First of, an apology for not posting anything last week, didn’t forget about it, just need to remember WHEN I have to pay my phone bill (it didn’t help either that the phone company screwed up and left me with no internet the whole weekend).

Aaaanyway, I was thinking about doing this from some time now. I don’t browse through the internet as much as I’d like (not really), so the past few weeks it started to get harder and harder to come up with, not even interesting things to show you, but to come up with anything, and not just end up quoting “Fail Blog” all the time.

So, my solution? Kinda kill Killing Boredom by just chopping it into pieces and scatter them around. Kinda what Adam Gates does in the Madame Blavatsky Overdrive blog.

So it’s not gone forever, just pay attention to the blog every now or then to find some, hopefully, interesting stuff.

Sooo… since I can’t say “see you next week“, it’ll be more of a “see you around any day“, keep your eyes on the blog!

Mario A.~

So, seems that nothing new an exciting was present to report, once again, this week, hopefully, something will come along next week or I’ll just post some random thing and justify my existence.

In the mean time:

InkStuds: The name is already a mighty one, but the show is even more. Conducted by Robin McConnel, it’s an intimate approach to today’s (and sometimes even veterans) talents from the independent comix (that’s right, the ones with the “x”) scene. This is the very first podcast I started listening and the one that started to develop a broader horizon on independent comics (plus, the one that started making my wallet hurt). Give it a try! McConnel really knows his stuff and so will you after hearing him.

I wouldn’t call talent acting the same way for the past ten years, but, it has a point:

A mighty song from an even mightier band:

And that’s it! Stick around next week for the comic, obviously, and to see if I come up with something to report so I don’t have 4 Killing Boredoms in a row.

Mario A.~

So, not actual Killing Boredom this week, my health isn’t what it’s supposed to be right now, I’m dizzier than propeller, so looking at the screen for more than ten seconds makes me nauceous (You might think, “how is he writting this then?”, Well, let’s say that this time I’m REALLY trusting I’m typing everything properly).

Anyway, to not miss an update, I propse something to you this time, now YOU suggest ME something to kill my boredom in the future. It can be just one of any, a website, a picture or a video, or, you can do 3 of them, or whatever you wanna do, now it’s your turn.

So there you go. That’s it from me this week, remember Issue 17 is now available and that we start with Chapter 18 this Tuesday, so stick around.

Mario A.~

PS: Is it just me, or does Natalie Portman, in her role in the movie “My Blueberry Nights” looks like Andrea (from this comic)?

Finally after several weeks, I take some time to babble of just about THE BEST BAND EVER!

Primus: I stumble upon the band right around that time when you start getting sick of that crappy peppy commercial music in junior high (well, some of people do, other just keep going forever and that’s sad). The band was, and IS like nothing I’ve heard before (and as many of you know, in almost every issue of the comic (missing like two issues) there’s at least one Primus/Les Claypool reference in there). It’s really hard for me to really put it down into words the exact reason why I love the band so much, but it’s just this “connection” of their ideas, ways to approach their art, the stories they tell and the risks they take, and how I do all of that myself. But this is about them. All what every review of the band seems to focus is on the mastermind behind the band, Les Claypool, and yes, he is the driving force behind the band (and behind ‘em many great projects), but, it’s a BAND, it wouldn’t be anything without the uber amazing work from Larry “Ler” Lalonde and Tim “Herb” Alexander (and when the time came, from Brian “Brain” Matia as well), who just are more depth and value to all the eclectic sounds this guys produce. With 10 albums under their wing, it’s a great band to get a great new musical experience. And remember kids, Primus sucks.

Tim, Les and Ler. Brain when he was with the Limbomaniacs and Trouz Cuevas, Primus’ road manager.

Les, Ler and Tim, circa 2003

And let the band talk about themselves… or something. 1998 interview in Germany, with Brain in the line up ( Here’s Part 2).

Primus on Letterman, 1995(ish?), around the time Tim left the band for a bit.

