Comic Books

Peter Willis writes for Bleeding Cool. Borgman arrived at the 2013 Cannes Film Festival this morning as the first Dutch contender for the Palme d’Or in 38 years. And, though unlikely to walk away with any of the top honours, it will no doubt be one of the most talked movies of the festival – if for no other reason than trying to unravel its mysteries. We follow Camiel Borgman (Jan Bijvoet) as he infiltrates a wealthy household and begins to untie the knots that keep the family together, his progress charted as something between a murderous thriller and outlandish black comedy. Knocking on the doors of a tree-lined avenue seeking a shower, Borgman soon finds his “victims”. Hadewych Minis is Marina, an artist who has a strained relationship with businessman husband Richard (Jeroen Perceval). He slowly works his way into the trust of the household through various guises, becoming an intimate part of their lives while changing them forever. With help from four malicious but ever-polite assailants, Borgman “takes care of” anyone that happens to get in the way of him reaching his ultimate goal – whatever that may have been. Drifting swiftly between the incredibly surreal and the boldly unsettling, Borgman is far from being an uproarious comedy, but the totally absurd nature of many scenes can’t help but leave you with a grin wider than a Cheshire cat. A sparingly used soundtrack manages to often instill a certain degree of seriousness to the proceedings; introduced at just the right moment when things could easily have got completely stuck in a comedic mire. Devilishly intriguing throughout the opening hour, Borgman tends to lose its self within its own mystery towards the conclusion. While it is clear that Van Warmerdam didn’t want to paint the whole picture for the audience, the sheer audacity and muddled nature of the final 20 minutes felt entirely out of place in what had, to that point, been a relatively slick and well-guided script. Although the narrative isn’t entirely obscure we are left scratching at the surface of something that feels much deeper that, if presented with a shade more reality, could have offered much more. It will doubtless leave many, myself included, feeling ever so slightly short changed. Primed for multiple sittings, Borgman is slated for release in Europe towards the end of the year. Cannes 2013: Borgman Is Devilishly Intriguing And Malicious

Doctor Strange #177 (Feb. 1969) via WikipediaAs usual, I've been scouring the internetz in my never-ending quest for more info on Marvel movies, and this week I found a treasure trove.Wanna know which Marvel characters will be joining Iron Man, Thor, Hulk, and Captain America on the big screen?Thanks to Anthony Breznican of Entertainment Weekly, we've got a much better sense of what to expect in the next five years. Anthony posted a fact-filled article on the future of the Marvel Cinematic Universe and I wanted to touch on a few highlights. As I'm sure you know, Phase One of Marvel's master plan for its big screen heroes culminated in The Avengers, and Iron Man 3 kicked off Phase Two with spectacular success.In addition to Iron Man 3, Marvel has already announced opening dates for all of its Phase Two movies -Marvel Cinematic Universe: Phase TwoThor: The Dark World (Nov. 8, 2013)Captain America: The Winter Soldier (April 4, 2014)Guardians of the Galaxy (August 1, 2014)The Avengers 2 (May 1, 2015)Now, the big question is - Which characters can we expect to see in the slate of movies after The Avengers 2?The EW article does a great job of outlining what's known as of today (5-19-13). Just keep in mind that nothing is written in stone in Hollywood, and sometimes the studios don't want to divulge info about movies in the works.Which Characters Will Appear In The Marvel Cinematic Universe: Phase Three?Ant-Man fan-made poster - via AndrewSS7Ant-Man - YES - An opening date of November 6, 2015 has already been set for Ant-Man's debut. According to Marvel boss Kevin Feige, the planning for the Ant-Man movie goes back to at least 2006. Director Edgar Wright will begin filming in early 2014.Doctor Strange - YES - A movie has been announced starring Marvel's Sorcerer Supreme, but it's still very early in the planning stage. At this point, there's not even so much as a rumor about who would star. FYI - Patrick Dempsey has stated he'd love to play Stephen Strange. Iron Man - MAYBE - You'd think with Iron Man 3 making a billion dollars Marvel would already be at work on number 4, right? Well, it's complicated. Robert Downey Jr. has fulfilled his contract with Marvel, as far as the Iron Man franchise goes, but he's not ruling out playing Tony Stark again in a solo movie. If there's an Iron Man 4, it would probably be at least five years away. A lot can happen in five years, and RDJ has already said he's looking to start a new movie franchise. We'll definitely see RDJ play Iron Man in The Avengers 2, but many factors might prevent an Iron Man 4 movie starring Downey from being made. Can you say "reboot"?Black Panther - MAYBE - There's still no definitive word on whether the African king, T'Challa, aka Black Panther, will get his own solo movie anytime in the near future. Anthony speculates that we'll see the character in a supporting role in one of the upcoming Marvel movies or maybe in the TV series Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. NOTE: On May 17, 2013, a report surfaced that Marvel is interested in filming part of The Avengers 2 in South Africa, which fueled speculation that Black Panther would appear in the movie. Daredevil (Marvel Comics) (Photo credit: Wikipedia)Daredevil - NO - Matt Murdock aka Daredevil, is one of those lower tier characters that Marvel Studios recently acquired the movie rights to - along with The Punisher, Blade, and Ghost Rider. While it's very cool that Marvel has creative control over these characters, don't look for a movie starring any of them anytime soon. When asked about these characters, Marvel boss Kevin Feige told EW -“So Punisher, Ghost Rider, … Blade, all those characters are back. They all have potential, but I think we need to find the right time.”The Punisher - NO - same as DaredevilBlade - NO - same as DaredevilGhost Rider - NO - same as DaredevilMark Ruffalo as Hulk in The Avengers - via Marvel Hulk - MAYBE - Mark Ruffalo has said that he's ready to play Bruce Banner / Hulk again in a solo movie, but Marve

