Today in Comics History, August 18: Tim Drake finishes his homework five minutes early

from "All the Deadly Days, Chapter 5: Bloodthirsty Thursday" in Batman 80-Page Giant #3 (July 2000), script by Chuck Dixon, pencils by Louis Small, Jr., inks by Caesar, colors by Glenn Whitmore, letters by John Costanza

Same Story, Different Cover: Raven hair and ruby lips / Sparks fly from her finger tips

Left: Marvel Spotlight v.1 #11 (August 1973), pencils by Rich Buckler, inks by Mike Esposito
Right: The Original Ghost Rider #7 (January 1993), pencils by Jeff Johnson, inks by Dan Panosian

(Click picture to black-magic-woman-size)

Today in Comics History, August 18: A lovely date with Alfred Pennyworth

from "The Death of a Romantic" in Heartthrobs #3 (DC/Vertigo, March 1999), script by Peter Milligan, pencils and inks by Eduardo Risso, colors by Grant Goleash, letters by Clem Robins

366 Days with Alfred Pennyworth, Day 231

Cover of Batman Family #13 (September 1977), pencils and inks by Jim Aparo

PLS STAND BY

But while I'm catching up over here, don't forget to check out my bestest pal John's movie reviews all this week at other bestest pal Steve Kopian's Unseen Films! Here's the full week's line-up!

• Monday: The Arsenal Stadium Mystery (1939)
• Tuesday: Beloved (2011)
• Wednesday: The London Nobody Knows (1967)
• Thursday: The Black WIndmill (1974)
• Friday: Asterix at the Olympic Games (2008)

So there's five movies right there that you can talk about to your friends without even having seen them! Who says this isn't the Golden Age of Cool and Useful Bully Cocktail Party Chatter?!?

(Also, I'll be back soon!)

These Romans are crazy!

If you know that the narration to accompany this animated gif that I hastily created...



is

The year is 50 BC. Gaul is entirely occupied by the Romans. Well, not entirely...one small village of indomitable Gauls still holds out against the invaders. And life is not easy for the Roman legionnaires who garrison the fortified camps of Totorum, Aquarium, Laudanum and Compendium...

...then not only do you have excellent cultural literacy, but you also will enjoy my pal John's movie review tonight over at Unseen Films of Asterix at the Olympic Games. Yes, it's a movie review of of a film about the Olympics. John keeps to his schedule just about as well as I do! Haw! (No, seriously, check it out.)

366 Days with Alfred Pennyworth, Day 230

Panels from [Batman:] Legends of the Dark Knight #6 (April 1990), script by Grant Morrison, pencils and inks by Klaus Janson, colors by Steve Buccellato, letters by John Costanza

Today in Comics History, August 16: Batman yadda yadda yadda so what else is new

from "Crimes of the Catwoman!" in Detective Comics #203 (DC, January 1954), script by Edmond Hamilton, pencils by Bob Kane, inks by Charles Paris, letters by Pat Gordon

366 Days with Alfred Pennyworth, Day 229

Panel from "Danger Strikes Three" in Detective Comics #86 (April 1944), script by Don Cameron, pencils and inks by Dick Sprang, letters by Pat Gordon

My bees eat because I'm a landowner*

My best pal John is doing movie reviews all this week over at Unseen Films, and tonight's little bit of cinema is 1967's The London Nobody Knows. Both me 'n' John L-U-V London, so discovering this documentary for the first time was great. How else would I have known there was such a lucrative career to be had in egg-breaking?



I think I have my eventual life career all figgered out.

Oh, there's lots more, and more serious stuff, in the film. (You can watch the whole thing here. But please check out John's review, too!) It's hosted and narrated by James Mason. The Voice of God! So you know it's gonna be good.


*My favorite misreading of the lyrics for this song:

366 Days with Alfred Pennyworth, Day 228

Panel from JLA #119 (Late November 2005), script by Geoff Johns and Allan Heinberg, pencils by Chris Batista, inks by Mark Farmer, colors by David Baron, letters by Rob Leigh

Today in Comics History, August 15: Clayface spends some quality time with his new girlfriends

from "The Death of a Romantic" in Heartthrobs #3 (DC/Vertigo, March 1999), script by Peter Milligan, pencils and inks by Eduardo Risso, colors by Grant Goleash, letters by Clem Robins

Un-immortal Beloved

Wow, look at all those Olympic laurel leaves this movie has won:



Too bad my pal John didn't like this movie as much as the Olympic judges. Even so, you can read his lukewarm review of Beloved over at Unseen Films, home of white-on-black film reviews, news, and more!

