Hello everyone! Welcome to a special episode of the Media Meltdown, where I sit down and analyse specific elements of Gurren Lagann. This is my first attempt at straight up analysis and it is unscripted, so please forgive my pauses. However, if you like what you see, please let me know and I will do more like it. ^_^

ZenithWillRule, Crimson Analysis: Relationships, Symbolism, And Philosophy In Gurren Lagann

Marvel touts the series as giving readers a “rare glimpse into the ultimate nihilist’s early days on his far-off home planet Titan” and the life events that lead him down his path of cosmic villainy. Aaron promised that the origin story is literally that, starting with the Mad Titan’s birth. The series will have some new characters, but there will be several familiar names including Thanos’ father Mentor and his mother Sui-San. Aaron talked about the question that runs through the series:

Well, that’s really the main question of the book. Who is Thanos? When the book starts, even Thanos doesn’t know the answer to that question. It’s the pursuit of that answer that begins to take him to some very dark places. This is not a super hero story. There are no good guys swooping in to save the day here. This is the origin story of a very bad dude. A cosmic mass murderer.

This past summer I had the opportunity to speak with Jim Starlin about the first proposed Thanos origin story, and he shared his thoughts on that (you can find that here). Starlin laid down a lot of history for his creation, but Aaron will be going through pulling it all together and giving it a slight twist. Aaron is sticking to Starlin’s work and talks about how he will continue on from what has already been written:

Jim Starlin of course had already laid down a lot of the pieces of Thanos’ origin, but they were spread out in several different stories written over the course of several years. THANOS RISING combines all those pieces and also fills in a lot of the cracks. I think it’s true to Starlin’s original ideas for the character, while also expanding on some aspects of the origin, and playing around a bit with the dark romance part of the character’s history.

The series starts in April, but as of now there is no word on how long the miniseries will run. Thanos Rising will serve as an entry points for people who just found out about the Mad Titan through The Avengers, but old fans will also get something out of it. Aaron has been writing some great stuff the past few years with Scalped and his recent Thor, so it will be interesting to see what he brings to Thanos. Bianchi’s art is great so that’s an added bonus. You can read the full interview to see what Bianchi had to say about redesigning a young Thanos by clicking here. What do you think about the proposed series? Will you be picking this one up?

Cody "The Thorverine" Ferrell, Jason Aaron To Write Thanos Origin Series: Thanos Rising

• It’s off to Jotunheim, the land of the Frost Giants as Bruce Banner and his lab team embark on an all-new secret mission for S.H.I.E.L.D! Caught trespassing by the local natives, they’re going to need the help of the mighty Avenger, Thor!

Waid is excited to get Simonson on the book and having the legendary artist draw Thor again. While Thor will be showing up, the question should be which Thor is showing up? Waid makes an interesting  statement about the Thor we’ll be seeing:

Why on Earth would you have the amazing Walt Simonson aboard and NOT ask him to draw Thor? The teasing question is–which Thor will we be seeing? Banner and his team of assistants build a portal to Jotunheim, land of the Frost Giants, in order to obtain a rare metal there–but in doing so, they may have accomplished something totally unforeseen!

While we’ll have to wait and see exactly what Waid means, Simonson touched on revisiting the world of Thor and how he goes about tackling the Hulk:

It’s been interesting drawing Thor and not writing him. (laughs) I like what Mark’s been asking me to draw a lot, and he has kindly allowed me to kibitz a little. My earliest work on Thor was done pretty much the same way when I did layouts for Len Wein to write on the Thor title in the 70s. I also got to draw Thor in some of the Brian Bendis Avengers recently. I’ve found it’s been a lot of fun for me to go back and revisit the old boy again.

