There are a lot of really great comics out there and with the changes at Marvel & DC there is a lot to be excited about for comic book fans.
Here are a few of the books that I've been enjoying, or not, over the past few months. Oddly enough I've also been buying more books digitally. As a matter of fact all of these books are ones I have been reading in the digital format exclusively. I'm still reading my print monthlies and I won't be giving them up, but there are some books that I'm okay with not buying in the printed format. Digital isn't all bad and I'm really liking Comixology's app.
The Pound (IDW): This is not the greatest book, but it is a lot of fun. Two former animal control officers, and their werewolf buddy are all that stands between the citizens of Cleveland and the monsters that are hiding in plain sight. I'd like to see this as an ongoing. I'd definitely recommend picking this up in trade.
Witch Doctor (Skybound/Image): I am loving this book. They describe this as "House M.D. meets Fringe" and I'd say that's a pretty fair assessment. For fans of the weird/horror genre this book is a must buy as far as I'm concerned. While I'm still waiting for the remainder of my new 52 books to get here, this book takes the top spot as my pick of the month.
Hawk & Dove (DC): I, like many others, have my issues with Rob Liefeld, but for the most part I like his art. Is it perfect, no, some would say it isn't even very good, but I think his style is fun and I like it.
I'll be honest, I've never been a Hawk & Dove fan, so he was actually the only reason I gave H&D a try. I read the series back when Liefeld did it originally, I disliked it then and I'm not enjoying it now.
I'm sure that there are fans of H&D out there and for them this book may be worth it, but for me this was one of the weakest DC books I've read in the past few years. Unfortunately even figthing zombies on an airplane couldn't save this book, and I'm still a zombie fan. I tried the first issue, but I won't be back.
I see a quick death for this title.
Batwing(DC): I was kind of surprised by this book. It wasn't great, it was actually very mediocre, but it was enjoyable. We see so little of the heroes from other countries and in this issue we are not only introduced to the Batman of Africa, but to the idea that there was an actual team of heroes at some point. Granted I've heard some complain that Batwing can't patrol the whole continent and should be confined to a single country, but how many times have we seen Batman operating in other countries? As a matter of fact he makes a quick appearance in this issue. So the idea of a hero that operates on an entire continent is not too far fetched.
While I do like the book, I doubt that I'll buy any more issues. To be honest if it wasn't for the fact that my comics budget is stretched too thin as it is, I'd add this to my pull list. So my decision to not follow this book is not based on the quality. The art was great and the story was passable. A little disappointing for a premier issue, but definitely not a waste of time or money.
For a new reader or those that are screaming for more diversity this book should be a welcome addition to the DCU, and it is an enjoyable read. Being a Batman book affords this title a longer lifespan than many of the other New 52 books, but I doubt that the book will last too long. After all many of the people who like to cry about diversity are the same people who will bitch and complain on the internet regardless of what DC does. Unfortunately, those people don't really have any intention of supporting the titles they supposedly champion, they just like the attention that whining can provide. That's too bad because this book could
So far the two DC books I've mentioned in this post are the only two of the New 52 that I've read. I'm a bit disappointed, and perhaps I hyped it up too much, but I really did expect DC to go all out for the relaunch. I thought they would only put out the best of the best of the best, but these two books were definitely not up to that level. I've heard really great reviews of some of the higher profile books, which is not surprising, but I really thought DC would try a little harder, this time, with the lower profile books. Hopefully, this is just a case of expectations that are just a bit too high on my part.
Tuesday, September 13, 2011
Monday, September 12, 2011
My current games
The last game I ran was a d20 Modern, CoC d20 and Monte Cook's World of Darkness hybrid. The PC's were a team of ghost hunters, just like on TV, that ended up investigating an abandoned psychiatric hospital that is infested with ghost, demons and other ghoulies. Sure it isn't the most original of ideas, but it was a lot of fun and went very well.
My player's consisted of one long time player, his daughter, my daughter, one of my regular teen players and his girlfriend. It was the girlfriend's first time playing and I am happy to report that not only did everyone have a good time, but I think I ran a damn fine game. In the past few years I've been really fortunate, depending on your perspective, because I have had a lot of players that have never played a table top rpg before. Considering that we don't have a FLGS I think it is pretty great that I've seen 8 new players in the past few years. Not just new to my table but new to the entire experience. That's pretty cool.
Despite many years of GMing I continue to learn about not only the experience, but myself. Every "great" game I've ran for the past few years has been non-fantasy. Sure I love my 3e/Pathfinder, I like 4e and I'm even fond of several other fantasy games, but I'm just not having fun running fantasy and haven't been for quite a while. Running a fantasy game feels like a chore, like work. I'm just burned out on fantasy and don't even enjoy reading or watching S&W fantasy at the moment.
All of the games that get me excited, make me want to play are all non-fantasy. I have quiet a few games that I am really excited about playing like Mutant Epoch, Mutants & Masterminds 3e/DC Adventures, Hollow Earth Expedition, Buffy tVS, and all of my d20 Modern/CoC/MCWoD books.
I've got a game coming up and this time I'm considering running either M&M3e or Buffy. I'm wanting to try my hand at running a supers game, so I'm leaning heavily towards M&M. Before we go on winter hiatus I'm going to try to run a post-apocalyptic game. Assuming the the players are okay with it. Now that they've decided to leave the "I only play fantasy" player out of the group for a bit everyone else is eager to try something new. That's fine by me.
My player's consisted of one long time player, his daughter, my daughter, one of my regular teen players and his girlfriend. It was the girlfriend's first time playing and I am happy to report that not only did everyone have a good time, but I think I ran a damn fine game. In the past few years I've been really fortunate, depending on your perspective, because I have had a lot of players that have never played a table top rpg before. Considering that we don't have a FLGS I think it is pretty great that I've seen 8 new players in the past few years. Not just new to my table but new to the entire experience. That's pretty cool.