Publishers Jonathan Cape and the London-based comic event Comica have got together with The Observer newspaper to offer you the chance to see your work in print and win £1,000. Take this opportunity to get your work read by industry experts. The judges are Joe Dunthorne (author of Submarine and Wild Abandon), Stephen Collins (author of The Gigantic Beard that Was Evil), Rachel Cooke (The Observer), Dan Franklin (Publisher, Jonathan Cape), Paul Gravett (Director, Comica Festival) and Suzanne Dean (Random House Creative Director). The first prize is £1,000 and the publication of your four page story in The Observer New Review. The runner-up will receive £250 and your work will appear on The Guardian. Deadline for entries: 27th September 2013. • For entry forms and terms and conditions click here (PDF link) • For a plan of how your story will appear in The Observer and for layout dimensions, click here (PDF link)

Whoooo are you? Okay, yes, there are spoilers for The Name Of The Doctor. We’re going to be talking about the episode. Probably best not to watch it before you have, whether on TV, iPlayer or on DVD a week ago. Most-Read Comic Stories Saturday: James Robinson Walks From DC Comics. Along The Beach.  A few days ago I was told that a DC A-list writer was leaving DC Comics and that the company were in a bit of a mad panic to replace them quickly. Inquiries brought no results and indeed while everyone seemed to know that something was happening, no one seemed to know quite what. Supergirl In The Man Of Steel Prequel? And it seems starring a certain Kara… anyone read the whole thing who could tell us? The Return Of Jim Lee’s Divine Right: The Adventures Of Max Faraday? In the mid nineties, Jim Lee wrote and drew a comic book called Divine Right: The Adventures Of Max Faraday, about a computer science student who manages to download an equation of mystical power, giving him access to ancient knowledge and placing him in all sorts of danger. Published by Image/Wildstorm before the studio and publisher was bought out by DC comics, twelve issues were published over two years. Most-Read TV/Film Stories Saturday: Ten Thoughts About Doctor Who: The Name Of The Doctor Okay, yes, there are spoilers for The Name Of The Doctor. We’re going to be talking about the episode. Probably best not to watch it before you have, whether on TV, iPlayer or on DVD a week ago. Matt Smith And David Tennant Talk About Being The Doctor, And A Certain Someone’s Bemusement Steven Moffat tells us; What If The Eleventh Doctor… Is Not The Eleventh Doctor? – Speculative Potential Spoilers So, at one point, Christopher Eccleston was to have been in the Fiftieth Anniversary episode of Doctor Who. But then, it seems, changed his mind. But add that to the clothing choice of a certain John Hurt on the set has led to some entertaining speculation. Doctor Who: The Name Of The Doctor – Saturday Trending Topics

