This is Entry 250: Brian on the Aisle #12

This post is will be multi-tasking post. It's a 250th post, It's the 12 entry in Brian on the Aisle & I'm counting this as a part of the 2012 Project. The movie I'll be reviewing is The Adventures of Tintin.

Early on in my readership of comic books (The Early to the Mid 1990's): I read the Tintin books, collected almost the whole series (didn't notice until recently that I'm missing a few books). I loved them as kid. Still like them as an Adult. They are Awesome!

My enjoyment of the books were greatly enhanced by the fact at the same time that I was reading these books there was also an animated series based on the books on TV (They were on the cable network HBO. I think the cartoon were Canadian made or at least release in the States by a Canadian company). I could see all the action on the screen & then add those moving images to when I read the books.

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As I have done in the past, I saw Tintin at the second run theater near my house (3 dollars a movie!). Tintin is also one of the those movies that recently came out in both 2D & 3D, the theater I saw at it didn't does that the fancy 3D to show it in. I saw a few times during the movie that it might of looked cool if I saw it in 3D. But seeing in 2D in no way diminished my viewing of the movie.

The "Adventures of Tintin" series of books span over 20 books. What adventure do you start with? I think the filmmakers went with a good choose. A personal favorite of mine, a storyline that I'll be calling the Unicorn Saga. The Saga unfolds over 2 books: The Secret of the Unicorn & Red Rackham's Treasure. The movie was not just a translation of those 2 books. The Movie is a mix of those 2 books, parts & characters from another book in the series (The Crab with the Golden Claws) & Bianca Castafiore (a supporting character who appeared in a number of the Tintin books).

I understand why the added in the bits from The Crab with the Golden Crabs. That is the book where Tintin met Captain Haddock, a character who is featured quite heavily in the Unicorn Saga. So they had to explain how Tintin knew the Captain somehow. The addition of the Castafiore to the movie's story while not in any of the these 3 stories I did quite enjoy & didn't mind this alteration because it was in keeping with how she might have been used in the books.

The way the entire Unicorn saga is unfolded in the movie is totally different from the books they come from. Is this a bad thing? No. Not really. They needed to added in the elements from the Crabs to Unicorn so the overall story is different then the books. I did feel the melding of the 2 stories were done quite well. There were a few elements present in the Unicorn books that were felt out of the movie as they might of not made sense. Basically all of the plot to the Crabs books is not present in the movie which is ok since they only wanted to use the Unicorn plot line & having this secondary plot line would have been confusing as it in no way tied into the main Unicorn plot line.

The characterisation of Sakharine, the movie's main villain, is different then it is in the books. How he is presented in this movie he is more an amalgamation of very different characters from the books. This did leave me a bit puzzled as I watched the movie. I being a big fan of the books & having just reread the Unicorn saga recently I had the book freshly in the mind. I just couldn't place who Sakharine was in the books as I watched the movie. I knew that name! I thought of the character with that name to be a some what minor character (which I still think so as I took a look back at the books) where as in the movie he is the main villain! Many of the Tintin books used a number of different villains in the books & I can see why they wanted to have 1 central villain for the movie.

For the main cast, I would say the characterisations is pretty spot on. All the voices & actions fit with how I think they should have been. The catchphrases were all there! The CGI was a bit weird but something you could get use to. I was a bit weird seeing the "cartoony" look of the characters represent in such a realistic way. At times I felt that Captain Haddock's head was a bit to large.

Professor
Cuthbert Calculus

One thing I thing they could have done was the "whole" Unicorn story in this one movie. This one leaves us on a cliffhanger, setting up a sequel. I put the word whole in quotation marks because the movie does end how the story ends in the books. There were a few different events that happened in the books that didn't happen here & a few that happen in a different order. I suspect that many of those events would happen in the second movie. Many of those events are from the second book/second half of the story. I really hope they do make a sequel because my favorite character from the Tintin series is introduced in the second half of the Unicorn story. That character is Professor Cuthbert Calculus! He is Awesome! I'm not sure why I like him so much but I do. He is just plain awesome & quite a snappy dresser I might say. He was the one character I wanted to see show up in the movie but he didn't. Mainly because all of the stuff he did the Unicorn saga hadn't happened yet. If He's not in the sequel, I am going to be mad!

There were so nice references to the the other Tintin books in the movie (mostly in the opening credits & in the framed newspaper clippings at Tintin's home). You did get to see some of the Art of the books in the movie too which was nice.

So... Final Thoughts: What did I think of the movie? I thought it was good. Did I think going into that it was going to be bad & that it was going to "rape" a cherished piece of my childhood? No. I mainly wanted to see how they handled the story which they did quite well. It did quite boring (at least for me) during two long action sequences in the later half of the movie. I just felt they were overly long.

What do I give this movie? 3 & half Blistering Barnacles out of 5!

I greatly look forward to seeing the sequel!

Until next time, Stay Jazzy everybody!

- Brian

This is Entry 249: The State of the New 52, Part 1

Part 1

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All Star Western

Writers: Justin Gray & Jimmy Palmiotti

Artist: Moritat

I did not read this series past Issue 1 on this book. Why? It wasn't bad but then there wasn't really anything to really grab me to want to pick up issue 2. It's not that the writing wasn't bad. I have read stuff by the writing team of Gray & Palmiotti in the past that I did enjoy. The art by Moritat was nice. I did feel that it fit the setting quite nicely. I could see that there was a mystery being set up in this issue, I just wasn't sure I wanted to wait around to see that mystery unfold over the next couple of issues. I'm not a big "western" kind of guy & I haven't read many Jonah Hex comics in the past so I'm not sure what I was expecting from this comic.  

