Now THAT'S the Spirit...

Wow. Hard to believe after all the, uh, not so great stuff we've seen, but this trailer for Frank Miller's movie adaptation of Will Eisner's The Spirit actually looks viewable. I still have no illusions that it will be on par with Sin City or 300, but it now looks MUCH better than other trailers and clips have presented it.

So, that begs the question: Is this just a well cut trailer hiding a really bad film?

Watchmen Trailer!

It's not my favorite graphic novel of all time, but after seeing this trailer for Watchmen, I can't wait to see the movie adaptation. Looks like Zack Snyder has pulled a three-peat with his "Dawn of the Dead" remake, "300" and now "Watchmen."

My guess is that a lot of Watchmen fans will be ordering Dave Gibbons' Watching the Watchmen book. Maybe I'll pull down the graphic novel and give it another read.

Costumes or Wardrobe?

As we were waiting for MegaCon to officially start, we were surprised by the huge number of fans in costume. Men. women and children in all sizes and shapes were parading around in costumes adapted from characters in comics, cartoons, movies, video games, tv and perhaps outer space. At some point I noted that some of these folks weren't in costume. My contention was that if they dressed this way daily, their attire would no longer be considered a costume, but instead wardrobe. Needless to say, but I'll say it anyway, the remaining minutes until the show opened were spent debating whether or not an identified person was in costume or wardrobe.

I thought you might like to see some of the better costumes, so I took several photos. I was tempted to also take shots of folks that I felt were probably in wardrobe, but then thought better of it. So off we go with comments as needed... the photo above is dedicated to Judge Monty!

This photo cracks me up. You have a huge group of super heroes [and a couple of villains] just kind of hanging out and then this fella in the far left decides to dash across before the pictures were snapped. Maybe he was trying out for a place in their group since the Flash couldn't make it. My guess is he wasn't fast enough.

Here's another group of heroes that I caught lounging around before heading out on the convention floor. The guy playing Nightwing must have Spidey-sense because he snapped into a pose without me saying I was going for a photo.

The guy in the photo above and the couple in the picture below may have something to do with the fact that I didn't see anyone at the show who looked like a real Batman. Perhaps these three were in wardrobe and bumped him off!

The guy playing Ghost Rider was probably 6'6" and looked more menacing in real life. Mr. Freeze was my favorite costume of the show. Look closely and you can see the glass head covering and the ice coming off his blaster. Indiana Jones made an appearance as well.

This is a photo of the design on a fan's shirt. It's done by the very popular artist, Alex Ross. I'd never seen the design before. Although I try to keep politics out of the ZONE [since I want to focus on fun stuff], you have to admit that the image quickly sums up the feelings of a lot of people in our country. Now back to more costumes...

Perhaps the guy in the middle is hoping for a try-out to join the Green Lantern Corps. Then again, maybe he's a sidekick to the second Lantern.

Yeah, I know... Who Ya Gonna Call...

Three of the 300 showed up with a couple of their babes. Things were going well until, and I kid you not, a guy dressed up as Jesus was "attacked" by them for a photo op. Somehow I think the line, "Tonight we dine in Hell!" may come true for these "warriors."

More on the show to come...

Join the 300

Longtime ZONErs know how much I loved "300." It's hard to believe, but I first started talking it up "300" over 3 years ago. Of course I've been a Frank Miller fan for nearly 30 years and jumped on the Zack Snyder bandwagon after seeing his take on "Dawn of the Dead." I was sure that "300" was going to rock and I continued to talk it up more and more as we got closer to it's big screen release. Click HERE and you'll see what I mean.

The cool thing is that now you can help promote the dvd release of "300" and maybe win a trip to Comic-con or even a set visit to hang with Zack Snyder on the set of "Watchmen". How great is that?

For full details, just click HERE. SPARTANS, you'll be glad you did!

Heroes Con 07 Report

Heroes Con 2007 was a blast. Rather than go into a lengthy con report, I thought I'd post up some pictures and my thoughts. Hope you enjoy them half as much as I did the show...

