Yes, another Warren Ellis post

I was thinking about where my ideas come from, because for better or worse, they keep coming- and then I thought back to a couple of years ago to a post that Warren Ellis made on his site about the same thing. He makes a lot of really far-flung statements, and most of which made him sound a little masturbatory and quite insane. That was two years ago. I revisited the same post today, and his rantings of feeling like he could understand what would happen if "Einstein’s brain was placed into the body of a young tyrannosaur, stuffed full of amphetamines and suffused with Sex Radiation" made TOTAL sense.


I know that feeling. I know what it is like to step back from the computer, and realizing that I did a week's work in two hours and haven't eaten all day, and my brain is FIRE. My thoughts can strangle you from across the room and make you plead with me for more. That is the greatest high, and the only drug that I need. To fill my brain with data and engulf the world with the flames behind my eyes. There is nothing that comes close to that. I will do this forever, and I will make you watch.

You will love me for it.
Here's Warren's post

-Mind the gap

What I Love About Comics

Well, most of it, anyway. I complain a lot about the state of comics, but I love more things than I hate. For instance:

Small Publishers/ Independent Imprints

Granted, I don't really read anything from Marvel and DC's mainstream lines anymore, and with the muddling of Marvel's Ultimate line, and the obliteration of Wildstorm (not to mention the rumored destruction of Vertigo's John Constantine), I have divorced myself completely as of late out of grief.

Granted, Marvel does have the Icon imprint which you can get your Kick-Ass fix, and Imma let you finish, but Powers is one of the greatest comics of all time.

Don't worry, kids. There is more than just Marvel and DC. Dynamite is nothing less than, and they love to push the envelope. Don't believe me? Pick up The Boys #1. And you're welcome.

Avatar Press is my favorite publisher, so it should be no surprise that they have a GLUT of Ellis' work; Black Summer, No Hero, Supergod, and holy crap, Gravel and FreakAngels. I could go on, but he's doing it anyway.

UK Writers

Think about the most important, most entertaining, most thrilling works of the past thirty years, now I ask you, how many of those came from guys like Grant Morrison, Alan freaking Moore, Neil Gaiman, Garth goddamn Ennis, and yes, I'm going back to the well that is Warren "Give me whiskey or I'll throttle you Ellis.

That's just off the top of my head. I love these guys for really bringing the weird, and consistently challenging what the concept of comics should be. I didn't include Mark Millar out of personal opinion of his current work, but the Authority and Ultimates wouldn't have been as great as they were without him.

Finite Runs

One of my biggest problems with comics is when a story goes on well past its prime, so it doesn't surprise me that my favorites books had finite or extremely short runs. There's Brian K. Vaughn's Y the Last Man, Grant Morrison's Filth (fitting), and I know, I know, Warren Ellis' opus of Transmetropolitan.

Now, there are comics that are in continuous run that I love to read, like Hellblazer, which has been going strong since the eighties, but I am more inclined to call it a 'story' when it has a beginning, middle, and definitive end.

Truly Original Stories

I love the X-Men. I do. The concept of beings who are born with superpowers and choose to serve others when they don't need (or want) to is awesome to me. I love the Justice League and their feeling of family and responsibility to not just themselves, but to their code of honor and the legacy of their namesakes. I love that.

But you know what really gets me to plunk down my 3.95? Stories about the future with rogue journalists that smack slightly of Hunter S. Thompson, or super-powered policemen with moral dilemas, maybe magicians who cheat in every fight and challenge the reader's moral center in every issue.

Not every book needs a Wolverine, kids.

-Mind the gap

Check back here for more rambles about the comics that you love oh so much. http://Jackfreelance.blogspot.com/

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My problem with comic books, Part One.

Don't get me wrong. I love comics. I adore them. Have since I was old enough to read. Problem is, in many ways, the Action Magazine industry hasn't grown with me, and in many ways, I have been left wanting. Over the next few posts, I'll go over the myriad points of contention that stand between me and my first true love, four-color fantasy, and the wonders therein.

First, I'll open up discussion on costumes; what changed, what needs to, and what needs to go away. The next post will be about the Women in Refrigerators epidemic and why it has to stop. It will bring me nothing less than pure joy to wrap this tryst up in a neat little bow with a double-header of two tired tropes that I call 'Legacy' and Murder by Proxy'.

As usual, I encourage comments, expect to see the first post soon!

Mind the gap.