Cinebook Ltd: Franco-Belgian Graphic Novels in English Attention Indian fans! In two weeks, Cinebook will be present at Comic Con Express, Bengaluru, Koramangala Stadium. It’ll be the first time we travel to this part of the world, and we’re looking forward to meeting all our local fans! Distance and logistics are dictating some of our possibilities, especially regarding inventory and price. To avoid unpleasant surprises, here’s some information: - we’ll be selling books at sticker prices: 580, 660 and 750 rupees (for 6.99, 7.99 and 8.99 sterling respectively). However, we’ll aslo be offering a blanket 20% discount on all titles, making the actual prices 460, 530 and 600! - we can’t, unfortunately, rent a plane and fill it with books like we would have wanted! So we’re bringing a limited number of many of our titles, to offer as much choice as possible to any con-goers who may not know us yet. If there are specific titles you’re looking for, check out our list and plan your attendance accordingly – we can’t hold titles for anyone! • Aldebaran Vol. 1 X 3 • Aldebaran Vol. 2 X 3 • Aldebaran Vol. 3 X 3 • Betelgeuse Vol. 1 X 3 • Betelgeuse Vol. 2 X 3 • Betelgeuse Vol. 3 X 3 • Antares Vol. 1 X 3 • Antares Vol. 2 X 3 • Alpha Vol. 1 x 3 • Alpha Vol. 2 X 3 • Alpha Vol. 3 X 3 • Berlin – The Seven Dwarves X 3 • Billy & Buddy (Vols. 1 to 3) X 1 each • Blake & Mortimer – The Yellow ‘M’ X 3 • Blake & Mortimer – The Mystery of the Great Pyramid (1 & 2) X 3 each • Blake & Mortimer – The Francis Blake Affair X 3 • Blake & Mortimer – The Strange Encounter X 3 • Blake & Mortimer – S.O.S Meteors X 3 • Blake & Mortimer – The Affair of the Necklace X 3 • Blake & Mortimer – The Voronov Plot X 3 • Blake & Mortimer – The Sarcophagi of the Sixth Continent (Part 1& 2) X 3 each • Blake & Mortimer – The Gondwana Shrine X 3 • Blake & Mortimer – The Curse of the 30 Pieces of Silver (Part 1&2) X 3 each • The Bluecoats – Robertsonville Prison X 3 • The Bluecoats – The Navy Blues X 3 • Cedric (Vols. 1 to 3) X 1 each • Clifton – 7 Days to Die X 2 • Clifton – The Black Moon X 2 • Darwin Diaries – The Eye of the Celts X 3 • Darwin Diaries – Death of a Beast X 3 • Darwin Diaries – Dual Nature X 3 • Green Manor 1 X 5 • Green Manor 2 X 5 • Iznogoud – The Wicked Wiles of Iznogoud X 3 • Iznogoud – The Caliph’s Vacation X 3 • Iznogoud – Iznogoud and the Day of Misrule X 3 • Iznogoud & the Magic Computer X 3 • Iznogoud (Vols. 5 to 9) X 3 each • Lady S. Vol. 1 X 2 • Lady S. (Vols. 2 and 3) X 1 each • Largo Winch (Vols. 1 to 3) X 3 each • Largo Winch (Vols. 4 to 11) X 1 each • Long John Silver Vol. 1 X 2 • Long John Silver (Vols. 2 and 3) X 1 each • Lucky Luke (Vols. 1 to 14) X 3 each • Lucky Luke (Vols. 16 to 39) X 1 each • Melusine (Vols. 1 to 4) X 1 each • Orbital – Scars X 2 • Orbital – Ruptures X 2 • Orbital – Nomads X 2 • Orbital – Ravages X 2 • Papyrus (Vols. 1 to 5) X 1 each • The Rugger Boys Vol. 1 X 3 • The Rugger Boys Vol. 2 X 3 • The Scorpion Vol. 1 X 2 • The Scorpion (Vols. 2 to 5) X 1 each • Spirou (Vols. 1 to 3) X 1 each • Spooks Vol. 1 X 3 • Spooks Vol. 2 X 3 • Thorgal Vol. 1 X 3 • Thorgal Vol. 2 X 3 • Thorgal Vol. 3 X 3 • Thorgal (Vols. 4 to 13) X 1 each • Valerian (Vols. 1 to 4) X 1 each • Western X 2 • XIII Vol. 1 X 3 • XIII Vol. 2 X 3 • XIII Vol. 3 X 3 • XIII (Vols. 4 to 18) X 1 each • Yakari (Vols. 1 to 10) X 1 each • Yoko (Vols. 1 to 7) X 1 each Hope to see you there!!

Last time, we looked on in utter horror, as Spider-Man was blackmailed into performing his second indecent deed, all at the behest of a female foe who knows his secret identity, and is willing to reveal it to the world if the Wall-Walker doesn't snap to her every whim! Now, the action heightens as Spidey is forced to make each task more personal, and more dangerous, than the last! How far will the superhero go to protect his well-guarded secret? Will he tumble to his faceless foe's identity and location before he has to go too far? More 1978 Sunday color SPIDEY strips, from writer Stan Lee and artist John Romita, Sr.! Click below to enlarge, web-heads! Note how artist Romita sets up each scene, careful to give a real sense oflocation. A retreating Spider-Man's distance from the target's home is established in panel five, the nearness of the railroad station is seen in panel six, leading us to the station (and Peter's way back to NYC) in the final panel! This also gives readers a sense of pacing, and the passage of time.

