The Perfect Day Off

Doug: One of the great boons of teaching is the built-in break every so often. Sure, I often fill those times with work-related activities (lesson planning, summer school, teaching at the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum, etc.), but certainly not all the time. Today we'd like to hear about your perfect day off -- and the conversation is even better if you add some details concerning the time of year when this fabulous day off might fall.

Doug: For me, there's no better day off than the anticipated-and-now-it's-true snow day! A little unplanned sleeping in, followed by some time on the treadmill and a "no worries" breakfast just spent watching the snow fall. That... is a great start to a day off. Follow it up with a little time spent clearing the driveway and sidewalks and an opportunity to read and it's as if it were heaven sent.

Doug: In the fall or spring, when it can be cold in the morning, I like to follow the same early routine of working out, showering, and then having some coffee while I enjoy the outside scenery. If I'm on top of my game, I've already chosen some comics to read and write about. I really enjoy that 1-2 hours of solitude, just studying the comic art, reflecting on the story, and the nostalgia of it all. I may follow that time with some more reading (books or comics) just for fun. Once afternoon hits and the day has warmed, a brisk walk somewhere outside is great -- either around the neighborhood or at a forest preserve.

Doug: Things are a little different when my wife plans the day off. I, as you might tell, am a homebody; she would prefer to get out and go and do. If she's in charge, we're probably going to make the 50 mile trek to downtown Chicago. Her idea of a great day off is to pack a lunch, take the lawn chairs, and head to the museum campus on the shores of Lake Michigan. We set up shop with our goods and a radio, a couple of books, and sit and enjoy the skyline and the sunny weather. If we are in the Loop, we will just walk around for hours. We did a weekend stay downtown a couple of summers ago and walked almost 20 miles during the 36 hours we were there. Those are great times, too!

Doug: So how about you?

Spotlight On... Pick a Creator Day!

In the past, we've discussed many, many creators. Among them are: Barry Windsor-Smith, Chris Claremont, the Filipino masters, Frank Robbins, John Buscema, Jack Kirby, Gil Kane, Rich Buckler, Sal Buscema, and Steve Englehart. Toss out a few more for conversation today!

Suggestions Unboxed - Character Development Possibilities

Doug: Back in October we ran a post requesting ideas from our readers. We promised to run all of those suggestions at some point. While we've covered many of them, it's been a while since some of those thoughts graced our blog. Here's another one:

Martinex1: Here are two suggestions based on character development, both historically and potentially -- 

• Worst plot developments ever (for me YJ hitting the Wasp) and how you would have changed it.
• Comic team ups or relationships we would like to see (Beast and Tigra, Commander Rann and the Wasp, Fixer and Ultron). 

Suggestion Unboxed - Rave On Wednesday!

Doug: Back in October we ran a post requesting ideas from our readers. We promised to run all of those suggestions at some point. While we've covered many of them, it's been a while since some of those thoughts graced our blog. Here's another one:

The Prowler (sheesh - controlling the whole week!): "Rave on Wednesday": What's going on that you really like? Find an awesome "micro brew" line? Great burger? Find a penny with the head up?

 

Suggestion Unboxed - Throw a Tantrum Tuesday!

Doug: Back in October we ran a post requesting ideas from our readers. We promised to run all of those suggestions at some point. While we've covered many of them, it's been a while since some of those thoughts graced our blog. Here's another one: 

The Prowler: "Throw a tantrum Tuesday"-- Find a lot of kids standing in your yard? Still mad about "Maximum Clonage"? Everything you want for Christmas over $200? Still trying to find the Panini Books everybody is raving about? 

Suggestion Unboxed - Who's the Best... Comic Book Cover featuring an Animal?

Doug: Back in October we ran a post requesting ideas from our readers. We promised to run all of those suggestions at some point. While we've covered many of them, it's been a while since some of those thoughts graced our blog. Here's another one:

Rob Anderson: Who's the best comic book cover featuring an animal or animals?

Suggestion Unboxed - You as a Young Comics Creator

Doug: Back in October we ran a post requesting ideas from our readers. We promised to run all of those suggestions at some point. While we've covered many of them, it's been a while since some of those thoughts graced our blog. Here's another one:

William: Did you ever create any of your own superheroes or villains when you were a kid? And if so, what was their story, name, powers, costume, etc.? I personally had my own entire superhero comics universe called "Superior Comics". 

I think it would be real interesting to hear what crazy (or not so crazy) ideas some of you guys might have come up with. 
 

