Welcome once again to MONDAY NIGHT PODIUM!!!
Wait, that's not it...
Okay...welcome once again to RAW IS PODIUM!!!
Nope..sorry. I guess I've spent WAY too much time lately watching pro wrestling.
Welcome, after a long absence, to THE PODIUM: the publication BY comic readers and FOR comic readers. It's been a long time in coming and, despite the fact that my time is still pretty tied up in other things, I did make a promise, to the pros, fans and comic shop owners, that I WOULD put out an issue before the end of the millennium.
Well, here it is!
This issue is affectionately being called the Y4C issue. No, not Y2K, Y2J or any other half baked slogan. No, this is Y4C: Year For Comics! And it truly HAS been a wonderful year for comics and comic fans. Not for our wallets, but for our minds and fantasies. By far, this has probably been the best year for comics in a long time. And, for a change, most of this quality is coming from the long maligned MAINSTREAM. Not that the indies haven't done their share.
But come on! I mean, look at some of the product that has hit the shelves since I last rambled on.
First off: there's the ENTIRE line of Alan Moore's America's Best Comics, which have fast become just that.
The works of Warren Ellis. He's been all over the planet this year and now, with a deal which brings him to Avatar(sort of), he shows no sign of letting up or dropping his quality.
The rebirth of Image. Yeah, I know: I never thought I'd sing their high praises either. But, with the exception of the plethora of ever increasing SPAWN spin-offs, this once Indy now very mainstream company has gone back to the days when they were turning out more books than one could count. The difference this time around? There's a whole lot of them that are DAMNED GOOD!
The birth of the M-Tech line. Sure, we all thought this would be a real Marvel turkey. but SURPRISE, SURPRISE, SURPRISE! With the exception of WARLOCK, this series of titles is full of enough neat little twists to keep most comic fans on the edge of their reading seat.
And the list goes on and on.
The changes in THE FLASH. Alan Moore's work for Awesome. The rise in popularity of Chaos! Comics wrestling line, with what is sure to be their most popular to date, STONE COLD STEVE AUSTIN, poised and ready to blast away at the other companies. The POKEMAN phenomenon, which has taken over comic sops and, believe it or not, led to a few new comic readers along the way.
And so on and so on and so on.
Yeah...it's a wonderful year for comic fans.
So, what else is new since we last chatted?
Well, THE PODIUM staff has been busy in their real lives. Mark Lopes is now a married guy. He and Jen got hitched in August and Mike Keane, who will be following suit next September, and Mark and I got to spend a little time together that day. Not as much as we'd like, as I was working the gig. The food was cool, the time was fun and the room had air conditioning...always a plus this time of year.
As far as John, Jay and Chris...no clue, kids! Jay is busy with law school, John can either be found in your local BLOCKBUSTER store, on-line in an EBAY moment or training to be the next ECW champion. And Chris? Again, no clue.
The video business is still booming. Booming to the point of exhaustion for some of us. With weddings, college training vids, music vids, fashion shows and the like, only 10 minutes of DLM has been lensed to date. Nowhere near where we want to be, but...ya gotta pay the rent, you know? But we DID get to go to New Jersey and shoot some location stuff in Leonardo and Red Banks. that meant we got to visit the infamous Secret Stash, meet Jay Mewes and Walt Flannagan and pretty much sit in awe of being in the home of comics' newest resident genius, Kevin Smith. Very cool indeed.
On the way home from this one day gig, it was stop in the Big Apple, check out 3D IMAX, have a HUGE dinner at the Stage Deli and basically take in the nightlife sights. Again, very cool indeed.
Eric is still banging away at the music thing. Between Centerfold, Simple Truth, Holy Diver, his recording sessions and his teachings, he's been a stranger in the house, so to speak. Busy, busy,busy-that's my cousin. Trips to the West Coast and up north and all have left him a road rat once again. But hey-that's the life he loves. The road. When it calls, he's there in a flash and ready to suck it all in.
All in all, it's been a busy summer for all of us. I can't believe, for the first time in five years, I've actually gotten to TAKE my four weeks vacation. That's a first! And, because I AM no fool, I did manage to salvage JUST ENOUGH time to do the annual NACA pilgrimage in November. It's an essential part of my hectic life and, coming just two weeks before Thanksgiving, will be an energy boast as I cruise into the Forties.
Well, with no further delays, welcome to Y4C: the last PODIUM of the 20th century. And, because it's been such a KILLER year for reading, this issue is ALL REVIEWS. No filler, no traffic accidents (thanks to Dave Sim for that line!), no BS! Just reviews and more reviews.
Hey...is this the PODIUM age of comics or what?
Okay, so I lifted that from Stan Lee. I don't thing he'll mind...I don't think he READS US! But, if he did, he'd probably smile and say thanks.
Or get on the horn to his lawyers and say cease and desist. Either way, it's said and it's done.
So, until we next meet, sometime in the 21st Century(provide Y2K DOESN'T get us and the
world doesn't come crashing to a bitter end at 12:00:01 on 1/1/00), keep reading, keep
dreaming and keep supporting your local comic shop. This POKEMAN craze can't last forever!
.