LINK LOVE: 2/7/2012

There were too many great links this morning to pick only ONE for ye old Facebook. So here they are, collected into a nice happy digest. Enjoy!

1. Superheroines in Comfy Pants +  How RPGs Talk To Women

Those links are straight from The Mary Sue, which is a great female centric nerd blog you should already be following on FB, Twitter or through some other social media venue.

Personal favorite:

Bat Woman in Comfy Pants by MichelleSix

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2. Lana Del Rey’s The Hunger Games

The perfect spoof and mash-up of the songstress everyone loves to hate + the increasing hysteria surrounding The Hunger Games.

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3. Neko Case is Recording a Song for The Hunger Games

I predicted this! A Neko Case song kicks off every one of my Hunger Games playlists. She already has so many great songs to choose from, it seems strange that she would need to record another. Ah well, I guess that’s how these soundtrack thangs work. Along with tracks from Arcade Fire and The Secret Sisters, this is absolutely going to be a must buy. Looks like there will be two separate albums – the actual score by T-Bone and James Newton Howard. And then another full of conventional songs inspired by The Hunger Games. It’s going to be released March 20, 2012. Om nom nom.

4. New Spiderman Trailer

Funny, we were just remarking about this last night after receiving the San Diego Comic Con catalog where Peter Parker and Mary Jane are posing front and center. I was in the “looks alright to me” camp, and Dan was in the “I like the web-shooters” camp. Our buddy and current house guest Troy who is easily the more Spidey-obsessed seemed a bit “meh” all around and was much more excited about the potential new Star Trek series.

Spreading the Link Love: 7/8/2010

HIGH SCHOOL CHRONICLES OF ARIEL SCHRAG

Thanks to the lovely She Has No Head! column running an article on the Top 10 Webcomics, I was introduced to Ariel Schrag’s Ariel and Kevin Invade Everything. She is the author of four comic books (published in three volumes) chronicling her High School years (1995-1999).

Everyone who was in HS in the mid-to-late-90s should check these books out. Hell, everyone who went to HS in the last two decades would probably be able to find something which resonates with Schrag’s voice and experiences. She drew me in by reminding me so much of a group of my HS friends, and then held me captive for almost 900 pages of illustration and text as she explores her sexuality and attempts to tackle her art, classes and eventually a part-time job – all while preparing herself for college.

My personal favorite is Potential – it garnered her an Eisner award nomination.  This one is the documentation of Schrag coming to terms her homosexuality, falling in love for the first time, and suffering through her parents divorce. It’s raw and blisteringly painful but perfectly captures the essence of HS and first love. It was nearly impossible to put down.

My only bone of contention is with the final book – Likewise. It’s far too experimental for my tastes and strays heavily from the format of the first three books. It features blank panels, sketchy scenes and lots of word salad. There is also not a strong feeling of closure, especially since this is the final volume in the autobiographical series. Of course, it doesn’t take much effort to learn that she eventually went to Columbia and spent a few seasons as a writer on The L Word.

What’s compelling is that she was able to conceive, create, publish and distribute this work at such a young age, with seemingly little support from her parents (aside from freedom and funding).

Most of the artistic style featured is cartoonish, but the few sequences where she renders herself and her love interest Sally in full artistic scope are mind-blowing. I would love to see more pieces like that evolving in her work, but she manages to eek a lot of emotion out of the big eyes, skinny limbs and tousled hair of her subjects.

Highly suggested!

Bechdel Test: All three books PASS the women test, two PASS the men test and no books PASS the race test.

NEW Wolverine: Origins Trailer

For those who giddily watched the Wolverine: Origins Trailer during the Watchmen previews, and squealed with fan delight – here is that trailer:

Pass this around to friends and loved ones. This might be one of the better X-Men movies yet made. It’s already high on my list because of the awesome scenes with Gambit.

Choke Trailer

Sorry about this folks – just a mini-post with the Choke Trailer. 🙂

Much Love, Mindy C

X-Men Origins: Wolverine NEW Comic Con Trailer

It’s hard to feel awful about leaking promotional material – so I don’t. If they wanted to keep it a super secret, they wouldn’t have released it to a room full of rabid fans.

LOOKS LIKE THE TRAILER HAS BEEN PULLED EVERYWHERE – SORRY FOLKS.

It’s hardly a shocker…but why bother acting like all the promotion the studio received violated “Property Rights?” *sigh* MOVIE STUDIOS ARE STUPID.

Someone was smart though – here’s a play by play of the trailer with screen-shots!

Was that Emma Frost? If this source is correct…that’s an affirmative.

Welcome to the “Dollhouse”

Some of ya’ll may have heard – but the talented Mr. Joss Whedon is helming a new series over at Fox called “Dollhouse” starring Eliza Dushku (of Buffy/Angel fame), Tahmoh Penikett (better known as Helo from BSG), Olivia Williams, and Amy Acker…to drop a few names.

It will be airing mid-season in 08-09, and the pilot episode is already completed. It’s been picked up for 7 episodes (thought other places I’ve heard 13) and seems to be green-lighted on all fronts.

The Dollhouse consists of a few folks who are memory-wiped and pimped out to the highest bidder to perform whatever task the folks might desire. It’s an intriguing premise, but the trailer doesn’t really do the show justice quite yet.

Watch the trailer here.

I hope this isn’t viewed as some kind of trite ALIAS knock-off. I have a lot of faith in Joss to make a successful go of a television series (it’s been 5 years). I’m trying really hard not to be ultra-nerdy about this and get TOO excited about the possibilities, or get my hopes up for the amazing awesomeness which is sure to ensue.

It’ll be nice to see/hear NEW Joss dialogue spoken by human beings again. I loved a few of his runs in comics, but some of it leaves me craving the chops of a decent actor to make it amusing and un-ambiguous.

I’m bad – and found a scene online already.

Think of it (and me) what you will, but I can’t wait for Dec 08/Jan 09 to roll around, and be knee-deep in Whedon love. 🙂

Much Love, Mindy C