Sippin' Poet #6: The Drifted and Fallen

You involve a gun
A bullet to my head
No darkness ever left
To a loser with no lead
A lover with no land
Without a moment's purpose
While my mind's a tangled circus

A falling pedal ripped away from time's time
And a dreamer's life is now gone inside
Because the life has come undone
Been years since we've won
A trophy for our times
Hardships tearing us apart
With pain of some sort
Angry tears to masquerade
Some grief, a wall of hurt
Crashing us like waves
Keys to a stone's heart
And my voice is now ignored

No, I am not ignored!
Oh, I hope you are annoyed!
Enter in to feel my hate
I'll be crushing out your air
Tell me now what's fair
Tell me now, my dear
Are we now what's fair?
Are we now, my dear?

...And it's gone
You're leaving me
It's all leaving me
Leaving me alone
So I guess that this is...

Sippin' Poet # 5: Agan

There is no courage, there's no speak
But I have a duty inside of me
I've read you right but that was half
Where do I go from here?

Where do I go from here?
Should I just talk and stare?
Let the new go through fear?
Is there nothing inside in there?

There is a sign, maybe a reason
A much noted smile, must be a new season
Walking through streets and stairs to feed
Seats up in levels for a time to eat

Another losing speeding ball
How must I catch?
Another time, another fall
I'm on and latched

So where do I go from here?
What's the remark?
Is there nothing inside there?
Or should I just march?

Oh, The Horror! #12: Hellfire from Disney's Hunchback of Notre Dame

Goodness gracious, it's been so long, ay? I've seen quite a few flicks over my absence but due to them not being too fresh in my head, I don't think I really want to write about them. But I'll post this video from Disney's Hunchback of Notre Dame. This movie was considered really dark for kids and seeing this video below, you can see why! This definitely deserves an "Oh, The Horror!" mention:

Sippin' Poet #4: Cassandra

Feel my wraith as I drop you to a curse
Now your days are all much worse.
I felt your walls all around my root
Due to you, in your mouth I shoot.
You shall always be ignored
My once loved one I adored.
A mix of sorrow and upcoming destruction
And all you had to do was agree to my seduction.
Yes, my priestess, recite my prophet
T’was all a simple night for you to commit.
Intriguing really my power over you
Come closer to my root…
I promise, it’s just a little view.

Sippin' Poet #3: Dream vs #?

I recite the kiss I give invisibility
My friend around in my story of lost hope.
A slight to major repression
Always wishing for some pieces of smiles to sow.
Wild and out and confused about
Here’s your entertainment: me still in doubt.
I dream of Dream, the long haired friend
Always there to put me asleep.
I’m obviously going crazy, but I’m feeling free
So I guess I’ll just continue to let me be me.
But no, that’s not entirely true
When the sun comes out I become quite blue
And that new smile later is in fact new
But once again, what is there to do?

The Crow = Me Update 2

Well, Halloween was tons of fun, I had an absolute blast! Nearly everywhere I went, it was like I was a celebrity. I was being asked and pulled left and right to take pictures and I was darn looking it, lol. I scared a few people here and there, especially lil' kiddies. One kid even called me Satan. There was a whole family trick or treatin' wanting to get a picture with me and their lil boy dressed as Spider-Man kept his distance and was so frightened.

It came to a point when my friends and I tried to move but people kept holding me back and slowing my group down, I loved it, lol. Great time with my friends and there were some fantastic costumes all around. Of course quite a good number of Jokers, a lot of them very well done. I can't wait for next year. Hopefully I can get more pics from my friends up asap.

Mortal Kombat vs DC Universe Story Mode Trailer

This looks so darn awesome!

Underworld 3: Rise of the Lycans Trailer

I loved the first movie, second one was decent. This one looks like it'll be it's best in the franchise! And great to see Raze in this, and love to see Lucian as the lead. He was the best thing in the first movie.

Crow = Me Update

Well, as ya'll know, I am darn excited for Halloween and I'm going to be the Crow. I wrote about it here.

Just thought I should post pics of the make-up progress as I decided to test it out today that way in case I try it the day off and it sucks. But yeah, here is he... the Crow I'll be...

New Watchmen Trailer and Poster

I just love the way the music ends with the trailers of this movie. The dying sounds of the song, just amazing. But yes...

Your Top Ten X-Men

Over at the Outhouse, a forum I tend to teleport to, Bubbakanoosh started a thread where you post your top 10 X-characters and he'll tally them up to make a list of from least popular to most. Whether its members from X-men, X-Factor, New Mutants, Excaliber or whatever. Any incarnation is allowed.

Here's the thread here. Also, post your top 10 and I'll just send the list over to him. This should be fun. I'm anxious to see how this goes.

Poetic Influence (Music)

Like a lot of folks with a soul, I am grooved by music. Next to writing, music has often been a way of therapy for me as a way of me accepting myself and as a way to calm my bones when shattering. More than most types of music I'm big on rock. In high school I used to be given a weird eye for being at first one of the VERY few black guys into rock music. Actually, I think I stood out more for being that guy and many people came to me if they got interested in the genre. I was even in an extremely short lived rock band. But yes, as the years gone by I've fallen in love with many different artists, even dwelling a little out of rock at times. I'm big on No Doubt and love that they like to branch off to different types of music despite a lot of people's disdain for it. I love reggae, LOOOVE Bob Marley, you should see my ipod. Been rocking to Aaliyah lately and the Sweeney Todd soundtrack and Smashing Pumpkins along with rediscovering my love for The Servants and the magnificent Roots Manuva.

Now for this entry I just wanted to present a few musicians that influence me as a writer, mostly poetic-wise. The three I'm specifically talking of here below are Roots Manuva, a British rapper who's my favorite rapper by far; Blindside, a Swedish rock band with such uplifting music and lyrics; and Gavin Rossdale, former frontman of Bush and Institute and a musician who I've loved for years and can't seem to get enough of dispite noticing a lot of people look down on him.

