R.I.P Michael Turner.

This past friday, June 27th the comic book world lost one of its best. 37 year old Michael Turner lost his 8 year long battle with bone cancer. Mr. Turner was one of my favorite artists....i own everything he has ever done including all sketchbooks and con exclusives.

Its so hard to believe that hes gone....i really thought he was going to beat his cancer. I had the pleasure of meeting Mike at Wizard World Texas 2006. I got a couple of books signed and shook his hand and im glad i did...he was one of the nicest guys you could hope to meet. He truly loved his fans and loved meeting them. He was a real champ. Even with the pain, he would make appearances and meet and greet his fans.

I cant believe he is gone. the comic book world will never be the same. The image below is from next months Uncanny X-men #500. Its one of the last covers that Mike did before he died.



thanks for all the great books and art, mike. You will be missed. Where ever you are, im sure you are cranking out some awesome art.

bloggers block is one strong demon.

yeah, i know.

I'm over 2 weeks behind in my "a movie a week" time wasting plan...not much i can do about it. Ive been working overtime and double overtime at work due to some lay-offs and "internal re-arranging". I still find time to get down to the bookstore and read travel books but by the time i get home, i just don't have the energy to watch a movie. All the extra work has taken all remaining energy out of me so the last thing i have been able to do is sit down with my laptop and blog...last Saturdays blog about Ayako Miyake was written during a 10min break from cooking.

I'm doing pretty well with the whole learning Japanese thing...i ordered some flashcards from J-List.com and just graduated to 2nd grade kanji with help from The Kanji Site.com and About.com/Japan. I'm not worried about not being able to read any signs or menus in japan considering pretty much everything in Tokyo is in english as well as Japanese...I just want to be able to chat with the ladies.

The Best Buy down the road from me is having a great sale on Asian cinema right now. I just picked up the new Tokyo Shock! movie called The Machine Girl as well as Takeshi Miike's "Izo" and Ryuhei Kitamura's classic "Skyhigh"

I'm not sure which one i will watch tonight but I'm looking forward to some downtime and a movie so any of the 3 will do.

The most beautiful ninja ever.

This is Ayako Miyake. She is one of the athletes that takes part in the Women of Ninja Warrior tournaments. Her first tournament was Kunoichi 4 and she won. Not only did she win the 4th tournament, she went on to win Kunoichi 5 and 6. She is the only woman to complete all stages of the Kunoichi tournament.

Unfortunatly, she fell in the second stage of the newest tournament...#7 but its ok...she will be back for #8 and she is gonna kick ass.

Kuchisake Onna

Lately I have been re-reading a lot of my books that are about Japanese urban legends and ghost stories. Japanese ghost stories are fascinating. No other country has the ability to scare the hell out of you with a story like Japan. One of the more well known stories is called Kuchisake Onna, which means "split mouth woman".

As far as Japanese urban legends go, this one is fairly new. Stories of this woman first started surfacing in the 1970's. According to the legend, a beautiful woman wearing a surgical mask follows groups of young school children and stops them and asks "Am I beautiful"? The child usually says yes because at first glance, she is beautiful but then she takes off her surgical mask revealing a very deep ear to ear slice. The she asks "How about now"?

When the child screams in terror and flees, the woman follows them and begins to butcher them with a scalpel while screaming "AM I BEAUTIFUL, AM I BEAUTIFUL...AM I...AM I... If the victim is female, she is turned into a disfigured woman as well. Some versions of this story have the woman attacking with a Scythe but i think the scalpel version is more fitting considering she is wearing a surgical mask and is apparently the victim of a botched plastic surgery job or a murderous husband who is tired of his wife's vanity.

Recently there was an accident in Japan. A woman was seen chasing a group of children down a busy road and was hit by a car. When police and bystanders went over to her to see if she was OK or if she was killed, they turned her over to see her face and her face was slit from ear to ear. True story. It was in all the major Japanese papers and on the Japanese news channels. Authorities said that the slice on her face was a result of the car accident but the pathologist said that it was an old wound and was not caused by the car accident.

Last year there was a movie made in Japan about this legend. The movie is called Kuchisake Onna, just like the legend. If you can find it, I highly recommend it. Its a great film.