Suggestion Unboxed - Characters Outside the "Super-stars"

Doug: Back in October we ran a post requesting ideas from our readers. We promised to run all of those suggestions at some point. While we've covered many of them, it's been a while since some of those thoughts graced our blog. Here's another one:

jeirich: I'm endlessly interested in some of the Big Two's B-listers from that period: the Black Panther (particularly the Panther's Rage arc, by Don McGregor); Deathlok; Killraven; the Challengers of the Unknown; some of the lesser Kirby titles like Omac . . .

Martinex1: Discuss second tier teams like Alpha Flight, Outsiders, Doom Patrol, Ultraforce, Force Works, Eternals etc.

Suggestion Unboxed - Local Television Programming You Loved

Doug: Back in October we ran a post requesting ideas from our readers. We promised to run all of those suggestions at some point. While we've covered many of them, it's been a while since some of those thoughts graced our blog. Here's another one:

Martinex1 said: I am curious about local television, favorite local programming, and local shows from our childhood?

Six Years Older... Any Wiser?

Karen: Six years? Wow. Time really does fly. When we were just starting this blog six years ago, one of my nephews was visiting us. He was just a little kid. This last week, he graduated high school. That kind of puts things in perspective for me. I don't think I went into this enterprise thinking much beyond what we'd do the next month, let alone six years later! But somehow, here we are. I have to say, I think the reason it's lasted this long is because so many of you showed up and have taken such an active part in turning this into more than just me and Doug flapping our gums at each other. As always, many thanks for your support and  continued activity here. And this year we took it to a whole new level, with the arrival of guest posts. This has turned out to be a huge infusion of energy for the BAB and we are grateful to all of you BAB bullpen members who have contributed! It's been fantastic, and we eagerly look forward to seeing what new ideas you have to bring to year seven.

Doug: I view the guest writer project as a real opportunity to expand the horizons of this blog. Think about it -- since our readers began submitting posts, we've seen reviews of Donald Duck, Archie, illustrated novels, graphic novels, and a complete mini-series. And all of that is in addition to an off-the-beaten path DC sports comic, as well as a new discussion category (the $1 challenge)! To date we've had over 25 guest posts, and I think that's fabulous. There are a few more in the queue awaiting publication, and I know that also coming soon we'll be able to run the first non-Doug and Karen partner review! So this has just been exciting.

Doug: I have had some guilt feelings, though, because of my lack of writing comics reviews. It seems as all of that heavy lifting has fallen to our readers this past spring. I'm going to rectify that -- next Monday in fact! Karen and I have been talking about this recently. I proposed four comics that I am interested in, and she thought she could provide commentary on two of them. Those books (with no dates -- I want to stay flexible) are :

Showcase #17 (intro. Adam Strange, from 1958!)
Nova #2
The Champions #12
DC Comics Presents #26 (intro. New Teen Titans)

Doug: We appreciate your patience when we attempt new things. Of course, some stick and some do not. The 100-Word Reviews would be an example of an idea that seemed cool, but never really caught on. I say that with the finger pointed at myself as well. I suppose in a way, it ends up being a self-challenge, sort of a word game or something. But who knows -- maybe it will catch on if one of our readers chooses to write up their views on a song, or on a specific television show.

Doug: As always, comments are appreciated and it has been nice of late to see some new folks making their presence felt. But it's that core of a couple dozen of our readers who comment regularly that give this blog a community feel. It's been said 100 times already, but thanks for doing that and for being a part of this on each and every post. Some days are better than others, of course, but there always seems to be some conversation happening around here.

Doug: So in reflection -- yeah, six years is some serious water under the bridge! Instead of being about to turn 49, I was about to turn 43 when this ship started sailing. My oldest was entering his senior year of high school; now he's entering the second and final year of his master's studies and is getting married in five days! I had a heckuva lot fewer trades and hardcovers than I do now (hey, if nothing else the BAB has been a convenient excuse!). And I guess overall, I had fewer "friends" with whom to discuss comics and such. This has been a satisfying space.

Childhood is Fleeting

Doug: This post began as an ode to spring, and when I got to thinking about what I like most about spring, my idea morphed into a bit more expansive topic.

Doug: I was going to begin by saying the advent of baseball season was one of the things I always looked forward to the most, coming out of the (usually) long winters that Chicagoland is known for. But as my mind came to rest on that, it occurred to me that not only do I look forward to baseball at the Major League level, I really miss my sons not playing any more. Around this time of year -- probably for 10-12 years -- I'd begin shopping for whatever baseball equipment they would need for the coming season. It may have been some equipment for around the house, such as a hitting stick or a screen to use with a tee. I loved searching for bats -- never the new, expensive models of "this year", but always on eBay for last year's models. Big-time savings there. And gloves. Nothing better than getting a new glove and breaking it in. We used this shaving cream-type of product that absorbed into the leather while baking in the oven. No kidding -- three rounds of application and a few hours of catch and it was amazing how pliable the leather would become. Man, I'm getting a little misty just thinking of this.

