Next week I'm heading to San Diego to cover the 2006 Comic-Con. I'm greatly looking forward to it. Where else can you see Stan Lee, Robert Smigel, and Snoop Dogg in the course of a few hours? Also, if any readers are going, say hi if you see me. I'll be the one in the IG-88 costume who never takes off his helmet because taking off the costume is strictly for the amateurs. (I kid, of course. I'll actually be dressed as Power Girl.)
As a member of the press, I've been deluged with press releases, many of which I'm quite excited about. Some of them, however, I'm not. For instance:
MAZDA AND SPACEDOG TO DEBUT FIRST GRAPHIC NOVEL IN THE REVVED SERIES AT COMIC-CON INTERNATIONAL 2006
LOS ANGELES – July 11, 2006 – Mazda and Spacedog will announce the world debut of the first book in the Revved series of graphic novels at this year's Comic-Con International – home of North America's largest comic book and multi-genre convention – in San Diego, CA. Revved, to be published by Top Cow Productions and developed into a television series by Fox Television Studios, is truly ground-breaking due to the level of integration and collaboration from concept to execution between Spacedog, Top Cow and Mazda.
The series of Revved graphic novels "stars" four special vehicles, all of which are made with a piece of the same magical metal found in the Holy Grail, Joan of Arc's armor and King Arthur's Excalibur, among other legendary icons. Imbued with the same powers as those great symbols, the cars' drivers embark on a series of dangerous missions.
The Mazda RX-8 four-door sports car will serve as the hero car in Revved and will be driven by the main character, Jack James. With its edgy styling, precise handling and 232-horsepower RENESIS rotary engine, the RX-8 complement's Jack James' personality and perfectly integrates itself into the story line.
"The 'Revved' series is the perfect opportunity for Mazda to showcase the RX-8 in a way that appeals to our young customer base," said Bill Gordon, marketing group manager, Mazda North American Operations. "We provided product and brand insight then let the expert writers and artists at Top Cow develop an amazing story and characters that really reflect the spirit of our vehicles."
Click here for a preview, if you're edgy, stylish, and precise enough.
And then there's this:
Yes, Public Enemy's back, in comic book form. Here's an excerpt from an interview with artist Adam Wallenta at Comic Book Resources. You can read it here
Wallenta further explained plans for the story side of things in "Public Enemy" the comic. "The book features Chuck D, Flavor Flav, Professor Griff, the S1W's and DJ Lord. The series is a combination of reality and fantasy," Wallenta told CBR News. "The reality is Public Enemy is a world renowned and respected politically charged hip hop group with a positive message promoting peace, unity and self respect. They travel the world performing, speaking out against oppression and racism and volunteering their services to those in need. The fictional aspect is they are secretly members of a worldwide organization called the Underground Railroad that helps oppressed people and those in need.
Okay, first off, who the hell is DJ Lord? I haven't met you, DJ Lord, but I'm guessing you're no Terminator X. Secondly, doesn't anyone know how to fade away gracefully anymore? This arrived the same day I got an announcement about a new tour from "The Who," which I think is now just Roger Daltrey, Pete Townshend, and Daltrey's grandchildren, but don't quote me on that. Also, say Public Enemy really was some kind of underground liberation special-ops force. What does Flavor Flav contribute to such activities?
At any rate, you can start looking for San Diego coverage, both the lame and the exciting, in this space next week.