Muppet Snow White #1

Having  just returned from the family vacation to Walt Disney World, my life has been taken over by the Mouse. Visions of the Disney Princesses have taken over the visions of my children. The sounds of It’s A Small World have permeated my brain. We are now Disney junkies looking for our next fix. Great timing, perhaps, that BOOM! Studios released it’s latest Muppet comic in the Fractured Fairytales vein: Muppet Snow White.

Although The BOOM! Muppet releases attract a younger crowd by nature, they’ve always been cleverly written to entertain mom and dad as well. Muppet Snow White #1 takes every opportunity to break down the fourth wall by using characters Gonzo and Rizzo as The Brothers Grimm to “narrate”, by way of bickering with eachother about whether Camilla the Chicken or Spamela Hamderson would make a better Snow White and procuring license deals for Snow White’s lovable companion, Pepe the King Prawn, who also happens to be Spamela’s agent.

The entire comic feels very much like a Muppet Show production, with all your favorite Muppet characters playing a role, and there are some inspired choices among the cast. With Kermit as the Prince and Spamela as Snow White, Miss Piggy gets plenty of chances to take out her  “HIIIIYA!” karate rage as the Queen. I personally thought Fozzie’s wizecracks as the Mirror worked really well, but The Electric Mayhem as the Dwarves was my favorite, singing “Heigh-Hooo!” in the tune of The Ramone’s Blitzkreig Bop.

Gonzo and Rizzo take advantage of the fact that the comic follows the classic tale in the public domain rather than lampooning the Disney animated version which gives the book some additional jokes in the comparison, but is interesting in that the Muppets are now owned by Disney, and BOOM! has the Disney license.

And that brings me to the book’s fatal flaw. It’s a wordy book. Not only is there a lot of narration and dialog, but most of the humor would probaby fly above the normal school-ager. And for kids who don’t yet read, there are so many word balloons on each panel that the art, which has lots of color and great lines, suffers as a result. For adults, there’s such so much writing that it weighs down each page – it’s certainly not an easy page-turner.

Muppet Snow White would probably make a better television show or movie than what began with this issue. It still has nice art, most of the jokes hit rather than miss, and it has a great cast of characters in place, so I’m interested to see where it goes from here.

Free Comic Book day

Each year the selection of comics is geared toward readers of all ages, and this year is no exception. Most participating comic shops also have other events throughout the day, such as raffles, costumed characters to meet and greet with the kids, and special sales. To check for a participating shop in your area, go to the official web site and use the FCBD Store Locator.

Below is a preview of this year’s comics. To see the entire list, go to the FCBD web site:

ARCHIE’S SUMMER SPLASH! #1 FCBD 2010 EDITION [Preview]
Creative Team: (W/A) Dan Parent.
Publisher: ARCHIE COMICS

“Whose BEACH is it Anyway?”: Sun, sand, swimsuits and cool rockin’ tunes — no, it’s not a cinematic “beach party” blast from the past, but a whole new summer splash from Archie and his friends! In this fun-filled free issue, Cheryl and her snooty friends from Pembrooke form an all-girl group to compete head on with the Archies at a summer beach music festival. Will Cheryl’s group be a tuneful treat, or mistaken for bellowing whales?

Doctor Solar/Magnus FCBD 2010 EDITION [Preview]
Creative Team: (W) Jim Shooter (A) Dennis Calero, Various (C) Raymond Swanland.
Publisher: DARK HORSE COMICS

The dawn of a new age of superhero excitement begins on Free Comic Book Day as Dark Horse Comics proudly presents the return of two of the most legendary characters in the annals of comics: Doctor Solar, Man of the Atom and Magnus, Robot Fighter — re-imagined for the 21st century by comics legend, writer Jim Shooter! This FCBD extravaganza offers all-new Solar and Magnus stories, each heralding new series launches in summer 2010, and featuring interior art by fan-favorite Dennis Calero (X-Men Noir) and cover art by Raymond Swanland!

