[The Crow]

From CBR:

A critical controversy seems to have been averted in Tennessee this week, where a Republican member of the state’s House of Representatives has been cleared of any wrongdoing following questions about Majority Leader Jason Mumpower failure to report a comic book collection amongst his valuable assets. Bruce Androphy, executive director of the state Ethics Commission, told the Associated Press that mandatory disclosure requirements for elected officials are meant to reveal financial investments that could pose possible conflicts of interest, and that “a comic book collection doesn't appear to raise those sorts of concerns.” Androphy was asked the question after an anonymous person emailed a reporter with the suggestion that Mumpower's undeclared collection may constitute some manner of ehtics breach. Bristol-based Mumpower, who’s seeking to become Speaker as his support grows within the new Republican majority in the Tenneessee House, is reported to have amassed more than 17,000 comic books, a collection he’s cultivated from the age of 12. "I have no idea of the value," he told Knoxville's News Sentinal, adding that as far as he knows, he doesn't own any high-value comics -- but even if he did, Mumpower would not seek a profit and "may want to be buried with them or leave them to his family or something." The revelation of Mumpower’s enormous comics collection comes days after Britain’s Telegraph reported that U.S. President Elect Barack Obama collects comic books featuring Spider-Man and Conan the Barbarian. “There are two things Barack Obama and I have in common,” Mumpower sad. “We both collect comic books, and we both have big ears.”

[Lain]

I haven't really gotten around to posting this since this news came out on Halloween, but thought it was...well...entertaining enough.

Source: Link

Japanese launch campaign to marry comic book characters A campaign has been launched in Japan to legally allow comic book-loving humans to marry their favourite fictitious characters. By Danielle Demetriou in Tokyo Last Updated: 8:27AM GMT 30 Oct 2008 In a reflection of the nation's growing obsession with escaping reality, more than 1,000 people have signed an on-line petition to present to the government to establish a law permitting marriage to comic characters. Comic books known as "manga", animated "anime" films and on-line virtual reality games have become increasingly popular in Japan, with fictitious characters frequently elevated to celebrity status. Among the most high profile of manga fans is the current prime minister Taro Aso, who recently complained he had not had time to read any comic books since taking office last month. The on-line campaign for cartoon marriages was masterminded by Taichi Takashita who claimed he was motivated to pursue the unusual change in law because he felt more at ease in the "two dimensional world" than reality. "I am no longer interested in three dimensions. I would even like to become a resident of the two-dimensional world," he wrote. "However, that seems impossible with present-day technology. Therefore, at the very least, would it be possible to legally authorise marriage with a two-dimensional character?" A growing number of Japanese "otaku" geeks are spending an increasing amount of time escaping the social challenges of modern-day life by seeking refuge in the "virtual" two-dimensional reality of manga, anime and on-line games. The new campaign was launched only days after a woman was jailed in Japan after "killing" her virtual husband after he suddenly divorced her as part of a popular interactive internet game. Weeks earlier, police charged another woman who posted an on-line message plotting to kill her parents after they told her to clear up her several thousand-strong manga collection in their home. While single sex marriage is not permitted in Japan, the popularity of the cartoon-human unions was instantly apparent this week as more than 1,000 were enlisted to the campaign. Among them, one supporter wrote: "For a long time I have only been able to fall in love with two-dimensional people and currently I have someone I really love. "Even if she is fictional, it is still loving someone. I would like to have legal approval for this system at any cost."

Edited: See, that's the thing with Japanese names. Sometimes they look like profanity in the eyes of the filter.

[The Crow]

That's kinda crazy.

[canflam]

That is cool that we get to marry comic book characters now though.

[The Crow]

If you're in Japan anyway.

[Lain]

I'd marry my manga characters if I could but in the eyes of society, they're perceived as dangerous so may not be a good idea, heh.

[canflam]

I don't think all Manga characters are dangerous. Some are though, so be cautious if you're planning on marrying ''Chunchu'' or some other dude that carries around a sword.