Sasuke 20! Part 2

Well, Sasuke 20 is over and it was nothing short of amazing. Most of the Ninja Warrior all-stars showed up for this epic event. Olympic athlete Shunsuke Nagasake was absent due to his training for the Beijing games, Government worker Bunpei Shiratori was absent as well...I'm not sure where he was, Comedian turned athlete Kinnikun Nakayama was absent as well but the rest of the big guns were all present. Yamada, Nagano, Akiyama, Takeda, Yamamoto, Yamada(yes, i meant to type Yamada twice...there are two Yamada's) Iketani...all showed up. Trampolinist Daisuke Nakata was absent as well but due to his injuries from a hit and run a few years back, its understandable.

Shunsuke Nagasake wasn't able to make it to the event but he was able to train the 3 American G4 viewers who won the American Ninja contest...one of whom got farther than any other competitor...he made it to the Cliff Hanger in Stage 3. Grand Champion Makoto Nagano made it to Stage 2 but lost his grip on the updated Chain Reaction...the first obstacle in Stage 2. Levi had to go to Stage 3 alone.

Out of the 100 competitors only 3 made it to stage 2 and one of those made it to stage 3. Unfortunately, all of the All-Stars except Nagano were taken out in the first round. Japan's most famous Firefighter..Toshihiro Takeda was thwarted by the warped wall, Katsumi Yamada lost his grip on the Spider Jump, Superstar Shingo Yamamoto mis-judged his landing on the half pipe attack, 1st Grand Champion Kazuhiko Akiyama lost his grip on the half pipe attack and as for Yasushi Yamada...i just cant remember how he was taken out.

Along with the all-stars there were the usual faces...Hang Glider man, Mr. Octopus, the guy that makes the plastic models, the rather rotund comedian Choshu, garbageman Shinji Kobayashi...all taken out within the first few obstacles. For those of you who missed it, Sasuke 20 will air again today starting at 4pm EST on G4TV.

Usually the Sasuke tournaments are every 6 months so I believe Sasuke 21 will be in September, and I cant wait.

Mr. Sasuke, Katsumi Yamada has dedicated his entire life to Ninja Warrior, he has built a replica training course at his home where the rest of the all-stars join him to train. No man has suffered the heartbreak that Yamada has. He has made it to the final stages quite a few times but has never gone all the way although he was the favorite for several years in a row. Katsumi Yamada is what Ninja Warrior is all about. The man has heart, spirit, drive...everything. I really hope he will make it to the top of Mt. Midoriyama one day. His best friend, all-star and Grand Champion Makoto Nagano constantly pushes Yamada to train harder so that he can one day enjoy the view from the top of the giant metal tower.

here's hoping that all the all-stars show up for Sasuke 21.

Sasuke 20! Ninja Warrior is back!

Tomorrow, the 20th Sasuke (muscle ranking) tournament will air in the US. It aired in Japan back in March. The shows original Japanese name is Sasuke: Muscle Ranking but here in the US its called Ninja Warrior.

For those of you not familiar with Ninja Warrior, the best way to describe it is "the hardest obstacle course in the universe" Athletes from all over Japan and a few athletes from outside of Japan compete in 4 stages of the most brutal, bone crushing, skull splitting obstacle course known to man. Sasuke has it all...water pits, rope swings, salmon ladders, chains, fire, free fall, log rolls, barrel rolls, wall lifts, warped walls...you name it, Sasuke has it. Ninja Warrior is without a doubt one of the greatest TV shows ever.

Some of Japan's best athletes take part in the Sasuke challenges, some of the more notable ones are: Katsumi Yamada, Makoto Nagano, Toshihiro Takeda, Yasushi Yamada, Shingo Yamamoto, Naoki Iketani, Daisuke Nakata, Bunpei Shiratori, Kinnikun Nakayama, Shunsuke Nagasake Akira Omori and Kazuhiko Akiyama. Akiyama and Nagano are the only 2 athletes to complete the entire course, and Sasuke has been going on for 10 years now...that goes to show how hard this course actually is. The athletes mentioned above are considered to be the "Ninja Warrior All-Stars" They all compete in most if not all of the tournaments and Shingo Yamamoto is the only man that has been in all the Sasuke competitions...#1-#20.

