Showing posts with label watchmen. Show all posts
Showing posts with label watchmen. Show all posts

Wednesday, August 06, 2008

Belated San Diego Comic Con Pics!

Ok, so I'm a terrible guerrilla e-journalist. I know this damn thing happened over a week ago, but I accidentally shipped the camera these photos lived in back to NYC before uploading them. Pretty stupid. Anyhow, better late than never.

Anywho, Comic Con. Pretty awesome. Though word to the wise: plan ahead. We managed to score tickets at the last possible moment and ending up going down for Saturday evening and Sunday. By that point, pretty much all of the cool exciting stuff had already been announced and we missed a ton of great panels. The only panel we got to was actually one of the very last panels of the whole damn thing-but I'll get to that later...

Above is the fabled Owl Ship from The Watchmen. Or is it Owl Pod? Whatever the kids are calling it these days, its pretty damn cool... even the innards are all aglow with science. Probably all for show-but there's no doubt in my mind that any one of those buttons could have killed hundreds.

Follow the jump for more pics!

Here's a Cylon and the bizarre SciFi booth. I thought at first it was supposed to be like the interior of a Cylon Basestar or something... nope. Just a color changing globular thing. Also, SciFi had very little to offer Battlestar Galactica wise... (that awesome Cylon was from another exhibitor) so I wasn't too interested in staying too long to figure out just what that thing was supposed to be.

Obviously there was tons of Star Wars junk. Tons. Especially given the upcoming release of Clone Wars. But you know what, it's Comic Con-I imagine you'd be hard pressed to find a year where there wasn't tons of star wars shit. Anyway, here are some cool jedi posing it up for some girl with a pink iPhone. Also, there was a startling surplus of Boba Fetts roaming the floor-I heard a rumor they were security-but I'm not sure how believable that is... I just think there was a sale somewhere on Boba Fett helmets. Though cool-I'd prefer the menacing uniformity of stormtrooper security anyway-Fett loses something when there are hundreds of him. Oh, and here's a gross, to-scale Jabba... for the record, his lips weren't that bright-he was just too accurately portrayed and the gross slime on his lips caught my flash and glowed a bit.


Here's the first Iron Man suit from the movie. Pretty impressive up close.


Pretty awesome Destro and Cobra Commander in front of some sort of evil Cobra drilling ship-you just know a bunch of Cobra grunts died in the testing phase of that death trap.

Lego Batman! I'll take this opportunity to talk about the one panel we did get to. It featured Grant Morrison and Deepak Chopra discussing the "soul of the superhero" and "modern mythology." Pretty heady stuff-but very fascinating. Lots of meanderings on human potential and how science fiction can get us there... and Grant had a pretty cool bit on the need for a new kind of storytelling. In response to a question on Orwell's 1984, he talked about how that kind of bleak distopian future-somewhat a standard convention in current comics-was originally meant to serve as a sort of warning of "what could be." However, he argued, its becoming more like a self fulfilling prophecy. Therefore he called for artists to tell a new kind of story-one that focuses on human potential and all that. Not sure how creepy labcoat joker fits into his theory though...

And finally-some cool costumes. I learned that apparently you can make ANYthing out of duct tape. I was shocked at how many costumes were made entirely out of duct tape-even skirts and capes... which I think are probably much easier to manage as, you know, actual fabrics. I didn't take too many pics of awesome costumes though-there were almost too many that I was overwhelmed and could never get my camera out in time. But I couldn't resist taking a shot with this awesome Bender. Unfortunately the poor guy had been terrorized by some sticker weilding hooligans the day before so he asked me do a sticker sweep on his back-he was clean! Also, side note: I thought I was all cool wearing that Galactus tshirt from R. Stevens... apparently so did 12% of the people at comic con... and it didn't help that he was there selling the damn things. Curse our free market!


And to end it, this was by far the coolest costume I saw there. It's completely homemade and to startling detail. It comes with an articulated tail made out of what appeared to be a bicycle tire. This geek really went all out. Kudos to you sir (or madam... it's hard to tell under all that plastic, rubber, and duct tape).