"These short trips don't usually work. And the chances of reversing a short trip are even more remote. Still, here's hopping."TECHNICAL SPECS: First aired Nov.8 1980.IN THIS ONE... Romana falls under the spell of the Marshmen and lets them into the Starliner. The Doctor is angered by the near-vivisection of the baby Marshman.REVIEW: There's a long reprise that features the Top 2 most bonehead moves of the previous episode, in case you missed them, which leaves 18 minutes of new material, kids. TARDIS inconsistencies continue to build, as the Doctor makes some straw about short hops in space being very difficult, yet it's done three times over the course of the episode. I think it's far more likely that Romana is behind the TARDIS' increased accuracy since she came on board. She calculated these particular coordinates, after all. He won't have her in the crew for long though. I can't help but see this episode as foreshadowing. Possessed by a spider bite that bonds her to the Marshmen (and gives her that Cyberman veiny infection make-up from The Moonbase), she smashes up her room and lets Adric play companion. It's a passive-aggressive way to tell us she's leaving. There's even a sad passing of the torch when Adric fingers her crushed hat from Shada... which might have meant something to the audience at the time had the story actually aired. Good move, Einsteins.Otherwise, the story is getting better, in no small part because of the renewed focus on the Starliner crew. They attract the Doctor's righteous anger when they try to vivisect the hapless Marshbaby, giving Tom Baker the first strong dramatic scene he's had to play in a while. The baby's violent fit saves its life, but also drives Romana to open the gates to its brethren. The vivisectionist is generally well-meaning though amoral, but you can feel the anxiety coming off the Deciders who let him go ahead with his plans. These aren't villains, just people trying to do their best for their community. Of course, their best isn't very imaginative, and it takes the Doctor to really rattle their cages and dare expose their secrets. We don't learn the entire truth here, not yet, but the accusation of willful procrastination that has kept their society idling for generations is a fair one. They've been maintaining a ship, but haven't told the citizens they can't pilot the craft. In other hands (say Holmes or Adams), this would take a satirical bent. Even the Outlers put to work on the ship doing drone work walk around in a pack of six, which could be a condemnation of the unions. But while there's irony in the Alzarians' situation, there's no sense that it's meant to reflect 1980 Earth. I think it's because the script is by and large humorless, so our brains are never switched to that mode of understanding.REWATCHABILITY: Medium - The revelations are good ones and the Doctor's scene with the Deciders is excellent, but the story's potential for satire is wasted.

Of all the great artists that were present yesterday the one I really had something to say to was Bill Sienkiewicz. As one the 80s power house Marvel artists who's art has graced the covers of Rom as well as other Rom related books I would say Sienkiewicz had the most unique style of all of them. As a kid I certainly didn't fully appreciate his slightly impressionistic style of comic book art.But as I got older I started to see it in a different light and develop a new appreciation for it. I would dare say his style would serve well as a course study in modern art and perhaps even earn some respect from the snobbish art crowd that usually regard comic book art beneath their notice. It was really nice to be able to share that epiphany I've had in recent years about his work and he was quite humble in his appreciation of what I had to say. Bill Sienkiewicz, an all around stand up guy.And what con would be complete with out some cosplay maidens? And there was even more cool stuff there but that part of it I uploaded to Youtube for your viewing pleasure http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OFlxl0ij-qE&feature=youtu.be

Join me in wishing a big happy birthday to our buddy Crazy Chris. He’s been an invaluable member of the Crawlspace. He’s a reviewer of the Superior Spider-Man title and also a panelist on the podcast. If you’re a regular listener you’ll know he did a great impression of the baby with the penquin and has an uncanny mutant ability to predict the future. He was one of the first to guess Ock will be in Spider-Man’s body.

