Miniature Graphic Novellae

Good Afternoon Ladies & Gentlemen,

 

It’s been a fairly entertaining week… March Madness is in full swing. Yes, I was one of the many people in America who didn’t even know that Florida Gulf Coast University was a real place (still sounds fake) until they made it to the Sweet 16. By the way, in keeping up with my past tradition of researching school I know little of from past years… the campus is located in Fort Myers, Florida (nice place) & Florida state representative Matt Caldwell attended. That’s about all I’ve got other than their mascot is the Eagles so… GO EAGLES!!!

 

This weekend, Dizzy & I went to the Cartoon Art Museum in downtown for an annual Mini-Comics event they were holding. We went around 2 PM when Dizzy got off work… and there were two people there for the event, one being the organizer. We inquired why… and apparently a few of their releases had the wrong date. Oops! So we sat down… and made some more mini-comics while we were there… which you can find on the official RoboPanda Comics website… and socialized a bit, networking & making a few contacts and points of interest in the Bay Area comics world.

 

Eventually, a family came in & saw what we were doing… so they decided to join in… and Dizzy showed one of them how to draw a cat… it was VERY cute. Before it was over, we exchanged comics with the few people that showed up… and then had a Super Duper Burger dinner. Good times.

 

As for the museum itself, I found it VERY interesting. Though fairly small, there were special exhibits for Chuck Jones (of Looney Tunes fame) and Sam Keith (“The Maxx” and guest spots on a few other series like “X-Men” & “Batman”). There was a wide range of finished works, doodles, very different mediums & presentation formats, I found it all really interesting since I’ve been getting into the comic book realm… and trying to understand the whole creative process & how it meets with the professional part of it. I highly recommend it.

 

This weekend, we watched “Windy City Heat” which is a movie about comedian Perry Caravello and his “friends” pulling off an extremely elaborate prank… and filming the whole thing. Directed by Bobcat Goldthwaite & cameos from all over the comedy world (Adam Carolla, Jimmy Kimmel, Dane Cook, etc) the story is about a comedian named Perry and he auditions for this part to star in a Hollywood noir movie about an investigator from Chicago & the shenanigans that he gets pulled into. The only problem is… he’s horrible… but it’s okay… because it’s all a prank… so he gets the part… and basically they put him through awkward situations & basically make his life hell for their amusement. Now… it’s funny & I kinda liked it… but after a while you have to assume that he knew about it. Still, pretty hilarious. I say give it a shot.

 

Next was “Alex Cross” starring Tyler Perry, Edward Burns, Jean Reno, Rachel Nichols & Matthew Fox. Now, I think this is supposed to be a prequel of the Alex Cross character that Morgan Freeman played a few years back in those movies he teamed up with Ashley Judd like “Along Came a Spider” & “Kiss the Girls” but… we’ll just take this as it is. It’s the story of a Detroit detective named Alex Cross (Perry) and his partner (Burns) as they chase a serial killer named Picasso (Fox). Basically, the detectives do their job & save somebody… and then Picasso turns on them. Oh & Picasso is a highly skilled assassin who gets a major woody for pain & pushing people to the limits of it before he kills them. Now… that’s the story… pretty much… but there’s really no suspense or thrills in the movie… there are a lot of things that don’t make sense… the dialogue is really bad… the shameless marketing of Chevrolet vehicles in just about every screenshot at all times is a little overdone… the acting is… well, it’s okay I guess… but as a whole, not a great film at all. I’d say pass if I were you. Though I wanna go see Detroit for urban spelunking now… so yeah, that may be a future adventure.

 

After that, I showed Dizzy “The Descent” because I wanted to show her a good example of the use of light & dark to establish a theme & tone, as that’s what she’s studying… and we’re trying to make with our comics. I’ve bored you with the details of the movie before, but seriously, it’s a good horror flick. Pass on Part 2 though.

 

Anyway, that oughta do it for today. Easter is coming up… as well as my family coming to visit… so plenty of adventures coming shortly. I’ll keep you posted. And congratulations to K-Fish for getting a new job in Orlando!!! You’re enjoy it!!! Have a great week everybody!!!