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Graphic Novel Nerds Of The World, Unite


So if you're a true nerd like me, you are fully aware that the term graphic novel is code for comic book. And that ultimately, such terms are meaningless, provided that the material is solid, the characters are well-drawn (literally and figuratively), the narrative is compelling, and so forth. Which is why my comic book brain was blown last week with three announcements:

1) Disney buys Marvel Comics for billions of bucks. [And yes, I worry about theme-park-driven homogenization of some of the more edgy Marvel fare, but let's face it: DC's Vertigo is the true home for edgy mainstream-ish comics. Marvel is the Disney of the comic world, so the merger makes perfect sense. Now maybe we'll finally see a Pixar version of Doctor Strange, with the original psychedelic Steve Ditko art as the visual template. Or maybe someone can tackle Moon Knight, Marvel's multiple-personality/occult version of Batman.]

2) The Walking Dead (the Image comic from Robert Kirkman and Charlie Adlard) gets optioned as an AMC television series for the 2010 season. [At the risk of showing my acronym age, OMFG. I've always thought TWD could be a monster of a cable television program, and who should pick it up but the network responsible for Breaking Bad and Mad Men? And to top it off, Frank Darabont (The Green Mile, The Mist) is attached to write/produce/direct installments, and he's a dude who knows his way around horror-laced drama. Kirkman has said that he will stay as involved as possible, too, which means his artistic sensibility should reach the small screen intact. And as a pitch for my home state as location site, what better backdrop for post-apocalyptic decay than present-day Michigan? Shit, it already looks like the zombies are here.]

3) A film version of Scott Pilgrim, starring Michael Cera as SP and directed by Edgar Wright (Hot Fuzz, Shaun Of The Dead), is set for a 2010 release. [Again, OMFG. The story of Scott Pilgram (pictured above) is a so-far-five-volume romp through the life of a young Canadian slacker-ish musician whose life is turned upside down by an Amazon messenger named Ramona. To win Ramona's hand in love and woo, Scott must defeat a slew of evil ex-boyfriends while playing in the band, finding a place to live, and even getting a job by accident. And that weak-ass description doesn't do justice to the mix of acute lovesick detail, video-game and RPG references, nods to Eastern and Western animation, and a general sense of playfulness that permeates the Scott Pilgrim series. Throw in the most perfectest actor and director one could imagine, and sublime joys should await.]

I must admit that it's kinda odd that some of my youthful geek pursuits have now graduated to the mainstream, but it's not a bad thing in the slightest if artistic endeavours of high merit and imagination get attention, no matter the format. It's nice to be on the inside of a curve for once.

Or, as Scott Pilgrim would say, "YES!"

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