"Out of Sight" animated short

Here's a really neat animated short produced by by Yu Ya-ting, Yeh Ya-hsuan and Chung Ling as a student project. It bears many similarities to the works of Miyazaki. Enjoy!

Muppets Theatre Reel

Here's a neat little film the Sesame Street Muppets did for Loews Theatres explaining what you can and can't do during your film watching experience. I can't believe I'm not allowed to munch on the theatre seats...

King Aroo

 

I love comic strips and feel that they don't usually get the love they deserve. Fortunately, IDW has started to reprint the long forgotten strip King Aroo in nice hardcover volumes similar to the Complete Peanuts books put out by Fantagraphics. King Aroo was a comic strip that ran from 1950 until 1965 and was written and drawn by Jack Kent. I had never even heard of this strip before IDW began reprinting it, so I was in for a pleasant shock when I, on a whim, purchased the first volume and began reading. Not only was it good, it was REALLY good. The whimsical and pun-filled nature of this strip along with the jam packed imagery in each panel make me understand why people say this strip is reminiscent of Pogo. I REALLY hope these volumes sell well enough for them to reprint the entire series. If you love comic strips, please run out a pick up a copy today or, at the very least, convince your local library to pick up a copy. It really is that good. 

Disclaimer:  We get a small percentage of the sale price if you buy through these Amazon.com links. If you would like to support this blog, then please purchase through these links, but don't feel like you have to. If you can find them cheaper someplace else than purchase them there, especially if it's your locally owned comic shop or bookstore.
 
AMAZON LINKS

King Aroo Volume One
King Aroo Volume Two

Comic Book Lettering

(Image by Todd Klein)

Todd Klein, who I've previously mentioned here, has a really neat article about his experiences hand lettering comic book. He also discusses the current trend in computer lettering and the pros and cons in doing so. Go here to check out the article. 

Give Me Space

Here's a neat little animated film called "Give Me Space" produced by Brian Carter with an original score by Hillary Thomas.

Chrono Trigger Now Available on the Virtual Console

Chrono Trigger, one of the best role playing games of all time, has finally been released on the Nintendo Wii Virtual Console in North America! Click here to read the press release.  For only eight bucks, you can download this classic Super Nintendo game to your Wii and enjoy a great story., awesome music, multiple endings and much more. Considering how much this game goes for on the used market, you're probably not going to be able to get this game much cheaper.

The Smurfs and the Howlibird

I received a package from Amazon earlier in the week and this was one of the many gems contain inside. This is the sixth book Papercutz has released of the fabulous Smurfs comic stories. I've mentioned these comics before but every time I get a new volume in the mail I just have to post and let you know. They've been out of print in the U.S for so long that it's a relief to see them finally being reprinted so a new generation of readers can enjoy them.  

Disclaimer:  We get a small percentage of the sale price if you buy through these links. If you would like to support this blog, them please purchase through these links, but don't feel like you have to. If you can find them cheaper someplace else than purchase them there, especially if it's your locally owned comic shop or bookstore.
AMAZON LINKS

The Smurfs #6: The Smurfs and the Howlibird
The Smurfs #5: The Smurfs and the Egg
The Smurfs #4: The Smurfette
The Smurfs #3: The Smurf King
The Smurfs #2: The Smurfs and the Magic Flute
The Smurfs #1: The Purple Smurfs

Coloring Comics

 (Image by Todd Klein)

Before the advent of computer coloring, comic books had to be colored by hand. Todd Klein has a neat article explaining the process. Go here to read all about it.

The Adventures of Big Boy Comic Books

When I was a kid, our family used to go to the local Big Boy restaurant to eat. One of the neat things about Big Boy is they give out free comics to kids starring their mascot turned comic character, Big Boy. The comics would vary in quality over the years as different people would write and illustrate them, but we read them anyway. Being FREE, the price was certainly right. Go here to read an interview with Craig Yoe from 2007 after his company took over production duties on The Adventures of Big Boy.  Also, if you go here you can  find out more about the beginnings of Big Boy and read the entire first issue from 1956 produced for Big Boy restaurants by Timely Comics (aka Marvel Comics) and written by some guy you may have heard of who goes by the name of Stan "The Man" Lee. Enjoy!

Backwards Mario

Here's a fun little hack. By swapping the horizontal deflection wires on the yoke of a CRT television and swapping the left and right buttons on a NES controller, someone called JJ was able to play Super Mario Brothers backwards. Check out the video below as well as go here to find out more.

WARNING: Televisions contain enough voltage to KILL you. Only mess with them if you know what you are doing and take suitable precautions.