That’s it for today, I don’t know what the hell I’m going to do for next week, but then again, I never do. More news to come this coming weeks, so stick around.

Later days, Willie Mays!

Mario A.~

Not much to report this week, Issue 17 is now with the printers and hopefully, soon enough it’ll be available for purchase, so stick around!

Now to our Sunday business, and I got an interesting one, I hope.

The Residents: Few bands really blow my mind from moment one. The Residents is one of them. And it’s not only about their music, which is the most eccentric, experimental and original stuff I’ve heard in my whole life, but their history, starting with, 40 years in the business, nobody knows who they really are. Their discography spans for over 40 albums, and those are just their main ones, and different eras, in which the band has strongly getting better, creating new material every year, and not just living of their 60′s stuff like some others. I could ramble on and on about them, but I’ll let you guys get immersed in the Residents universe, they’re equally fascinating musically and biographically.

From the Icky Flix tour

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I had a hard time just choosing one video, so I went with this, a live performance in Oslo from the Demons Dance Alone tour, this is part 1 of 4, and I strongly recommend you watching the other 3 parts:

“An artist can only produce pure art when the expectations and influences of the outside world are not taken into consideration.” ~ N. Senada

That’s it for me this week, which was a sort of build up for the Killing Boredom I got you guys prepared for next week, so stick around!

Mario A.-

OK, there’s a little change of format with this week’s Killing Boredom, it’s basically me ranting about one subject.

Anyway, let’s start with the worst of it all:

So as you can see, this is the bastard, meth induced, mutant child of the live action Chun-Li and Dragon Ball Z movies (and yes, even as lame as the first Street Fighter movie was, at least they nailed most of the outfits right or they got quite close).

I don’t know what to think of this, I know you gotta appeal to the younger audiences, but really? I mean, it’s not like there’s something worthy in there anyway, and you can’t kick in the crotch the hard core KoF fans like that.

ESPECIALLY with the outfits. And I don’t even mean the Mai one, and as a big a perv I am, I agree, the outfit sucks and that girl is hot, but she can’t fill the suit, if ya know what I mean. I go more to complain about the Mature and Vice outfits, especially Vice’s. Maybe I’m bias because I LOVE the design of Vice, it’s elegant and sexy, so how hard it’s to deliver this:

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Seriously, you can go to Sears and find the damn outfit in there, I’ll pay for it, damn it, just get it right!

I won’t even complain about the, what seems to be, story, because to this point, the story has turned in such a whole mess in the games themselves anyway, it useless to try to follow it. So much that in the latest game (KoF XII) they didn’t even bother to put a story.

I don’t get it, if she’s a reporter from the US, why she speaks in a heavy Asian accent?

And that’s another thing: the franchise seems to be wanting to destroy itself from every angle. Let’s say new comers and fans go both to see the movie. The fans will be pissed anyway and go back and play all the 90′s games (and I even dare to say go back and play Fatal Fury and Art of Fighting, as atrocious as they were) and rant even more than me how they screwed up. The new comers will be driven away from the games anyway because of what it’s presented to them on the screen. But let’s say some get hooked and get interested in the games. Which one they’ll give a try to? The newest one would be a good starting point, someone might think. Well, not exactly. For me, and I’ll get yelled at for saying this, the best KoF game is XI. I was always a Street Fighter kind of guy (until SF3, which again, I’m going to get yelled at), but I love that KoF game, the animations are great, it’s less methodical and the fights are fun. This one (XII) is just a pain in the ass. The animations are beautiful, I’ll give them that, but the rest is just a poor washed down selection of characters, absolutely NO story going on (and not because it’s a mess, but because in fact, there’s no story in the game) and you finish the single player game in just 5 fights. No bosses, no secret special challengers, nothing. And the online multiplayer is the same thing, just slower. And what’s with this policy lately of no Mai in the games? I know she in XI, but you gotta unlock her before being able to use her as a character.

