365 Days with Ben Grimm: Day 349

Ad for Marvel Mego dolls (not quite yet "action figures"), artist unknown. Printed in Captain America #193 (January 1976)

Red.

Bully's Advent Calendar: Day 14

365 Days with Ben Grimm: Day 348

Panel from Amazing Spider-Man #18 (November 1964), script by Stan Lee, pencils and inks by Steve Ditko, letters by Sam Rosen

Don't be that guy; don't be like Larry.

There's few things that disturb me more about the comics business than a retailer determined to actively antagonize potential customers and publicly act like a buffoon. In my travels around the country I've been in hundreds of comic book stores; almost every single one of them was pretty good, and more than a few were exceptional. The two worst I've ever been in simply had very poor stock. I crossed those comic book stores off my list and didn't go there again.

That's why, without even stepping through its doors, I won't ever patronize Larry's Comics of Lowell, Massachusetts. Larry approached blogger and comics creator Kevin Church at a convention this weekend, and what resulted is Larry's full-fledged Twitter meltdown. Check it out over at Kevin's blog and see how Larry Doherty of Larry's Comics represents the modern public face of comics retailing.

Kevin keeps his account to the communication between him and Larry Doherty. Here's some other choice bits from Larry, posted on his Twitter on Saturday 12/12:



And this Oscar Wildean retort:



So, take another look at this, the internet's public face of Larry Doherty, the public face of Larry's Comics.

It's a business, folks. You think a clothing store or florist would stay in business long with a public or internet personality like this? So why would we tolerate those in our industry who can't act like professionals? (And yes, Larry Doherty is also the guy who crowed about the "Lantern Ring Boobs" photo taken in his store as a "fun promo." Laura Hudson's take on that here [WARNING: NSFW imagery])

So, do you wanna shop at Larry's Comics now? Not me.

(Truth in Disclosure: Kevin Church is one of my friends, so yes, I've "got his back" on this one, not that Kevin needs anyone to fight battles for him. But real truth to tell, like everybody else, Kevin Church is sometimes full of crap, and I don't mind telling him so when he is. This time? I'm behind him 100%.)

Bully's Advent Calendar: Day 13

Ten of a Kind: Hicks Nix Dix Comix Pix

(Happy Birthday, Kyle!)











(More Ten of a Kind here.)

365 Days with Ben Grimm: Day 347

Panel from Fantastic Four #361 (February 1992), co-plot and script by Tom DeFalco, co-plot and pencils by Paul Ryan, inks by Danny Bulanadi, colors by Christie Scheele and Ed Lazellari, letters by Bill Oakley

(Click picture to tried-as-an-adult-size)

Bully's Advent Calendar: Day 12

Separated at Birth: I'll send an S.O.S. to the world/I hope that someone gets my message

L: Showcase #34 (September-October 1961), art by Gil Kane and Murphy Anderson
R: Impulse/Atom Double-Shot one-shot (February 1998), art by Pop Mahn and Michelle Asp

(Click picture to Atom-size)





What's that? Well, I told you it would be Atom-sized, didn't I? Oh, okay, for those of you who need glasses and/or a white dwarf star shrinking belt...

(Close the Atom-sized window first if you haven't already, then click picture to Apache Chief-size.)

365 Days with Ben Grimm: Day 346

Full-page panel from Marvel Holiday Special 2005 one-shot (January 2006), script by Mike Carey, pencils and inks by Mike Perkins, colors by Laura Martin, letters by Dave Lanphear

(Click picture to Santy-Claus-size)

Saturday Morning Cartoon: Super Santa in "Vegetation"

Super Santa and Emma in "Vegetation" (2006), directed by Mike Bell

Bully's Advent Calendar: Day 11

Tis the Season to Duck Out Early

At this time of year, we're often told to reflect upon our friends and family. Which is a wonderful thing to do.

And then, there's the people we work with. And at this time of year, we're often corralled into that most perilous and dicey of holiday events: the company Christmas party.

So take a clue from Clark Kent: make a quick appearance and then duck out the back door. By that point everybody will be so sloshed they'll never notice you've gone!



If you're lucky you'll escape the Secret Santa ceremony completely! Because who needs another Lex Luthor bobblehead doll to put on your desk?



I actually like this scene an awful lot, and it loses something in the reformatting. So here's my secret Santa gift to you, the full page in the altogether!:

Page from Batman and the Outsiders #19 (March 1985), script by Mike W. Barr, pencils, inks and letters by Jim Aparo, colors by Adrienne Roy
(Click image to super-size)

Coming up soon: Batman shows you how to get out of Christmas dinner with your parents, Aquaman explains the best method of avoiding being roped into Christmas caroling, and Mister Miracle escapes from a flaming locked firetrap and also from the consequences of not being able to find the sold-out Barnes and Noble "Nook" that Barda put on her Christmas list.

365 Days with Ben Grimm: Day 345: Hanukkah

The Kirbys' 1976 Hanukkah card, by Jack Kirby
Happy Hanukkah!

Bully's Advent Calendar: Day 10

Because sometimes you just have to post the story where Spider-Man piloted a supersonic fighter jet with Aunt May in the back seat

It's in the story where Doctor Octopus is trying to marry Aunt May...


Panels from Amazing Spider-Man #131 (April 1974), script by Gerry Conway, pencils by Ross Andru, inks by Frank Giacoia and Dave Hunt, colors by Petra Goldberg, letters by Artie Simek

...and kidnaps her in a helicopter...



...away to his secret Canadian island atomic reactor base...



...where Spider-Man captures her back...



...and then he escapes single-handedly piloting a jet plane...



...when suddenly crime lord Hammerhead barges in...



...and butts Doc Ock's nuclear reactor with his superhumanly hardened head...

(Click image to "blow up")

Yes, the ultra-realistic adventures of Spider-Man. They could never take place in a world where the Punisher got turned into a Frankenstein, could they?

365 Days with Ben Grimm: Day 344

Panel from Marvel Team-Up #32 (April 1975), script by Gerry Conway, pencils by Sal Buscema, inks by Vince Colletta, colors by Janice Cohen, letters by Artie Simek

Bully's Advent Calendar: Day 9