Despite many years of GMing I continue to learn about not only the experience, but myself. Every "great" game I've ran for the past few years has been non-fantasy. Sure I love my 3e/Pathfinder, I like 4e and I'm even fond of several other fantasy games, but I'm just not having fun running fantasy and haven't been for quite a while. Running a fantasy game feels like a chore, like work. I'm just burned out on fantasy and don't even enjoy reading or watching S&W fantasy at the moment.
All of the games that get me excited, make me want to play are all non-fantasy. I have quiet a few games that I am really excited about playing like Mutant Epoch, Mutants & Masterminds 3e/DC Adventures, Hollow Earth Expedition, Buffy tVS, and all of my d20 Modern/CoC/MCWoD books.
I've got a game coming up and this time I'm considering running either M&M3e or Buffy. I'm wanting to try my hand at running a supers game, so I'm leaning heavily towards M&M. Before we go on winter hiatus I'm going to try to run a post-apocalyptic game. Assuming the the players are okay with it. Now that they've decided to leave the "I only play fantasy" player out of the group for a bit everyone else is eager to try something new. That's fine by me.
Friday, July 29, 2011
Comic Con, RPGs and Podcasts
Comic Con has come and gone and this year DC seemed to dominate. Not that I'm complaining mind you. I'm a lifelong DC fan, but it did seem odd to see DC as the center of attention. This years Comic Con was actually about comics. Hollywood has dominated the event for the past several years, so it was nice to have an actual comic book company be the big news.
Of course I'm excited about the DC 52 launch this September. Granted I think more than a couple of the books will tank, but over all I'm really jazzed that DC is doing something this bold. I'm also glad that they are already looking at the next wave of books and not just depending on the initial 52 to carry everything. Plus Ryan Choi is not only alive again, but he is The Atom and he's in the Justice League!!! They may not have brought Ted back :-( , but at least they gave us Ryan back. Good job DC.
I've been listening to the DC Comic Con panels on the DC Podcast, (or through itunes) which I highly recommend you download and listen to, and there was really only one time that I got aggravated. Jim, Geoff and all the other DC people were very gracious, even when people asked really dumb questions. However, someone asked a decent question about why the number of female creators has dropped and Didio was a dick to them.
As a listener that really pissed me off. The guy asked a legit question and wanted an intelligent answer and Didio got all snarky and down right rude to the guy. I've heard that Didio was an asshat from other people, but I've never met the guy so I can't say for sure. All I know is that he would have deserved it if the guy that asked the question had caught him after the panel and taught him some manners by putting a boot up his ass.
Didio really did seem to come off as a real jerk. Plus he has a bad habit of talking over the creators. Honestly I don't really care what Didio thinks unless it is something that can't be answered by the creators. I'd just rather hear what the creators think or have planned for a character. It isn't the Dan Didio Panel at Dan Didio Con for Dan Didio Comics, but that's kind of how he comes off. Again I wasn't there and was only listening to an audio podcast so I can only say how it seemed from the audio. Maybe I would have a different opinion if I had actually been there and seen it. I'll give him the benefit of the doubt, but I wasn't impressed with him.
I saw a CBR interview with Quesada @ Comic Con and he was really upbeat and positive about DC's 52 reboot, even though Marvel is again doing their dick move of "tear up DC books and get a Marvel prize". Of course I'm not a big Marvel fan and probably take things like that much more personally than I should. Still he was pretty nice and positive about the whole thing.
In a CBR interview with Todd McFarlane he had nothing positive to say about the DC reboot and from what I hear Mark Waid is pretty anti-DC as well at the moment. It kind of sucks that creators get like that, especially ones I really like, but then I guess if you have a bad experience with an employer you get that way.
Honestly I don't care if they do hate DC and/or Marvel. The way I look at it there are a lot more people reading Marvel and DC books than will ever read their creator owned stuff. People will remember the DC and Marvel characters long after their creator owned stuff is forgotten, even though some of it is pretty damn good.
Since we're on the topics of comics, I'm going to suggest some comics to read. I'm not going to do a whole lot of Marvel and DC stuff, mostly because if you read comics there is a good chance you already read their stuff and are aware of what they offer.
First I am going to recommend The Pound. This is put out by IDW and it's about animal control officers who open their own business in Cleveland and find out that the town if full of monsters. It's a min-series and it isn't the most brilliant of books, but it is a lot of fun. I've read the first 3 issues digitally and I've really enjoyed them. I definitely recommend it.
Second, I'm going to recommend the G.I. Joe books all of which are by IDW. G.I. Joe, Cobra and Snake-eyes are set in the IDW continuity and are really good books. G.I. Joe: A Real American Hero is set in the same universe as the Marvel Comics series. It actually picks up where the Marvel series left off and is also very good read. Of the two universes I prefer the IDW one as it is a bit more adult, but Hama is still doing a great job of picking up where he left off on the Marvel series. Try them both and see which one you like best. Maybe you'll do like me and read both.
House of Mystery by Vertigo is another book I really enjoy. It's just a really fun, twisted book and I can't quit reading it. You can get the trades pretty cheap on Amazon.
Captain America and Bucky, Captain America and Alpha Flight but this should come as no surprise. Cap and Alpha Flight are the only Marvel books I read on a monthly basis. Unless of course they bring back Iron Fist. They are really good books and I highly recommend them.
Showcase presents... I love these trades. Where else can you get up to 25 issues of a comic book series for under $20 (some are under $10 if you use Amazon). Sure they are black and white, but they reprint some classic books and allow you to read some great stories for next to nothing. I buy these every chance I get and enjoy the hell out of them. I highly recommend them.
Lastly I recommend picking up the Captain Canuck Vol 1 and Vol. 2 trades. CC may not be everyone's cup of tea, but I've always enjoyed the character. Or you can pre-order the Complete Edition and get all 15 of the original issues, the summer special and the newspaper strip. I've already got mine pre-ordered.
Lastly I have to give some recognition to Discount Comic Book Service. I've just placed my first order with them, but I have heard nothing but positive things about them and so far the customer service has been great. The prices are amazing and I suggest you check them out.