On Friday, CR readers were asked to "Name Five Favorite Non-Superhero Character Articles Of Clothing." This is how they responded. Tom Spurgeon 1. Jughead's Hat 2. Charlie Brown's Shirt 3. Jimmy Olsen's Bow Tie 4. Mr. Tawky Tawny's Green Jacket 5. Cerebus' Vest ***** D. Alexander Cox 1. Tintin's spacesuit 2. Groo's Tunic 3. Jimbo's loin cloth 4. Mammy Yoakum's boots 5. The awesome Napoleonic cape on John Carter in the Jesse Marsh comics ***** Danny Ceballos 1. Krazy Kat's Bow 2. Peculia's Ragged Dress 3. Marlys's Glasses 4. Dream's Inky Cloak 5. Bacchus's Captain's Hat ***** Matt Maxwell * Howard the Duck's cigar - HTD * Rudy the chimp's hat and bow tie - RUDY the early 80s newspaper strip * Alice the Goon's flower-topped hat - POPEYE * Joe's weaponized cat - KING CITY * Jaeger's armbands - FINDER ***** Alastair Tervit * Devlin Waugh's dressing gown. * Dennis The Menace's black and red jumper. * John Constantine's coat. * Buster's cap. * Zombo's pouch. ***** Niel Jacoby 1. Dick Tracy's Watch 2. Kamandi's Jorts 3. King Mob's nipple-ringed tank top 4. Monkey D. Luffy's hat 5. Judge Dredd's boots ***** Ben Schwartz * Sluggo's beatnik beret * Tubby Tompkins' jacket and shorts combo * Roger Kaputnik's ascots * Don Martin bent shoes * Oliver Warbucks' sparkling diamond tie-pin ***** Jones 1. Black Jack's ribbon bow tie 2. J Wimpy Wellington's shirt 3. Captain Haddock's captain's hat 4. Tubby Tompkins' disguises as The Spider. They call him The Spider, see, because he spins a web. 5. Tubby's cousin Chubby's identical-to-Tubby-only-smaller outfit. ***** Sean Kleefeld 1. Scott McCloud's t-shirt 2. Judge Dredd's helmet 3. Gilgamesh Wulfenbach's waistcoat 4. Roronoa Zoro's haramaki sash 5. Funky Flashman's hair ***** Chuck Forsman 1. Baron Bean's pants 2. Buddy Bradley's flannel shirt 3. Moominpapa's hat 4. Officah Pup's uniform and badge 5. Mr. Natural's moo moo ***** Oliver Ristau 1. Popeye's chief cap 2. Daisy Duck's hair bow 3. Snoopy's flyer's cap 4. Snork Maiden's umbrella 5. Bruno Brazil's trenchcoat ***** Scott O. Brown 1. John Constantine's trenchcoat 2. Leonidas's red cloak 3. Jimmy Corrigan's sweater-vest 4. Pogo's striped shirt 5. Popeye's sailor suit ***** Eric Newsom 1. Snuffy and Weezy Smith's headwear 2. Tintin's plus-fours 3. Buddy Bradley's yellow plaid shirt with rolled-up sleeves 4. Ray's Speedo and medallion 5. The shoes of any Don Martin-drawn character ***** John Platt 1. Ms. Tree's stylish trench coat 2. Mike Mauser's less-stylish trench coat 3. Uncle Scrooge's spats 4. Hot Stuff's diaper 5. Alanna Wolff's power suit ***** Matt Silvie 1. Doofus' stolen underwear (aka "stinkies") collection 2. The Happy Fisherman's fish 3. Bearded Windbreaker's windbreaker 4. Feldman's hat 5. Wimpy's tie ***** Chris Duffy 1 Tubby's hat 2 Wimbledon Green's cape 3 Howard the Duck's tie 4 Patty-Cake's green dress 5 BC's pelt tunic loin cloth thing ***** Brad Mackay 1) Archie's "R" sweater 2) Nipper's red-and-white striped shirt 3) Pigskin Peters derby hat 4) Walt Wallet's weird little sailor hat 5) Snoopy's flying helmet, goggles and red scarf (as his World War One Flying Ace alter ego) ***** Matt Emery 1. Sam Slade Robo Hunter's cap 2. Rogue Trooper's boots 3. Possum Von Tempsky's military uniform 4. Dan Dare's formal spacefleet uniform 5. Judge Dredd's helmet ***** Katie Skelly 1. Kei's leather pants, Akira (Otomo Katsuhiro) 2. Valentina's over-the-knee boots, Valentina series (Guido Crepax) 3. Black Jack's ribbon tie, Black Jack series (Tezuka Osamu) 4. The Black Queen's eyepatch, Barbarella (Jean-Claude Forest) 5. The Rider's helmet, Night Business #3 (Ben Marra) ***** Mike Pfefferkorn 1. Scrooge McDuck's broadcloth coat 2. Woozy Winks' green polka-dot shirt 3. Tubby Tompkins' sailor hat 4. Lois Lane's pillbox hat 5. Hans von Hammer's flying ace helmet & goggles ***** Michael Grabowski 1. Donald Duck's black sailor outfit 2. art spiegelman's v