FRACTURED FABLES FCBD 2010 EDITION [Preview]
Creative Team: (W) Bryan Talbot, Doug TenNapel, Alexander Grecian, Derek McCulloch, Ted McKeever (A) Camilla d’Errico, Doug TenNapel, Christian Ward, Anthony Peruzzo, Ted McKeever (C) Mike and Laura Allred
Publisher: IMAGE COMICS

This special FCBD offers a small taste of the new hardcover anthology from Silverline Books due later in the year. An all-star cast of writers and artists have been assembled to turn familiar fairy tales and nursery rhymes on their ear to make kids LAUGH! These humorous interpretations will delight any reader, regardless of their age!

G.I. JOE: A REAL AMERICAN HERO #155½ FCBD 2010 EDITION [Preview]
Creative Team: (W) Larry Hama (A) TBD.
Publisher: IDW Publishing

This is what you really want! Larry Hama continues his original and ground-breaking G.I. Joe: A Real American Hero saga with the VERY NEXT ISSUE (but, you know, 15 years later). G.I. Joe has closed its doors, leaving COBRA to pillage, burn, and plunder!

IRON MAN/THOR FCBD 2010 EDITION [Preview]
Creative Team: (W) Matt Fraction (A/C) John Romita, Jr.
Publisher: MARVEL COMICS

The perfect jumping-on point for any and all readers…and it’s FREE! When rogue mega-billionaires with world-destroying technology threaten the safety of the entire world…and the moon…Thor and Iron Man join forces! In time for the exciting launch of new stories and a bold new direction for Invincible Iron Man and Thor, superstars Matt Fraction and John Romita Jr. team up to bring you two of Marvel’s heaviest hitters like you’ve never seen them before! A major new direction for the Marvel Universe kicks off HERE – on Free Comic Book Day!

MOUSE GUARD/FRAGGLE ROCK FCBD 2010 Edition [Preview]
Creative Team: (W/A) David Petersen, TBD.
Publisher: Archaia Entertainment

Archaia is proud to present two amazing all-new stories in one fantastic flip-book! In the spring of 1153 the Mouse Guard deal with the onset of the spring thaw and the havoc it wreaks on their territories. Meanwhile, it’s time to dance your cares away as Gobo, Mokey, Wembley, Boober and Red return for a brand-new series of hilarious and heartfelt Fraggle Rock adventures written and drawn by some of the most imaginative creators in comics!

KiZOIC Presents: Shrek & The Penguins of Madagascar FCBD 2010 Edition [Preview]
Creative Team: (W/A) Dan Parent.
Publisher: Ape Entertainment

Ape Entertainment proudly offers KiZOIC Presents: Shrek & The Penguins of Madagascar! Featuring four stories by the artists and writers of the up-coming Shrek and Penguins of Madagascar comic books, these stories are guaranteed to tickle your funny bone and leave you begging for more! All-ages fun for everyone!

YOW! The John Stanley Library FCBD 2010 Edition [Preview]
Creative Team: (W/A) John Stanley.
Publisher: Drawn & Quarterly

D&Q delivers another wholly original and boisterous FCBD issue that will entertain readers of all ages! YOW! The John Stanley Library spotlights the world’s greatest all-ages cartoonist, John Stanley, in a beautiful package designed by Seth. YOW! features new stories from the John Stanley Library: Melvin Monster, Nancy and 13 Going On 18, plus a story from the legendary one-shot Choo Choo Charlie and a Tubby story!

TOY STORY FCBD 2010 EDITION [Preview]
Creative Team: (W) Jesse Blaze Snider (A/C) Nathan Watson.
Publisher: BOOM! Studios

With Toy Story 3 hitting theaters this summer, don’t miss this opportunity to get kids hooked on comics with a FREE issue from the ongoing Toy Story series from BOOM Kids! More all-new adventures featuring the world’s favorite toys with Woody, Buzz and the gang!