Ninja Warrior is one of the few shows on TV that is worth watching.

best. show. ever.

another week down...only 46 left.

i have to admit...this little plan is actually working. Watching a movie every Tuesday and reading a chapter or 2 in a travel book about japan every Wednesday is really helping pass the time. Every week I find myself really looking forward to the coming Tuesday's and Wednesday's so I can watch a movie and read a travel book and add to my list of things that I want to see and do while in japan...right now I have about 3 full notebook pages full of stuff to see and do.

Tonight's feature:

Ryuhei Kitamura's violent, blood soaked action/horror masterpiece "Versus"

This film is great. It has tons of violence, gore, blood, swordplay, samurai flashbacks, revenge and resurrection. Its fantastic.

If you have not yet seen Versus, go out immediately and watch it. If you have seen it, watch it again.

It turns out that talking to strangers isnt so bad after all..

so i was down at borders today looking for books by the New Jersey Samurai...Anthony Bourdain. While I'm browsing the books, I was in my own world like i always am but I must have muttered something barely audible but loud enough for the girl behind me to hear it.

Before i know it, she starts showing me the books that she is holding and planning on buying and 2 of them are books by Bourdain himself. We started talking about books that we have already read by Bourdain and books that we are planning on reading and then we begun sharing our insights on Bourdain's books and philosophies. We made our way down to the cafe and continued our conversation over a few black coffee's and before we knew it, 2.5 hours had passed...she was late for work...what can I say...I'm charming.

I don't usually make it a habit to talk to strangers but today was rather enjoyable...I just might mutter things to myself more often.

my deepest apologies, now on to the show

Due to a series of rather strange events last night, I'm a night behind with the "passing the year with a movie a week" part of my blog. If there is anyone out there who actually reads this and enjoys it, I'm sorry for taking a small bit of sunshine from your life...but now I'm back.

Tonight's feature is Transformers...the new live action one from last summer, not the animated CLASSIC from 1986, which is by far a superior movie to the live action one.

Don't get me wrong, I liked the live action Transformers. The effects were outstanding, the fights were cool although very brief and they used the original voice actor for Optimus Prime.

The problem is, it seemed like a cross between a movie about giant robots and one long commercial for General Motors. It just didn't feel like Transformers. The humans were featured way too heavily, all the Decepticons looked like insects and Megatron was only in the last 20mins of the movie.

I'm a huge Transformer fan so I'm not going to bitch about the flaws of a for the most part, enjoyable movie. For a giant robot movie, this movie rocked...as a Transformers movie, it didn't.

Tatakai!

Lie to me, tell me stories so beautiful.

another week down, only 47 left.

Ive started to make a list of all the things I want to see and do while Im in Japan. I dont know how Im going to fit it all in seeing as I am only going to be there for a week and a half. There are a lot of sights that I want to see and a lot of restaurants that I want to eat at....nothing fancy just some small noodle and sushi places that Ive heard and read about. I will be staying in Tokyo so the majority of my sight seeing time will be spent there. As I read more travel books, I will be able to write a detailed list of what I want to do.

I am going to get a JR Rail Pass so I can take a day trip to Kyoto and Osaka. According to one of my heroes, Anthony Bourdain, there are tons of cool things to see in both of those cities. Some of the things that I want to see are the Takara building, the Tamiya Building, The Sony building, the grave site of the 47 Ronin and Himeji Castle for starters. I will be there in April for Sakura season which is what Im looking forward to the most. I cant wait to grab a local beer and find a spot under a Sakura tree and do nothing but enjoy the view.

Next April is so far away.

I would gladly be dragged naked over broken glass just to see her smile...

...yet I know I will never see her again.

I'm not leaving until I've had Reindeer sorbet.

I'm back home after having the distinct pleasure of attending an Akira Kurosawa film festival. Today was a long day but when I'm on my death bed, this day will be remembered as one of the best.

There were only 30 of us or so, crammed into a dimly lit old firehouse that smelled faintly of motor oil and wet concrete...it was awesome. Before the movies started, we ate food prepared by a couple local college kids that are aspiring chefs....dishes containing the likes of Asparagus, bacon, clams, scallops, rice, eggs...it was all good.