But anywho, those artist really inspire me when I want to put something creative down on paper. Now, I myself am not a rapper although I have done a few songs in high school and have performed them live, especially singing with other rappers, most of the time with one of my best friends, Teardrop Jones. A month or so ago Jones sent me a beat and told me to write to it and wrote a rhyme that I'm actually rather proud of. Throughout writing it, I thought of the way Roots Manuva would write. He definitely doesn't fit the norm of mainstream rap and he really stands out for me. His lyrics are very haunting and imaginative and very funky and it goes well with his moody atmospheric music. Blindside's Christian Lindskog probably writes my favorite type of lyrics that I myself love to analyze. Each line of lyric just have this wonderful use of imagery that I try to emulate sometimes in my writing but can never seem to accomplish. And many times listening to the lyrics and music is of me trying to rediscover who I am and just what makes me happy. I get a real sense of just spiritual and inner bliss when I listen to Blindside. You should have seen me at their concert last year, October 13! I'll never forget. I even snuck backstage to meet the band and they were all so damn awesome. I ended up stealing a drumstick from upstage which the drummer, Marcus Dahlstrom, ended up joking about with me later that night when I bumped into him. And dear ol' Rossdale! Probably my favorite living rock star today. His music with Bush has always been very influential to me and I always feel that I can just have a strength to be myself listening to him. I can't really seem to put into words my adoration for this guy's music, it just is.

But yes, below are videos from each artist with lyrics accompanying them (excluding Manuva, darn lyric for this song is hard to find!). The Blindside and Rossdale videos aren't actually videos as they're just to showcase the music. All of them are currently my favorite tracks from each artist. Blindside's City Lights is in The Great Depression album (favorite song and album by them), Let The Spirit is from Roots Manuva's latest Silme & Reason, and Rossdale's Trouble I'm In is a haunting duet with Garbage's Shirley Manson from his recent album Wanderlust. They may not be their very best in their catalogue, but these are my current favorites of theirs.

City Lights by Blindside



I took a walk down the 4th avenue when i saw it
This red line in the grey concrete
Leading somewhere out of sight
Something compelled me to stop
So I jumped over the fence and
Started following what appeared to be
The trail of a leaking tin can
Leading away from the light

Is this what needs to be done
Blacklight shining in the dark
Brings out the brightness more than in the sun

Trade love for the city lights
Tonight you chose me to stay
Trade light for the city love
Tonight you chose me to stay

So what if i continue this walk
The red line is taking me down
Trashcan lonely street, yeah
The streets have their names but how come this people doesn't love just for fun
I'm starting to smell something beautiful
Though these streets are rotten

And now is this what needs to be done
Blacklight shining in the dark
Brings out the brightness more than in the sun

Trade love for the city lights
Tonight you chose me to stay
Trade light for the city love
Tonight you chose me to stay

Let The Spirit by Roots Manuva (I find it very funny that later in the video he talks about how he doesn't know what the f**k the song even means)



Trouble I'm In by Gavin Rossdale featuring Shirley Manson



Who do you lie between
Who has your love
You give it like poppy seed
You flow in the blood

I don't wanna fight no more
I don't want to see you crying
I don't want an all out war
You got soul that's dying again and again
You gotta let me in
You gotta let me in
She's under my skin
She's under my skin

Not looking for a scientist
I don't want a lift
Not looking for a doctor
To get me fixed

I don't wanna fight no more
I don't want to see you crying
I don't want an all out war
You got soul that's dying again and again
You gotta let me in
You gotta let me in
She's under my skin
She's under my skin
All the trouble I'm in (x4)

All eyes are watching me
I'm a stranger in this town
I must have lost my way
Since I took a turn awhile ago
These streets I do not know

Who do you lie between
Who has your love
I don't wanna fight no more
I don't want to see you crying
I don't want an all out war
You gotta let me in
You gotta let me in
She's under my skin
She's under my skin
All the trouble I'm in (x4)

All the trouble I'm in (x2)

Hope you enjoyed. Tell me what you think?

Sippin' Poet #2: I, Heart

These past few days I've spoken to two of my close friends, my brothers, and they have seem to lose faith in themselves and life in general. It pains me to see them like this I wrote this poem for them or anyone else who's just felt so down in the dumps.

I, Heart

Leaves fall into a black pit
Where there's light but lowly lit.
Beyond the feets underneath
Floats a heart, leaking and in need
Of some nourishment, some stitch
But first lift it up, inch-by-inch.

There will be a heart in your palm
Still beating and pumping
But ever so gently and calm.
What's the cause of death? Must be something.
Turn it around and you shall see
A knife in place, in so damn deep.
Releasing it's cancer for the heart to to breathe
And out releases the tar. Yes, it can be cleaned.

Wipe away that filth and clear your eyes
Let in some sunshine, let go of those lies.
Think of a hush and rest from the chase
Allow yourself to love yourself into an embrace.
Step away from the dark roots
Allow the light to take hold, consume.
Smile again, release the poison in hand
Bury that hurtful memory under the sand.

Slow yourself, my dear brother
Breathe in and exhale. Now try another.
Let's drink to a new heart, a new place
Find that new glory, give it a kiss.
Yes, it's time to finally drop those tears
And always know, my man, I'm here.
So go on, man, walk.
Walk to that pit and pick up your heart.

Because it's time and the time is now.

Sippin' Poet #1: To Kill You Is To Love You

One thing I absolutely love about listening to new music or appreciating music I haven't listened to in a while is just how much it influences me to write again! Mostly poetry. Thanks to tokka I started listening to Adore by the Smashing Pumpkins and rocking out to their tracks from the Batman and Robin soundtrack. The music really got my mind flowing and of course the lyrics by Billy. So today I thought of two new poems, one I'll post today, maybe the other tomorrow or later on. I'll also be posting my previous ones from months ago which I still love. But yes, without further ado...

To Kill You Is To Love You

To kill you is to love you
Don't you see, don't you read?
Taking out a seed and later conceive
To wash away your pain
And release my guilt of failure.
Raising a black flower that spreads disease
Virus of the unknown, following smudge.
Let the knife in to release the pain
The tragedy you release with each breath
The sigh eloped with each death.
Because to kill me is to love me...
Is that what you believe?

Street Fighter III: Ryu Final

One of my best friends, Lebert "Teardrop" Jones, is a huge Street Fighter fan. He's addicted to the video games and movies and is starting to become addicted to the books. Most of the time when he comes over we'd duke it out playing a Street Fighter game. Now I'm not as good as he is but I'm able to get some hits in and a few times have defeated him. I love getting in his face about beating him with Dan, a character who everyone hates and call him a weakling yet he's my best fighter next to Sagat. But anywho, TD came over a week or so ago and gave me both volumes of SF: Ryu Final and asked me to review it so I thought, "Hey, what the heck? I like Street Fighter and like reading different things than the normal standard American comics." So I started reading and began to enjoy it a lot. I was actually really impressed. One reason being that the previous SF series Udon had released I felt left a lot of be desired. Now don't get me wrong. The previous series by Udon captured the characters right and the art was amazing, but I felt more could have been done with the story. The pacing was a bit too fast and there was no meat in the overall plot. But it was still enjoyable in its own way. The art alone was enough to buy the series each month... or whatever month they decided to release it.