WAR OF THE SUPERMEN #0 FCBD 2010 EDITION [Preview]
Creative Team: (W) James Robinson (A) Eddy Barrows, Ruy José (C) J.G. Jones.
Publisher: DC COMICS

A war is coming, and all that stands between Earth and 100,000 vengeful supermen is one Superman! The conflict between Superman and General Zod erupts into all-out war this summer in a series that will shatter the worlds of Superman, Supergirl and the entire DC Universe — all brought to you by the hit creative team of James Robinson and Eddy Barrows! This special #0 issue featuring all-new material previews the conflicts to come while spotlighting a savage strike on Metropolis and the world — an attack that will shake Superman to his very core. After this, there’s no turning back — the War of the Supermen is here!

Think ID4 was science fiction? Think again. Famed astrophysicist Stephen Hawking warns humans that when it comes to contacting alien life forms, we should all be careful what we wish for:

“He speculates most extraterrestrial life will be similar to microbes, or small animals — but adds advanced lifeforms may be ‘nomads, looking to conquer and colonize.’”

That quote is both scary as heck and super awesome at the same time. Might want to think twice about encouraging your kids to build a spaceship by showing them Explorers – we could think of better ways to die than to be serenaded by an alien with Little Richard right before it sinks its teeth into you.

Showing that we like to pull up a good book as much as the next blog, we wanted to make special mention of Omnivoracious‘ “End-o’-the Week Kid Lit Roundup” – mainly because it mentions Yo Gabba Gabba, comics and Iron Man! Specifically, what does the School Library Journal think are the best Iron Man books for school-aged children? Or how about what are the 2010 Eisner nominees for “Best Publication for Kids”? And we can’t believe we missed this one on the wires – a new comic from Oni Press based on Yo Gabba Gabba?!? Here’s the skinny from Publishers Weekly:

“The Yo Gabba Gabba books will be 128-page color anthologies featuring art by artists associated with the show as well as published children’s artists such as Matt Loux (Salt Water Taffy) and Vinny Navarette (Dear Dracula).  Oni Press sales and marketing director Cory Casoni said that the anthologies are just the beginning, and that Oni will be working with Yo Gabba Gabba‘s producer, Wildbrain, to develop more comics for young readers.”

Lastly, Variety reports gamers’ rights could be at risk as the Supreme Court will review California’s violent video game band which prohibits the sale or rental of games not just rated ‘M’ for mature, but many ‘T’ for teen-rated games as well. California bill AB1179 was signed by Governor Schwarzenegger in October 2005 and was to come into effect January 2006 but has been held up in the lower courts as unconstitutional. The bill stated retailers would be fined $1,000 if caught selling violent games to minors, and all violent games would have to carry new stickers branding their violent status.

When the Supreme Court reviews the bill in October, it could overrule lower court rulings and enforce the California bill. The risk is this would enable other states to pass and enforce similar bills, and could hurt the video game industry as a whole.

As parents, we believe we bear the responsibility of raising our children in environments conducive to positive emotional and physical development. How many of us had parents who wouldn’t let us spend the night at a friend’s house without first meeting their parents? Or how about not letting us see a movie until they were able to watch it first? Video games should be no different.

The root of this entire problem is that games like Grand Theft Auto were making their way into the hands of minors without parental consent. We’re not saying the parents are completely at fault, and we’re not saying the industry is necessarily at fault either. It’s the retailers, the middlemen peddling the questionable content upon kids who don’t know any better. Now if Little Johnny came home with a copy of Modern Warfare 2, we as responsible parents would explain to him why he shouldn’t be playing it and promptly return it to the store from which he bought it.

Sure, there are bad examples of parents who let their kids watch and play anything. Ultimately those are the ones who should be held accountable. But there are many more responsible parents who do everything they are supposed to do, and yet these things still fall through the cracks.

This bill prevents these situations from happening, and we accept it for what it is trying to accomplish.

The pundits say this is a violation of the First Amendment, effectively restricting free speech. We don’t buy it. This does not mean that the video game industry will stop making Mature or Teen-rated games, it simply means they cannot be sold to a minor. And if this means that video game developers are forced to think creatively about how to make a game which does not focus on killing, in order to continue to allow minors to purchase their games, we think this can only be a good thing for everyone.