In the back, there was a bar of sorts, some local beer and some of the harder stuff. Most people waited in line to order the metro-trendy-euro trash Cosmo or other similarly named fruity drinks desperately trying to fit in with the hip art crowd. I'm not hip, nor am i an art crowd person. I'm a tall, way too skinny white boy from New Jersey that happens to think Kurosawa is one of the greatest film makers of all time...so i tried my best to avoid the Sex in the City crowd and just enjoy myself.

That's when i saw it. On the back of the bar, beautiful and chrome. A french press. Some of us were complaining about the lack of coffee at this get-together but our troubles were solved when i saw the french press. Like a ninja I scampered around the bar, snatching the french press for myself. I asked the "barkeep" if there were any coffee grounds on the premises and after a few minutes of bottle re-arranging under the bar, he hands me this crumpled, stained brown bag full of coffee grounds. Stale or not, i was going to bring coffee to the masses. Coffee makes any and all occasions better...and it doesn't get much better than coffee and Kurosawa.

I fill my cup, find a seat in the back and watch the lights dim and take in the masterpieces that are: Ran, Rashomon, Yojimbo and of course The Seven Samurai.

This is living.

48 weeks...

one week has passed, only 48 more to go until i leave for Japan. So far, my plan of watching a movie every Tuesday and reading some travel books every Wednesday seems to be working.

Last Tuesday I watched the animated classic from 1986...The Transformers. I was 10 when this movie came out and I remember my dad taking me to see it. It was great. The Transformers is without a doubt the greatest cartoon ever made.

I'm 30 and i still get teary when Optimus Prime dies.

Its all good though...he comes back in the regular season. Hot Rod just wasn't fit to lead the autobots and the Matrix didn't fit inside Ultra Magnus so Prime HAD to come back.

Tonight's movie is the noir tour de force that is Frank Miller's masterpiece....Sin City. This movie is based on some of the greatest graphic novels ever written. If you have not yet been exposed to Sin City or the works of Frank Miller, go out and do so now.

Everything the man has written or drawn is pure gold. From Daredevil in the 70's and 80's to the brilliant Dark Knight Returns in 1986 which is by the way, the best Batman story ever told...to Sin City and 300 in the 90's and currently All Star Batman and Robin...written by Frank and drawn by the master Jim Lee. Miller has done hundreds of books besides the few i listed above but the ones i mentioned have had the most impact on me.

One to the movie...

An old man dies, a little girl lives...

that's fair, right?

Somewhere in the Universe, someone is laughing very evil laughter.

I wouldn't exactly say that the world is out to get me but something on a much larger scale. Whoever is pulling the strings of my so-called life is having a grand time while laughing at me. I have not made up my mind yet on whether or not I believe in karma but I'm slowly leaning towards "yes"

Why? Let me tell you. Over the past few months, quite a few rather negative things have happened to me and these events have helped me decide that if Karma does indeed exist then I'm in for a world of greatness.

First, I am a coffee fanatic. I need it and cannot live without it. I'm not a big fan of corporate coffee but i will drink it if i have to. For the past 10 years or so I have haunted this little dive of a coffee bar, it has 2 tables, magazines from years gone by, old well read comic books and the best god damn dark roast you can have the honor of sucking down.

So anyway, a few days ago I was talking to one of the girls that work there and she seemed rather upset so i asked her what was wrong. Between the tears she was able to tell me that this coffee bar that she has worked at for several years and I had frequented for about 10 years is leaving. When a business goes out of business its not really a surprise, you tend to hear whispers about it.

Nope...not this time. The owner of the building came downstairs and informed the manager and employees that the building is going to be sold and modified for some type of clothing store and that the coffee house will be gone by the end of the month. This really sucks. This is certainly not the only place to get coffee in my town but it was the best. I knew everyone there and going there was part of my daily routine. That little hole inside my heart just got a little bigger.

Second. I am a sushi fanatic and finding good sushi in the area where i live is not an easy task. There is a great little place a couple of towns over called Sakura. Not only does Sakura have great sushi for not a lot of money but they also have great beef and noodle bowls, Pocky, Strawberry Kit-Kats, Ramune and UCC coffee...all off these things being part of my weekly diet.