Well, this time they give the reigns to Masahiko Nakahira who writes a great tale of a warrior, Ryu, who is in search of the "Power of the Soul" which will then help him to prepare himself to become a true martial artist. But before he could become a true martial artist he must first embark on a journey where he must defeat the true martial artist himself, Akuma - who in a way is a dark reflection of our protagonist. Through both volumes we embark alongside with Ryu and Oro, a hermit who randomly popped out of nowhere and puts Ryu through some torturous exercises and even getting him into trouble. Oro adds a great amount of humor into the story where you just laugh at what the character puts Ryu through. And Oro is just one colorful character among the other numerous characters that help Ryu discover something about himself. Hugo, a giant childish man puts Ryu through an exciting battle with a ending that catches you off guard, Yun and Yang, twins that are willing to challenge the great Ryu in order to test their strength which just leads to hilarity, Dudley, a polite boxer who helps Ryu become one with the Earth, trees, and the wind to help him achieve the ability and strength to form his "Killing Strike" that will eventually help him battle Akuma. And of course I must mention my man Sagat, an honorable fighter who has nothing but respect for Ryu after behind defeated and scarring him but still battle as if bitter enemies. Once the fighting ends, there's nothing but a smile and promises between the two. That is one thing I really enjoy about this book also. Each character is given a humanity to them that helps you get immersed into the character. Even Akuma gets his moments, for example when he and Ryu have a little banter before their final battle and they share a laugh. Once again at the end of their battle there's no contempt, just honorable respect.

Now the art is beautiful. Next to the good writing Nakahira's art helps the story really pop out. The fights are very clear and very breathtaking to watch. He takes advantage of panel placements to help emphasize impacts and the beauty of the specific moves being done, for example the way the Shoryuken (Dragon Punch) is displayed just has you in fascination as you just stare at the page looking at each moment when it's used. And man, some of the fights are just plain brutal! The fight between Ryu and Dudley is a particular favorite of mine as Dudley just send quick blow after blow and you just shake your head wondering how Ryu will get out of this one. There's a part where Ryu sends a harsh blow into his arm that causes his muscles to burst as blood just pops out of the arm. It's truly a sight to behold.


Reading this also help me get into more of a mindset for in case I want to really go for the 24 Comic Book Challenge. I was thinking of a story that incorporated martial arts and just seeing the fights in this book just fascinated me and got me pumped.We'll see if I go through with it, heh heh. Also reading this got me into the mindset to practice more in the SF games. It really inspires me the play the video games more and finally defeat my bastard rival, Teardrop Jones once and for all. Sure, I've had a few victories over him, but let me give you a bit of estimation on our battles. Think maybe 25-250. You can guess who the 25 is, haha! That's if I even got that much to begin with! Sheesh! But I will say, the battles where I do win are always a blast to watch. Heh heh. And I know he hates it when I defeat him with Dan, the weakest character in the game. But that just gives me some bragging rights, heh.

Oh, The Horror! #11: Uzumaki

Thanks a freakin' lot, Junji Ito! Now I'll never look at spirals the same again!

Months ago I was reading some stuff on Hine (my favorite writer who everyone should know by now!) and I saw he was into this horror manga called Uzumaki by Junji Ito. As many of you know and can tell I'm a horror fan and lately I've been trying to expand my horizons, from movies, art, etc etc. I've actually never read a horror manga and I looked up the main plot for Uzumaki and found it to be pretty weird, but something about it just stuck to me as for months I always had it in my mind to check out the story. I had asked a few people I know about it, most of them manga fans and they always told me no, they had not heard of it or read it. Finally I got to read the books. I started yesterday and the only thing that stopped me from reading was my friend coming over. This morning I woke up to catch TMNT but my cable service was messed up so I just went straight to Uzumaki and read the whole series. This thing basically consumed me! I just couldn't stop reading!

For those who don't know, uzumaki is the Japanese word for spiral. The story of this manga is about a small town in Japan called Kurôzu-cho that, well... gets haunted by spirals. At first it starts off as an obsession for some characters, that leads to some people being afraid of spirals, which leads to death... and... stuff. Heh, I don't know how to quite explain it. Throughout each chapter we follow around Kirie Goshima as she watches the horrific events happening in town. Her boyfriend's father is the first person we see who's obsessed with spirals. He won't eat anything that doesn't look like a spiral, he won't even bath in the tub without making the water move like a whirlpool. Eventually he kills himself by twirling his whole body into a spiral. And that in turn brings the rest of the town in a downward spiral. One person gets so frightened of spirals that she cuts off her fingerprints! Hell, some people even begin to turn into snails! Each chapter gets weirder and weirder and you've no idea how many times my mouth just opened itself in horror when I looked at a new page and there's been times that I've been so submerged into the story that I find myself jumping from an image on the next page. There is not one chapter that doesn't catch you off guard and surprise you. I had no idea whatsoever where this would take me. One of my favorite sequences was the Romeo and Juliet type story where the two lovers at the end twist their bodies then twist them together to be one and disappear from their warring family.

Eventually the town starts to go mad, as if it weren't already, but you'd have to see it for yourself in what I mean. While the first two volumes focused on a different character connecting to the spirals, volume three begins to show the whole town together in turmoil after a hurricane nearly destroys the town. No one can escape as they're constantly being brought back into the town and people begin to get rather desperate in their ways of living there. As I read through this I kept thinking how I would be affected by this town. How crazy would my own mind be driven. Now I wasn't really attached to much of the characters but the things that would happen to them just made me feel so sorry for them. This is seriously a horror story and the author is damn cruel to treat his characters this way, haha! And I laugh especially thinking about some of the crazy stuff happening because some of the stuff is in fact rather humorous. When I was telling my friend about the first six chapters yesterday I couldn't help from dying in laughter at each ending of the chapters.

Now, the ending is random. I understand it but don't at the same time. When everything gets explained, it seems a little out of nowhere but then again with the previous chapters... I mean, c'mon. It makes sense given the world it's in but at the same time there's no explanation within that explanation... okay, it's confusing the way I'm trying to say without spoiling it so you'd have to check it out for yourself. But yes, once again I will never look at a spiral the same again. That's true horror for ya! Check it out, its good fun. And from what I understand there was a movie made of this. That I may have to check out!

