Doug: Back in October we ran a post requesting ideas from our readers. We promised to run all of those suggestions at some point. While we've covered many of them, it's been a while since some of those thoughts graced our blog. Here's another one:
The Prowler (sheesh - controlling the whole week!): "Rave on Wednesday": What's going on that you really like? Find an awesome "micro brew" line? Great burger? Find a penny with the head up?
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Yesterday was the first day since November 22nd that it didn't rain !!! Not one single drop of rain fell in the entire 24 hours of January 19th - and today is extremely sunny too so it could be two dry days in a row for the first time since October. It has also got much, much colder and feels like proper winter after the mildest December in Britain since records began in 1910.
Enjoy that sunshine, Colin! I'm enjoying a nice little snowfall this morning, about 2-3 inches It's been a dry winter here, with practically no snow whatever. So I'm glad to see a few flakes.
Also smiling that my latest ebay purchase just arrived- Spiderman Omnibus 1. 1000 plus pages of Lee and Ditko means lots of great reading ahead...
Dry and warm winter here in the DC region thus far as well, BUT-- we appear to be having a major storm event on the way for Friday & Saturday, so the customary freak-out panic is getting an early jump. . .
A happy rave on my end is the wonderful, economic convenience of having a reasonably well-stocked public library when it comes to checking out DVD's of television series both old and new! With a bit of forethought and rudimentary search skills, one can track down most of what one might be looking for. Granted, there's invariably some disc cleaning/refinishing to be done. . . and ya can't space out on the due dates. . . but we're a family that has neither a cable nor internet television subscription (antenna all the way, baby!), nor have we signed up for Hulu or Netflix or a similar service. And yet. . . a veritable embarrassment of viewing riches is still available, AND there's the solid feeling you get from making appreciative use of a hard-workin' public service like the county library. (The one down-side is that Season Five of Smallville got so degraded that they had to pull it from the system. . . and haven't replaced it. . .)
Another is that, although the internet seems to outpaced the population of the universe in the amount of dreck it's able to produce, it obviously has also given rise to a veritable tsunami of creative opportunity for folks who would otherwise never, ever have found a platform or stage or audience for their unique work.
ITSJUSTSOMERANDOMGUY's action figure parody videos were, for several years, the stick against which to measure other similar ventures. I don't think Marvel's quite funny, higher-production WHAT THE-? videos would have been thought of w/out it.
WELCOME TO NIGHTVALE's podcast is. . . impossible to adequately describe. But is perfect for the Lovecraft/horror/conspiracy/SF genre-mash-up that it's aimed at (or even folks like some of us, eh?). Darkly hilarious and often brilliant in its writing. It would never exist w/out the internet. It's a fundamentally non-commercial endeavor
RED VS BLUE's hi-jacking of the Halo franchise is truly more interesting to me than Halo itself will ever be. And that little production company of total oddballs (Rooster Teeth) still seem to be perpetually amazed at their continued success. HBSon lives for those guys.
And think about fan-fiction on the whole. I honestly don't read much of it at all-- it seems to be about 99.3% not-good. . . BUT, you know what? In a society that is perpetually denigrated as being non-literate, what could be MORE WONDERFUL than having so many regular, everyday folks ENGAGING IN THE ACT OF CREATING LITERATURE-? Any literature, be it good or not-so? The process itself is really where a person's growth occurs-- not the result. The process is the commonality that links Tolstoy with Fred at Costco. The 100 pages produced by a Hemingway and the 100 pages produced by a 2nd Asst file clerk writing on a dare may be worlds apart in literary merit, but what they went through- the agony (and ecstasy) of producing those 100 pages is a commonality of experience that unites them. It creates a bond of mutual respect that can transcend societal boundaries.
Whoo--
Totally raved there, didn't I. . . ?
Please tell me I'm not killing this thread. . .
HB
I want to rave on my students for just a bit, and them humoring the old man. Longtime readers know I teach a high school course on the Holocaust. We begin each semester with a social justice/injustice unit where we survey such topics as genocide, racial profiling, sexism, racism, colorism, bullying, etc. As part of the resources we use, I've chosen two pop songs that have pretty heavy meaning when analyzed as poetry. They are -
Hotdogs and Hamburgers by John Mellencamp
Everyday People by Sly and the Family Stone
Virtually none of my kids have ever heard either song, but the stuff they come up with when analyzing the lyrics is uplifting - they "get it". Very thoughtful conversations.
Makes me smile.