Anyway, the rent on the building where they are now is rather high and they have been looking to relocate to a cheaper area but still close to where they are now. Well, they found a really nice building both larger and cheaper then where they are now however its 2 and a half hours away in the bottom of the state. I'm not a rich kid, I cant afford an every other day trip to the bottom of the state for great sushi...my gasoline budget just wont allow it. There are other little Japanese places in the area with decent sushi but its just not the same.

Finally, I have been kind of seeing this great girl lately and Katelyn is her name. We have the same taste in everything...she likes Japanese food, she drinks coffee, she likes to make fun of white trash folk and she reads comic books....this girl is a goddess.

She works at the local university studying the effects of fresh water on salt water creatures....what she does is much more technical but i just don't know the official term or job description. She loves what she does and I love hearing about what she does and starting next month i will only be able to hear about what she does over the phone.

The funding for her research at the school that she works at has been pulled but since the group of people that she works with are rather knowledgeable in the field that they are in, they have been given the option to transfer however the school that she works at is the only one in the state that has a program for what she does so I knew the whole "I'm moving out of state thing" was on its way. HOWEVER...what i wasn't aware of is that programs like hers are not at every college...in fact only about 4 major colleges have programs for what she does, all of which are a somewhat lengthy plane trip away. Her choices are California, Oregon, Texas or Florida...none of which are remotely close to where i live.

Katelyn chose Florida due to the fact that she has friends and family down there. We only have about a month together before she moves for good so we are going to try to make the best of it. We will talk on the phone and online and I will try my best to save some cash to go down and see her but like i said earlier...I'm not a rich kid.

Here's to you Puppet Master...i hope you are having a good laugh.

Congratulations Universe, you win.

49 weeks...49 tuesdays.

OK...only 49 weeks until i leave for japan....49 Tuesdays, 49 weekends...you get the idea. Time is going to crawl and these next 49 weeks are going to suck so I have decided to do something about it.

Every Tuesday, I'm going to watch a movie. One movie a week. Like a loser, i have organized my movies in the order i want to watch them...I cant wait to watch the Kill Bill movies but the way things are lined up, i don't watch Kill Bill until august. Call me crazy, but this is going to help me stay on track and pass the time.

Every Wednesday I'm going to go to either Borders or Barnes and Nobel and read a chapter in a travel book about japan.

tonight's movie, the first movie for this grand scheme is:

Transformers the Movie. (the animated one from 1986)

Every Tuesday, ill update this blog with my thoughts on the previous weeks movie/travel book and name the movie ill be watching next.

if there is anyone out there that actually reads this, please feel free to send some suggestions to help this year pass.

anyway, I'm off.

transform and roll out.

3 days until New York Comicon

This Thursday, my buddy Jay, his girlfriend Emma and I will take a short 5 hour drive south to NYC to attend the annual New York Comicon...its kind of like the US version of Mecca for nerds. Here, comic fans from all over the US come to meet their favorite comic creators, pitch their wares and buy overpriced comic books.

Several of my favorite comic artists will be attending so I'm really looking forward to going. My favorite artist, who i met during my trip to Texas in November of 2006 will be there so needless to say, I'm having a bit of a geek meltdown right now.

I grew up in New Jersey and I would go to NYC quite often so i happen to know where some great little bookstores, cafes and sushi/sake bars are so this will be a nice week-end. I will take lots of pictures so if any of you out there read this blog or are even interested, there will be some cool pics early next week.

NO! Your Roots...(know your roots)

So...i was down at the local bodega today buying some coffee and overpriced energy drinks (which really dont do anything for me, i suppose i just like the taste) and talking shop with my buddy Kenji about my future trip to Japan and the possibility of him joining me and showing me the sites but our conversation was cut short due to a phone call so I left. On my way out of the store, there were these 2 kids talking about music, punk music inparticular. I missed most of the conversation but I did hear one of the kids say "hell yes I like punk, i love good charlotte".

I thought i was gonna puke. I had to intervene and let these retards know what punk is. I proceded to tell them about the Ramones, the Misfits, Sex Pistols and NOFX and how without these bands, there would be no such thing as punk rock. They looked at me with a blank stare and told me that they had never heard of these bands.

How can this be? Never hearing of the Ramones or the Misfits...never hearing Blitzkrieg Bop or Teenagers from Mars? Blasphemy. One of these little bastards mentioned the retard canadian band Simple Plan which is when i proceded to walk away before i did something i regret like throwing both kids under a city bus.