Oh, The Horror! #10: Hellboy (film)

Well, after reviewing Hellboy vol. 3: The Chained Coffin and Others it only seems plausible to watch Hellboy and review it. Only, I didn't finish watching it again and I was actually going to write a review about it before my friend even let me borrow the Hellboy trade. But yes, anyhoo, my baby sister decided to put the DVD on so it played in the background while I surfed but still turned around to catch most of the movie. Damn good movie this is. The direction, the make-up, the actors, the characters, the score, everything! Heck, the score is playing in the background right now as I type this! My sister just let the credits play until it's now at the disc menu just replaying itself. But hey, I love the music, so I won't shut it off. And who doesn't love that magnificent score piece during the funeral of Hellboy's dad? That is just heart rendering.

Ron Perlman is much too awesome as Hellboy. He gives him such a charm that it's hard not to fall in love with him. The same goes to Abe Sapien who is played by Doug Jones and voiced by David Hyde Pierce. I love the two of them together in Hellboy 2 as they most certainly bring out such great laughs, especially their drunken scene when they sing Barry Manilow. But that's the sequel! This is about Hellboy 1! Once again, great movie. It's funyn how much I love this movie now as when I first saw it in theaters I didn't like it at all. My family did, but I didn't. When it came out on DVD I somehow ended up buying it, watched it again and still didn't like it, thinking I wasted my money. And SOMEHOW I watched it again and just fell in love with it. I dunno what it was. But I'm glad I did because now I love the character and the mythology around everything of his and his world. I love how the movie tries to depict Hellboy wanting to be a man and that's pushed even further in the sequel. I also love his love him/hate him relationship with John Mayers, played by Rupert Evans. It saddened me that Evans wasn't in the sequel but it's a little hard to wonder how he would have fit in. Especially given that he's not a character from the books. And of course we have Selma Blair as Liz, the firestarter! One of my absolute favorite scenes is when she gets kissed in her sleep which causes her to blow up a whole asylum!

The villains! How can you not love the villains?! You have Gregori Rasputin, who in this movie starts off working for the Nazis as he's a man of great knowledge of the occult and eventually brings Hellboy to our world as a cute lil' thing. He comes back later, hoping to bring the demons Ogdru Jahad to our world that brings Hellboy straight into the main plot where he has to stop him and over-come his destiny of being a God of Destruction. Then there's Kroenen who totally steals the movie for me. A deadly killing machine who's blood has turned into dust but just keeps on ticking. He is a victim of plastic surgery and has such a beautiful face. My oh my. And who doesn't love that creepy scene where he gently goes down those steps to kill Hellboy's father, Professor Broom played by John Hurt. And then later in the film you cheer on when Hellboy packs some much deserved pounds into Kroenen's face!

Great humor, great action, and great everything! Watch this movie and just let it take you into a magically world. Then catch the sequel which just multiples everything into total bliss! I can't wait to see the sequel again and review it.

Watchmen trailer

A buddy of mine, Rex, asked me to put it up, so why not? It's a comic book film and such a brilliant book. The trailer is darn amazing too, with an amazing track to go with it. It'd be crazy if this movie is as brilliant as the book.

The Unborn trailer

Rx Tales: Stories To Make You Feel Better Update!

Well, guess what!? yesterday George sent me the a few scans of the pages dear Kotsu penciled for my script In Loving Memory... and it looks amazing! I'm so damn excited it's not even funny. My mouth was just wide in excitement. And to think this great art is going to be my first published script! Sheesh! And the girl believes this was rush! What is wrong with you, dear Kotsu? LOL! And besides my collab with Kotsu, George informs me that the other stories have been coming along great, so great news all around.

Once again, a great big thanks to Kotsu and George!

But yes, below are a few preview pages.

Oh, The Horror! #9: Hellboy Vol. 3: The Chained Coffin and Others

I love Hellboy. Yes, I do! I think he's a great character and I just love his world and the other folks he surrounds himself with. I love both the fantastic movies directed by the great Guillermo Del Toro and I love the animated movies. One problem, though... I've never really read Hellboy. Some kinda fan I am, ay? Years ago I've read the famous The Corpse story, and I've read the crossover with Savage Dragon. One thing I've ALWAYS loved was the wonderful art done by the creator Mike Mignola. But yes, a few days ago I went to one of my friends' house to discuss our film assignment for film class. I saw he had a few comics and I asked if I could borrow Hellboy. I would have loved it to be Vol. 1, but it was Vol. 3: The Chained Coffin and Others, but who was I to pass up a chance to FINALLY read the damn book?! So I borrowed it and finally read it earlier today, and holy moley was this a blast to read! Each chapter was a short issue or a few pages all introduced by Mignola himself on the background of the story.

You can totally see Mignola having tons of fun writing and drawing this comic and coming up with the stories. It's seriously like watching a boy play with his toys. Mignola is highly imaginative with each panel-to-page of the stories, but at the same time produces the complexity of everything to a very simple story that's enough to have you cheering for the hero. Mignola is a HUGE folklore junky and his stories are deeply inspired by old folklore that range from all types of cultures. That's one thing that's always fascinated me about the character even in the movies, live action and animated. In this specific volume, there's inspiration from English, Irish, Russian culture, even a bit of Frankenstein! I would love to see what Mignola could do with Haitian folklore. That'd definitely get my fascination to the upteen level!

I would highly recommend this for anyone who's a fan of the Hellboy movies, horror, or monsters. I actually got such an aura of inspiration reading this and makes me really excited to produce something of this caliber someday. It's definitely pumped me up for the upcoming 24 Hour Comic Challenge I posted earlier about. Also, once again, the art is just... magnificent. I really wish Marvel and DC books would put more art like this into their books. Artists like Mignola, Riley Rossmo, Irving, etc. These types of artists are what I find to be more appealing than the art we're seeing in the Big 2 books today. Now, I do enjoy a lot of the art there and the artists are extremely skillful and talented, but it's time we've had some change with the style of art, you know?

But anywho, Hellboy! I'm so gonna need to start buying the other trades of this book! So do you all!

Oh, The Horror! #8: Ab-Normal Beauty

Ab-Normal Beauty

Really bizarre film, and maybe a little un-balanced. In a way it works for it but at the same time doesn't evoke much feeling. Well... it really depends. This is another Asian horror film about an artist who doesn't like doing the typical flowers and trees in her art and is extremely fascinated by death. She carries a camera with her wherever she goes and takes snap shots of people who happen to die around her and of people killing animals, such as fish and chicken. There are some rather lovely shots and nice use of color in certain scenes and they all help establish a disturbing emotion to the lead. She is really frightening, especially around the people who care for her.

As her fascination for death grows, someone gets fascinated in her and begins to stalk her and begins to send her snuff films. The second part of the movie is what sort of throws you off because it seems to randomly appear out of nowhere, but I think it shows an interesting contrast with the twisted things people find beautiful until they're on the receiving end.

