Another packed day at SDCC. Here are some random pics of the sights we saw.

Scooby dooby doooooooooo!

I am Iron Man!

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Ummmmmm…???

OK, see that short guy in the middle? That’s Seth Green trying to be all incognito. Fans started to approach him and he quickly made his way off the floor and to his Robot Chicken panel.

Tim Sale and Jeff Loeb.

Jeff Smith appeared on News Hour tonight. If you missed the interview you can download the mp3 of it here. Also, click here to ask Jeff Smith a question and the results will be posted on Wednesday July 23rd.

Just listened to a great interview with Nolan and Bale on NPR’s Fresh Air. Among other things they discuss Heath Ledgers performance and the diservice done to him by those that claim the character overcame him.

The Dark Knight lived up to its hype. The latest installment in the Batman film series set records with its opening weekend, taking in an estimated $155 million at the box office. Spider-Man 3 previously held the record, taking in $151 million last year.

With San Diego Comic Con just around the corner I keep hearing from the Comic Con veterans about the good old days of less people and cheap art. That last one is especially no longer the case. While at SDCC two years ago I was looking at some Alex Ross 8.5″x11″ sketches of buildings that looked like something a 5th grader produced right before nap time. The price tag was a whopping $8,000! I personally think that’s way too high, but the page from Batman the Killing Joke (pictured above) just went for $31,000. If you’re interested in learning more about collecting original comic art be sure to check out this NY Times article.

We have sad news to report today. Michael Turner passed away last night (Fiday June 27th) of cancer.

From Aspen Comics’ Vince Hernandez

Hello all,

The Make-A-Wish Foundation

BSI Comics extends its heartfelt condolences to the family and friends of Michael Turner.

If you haven’t checked out our “How To” section lately your missing out on one of our fastest growing selections. Not only will you find scholarly books by mavericks of the industry, but you will now find gems such as Moleskine notebooks, sketchbooks, and storyboard notebooks. What’s a Moleskine notebook you ask? It’s only the best notebook on the planet used by the likes of Picasso, Matisse, Hemingway, and Neil Gaiman (I use them too).

Detective Comics was published July 1939, was written by Gardner Fox and illustrated by Bob Kane. In his third appearance we see some characteristics that define Batman into the modern age. This is also the first issue that is not written as a generic crime story, and instead we are presented with a somewhat super villain, Dr. Death.

The story:
Dr. Death has developed a deadly pollen that he presumably will use to threaten the world. However, he recognizes the growing threat against crime, Batman,  and puts a classified ad in the local paper (something like SWM evil scientist plans to kill, let’s see if you can stop me) to entice Batman into a trap. Batman accepts the challenge and is caught in a trap by two of Dr. Death’s henchmen. Batman escapes with a gunshot wound to the shoulder and eventually follows Dr. Death’s servant, Jabah, to his lab. During his confrontation Dr. Death is presumed dead after a fire breaks out in his lab.

Batman Firsts:
During his confrontation with Dr. Death’s henchmen, Batman picks up a fallen gun and threatens to kill them if they don’t reveal their bosses identity. This is somewhat of a mystery to modern Batman fans since it is well known that he doesn’t use guns.  This is also the first time we see Batman use gadgets, giant suction cups that allow him to scale the outside of a building and a mace like glass capsule used to fend off Jabah. Dr. Death is considered by most to be Batman’s first “super villain” and is also the first to refer to him as Batman.

Overall, this story flows much better than the first two appearances of Batman partly due to an extended number of pages for the story and it’s departure from a simple criminal story. Stay tuned for tomorrow’s review because we may not have seen the last of Dr. Death.

June of 1939 saw the publication of Detective Comics #28 (written by Bill Finger and illustrated by Bob Kane) and marked the last public guillotining in France. No really. I think that the latter is more interesting that this Batman story.

We’re still in the early phase of Batman and it hasn’t yet discovered it’s own path. This story, much like the previous is just a crime story about jewel thieves. No special villains, no inner turmoil and struggle, and nothing that would be recognizable as the Batman we know and love today. Much like my critique of the previous issue we get more of scenes like this one:

A blow by blow description of every action sequence. Now you may think that I’m being hard on Kane/Finger and think that’s just the way comics were back then. However, the previous issue of Detective Comics featured two stories by Superman creators Jerry Siegel and Joe Shuster. And those two stories were not written in this fashion. What I find fascinating about these early stories is seeing not only the genesis of an icon, but how the character was shaped. Besides, how much excitement and story can we expect from a whole six pages! Not to fret, the next issue of Detective Comics reveals traits that will forever be characterized with Batman. Join us tomorrow when Batman meets Doctor Death.

Detective Comics #27 was released in May of 1939 and marks the first appearance of Batman, or as he’s referred to in the early days “The Bat-Man”. Written by Bill Finger and illustrated by Bob Kane, the paltry 6 pages of story resembles very little of what we think about Batman today. Absent are the “amazing toys” , memorable foes, and grand origin stories. Instead we are treated to a simple crime fiction story. After all, Detective Comics was a genre book dedicated to sleuth stories springing from the rich tradition of pulp magazines.

The story itself is not very memorable and could otherwise be dismissed if not for the appearance of Batman and Commissioner Gordon. It’s a simple story of greed, evil, crime and punishment. The main problem with the story is that it reads like a radio script. In one series of panels we are told,

The Bat-Man lashes out with a terrific right…he grabs his second adversary in a deadly headlock…and with a mighty heave…sends the burly criminal flying through space.

What’s annoying is that the dialog in many of the scenes is an exact description of the panels. It’s as if Kane did not trust his illustration abilities and wanted to tell us what he was drawing, which is a shame because the illustrations are well thought out and executed.

Even though it’s kind of hokey, it gives us the introduction of one of the most recognized symbols of pop culture. Not all introductions can be winners and we should be thankful that the editors saw the potential and pushed forward with the character.

If you are a fan of comic strips, and let’s face it, you wouldn’t be here if you weren’t. You are going to want to check out a new quarterly magazine called Stay Tooned Magazine. Stay Tooned is remarkable for its insight into the creative process of cartoonists and artists. In an interview with Marcus Hamilton, the artist hand chosen by Hank Ketcham to take the reigns of Dennis the Menace, we get a unique view of four distinct variations of the same comic panel. This is a great opportunity to see the amount of work that goes into making a single panel and the dedication of the artist to get it just right. Not to be missed are the examples of sketches to finished product and the great interviews with Greg Cravens, Marcus Hamilton, Steve Kelley, John Rose, Marshall Ramsey, John Deaton, Rob Corley, Scott Stantis, and Steven Butler. Our preview copy of Stay Tooned was hand delivered by the editor and publisher John Reed and we are looking into the possibility of carrying future issues. If you would like to peruse the premiere issue and add it to your subscription just let us know.