Doug: So today let's turn it to you. What do you recall of your own childhood as winter began to loosen its grip? Were there certain rites of spring that you treasured? It may not have been athletics -- was it the freedom of bike riding, or of playing cops and robbers through your neighborhood? How about the planning of and anticipation for a family vacation once school got out? And for those of you with grown or almost-grown children, what do you miss about their youth at home? As always, thanks in advance for your memories!

Doug's youngest, 2007 Little League. Nine homers in the regular season.

The boys at Gettysburg, Pennsylvania in 2009

Time Won't Let Me... the State of the BAB Address

Doug: As alluded to Tuesday, Karen and I promised a sort of State of the Blog post, and we've moved it ahead to today. If you'd like, put on your thinking caps and fly back in time to one of those horrid family meetings... You know the ones, like after Mom always said "Don't play ball in the house." Nah -- this ain't that. But we do want to sit down with our friends and readers and discuss where we see this train as it moves forward.

Karen: Between that introduction and the picture on the right, some of you may have run away screaming, but I promise, it isn't that bad.

Doug: If there is one thing I got out of the month of January, it was a sense of relaxation in knowing that every day was already set to run and that our readers would stop by as you always do and to some extent carry the load. And let me make this clear right up front: I really don't find the blog to be a burden, and I love participating with everyone on a daily basis, whether I created the topic, make a few comments, or just lurk. But it has at times become difficult to come up with topics that I feel meet the standard we've set over the past 5 1/2 years. I don't know if it's writer's block or if we've truly exhausted all of the great topics... But sometimes I feel like I'm going to leave you folks wanting, and I don't like that.

Karen: I'll second Doug's comments, and just say that I can't even tell you how many times I've started writing up a post to find that we've already covered the same topic before. We have been around on a near-daily basis for five plus years! I suppose it's inevitable that certain subjects pop back up, but we feel a desire to keep it fresh, and that's become a bit difficult at times. It was amazing and refreshing to see the ideas that you folks came up with during our vacation. And inspiring...

Doug: So here's the deal -- neither of us feel like we can contribute to the blog as we have in the past. We're not going to make excuses to anyone, nor do we want anyone's pity. Everyone is busy, life keeps moving faster, and all that. So we would like to make a proposal, and what we're about to say has been about a month in the works.

1. We will continue to post on the blog as we always have, but just not as frequently. Neither of us can commit to our self-imposed need to be creative 5+ days a week. It's a pace we chose many, many moons ago and to be honest we think it's caught up to us. What we'd like to do going forward is post when that moment of inspiration strikes. It may not be at that clockwork time as it has been for so long -- shoot, we may go a couple of days with nothing and then both of us toss something up on the same afternoon. Who knows?
2. We will make a solid effort to get back to the partner reviews on comics. I think everyone reading would agree that our past reviews have been one of the hallmarks of this space and it's been a real sense of pride for Karen and I when we look back on reviews like Amazing Spider-Man #s 121-122, our massive Vision retrospective, and even this week's examination of The Winter Soldier. Those sorts of posts were a tremendous amount of fun; a lot of work, but many smiles when complete. But neither of us can commit at this time to the exhaustive plot synopses and art scans in the double digits. Instead, we think what we did with "The Winter Soldier" may be closer to what you'll see moving forward.
3. And here's where you come in. Let us repeat -- here's where you come in: It was in our first several months of publication when we were approached about hosting a guest writer. We about freaked out. If you know anything about Karen and I, we're both a little Type A. Give up control of our blog and its content? Heresy! Well, as they say, that was then and this is now. Using our BAB email address (if you don't know it, it's on the sidebar), we would like our readers to submit not ideas, but fully-formed posts. That's right. Now instead of using the Suggestion Box and having us sit back and say "Nah, that's not really in our wheelhouse", you can send us your idea written just as if we would have written it. Got a great topic for the Open Forum? Go. A singular issue for Discuss? Send it. But what about reviewing some classic comics, whether we've reviewed them or not? By all means. We'll supply the lay-out, using our headings. You supply the text and attach any art you want used to the email you'll send. Of course there's a catch (always is, right?) -- we will reserve editorial control over such things as grammar and spelling, and of course the acceptability of topics. The BAB is no place for Omaha the Cat Dancer, regardless of its merits.

Karen: Hard as it might be to believe, we do have some standards to uphold.

