Blank Backgrounds

The Incredible Hulk #289

I might be showing my age, but I remember a time when there were several panels in comics that had "blank" backgrounds (see above). I have no problem with something like this, where the characters are in a battle. I think it adds more focus to the action and keeps the page from getting over-detailed.

That's not to say that doing away with backgrounds, or just drawing the most basic of backgrounds, is an okay thing to do in most cases. I like to see Kirby Tech as much as the next guy, but I think I prefer this kind of simplified approach when it comes to fight scenes. Unless, of course, the background plays a part. Such as the Hulk picking up a big piece of the aforementioned tech to smash down on the Abomination. That kind of thing always trumps on style.


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Pryde of the X-Men

Inspired by a recent episode of The Coffee & Comics Podcast, and because I have had a really busy week, here's the 80's version of the X-Men.



Why this line-up, you ask? Well, because that's who the X-Men were in the comics in the mid to late 80's. This wasn't just something they threw together, it was the line-up from the comics.

And, yes, that's Michael Bell (aka Duke from GI Joe) as Cyclops.

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Sub vs Dub

Miss Kobayashi’s Dragon Maid - You need to watch this series

It may be what I have access to (thank you Crunchyroll and Hulu) but I find myself watching more Subtitled Anime than Dubbed in recent years. Even when I have the choice, I tend to go towards the Subtitled. I've found that I get more out of the experience, partly because I get the original intonation of the lines being delivered. That's not to say I have anything against the English dubbing, but some things just don't translate very well.

Also, I can make mental corrections on what might be a mis-translation easier if I'm reading it than hearing it. That goes back to my middle/high school days and Spanish class, I think. I could always read it and understand others speaking it very well, but every time I had to write or speak it myself I couldn't do it. I think I'm just more visually attuned to things, so hearing the intonation and seeing what is written I can get what's going on. I know I had to correct some stuff when Kira was watching Sailor Moon, since they obviously got it wrong.

How about you guys? Do you prefer your anime Sub or Dub?

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Second Season Shake-Up

What happens when your TV show has enough ratings to get a second season, but not enough to be a convincing hit? You go through what I call the "Second Season Shake-Up", where things are changed to, hopefully, get more people watching. This has been going on for pretty much as long as TV has been around, and can be small changes (Checkov coming onto the Enterprise) or large (like with Space 1999).

One of the biggest changes was seen with Buck Rogers in the 25th Century. In the first season, the stories were kind of a balance between fighter dog-fights, police work, and diplomacy. Everything started and ended on Earth, and Wilma Deering was a high ranking officer (a Colonel) in the Earth Defense Force.

Then we come to the second season, where the base of operations is the spaceship Searcher, whose mission is to find the "lost colonies of man" (a little too Battlestar Galactica there, Mr. Larson). Buck, who was working with the EDF in an unofficial capacity, is now on the Searcher with even less of a role. He's more of a passenger that sometimes does missions, if the Admiral begs him enough. The less said about changing Wilma into a "space car hop", the better.

Personally, I tend to like the more minor changes (a la Star Trek), but I'm also not a network executive.

If you want to hear more of my thoughts on the Buck Rogers TV show, check out this episode of the podcast.

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