Simple Plan and Good Charlotte mentioned in the same sentence as the word Punk...what the hell is this world coming to?

The countdown has begun...finally, im going home

April 1st, 2009

i leave for japan.

slightly less than a year, yet a lifetime away.

20 years down the rabbit hole...

The summer of 1989...i was 12. My parents were going to a garage sale. I had nothing better to do so i went with them. I was looking at the tables full of someone's used junk...clown lamps, velvet unicorn paintings, stained tupperware...the usual garage sale fare. I was pacing, waiting for my parents, and thats when i saw it...a brand new (well, almost brand new) copy of Marvel comics What if: #7. It was called What if Wolverine was an agent of Shield and the art and cover were done by Rob Liefeld. It was a quarter, i had to have it and i was well on my way to becomming one of the most pathetic, mis-understood beings on the planet...

a comic book fan.

This was the first comic i bought and i couldnt wait to get home and read it. I read it several times that day, each time seeing something new on each page. I showed it to my parents and demanded that they take me to the local comic book store to track down any and all issues of any comic drawn by Rob Liefeld.

At the time, Liefeld didnt have many books out...only a handful actually but i bought them all.
Over the years, i followed Liefelds career very closely from DC to Marvel to Image and I bought every single book that his name has appeared in. Liefelds books have introduced me to other comic greats such as Frank Miller, Karl Altstaetter, Jim Lee among many others. Once i read something by a comic book artist/writer that i really like, I have to own everything else that they have worked on. Im compulsive like that. No one draws like Liefeld, no one. His art jumps off the page, the borders can barly contain the art and energy. His designs and creativity are unmatched.

As I got older, I have been able to go to comic conventions and meet some of the creators that I admire so much although there are still quite a few i have yet to meet. Mr. Liefeld is one of the nicest people i have ever met. period. He really goes out of his way for his fans.

I have now been reading and collecting comics for almost 20 years now and have loved every minute of it. I have been introduced to such superteams as Youngblood, Bloodstrike, the Avengers, the X-men and the Wildcats. Characters like Daredevil, Bullseye, Captain America, MoonKnight and Colossus.

Im 30 years old and I will read comics books until the day i die.

These past 20 years of being a comic book fan have been so rewarding and have been the most surreal, facinating, interesting and exciting times of my life.

this is one of what will be many posts about comic books.

one of the best ways to pass the time.

playing Metal Gear Solid and listening to a mix of My Chemical Romance and Radiohead.

i will never tire of this.

finally...

april 9th, 2008.

after years of reading other peoples observations, rants, thoughts and insights, I figured I would join the game.

The blogosphere. Its a pretty wierd place. Very crowded. Everyone sharing thier opinions, forcing them onto others. I hate when someone ridicules others for not agreeing with thier opinion.

anyway, this blog will not be about me bitching about anything unless its absolutly warrented.

As for the title of the blog, those 3 things are what i draw my creativity/imagination from the most. I love comic books, especially those done by Rob Liefeld, Frank Miller Jim Lee and Karl Altstaetter. These men are masters at what they do. More on this later.

Japan. Ive been obsessed with Japan and the Japanese culture for as long as I can remember. I did reports on Japan, Pearl Harbor, the Samurai...you name it...all in grade school. The food, the culture, the art, the trains, the 16th century and the 21st century existing at the same time. The works of Kojima, Kurasawa, Otomo, Shriow, Oshii...they have all helped me become who i am.

I eat sushi more than any other food. I dont know if you have ever felt like you were meant to be someplace or felt like something was calling you...I have. Japan is calling me and has been for 20 years. I dont feel right not being there...its like im incomplete.

Rain.

Its beautiful. Pure and Simple. The feel of rain, the smell of it...its just beautiful. The feeling outside right before it rains, during and after. The only other thing that is weather based that i like as much as Rain is snow...but thats another blog. Most people run for cover when they are caught in a rainstorm however I head for open areas where i can be rained on. I head for shelter on clear, hot summer days. I hate summer, with a passion. Summer rain makes the season bearable.

Rain on a cold autumn night. There is nothing better than sitting with a cup of coffee, a plate of sushi, some comic books, your ipod and watching and listing to the rain.

Read me if you want. Ignore me if you want.

more to come.