic changes. Now a whole new generation of his fans can appreciate this handy overview of his best-known and quirkiest characters.”
R. CRUMB TRADING CARDS contains 36 cards (all different characters with bios on the back) and costs $11.95. The Diamond Code for this item is JAN100823.
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It’s Captain America’s birthday, and all he wants to do is celebrate with his fellow Squaddies and ol’ buddy Nick Fury.
But when Dr. Doom gets the horrific idea to thaw out his villain idol, the infamous WWII menace Red Skull, all bets are off. This Saturday at 7:30PM Eastern on Cartoon Network, The Super Hero Squad Show brings together the Squaddies to take down not one, but two of their powerful arch nemeses. Iconic film star Mark Hamill guest stars as the voice of Red Skull, a super villain who may be arrogant enough to even frustrate Doctor Doom! The most action packed, all-ages adventure of the week teaches the Squad and Lethal Legion that old grudges and evil plots for world domination never die.
Plus, don’t miss the all-new Super Hero Squad series, jam-packed with your favorite Marvel heroes and all-ages action, in comic shops now!
Tune into the Cartoon Network at 7:30 PM on Saturday to “Hero Up!” with your favorite characters in the Marvel Universe—or any other—in an all-new episode of The Super Hero Squad Show!
To learn more about The Super Hero Squad Show, please visit www.superherosquad.com and www.marvel.com!
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1 Hostile Planet
2 Warring Factions
Add An Outlaw…
Seems Like There’s Some Money To Be Made Out In
Cold Space!
This April, BOOM! Studios teams up with legendary actor Samuel L. Jackson and Emmy nominated writer/producer Eric Calderon — the folks that brought you the Emmy award-winning AFRO SAMURAI — to deliver their next original comic book series, COLD SPACE. A hard-boiled sci-fi action-adventure with covers by Eisner Award-winner Dave Johnson and IRREDEEMABLE cover artist Jeffrey Spokes, COLD SPACE is sure to be the most talked-about comic of the spring.
COLD SPACE follows the adventures of an on-the-run outlaw as he crash-lands on a hostile planet that is on the brink of civil war. Finding himself in the crossfire between two warring factions, Mullbery realizes that in chaos lies opportunity — because where there's war, there's money to be made.
Samuel L. Jackson says, "I'm a long time comic reader and big fan of many genres in graphic novels and manga - from crime thrillers, westerns, & super-hero books, to samurai dramas, science fiction and horror. So I actually do read the stuff - and lots of it. Now's my chance to put my stamp on the medium with something new, but with a classic taste of the stuff I already like."
“It's my honor to continue my creative relationship with Samuel L. Jackson and to work with the passionate people at BOOM! Studios,” said COLD SPACE co-writer Eric Calderon. “I hope everyone will dig the excellent covers by Dave Johnson, Jeffrey Spokes and the tight interior line work by Mr. Jeremy Rock.”
“C’mon, who are we kidding, this is a fanboy dream! Don’t pinch me, I don’t wanna wake up!” said BOOM! Chief Executive Officer Ross Richie. “This is going to be a straight-up blast!”
COLD SPACE is a four-issue miniseries written by Samuel L. Jackson and Eric Calderon with interior art by the sensational Jeremy Rock. The first issue features two covers in a 50/50 split, with art by Dave Johnson and Jeffrey Spokes, a 1-in-10 incentive cover and carries a Diamond Code of FEB100744. Each issue will retail for $3.99.
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FBI agents (Bruce Willis, Radha Mitchell) investigate the mysterious murder of a college student linked to the man who helped create a high-tech surrogate phenomenon that allows people to purchase unflawed robotic versions of themselves—fit, good looking remotely controlled machines that ultimately assume their life roles—enabling people to experience life vicariously from the comfort and safety of their own homes. The murder spawns a quest for answers: in a world of masks, who's real and who can you trust?
The Film: Surrogates, directed by Jonathan Mostow (Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines), is an interesting film that raises particular questions. The film takes the idea of Avatars (not the Cameron film), which have been popularized by online video games and social networks, and takes it to the next level. Civilization no longer interacts face to face. Everyone plugs into a specialized chair that allows him or her to link up with his or her surrogate. They then pilot the surrogate out into the world, while they stay tucked away in the safety of their home.
The safety of surrogates comes into question when two surrogates are attacked with an electrical device. Not only are the surrogates shorted out, but the device overrides the fail safe between surrogate and controller, killing the human being connected to the surrogate as well. This sends our main characters on a search for answers, and leads to some fairly intense action sequences. For the most part, the film is entertaining. While I wouldn’t rank it up there with recent action movies like Star Trek, it’s still a decent action adventure movie.
Video: The blu-ray version of the film presents a nice video transfer. There are a few soft shots, but the majority of the film is crisp and clear. The film employs contrasting color schemes for the surrogates and the real world. Whenever surrogates are present and dominating the frame, the color scheme is a cold blue. However, when scenes take place out in the open, particularly in the camp filled with people who reject the use of surrogates, the color palette is warm with browns and oranges. The strength of the transfer really enhances these color differences and makes the viewer take notice.
Sound: The sound design and implementation on the blu-ray is every bit as nice as the video transfer. The sound mixing is appropriate for each scene. During conversations, the dialogue is mixed high, and is easy to understand. During action sequences the bass is amped up and shotgun blasts, helicopter blades, and motorcycle engines sound as if they are in the same room with you.
Features: This is where the blu-ray falters. The special features are very basic and don’t take advantage of the blu-ray format, other than being presented in HD.
Features include:
- Audio commentary with director Jonathan Mostow
- A More Perfect You: The Science of Surrogates (15 mins)
- Breaking the Frame: A Graphic Novel Comes to Life (7 mins)
- Deleted Scenes (6 mins)
- Music Video: “I Will Not Bow” by Breaking Benjamin (4 mins)
Value: Listing at around $24 (Amazon), the lack of special features really hurts this release. When compared to recent blu-ray releases like Star Trek (3.5 hours of special features) and Up (1.75 hours of special features), both of which include two blu-ray discs and a digital copy (Up also includes a DVD version of the film), and can be purchased for under $20 on Amazon, the single disc, almost featureless Surrogates blu-ray seems like a rip off at $24. However, Disney is offering a $10 off coupon to be used in retail stores for the first week of the films release, so you still have a few days to take advantage of that if you really want the movie, but like me think $24 is a bit high. At around $15 the price is right for this blu-ray disc. The coupon can be located at:
http://video.movies.go.com/surrogates/couponoffer/
Terry Barnhill
Staff Reviewer
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