So I got there a bit too late for some serious in depth coverage-but hopefully this satisfies some of your Comic Con lust. There's always next year.

Read More...

Tuesday, July 22, 2008

Watchmen Mania Continues:
Animated Comic Available On iTunes

It's a good week to be a Watchmen fan! First we get the assiduously "faithful" trailer for Zack Snyder's film, and now the first of twelve animated shorts (one for each issue) constructed from Dave Gibbons' beautiful original art has hit the iTunes store for FREE! The "short" is about twenty minutes long, and boasts an unabridged telling of the Watchmen tale, something the live action feature will not be able to come close to accomplishing. It even has the chapter headings and closing quotes. And there's no worry about deviating from the source material in any way, because it IS the source material. The only problem is that it's narrated audio book style, meaning one man does all the voices. And not particularly well, all the time. But it didn't bother AHR, and this is still a really exciting new way to experience the book. I can't imagine how long it took to construct some of these animations from tiny comic scans. But the hard work paid off. With an adaptation this spot on, I'm actually left to wonder... Why do we need the movie?

After the jump bonus... A leaked video of the first full Watchmen movie scene?

Read More...

Friday, July 18, 2008

Watchmen Movie Trailer Dissected, Compared to Comic Panels

Doing all the panel comparisons for those Watchmen set photos way back was so much fun that I couldn't resist picking apart the trailer and doing the same.

Click on the film frames for HIGH RES, and beware spoilers if you've never read the book.

Notice the giant Dr. Manhattan calves in the background there. I was thinking when I watched the trailer that this 'Nam stuff looks a little weird, but it really just looks like the comic. So I won't complain!

Tons more after the jump!

Dr. Manhattan's transformation is well covered in the trailer:
The details are all there, right down to concrete block 15 and the coat Osterman went to retrieve. Osterman asks what happened to the other 14 blocks...
BOOM!

Over time, Osterman reconstitutes himself.

And then BOOM! again, he appears in the mess hall.

Night Owl and The Comedian look down on an unruly crowd. The visible signs: "Bring Back Our Police," "Badges Not Masks," "Give Us Our Police Back." Also of course check out the "Who Watches the Watchmen" graffiti in the top frame. Who knows why that guy BLOWS UP the store everybody is standing right in front of, though.

Rorschach roughs up Moloch. Moloch seems well cast, if a little young (like everyone else in the movie).

Veidt disposes of an assassin. I think it's admirable that Snyder has kept some of the unorthodox color choices of the book. Putting a guy in a purple suit (unless it's The Joker) is a risky proposition on film. I will say, though, I still wish there was more color in these images we are seeing. The book is so saturated, it's a dark book at times but it achieves that through the storytelling, almost in spite of the bright illustrations.

The snow here places this frame up outside at Veidt's arctic retreat, but there isn't a moment where Night Owl screams like this in the book. Perhaps Night Owl witnesses Dr. Manhattan and Rorschach's final exchange?

Dammit, what an idiot Zack Snyder is. Doesn't he know Dr. Manhattan only blows shit up with his left hand?! This movie sux!

This is the only moment I could figure out this belongs to... Even though Dr. Manhattan isn't wearing his unitard and Laurie doesn't appear to be twenty years younger in this flashback (because, uh, that would make actress Malin Akerman TEN YEARS OLD). But there is a little sparkly action in the background of the comic panel, so I'm thinking this is it. Also notice that they've given Akerman a little face mole in just the right place!

You're sitting there like, "What, those aren't the same frame!" Click on the film frame of The Comedian fighting in his apartment and look closely behind him. There on the wall is a sexy pic of Sally Jupiter similar to the one she has on her own wall! Looks like she's not the only one still carrying the torch.

UPDATE: Artist James Jean has given us a better look at that piece of art, a "Vargas-esque" portrait he was commissioned to do for the film. Note that the one on Sally's wall is signed by the artist himself, "Varga."
Jean also has some early sketches of the piece at his website.

Flame on! Notice Rorschach is using Veidt hairspray for his attack.