I would consider to pick up this storyline/mystery when it's collected in a trade paperback to see what I missed out on.

Batgirl

Writer: Gail Simone

Artist: Ardian Syaf

Cover Artist: Adam Hughes

*sigh* Oh... Batgirl.

I sort of came into this comic partly not wanting to like it & partly wanting it to change my mind on the whole "Barbra Gordon is Batgirl again" idea. What I wanted in Issue 1 was 1 question answered. That question was "How did she get up out of the wheelchair?" None that might of been too much to ask for a 1st issue. Maybe just something to explain why she was up & around again. Well... that question was answered just not very well (at least according to me). She was paralyzed from the waist down from a gunshot worn inflicted by The Joker (Ala The Killing Joke). Then 3 years later, one morning a "miracle" (the comics' own word) happened & she could walk again.

WHAT?

I just don't understand why this part of Barbra's backstory needed to make it's way over into the "New 52". They could have easily just left it out & done something else with her. They could have done anything with her. They were basically giving a chance to do a "clean slate" with her.

They could have just done how she was pre-Killing Joke. Brought her back to a more "classic" version of Batgirl. But then I have a problem with that. Most people who read comics today have never read a present day story with Barbra Gordon as Batgirl in them, if they have seen Barbra as BG it's in a flashback or some other media (Movies, TV, Cartoons, etc.). I know I haven't unless I read some old Batman comics from the 60's, 70's or 80's. In the 20 years I have read comics it's been either Cassandra Cain or Stephanie Brown. I quite liked the Stephanie Brown version of Batgirl & her series. It's what I wished this series was (a young girl trying to juggle being Batgirl & all her other responsibilities). I did read this series until Issue 4 hoping it would have gotten better, It didn't. That is sad, I wanted to like this book. I have never read a lot by Gail Simone, I keep hearing she's a great writer. From what little I had read I'd say she's ok. This kind of degrades my shakey opinion her.

Batwoman

Co-Writer & Artist: J.H. Williams III

Co-Writer: W. Haden Blackman

*sigh* This was a book I was excited to read. I happen to like the the art by Williams. He does wonderful stuff. The past Batwoman stuff (written by Greg Rucka) was really good. But.... I didn't read this past Issue 1. Why? This book was to come out way before the "New 52" happened. Like 6-9 months before. There was a preview/Issue 0 for this series in January/February 2011 which I read & enjoyed. Then the series didn't come out until it was part of the New 52 and sort of read like it was still part of the Pre-New 52. That was a bit off putting. Also, by that point I had lost what enthusiasm/interest I once had with the series. I wasn't just going to buy the book for the pretty art (which as I'm told isn't even done by Williams anymore & that was a major selling point for many people).

Catwoman

Writer: Judd Winick

Artist: Guilem March

Oh... Catwoman. What are we going to do with you?

By Issue 4: stop reading you that's what. :)

I was kind of excited to read this book. I think both the writer & artist on this book are good. They have done stuff I have enjoyed in the past. But..... I just lost interest in this book. I think I gave this book a few more issues that other people did. What with how they ended Issue 1 with (Batman & Catwoman having sex). I at least wanted to see want happen after that (not much).

I wanted to like you. I really did. This should have been a good book: Good Writer, Good Artist, Good Character. But it just didn't do it for me. There were other books I was just enjoying more then you. So at Issue 4, I stopped reading you. Should have done that at 3 but I gave you one more issue to see you could turn it around (you didn't).

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That's it for this part of the "State of the New 52". I know that sort of downer to end things on. I promise you: it gets better. There are books coming up that I did actually like!

I'll be back with the other 11 books later. Until then, Stay Jazzy everybody!

- Brian

This is Entry 248: The State of the New 52, Prologue

6 Months ago, DC Comics started a grand experiment. This experiment is called The New 52. They cancelled their entire line of books & did away with the entire continuity they had built up (well.. not exactly) to relaunch/reboot it all in terms of going into the future (and in hopes of getting new readers).

They had launched 52 titles that spanned this new universe. As I said it's been 6 months & most of the comic have just completed their 1st story lines. So.... let's talk about how this has been going in a special posting I'm calling.....

Well..... I'm not going to be talking about all 52 series that were launched as part of The New 52. Why not? I didn't read all 52 series. I didn't even read half of The New 52. I just didn't have the money & wasn't really in most of them. Of the 52 series, I have read the 1st issues of 15 series. I only read 11 series past the 1st issue.  So... why did I call this post "The State of the New 15" or "The State of the New 11". It just doesn't have that same ring to it as "The State of the New 52" has to it.

I'll be going through the 15 series I did read some part of & talking about my feeling towards the series. I will be doing these in alphabetic order.

The series I read (at least Issue 1 of) are:

- All Star Western

- Batgirl

- Batwoman

- Catwoman

- DC Universe Presents

- Demon Knights

- The Flash

- Frankenstein, Agent of S.H.A.D.E.

- Justice League Dark

- Justice League International

- Justice League

- Mister Terrific

- Nightwing

- Red Hood and the Outlaws

- Suicide Squad

I'll be dividing these up into a few different postings so you are just not reading one 1 long post.

I'll be back with Part 1 as soon as I type it up. :)

Until then: Stay Jazzy!

- Brian.