Doug: We really are excited about the possibilities moving forward. You know we love our readers, and so I'd lie if we didn't "talk about you" sometimes behind your backs. Here's something I said to Karen a couple of weeks ago when we were kicking around these ideas:

I would suggest we use the BAB Yahoo email and solicit reviews from our readers -- guest columnists. There's no reason they couldn't send us art samples if they chose. We'd be strict in reserving editorial control for content and scheduling. But I think we could get a little help and foster the community aspect we've liked. Hey, what's not to like about regular installments of "Hulk by Humanbelly"?

 Of course Karen countered with a restriction of 5000 words per post -- love ya, HB!

Karen: Think of it as a challenge, HB!

Doug: So that's where we are. We were both a little taken aback at the seeming attachment to this space that some of you expressed on Tuesday. We sure don't want to let anyone down, but that includes ourselves. So that's why we want to be up front with each and every one of you -- whether you've been with us for years (as several of you have) or today is the first day you've happened by. If you'll agree to help us, in the spirit of what has gone before, I think this thing can morph into something bigger and better as we move along.

Karen: I'm sort of looking at this as BAB 2.0. And I'm anxious to hear everyone's thoughts.

 

Hey, Look! It's the Post-Vacation "Catching-Up" Post!

Doug: Greetings, O Faithful Ones! Today is one of those potpourri posts where just about anything goes. I'm going to drop a bulleted list of things that have come up or have been on my mind over the past 32 days. Of course you do the same, and we'll treat this like one big water cooler.

• If you saw my post from Sunday, then you know I am about to come into some serious cash. While the lion's share of it will go into our fund for a new car/student loans, I have been treating myself to a self-gift every now and then. Today I would like any of our readers with knowledge of the IDW Artist Editions to tell me about those books. I am really, really intrigued. And with my interest in original art, I have my eye on the Joe Kubert Tarzan book, the John Buscema Silver Surfer tome, and the one that reprints Marvel Comics covers. Please give me a critique of the best and worst thing about the books in general, and if you happen to have any that I mentioned, those books in particular. My thanks in advance!
  
• Many of our readers are great fans of the art of George Perez. It has come to my attention that DC is giving the artist's Wonder Woman run the omnibus treatment and I am excited! I bought the second trade a couple of years ago (and used it to write this review), and intended to at some point buy them all. Not sure if I'll snatch this up right away, but at least I know life could be simplified!
  
• Many of you Bat-fans may have heard that renowned 90s Batman artist Norm Breyfogle recently suffered a stroke. There are funds that have been established to help offset some of his aftercare, and perhaps notable for this crowd DC has rushed into production a new volume in their wonderful hardcover series reprinting Batman tales from the 1960s to the present. Legends of the Dark Knight: Norm Breyfogle will be for sale in July 2015. I'll most likely get a copy. If you are not in the know, Breyfogle was the illustrator of the first Tim Drake adventures as the third Robin. I should say that I do not know if DC is donating any proceeds to Breyfogle's care; I did certainly imply that they are.
  
• Lastly, in a week or so Karen and I will be giving our State of the Blog address. We've had conversations on the condition of our little corner of the blogosphere and its form and format moving forward. We're not ready to give any specifics, but I will say that we're not going anywhere, not at all considering ceasing publication. But you may notice a bit more intermittence in our posting for the time being. Just a head's up to our loyal conversationalists.

Doug: Be sure to post whatever has been on your mind -- questions, concerns, and mindless observations are all welcome today. It's good to be back, friends!

Vacation Time!, Plus Breaking "Age of Ultron" News

Doug: Yep, it's that time of year again -- time for the inmates to run the asylum for a month! As has become our tradition the past two Januarys, Karen and I will not be posting any new content until February 1st. In our place, we'll still have that BAB flavor added to your laptop or desktop every day in the form of some do-it-yourself posts as well as some classic re-runs.

Doug: Over the past two years the Marvel Firsts series of trade paperbacks has been a great buy for each of us, as well as fodder for many posts. We thought this January we might borrow the concept and go into the wayback machine to pull some of our oldest posts forward for a second look. On Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays (and the occasional Saturday) be on the look-out for the first partner review, the first Open Forum, and so on. We remarked to each other a couple of weeks ago at how little traffic we got five years ago. Certainly we have a group of diehards who carry our daily conversations these days. Enjoy the trip down memory lane, and give us a thought (or a new thought) on the topic du jour.

Karen: It really is funny to go back and look at those early posts and see how few responses we got, yet we kept plugging away. And I'm glad we did! Eventually it paid off. I do look forward to hearing what you think about some of those topics now.