This year's Comic Con also gave us the teaser trailers for the Amazing Spider-man, Avengers, and Rise of the Planet of the Apes. All movies that I'm eager to see. Well actually I'm not too keen on seeing the origin of Spider-man again, but I will watch it and I definitely want to see the other movies.
The Raimi Spider-man is just a decade old, it's too soon for a complete reboot. The origin movie is still too fresh in our minds. Just like a James Bond movies, I would have been completely OK with them simply casting new people and making another movie in the series, even if they didn't call it Spider-man 4. But I really don't want another origin movie. I have the feeling they are going to do the same thing with Batman once the Nolan Trilogy finishes. I don't want more reboots, just recast and keep going!!
Walking Dead season 2 also had a long trailer, which shows them finally making it to the farm. Granted there were some changes to the story that I like better in the comic, but over all season 1 of the show was great. I only hope season 2 is half as good. I have a friend who has never read a comic book(seriously, he had to ask me how to read one), but loves the show. So I let him read my trades of the series. He likes the comic better too and wishes they had kept more of the comic in the show, but he still loves the show.
As for RPGs, I'm a very disappointed that Exile Game Studios won't have Revelations of Mars, a sourcebook for the awesome Hollow Earth Expedition game, ready by Gen Con. I was really looking forward to getting that book.
My group no longer wanted to play 2e AD&D and made me start running a Pathfinder game once again. My group has grown from 3 to 6 players with only two people (me and 1 player) who are over 17. It's kind of odd to be running a game for a group made up mostly of kids. Two of which are girls (niece and daughter). It's going pretty good, but I have to run a real battle heavy, plot-lite game, with heavy miniatures use, which is something that is not normally my style. So it is kind of a learning experience for me. I've done one shots like this over the years when I just needed a quick game, but this is a whole campaign. It is a little different experience.
I'm still trying to talk them into letting me run something different, but it doesn't look good. A couple of players want me to run a supers game, I suggested a post-apocalyptic game or even a G.I. Joe vs monsters game (1 player liked this), but I can't get everyone on the same page. One player absolutely refuses to play anything but Pathfinder and due to the circumstance of the group it is an all or nothing situation. I can't even get them to play 4e! You would think a group that loves battle so much would be thrilled to go back to 4e, but nope. So we are sticking with Pathfinder.
I also have some podcasts that I've been listening to recently and I want to recommend them.
Raging Bullets, "A DC comics fan podcast" is a really good and show that I thoroughly enjoy. When it comes to strictly comic book podcasts, this one and Backroom Comics are my first two choices. When it comes to video podcasts I go with Exploring the Multiverse.
Last but not least is Star Joes " A podcast dedicated to Star Wars, G.I. Joe, and everything in between. We talk about Comics, Movies, TV Shows, and Toys…lots of Toys…". It's a really fun show if you love '80s comics and toys like G.I. Joe, Transformers, TMNT, Voltron, etc.
These are the shows I've added to my normal rotation of The Nut Gallery, Tekzilla, Hak5, The Tome and 3.5 Private Sanctuary.
Of course I'm excited about the DC 52 launch this September. Granted I think more than a couple of the books will tank, but over all I'm really jazzed that DC is doing something this bold. I'm also glad that they are already looking at the next wave of books and not just depending on the initial 52 to carry everything. Plus Ryan Choi is not only alive again, but he is The Atom and he's in the Justice League!!! They may not have brought Ted back :-( , but at least they gave us Ryan back. Good job DC.
I've been listening to the DC Comic Con panels on the DC Podcast, (or through itunes) which I highly recommend you download and listen to, and there was really only one time that I got aggravated. Jim, Geoff and all the other DC people were very gracious, even when people asked really dumb questions. However, someone asked a decent question about why the number of female creators has dropped and Didio was a dick to them.
As a listener that really pissed me off. The guy asked a legit question and wanted an intelligent answer and Didio got all snarky and down right rude to the guy. I've heard that Didio was an asshat from other people, but I've never met the guy so I can't say for sure. All I know is that he would have deserved it if the guy that asked the question had caught him after the panel and taught him some manners by putting a boot up his ass.
Didio really did seem to come off as a real jerk. Plus he has a bad habit of talking over the creators. Honestly I don't really care what Didio thinks unless it is something that can't be answered by the creators. I'd just rather hear what the creators think or have planned for a character. It isn't the Dan Didio Panel at Dan Didio Con for Dan Didio Comics, but that's kind of how he comes off. Again I wasn't there and was only listening to an audio podcast so I can only say how it seemed from the audio. Maybe I would have a different opinion if I had actually been there and seen it. I'll give him the benefit of the doubt, but I wasn't impressed with him.
I saw a CBR interview with Quesada @ Comic Con and he was really upbeat and positive about DC's 52 reboot, even though Marvel is again doing their dick move of "tear up DC books and get a Marvel prize". Of course I'm not a big Marvel fan and probably take things like that much more personally than I should. Still he was pretty nice and positive about the whole thing.
In a CBR interview with Todd McFarlane he had nothing positive to say about the DC reboot and from what I hear Mark Waid is pretty anti-DC as well at the moment. It kind of sucks that creators get like that, especially ones I really like, but then I guess if you have a bad experience with an employer you get that way.
Honestly I don't care if they do hate DC and/or Marvel. The way I look at it there are a lot more people reading Marvel and DC books than will ever read their creator owned stuff. People will remember the DC and Marvel characters long after their creator owned stuff is forgotten, even though some of it is pretty damn good.
Since we're on the topics of comics, I'm going to suggest some comics to read. I'm not going to do a whole lot of Marvel and DC stuff, mostly because if you read comics there is a good chance you already read their stuff and are aware of what they offer.
First I am going to recommend The Pound. This is put out by IDW and it's about animal control officers who open their own business in Cleveland and find out that the town if full of monsters. It's a min-series and it isn't the most brilliant of books, but it is a lot of fun. I've read the first 3 issues digitally and I've really enjoyed them. I definitely recommend it.