The movie stars Catherine Deneuve (ooh la la!) but warning: it also contains this scene:

366 Days with Alfred Pennyworth, Day 227

Panels from Batman: Odyssey v.2 #6 (May 2012), script and pencils by Neal Adams, inks by Kevin Nowlan, inking assists by Neal Adams and Josh Adams, colors by Moose Baumann and Cory Adams, letters by Dave Sharpe

An Olympic mystery, solved

Let's all go to the movies!

Panel from Batman: Legends of the Dark Knight #162 (February 2003), script by John Arcudi; pencils, inks, and letters by Roger Langridge; colors by James Sinclair; color separations by Digital Chameleon

While I'm recovering from my hectic daily Olympic schedule (I made a mistake staying in Brighton and not at the Olympic village), I'll be bypassing my usual nightly posts. There will now be a slight pause while you say "Who cares?"*

However, you can coast on over to my pal DB's film blog, Unseen Films, to check out a review each night this week of all sortsa fun movies! (Caution: the words "These Romans are crazy!" may occur at some point this week.) To be fair, the posts are actually written by my best pal John, but I helped with the popcorn-makin'.

Tonight! A murder is committed in front of 35,000 people watching a football match in The Arsenal Stadium Mystery! Yes, it's a movie about British football (aka soccer) that co-stars actual members of the Arsenal team, the only F.A. club actually named after a tube stop.



It's a grand film for fans of classic British detective films, and Leslie Banks is top-notch as multiple-behatted Scotland Yard Inspector Anthony Slade hunting down a dangerous murderer of footballers. But if'n you ask me, the real mystery of the movie is what the heck is Gwen Stefani staring at in space for what seems like twenty minutes when she's informed there's been a murder?




*Thank you for letting me borrow rent that joke, Mister Benny.

366 Days with Alfred Pennyworth, Day 226

Panel from Batman: Legends of the Dark Knight #162 (February 2003), script by John Arcudi; pencils, inks, and letters by Roger Langridge; colors by James Sinclair; color separations by Digital Chameleon

Today in Comics History, August 12, 1897: Invention of the ironic use of the word "safe"

from Bram Stoker's Dracula #3 (Topps, December 1992), script by Roy Thomas, pencils by Mike Mignola, inks by John Nyberg, colors by Mark Chiarello, letters by John Costanza

Congratulations to all our 2012 Olympic Medal Winners!

The Official Comic Book Panels of the Day of the 2012 Olympics: Closing Ceremonies

There's a type of Carl Barks Donald Duck story commonly termed "the brittle mastery of Donald Duck," in which everymanduck Donald initially shows incredible and astounding skill at some profession or occupation, only to have the entire situation collapse in on him in a Rube Goldbergesque slapstick finish, leaving him to give up his work (or, sometimes, to be chased right out of town). Barks's story in Walt Disney's Comics and Stories #188 (unofficially titled "The Olympic Hopeful") is no such brittle mastery—Donald shows no skill at any competitive sports right from the beginning! Like "The Olympian Torch Bearer" in WDC&S #286, Mister Duck's grand dreams of glory are doomed from the start. But this story, unlike the other, carries with it a message and a gentle ending that exemplifies the spirit of the Olympics and should be taken to heart by every athlete: man, woman, or fowl.

Duckburg is holding competitions to send its athletes to the Olympics, and you-know-who wants in on that:


Panels from "The Olympic Hopeful" in Walt Disney's Comics and Stories #188 (May 1956), script, pencils, and inks by Carl Barks


His first attempt, at the 100 meter dash, looks promising when his more athletic competitor is held out of the race:




But even with that advantage, Donald doesn't exactly have the eye of the tiger. or even the feet of the tall mouse. Looks like he didn't eat his Wheaties this morning!




Take two: another competition, another potential competitor taken out of the race in a humorous way (he's struck oil on his land and decides to retire immediately from athletics). Does Donald have a chance in this event? Ehhhhhhhhhhhhhhh...no.




By now you've gotten the rhythm of the story, and Barks doesn't disappoint. Another event, another potential Olympian disqualified (his schoolmarm arrives to announce he can't compete until he learns his A-B-Cs). And yet again, in an unopposed field, can Donald triumph? Nope.




He's certainly not making any fans among the judges...




...or the onwatching crowd!




Everyone has given up on Donald by the last event, the 1500 meter run.




Everyone, that is, except for those rhyming-named sons of fun, Huey, Dewey, and Louis! Go, Donald, go!




So no athlete from Duckburg will go onto represent that little Calisota town in the 1956 Melbourne Olympics, and what's more, Donald is now (or, more accurately, once again) the laughing-stock of all. Except for three Donald fans who show their appreciation and respect for his athletic attempts:




Man, you've gotta hand it to them...those Junior Woodchucks know the true meaning of sportsmanship. As this Olympics draws to an end, so many we all! Even if we wear pants.