Ray Harryhausen passed away last week. This has been noted by people more qualified than I to discuss the master of stop-motion magic—Rick Baker, Adam Savage, Todd Masters, George Lucas, Peter Jackson, and more. The superhuman talent and perseverance evident in a Harryhausen effects sequence can easily be seen in countless visual effects artists since he first brought his creations to frame-by-frame life on the big screen. That makes sense. So how can I really say anything of worth when I say that I was also profoundly influenced by the artistry of Ray Harryhausen? With modesty, and a story about Clash of the Titans. Continue reading…
See All Categories
- Comics (120)
- First (7)
- Guest Star (45)
- Movies (34)
- Notes (2113)
- Romance (76)
- Science-Fiction (116)
- Screen (58)
- Videogames (71)
Recent Features
Ray Harryhausen and Me: A Life of High Adventure and Escapism
Things That Change You Forever
I have a ghost story of my own. At least, I have a ghost-cat story.
My final year as an undergraduate was spent in relative splendor. My friends and I lucked into tenancy in the house of a professor on sabbatical. Twelve foot ceilings! Built in bookshelves! Three cats! Real, grown-up furniture! Wait… let’s get back to the cats. The professorial family had three cats and a dog, though the dog was sent to a friend with a farm (later, they told us later that we clinched the lease when they told us that cat care was part of the deal and our response was, “Aw, we don’t get the dog?”).
So. Three housemates, three cats. One morning around the (solid oak!) table, we were chatting about the cats’ sleeping habits. Two of the cats routinely slept in my room, the third with one of the others. Feeling a little left out, the third roommate said, “That’s okay, because Ghost Cat slept on my bed last night.” Continue reading…
Secret Agent, Detective, Genius, Jerk: Modernizing Sherlock Holmes
A man with dark wavy hair wakes up in an iron-framed bed in the middle of a windowless room. He leaps out from under the white sheets and stares intently at a corner of the white ceiling. Suddenly, gracefully, he spins to defeat an invisible opponent in four swift motions, finally falling to his knees in front of an empty chair, hands outstretched.
There’s something about the way Benedict Cumberbatch plays the lead role in the BBC series Sherlock that seems like it could be Holmes’ fantasy version of how a brilliant detective behaves. Continue reading…
My New Weapon of Choice
In April, the Guttersnipes like to mix it up a little. This month, Comics Editor Carol Borden writes about romance.
“You hit him with a frying pan,” he said to her. “How come you didn’t grab a knife?”
“The frying pan was closer.” Her eyes slid away. “It’s not like I had time to pick a weapon. It’s not like the frying pan is my weapon of choice.” –Agnes And The Hitman (27)
Growing up in a town where Elvis was sighted post mortem, I despised and mocked The King. Now, I have held wakes in his honor. I used to only like punk. Then I used to say I liked everything but country. Now I don’t even bother arguing that I’m listening to “Americana,” not country. It is a truth universally acknowledged that something I once despised I will come to appreciate and, often, love. So when both Chris and alex recommended Jennifer Crusie, the author of many romance novels, and in particular her collaboration with Bob Mayer, Agnes And The Hitman, I knew I needed to read it. Continue reading…
BGN on Interracial Relationships
The Black Girl Nerds Podcast focuses on interracial relationships. “The highest rated BGN podcast yet is about guess what? Interracial Relationships. We actually received more calls from men on this topic then women which speaks volumes to men’s thoughts on the hot button issue.”
“Nerdiness and Whiteness”
The Black Girl Nerds Podcast ponders nerdiness and whiteness: “Does Being Nerdy Mean You ‘Act White?’”
Interview with Nalo Hopkinson
TVOntario interviews writer Nalo Hopkinson about utopian literature, the ancestral experience of slavery, “noticing race” and the ideals of Toronto’s Caribana festival.
Diverse Writers, Diverse Readers and Happily Ever Afters
NPR talks about romance written by and for people of color with authors Brenda Jackson, Michelle Monkou, Camy Tang and romance critic Sarah Wendell at the Romance Writers of American convention. (The radio piece is stronger than the written synopsis).
“Krazy Kat Goes A-Wooing”
George Herriman animated this Krazy Kat cartoon in 1916 and while any time is good to revisit it, Black History Month seems a particularly good one.
White Scripts and Black Supermen
The trailer for White Scripts And Black Supermen: Black Masculinities In Comic Books, a documentary directed by Jonathan Gayles. And there are some extended interviews at the documentary’s YouTube Channel.
“Remembering Dwayne McDuffie On His Birthday”
Comics Alliance remembers Dwayne McDuffie. “McDuffie was an incredible talent who was often seen as a “black writer” as opposed to just a writer, largely due to both his stature in the industry, and his ability to eloquently discuss the difficulties that face black writers in comics.”