Second, I'm going to recommend the G.I. Joe books all of which are by IDW. G.I. Joe, Cobra and Snake-eyes are set in the IDW continuity and are really good books. G.I. Joe: A Real American Hero is set in the same universe as the Marvel Comics series. It actually picks up where the Marvel series left off and is also very good read. Of the two universes I prefer the IDW one as it is a bit more adult, but Hama is still doing a great job of picking up where he left off on the Marvel series. Try them both and see which one you like best. Maybe you'll do like me and read both.
House of Mystery by Vertigo is another book I really enjoy. It's just a really fun, twisted book and I can't quit reading it. You can get the trades pretty cheap on Amazon.
Captain America and Bucky, Captain America and Alpha Flight but this should come as no surprise. Cap and Alpha Flight are the only Marvel books I read on a monthly basis. Unless of course they bring back Iron Fist. They are really good books and I highly recommend them.
Showcase presents... I love these trades. Where else can you get up to 25 issues of a comic book series for under $20 (some are under $10 if you use Amazon). Sure they are black and white, but they reprint some classic books and allow you to read some great stories for next to nothing. I buy these every chance I get and enjoy the hell out of them. I highly recommend them.
Lastly I recommend picking up the Captain Canuck Vol 1 and Vol. 2 trades. CC may not be everyone's cup of tea, but I've always enjoyed the character. Or you can pre-order the Complete Edition and get all 15 of the original issues, the summer special and the newspaper strip. I've already got mine pre-ordered.
Lastly I have to give some recognition to Discount Comic Book Service. I've just placed my first order with them, but I have heard nothing but positive things about them and so far the customer service has been great. The prices are amazing and I suggest you check them out.
This year's Comic Con also gave us the teaser trailers for the Amazing Spider-man, Avengers, and Rise of the Planet of the Apes. All movies that I'm eager to see. Well actually I'm not too keen on seeing the origin of Spider-man again, but I will watch it and I definitely want to see the other movies.
The Raimi Spider-man is just a decade old, it's too soon for a complete reboot. The origin movie is still too fresh in our minds. Just like a James Bond movies, I would have been completely OK with them simply casting new people and making another movie in the series, even if they didn't call it Spider-man 4. But I really don't want another origin movie. I have the feeling they are going to do the same thing with Batman once the Nolan Trilogy finishes. I don't want more reboots, just recast and keep going!!
Walking Dead season 2 also had a long trailer, which shows them finally making it to the farm. Granted there were some changes to the story that I like better in the comic, but over all season 1 of the show was great. I only hope season 2 is half as good. I have a friend who has never read a comic book(seriously, he had to ask me how to read one), but loves the show. So I let him read my trades of the series. He likes the comic better too and wishes they had kept more of the comic in the show, but he still loves the show.
As for RPGs, I'm a very disappointed that Exile Game Studios won't have Revelations of Mars, a sourcebook for the awesome Hollow Earth Expedition game, ready by Gen Con. I was really looking forward to getting that book.
My group no longer wanted to play 2e AD&D and made me start running a Pathfinder game once again. My group has grown from 3 to 6 players with only two people (me and 1 player) who are over 17. It's kind of odd to be running a game for a group made up mostly of kids. Two of which are girls (niece and daughter). It's going pretty good, but I have to run a real battle heavy, plot-lite game, with heavy miniatures use, which is something that is not normally my style. So it is kind of a learning experience for me. I've done one shots like this over the years when I just needed a quick game, but this is a whole campaign. It is a little different experience.
I'm still trying to talk them into letting me run something different, but it doesn't look good. A couple of players want me to run a supers game, I suggested a post-apocalyptic game or even a G.I. Joe vs monsters game (1 player liked this), but I can't get everyone on the same page. One player absolutely refuses to play anything but Pathfinder and due to the circumstance of the group it is an all or nothing situation. I can't even get them to play 4e! You would think a group that loves battle so much would be thrilled to go back to 4e, but nope. So we are sticking with Pathfinder.
I also have some podcasts that I've been listening to recently and I want to recommend them.
Raging Bullets, "A DC comics fan podcast" is a really good and show that I thoroughly enjoy. When it comes to strictly comic book podcasts, this one and Backroom Comics are my first two choices. When it comes to video podcasts I go with Exploring the Multiverse.
Last but not least is Star Joes " A podcast dedicated to Star Wars, G.I. Joe, and everything in between. We talk about Comics, Movies, TV Shows, and Toys…lots of Toys…". It's a really fun show if you love '80s comics and toys like G.I. Joe, Transformers, TMNT, Voltron, etc.
These are the shows I've added to my normal rotation of The Nut Gallery, Tekzilla, Hak5, The Tome and 3.5 Private Sanctuary.
Wednesday, July 20, 2011
G.I. Joe and some thoughts on other things
I was catching up on my comic book reading the other day, specifically the trade paperbacks of IDW's G.I. Joe series which I am really enjoying, and I realized that I've never seen a G.I. Joe RPG. Why the hell is there no G.I. Joe RPG? It would totally kick ass. Sure I know I can use everything from d20 Modern to Mutant Epoch to Shadowrun or even Rifts to run a G.I. Joe RPG, but that's not the point. I want an actual G.I. Joe RPG damn it!!!
Hasbro owns G.I. Joe and D&D, so why in the hell hasn't someone said "hey, why don't we make a G.I. Joe RPG" and made my dream a reality. I've enjoyed G.I. Joe since I was a kid. I watched the shows, I even sat through the movie multiple times and I bought the toys and I still read the comics. (On a related tangent WTF were they thinking putting Marlon Wayans in that movie? Didn't he ruin the D&D movie enough? I'm sure he's a nice guy and to some people he's probably considered funny, but give me a break. Did they really have to make two movies about two properties that I have loved since childhood even worse by adding him?) I know that if they made a G.I. Joe RPG, I'd buy the hell out of those books. I'd really be even more happy if they released it in the Essentials digest format for easy carrying and use.
We went to the drive in over the weekend and saw Harry Potter and Transformer 3.
While I do think the books are way better (they usually are) I am still a fan of the Harry Potter movies. That being said The Deathly Hallows pt 2 was great! My wife and daughter have never read the books and they loved it.