This frame looks like it's from the scene where Laurie gets mad at Dr. Manhattan for splitting into multiple beings and getting work done while they are making love.

The Comedian is murdered. If you click the film frame and look at the high res you can just make out what appears to be the smiley face button on The Comedian's robe.

The Comedian's funeral. Something that I find interesting is that the book is told primarily in these tall 1/9th page panels, and the movie is trying to stick very closely to the compositions but must adapt them for widescreen. It's neat to see how that affects things.

Veidt's triumphant moment. Not much on TV in the movie...

Laurie and Dan fight fire. Seeing the fire victims likening Laurie's costume to a nightgown made me realize--The Silk Spectre wears silk! Duh! The movie version is more like The Leather Phantasm or something.

Night Owl on the prowl.

Walking into the prison riot to free Rorschach.

This is the shot from the trailer that really put the goosebumps in me. This is why this movie couldn't have been made ten years ago.

BONUS! For being such a good reader, I'm giving you comparisons for these great production photos that were in Entertainment Weekly...
More prison riot ass-kicking on the way to get Rorschach.

The moment The Comedian is attacked by and then murders the Vietnamese woman he impregnated and abandoned. It's a great scene, Dr. Manhattan admonishes him for doing it but then the Comedian points out he could have stopped him by just vaporizing the bullet or any number of other ways. He has discovered Dr. Manhattan doesn't actually care much for human life.

The Comedian contemplates sexual assault in a flashback. I'm not sure how Snyder managed to make Carla Gugino look homely, but... There it is. Notice they've given her the face mole as well.

Read More...

Thursday, July 17, 2008

The First Watchmen Trailer Is On YouTube Everywhere RIGHT THIS SECOND



Oh my! This kinda came out of nowhere, didn't it? And it's not one of those little two shots of a CG title teasers, this is a full-felged trailer with tons and tons of footage. UPDATE: If you aren't into crappy YouTube footage, Apple has a higher res version up (thanks Degan).

The trailer itself is mostly just a collection of shots that feature the main characters. It tells nothing of the story, doesn't impress really with costumes and effects...of course us nerds know that the source material is so good it can't possibly falter on the story and character front (right?), but I can't imagine those not familiar with the book will be too impressed with this. Still, as a fan of the book, it's undeniably exciting to see familiar frames come to life. For a look at the accuracy of the page to screen transition, check out our side-by-side comparison of some of these frames with the panels that inspired them.

Read More...

Sunday, June 15, 2008

Panel Discussion: Scans from Wonder Woman #21, Simon Dark #9, Kick-Ass #3 and More

Every week we at Geekanerd rip panels from our comics and put them on display here, recognizing the best, worst, and weirdest moments of the week. Beware some major SPOILERS.

Click the pics for high res goodness!

Celebrity Cameo Corner
- Red Mass For Mars #1
Not only did the artist base this character on Paul Giamatti, he based him on the first Google Image result for the actor. Can I restate again my distaste for "casting" comics? -Albo

Blood, bad t-shirts, blood, and a big freaking shark (that's bleeding) after the jump!

Composition Counts - Simon Dark, #9
Gnerd's love of Scott Hampton's art for Simon Dark is well-documented. Issue #9 serves up plenty of flashy violence which, while fun, didn't impress me as much as this lonely moment in time, as this nearly disemboweled guy waits for help to arrive. Having the light from the window hit the empty bed instead of the figure on the floor adds a touch of voyeuristic realism to the image, and allows the blood to pool into complete blackness at the bottom of the page. I'd love to own a print of this, though I'm not sure where I'd put it. -AHR

Keeping It Interesting -
Locke & Key #5
This "light on, light off" approach to page layout is basically the same thing Dave Gibbons does in that famous sequence from Watchmen, but it's still a cool trick. Especially since this static conversation probably didn't sound all that visually interesting in the script. Also, click on that sucker and check out the little touch of having the lightning bug blink at the same rhythm as the flashlight. I just think it's a nice looking spread. -Albo