This is the crew that I hung with for most of the weekend. Starting at the left and working around the table, my oldest son Mike, "The James", Raf Kayanan, John Beatty, Andrew Robinson, Matt, Lazenby and Hal. Getting together with these guys is always a blast. Raf, Beatty and Andrew were set up at the con next to each other [Bob McLeod, Derec Donovan and John Dell were also within reach] so it was a pretty hopping spot. Originally Dave Johnson was supposed to be set up in the same area, but unfortunately he couldn't make it this year.

That's Matt Fraction pictured above. He's about to autograph my copy of Last of the Independents which I highly recommend! It was my first time meeting Matt who also writes the popular Casanova comic series.

Rick Remender not only autographed my Doll and Creature graphic novel [review coming soon], but did an amazing piece for my Stallone gallery. I'll post it once it's scanned. Rick said that The Last Days of American Crime is in the works. I can't wait. Rick has so many irons in the fire with Fear Agent, Sea of Red, Strange Girl and more that I was starting to think that he'd never get to it.

Another first was meeting Kyle Baker. I'm a huge fan of Kyle's work. You Are Here is one of my all time favorite graphic novels. Kyle signed mine and told me his an idea for a sequel. I truly hope that someday he's able to do it. I also picked up Kyle Baker Cartoonist Volume 1 & Volume 2 and Nat Turner Volume 1 & Volume 2. I was also lucky enough to get a Rocky sketch from Kyle [which I'll post later]. Kyle Baker is an amazing talent and it was a pleasure meeting him.

One of the best parts of each Heroes Convention is watching artists create pieces for the auction. That's Craig Hamilton working on his "300" piece. Craig's an amazing artist who puts some much thought into everything he does. One of the cool things about Craig's painting is that it works both horizontally [as seen above] or vertically! Tony Harris worked on a wicked "Phantom of the Opera" piece, while Phil Noto brought Batman, Batgirl and Catwoman together as Andrew Robinson started "After the Parade" .

That's Gus Vasquez and his lil cousin Rosario Dawson. [Yeah, Rosario Dawson as in "Sin City", "Grindhouse", "Clerks 2", and a whole lot more!] Rosario and Gus were back as special guests of the show and also the auctioneers! They did a great job and a new record was set when Adam Hughes' Star Wars painting topped out at $5K!


It was so cool just to spend the weekend among friends, many of whom happen to be talented artists. Andrew Robinson definitely falls into both categories. The drawing above and this one are just two pieces that Andrew had created for his latest sketchbook. I was also lucky to see an advance copy of Andrew's new art book that will be coming from Alberto Ruiz's Brandstudio Press. Andrew's book is going to be a hot seller and I can't wait to get my copy!

Raf and Alberto spoke and Raf may have an "art of" book coming soon. I can't believe I didn't get any pictures of any of the sketches Raf produced. I was just too in awe of his work since it had been so many years since I'd been able to sit and watch him draw. I did get this shot and this one of two Punisher sketches that Beatty worked up for some lucky fans.

I guess I was just too busy actually talking to friends [Gary McKee, Jason Walker, and Eric Layton to name just three] and saying "hi" to artists [Jeff Parker, Brian Stelfreeze, Cully Hamner, Adam & Alison, Casey Jones, Cliff Chang, Tommy Lee Edwards and so many others] that I didn't take many pictures. I promise I'll do better next year... but please understand, no one does it as well as Pat Sun.

I was able to get some great additions to for my Stallone sketch collection. That's Mike Wieringo pictured above. Mike's blog is regular reading for me, not only because of his great sketches, but because of his thoughts about each sketch. When I contacted him about a Rocky sketch he posted after seeing "Rocky Balboa", he said I could pick it up at Heroes. Mike was also selling a sketchbook and with each book purchased fans got a free sketch. Talk about a great deal! I picked up a sketchbook and got Mike's take on Jack Carter as a bonus. [I'll post it soon.]

In addition to the two sketches I got from Mike Wieringo, I also was able to get one each from Rick Remender and Kyle Baker. Andrew Robinson did a cool Rocky for me before arriving at the show. So did Andy Smith. Megan Ruiz [Alberto's daughter -- a true prodigy] came through with Rambo. I also was able to get on Robin Mitchell's sketch list and come home with The Art of Robin Mitchell, Volume 1 and his take on Cosmo Carboni from Paradise Alley. I'll post all of these sketches once I get them scanned.

