Jay is my hero.
Apr 09I remember watching Kevin Smith’s DVDs and making a point of watching them a second time with the commentary on, because you could be certain of two things – One, Kevin’s commentaries are always equal parts entertaining and informative. Two, you never know what Jason Mewes is going to be like. It was hilarious, sitting there with a group of friends, laughing, because Jason had undeniably fallen asleep mid-movie.
I’d like to take it all back now – not because it wasn’t funny. There’s no two ways about it, it was funny. But because I’d like to make some small gesture that I now know what the full meal deal was and since I can’t stand up and clap, I’ve got to do something. So, I’m taking it back.
Y’see, Jason Mewes is a full blown drug addict. Not a little, not a cute stoner – he is an addict. Failed rehabs, teeth lost to heroin, chemical tolerance levels that freak the shit out of anybody with even a little medical horse sense.
And, he’s been sober for three whole years now. Which is to say that if you saw Jay and Silent Bob Strike Back, he was in serious trouble and if you saw Jay and Silent Bob Do Degrassi, he was doing AOK.
I know all this, because Kevin has been writing it all down and laying it all out, over the last two weeks – his intent was to wrap it up on Thursday, Jay’s anniversary, but it’s a big story and it’s gone a bit long.
If you’re familiar with Smith’s works, it’s a good read – if you’re a fan, then it will leave a lump in your throat. Some of the professional high points for Smith and Mewes were happening concurrent with some crazy personal lows.
Happy Anniversary, Jay.
This one’s for Matt.
Apr 07Read faster, fanboy!
[UPDATE] And this one’s for Sarah. SARAH!!!
And just because there’s etiquette to these things, hero puppets are here, and angel icons are here.
Battlestar Galactica wins Peabody
Apr 07A belated, brilliantly re-imagined revival of a so-so 1970s outer-space saga, the series about imperiled survivors of a besieged planet has revitalized sci-fi television with its parallax considerations of politics, religion, sex, even what it means to be “human.”
Also picking up an award were House, The Shield, and South Park. Oh, and some reporters.
The story could have covered more ground, Xeni.
Apr 07But then, she’s not promoting comics as a whole, just certain comics. Xeni Jardin at BoingBoing has a thing for promoting the work of her comic friends (cool) – in this case, her pal Matt Fraction has a comic, Five Fists of Science coming out, which is a more adventurous take on Mark Twain, Nikola Tesla, and Thomas Edison (who is the bad guy, if I understand correctly.)
If she’d been a true comic nerd, should would have also recommended Tales From the Bully Pulpit, in which Teddy Roosevelt and the ghost of Thomas Edison travel through time and space fighting Nazis, Martians, and Nazi Martians.
Then there’s JLA: Age of Wonder, in which the iconic league characters are transposed over top the birth of the industrial age, with appearances by Nikola Tesla and Thomas Edison. The two-parter covers a lot of deep waters, looking at progress and its relationship to war, social unrest, and why Lex Luthor has no hair.
Me – picking up where Jardin left off, since… well, now.
Welcome to Eltingville – better late than never
Apr 06Canadian fans of Evan Dorkin (or Americans who missed out the first time around), rejoice – some kind soul has posted the Welcome to Eltingville cartoon pilot to YouTube. The pilot was intended to become part of the Cartoon Network Adult Swim line-up, but sadly didn’t make it, which is a shame as I think it would have found an audience after a few more episodes.
As it happens, YouTube is nerd paradise, as you can also watch Patton Oswalt and Brian Posehn’s Super Nerd pilot for Comedy Central, Joss Whedon’s Buffy pilot (dusting vampires using a four frame transition!), and Pryde of the X-men (so… many… bad Marvel cartoons). And those are whole episodes of geek shows. The sheer volume of clips, opening credits, and commercials for shows from around the world, not to mention whole episodes of non-geek shows (unless your a geek FOR those shows) is stunning.