Movie Ripoff Alert - Locke & Key #5
Uh... Scraggly haired scary woman dressed in white emerging from a stone well? I do believe I saw this before in a little flick called The Ring. Oh, I kid I kid. I love this book and this moment spooked the shit out of me. -Albo

Banana Randomizer Award for Achievement in WTF - Wonder Woman, #21
Look, I read and enjoyed the recent WW storyline about the Amazon Queen's super Secret Servicesque bodygards. I followed it. I get that the big bad of that storyline is back, not having died by the heretofore sure-fire method of falling off a cliff. But why does this shark indicate proof positive that "she lives"? Did she kill the shark then ride to safety in it's carcass, as may be indicated by the emphasis on the open mouth? Are we meant to recognize that perfect triangle as her favorite cut of meat? And that shark wasn't there in the previous panel - did it just wash up on shore seconds before Hippolyta sees it? The seagulls and non-waterloggedness of the body would seem to indicate it's been there for a while. Oh I'm confused. Thing is, this was still my favorite part of the issue. - AHR

Crimes Against Good Taste - Kick-Ass #3
I think it's hilarious that we're supposed to like this kid but he's drawn with t-shirts that make me want to strangle him. "Whateveritis... Amagansett"??? Seriously? Maybe we're NOT supposed to like him... -Albo

Reality Check - Kick-Ass #3
This book is all about bringing a superhero into the "real world," and while this scene is actually a kinda trite I still couldn't help but smile. -Albo

Best Actor - Kick-Ass #3
Look at Kick-Ass's eyes. They aren't trying to be intimidating, they aren't afraid, they aren't anything... At best, they're bored. At worst they are the dead eyes of an utter psychopath. Both possibilities would make me think twice about tangling with this dude. It's really an alternative approach to the illustration of the moment, and I dig it. -Albo

Beat Down of the Week / Most Shocking Moment - Kick-Ass #3
It's a testament to the world that Millar spent three issues setting up that this kind of ultraviolence actually shocked me as I turned the pages. I see this kind of thing all the time in other books and never give it another thought, but these few pages had me blurting out exclamations of shock. That's something I don't do but maybe once a year. -Albo

Read More...

Monday, June 09, 2008

Happy Birthday To Us! Geekanerd Is One!

The Gnerd Crew: Albo, Johnny, Bishop, Fred, Sarah B and AHR.*

"But Albo," you say, "Just one year? I feel like Geekanerd has been around forever! I can't imagine a time without such a great source for comic book, movie, and video game news and opinions!" Yeah, we get that all the time. But it's true! One year ago this week, AHR posted our very first article--a "Panel Discussion" of Avengers: The Initiative #2. Panel Discussion became a weekly feature, and this wild n' crazy journey down the rabbit hole of Geekanerdism began. But enough about the first article, what were the BEST articles? And so, in celebration of our first birthday:

GEEKANERD'S TOP TEN MOST POPULAR ARTICLES ALL TIME
(Based on total visitors)

After the jump!

*Not pictured: Degan. He's in LA or something. Nerd.

10. The Dark American Psycho Knight
Our mashup of the newest Dark Knight trailer with scenes from American Psycho probably got some people in trouble at work, but that didn't stop word of mouth from making it a minor internet hit.

9. MoCCA 2007: Hot Webcartoonist Action!
Apparently people are really curious what all those reclusive cartoonists look like in the flesh. I must admit I was mildly surprised to discover what a good looking group they are! Or maybe Special Ops Correspondent Bishop just has eyes for the pretty ones. I suspect we'll be getting a sequel to this one soon, considering MoCCA went down over the weekend... Bishop?

8. An Insane Fan's Guide to the Sweeney Todd Trailer
As soon as the Sweeney Todd trailer reached our internets AHR withdrew into her patented Foaming Geek Analysis Mode to dissect the images and draw an opinion on the adaptation of what she has long considered "the greatest material ever written." She picked it apart as only a true fan could, which is really what Geekanerd is all about.

7. Superhero Fashion at the Metropolitan Museum
Special Ops Correspondent Bishop strikes again, with this awesome sneak preview of the Superhero Fashion exhibit that's still going on at the Met.