Doug: We'll also, as has become habit, slot some of our regular conversation departments for your daily use. So be thinking of topics for the aforementioned Open Forum, or to Discuss, and even a Who's the Best...? or Who's the Worst...? -- you'll see those sprinkled throughout the month. But in a departure from past practice, rather than the first one in grabbing all the glory (and moderating responsibilities) I think we can handle multiple topics just fine. So whatever you have to bring to the table -- bring it!

Karen: It's been a lot of fun to see what you guys come up with -I think we've had some of our liveliest discussions through these posts! I hope you kids are ready for this.

Doug: Of course we'll be around, chiming in here and there as we always do. This has become a time in the year to which we really look forward. And it's not just the break from wanting to be creative five times a week. It's fun to hear what you have to say! Thanks again for making this a labor of love -- all of our readers (even the quiet ones) are just great and we really appreciate the time you spend here each day. Have a great New Year!

Doug: Hi, again, everyone. I just read some information about the coming Avengers: Age of Ultron movie and wanted to share. Also, how about the image below, also contained in the link above?

It Was So Much Fun Last Year...

Doug:  For those of you who were around as 2012 gave way to 2013, you'll recall that in the month of January Karen and I took a (to us at least) well-deserved break from new posts and turned the reins of the BAB over to our readers.  From my perspective, it couldn't have gone better.  Our regular commenters jumped in and really carried the site for 30 days and it was a fantastic respite for us.

Karen: I was impressed with the different topics you all came up with. Sometimes (OK, a lot of times) I feel like I have brain-lock and struggle with new topics. It was fun tuning in each day to see what was happening here.

Doug:  We'd like to pursue a similar format this coming January.  We'll use Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays to feature some of our "classic" comic book reviews.  For example, this time the first nine such review days could be filled with one of our longest series, our look at the "Kree/Skrull War" (that's under advisement at this point), and then we would finish the month with some others tossed in for your re-enjoyment.

Doug:  The fun part comes on Tuesdays, Thursdays, and the weekends.  That's when we have a pre-set discussion category and the first reader so inclined gets to set the topic for the day's conversation.  We'll rotate the following departments:  The Open Forum, Discuss, Who's the Best..., True or False?, Spotlight On..., and Face-Off!  Last January proved to be a great opportunity for our readers to be the drivers for a change, and certainly rescued some topics from our Suggestion Box and saved other topics from going into it.  If you're a relatively new reader, you can see what January 2013 looked like by clicking here.

Doug:  When we get back to "new stuff" in February, there are quite a few comic reviews Karen and I have already kicked around.   We know in May we'll be running a month's worth of posts centered around the release of the next X-film, "Days of Future Past".  How can you really go wrong with four weeks of the Claremont/Byrne X-Men?  We've also discussed crafting our own sort of "Avengers Firsts", with examinations of the Silver Age first appearances of the Black Widow, Hawkeye, Quicksilver and the Scarlet Witch, and Hercules.  Of course that's going to get us into some old-school Tales of Suspense, X-Men (those guys, again?) and Journey Into Mystery.  Anyone feel like we'll encounter some of Stan Lee's patented hyperbole?

Karen:  There are a few other super-hero movies coming out next year, so don't be surprised if you see some reviews timed to coincide with film premieres. We may have some Captain America reviews in April, and Guardians of the Galaxy come August! 

Doug:  As to my pattern of providing a solo review every other Friday, I have my eyes on some varied fare.  My next installment in our "What's So Golden?" series will be a selection from the 1940s Batman newspaper strips.  Kitchen Sink Press got the license to reprint these in tpb form about 20 years ago and I purchased the three volumes of the B&W reprints; I've never obtained the Sundays volume.  I'd also like to check in on Simon and Kirby's Newsboy Legion later in the spring or summer to see what that's all about.  Last week I said I'd be reviewing something from the new Joker tpb, and I'd promised to get to a Superman/Adam Strange story from the Garcia-Lopez hardcover.  And, just this past Monday Edo and I were in conversation about The Brave and the Bold #197.  These Friday reviews seem a good opportunity to stretch myself and to get some more DC in our library of reviews.  Man, so many comics, so little time!  But if anyone out there wants to pony up the funds for Karen and I to do this full-time, I think we'd listen!

Karen:  I'm glad you're doing more solo DC reviews, since we don't seem to have many DC books in common. If I get any time over the Christmas vacation I might dip back into my Kirby Fourth World Omnibus and see if I can manage a few reviews from that. Or maybe some DC Comics Presents with Starlin, or Cosmic Odyssey if I'm really feeling ambitious.  I still would like to get that Kamandi Omnibus or the Archives. Maybe Santa will bring it if I have been a good girl!

Doug:  Thanks again for making this the sort of place we had hoped it would become.  Our readers have been great!