From the first part of the movie, I really thought the film would go a different route. I thought in her fascination of death, some supernatural element connected to death itself would become fascinated in her, etc. Especially after a specific scene where her mind plays tricks on her.

Watching this also gave me a few ideas, so good thing I watched it. Overall, not a great film, but some interesting things if you're into weird stuff like what I described above. There was a scene which was really well done where the lead mentally rape the boy who has a crush on her in order for her to create a piece of art. Weird, I know.

Rx Tales: Stories To Make You Feel Better

As many of you know my big dream is to be a comic writer, and my cousin-in-law, George, has made my first step a reality! Mighty good thanks, George, you've no idea how much this means to me! See, George Hartman is married to a cousin of mine, Shirley, and every time there's a family gathering all we do is talk comics! One day he informed me of an anthology he was going to do and then asked me if I'd like to contribute! Imagine my excitement! Of course, you can guess my answer! The story, though, had to do with medical stuff. Anything from doctors, patients, nurses, hospitals, anything. That very same night I started scribbling down ideas for a story till I finally had one and finished it asap and am damn proud of the script. George helped me out a little, him being editor and it was for the best. But then came the hassle of finding an artist for the darn thing! It took forever but he finally came across Kotsu! (Click name for deviant page) She's a lovely artist from Virginia and I was excited when I saw her art work. I quickly went to add her to my myspace only to find that I already had her as a friend (what a coincidence, heh!) But yeah, we e-mailed a bit and she truly is a kool girl and I'm glad to be working with her.

Today George informed me that Kotsu's pages are finished but the lettering and just imagine my damn excitement! I can't freakin' wait to see the pages. I think Imma cry, haha! Thank you, George and Kotsu!

24 Hour Comic Challenge

Every year there's a challenge run that has participants getting together and making a 24 page comic in within 24 hours. This year's challenge is October 18. You can either go to a hosted store where there's tons of people participating next to you or can do it at the comfort of your home. You just need to follow the rules and sign this form and send it to Scott McCloud along with your comic. I think I'll be doing one this year. Sounds like a bunch of fun. And so what if my drawings suck? Heh. Tokka, you should definitely try it! I'd also like to see if Tristan would do it!

Here are the websites where you can find the rules, etc etc.

http://24hourcomicsday.com/

http://www.scottmccloud.com/inventions/24hr/24hr.html

The Crow = Me

Well, Halloween is coming up, a big favorite of mine. Last year was the first time I celebrated since being in Junior High and was mostly dragged by my friends to the Halloween parade in Manhattan then we walked around 14 Street where all the freaks came out in costume and I had a BALL! I was Phantom of the Opera. This year I decided to go all out and become the Crow. I'm a huge fan of the original comic and the first movie. At first I wanted to be Brother Voodoo this year, but that'll be for a later time. This year I'm The Crow and I'm excited! I already bought most of my make-up and even have a lovely crow for my shoulder. My new best friend.

But yes, for this section of my blog I'll be posting some stuff of the Crow, mostly me getting ready for Halloween later this month. So yes... I decided to do a sketch of most likely what I'll be looking like! Tell me what you think!

Oh, The Horror! #7: 30 Days of Night

So... 30 Days of Night... film based on the graphic novel by Steve Niles and the magnificent Ben Templesmith. Where it becomes night for 30 days in Alaska and vampires decide to take advantage. Sounds like a great idea for a movie, only downside is... well... it's a boring movie. Not just boring- it's boring as hell. I mean... what the heck happened? I've read how faithful the movie was to the book and most of the stuff that made the book such a blast to read are gone. In the book, the vampires had more personality and seemed a lot more... deadly and scary. It was just an absolute thrill ride. But the movie just dragged and dragged. I missed the aspect of the story where it was a plan by a certain vampire who wanted to impress the main baddie but ends up getting killed for his "stupidity" of the plan. There were also unnecessary changes such as the relationship between Eben and Stella. I preferred them as a loving couple than being separated. The changed served no purpose whatsoever.

Now, there were some stuff I did like about the movie. For one I loved the bird shot that went around town showing the vampires causing mayhem. Also loved Ben Foster. Ben Foster is a blast to watch in a lot of movies for me. Also, it was a lil' cool seeing most of the vampires looking as if they came from the comic themselves. Other than that, everything falls flat. Definitely not a movie I would watch again or even fall asleep on.

Oh, The Horror! # 6: The Bad Seed

You know how you have a family member who everyone loves and adores because he or she is so darn perfect with a perfect smile but deep down inside he or she is really a cold blooded killer? Yeah, you know what I'm talking about, all of us has that one family member. Well, this movie basically tells the tale of a mother whose loving husband had gone away to military duty and is left with their perfect and adoring daughter, Rhoda. At the beginning we see that dear Rhoda is upset at losing a school contest to a classmate. Later, we find out that the kid had drowned and Rhoda shows no sign of puzzlement or sadness. This starts the downward spiral as the mother starts to suspect her daughter of killing the boy as more deaths start to happen to help her enforce that theory. This then lies the mystery of just how does a mother deal with a child killer of only 8 years old and what does she do as a mother who loves her child and at the same time in turmoil over the victims. There's a lot more to the story that is revealed but it's a little hard to discuss it and not spoil the movie. It's definitely a movie that holds up really well and is worth a watch. I had the DVD for quite a month or so and finally watched it with a best friend of mine. I must say, though, that the ending came up as a rather shocking surprise. While my friend had her hand to her mouth, I gave out a huge laugh and could not stop as my friend's mouth was wide for a good few minutes after it ended.

The performances are stellar! Patty McCormack as "innocent" Rhoda is engaging to watch as she walks around as the spoiled brat you'd want to to beat down with a leather belt if she were your child. Nany Kelly as Christine is as engaging as McCormack, really showcasing fantastic acting of a mother being driven insane by her daughter's actions. The actress who really steals a bit of the show is Eileen Heckart who plays Mrs. Daigle, the drunk mother of the child who Rhoda kills.

For the pour souls who have yet to see this movie, do check it out. It is worth the watch and I as I've mentioned before, it holds up well. Shows us that we don't need a supernatural element to prove that a child can be downright evil and creepy.

Dark Visual of Gotham City (Paper I wrote for my first film class)

This is a paper I had to write for my first film class during my first semester in college. We were suppose to find a movie and write about the symbolisms and music and sets and everything else is connected to the film and how it has to do with the story. We were heavily forbidden to even mention any piece of dialogue. I got a really great grade for this paper compared to some of my peers who were even shocked that I got a grade for this movie than the "serious" films they picked. Heh... all I did was follow directions.