6. The Kwik-E-Mart Comes to Times Square
Mere steps from her apartment door, AHR stumbled upon NYC's very own Kwik-E-Mart on the morning it opened, giving Geekanerd readers the first look at this Simpsons Movie publicity stunt. Having the only Kwik-E-Mart photos on the internet for a couple of days got us tons and tons of traffic. Truly our first blockbuster article.

5. Watchmen Movie Photos to Comic Panels Comparison
Many places on the internet referencing such a comparison link Maxim's similar article, but ours was chock full of the kind of intense scrutiny and analysis that only a true fan can deliver. "Geekanerd: When Maxim Just Isn't Geeky Enough."

4. Dark Knight Bootleg: The 7-Minute Scene
This video still gets a lot of visitors clamoring for anything Dark Knight related. It's a recording of a full scene from DK that ran before I Am Lengend on IMAX screens. The video gets taken down every once in a while by Warner Bros., but we've managed to keep getting it back up. I actually haven't even watched it, as I want to be as fresh as possible when I go in this summer. (It's great! - AHR)

3. Venture Bros. Season Three Preview
This is a relatively young article that's climbed to the top three in record time. Another case of being the first on the scene with something that a certain niche is itching for, AHR shot this at a New York Comic Con panel and for some reason was the only person to do so and post it. There was only one place for Venture Bros fans to come for their fix, and we welcomed them with open arms. The recording was so ubiquitous that most sites reporting the official release of the preview weeks later made remarks like "Now you can stop watching that bootleg version."

2. Portal Authority: Everything Good on the Internet About Portal
AHR here for this one. This post is very close to my heart. Writing it allowed me to take the mind-consuming obsession and adoration I experienced after playing Portal and expel it onto the internet, where I could share the crazy with similarly afflicted fans. Analysis born of all-encompassing geek-love is something I always wanted to be at the heart of this site. It's been more than half a year since this post, yet it seems like GLaDOS and I met only yesterday.

1. Early Zelda Drawings Reveal Hyrule That Could Have Been
It might be misleading to call this our most "popular" article ever. It certainly has the most visitors, but my fanboy rant drew a lot of fire from Zelda-ites all over the internet. I thought I loved the franchise, but I've got nothing on the people that came out to say all sorts of bad things about me: "the author's a whiny little bitch," "this guys is an idiot," "a bucket of pure distilled nonsense," "he's talkin rubbish," "this guy is a whiny dick," "what a prick this guy is." I had some well spoken supporters in the massive (for G'nerd) comment section, though, which softened the blows. I suppose I've learned my lesson about inflammatory language.

And to you, dear readers...thanks to the early birds who've been with us for the whole year, and who stuck with us during our colored text phase and the endless reconfigurations of Snap Judg(e)ments. Thanks to the new folks who have joined the party in the last few months, and have pushed our stats into the magical land of Maybe We Should Be Making Money Now. Thanks even to the horny guys and gay girls who just came here once for the Nerdcore Calendar link. We wish we could offer each and every one of you a piece of this unbelievably delicious Food Emporium cake. Stick around for an exciting year two, which Force-willing will include some podcast action and maybe even our own little t-shirt collection.

Read More...

Wednesday, April 23, 2008

Zack Snyder Needs Your Help to Finish Watchmen


Got a camera and a hankering to be a part of the Watchmen movie? Well get your creative hat on, because director Zack Snyder is looking for a few good Veidt commercials he can use to populate the many TVs in the film. Forty finalists get a poster signed by Snyder, then those go to a user voting round where the top five videos get a High-Definition Canon Vixia HG10. Up to twenty of Snyder's personal favorites get $1000 and a chance to be in the film itself. Download some product assets here, read the official rules here, and hit the jump for a couple of sample commercials. Videos are due June 2.

Read More...