If you've made it with me this far, then you know a good time was had by all. Thank you and good night!

Zombie Survival Guide

Most ZONErs have a love for the zombie genre. We dig all things Romero. We can't wait for each new issue of The Walking Dead. We knew about Zack Snyder [he directed the Dawn of the Dead re-make] way before 300. If you fall into this category [emphasis on gory], then you may want to check out The Zombie Survival Guide: Complete Protection from the Living Dead by Max Brooks.

I say you may want to check it out because, unlike his highly recommended World War Z, the Zombie Survival Guide is just that... a survival guide. Where World War Z focused on well written stories of survival in a world of zombies, the Survival Guide is what it claims to be... a manual. There's no doubt that it's a cool idea. Brooks should be commended for creating a fun handbook for zombie fanatics. The guide is a well thought out and entertaining... manual.

I think that fans of the genre are going to really enjoy the ZSG, but I don't want to mislead anyone into thinking that it's a prequel to Brook's highly rated World War Z or even a novel about zombies. It's survival guide... a manual.

The Zombie Survival Guide rates a C+.

The Condemned Breaks Out!

Hey, you probably saw a preview for "The Condemned" when you saw "300", right? Yeah, I know, it looks like predictable fun. But, did you see the cool poster for it? Neat concept. I like it. What'd you think?

Entertainment Weekly

I love Entertainment Weekly. Truely. I look forward to it's arrival each week and it never disappoints. Last week it featured a great cover and story on "300". This week EW gives the same treatment to "Grindhouse".

I've been an Entertainment Weekly subscriber since issue one and don't plan to let my subscription lapse anytime soon. That may not sound like much of an endorsement, but it is. I used to subscribe to a ton of magazines, but its the only one I've kept. Entertainment Weekly has outlived People, US, Interview, Premiere, Prevue, Rolling Stone, The National Enquirer, Star, Sports Illustrated, Writer's Digest, The Comic Buyers Guide, Movie Collectors' World, TV Guide, The Comics Journal, Muscle and Fitness, Sly, Alfred Hitchcock's Mystery Magazine, Cinescape and who knows what else.

Entertainment Weekly covers [in each issue] movies, dvds, television, music, books, comics, and features a monthly column by Stephen King [who is always entertaining]. While I don't always agree with their reviewers' opionions and sometimes couldn't care less about their cover feature, I always find something in the magazine of interest. Especially when they cover features like "300" and "Grindhouse".

Russell: "I am Snake Plissken!"

The other day I mentioned that Gerard ["300"] Butler had signed on to play Snake Plissken in a new movie. My ZONE message board lit up with people [myself included] saying that Kurt Russell should be the one to play Snake.

Well, it seems Kurt Russell agrees. Entertainment Weekly posed the question, "What if they asked you to do a cameo in the new Escape from New York, or play the Ernest Borgnine role?" Here's Kurt's reply...

"F--- that! I am Snake Plissken! It's like Sean Connery always watching someone else do their version of Bond. I think one of the things, for instance, about Escape From New York that appealed to me was that it wasn't a special effects extravaganza. It's a quiet, dark world and it revolved around watching the behavior of this one guy. He's a fascinating character. In fact, he's the most complex character I've ever played."

And if you wonder what Kurt thinks about Scottish actor Gerard Butler playing Snake, the EW interview clears it up when Kurt says, ''Oh, man!'' [Russell winces]. I do think that character was quintessentially one thing. And that is, American."

I have nothing against Gerard Butler. I think he was great in "300" and I expect him to do other cool projects. And, while the remake of Snake Plissken is definitely cool, Russell is still THE MAN to play him. For the whole EW interview, click HERE.

"300" Still #1

"300" continues to rake in the dough at the box office. It was number one for the second-straight weekend bringing in $31.2 million. This shoots it past the $100 million mark [$127.5 million] after only a week in theaters.

"300" was also number one at the box office overseas, bringing in $15.6 million and topping the charts in thirteen countries. The overseas total so far is $24.6 million and has yet to open in Britain, France, Spain and Mexico!

If you're a "300" fan, then be sure to keep an eye out for the March 23, 2007 issue of Entertainment Weekly which should hit the stands early this week.