I decided to add some pictures since I love some pics and I'm putting this on the blog and all. Spoilers for those who have yet to see this movie (if you haven't seen this, you been living under a rock?!)

Batman Returns (1992) directed by Tim Burton

Dark Visual of Gotham City

Batman Returns is the sequel to the blockbuster hit, Batman, about a man devoted to protecting his city from crime. Like the first film, he is attempting to stop the plans of criminals of his corrupted city, Gotham, this time being Penguin and Catwoman. Being that this film is set during the Christmas holiday, the time of family and getting together and being happy, none of the main characters seem to be part of a real family due to them having plans of their own. In fact, it seems that all of the main characters are in fact very psychotic. Throughout the film, the movie is very big and circus-like which gives it a rather dark and creepy feel to a film that doesn’t seem to have much of a redeeming factor. An aspect that depicts just how bizarre this film is is the music that is provided by Danny Elfman. The opening of the film is very choir and childlike. The circus and child choir sounds is always played for the Penguin, representing his lost childhood. Batman’s theme is the typical strong, trumpet and horns playing music, introducing the knight and hero of the story, while Catwoman’s theme has a very twisted and chaotic sound to it, representing her state of mind. The name of this track is Selina Transforms.

The song starts off with haunting violin sounds that twirls in what seems to be zigzag angles as you could picture something spine-chilling is about to emerge. As the music picks up, you start to follow the melodic ride that ends up bringing you to clashing sounds and soft bangs that adds to the gothic and insane sounds that Elfman produces for the Selina Kyle character. As the music keeps going, the song cuts into a bridge that intensifies the song as the pace of the music gets faster with a weirder sound until finally returning to its normal sound and pace. The song slowly ends as Elfman plays around softly and mystically with the violins and ends the track. This track here shows you how demented and confused the character of Catwoman is as the movie goes on, a woman caught between what is right and wrong as one minute she is good, the other she is just outlandish. She starts of as a lowly secretary who is usually ridiculed by her boss because of her position as a woman. Finally, after reaching her limit, she goes berserk and becomes a subject of female empowerment. She goes from a boring, typical woman with no respect to a bombshell who goes out and wears a tight black vinyl suit, revealing much of her body figure.

Now, her costume happens to be one of the most subtle and fascinating parts of her as a character. In a way, the stitched parts of her costume represent her stitched way of mind as she placed together a new piece of herself to show to people. When she first makes her costume, she is comfortable and compact in her new form as a woman as she begins to appear very calm and cool in her skin. As the movie goes on, her mind begins to deteriorate in a very chaotic way as her costumed falls apart along with her towards the end. By seeing how torn apart her costume is, you are able to realize just have broken her mind really was as a character at that point of time during the film.

Besides the main characters, the lighting and visuals of the film gives us that creepy atmosphere of a lost city. The movie concentrates highly on black and white, giving it a very noir look, with a bit of color here and there. Catwoman and Penguin seem to have very ghastly white skin, while a majority of the costume sets are simply black. Every building is very big and extravagant and filled with civilians. The tone really adds a feel that with all the civilians in the street and the way the dimly lit light shows in the picture, you get a sense of feeling that if you were to walk to a dark corner, chances are you would either be robbed or killed. In the very beginning of the movie, a circus gang is shown terrorizing people, shooting around, and attempting to kidnap millionaires. If the lighting were brighter, everyone wore a color set of clothing this film wouldn’t be able to capture just how strange and gloomy the city of Gotham really is. Stated earlier, the feel of the movie gives a sense that there simply is no redeeming factor in this city. Among all the black and grays, the only thing that lights up the picture of the film is usually the white snow that falls from time to time.

Once again, for a Christmas movie, it’s a bit of the opposite of the feel good holidays. But the Christmas season of the film also provides a feel of belonging and comfort, something that all the main characters seem to want. Batman, the strong and loner type meets Catwoman and they both fall in love with each other, wanting to be of comfort, but remember, this is Gotham City. The music also adds a nice dimension to their characters when they are together, as Elfman mixes their two musical scores together, showing just how easily the two characters fit together, but at the same time showing how different they are, with Batman’s trumpet and horns playing next to the very distorted and screeching violins of Catwoman. Penguin also has his unhappy ending, leaving behind who he considers his babies, his little penguin army, and also Max Shreck, the villain behind all the madness in this film, dies, leaving behind his son. In the end, everyone ends up being lonely and losing someone, making it very unhappy ending for a fairytale type and holiday film.

From the very beginning of the movie, you can be aware of what type of movie that you are going to end up seeing. There are two scenes that foreshadow events that are going to happen in this movie, and by looking closely on how those two scenes play out, you can see that there are going to be very unhappy events for certain characters. The first scene has a baby Penguin locked up in a cage by his parents, where he ends up grabbing his pet cat and killing her, foreshadowing later in the film when Penguin kills Catwoman. The other foreshadowing scene is when Batman saves Selina from a mugger. Selina finds a taser and delightfully electrocutes the knocked out mugger, showing Selina’s mindset in the beginning on her conduct to get revenge from all the men who hurt or “kill” her.

In the end, director Tim Burton perfectly captures the corrupted city of crime and the citizens of it, all very broken and lost and fraudulent just as the city they inhabit. The set pieces are all very dark; snow and setting of the Christmas season giving in a ghastly and ghostly feel, with the childlike kooky music adding to the complexity of the characters. Everyone in this movie is just plain bizarre, and Burton finds a way to prove just how out of the ordinary life in Gotham City is in his own gothic style.

Visiting and Touring Screamland with Harold Sipe and Héctor Casanova!

Interviewed the great Harold Sipe and wonderful Hector Casanova on Screamland! Be sure to check it out!

http://www.bludblood.com/content/view/558/51/

A Neil Gaimen Quote: Love

I stumbled upon this online. I know it's by Neil Gaimen but which book is this from? Or is it even from a book? Can anyone help me? But anywho, it's definitely one of the best things I've read and very painful, mostly because it's darn true.

“Have you ever been in love? Horrible isn't it?

It makes you so vulnerable. It opens your chest and it opens up your heart and it means that someone can get inside you and mess you up. You build up all these defenses, you build up a whole suit of armor, so that nothing can hurt you, then one stupid person, no different from any other stupid person, wanders into your stupid life...you give them a piece of you. They didn't ask for it. They did something dumb one day, like kiss you or smile at you, and then your life isn't your own anymore.