Thursday, March 06, 2008

Ladies and Gentlemen, The Watchmen


It's T-Minus one year until the Watchmen movie comes out, and to help fan those fandom fires, Zack Snyder has posted full body portrait-style photos of all the main characters, excluding special effects heavy (I'd assume) Dr. Manhattan. Here we have Patrick Wilson as Night Owl, the Batman parallel made a whole lot clearer more overt than in the comics. Check out the other pictures for a very, very young Ozymandias who looks almost exactly like Toby Miguire, and on the other side of the spectrum, the Comedian looking like he just stepped off the page.

For more on the look of the film, check out our painstakingly compiled movie still-to-comic panel comparison.

Read More...

Friday, February 29, 2008

Tales of the Black Freighter Confirmed as Anime DVD Extra

Empire Magazine has confirmed that the Watchmen comic-within-a-comic Tales of the Black Freighter won't be appearing in the film but will appear as an anime-style short on the DVD release. Gerard Butler of 300 fame glory will be handling the voiceover. I must admit I'm a little saddened to know that they won't be weaving the two stories together... It was one of Moore's major stylistic coups in the book and I feel like it could have worked in the movie if handled well. Though I suppose maybe they were running out of time. Extended Cut, anyone?

Via Blog@Newsarama.

Read More...

Friday, November 30, 2007

Watchmen: Movie Stills to Comic Panels Comparison

The official Watchmen movie page posted four high-res photos of their New York set this past week, and the things are full of shout outs to the alternate New York Dave Gibbons so richly illustrated in the comic. I'll be taking a look at the pics one at a time, don't be afraid to click them for full res detail:

UPDATE: The trailer for the film has been released, check out some detailed film to comic comparisons of it here.

Photo 1: The Newsstand
The first thing that pops out about this image is that they've relocated the newsstand from the Southeast corner of 40th St and 7th Ave to somewhere near Grand Central Station. In the book the location allowed for it to be within sight of Madison Square Garden, where thousands died at a Pale Horse concert. Maybe the big fat kill in the movie will be Grand Central commuters instead of metalheads.

MUCH more analysis after the jump...

Obviously, we've got the Bernies in their places, with Little Bernie sitting in front of a large ad for Tales of the Black Freighter, the comic he is reading throughout the story.It's also interesting to note that he's leaning against a fire hydrant instead of an electric car recharging station. Why? More on that later. They've also crammed a lot of other locations from the book onto the same block. For instance, the Rumrunner Bar, next to which the ill-fated Moloch lives:
Also, the Burlesk strip club, complete with the "Enola Gay and the Little Boys" marquee:And lastly, a poster for the aforementioned Pale Horse/Krystalnacht show hangs in the background:
Photo 2: Gunga Diner

On the opposite corner from the newsstand (at least in the book), the Gunga Diner stands. They've maintained the shape of the window trim and the elephant logo, but sexed it all up a bit to good effect. There also appears to be a curtained greenscreen off to the left, which *ehem* wasn't in the book. Notice the difference in the taxi designs. The comic is based in an alternate 1980s where the influence of Dr. Manhattan has fast-forwarded us into new technologies like the electric car, among other things. The movie appears to be set in a non-alternate 80s, with normal cars and therefore, as I mentioned above, no charging stations. What does this mean? Is the Dr. Manhattan character's influence on the world downplayed in the movie? This was a major theme in the book, I wonder what they're cookin'.

Photo 3: Treasure Island
Nothing really happens here at Treasure Island, aside from it being the earliest chronological appearance of the "Who Watches the Watchmen?" graffiti. They've added some details about what's on sale, and oddly used the chiefly British spelling of "collectibles." I guess that's what you get when you hire Canadian art directors.

Photo 4: The Pawn Shop? Hurm. Couldn't find any pawn shops in the book, but I did find a (much smaller) Nixon four more years poster:Which brings up an interesting point. Dave Gibbons' illustrations for the comic were extremely dense with little artifacts from the world of the book. But these artifacts were always subtle, never drawing attention to themselves. Notice that I couldn't find a better image of the Rumrunner sign, the Burlesk sign, or the Gunga Diner. These things are all throughout the book, yet they are easy to overlook because they don't announce their presence. We don't even ever see the full phrase "Who Watches the Watchmen?