Multi-Purpose Nerdiness- Wolverine and His Amazing Friends. (In Which We Eat Crow)

Okay okay. Honest nerd moment: Despite how little I care for Wolverine and his "I'm the best at what I do and what I do is show up in every single Marvel book there is" level of overexposure, I fully and totally love the "Mutant Hogwarts...on crack" tone new writer Jason Arron  has taken with a book I was frankly planning on skipping altogether. But the early reviews were so good it was hard not to reconsider, and am I glad I did.

Why Wolverine and the X-Men #1 worked:

1.  The titular character actually comes off a bit out of his depth in his sudden role as Headmaster, which might be a first.
2.   The staff (Yay for underused characters like Husk getting a glossy new coat of paint) and the students are getting fleshed out, as well as the nature of the school in a way that is both organic and...thanks to Chris Bachelo, rather adorable. Also (poor, sweet, disturbing) Idie is so layered and complex she manages to creep out and endear all at once ...and Rockslide in a school uniform with shortpants is just too cute to miss. 
3.  The snappy, archly biting dialogue of the members of the school board and their thinly veiled contempt just comes off so amusingly snide I almost hope they stick around in some capacity. 
4. The tone and feel of the book, with the creative team churning out some incredibly fresh and innovative work, comes off as new and full of the Hogwarts for Mutants weirdness a school housing young mutants should be. 

What doesn't: 

1. Professor Xavier being out of play during the X-Men:Schism event and being blithely okay with it (making a few admittedly fun one liners and giving the thumbs up and dottering off again)  all of it seems an oversight. 
2. Kade Kilgore was ...interesting in Schism, and yes, the idea that the methaphorical mustash twirling supervillian is a 11 year old meglomaniac is fascinating. He's the flipside to the coin, self interested and utterly unconcerned with Wolverine's newfound "save the children" mandate. Mutant hatred = his business model, so he's going to make sure it thrives. Bachelo's rendition of him made him seem much older than the artists in Schism and it took a bit to figure out who he was in the story (especially with so many other teenagers in suits and pithy comments around)

So what we have is a new number one in a series that could have easily been a pass for me if not for the incredible treatment. While I'm not always over the moon about Wolverine, and find his involvement in X-Force counter to his sudden humanitarianism as a headmaster and educator... this is a great introduction to what might actually be an even greater series. I'm...begrudgingly going to keep an eye on this one.

Honorable Mention goes out to Jason Asmus on his one-shot Astonishing X-Men issue. Danger and Emma Frost was a team up so random  I didn't even know I wanted it. Having read through the issue I have to say a.) Emma when written well is always a joy read snark from, but her developing bonds with other characters seems somehow rare inbetween crisises. Her place in the X-Men is often dominated by her relationship with Scott, so it seems pretty interesting to watch her actually connect to others. b.) I'm looking forward to Asmus' run on Generation Hope given this interview. 

Pretty great comic book day between the two issues. 

Here's some new comic book day nerdy music to accompany your reading.

Ladies and nerds, the effervescent Toro Y Moi "Still Sound" 

"Just Words" - Catwoman and Arkham City's "Bitchin" Problem

Comicsalliance has quickly become one of my favorite places to go for alternative takes on comic book news. It not only has some gorgeous art by indie artists, and clever re-interpretations of some of the more mindbogglingly dense comic book continuities.

 Lately, a writer (Laura Hudson, whom Ive developed a lot of respect for) has been raising the occasional question about gender/sexism and  the comic book industry. Valid questions about whether the depiction of female characters in popular culture as written by, drawn by, and consumed (presumably) men can come off as objects instead of characters...and proceeds to shed light on a lot of evidence why this might be.

An earlier commentary on Catwoman, who is often described as a woman who is "sex positive" and a "femme fatale"(I reference it here), debuted in a new DC comic where she spent numerous pages walking around in a bra being oggled by the p.o.v of the reader before we even see her face. Compartmentalization  and framed by her "t&a" before we get to finding out who we're talking about. Thats just one of the more popularized points of evidence indicating recent sexism in comics that've come out of the dialog.

Fast forward to October 20th, where CA posted an article referencing popular game blog Kotaku's noting that playing the new Batman game as Catwoman involved a whole new "game mechanic". And while it might not be as overt as some as the other above references, it speaks to some glaring problems with the way we deal with "slut shaming" and casual reinforcement of the status quo.