Transformers 3 wasn't as bad as the second one except for Shia LaBeouf. I'm not a huge fan of his but he just came off as a whiny, self involved little bitch in this movie. After I got over wanting to beat him over the head with a bat, I actually started to feel embarrassed for him. His part in the movie was beyond horrible. Actually most of the humans in the movie made me feel embarrassed for them. The Transformers themselves were actually pretty damn cool and their part of the movie was entertaining. The kid-o loved it, but her and her cousin both agreed the people were annoying and the movie would have been better without them.
We also saw the previews for Captain America (awesome!) and Dark Knight (wtf? that made no sense and yes we get it.. its the end, shut up about it already).
I caught the leaked preview trailers for Avengers (double awesome!!) and Amazing Spider-man (meh, don't really care anymore). Both of which are pulled down from the sites where I saw them.
Some movies I'm looking forward to:
Smurfs (there's nothing wrong with liking the Smurfs, beside NPH is in it so it has to be funny, although he was also in Beastly and that was just bad, bad, bad)
Capt. America
G.I. Joe 2 (Completely Wayans free!!!!!)
Sherlock Holmes 2
If you are a Beastie Boys fan you gotta check out the 11 minute video for Don't Play No Game that I can't Win and the video for Make Some Noise (or check out the 1/2 hour full version... yes 1/2 hour)
Tradepaper backs I've been reading lately:
G.I. Joe (IDW)
House of Mystery (Vertigo)
Hellboy(Dark Horse)
Irredeemable (Boom)
Showcase presents The Atom
Showcase presents Justice League of America
Saga of the Swamp Thing
Some of the comic books I'm enjoying right now:
Flashpoint
Flashpoint: Batman Knight of Vengeance (This Batman is great!)
Dungeons & Dragons (This is my favorite D&D comic book series ever!)
Invincible (this series just keeps getting better)
Alpha Flight (even though it is tied in to the crappy Fear Itself event this book is still rockin')
Knights of the Dinner Table
Hasbro owns G.I. Joe and D&D, so why in the hell hasn't someone said "hey, why don't we make a G.I. Joe RPG" and made my dream a reality. I've enjoyed G.I. Joe since I was a kid. I watched the shows, I even sat through the movie multiple times and I bought the toys and I still read the comics. (On a related tangent WTF were they thinking putting Marlon Wayans in that movie? Didn't he ruin the D&D movie enough? I'm sure he's a nice guy and to some people he's probably considered funny, but give me a break. Did they really have to make two movies about two properties that I have loved since childhood even worse by adding him?) I know that if they made a G.I. Joe RPG, I'd buy the hell out of those books. I'd really be even more happy if they released it in the Essentials digest format for easy carrying and use.
We went to the drive in over the weekend and saw Harry Potter and Transformer 3.
While I do think the books are way better (they usually are) I am still a fan of the Harry Potter movies. That being said The Deathly Hallows pt 2 was great! My wife and daughter have never read the books and they loved it.
Transformers 3 wasn't as bad as the second one except for Shia LaBeouf. I'm not a huge fan of his but he just came off as a whiny, self involved little bitch in this movie. After I got over wanting to beat him over the head with a bat, I actually started to feel embarrassed for him. His part in the movie was beyond horrible. Actually most of the humans in the movie made me feel embarrassed for them. The Transformers themselves were actually pretty damn cool and their part of the movie was entertaining. The kid-o loved it, but her and her cousin both agreed the people were annoying and the movie would have been better without them.
We also saw the previews for Captain America (awesome!) and Dark Knight (wtf? that made no sense and yes we get it.. its the end, shut up about it already).
I caught the leaked preview trailers for Avengers (double awesome!!) and Amazing Spider-man (meh, don't really care anymore). Both of which are pulled down from the sites where I saw them.
Some movies I'm looking forward to:
Smurfs (there's nothing wrong with liking the Smurfs, beside NPH is in it so it has to be funny, although he was also in Beastly and that was just bad, bad, bad)
Capt. America
G.I. Joe 2 (Completely Wayans free!!!!!)
Sherlock Holmes 2
If you are a Beastie Boys fan you gotta check out the 11 minute video for Don't Play No Game that I can't Win and the video for Make Some Noise (or check out the 1/2 hour full version... yes 1/2 hour)
Tradepaper backs I've been reading lately:
G.I. Joe (IDW)
House of Mystery (Vertigo)
Hellboy(Dark Horse)
Irredeemable (Boom)
Showcase presents The Atom
Showcase presents Justice League of America
Saga of the Swamp Thing
Some of the comic books I'm enjoying right now:
Flashpoint
Flashpoint: Batman Knight of Vengeance (This Batman is great!)
Dungeons & Dragons (This is my favorite D&D comic book series ever!)
Invincible (this series just keeps getting better)
Alpha Flight (even though it is tied in to the crappy Fear Itself event this book is still rockin')
Knights of the Dinner Table
Wednesday, June 29, 2011
Derby City Comic Con & some podcasts
I've been whining for years that we need more geeky conventions in the Kentuckiana area (Louisville Metro & Southern Indiana area). I don't care if it is a gaming conor a comic con, I just want something close to home.
I get tired of listening to all these podcasters and bloggers talking about their home town cons and I got nothing. Granted Gen Con is only an hour and a half away, but it's kind of expensive to go to that, even for one day. Well it seems my wish has been granted. A few weeks ago I was catching up on some of my podcasts, I listen to a lot of podcasts, and came across an episode that mentioned the Derby City Comic Con in Louisville.
***** Before I get any emails about it, I didn't forget about Conglomeration. I have never gone but it just seems that gaming has a very small presence and I've never known anyone that actually went. I've tried emailing them to get more info over the past 3-4 years, but have never gotten a response. I figured that if they didn't care enough to respond to a potential customer's email, they must not want my money and I'm happy to spend it on more gaming stuff somewhere else.*****
I've lived in this area my whole life and I've never heard of this con before so I Googled it and sure enough there is a comic book convention being held at the Kentucky Convention Center on July 16th. They're going to have guest comic book creators and everything. This is awesome!
