Last Komikon, Aaron Felizmenio of Frances Luna III Illustration Firm released the first part of the GWAPOMAN sequel entitled HARI NG BASAG TRIP. First thing you will notice about it is the minimalist cover -- a black and white piece by international superstar Stephen Segovia. Inside art chores is all done by Aaron. And I must say this is his best work yet. The uncleanliness of his lines together with the washes complements the mood of the story. When I look at the art, it does not seem unfinished being uncolored and all. Frankly, it looks awesome in black and white. I hope Aaron keeps this art style for the remainder of the volume. It works. Perfectly.
Story-wise this episode is a lot easier to digest/understand than his previous releases. I don't know if it's because I am already familiar with most of the characters or because the story does not jump around and is quite straight forward. The pacing is great, alternating between the hero Rajah Aguila and Gwapoman's crew. I liked Rajah Aguila's background being a bit of a show boat. I liked his costume changes. I liked the interaction between Alas and Margaux, Alas and Mang Tan (May kiliti ako dyan). Basically, I found an appreciation for Alas. He is awesome. I liked that we learn a bit more about Gwapoman's background and that he's bit angrier this time around. I liked what little I saw/learned about Kartada X. Ooh, and that ending: totally, didn't see that coming. Nice one, Aaron. Nice one.
She's like a rock and I keep / Chipping off a piece to hold on to / And she's got a lot of nerve / Not seeing you the way that I do / We are, oh, we're about to be / So much closer than you thought that we could ever be / Well, I'm sorry to say that I gave it away / We'll I'm empty, you're empty / It's none of my business / But I won't be a witness / If I hang on for the ride / I promise I'll crash without her there / She's like a rock and you keep / Chipping off a piece to hold on to / And there's gotta be, gotta be / Something more than this / In a life full of exits and entrances / I know the way this plays out / But I couldn't find the words to tell you / And you thought that everytime she would never tell a lie / But believing a liar is feeding the fire / It's none of your business (Hang on for the ride) / But I won't be a witness / No, it's none of your business (Hang on for the ride) / But I won't be a witness / She's like a rock and you keep / Chipping off a piece to hold on to / And there's gotta be, gotta be / Something more than / Something more than this / She's like a rock and you keep / Chipping off a piece to hold on to / And there's gotta be, gotta be / Something more than this / In a life full of exits and entrances / Did you get what you wanted? / 'Cause I couldn't get enough / Now I'm back where I started / Again / She's like a rock and you keep / Chipping off a piece, chipping off a piece / She's like a rock and you keep (Yeah, she's like a rock) / Chipping off a piece, chipping off a piece / She's like a rock and you keep (Yeah, she's like a rock) / Chipping off a piece to hold on to / (Hang on for the ride) / She's like a rock and you keep / Chipping off a piece to hold on to / And there's gotta be, gotta be / Something more than / Something more than this / She's like a rock and you keep (Hang on for the ride) / Chipping off a piece to hold on to / And there's gotta be, gotta be (Hang on for the ride) / Something more than this / In a life full of exits and entrances / It's none of my business / But I won't be a witness
If this is what you think is honest, honestly / I think I'm gonna freak out / This isn't where I wanna be, wanna be / I think I'll let myself out / Show me the door, oh / 'Cause I'm leaving the way / I came in with the mess I made / Tonight will be the one to set it off / We had our lights on the town / Your eyes were smiling then / You left me hanging around / With all your whack friends / You don't take me serious / Boy, you make me furious / Guaranteed, we'll disagree / I found out / Finding out isn't the worst part / Don't believe it's just me / And I've found out / Do you really even have a clue? / You're not quite Satan / But I really think I hate you / We had our place in time / This is now, that was then / You've left me high and dry / With all your stuck-up friends / You don't take me serious / Girl, you're just delirious / Guaranteed, we'll disagree / I found out / Finding out isn't the worst part / Don't believe it's just me / And I've found out / Do you really even have a clue? / You're not