Market Skeptics: Gay characters in mainstream publishing.

Wrote this in reaction to this article on the amusingly named Unicorn Booty about a writer that alleges that a publisher interested in her teen sci-fi novel wanted her to excise the gay point of view character from the novel entirely before a deal was made.

As a pop culture nerd and social thinker of a sort, this confirms a trend I've long wondered about regarding fiction, character diversity and writers autonomy.

Its a common occurrence in pop culture and fiction, writers tending to write stories that speak to their lifeworlds and cultural experiences. Its one of the primary reasons that comic books and sci-fi have been so culturally insular for the past 50 years, especially when it relates to gender and sexuality. This is changing, as the world and our understanding of it is not rooted in 1950s psychobable anymore, but the publishing industry still has a fair ammount of control over what is published and what is stifled.

Marvel comics for example, had a longstanding ban on use of the word gay or overt references to homosexual relationships or persons in the 1980s ( so writers had to be much more subtle about relationships). Today there are at least 5 openly gay (Several of them as a long term "power couple") characters in popular comic books being published by Marvel off the top of my head. One of the things that drove this change? If Marvel wants to recruit a good, diverse talent pool, its going to encourage its writers to write stories that aren't editorially butchered into submission (No gay policies don't encourage writers who happen to not want to segregate the world). The repressive, market skittish angle the writer suggests from the publisher that approached them does not speak to creative or intellectual honesty. The market in this case does perpetuate the trends that gay characters, and by extension gay teenagers are to be neither seen nor heard, and are barely existent in fiction. It might be "reality" that the mainstream culture may be more likely to shunt such a book off into the gay ghetto of publications for fear of a mainstream base , but you'd be dishonest suggesting that it wasn't a reality that wasn't carefully managed and perpetuated by this evidenced lack of spine.

My Corner of Sky-Multipurpose Nerdiness (Part I)

Good afternoon fellow thinkers, dreamers and true believers;

There's a lot going on in this overlarge world of ours, and too much of it is worth pouring over (preferably with a glass of wine in hand, but its likely too early in the day for such). In the meantime, I'm just going to compile all the curiosities I'm reading/listening to/ daydreaming about about today.

• AfterElton is a pitch perfect entertainment blog that almost unfailingly offers insightful commentary and razor sharp snark. There's an article exploring the (pertinent) question "Why are TV's Most Interesting Characters Morally Ambiguous?" The author here does an interesting job peeling back the layers of the tropes these characters represent. Worth a look.
• Re: the "Big Brother" Dumbledore snafu- I've never watched an episode of Big Brother in my life, and sure as hell don't intend to begin now, but...as a (part-time) educator this sort of comment grates the collective nerves. The gay people are "dangerous pedophiles and shouldn't be around children" meme is a stupid, 1970s Anita Bryant type of misconception that really REALLY needs to be debunked universally. This douchebag needs to update his gay rhetoric to this decade at least.
• In Comic Book Nerd news, X-Men's big summer event "Schism" finally debuted yesterday and by all accounts, its off to a very satisfying start (even for those of us who don't get wood whenever Wolverine pops his claws) . Jason Arron (writer of the often lauded Scalped ) sets all the pieces and introduces us to the new players and manages to tell a story that seems both familiar and fresh all at once. Whats promised- given the series is called "Schism" is a massive split in the X-Men's formerly united front against extinction. Many are speculating which characters will go with whom, but really its way too soon in the narrative to tell (We don't even know what the "the last straw" is yet). Not that that ever stops fanboys on message boards from speculating, mind you.
• I feel its useful to point out that the faithful at Liberty University are vowing to disobey the "lawless tyrannical regime of the executive branch". In case you need an appropriate frame to see the linked rant through...its only sedition and treason if you're not white. White people are "patriotic" when they talk about being unlawful, apparently. Other burning questions- Don't they get federal funding? (And aren't they as a religious institution tax exempt because they're faith based and...supposedly apolitical?)
• Last night, a friend at the pub jogged my memory about THIS RADNESS. Conan the Adventurer was a pretty great cartoon, and I'm trying to decide if it passes my Thundercats test (I'll explain that later). Nerdy nerdy goodness. (Though, quick thought. Doesn't the big bad snake leader look an awful lot like Serpentor from GI Joe? )
• This. I freaking adore Toro Y Moi. And now I found another reason.