I'm not sure how strong of a presence gaming will have at the Derby City Comic Con, but the vendors that are there do sell gaming stuff. So maybe. Besides $7 to get into a comic book convention is awesome. Even if I only get a couple things out of some quarter boxes, take some pictures of people in costume and maybe get a picture of a comic book creator, even a lesser known one, it's still worth $7. It'll be fun and if enough people show up it may be bigger next year.
On to a different topic.
Since I mentioned that I listen to a lot of audio podcasts (I have an hour commute and do a lot of walking... love my ipod), most of which I am very behind on at the moment, I thought I'd recommend some of my favorites.
The Nut Gallery Review: A movie review and geeky podcast by occasional Geek Gazette blogger Jason James and some other great guys from up north, but I don't hold that against them. (Sorry gang I'm trying to catch up)
3.5 Private Sanctuary: I really like their Know Direction episodes, although they're all pretty good. Their stuff from Paizo con was really great for those of us that couldn't make it.
Thaco's Hammer: As a 2e AD&D fan this is a must listen show. It is very well put together and fun to listen to. Even if you don't play 2e I recommend giving this a try.
Paranormal Podcast: Even though I'm a big skeptic, Jim Harold does a great job with this show. I really enjoy this one and get some great gaming adventure ideas from it as well.
DC Noise: This is one of those strange shows that I can't stop listening to even though there are better shows out there. It's really just some guys sitting and talking. It literally seems as if you are just listening in on their phone conversations.
There is no format and no real direction to each episode, but buried in most episodes is some really good comic book discussion. My number one complaint is that the episodes could use some editing to get rid of the dead time. Definitely not everyone's cup of tea, but I like it, mostly.
Comic Vine Podcast: A pretty good comic book discussion show.
The Backroom: This and Comic Vine are probably my two favorite comic book podcasts
Pulp Gamer out of Character: I'm not a huge Pulp Gamer fan, but of their numerous shows I really enjoy this one.
4 Geeks 4e: I may not be a big 4e fan, but I really like this show. I only wish they put out episodes on a more regular schedule.
Chronicles: Pathfinder Podcast: Some of the episodes are pretty long (3 or more hours), but still there is a lot of good content.
Dragons Landing Inn: Chuck and Lonnie haven't done a new episode in a while, but I still enjoy listening to the old ones. One of the first podcasts I ever listened to and still one of my favorites. If only they would restart the show.
I get tired of listening to all these podcasters and bloggers talking about their home town cons and I got nothing. Granted Gen Con is only an hour and a half away, but it's kind of expensive to go to that, even for one day. Well it seems my wish has been granted. A few weeks ago I was catching up on some of my podcasts, I listen to a lot of podcasts, and came across an episode that mentioned the Derby City Comic Con in Louisville.
***** Before I get any emails about it, I didn't forget about Conglomeration. I have never gone but it just seems that gaming has a very small presence and I've never known anyone that actually went. I've tried emailing them to get more info over the past 3-4 years, but have never gotten a response. I figured that if they didn't care enough to respond to a potential customer's email, they must not want my money and I'm happy to spend it on more gaming stuff somewhere else.*****
I've lived in this area my whole life and I've never heard of this con before so I Googled it and sure enough there is a comic book convention being held at the Kentucky Convention Center on July 16th. They're going to have guest comic book creators and everything. This is awesome!
I'm not sure how strong of a presence gaming will have at the Derby City Comic Con, but the vendors that are there do sell gaming stuff. So maybe. Besides $7 to get into a comic book convention is awesome. Even if I only get a couple things out of some quarter boxes, take some pictures of people in costume and maybe get a picture of a comic book creator, even a lesser known one, it's still worth $7. It'll be fun and if enough people show up it may be bigger next year.
On to a different topic.
Since I mentioned that I listen to a lot of audio podcasts (I have an hour commute and do a lot of walking... love my ipod), most of which I am very behind on at the moment, I thought I'd recommend some of my favorites.
The Nut Gallery Review: A movie review and geeky podcast by occasional Geek Gazette blogger Jason James and some other great guys from up north, but I don't hold that against them. (Sorry gang I'm trying to catch up)
3.5 Private Sanctuary: I really like their Know Direction episodes, although they're all pretty good. Their stuff from Paizo con was really great for those of us that couldn't make it.
Thaco's Hammer: As a 2e AD&D fan this is a must listen show. It is very well put together and fun to listen to. Even if you don't play 2e I recommend giving this a try.
Paranormal Podcast: Even though I'm a big skeptic, Jim Harold does a great job with this show. I really enjoy this one and get some great gaming adventure ideas from it as well.
DC Noise: This is one of those strange shows that I can't stop listening to even though there are better shows out there. It's really just some guys sitting and talking. It literally seems as if you are just listening in on their phone conversations.
There is no format and no real direction to each episode, but buried in most episodes is some really good comic book discussion. My number one complaint is that the episodes could use some editing to get rid of the dead time. Definitely not everyone's cup of tea, but I like it, mostly.
Comic Vine Podcast: A pretty good comic book discussion show.
The Backroom: This and Comic Vine are probably my two favorite comic book podcasts
Pulp Gamer out of Character: I'm not a huge Pulp Gamer fan, but of their numerous shows I really enjoy this one.
4 Geeks 4e: I may not be a big 4e fan, but I really like this show. I only wish they put out episodes on a more regular schedule.
Chronicles: Pathfinder Podcast: Some of the episodes are pretty long (3 or more hours), but still there is a lot of good content.
Dragons Landing Inn: Chuck and Lonnie haven't done a new episode in a while, but I still enjoy listening to the old ones. One of the first podcasts I ever listened to and still one of my favorites. If only they would restart the show.
Friday, June 24, 2011
DC Adventures Heroes & Villains Vol. 1 @ RPGNow?
I was checking out various sites and came across a 7page pdf preview for the DC Adv. Heroes & Villains vol. 1, which is nice.