quite Satan / But I really think I hate you / Whoa-oh ooh-oh... I hate you / Whoa-oh ooh-oh / If this is what you think is honest, honestly / I think I'm gonna freak out / This isn't where I wanna be, wanna be / I think I'll let myself out / Sh-sh-sh-show me the door, oh / 'Cause I'm leaving the way / I came in with the mess I made / Tonight will be the one to set it off / Tonight will be the one... / I found out / Finding out isn't the worst part / Don't believe it's just me / And I've found out / Do you really even have a clue? / You're not quite Satan, but I, ah-I / I found out / Finding out isn't the worst part / Don't believe it's just me / And I've found out / Do you even fucking have a clue? / You're not quite Satan / But I really think I hate you / You're not quite Satan / But I... / You're not quite Satan / But I really think I hate you
I hopped off the plane at L.A.X. / With a dream and my cardigan / Welcome to the land of fame excess (whoa) / Am I gonna fit in? / Jumped in the cab, here I am for the first time / Look to my right and I see the Hollywood sign / This is all so crazy / Everybody seems so famous / My tummy's turnin' and I'm feelin' kinda home sick / Too much pressure and I'm nervous / That's when the taxi man turned on the radio / And a Jay-Z song was on / And a Jay-Z song was on / And a Jay-Z song was on / So I put my hands up / They're playing my song / The butterflies fly away / I'm noddin' my head like yeah / Movin' my hips like yeah / I got my hands up / They're playin' my song / I know I'm gonna be okay / Yeah, it's a party in the U.S.A. / Yeah, it's a party in the U.S.A. / Get to the club in my taxi cab / Everybody's looking at me now / Like, who's that chick that's rockin' kicks? / She gotta be from out of town / So hard with my girls not around me / It's definitely not a Nashville party / 'Cause all I see are stilettos / I guess I never got the memo / My tummy's turnin' and I'm feelin' kinda home sick / Too much pressure and I'm nervous / That's when the DJ dropped my favorite tune / And a Britney song was on / And a Britney song was on / And a Britney song was on / So I put my hands up / They're playing my song / The butterflies fly away / I'm noddin' my head like yeah / Movin' my hips like yeah / I got my hands up / They're playin' my song / I know I'm gonna be okay / Yeah, it's a party in the U.S.A. / Yeah, it's a party in the U.S.A. / Feel like hoppin' on a flight (on a flight) / Back to my hometown tonight (town tonight) / Something stops me every time (every time) / The DJ plays my song and I feel alright (yeah) / So I put my hands up / They're playing my song / The butterflies fly away / I'm noddin' my head like yeah (na-na-na nodding my head) / Movin' my hips like yeah (ooh yeah) / I got my hands up / They're playin' my song / I know I'm gonna be okay (gonna be oh-oh yeah) / Yeah (na na na ha ha), it's a party in the U.S.A. / Yeah, it's a party in the U.S.A. / So I put my hands up / They're playing my song / The butterflies fly away (butterflies fly away) / I'm noddin' my head like yeah (nodding my head like yeah) / Movin' my hips like yeah (movin' my hips like yeah) / I got my hands up / They're playin' my song / I know I'm gonna be okay (I'm gonna be okay) / Yeah (yeah), it's a party in the U.S.A. / Yeah (ha ha ha ha ha), it's a party in the U.S.A.
Guess who's back?! I have not posted here for years now, ever since I discovered Tumblr. Though I also don't do much posting there either -- I mostly just reblog stuff. And so, I've finally decided to resurrect my original blog here. I hope I can keep this up.
THE PREMISE: Years ago, archaelogists uncovered a huge circular device in Giza, Egypt which was engraved with mysterious symbols that no one seems to be able to decode. When a disgraced Egyptologist named Daniel Jackson (James Spader) is recruited into the program, he is able to activate the object, a transportion device he calls a Stargate, by recognizing the symbols as an alien coordinate system. Jackson is sent along with Col. Jack O'Neil (Kurt Rusell) and his team to step through the gate and explore what awaits them at the other side.
One year later after the events of the movie, Jackson (Michael Shanks) and O'Neill (Richard Dean Anderson) reunite once more to continue the journey. Joined by Air Force scientist, Capt. Samantha Carter (Amanda Tapping) and the Jaffa Teal'c (Christopher Judge), the four forms Stargate Command's SG-1 -- Earth's first and sometimes last line of defense against would-be alien conquerers called the Goa'uld.