That said, its a gorgeous looking day. Why not go out and play a while?

Now See This: Walking Dead Redux

Unofficial 'The Walking Dead' Season Two Teaser Makes the Rounds [Video] - ComicsAlliance | Comic book culture, news, humor, commentary, and reviews

I'm not sure how many of you guys got the opportunity to watch the brilliantly (incredibly successful ) badass the Walking Dead season 1 on AMC, but this brief bit of zombie goodness has done its work. I'm officially stoked that creator Kirkman and company are coming back for more post-apocalyptic brilliance. Its hard to believe, but this is a fan made video, and a thing of particular beauty to boot. I'm unsure of when the next season of Walking Dead is set to appear or when Micchone is set to appear, but I thought you zombie-fans would appreciate this radness.

Look To the Skies (Part Deux)- Bioshock Infinite Mega Demo is GO!

15 Minute BioShock Infinite Demo - Xbox 360 News at IGN

I'm sure anyone who's been paying the mildest bit of attention to my blog knows how nerdy I am, and how meaningful and profound I find 2K's Bioshock series to be. Its commentary on objectivist utopia was brilliant and chillingly effecting. The hype-o-meter has been on overdrive about its pseudo-prequel Bioshock: Infinite for months now, and I've had a metaphorical hard on about it since reading about the narrative behind it. 1920's Imperialist Americana set in a fantastical steampunk inspired city in the sky. Whats not to nerdgasm over?

The fine folk at 2K have been toying with the curious about this game for weeks now; Releasing a steady yet evasive stream of information about the combat system, the increasingly fascinating character Elizabeth, the various factions that people the floating city Colombia. And now, finally, they've released the 15 minute demo amid a fair degree (much of it warranted by my mark) of fanfare.

Tags: GameTrailers.com, GTTV - BioShock Infinite, PC Games, PlayStation 3, Xbox 360

Several things jump out at me upon review of the video that make the fanboy in me giddy, but in the interests of seeming less like an irrational boob, I'll point out some gameplay and story mechanics that make Bioshock: Infinite stand out:

• Elizabeth- As a sociologist and optimistic equality advocate it used to annoy me as a boy to watch Princess Peach get kidnapped and be so utterly helpless and reliant upon the Mario Brothers for her liberation. It becomes a very complicated undertaking to make a believable, modern female characters who reinforce any other idea to the typically male audience that women are to be fought over, controlled or at worse, silent partners in their own stories. Its too soon to tell if Elizabeth won't fall into the typical damsel tropes, but I'm very much liking what I'm seeing. Elizabeth's relationship with the protagonist Booker DeWitt seems based on mutual benefit and quid pro quo. Elizabeth's relationship with Dewitt differs drastically from that of the Songbird, who has been charged with "protecting" her ...which basically caused her to live a very sequestered life in a guilded cage. She expresses quite plainly she'd rather die than live that isolated life again. In 15 minutes 2K has hand waved the stilted motivations of earlier female protagonists (I'm looking at you Princess Peach) and created a person of depth, weakness and resolve. Note how when she encounters the dead horse, she reminds Booker that she's not merely someone he can control, that she doesn't need his permission. Despite being a game mechanic- a tool for the game player to use to get to point B, she reminds the player she's a character with her own ideas and feelings, and not going to be simply content to be supplicant. And despite the setting (1920s America) not offering a lot in the way of progressive thought on gender equality, this in its own way evidences a sort of empowerment I only wish was more prone to the time period.
• (Red?) Factions- The original Bioshock's narrative was about a shimmering city built on the capitolistic ideals of a tycoon fleeing what he feared was socialist tendencies of the modern world (and really really keep restrictions off of genetic experimentation...), but by the time your cipher of a character arrives, the civilization is already in tatters. Colombia gives us the distinction of seeing this "Worlds Fair" like experiment of American exceptionalism grapple with itself in "real time". The original Bioshock essentially imploded under the weight of unchecked greed and psychotic side effects of science run amuck but Colombia has two initially well intentioned groups- the Founders- xenophobic conservatives who want to preserve their vision of Columbia and protect their way of life at the exclusion of would be interlopers, and the Vox Populi- the marginalized, disenfranchised youth movement turned militant and increasingly misguided. Ideas even now ripped from the headlines (of places like Arizona). Given this blog is oft about dystopia its important to note that both fractions have at least in the demo, descended into both anarchy and a "win at all costs" mentality that harms only the civilization they're all so invested in.
• EasterEgghunt- Note the scene in the middle where Elizabeth accidently opens a tear into the 1980s? Tears for Fears is playing, people. Nuff said.
• Kerion Gillen, the heir apparent to the Uncanny X-Men comic, has a miiiindblowing interview up at his former (present?) digs- Rockpapershotgun. Both the site and the commentary it has on Bioshock: Infinite is worth the attention.
• Another interesting (if much more console technical) interview is up at IGN.com

