#ozpulp

Alastair: 

If you’re as obsessed with comics as Cameron and I are, you pretty much read them all year round. No breaks. Ever. Not that it’s unhealthy or anything; we just really like comics. It’s not a problem. We swear! As we wind down for the year and get ready for the Christmas/New Year break, I figured I’d get festive and look for some Christmas-themed stuff to ramble on about because hey – it’s Christmas, and you can’t NOT talk about Christmas. Nothing really stood out at first, and I had a lot of trouble deciding what I was going to talk about. Then, I remembered that Batman: Noel – the perfect blend of Batman and Christmas – exists. Perfect!

Released back in 2011, Batman: Noel is written and illustrated by Lee Bermejo, best known for his work with Brian Azarello on Joker and the more recent Before Watchmen: Rorschach (the only Before Watchmen comic I bothered to read!). Primarily a DC writer/artist, Bermejo got his big break working as an intern for Jim Lee’s Wildstorm Productions. Bejermo is given a (mostly) glowing review by Jim Lee himself, which is usually a good sign.

Batman: Noel is basically the DC version of the classic Dickens tale, A Christmas Carol. DC has placed its characters in the roles of the original cast, and for the most part it works really well. Batman is Scrooge, all angry and pigheaded – of course, like the original tale he reforms in the end. Catwoman makes for an interesting Ghost of Christmas Past; the long and off-again-on-again romance serves as a great reminder of Batman’s history as a comic. What really interested me, however, was Bejermo’s portrayal of Superman as the Ghost of Christmas Present. In comparison to the ever-dark and brooding Batman, Superman literally glows with warmth. In such a cold, dreary world, this portrayal of the Man of Steel absolutely nails what he’s about.

Speaking of Bejermo’s art – wow. Just wow. There has been criticism of Bejermo’s art (“the realistic style detracts from the comic feel” etc.) but I have to disagree. The first few pages – featuring Gotham’s skyline and Batman running across the rooftops – are nothing short of spectacular, and Bejermo’s version is probably my favourite depiction of Gotham to date.

The story doesn’t change all that much from the original tale – the characters might be different, but there’s parallels everywhere. That’s not to say that Bejermo’s writing doesn’t add to the story, but it becomes so blended with the original story that it can be hard to distinguish anything original. The content is there, but I feel like it could stand out more. There’s interesting insight into the life of Joker’s goons, too – the Noel equivalent of Bob Cratchit shows what it’s like to be desperate, as well as showing just how terrifying the Bat can be when he wants to.

All up, Batman: Noel is the perfect comic to read this Christmas – while it might appear to be just a comic version of A Christmas Carol, this is an awesome take on the tale, and Batman in general. Do yourself a favour and pick it up.

This one is also all Cameron. Ah, the joys of alternating weeks. Cameron: 

You know who’s cool? Robert Downey, Jr. Outside of his incarceration and addictions he’s been in some pretty fantastic movies, the most recent of which was Iron Man 3. The latest instalment of the Iron Man franchise was directed by Shane Black, and you know who’s also cool? Shane Black. The guy wrote Lethal Weapon which is the textbook definition of perfect movie and he was in the main cast of Predator and Night of the Creeps. Are you even kidding me? There are polar ice caps that will never be as cool as him.How great would it be if RDJ and Black got together to work another film that was really pulpy and semi-related to Christmas so I could write about it in this column? Oh, wait. They did, in 2005. It’s called Kiss Kiss, Bang Bang and it’s so good it made Val Kilmer stop being insane for a whole hour and a half. 

For reals.Val Kilmer is an outstanding actor who people should appreciate more.Unfortunately for us, however, he Brando’d out. That’s when a talented actor gets way fat and seems to forget how to act except for one shining example that reminds of how great they used to be(Brando’s being the Godfather). What weird is the turning point for Kilmer is The Island of Dr Moreau, which co-starred Brando. I’m not saying we should blame Brando for what became of Kilmer’s career, but I’m totally going to. Kiss Kiss, Bang Bang is some straight up noir; it really doesn’t get more Pulp than this. RDJ delivers pitch perfect first-person-snark as the continually beleaguered detective in training Harry Lockhart. The film isn’t in 100% chronological order, but it also isn’t a Tarantino movie - instead it plays out like a man telling a story. There’s a natural flow to the events and even when he screws up and has to go back and ensure you caught all the salient details. It never really disrupts the viewing. 