Love takes hostages. It gets inside you. It eats you out and leaves you crying in the darkness. So simple a phrase like 'maybe we should be just friends' turns into a glass splinter working its way into your heart. It hurts. Not just in the imagination. Not just in the mind. It's a soul-hurt; a real gets-inside-you-and-rips-you-apart pain.

I hate love.”

Oh Nooo!!! Black People in my Comics!!!!

This was one of the first things I wrote for my comic column over at The Bludnet. This was around the time when Dwayne McDuffie was just starting to write Justice League of America for D.C. and in the book were four black characters: Vixen, John Stewart, Black Lightning, and Firestorm. I stumbled upon posts saying how McDuffie had an agenda because the team had a group of black people and they were conversing and obviously McDuffie had an agenda in favoritism due to them being black. Anyway, this entry tackled other things that bugged me about the crap black creators and characters and readers go through in the comic biz. It's an entry I'm proud of and got quite a few comments on.

But yes, here it is, do tell me what you think, etc...

Oh Nooo!!! Black People in my Comics!!!!

I was surfing through the internet today and I ran across a site where a poster was criticizing Dwayne McDuffie due to him bringing John Stewart into the JLA simply because the character was black, the same color skin of McDuffie. And not only that, but McDuffie was also bringing in the new Firestorm who is also black! Oh no! And on top of that, we already have two black people on the team, them being Vixen and Black Lightning. So apparently, since we already had two black folks on the team, it HAD to be enough. But no, McDuffie is trying to force blackness down the readers throats and in due time everyone on the team will be black and we will have a Black JLA!!! Now, here’s where I ask, when Joss Whedon announced his team of Astonishing X-Men, where were the people yelling agenda because he was writing people who has his skin color? When Bendis established his team of Mighty Avengers, where were the same people bashing Bendis for having an all white team and having an agenda? If anything, I – a black reader - should be complaining about having them shove a team of only white people down my throat.

Another critique I saw of McDuffie’s work was from his recent mini series Damage Control. And of course, our fellow writer is being attacked because he has a black character as a main character. C’mon, now, are you serious? The thing I find so funny in all this is that the same people bashing this are the same ones first to say, “I’m not racist!” Then what are you then? Why is it that when Brad Meltzer brings in Roy into the JLA, it’s alright? If Whedon brings back Colossus, it’s all fine. When Meltzer brings in Black Lightning to the team, it’s actually quite alright! But! BUT if a black writer, like McDuffie, writes a black character in his work, it’s entirely “forced” and “PC.” When it comes to the comic world, a character that is black must have a purpose to be black. Why is that? Can someone give me the answer? Why is it that when a character of a different race other than white is created, there must be a specific reason why they must be that race or else the character is just there for political correctness? So the fact that I am on this Earth is simply because life is trying to be PC and therefore my existence is forced because the default race is white and that should reflect in comics as well. Of course, it makes total sense now!

White writers are constantly creating new characters, and the majority of them are white. It’s a fact. Of course, there are exceptions. I mean, duh! Where would all those other black heroes come from? We have one of my absolute favorites, Blade created by Marv Wolfman. Luke Cage by Archie Doodwin, Storm by Chris Claremont, Black Panther by Stan Lee, Spawn by Todd McFarlane, Black Lightning by Tony Isabella, Tyroc by Cary Bates.

Oh! Speaking of Tyroc, I remember once strolling through the internet and seeing someone bashing the creation of Tyroc because he came from a floating island that was filled with only black people and that of course made the character forced! Which means islands like Haiti are forced also! Oh no! AGENDA! But of course, a planet like Krypton filled with people who look white isn’t forced at all.

Since little, people are constantly told to write what they know. What people know are people that surround them, much like white writers write white characters because that is what they know given their background. So a black writer who grew up with others with the same color of his skin would naturally write a black character. Where is the crime in that? And as a black reader once again, I’d like to have characters that resemble me who I’d like to look up to. When I was younger, I was a huge fan of the 90s X-Men animated series. But the episode when Bishop first appeared, I was overwhelmed with excitement! Finally a black male character who actually looked like me! And to top it off, he was a bad-ass! Bishop was the first black superhero I ever saw at my age and I’ve been a fan ever since and when I first stumbled upon X-Men comics, the first thing I wanted to do was find out more about Bishop. So by introducing black characters in more comic based stuff, it actually opens up the field to kids who are indeed black.

Now, not all black kids will associate with a certain black character, though. If that character matches not only their skin color but also their attitudes and views, they’ll definite grow attached and have someone to look up to. So what is wrong with having someone to identify with through skin color? What is wrong for any race to be represented in comic books other than white? Why does the reason have to be for PC reasons and agendas? People are constantly saying that they’re the last to be racist and how something should be done about racism, yet they’re the first to show their true colors when a black writer introduces a black character to a mostly white team or field while a white writer introducing yet ANOTHER white character doesn’t get one eye brow raised. Yay, equality.

Oh, The Horror! # 5: Interview With the Vampire

Interview With the Vampire

Caught this on Showtime. I've always caught random parts of the film for years but have never had the pleasure of watching the whole movie in full in one sitting and my was it truly a pleasure. I love this movie. Anne Rice, the writer of the novel and screenplay for this movie, is truly a brilliant writer. She writes the tragedy of her characters beautifully and wonderfully. The emotions between the lead vampires are very pulling and many times you're disgusted by them but at other times intrigued, fascinated and behind them. The stuff these people do to each other is very entertaining to see. In a way, the ways the characters treated each other sort of reminded me of Strange Embrace. Great stuff.

Great shots also, and my goodness was the music fantastic! I just loved the fast paced violins during the intense scenes and Kristen Dunst as the "child" vampire was just highly disturbing. For such a young actress at that age, she was terrifying as she grew angry and more intense due to the fact that as decades passed she could never grow to become a woman. I also loved the sexual undertones between the vampires. Claudia (Dunst) was in love with her "father" Louis (Brad Pitt) but he saw her as a daughter. We have Lestat (Tom Cruise), the antagonist of the story who adores his life as a vampire, unlike Louis, and seems to make love with Louis the first time he bites him and turns him. The way they embrace each other is really quite intimate. And there are other scenes like this too, like the scene when Lestat and Louis feed on a woman together and it definitely showcases a type of sexual threesome. But for me, my favorite tension was probably from Armand (Antonio Bandaras) an vampiric actor who was the leader of a gang of vampires who also falls in love with Louis and carries something tragic to happen due to his love.