There's given the sheer amount of pretty and thoughtful here, there's likely to be a few more fanboyish posts down the pipe for Infinite, you can pretty much count on that. In the meantime- enjoy the pixel porn and mindfuckery.

Pop Dystopia -Dollhouse

Ah, this modern world. What did I do before I could live stream all manner of films on Netflix? (In a few words- suffered pop- cultural insignificance)

There are a few series' I've been absorbed with since the beginning of my summer doledrums. One of which is absurdly underrated the Joss Whedon/Elisa Dusku vehicle Dollhouse. Graced with a slew of aston

ishingly fluid actors, the series offers a fascinating premise- in a world where science and technology can offer you anyone at any time, and the personality is a rewriteable program, of what value is the self? By the end of season 2 a few things were evident-

• a.) Evner Gjokaj has an absolute chameleonlike ability to mimic anyone and is perhaps one of the finest actors I've ever seen in this or any role. (And I won't lie, he's obnoxiously cute.) See exhibit A.
• b.) What we know, and what we think we know about nearly every character in this show is challenged and thrown on its ear at least twice, and some of the character choices and dynamics are constantly evolving, much like the "soulless" characters gradually developing sense of self.
• c.) Amy Acker and Elisa Dusku are pitch perfect and this series offers the actors so much depth and range that its quite captivating to watch them stretch with their characters.
• d.) The entirety of the series operates in a consistent universe of moral ambiguity. Many of the Dollhouse staffers, and those that employ them operate with a very checkered, tenuous grasp on the morality of what it is they do. The justifications and rationalizations that allow them to continue the work they do often requires a fascinating degree of logical contortion which is mined to amazingly interesting effect as the series progresses. The line, and how often the handlers and staff of the Dollhouse are required to cross it in order to provide services, is obscure and being made fabulously wealthy at the expense of human experimentation has an emotional cost nobody can ultimately walk away from.
• e.) The Dollhouse's matriarchal dynamic under the machiavelian Adelle Dewit is worthy of considerable exploration. Everything she says or does is deliciously calculated and enthralling to behold.

How does it relate to dystopia? So much of the individual human experience is born of the self, and the self is largely a concept popularized by John Locke. The childlike "alters" are docile, pliant and ultimately ghosts of their former selves, but its fascinating to see the will of their selves try to assert itself despite the constant reprogramming. As the series progresses, we learn the human and societal costs of imprinting new personalities upon individuals: the utter loss of civilization. Its a grim prophecy, but one that has underpinnings of philosophical thought.

The quest to find oneself is never as literal as it is for the show's focal character Echo, and watching her slowly develop the skills and ability to claim ownership of her own identity is incredibly winning stuff. Its difficult not to be drawn in by the incredible monochrome of the corporate greed and sci-fi run amok, and as per any Joss Whedon vehicle, impossible not to feel genuine attachment to the flawed, lovely characters that people that world. If the technology existed that could rob us of our own identities and rewrite us as it was needed, I dare say it would be used for benevolent aims, and the end senario dystopian landscape painted while grim, is probable if ethical checks were not in place to prevent abuses. Without the ability to know our own minds, our own hearts, we become lost. The series does a phenomenal job of connecting the audience to the idea that our identities, our personalities are priceless treasures, and that the drives to be true to the self are profoundly strong. I find this to be one of the most compelling (and sadly overlooked) series I've had the privilege to devour. I couldn't reccomend it more highly. It was on FOX so it was likely never going to get the treatment and audience it deserves, as, lets face it, FOX has a knack for squandering its shows potential. (Family Guy, Firefly, Futurama etc. ) But its compelling, weighty, mind expanding stuff and one hundred and ninety percent worth serious consideration.

The Intro for the show captures the lilting, haunted aspect of the show and underscores the shows decadent greyscale quite well. And its super pretty so give it a look.