[The Crow]

From Newsrama:

Josh Howard heads to Image Comics in 2009, and he’s taking his cult-hit Dead@17 with him. Howard, known for his distinctive style on this and other books like The Lost Books of Eve, Black Harvest, and Minx’s Clubbing, told us about the move, his overall plans, and some of the other projects that keep him constantly at the drawing board and the writer’s desk. Newsarama: Let's start with the basic elements: break down the premise of Dead @ 17, please. Josh Howard: Teenager Nara Kilday is murdered and then resurrected as Gemini, agent of the Zodiac - sort of a celestial covert ops unit. Currently, her main priority is safe-guarding her best friend Hazy who happens to be the living embodiment of the Key to the Abyss. Outside of that, they're just trying to live a semi-normal life, complete with all the drama that entails. NRAMA: I'd assume your Image run begins with a new #1; will you be doing an ongoing, or continuing the "series of mini-series" pattern. JH: It will continue as a series of mini-series for now. But prior to the launch of the new #1 Image will be re-printing all the previous series in one volume for those who are new to the series or for fans who want the complete package. NRAMA: Will this be a whole new continuity, a reboot, or a continuation? JH: I did briefly flirt with the idea of doing some type of reboot. But at this point I think it would be a little silly to throw away all I've worked towards in an effort to pick up a couple of extra readers. But I think this new #1 offers a new start anyway, so that if you haven't been following at all it will still be fairly easy to jump right in and catch up. It's set three years after the last series and it puts Nara and Hazy back to square one in a sense. Although things are still as crazy as ever, this is probably the most "normal" things have been for them since the first or second series. But while they've been trying to carve out a normal life, the world has continued to spin out of control. NRAMA: You and Dead have been associated with Viper Comics for a long time now. Why the move at this point? JH: Lots of reasons. Most importantly, I just felt it was finally time to move on. Like you said, I had been there a while and I think I have built enough of a name for myself that it was time to see if I could swim with the big boys. NRAMA: Where does this leave the other projects that you've had going with Viper? You mentioned some problems with "T-Bird and Throttle" on your website in mid-December, but I didn't notice any further comment from you on the issue. JH: That's still to be determined. Unfortunately, I'm not really in a position to comment on Viper's issues, but it is my hope that eventually my other projects will follow Dead @ 17. But everything is still up in the air for the moment. NRAMA: What do you consider to be the biggest influences on your art and writing? JH: Music and music culture, pin-up art, graphic design, and religion - Judaism and Christianity in particular. I'm also a pretty avid reader of all types of fantasy and speculative fiction. NRAMA: You're a pretty furiously active commission artist; how many do you do in a month? JH: With the delays in T-Bird and Throttle, I had some extra time on my hands and took on a bit more than normal over the past few months, probably 20 - 25 a month. NRAMA: You've been doing some work on Star Wars Galaxy trading cards; how did that come about? Any more plans in that direction? JH: I had a couple of friends, Otis Frampton and Grant Gould, who introduced me to the guys at Topps. I've also done some Indiana Jones and Lord of the Rings cards as well. I don't know how much more I'll be doing, it just depends on what comes up and what my schedule is. But it's just cool to have an official product like that with my name on it. NRAMA: You've had a hand in creating a number of books over the years; do you anticipate proliferating titles at Image, or do you plan to focus on Dead @ 17 for the time being. JH: I'm hoping I'll be able to follow this Dead @ 17 mini series with a brand new title. We'll see how things go. Plus, I still have plans to continue Lost Books of Eve, and possibly Black Harvest, and there's still the matter of resolving T-Bird and Throttle. There's no shortage of ideas, it's just a matter of finding time for them all. But my tentative plan is to do at least one new Dead @ 17 mini series a year. NRAMA: What's your view on the shifting tides of the industry at this moment? JH: I guess I'd have to ask specifically what tides you're referring to. I feel like I'm pretty much out of the loop on a lot of things because I stay so busy. In between comic and commission work and family, I've been devoting all my free time to writing my first novel, which I've promised myself I will finish this year. I wish I could keep up more, but it's just hard to find the time! Howard invites readers to check out his The Official Website of Josh Howard for his latest news and sketches.

[canflam]

Hope everything works out for him. Probably pick up that volume of Dead @ 17 whenever it comes out.

[The Crow]

He's been posting about 'problems' with Viper for a while on his blog, so I'm not too surprised that he's moving.

[canflam]

Oh. You think he'll do well without them?

[The Crow]

I think he'll be fine. I can't name any Viper comics that he doesn't draw or write, so I don't know how well they'll do.

[wanderer78]

I don't think I can name a Viper comic. Image will probably be a good fit for him.

[The Crow]

I think the Middleman was a Viper book.

[canflam]

Gypsy Joe Jefferson is 1 he didn't write. How was Middle Man if you've read it?