Hey guys!

Want to read some of my writey stuff instead of the usual comic book pictures? Wander over to the Pulp Tumblr to check it out! 

Hey guys, long time no see!

Sorry for the long silence. Things have changed a bit since you last heard from the Pulp gang - I started working full time, then stopped working full time, and Cameron and I have both started new courses at university, and really, updating this page wasn't at the forefront of our minds. The column in Forte still runs - and hopefully those of you who can have still been reading it - but there's been one big change so far: 

As of Pulp #41, I've been flying solo.

Cameron has chosen to move on to greener pastures, and while I nearly threw in the towel myself, I decided that being paid to ramble on about comics on a regular basis was just too damn good to be true - thus, here I am.

I'm going to try to bring the Tumblr steadily up to date - one column per day, perhaps - but things are going to remain quiet here for the time being. 

Cameron:

Friday the 13th Part 3 was meant to be the final film in the franchise. Instead, it gave the films its most iconic image, leading to seven more sequels - including two more that were labelled "final".

Unfortunately, the man who played Jason Voorhees in this instalment, Richard Brooker, passed away recently. Brooker was probably the finest Jason, a character portrayed by ten actors across the series, and the first to give Jason the terrifying presence that allowed him to carry a ludicrous amount of films. In Part 1, we only see Jason as a child, and in Part 2, he’s a weedy hillbilly with a hessian sack for a mask. What Part 3 gives us is a bald, hulking, faster-than-run walking, hockey-mask-wearing (for the first time!) purveyor of knife deaths. Basically, it gives us the Jason that everyone knows ­– even those who haven’t seen the films.

Harry Manfredini continues to score the series. Having added valuable “ki ki ki, ha ha ha’s” to the previous instalments, he surpasses himself with an energetic synthesised score. The main theme deserves special attention, because Jesus Christ it is the funkiest horror theme ever.

You will have noticed that I have not yet said anything about the story. Teens go to place, Jason kills teens, one teen kills Jason. There we go. That gets Part 3’s plot out of the way … and the plot of pretty much every Friday the 13th out of the way. Except for that one in space, but that’s a whole other column.

Alastair:

Since I began reading and collecting comics in earnest, I’ve been particularly interested in authors and stories that mess with the minds of their characters. As a result, I’ve ended up being attracted to dark and gritty stories (e.g.  Preacher and Hellblazer), and I’m always on the lookout for more.

Through a friend from Uni – and a bit of DeviantArt stalking – I happened upon the works of Jarrod Elvin, a comic book writer and artist based in Melbourne. Jarrod is the ‘king’ of MickMacks – a multi-platform collection of his own nutty creations covering animation, comics and digital art. I was particularly taken by his comics. Jarrod is an exceptional digital artist, with a style that blends Saturday morning cartoons with a dark and twisted world, a la Edvard Munch’s The Scream.

My personal favourite is the Checkers series: the first book, Checkers’ Asylum, was released in 2008, and its sequel Checkers’ Abyss saw the light of day a few weeks ago. The books follow the adventures of Checkers, an undeniably insane superhero who lives in the sewers. He fights crime with the help of Thumbo, a miniature (and neon pink) flying elephant, attempting to foil the plots of the dastardly serial killer Mutino. The series blends utterly mad humour with gory action sequences, and is well worth checking out – it’s one of the few comics that I would say is truly unique. You can buy Jarrod’s books online at www.mick-macks.com.

Hey guys, Al here.

Two things:

1. The next issue of Forte is in production, so expect more PULP! This time, Cameron and I discuss who'd win out of Hawkeye and Green Arrow, my adventures in the land of Marvel comics and a crazy ol' movie called Bubba Ho-tep, featuring the one and only Bruce Campbell as Elvis. Yep, you read that right. 

2. If you're looking for yet more comic/horror related junk (as you should be!) check out our personal Tumblrs:

http://www.thesuaveclown.tumblr.com (Cameron) and

http://geekscribblings.tumblr.com (me!).

I only just made mine, so there isn't a lot on there. Just a lot of comic-related stuff.