Then I was over at RPGNow looking at a few things and found this I could be wrong but it seems like they have the pdf for sale now.
I also checked out Green Ronin's site and it appears to be available there as well.
I can't confirm beyond doubt that these are active downloads because there is no way in hell I'm paying $27 for a pdf, but it was posted to RPGNow on 6/23/11 and it at least appears to be an item that you can purchase and download now. So for those of you that have to have it now, check it out and let me know if it is the real deal.
Then I was over at RPGNow looking at a few things and found this I could be wrong but it seems like they have the pdf for sale now.
I also checked out Green Ronin's site and it appears to be available there as well.
I can't confirm beyond doubt that these are active downloads because there is no way in hell I'm paying $27 for a pdf, but it was posted to RPGNow on 6/23/11 and it at least appears to be an item that you can purchase and download now. So for those of you that have to have it now, check it out and let me know if it is the real deal.
Sunday, June 19, 2011
An interesting and informative game night
Tonight we got back into the 2e game we started a few weeks ago, but there was a catch. Before we began play, the more experienced player was wondering if we could go back to 3rd edition/Pathfinder. My daughter, a newer player, was all for staying in 2nd edition. She says it is easier. I was a bit shocked as I thought for sure that 2e would reign supreme at our table for the foreseeable future. So we discussed it and decided that Pathfinder would return as the default system. (BTW my daughter still prefers 2e, but says Pathfinder is easier to play than 4e, but not easier to learn.)
Everyone rolled up new characters and we pretty much put them in the same place of the campaign as the 2e characters. There were a few tweaks and on the fly changes made on my part, but it went well. This game was a bit rockier than the last, due in part to external interference, but was over all a fun night.
After we were done playing for the night, the more experienced player and I sat on the porch discussing the possibility of getting another regular group together and the people we could try to recruit. This led into a discussion about DMing and how I'd like to find someone to take over or at least share the responsibility with me so that I could run the occasional PC. This led to a discussion on DMing styles and here is where I managed to learn a thing or two about myself.
In our discussion we were talking about guys we know that can/do DM and what kind of DMs they are. DM "x" is big on dragons and finds a way to work them in every chance he gets. On the other hand DM "a" is really into vampires and the whole gothic Ravenloft type of game. DM "y" is all about the in town adventures and DM "b" always seemed to run things with a Forgotten Realms feel. These guys are consistent. They use the same basic monsters, the same settings and the same types of adventures.
"But how do I DM?"
Through self reflection and discussion I came to understand that I'm either very versatile, or I suck as a DM. My player said that while I like my zombies and mimics, I really do like 'em, I tend to throw every kind of creature into a game. It's almost a monsters of the week type of thing.
I'm more of the type that just wants to see how much crazy shit I can throw at a party. 4 or 5 Puzzles, a couple of traps, a living wall, a ghost, a zombie horde, a mind flayer, a flesh golem, a gelatinous cube, some green slime, a couple of mimics, a duregar patrol, an Ogre Mage and maybe even a kobold shaman to shake things up. That's just to get everyone's attention.
It is kind of weird that I throw so much and such a variety at a party since I never try to go for the TPK. If anything I'm too lenient on players and too generous with the loot. I sometimes, as I did tonight, have the monsters come in conflict with each other, with the PCs just being caught in the middle. To me that seems natural. Especially in a dungeon environment.
For example, the group was avoiding some "Romero" zombies when they locked themselves in a room they had found. They hear some talking outside and decide to check it out. A duregar patrol shows up to give them grief and makes so much noise that they draw the attention and are over run by the horde of zombies. The PCs barely managed to lock themselves back in the secure room and had to tough it out for 3 days before it was ok to venture out. Lucky for them they had just stocked up on provisions.
At some point we all use dragons and even the type of dragons we use says a lot about us. Most guys seem to like red dragons, others tend to include gold, silver and white. I've known guys who only use undead dragons. Me I've always pretty much stuck with green, black and blue. Black is my personal favorite, though I'm really fond of the blues too. If I use dragons those are generally the ones that show up. I'm also not as strict with their alignments. I've had black and green dragons that helped a party and gold dragons that were greedy and conniving.
I tend to be kind of gray with alignment for PCs too. While many other DMs are very strict about what a LG Paladin can do. Me, I'm open to discussion on the matter.
Something else I came to realize during our discussion was that I tend to run epic, almost cosmic campaigns. "The Five Towers" was a dimension hopping trip through various campaign settings and worlds. "The Temple of the Mad Elf", leads into a save the world before it is destroyed campaign. "The Keys to Oblivion", "The City Well" (aka "The Well of Doom"), and "The Town of Twilight" were all epic campaigns with potentially world shattering results. Even my smaller adventures like "Where's all the Beer" and "The Green Isle" were written to potentially lead to grander campaigns.
While I have run my share of small, one off adventures, I just tend to think big when it comes to my adventures. I think in terms of Crisis on Infinite Earths, Lord of the Rings and Star Wars when I plan them out. Perhaps it comes from reading too many summer comic book events and watching too many movies.
I also realized that I'm not a descriptive DM. I describe what you need to know, but not a lot of the smaller details, unless you ask. I need to work on that.
I also refuse to speak in voices and hate playing in groups that do that. I don't mind talking for a character (my character says..., he says... or I tell them...) but the whole dinner theater thing just isn't for me. I can't do it and I just don't like it.
One of the more positive things I came to realize is my best setting to date is Eberron. I've run most of the D&D worlds (Dragonlance, Forgotten Realms, Ravenloft) and I can run them, but so far I've done my best stuff in Eberron. I connect with that setting for some reason. I get the whole pulp, pseudo-tech, steam punk feel of it. Just like my friend told me, in Eberron I tend to run more exciting, Indiana Jones style adventures. Sure they may still be epic in scope, but looking at the individual adventures, they tend to be more exciting and fast paced. All of the DMs we know seem to have their "specialty" settings and Eberron appears to be mine.