“Welcome To Black History Month”
At Comics Alliance, David Brothers takes us on a walk through Black history in comics from Krazy Kat; Orrin C. Evans’ All-Negro Comics; Billy Graham’s Panther’s Rage; Hardware and Milestone Comics to now.
Black Kirby
Artvoice profiles, Black Kirby, John Jennings and Stacey Robinson’s art team that “imitates and parodies Jack Kirby’s in style and substance, adding an African-American—and notably contemporary—dimension.”
“Me and My People Got History”
David Brothers writes about Luke Cage, comics history and how and why he writes about race. “I really, really care about this stuff. I care about others getting it right and I definitely care about getting it right myself. Otherwise, you get ‘LOL Luke Cage’ instead of treating the guy like his history is as [...]
How Not To Be A Con Creeper
Andre at Black Nerd Comedy has some advice on how not to be a creeper at cons (and pretty much anywhere else) in his latest, “Black Nerd Rant.”
The Story of Negro Romance
History Detectives has 13 pages of, “Possessed, ” a story from a comic, Negro Romance. Watch the segment to learn more about the history African-Americans in comics, how the comic represents changes in American society after World War II and the creators of Negro Romance. (There is also a link to the full 55 minute [...]
Soul Train at the K Chronicles
Cartoonist Keith Knight remembers Don Cornelius and Soul Train. (After kindly linking to it on the Gutter).
RIP, Don Cornelius
Soul Train creator and host Don Cornelius has died. The LA Times has an obituary and YouTube has many, many Soul Train clips.
“Frankly, Static deserved a lot better.”
John Rozum writes a comment about why he left DC’s comic, Static Shock. It will have some resonance for people who remember Static Shock’s co-creator Dwayne McDuffie’s posts about the difficulties he had writing for DC’s Justice League of America. Update: Comic Book Resources has more.
10 Comics I Liked in 2011
It’s the beginning of January, cold and dark where I am. The critics are all putting out their best of year lists, and maybe you’re looking for something to read. So here’s my entry into annual lists: 10 comics I liked in 2011 that I haven’t written about. Well 9 comics I haven’t written about [...]
Origin Story
How did Carol Borden become a fan of DC superheroes? Did she uncover the truth that criminals were a cowardly and superstitious lot? Was she packed into an interstellar cradle and shot into space with the blind hope that she would be found and raised to value truth, justice and the superhero way? Or was [...]
5 Webcomics Created by African-Americans
Blackweb offers a sample of webcomics by African-American creators. Check out: A Pug Named Fender, JOE!, Addanac City, Company Man. (via Jay Potts)
Fear of a Black Panther: Part One
“Fear of a Black Panther: Part One” is the excellent first part of an examination of Panther’s Rage: “a classic 13 part super-hero story that predated the ‘adult’ stylings of Watchmen & the Dark Knight Returns by over a decade. [It} was a dark, dense American super-hero comic that featured African characters in every single [...]
The History of Black Comic Book Heroes Through the Ages
Dart Adams Presents: Black Like Me: The History of Black Comic Book Heroes Through the Ages, Part One (1900-1968)and Part Two (1969-2008). (Click it! It’s amazing).
keep looking »Of Note Elsewhere
At Sequart, Julian Darius makes the case that Star Trek: Into Darkness damages the Star Trek franchise and that “Starfleet must be destroyed.” (via Mike White)
“It’s easier to tell the same stories everyone else does. There’s no particular shame in it.
It’s just that it’s lazy, which is just about the worst possible thing a spec fic writer can be.
Oh, and it’s not true.”
Kameron Hurley writes about lazy writing, cannibal llamas, female soldiers, and women here. (Thanks, James!)
Patton Oswalt’s multi-franchise super-movie described in his Star Wars filibuster from Parks and Recreation, animated.
Corrigan Vaughan writes an open letter to “Fans of Geek Things“: “I appreciate that you think I have a nice rack and that some of you even find my friends and I to be pretty. That’s very kind. I’m not, however, super in love with the fact that having a rack at all seems to preclude me from being considered a ‘real’ fan.”
The Book!
Obsessive?
Weekly Notifications
Search the Gutter
What We’re Talking About
1930s
1940s
1950s
1960s
1970s
1980s
1990s
2000s
2010s
action
adaptation
animation
art
Canada
capitalism
China
comedy
comics
fandom
fantasy
feminism
film history
games
geekery
gender
history
horror
interviews
Japan
martial arts
monsters
movies
music
RIP
romance
science fiction
space
superheroes
the ladies
trailers
tv
UK
USA
video
writing