We’ll step off of our soapbox to highlight some of the day’s other top stories:

Make Your Own DVR, Movie, and Music Server – HTPC Basics [GeekTonic]

Playing Games on the iPad…With 11 Fingers [Mashable]

VOTD: Vintage 1983 Lots-o’-Huggin’ Bear Commercial… Toy Story 3 Viral? [/Film]

Hasbro Studios Developing 25 Productions for ‘The Hub’ [Toonzone]

The Clone Wars HD Comes To PlayStation [TheForce.Net]

In shopping for graphic novels and comic trade paperbacks on the retailer’s site, almost all books from publishers Marvel, IDW, Dark Horse and Dynamite are listed as “Currently Unavailable”. A quick inquiry to customer service resulted in the following response:

Hello,

We’re sorry for any confusion we’ve caused. Due to a pricing error the weekend of March 6, we sold a number of graphic novels much faster than expected.

In fact, we oversold our inventory before we could reconcile our availability information on the site with our actual inventory. As a result, we compounded the problem by indicating we had books in stock when we did not.

For the moment, we don’t have any of the books in stock. We have truly sold out. We are working to get the titles back in stock so you’ll be able to purchase them soon at the regular price.

Our supply of some items is limited, and these products sell out quickly. I’d suggest checking our website from time to time to see if this item is available.

The customer service rep went on to write the recommended method of purchasing books is through their third party marketplace sellers until inventory can be restored, where of course Amazon.com takes a cut from each sale.

For those who hadn’t heard of the weekend’s infamous sale snafu, you missed on of the best deals of the past 10 years. Amazon.com incorrectly priced a slew of Marvel Omnibus hardcovers, regularly $100 each, for $8 to $15. The internet, comprised of geeks who salivate for these fancy versions, pounced on them like starving lions in a butcher shop, and scarfed up quantities by the boxload. Many orders were canceled with a $25 gift card as an apology, but a few lucky folks did get some of their orders fulfilled.

We thought the discounts only pertained to these Omnibus hardcovers, but evidently it affected inventories of graphic novels and comic trades across the board. And for those interested, no – MDIAG! was too slow too honest to take part in the sale.

DC publications seem to be largely unaffected by the pricing error, and most are available today through Amazon.com directly.

Dark Horse has joined forces with LucasArts and BioWare™ to create a new comic series, published entirely online, to introduce both the gaming and comics worlds to the upcoming massively multiplayer online game Star Wars™: The Old Republic™. Debuting this month, Star Wars: The Old Republic – Threat of Peace will feature action-packed, character-driven episodes written by BioWare’s Rob Chestney and published by Dark Horse. The stories will span the three decades from the pivotal signing of the Treaty of Coruscant to critical events at the beginning of the game.

Dark Horse currently publishes comics on the Star Wars extended and alternate universe, so we have confidence in this side project. And did we mention Darth Revan?

Source: Threat of Peace Webcomic

Spider-Woman will be the first Marvel property with an ongoing motion comic, which will be “in-continuity” and released at the same time as the issues, written by Brian Michael Bendis. Marvel Motion Comics productions will have a full cast of voice actors and will be produced by Motherland.

Pricing was not announced.

Source: NYCC ’09: Marvel Digital Comics and Beyond Panel Live Blog

Comics are visually appealing to kids. Children can’t get enough of the bright colors and adventures of their favorite comic-book and cartoon characters, which makes our comics the perfect tools to introduce reading to younger children. Older kids, on the other hand, can strengthen their reading comprehension skills and establish smart habits that will last for a lifetime!

That means, reading is fun, but reading about Hulk is more fun! Hulk smash!

Source: TFAW Comics for Kids

Speaking of Children’s Bookshelf, that’s where I learned that Eoin Colfer (author of the stupendously popular Artemis Fowl series) will be writing a follow-up to Mostly Harmless, as a continuation of the even more stupendously popular Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy “trilogy”–which ended abruptly after the death of Douglas Adams.

Read the rest of the roundup by following the link below:

Source: End-o’-the-Week Kid-Lit Roundup