In a way it’s sad to see this fighting game going to the crapper, I’m not that fond of the older games because I’m yet to ge used to them, but when I was starting to like them, they do all of this.

Well, there’s always the good times.

Nothing much to report this week, BUT, be on the look for news coming up next week, one isn’t about me or the comic, but still worthy of your attention. Anyway, to today’s business:

Kate McElroy: I really don’t know what to say about her work, just that it’s one of the most mind blowing artists I’ve ever met and get a chance to talk to, which makes the whole thing more awesome (AND she is way too awesome as well). OK, enough butt kissing, the reason of pimping her this time is, she’s updating her comic Chainsmoke every Tuesday, this is a one shot introduction of her massive-EPIC graphic novel she has prepared to blow your minds to the next galaxy, so keep a close eye to her and her work, I bet my own career that she will kick ass and take names in the business once editors get a hold on her.

And as a proof of it:

And in something that has nothing to do with the above, Happy Valentine’s Day, nerds (Happy Singles Awareness Day for the rest of ya’ll).

**You’ll have to click on THIS ONE, I couldn’t find a way to make this one work to play it here.**

That’s it for me this week, you know how it goes the rest of the week, so take care people!

Mario A.~

Just two quick reminders before our usuals: THIS and a reminder that the story of Chapter 16 was based on a story as told by Charlito and Mr. Phil from the Indie Spinner Rack podcast, on THIS episode (the story starts at minute 3:20).

Now:

The Meek: Not that it needs any extra promotion by now, but if by any chance you don’t know this comic yet , go read it, love it. It’s a really great told and drwan strory and it has the extra of having a really great person behind it producing it.

It’s just…

And this is one of the many reasons I love 4 Player Podcast

That’s it for now. This coming week Chapter 17 starts, adn this one has been a fun one to do since, so far, I been ahving NO idea of what it’s going to be about, so stay tuned!

Mario A.~

No big news this week, Issue 16 is available now, but only in Spanish, that’s why I didn’t announce it before untill both editions are up, hopefully this week I’ll post when it’s there (I still don’t know why they only uploaded one, tho).

Anyway, up to our Sunday business:

Comic Geek Speak: If you work (or used to work) at a comic book store or you are frequent to one, you’ll feel right at home with this guys, it’s a podcast that reminds you of those long fun conversations you have about comics with a good group of  friends. And if you ahve drifted from the joy of comics, or are new to the medium, this guys will make you excited about going to the store again. What do this guys ahve to do with speed? Well, they pump out 5 podcasts a week, plus, their regular spin off shows.

This always cracks me up. From the fastests man in hte business.

from povonline.com

Stan Sakai sketching Usagi. Man, I wish I could have that precision and while being that fast.

You know how it works! See you during the whole week!

Mario A.~

Soooo… crappy week, really really crappy week, 2010 seems to not be wanting to give me a break already, and nexy week it’s going to be complicated one as well, but at least it seems it’s the finally steps to get all solved around here. This Friday was one month since my mother passed away, like I said at one moment, oh time, you mercyless mistress. Time moves on and so must we.

Aaaanyway, now to our Sunday business.

Yesterday (with the company of Señor Juanele) I had the enourmous pleasure of meeting Mr. Mike Hartigan, an awesome cartoonist from New Zeland. I really like his work, it’s really fluid and dynamic, and now that I got the chance to see his sketches, I admire him more. Plus, he’s one heck of a nice guy, so that’s awesome. You can also check out his work at his DeviatArt account.

And I got this awesome Wyliman drawing from him:

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And on something not related, let’s save the planet with George Carlin:

Hopefully this coming week I’ll have news about Issue 16 of the comic being available for sale. So keep an eye on the blog here, an eye everyday for a new page and and eye for next Sunday’s Killing Boredom (yeah, I realize you gotta have 3 eyes to do that, so grow another one).

Mario A.~