Now that we are going back to Pathfinder, though I have everyone in agreement that we'll revisit 2e again soon, I think I can get that same feel out of Golarion. I'm going to catch up on my Golarion reading over the next week and hopefully, find that same pulpy groove. I'm thinking about running the Serpent's Skull AP or at the very least borrowing heavily from it because of its Indiana Jones feel I think it might kick-start my creative motor.
Next week we're planning to play again with a bigger group. I'll try to share more then.
Oh yeah, I almost forgot. My friend also mentioned how he would like to try out more of my games. If we get enough players he'd really like to get into some more Call of Cthulhu, d20 Modern, Hollow Earth Expedition, and Serenity. I'm really hoping I can fit some All Flesh Must Be Eaten, Mutant Epoch and a supers game in there too. Of course if that happens I'll be posting something about it.
Everyone rolled up new characters and we pretty much put them in the same place of the campaign as the 2e characters. There were a few tweaks and on the fly changes made on my part, but it went well. This game was a bit rockier than the last, due in part to external interference, but was over all a fun night.
After we were done playing for the night, the more experienced player and I sat on the porch discussing the possibility of getting another regular group together and the people we could try to recruit. This led into a discussion about DMing and how I'd like to find someone to take over or at least share the responsibility with me so that I could run the occasional PC. This led to a discussion on DMing styles and here is where I managed to learn a thing or two about myself.
In our discussion we were talking about guys we know that can/do DM and what kind of DMs they are. DM "x" is big on dragons and finds a way to work them in every chance he gets. On the other hand DM "a" is really into vampires and the whole gothic Ravenloft type of game. DM "y" is all about the in town adventures and DM "b" always seemed to run things with a Forgotten Realms feel. These guys are consistent. They use the same basic monsters, the same settings and the same types of adventures.
"But how do I DM?"
Through self reflection and discussion I came to understand that I'm either very versatile, or I suck as a DM. My player said that while I like my zombies and mimics, I really do like 'em, I tend to throw every kind of creature into a game. It's almost a monsters of the week type of thing.
I'm more of the type that just wants to see how much crazy shit I can throw at a party. 4 or 5 Puzzles, a couple of traps, a living wall, a ghost, a zombie horde, a mind flayer, a flesh golem, a gelatinous cube, some green slime, a couple of mimics, a duregar patrol, an Ogre Mage and maybe even a kobold shaman to shake things up. That's just to get everyone's attention.
It is kind of weird that I throw so much and such a variety at a party since I never try to go for the TPK. If anything I'm too lenient on players and too generous with the loot. I sometimes, as I did tonight, have the monsters come in conflict with each other, with the PCs just being caught in the middle. To me that seems natural. Especially in a dungeon environment.
For example, the group was avoiding some "Romero" zombies when they locked themselves in a room they had found. They hear some talking outside and decide to check it out. A duregar patrol shows up to give them grief and makes so much noise that they draw the attention and are over run by the horde of zombies. The PCs barely managed to lock themselves back in the secure room and had to tough it out for 3 days before it was ok to venture out. Lucky for them they had just stocked up on provisions.
At some point we all use dragons and even the type of dragons we use says a lot about us. Most guys seem to like red dragons, others tend to include gold, silver and white. I've known guys who only use undead dragons. Me I've always pretty much stuck with green, black and blue. Black is my personal favorite, though I'm really fond of the blues too. If I use dragons those are generally the ones that show up. I'm also not as strict with their alignments. I've had black and green dragons that helped a party and gold dragons that were greedy and conniving.
I tend to be kind of gray with alignment for PCs too. While many other DMs are very strict about what a LG Paladin can do. Me, I'm open to discussion on the matter.
Something else I came to realize during our discussion was that I tend to run epic, almost cosmic campaigns. "The Five Towers" was a dimension hopping trip through various campaign settings and worlds. "The Temple of the Mad Elf", leads into a save the world before it is destroyed campaign. "The Keys to Oblivion", "The City Well" (aka "The Well of Doom"), and "The Town of Twilight" were all epic campaigns with potentially world shattering results. Even my smaller adventures like "Where's all the Beer" and "The Green Isle" were written to potentially lead to grander campaigns.
While I have run my share of small, one off adventures, I just tend to think big when it comes to my adventures. I think in terms of Crisis on Infinite Earths, Lord of the Rings and Star Wars when I plan them out. Perhaps it comes from reading too many summer comic book events and watching too many movies.
I also realized that I'm not a descriptive DM. I describe what you need to know, but not a lot of the smaller details, unless you ask. I need to work on that.
I also refuse to speak in voices and hate playing in groups that do that. I don't mind talking for a character (my character says..., he says... or I tell them...) but the whole dinner theater thing just isn't for me. I can't do it and I just don't like it.
One of the more positive things I came to realize is my best setting to date is Eberron. I've run most of the D&D worlds (Dragonlance, Forgotten Realms, Ravenloft) and I can run them, but so far I've done my best stuff in Eberron. I connect with that setting for some reason. I get the whole pulp, pseudo-tech, steam punk feel of it. Just like my friend told me, in Eberron I tend to run more exciting, Indiana Jones style adventures. Sure they may still be epic in scope, but looking at the individual adventures, they tend to be more exciting and fast paced. All of the DMs we know seem to have their "specialty" settings and Eberron appears to be mine.
Now that we are going back to Pathfinder, though I have everyone in agreement that we'll revisit 2e again soon, I think I can get that same feel out of Golarion. I'm going to catch up on my Golarion reading over the next week and hopefully, find that same pulpy groove. I'm thinking about running the Serpent's Skull AP or at the very least borrowing heavily from it because of its Indiana Jones feel I think it might kick-start my creative motor.
Next week we're planning to play again with a bigger group. I'll try to share more then.
Oh yeah, I almost forgot. My friend also mentioned how he would like to try out more of my games. If we get enough players he'd really like to get into some more Call of Cthulhu, d20 Modern, Hollow Earth Expedition, and Serenity. I'm really hoping I can fit some All Flesh Must Be Eaten, Mutant Epoch and a supers game in there too. Of course if that happens I'll be posting something about it.
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