EW: 1st Look @ 28 Weeks Later Poster

The March 23, 2007 issue of Entertainment Weekly has a cover story on "300" [more on that later] and features a first look at the poster for "28 Weeks Later" the sequel to the cult hit "28 days later." Look for the issue to hit news stands this week. It's always more than worth the price of admission and especially so this week.

There's a New Snake in Town

Variety announced yesterday that New Line won the bidding war to remake "Escape From New York." Gerard Butler [star of the fan favorite and record setting "300"] is set to take on the role of Snake Plissken which Kurt Russell made famous. Ken Nolan ["Black Hawk Down"] is on board to produce the screenplay which will update the 1981 John Carpenter script.

I have mixed feelings about this. One one hand, Kurt Russell is still around and in good enough shape to play Plissken again. I'll miss his "Clint Eastwood" delivery as Plissken. On the other mitt, I've always thought a more realistic and gritty Snake Plissken would be very cool. It'll be interesting to see what direction this updated "Escape from New York" will take. The good news is that even if the new version bombs, it won't change one frame of the orginal movie in my collection.

"300" is 1

It's been announced that "300" made an estimated $70 million during its first three days of release. This not only catapults "300" to the coveted #1 spot in its opening weekend, but sets a new record for a March release. What makes this even more impressive is that the previous record-holder was the family-friendly "Ice Age 2: The Meltdown" that took in $68 million in March 2006. "The Matrix Reloaded" ($91 million) and "The Passion of the Christ" ($83 million) are the only R-rated movies to have bigger openings than "300."

To add icing to the cake, most reviews have been positive and women are also giving the movie high marks [which is especially nice to hear since most critics felt that the movie would have very limited appeal to females].

I saw the movie in a packed theater at the first showing on opening day and loved it. In fact, I plan to see it again on the big screen... which is rare for me in this age of quick to dvd releases.

Another "300" Trifecta

It's time for another "300" trifecta...

Click HERE and you'll get an interview with Spartan King Gerard Butler.

Click HERE and it's an interview with the "God King" Rodrigo Santoro. a

And finally, click HERE and you'll get an advance review of "300."

All of this low-cal, low-sodium goodness is brought to us from the good folks at ComicBookResrouces.com.

Don't Walk, Start Ronin

It's time for our hourly "300" update...

Newsarama is reporting that "300" producer Gianni Nunnari, was asked about other comic projects is working on and he responded by saying Frank Miller's Ronin!

Ronin was a six issue miniseries published by DC after Frank's initial run on Daredevil. It's the story of a young Ronin in feudal Japan who seeks to avenge his master who was killed by a demon.

If the story pans out and the producer can get a director with the same passion that Zack Snyder has shown in translating "300" to the big screen, we could be in for another great ride. To check out "Ronin" click HERE. To get the full details from Newsarama, click HERE.

Interview with the King

It's time for our hourly update on "300." This time we have a link to an interview with "300" star Gerard Butler brought to us from the kind folks at comicbookresources.com!

300: The Art of the Film

I received my Art of 300 book today and it's a beaut!

With 300: The Art of the Film you get to go behind the scenes and see how director Zack Snyder (Dawn of the Dead) translates Frank Miller's award-winning graphic novel to the big screen. The book includes more than 100 pages of production photos, concept art, and much, much more. What makes the deal even sweeter is that if you order using the link provided you can save over 33%!

Now if the movie's release date would only get here!

300: The Art of the Film rates an "A"

A "300" Tidbit

Here's a "300" tidbit for you diehard fans courtesy of Comicbookresources.com. It's a short interview with actor Rodrigo Santoro, who plays the Presian King Xerxes, leader of the army attempting to conquer the world.

Your "300" Fix

Now that "Rocky Balboa" has been released, the movie that I am most anticipating is "300." March 9th just can't get here fast enough.

If, like me, you're looking for your "300" fix, then this interview with Zack Snyder or these new posters might hold you over.

"300" Wallpapers Aren't Enough

Since we all love "300" and can't wait for the movie to open, I thought it would be nice to have some cool wallpapers to help tide us over.

So did the nice folks at moviephone.com!