ArmzRace Blog

Do you remember how ever Dungeons & Dragons game began? You and hodgepodge of adventurers meet up in a bar and then headed off to slay evil (or good, depending). Well, this lighthearted game takes place after that. You’re all back in the bar celebrating a successful adventure with booze, card games, and more than a little mischief (How else are you going to swindle your compatriots out of their hard earned gold?). This game for four players is a lot of fun, even if you can lean the best strategies for defeating each opponent rather quickly.

I thought I might have been hasty in my condemnation of Jurgens’ The Reigning and decided to read the trades before and after it. I wish I had been mistaken or simply didn’t mistrust my own judgement. The books set up why and how Thor goes all world conquering and how he finally recognizes the error of his ways, but there is nothing new here on this trite plotline.

As previously discussed, comic shops have tons of comics just begging to be collected together and sold as a set, clearing out inventory and exposing fans to great comics they probably missed. Here’s another that deserves the distinction.

Title: Justice
Genre: Action/Adventure, Science Fiction
Issues: #16-32
Publisher: Marvel/New Universe

In 1986 the New Universe line of comics was to be Marvel’s next big thing. As it turned out, it really wasn’t; but it mostly survived for three years with a couple of gems among otherwise less-than-average titles. Justice was one of the stranger stand outs. The concept behind the New Universe was simple enough: what would really happen if people with extraordinary abilities began appearing in the real world (which was the result of a cosmic phenomenon known as “the White Event”)?

Unfortunately, someone didn’t get the memo as Justice/John Tensen (the lead character) began as a sword and sorcery enforcer holding back the evils of magic in a faraway alien world—quite the opposite of what the New Universe was supposed to be about. Likewise, for numerous reasons, the entire New Universe line got off to a rocky start. It wasn’t until about 16 months in that things really started to gel, and the various titles began to occupy a world that was showing the cracks of all the changes it was undergoing (in contrast to mainstream comics where heroes never age, the New Universe world evolved in “real time,” with each issue taking place roughly a month after the one before it, which allowed the writers to show the consequences of their characters’ actions on the world). At about that time, Peter David was given the writing chores of Justice, and he took the title in a radical new direction (but one that was more in line with the New Universe’s original intent).

Tensen was a delusional psychotic. The time he had spent waging war in the alien fantasy world was all in is head. He did have amazing abilities (projecting energy shields and swords out of his own body), but these only furthered his schizophrenia.

As David began his run, Tensen begins to awaken from his psychosis and to remember his job of Federal officer. And with his newfound power, he becomes a government agent who can help track down other paranormals (who have been popping up everywhere since the White Event) and ensure they aren’t causing problems.

What made Justice stand out was David’s handling of the Justice/Tensen identity crisis and his relationship to other cast members. Tensen, recovering but still not completely with it, takes his role of persuer to a new level, seeing himself as an instrument of Justice: he not only seeks out new paranormals, he becomes their judge. And if he decides that they are not using their powers appropriately, he exacts swift retribution, usually in the form of capital punishment.

David paints the picture of a uniquely unbalanced individual trying to bring black-and-white order to an increasingly murky world. And David pushed the concept further by placing Justice in situations that strained easy decisions, like good people who must do bad things, and discovering his own daughter (Angela) to be a paranormal. Perhaps most interesting, Justice has no tolerance for other vigilantes—especially those who follow his example.

As time passes and more paranormals are discovered, more changes to the world at large take place: Pittsburgh  is obliterated, and America gears up for war. Justice becomes part of these activities, and heads to Manhattan which has become a refuge for paranormals. Unfortunately, the New Universe line was cancelled even as it was getting more interesting. But the good thing about finite stories is that you can actually give them a proper ending. And David allowed Tensen to grow into the role of supreme judge of his peers (other paranormals). And while Tensen’s dementia allows the reader to understand that he has a ways to go before he becomes the new Solomon, we see that Justice is on the right path.

The artwork of Justice was not always pretty, and it was often difficult to tell whether this was intentional on the part of Lee Weeks, or whether much of it was due to Weeks learning the ropes of comic-making. In any case, Justice provided a dark and off-kilter look to a title that could easily have been presented as just another superhero.

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Other Never Traded reviews

To pass English class and graduate, 18-year-old Steve York has to write a 100-page essay about his life. Steve reflects on high school to figure out why he’s simply given up on the future.  Is it because he hates his father the Famous Astronaut? Is it because his ex-girlfriend, Wanda “Dub” Varner, pureed his heart? Or is it because he’s become a stoner loser? While some of the references are dated, I know few books that capture of the horror of teenage drama so elegantly and with so much fun. It’s a great read.