Doug
I went to see Nathaniel Rateliff play a few nights ago-- great high energy show! He breaks into a slidey dance often, and the horn section was cool, and the songs have an old flavor but with new soul in them: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1iAYhQsQhSY
I was listening to the Arctic Monkeys last night, and this song charges me up (even though it's 10 years old now): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uQNyTo4k_TA
Alan Doyle is well known in Canada for his celtic band Great Big Sea, and he put on a great show with the Barenaked Ladies recently. Here's a new song that revved up the crowd, with a goofy rap in the middle by Barenaked Ladies singer Ed Robertson: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nuqJIDee_5E
Here's some classic rock by Bad Company that always pleases me: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SEuKkcX1uKA
I've always dug this cheery sounding song by Matthew Sweet, although the lyrics have some negativity to them: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sNfocDNZWY8
Loving this positive energy today! Here's a bit more:
I'm raving on today's technology. Mostly inspired by my new tablet, which I love. In our world today, surrounded by tech in every aspect of life, it becomes easy to take it for granted. I certainly do, too often. But when you really think on it, having a reasonably inexpensive device upon which you can:
Watch tv and films
Read a book or comic
Chat with a friend anywhere on the planet
Take a high definition photo with no developer or paper necessary
Write a novel
Do your taxes
Play mah-jong
Very impressive, to my thinking. And perhaps best of all, it expands your ability to gain new friends and share thoughts, on great sites like Bronze Age Babies (the best site, imho). Rave over...
@Colin: What part of England do you live in? I have aunts and cousins in Carlisle and they said the rain/flooding was pretty bad up there a few weeks ago (though I think it's better now...my aunt said it snowed last weekend); I heard the flooding was bad in the Midlands too.
@Garrett: I love that Arctic Monkeys song. I was never really into Great Big Sea, but if we're talking Canadian bands, there's a band from Winnipeg called Mobina Galore that I've been loving lately.
Mike Wilson
I'm thinking Great Big Sea and Barenaked Ladies is a heck of a double-headliner of a concert! Man, have the BNL guys ever not been touring around somewhere? Them poor fellas must be powerful burnt-out, I'd think. . .
HB
Hey Mike, thanks for the Mobina Galore link! I listened to a couple songs, sounds good. Hadn't heard of this band before.
HB, yes it was a very fun concert, although Alan Doyle was with a new band called the Beautiful Gypsies, not Great Big Sea. Barenaked Ladies were immensely entertaining, even without one of their singers Steven Page, who's no longer in the band. Their encore was a medley of cover tunes from all over, including Led Zeppelin and Rush--silly and fun! Both bands were nice to hear for the clarity of the singing and songwriting, and had energy to burn-- no burnout yet.
On the comic side, I've been digging Neal Adams Batman Illustrated Vol 3. Joker's 5-Way Revenge in Batman 251 is superb, with Adams inking himself. Best art in comics ever? BAB did a review here: http://bronzeagebabies.blogspot.ca/2013/12/batman-251-review.html
...and in the comments, Edo said he'd review the Hulk/Batman crossover book. Did that happen yet Edo? I'd love to see a review!
Oh, man, Garett, look at you spelunking through the archives, finding my old, off-hand comments and then putting my feet to the fire about them... :P
Anyway, to answer your question: I've since read the Batman vs. Hulk book, but have yet to commit any kind of review to paper, so to speak. I do in fact have the beginnings of several reviews/posts written in rather rough form, but nothing close to being finished - I've just had a rather hectic few months since early November and have not really had the type of free time that allows me to engage in creative writing.
One thing I always like raving about/promoting is tied to HB's observations about the internet making so many fun and/or cool fan projects possible. I know I've mentioned them here before, but I always like giving a plug to some of the best new Trek material being produced in recent years (far better than the new rebooted movie franchise): Star Trek: Phase II/New Voyages and Star Trek Continues.
Also, in a similar vein, there's the whole new pulp scene that's really been exploding online, and Airship 27 is one of my favorite publishers/sites, as they offer all of their titles in .pdf format as well.
Oh, and Doug, re: Everyday People as a teaching aid. Oh, yeah. I wish you had been my history teacher back in high school...
Eco, I'll help you review Batman vs. Hulk right here, at no extra cost:
An entire oversized comic drawn by Jose Luis Garcia-Lopez! Look at how he drew that page! And that panel! And that character! And that other thing! drool... Oh yeah, and that part where Batman kicks the Hulk is stupid. But that Joker looks amazing!