Effects were great. There's a scene when Lestat's throat gets cut open. When you see the life flow out his body and his skin turns gray and into a corpse, I just gave a nod for how great the effects for that scene was. And later when he comes back for his revenge, the make-up for his face is terrifying, especially right before you close in one him while he's playing the piano and the drapes are flowing until it finally reveals him. Great stuff. And the ending, no matter how many times I see it always gets a nice chuckle from me.

Saving Urban Myths (PLEASE HELP!!!)

Pilot Season is a contest run by Top Cow Productions to have readers vote for two books they would like to see published. Among the running was Urban Myths, a book by Jay Faerber that I fell in love with through the one-shot. I'm a huge Greek mythology fan and what Faerber did with that book, mixing Greek myths along with a modern setting detective story was simply amazing. Urban Myths was in the Top 2 until Warren Ellis mentioned that he read and enjoyed another book in the contest and that lead many people to vote for thus book, dropping Urban Myths out of the Top 2 spot. But here is a chance for Urban Myths to continue on. I started a petition to get the book out and would surely appreciate for people to help me out in saving Urban Myths. Thank you for your time.

http://www.petitionspot.com/petitions/SaveUrbanMyths

It should be noted, though, that writing to Top Cow would be better in attracting their attentions, so please write to fanmail@topcowent.com to save the book.

Here's the full issue, free of charge for anyone who's interested. http://www.newsarama.com/php/multimedia/album.php?aid=21790

Flip of the Coin #1: Why?

I've always had a fascination with people, since I was really young. For years I've always wanted to know every darn thing about a person. See, I used to heavily believe that you couldn't fully appreciate or love a person unless knowing everything, good and bad, and accepting them. With people, it's rather hard to see this. People are like coins. You see one side but don't see the other. They could be hiding something, something emotional or painful, but you could never tell. Or a very flawed side. Nowadays, my views on this is different. Now, if people I care about don't want to reveal a thing to me, so be it. Doesn't mean I can't appreciate or care for them.

But yes, moving on... Two-Face represents people. That is the main thing that attracts me to the character. He is the representation and personification of wanting to see both sides and my fascination with people as a whole. When written well, Two-Face is a very flawed individual. Sure, he is a Bat-villain, but in him he still has the potential to do good. As people, we have good and bad sides about us. One side could be greater than the other, but we have them. Two-Face represents that notion, even visually. We could be very beautiful at one point and very scarred and ugly. His obsession with allowing the coin to choose his or other's fate could represent our inner desires to want to do things people would deem out-of-character for us or even just plain wrong.

Also, since I was little I've always been fascinated by the whole multiple personality stuff. That combined with people having different personalities in general is what makes me so in love a the character like Harvey Dent, or someone like Jaime Madrox, the Multiple Man, over at Marvel. And in me is my own constant inner battles of making decisions that even I tend to flip a coin to decide or just plainly don't do anything.

And it also helps that Two-Face has had some fantastic writing for him. Writers like Greg Rucka, Ed Brubaker, Chuck Dixon, J.M. DeMatteis, Jeph Loeb, Andrew Helfer, and many others writing essential Two-Face stories. Usually it's guaranteed that if Two-Face makes an appearance, it'll be an intense and interesting story. And who doesn't love reading those stories of a best friend or partner gone bad. Two-Face was once D.A. of Gotham and part of the Gotham Trinity trying to stop crime. But we all know how much that cost as his struggles against crime lead to the down fall of the great Gotham White Knight Harvey as he comes to twisted and deformed Two-Face. You can't help but fall in love with the character and his struggle when you watch his origin episodes in the 90s Batman Animated Series written by master Paul Dini and in Chris Nolan's recent masterpiece The Dark Knight where Harvey was such a huge and fantastic part of the film.

So yeah. All those stuff above and many are why I'm so in darn love with this character. Sheesh, what a rant. Hmm... but reading through this post I still couldn't quite fully seem to express in detail my full love for the character. Here's hoping at least a bit was expressed to convey it.

Flip of the Coin #2*: Solits of Nightwing #147-151 (The Great Leap)

*Reason this is number 2 is because I'm in the process of writing the first post for this Two-Face aspect of my blog. So no, it was not a pun on the character, heh heh...

I'm a big Two-Face fan. Everyone who's close to me knows that or even had a conversation or chat with me about comics or whatever. He's my favorite fictional character in anything. Although I haven't been buying DC (except for All Star Superman and Hellblazer) whenever Two-Face makes an appearance, I'll get it. I'll start this post by posting his most recent appearance in the Nightwing comic. Thus far, a really enjoyable story. Tomasi is a master story teller and I was excited to hear he'd be writing dear ol' Harvey. But yes, here are the solits of the recent Nightwing/Two-Face stories. When the rest of the issues are out, I'll write a review.


Nightwing #147

Written by Peter J. Tomasi ; Art by Don Kramer and Sandu Florea; Cover by Rags Morales

A "Batman: R.I.P." tie-in! Two-Face hits New York City – but when he takes a bite out of the Big Apple, he finds it rotten to the core. He'll make Nightwing and all of New York pay for their crimes…unless Nightwing can save one of Harvey Dent's old flames from an assassin's bullet!

Nightwing #148

A "Batman: R.I.P." tie-in! Nightwing's been shot by an assassin! How can he save the life of Harvey Dent's former lover before the killer returns to finish the job…and before he bleeds to death? Will Nightwing find sanctuary in the Batcave, or will Batman's recent disappearance lead to an even bigger mystery?


Nightwing # 149


A 'Batman R.I.P.' tie-in! With Batman missing in action, Nightwing faces off against The Dark Knight's most dangerous enemies - Killer Croc, Penguin, Mr. Freeze, Poison Ivy, Two-Face and The Joker - to save the life of a woman marked for death.

Nightwing # 150

Cover by Philip Tan Variant cover by Ethan Van Sciver Special oversized 'Batman R.I.P.' tie-in issue! Believing Nightwing responsible for the death of an old flame, Two-Face has sworn his revenge upon Batman's first Robin and New York City itself. Armed with the same acid that turned him into Two-Face, Harvey Dent plans to scar half the population of New York to make them pay for his loss. And without The Dark Knight around for help, it's up to Nightwing to stop the Batman's most duplicitous and dangerous villain. Beware the acid rain as Nightwing confronts Two-Face in the final chapter of 'The Great Leap'!

Nightwing #151

Nightwing has saved New York City from Two-Face, but that doesn't mean that he's saved himself – or that Two-Face is through with him. Nightwing will be forced to confront the madman in Arkham Asylum then face dire changes to his personal life as he deals with the aftereffects of "Batman R.I.P." and makes the ultimate leap!