All 13-year-old Cuban American, Michael Arroyo, wants to do is play baseball, but since he’s so good, rival coaches accuse him of being too old for Little League. Showing his birth certificate and solving the problem would be easier if it wasn’t in Cuba and if he wasn’t hiding the fact that his father is dead. Will Michael get to play ball or get sent away from his brother and into foster care? Read this sports journalist’s story and find out.

Due to my interminable health problems, my doctors must have decided it was better to have me die of radiation poisoning rather than admit they have no idea what is wrong with me, never mind how to make me well. Therefore, after an inconclusive CAT scan, I was sent for a Fluoroscopy. This procedure takes “moving” pictures of your inner workings by continuously x-raying you on a moving examine table while you chug foul white paste (for x-ray contrast), which is the first substance to enter your body in over twelve hours. It’s actually kind of neat if you think about it and it isn’t happening to you.

I worked somebody else’s party. New Year’s always sucks mainly because it is so hyped. You’re kind of expected to go to some black tie party where you snort coke off various supermodels’ tits while the sprinkler system sprays champagne onto a crowd of hundreds. I can count the number of decent New Year’s on one hand and none of them involved supermodels. Perhaps this is why I avoid the whole situation by bartending for a caterer on Long Island. The money’s good (people tip better when you give up a holiday for them), I get to goof around with coworkers and guests whom there is little chance I’ll ever have to deal with again, and drink other people’s booze at the stroke of midnight. Maybe you think that’s lame as I’ll never be able to say “Wow, I had the greatest time ever”, but I also never say “*Sigh*, what a disappointment.” Instead, it’s always: “What did you do for New Year’s?” “I had to work.” “Bummer, huh?” Oh, yeah? and what did you do?

Told from the point of view of a sharecropper, this comic follows baseball Hall of Famer Leroy “Satchel” Paige who changed the face of the game in a career that spanned five decades.  Arguably the Negro League’s hardest thrower and greatest gate attraction, Sturm shows how he dealt with segregation in a fast paced, intriguingly drawn narrative.

Cej’s review here.

This film of friends who engage in dangerous and silly stunts can be seen in one of two ways. Either it is proof that there is no god, as the people involved are so pathetic that a just savior could never allow them to exist, or it is proof that Darwinism is a joke, as they show that evolution has never occurred.

I liked this drama based on real Texas congressman Charlie Wilson’s covert dealings in Afghanistan, which helped win the Cold War and start the War on Terror. The book documenting the story displays even more of the bizarre people and events involved, but this was a good, short introduction with plenty of punchy dialogue.

And so the Fables‘ fable comes to an end as the exiled band of storybook favorites take on the evil empire of the Adversary. Sadly, most of this volume seemed rushed as it focused more and more on the war plot at the complete expense of the characters that breathed life into the tale. There is plenty of room for further stories, and I hope to see them someday soon, but only if Willingham tells stories about individuals with adventures, not adventures that have individuals.

Click to enlarge.

So How Did You Make That Card?

STEP 1: THE IDEA
The first step was probably the hardest. How do you come up with an idea that will be fun and fit on a card? Usually, something finally pops into my head.

STEP 2: THE SKETCH
Next came the sketch. This one started on the back of some scrap paper. I doodled around, trying to figure out what worked and what didn’t. Step 2 is really just an extension of Step 1.

Once I had an idea of what I wanted, I sketched the image out “full size” to get a sense of how things would fit together for a card shape. I also doodled around trying to get the right look for the faces.

STEP 3: THE DRAWING
Next came the actual drawing. I took a large sheet of tracing paper, and sketched out the image. This is where I worked out all the “issues” that came up. For example, you can see that I decided to cut off these guys’ legs (since they don’t add anything to the image); and I decided to have Obama wave off the gift rather than take it (because that’s funnier). These are big changes (especially when drawing hands), so it’s best to work it all out first.

Next, I took a sheet of Bristol (a heavy paper), and using a lightbox, I lightly traced the image, leaving all the mistakes on the tracing paper.

Light box

STEP 4: INKING
Next I went over all of the pencils with ink. Some people think this means “tracing,” but it’s not. Inking adds a whole different character to the image. I used a brush to vary the line weights (compare Bush’s chin line to his nose line) and to add some depth to the image.

Ink & brushes

Once all the ink was dry, I erased any left over pencil lines.

STEP 5: SCANNING
Next I scanned the picture into my computer. This process turns the image into a digital computer file.

STEP 6: USING PHOTOSHOP and ILLUSTRATOR

I took the scanned image and opened it in a software program called Adobe Photoshop and Adobe Illustrator. These program allows me to manipulate the image and make it ready for printing. With Photoshop I resized the image to make it card-ready. With Illustrator I created the word balloons and the text. It wasn’t that difficult to come up with 12 “gifts” from George, but setting it to music was a little trickier. I also created the back of the card.

STEP 7: PRINTING
Then it was off to the copy store to print the card. I had them print 2 images on a page of card stock and then cut the page in half.