No need to thank me.
In other news, I just read the first 3 issues of Unfollow, a new Vertigo series, and really liked them. I'm happy to be sucked in to a new comic, and I look forward to reading it every month.
- Mike Loughlin
Hmm I got nothing really new to add here, just seconding HB and Redartz on the proliferation of fan fiction and the use of modern technology. I've read my share of fan fics, and while some efforts are cringeworthy, one has to remember that these are fans who pour out their love of a TV show/movie/book/character into words, so it comes straight from the heart, and that's the most important point.
As for the wonders of the information age, well, we wouldn't be having this discussion if not for the technology that enables us to communicate from so many different places and cultures. The BAB is a perfect example of such a melting pot of fans.
- Mike 'luddite only for karaoke' from Trinidad & Tobago.
Wow, Colin--
I not sure whether I'm more astonished or more appalled-- but the level of both is huge. What's most horrifying is that the vile little faction of repulsive Holocaust deniers out there may end up achieving their goal via the careless ignorance of Holocaust-forgetors. Oh, it makes me sad and angry. And in Europe, yet. I mean, World War II was RIGHT THERE.
Sorry-- it's not rant day. It just touched a bit of a nerve.
And to be honest, we do experience a bit of that kind of disconnect and amnesia here in the States when it comes to our own Civil War.
So let me turn to another light rave.
Got the entire BRAVE AND THE BOLD animated series from my Mom for my Birthday. I'm a little over halfway through the first season-- and it's one of the most easily enjoyable confections I've watched in a long, long time. I honestly can't find a single thing to criticize about it at this point. It really seems like it was made precisely for Bronze Age DC fans, y'know? I mean-- Kamandi has a cameo scene, for pete's sake!
HB
Mike L.: Ha! I think you just outlined my potential review of Batman/Hulk...
HB, I'm a bit envious that you have Batman: B&B - I watch that show whenever I can in reruns here on the Cartoon Network. Like you, I can find nothing to criticize about that show: it's smart, funny, entertaining, very true to the spirit of the characters and just plain old fun superhero action.
Thanks Mike L.! But we have to see those panels to drool over them. : )
Edo, whenever you're ready to do that Batman vs Hulk review, you will have an anxiously-awaiting audience!
Y'know edo, if you were indeed motivated to do a tag-team review of the Hulk/Batman book (Oo! A three-way w/ Mike L as a precedent-setter!), I would be totally up to give it a shot. I do have that book downstairs, and haven't read it in decades. Whatcha think, guys? How do Doug & Karen work out the logistics of that sort of thing, anyhoo?
HB
I, too, would welcome a review of Batman-Hulk. I've never read it!
HB, as we speak (well, not like "right now" as we speak, but you know), Karen and I are working on our first partner review of the new year. We're doing it via email and within the blog itself. We decided not to do the exhaustive plot summary, but instead focus on scenes, themes, and characterization throughout the story. So one of us will write a paragraph or two, and then the other will come along and fill in the gaps with his/her own perceptions. That second person then sets the next topic and that's how we've been rolling.
Doesn't have to be that way. I thought the system Mike W. and Osvaldo used on the Spidey/Torch series was nice.
Hope that helps, and hope you guys get this pulled together. It will be fun!
Doug
Wow, looks like a groundswell of demand for a Batman vs. Hulk review. *heavy sigh* I guess I can't let my loyal fans down... :P
Seriously, though, I was indeed thinking about doing some kind of review of that book, although as I mentioned above, I haven't actually written anything down. HB, if you're serious about doing some kind of joint/partner review, that would be cool, too. The way Mike W. and I did the Manhunter review was basically an e-mail back-and-forth discussion after I wrote the initial short summaries of each chapter. It was quite fun. Anyway, if you're interested, just have Karen or Doug give you my e-mail address so we can work out the details (to be honest, at this point I think I'll have to read it once more just to refresh some of my initial thoughts).
'Tis a deal-!
I'll contact them forthwith-- (perhaps even fifth or sixthwith. . .)
HB
HB & Edo,
If you are willing to take on a third reviewer, I'd be happy to contribute. If not, no worries! I look forward to reading it!
- Mike Loughlin
Mike L., I have no problems with that. Send Karen & Doug an e-mail via the BAB address so they can give you our addresses. (And HB, I'll drop you line as soon as I can, it's been a bit hectic over in my little corner of the world for the past few days.)
Cool. Thanks, Edo!
- Mike Loughlin
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