Honestly, the movie wasn't that great. It was less epic than what I hoped it would be but is needed to appreciate some of the stuff in the SG-1 pilot. The series starts out a bit episodic with its mission-of-the-week type of stories. However, bits of these missions would pop up in later episodes forming their own mini story arcs with the larger Goa'uld saga. Stargate would be populated with developed recurring characters that gives the audience additional connection to the story aside from the main four. The thing I enjoy most about this sci-fi series is the mythology. Not only do they deal with gods and goddesses, the show also has alternate dimensions, alternate realities and time travel. The stakes each season becomes bigger and bigger to the point that later seasons actually have spaceship battles with spaceships captained by Earth personnel. One of the better space series out there!
After his climactic battle in Bayan Knights #4, MASO finally makes his solo-comic debut in the pages of Ramil Ibay's MASO #1. Shunned by the masses and the local superhero community, Mar Ibarra must deal with the repercussions of his actions in pages of Bayan Knights where he served as a member of the super villain team Bangis.
Maso creator Ramil Ibay weaves an intricate web that I'm guessing he's been plotting for a while. The details he puts in each of the characters that appear in the issue are amazing. I don't want to give away too much of the plot, but we also get to meet some of the other superheroes like Maso's mentor Maharlika and the duo of Lolo Thunder and Kid Lighting. Their dossiers that Ramil included in the issue only shows the creative potential of this world, Maso's world. So if you get the chance, make sure you get a copy of this. It's worth every cent.
Another day, another review. w00t. Servant created by Geoffrey Borgonia tells the story of Gabriel Barreon, a call center agent slash superhero. His origin is that he is the son of the king of the pagan gods of old. Sent to our world for his own protection, Gabriel grew up as a human, taught about truth, justice and power and responsibility. He's also a geek and a big nerd.
The first issue of Servant also introduces us to the Del Maestro sisters: Katsuko, the brainy and uptight sister (who for some reason looks evil to me even though it seems that she's not) and Alexandra the carefree (and hotter) younger sister. There is also Victor, the patriarch of the Del Maestro family who seems to be the evil man behind the curtain. The weakest of the bunch though is the Mighty Ruler whose line delivery IMHO is a bit cliched.
The art on this book is rendered in 3D and is gorgeous. It looks like Borgy spent a lot of time creating the models for this. It reminds me a lot of ReBoot, one of my favorite programs growing up. My only problem is that the girl clothes needs a little loosening -- literally. They look too tight around the chest areas. Come to think of it, the same goes for Gabriel's civilian t-shirts. It's a bit distracting but still, as I said, gorgeous. Something that I think really needs work here are the fonts in the dialogue and also the speech balloons. The narration boxes in issue 1 looked a lot better but was changed in issue 2. One thing I found that improved in issue 2 though were the panels. It looked more like a comic book with the panel borders in there.
All in all, these are good first issues. It raises a lot of questions like: Who attacked Servant? What happened to Servant's world? What plans does Victor have? Does Gabriel like Alex (the obvious choice) or Katsuko (twist!)? Or maybe it's the girl reporter whose name I can't remember off the top of my head. Here's hoping that the next issues I read would be the collected edition. And yes, I am also beginning to shift my komiks collection from single issues to trades because TPBs would look better on my shelf.
When I went to KOMIKON last weekend, my intention was to get a lot of local TPBs. Yes, indie komik creators now publish their komiks in TPB format. I usually don’t get single issues if I don’t know the creator or work, so the TPB format is appealing to me. First, it looks more professional than photocopied comics. And second, I get to read a whole lot more of the story.
One of the titles I got was MARK 9 VERSE 47 by Maika Ezawa and Tepai Pascual. I read volume 1 at the airport while waiting for my flight back to Singapore so forgive me if I don’t remember a lot about the story. It’s about a mysterious man named Visdei who was tasked to look for a certain gatekeeper. He has the ability to see angels and demons but aside from that he is blind. There are a lot of other character introductions here and I kinda forgot some of them except for the main antagonist named Mal. The second volume which I read just now depicts the “origin” of Visdei. It’s a more compelling read than the first one since we learn how Ron Hunter turned from a vicious a-hole prize fighter to the agent of God we first met. My only problem with the second volume is that it ended (bitin!). The art on this title is gorgeous. Depicted in manga-style, the action sequences and layouts are dynamic. You can tell that the artist really knows her craft because you’d think that this was really a manga from Japan. I hope the next time I go to Komikon there is already a third volume available.