STEP 8: MAILING
Then JoAnn and I just addressed, stamped, added something witty like “Merry Christmas,” and dropped the cards in the mail. See how easy it is! Anyone can do it!

HAPPY HOLIDAYS!
Visions of Christmas Cards Past:

2007: 2006: 2005:

2004: 2003: 2001:

2000: 1999: 1998:

If you didn’t get a card this year it probably means we don’t love you we don’t have your address. Send it to us!

Yesterday I saw my 10-year-old niece, Chloe, preform in this dance recital (I also met her new dog, Oliver). There were some very skilled young people in this show and I was impressed, although I have to admit that I focused on Chloe, when she was on stage, at the expense of watching anything else. Chloe goes out of her way to, unprompted, audition for such shows, works extremely hard, and has incredible stage presence. My sister says that she is a natural dancer and should pursue that field–a thought that makes me cringe as I think of the scum I’ve encountered that are involved in the theatre world. Then again, when I was my niece’s age, I watched a lot of television, and look how I turned out.

I just had a Cat Scan, one of the many and constant medical procedures I consistently go through in the vain attempt to keep myself alive for another day of misery. I never had one before and want to warn others that the procedure, which only take a few minutes, involves (after a 12 hour fast) chugging a liter of banana flavored paste. I then had to wait for an hour to see the technician (typical) while the office TV showed Still Standing and The People Court. I’ve never seen either, and if you haven’t, let me give you a run down: The former is a cliched filled, unfunny sitcom that features the equally cliched fat, stupid, hideous man married to a stunning woman; the latter has an attractive woman impersonating a judge whereby she proceed to scream at people who dare seek justice. I hope my scan results are more favorable than the quality of those shows.

I attended METRO’s workshop on developing a career strategic plan, by Susan DiMattia, last night. She gave some good advice on how to be prepared for downturns and what steps might help you pull out of them. METRO supposably has many good events like this but I can only go to the free ones. It was also geared as a networking event, which is ironic as just about everyone there was unemployed or about to be. On the plus side I did get to have some nice chats with fellow librarians, but there are also those you realize should be unemployed. M. is a fellow Queens College student that I’ve had several classes with; you would think she could have the decency to say hello to me. Then there was the woman who was complaining that since she wasn’t up to date on new technologies she would never want to follow Ms. DiMattia’s advice of acknowledging your shortcomings but turning that admission into a positive by explaining how you are taking steps to fix the deficiency. Lady, if that technology is important to a job the employer is going to ask you if you can handle it. At that point you can lie, admit you suck, or try to put a positive spin on it. Only the first and the last will get you the job. If you chose the first path or somehow get the job without being asked the results will be the same: you’ll be fired soon enough. Put a positive spin on it and take a professional development class.

Make no mistake, this cross between Enter the Dragon and Kingpin about a has been ping pong champ (?) who is recruited by the Feds to take down an evil ping pong syndicate is extremely stupid. Yet I couldn’t help but laugh at loud at some of its silliness. Why does Christopher Walken take roles in such movies? Who cares? watch it when you have nothing else to do and need a laugh.

Cap is attempting to track down is old partner, Bucky, while the Red Skull, et al plots both their demises. Brubaker is probably the best Captain America writer I’ve read—it might have something to do with the focus being on both characters and action, but action revolving around terrorists, not stuff like the Skrull.

nothing. And that’s just the way I like it. Thanksgiving—for me—is a time to be lazy and eat too much. Isn’t that the American dream? I hope everyone had a happy Thanksgiving.

click to enlarge

Drawing Board But wait! There is more… »

Hubbell, Sue. Shrinking the Cat: Genetic Engineering Before We Knew About Genes. Mariner Books, 2002.

In Shrinking the Cat, Hubbell follows the natural history of several species, including the silk worm, corn, the apple, and the cat. Indeed, the book might have been titled Mutating the Moth, except that I suspect that cat books sell better. It’s a fascinating look at how human beings have interacted with nature to produce results that are, usually, more beneficial to ourselves—but perhaps less so to the animal or crop itself; for example, we’ve mutated corn to the point where it cannot reproduce without human intervention. Shrinking also delves into the difficulties that scientists face with understanding the natural world, where our very definitions of “natural” and “species” become increasingly strained as we look closer at actual situations. Hubbell’s premise is that people have been manipulating nature long before the term “gene splicing” had meaning. While I agree that genetic engineering has long been part of the human endeavor, I still contend that there is a significant distinction between choices made at the macro level and those made directly to the DNA. Hubbell doesn’t really dispute this position, and she certainly concludes that both can have long reaching (and often negative) consequences. Despite my minor misgivings, Shrinking is an excellent introduction for the non-scientist and non-historian into the sometimes strange world of human experiments on the natural world.