Regarding the drawing the Hulk and Thor, there’s an essential difference in their natures I try to reflect in the figure work.
I’ve approached drawing the Hulk with a certain ‘wildness’, since he is essentially a ‘monster’ who is the unfettered version of a mortal. The shapes that make up his figure as well as the actual lines used to define those shapes can be far less restrained that they might otherwise be for a more ordinary character. In other words, the drawing technique itself is meant to suggest the limitless quality of the Hulk’s fury and power. And because of his ‘monstrous’ nature, the Hulk’s figure and face don’t require the kind of symmetry that a character like Thor needs in order to be handsome within the context of the comic. I’m also inspired by the earliest versions of the Hulk by Jack Kirby and Steve Ditko where there seems to me to have been a nod to the Karloff Frankenstein monster of the early Universal horror films. All of which means I can pack a lot into my drawings to try to capture some reflection of the Hulk’s wild nature.

If you want to check out the full interview with Waid and Simonson click here. It will be exciting to see Simonson taking on Thor again. The artist did some incredibly work with the thunder god back in the day, so having him return to draw again mixed in with it being a Hulk book makes this a must get. What do you think about Simonson’s return? From what Mark Waid said do you think we’ll get a big twist with the Thor story?

Cody "The Thorverine" Ferrell, Waid And Simonson Talk Indestructible Hulk

Welcome to Anime Observations where I review and analyze anime and animated series. Today, I take a close look at Gurren Lagann. What did I have to say? Watch and find out.

ZenithWillRule, Anime Observations: Gurren Lagann

Morello vividly creates, not only a character’s life of suffrage, but a world of suffrage in a narrative that is sure to make one rethink they’re views of class war society.

Waters have risen and the chemicals that populate dry land have spilled to our seas and ravaged our world.  The only two thriving factors of the world are the mutagenic super animals that now roam rampantly and the Brazilification that the world has succumbed to.  Morello does an amazing job at setting a steady pace to introduce his world to the reader in a worldwide fashion, and quickly brings the scope seamlessly back to a socio level with its individualized character designs.

“Those aerosol cans sure have raped our ozone layer.”

This is where much credit is due for Scott Hepburn, who takes a very stylized approach to the character design and penciling.  No two characters in the trade paperback bear any resemblance to each other and nearly everyone bears the appearance of an alternative rock band member, especially Simon with his ever so hip looking beard.  It is also very noteworthy to mention that Hepburn can pencil out some mean scorpion bears and mechanical horse action sequences.

“RAWR, Slash slash, sting, bite bite, sting, ingest.”

There are a few bones to pick with a few of elements of the dialogue, which is neither stirring nor noteworthy and none of the characters ever seem fully aware of the problems that are at hand.

For instance, our leading lady Orchid is a prostitute who is ignorant, misguided, and filled with hate. There are several accounts throughout the graphic novel that Simon, a well educated man, has concocted various plans of escape from their captives, saved her life numerous times, and does his best to comfort her in time of need.

“Hello Simon, my name is Orchid, and I’m going to be stepping on your balls for the next 80 pages.”

Orchid possesses too much clouded rage in her mind to listen Simon, who is the only voice of reasoning and the possessor of a powerful ancient rebel artifact that could dramatically change their world.  One would expect a dramatic change within the character, but it falls short in a typical, selfish “avenging” manner after some serious stuff goes down, sadly, not on a socio grandeur level to alleviate the oppressed as expected.

Bottom line: One could argue the excuse that is only the first graphic novel, and, well, that’s exactly what I’ll do.  There are enough interesting characters that are all very different and there are several plot lines in development to make this series worthwhile to read even though there might not always be particularly loaded dialogue or plot devices, but definitely for of the scorpion bears. 4/5

Trade paperback volume numero uno for Orchid releases July 11th for only $17.99.

http://www.darkhorse.com/Books/16-920/Orchid-Volume-1-TPB

When the seas rose, genetic codes were smashed. Human settlements are ringed by a dense wilderness from which ferocious new animal species prey on the helpless. The high ground belongs to the rich and powerful that overlook swampland shantytowns from their fortress-like cities. Iron-fisted rule ensures order and allows the wealthy to harvest the poor as slaves.

Delve into the first chapter of Orchid, the tale of a teenage prostitute who learns that she is more than the role society has imposed upon her.

Ryan Rodriguez, REVIEW: ORCHID VOLUME 1 TPB