Harry Potter was really Keyser Soze? Did Not See That Coming.

Just kidding.
I finished it this afternoon.

After what I wrote before, don’t worry, I won’t spoil anything. In fact, I’ve carefully thought everything out so that I won’t accidentally reveal anything. I know if a fan of the Potter books is reading this that the littlest thing means something and something I’d think is clever would be blantant to them.

Anyway, I loved it. I couldn’t put it down. It’s rare that any story, let alone the final chapter of a series, is so satisfying. I’d put it up there with the endings of Deep Space Nine and Farscape. in terms of, well, satisfyingness. Heck, it was better than the ending of DS9, because that one always bothered me that they couldn’t use any footage of Jadzia Dax at the end. Stupid union rules.

I also appreciate that JK Rowling avoided the problem I’ve often had with another author whose work I enjoyed, Tom Clancy. Clancy would write these eight hundred page tomes every two or three years, but he’d never recap anything to jog your memory about some nuance you might have forgotten. JK, on the other hand, finds very invetive ways to remind you of what you may have forgotten.

And, I know I’m wired weird. Heck, I choke up at Doctor Who a surprising amount. But there were some big emotional moments that hit me more than I thought they would, especially just from the written word. Very powerful.

Okay, that’s it. Two thumbs up. Four stars. Clap clap. It was a good series with a great ending, and I’m very glad someone introduced me to Harry Potter.

No Spoilers Here

No, I haven’t read it yet. I just felt like venting about spoilers in general.

I got an e-mail from my friend Mike saying that some news outlets were revealing some plot points from Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows. I know JK Rowling is upset about the early review in the New York Times. As Mike wrote, "Apparently the security measure of shipping them in a box that says do not open until 12:00am Saturday has somehow been circumvented.”

I learned to avoid news stories about things I cared about back in 1986 when Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home came out, and David S, Glaser of the News-Herald wrote a review that read “Not to reveal to much, but Kirk gets a new Enterprise and demoted to Captain.” Sheesh! I had a feeling Kirk and the crew wouldn’t let the Earth be destroyed, but what happened to him after having stolen the Enterprise in the previous movie was the only question.

And lest you think I’m spoiling anything, I do think that there’s a statute of limitations. I give it about six months before you can talk freely, and if it’s on that line, you’d better ask. So spoiling Citizen Kane, The Sixth Sense, Diggstown (What? You haven’t seen Diggstown, go rent it now!) are all fair game. But anything from this summer definitely deserves the Cones of Silence.

I can forgive people who spoil accidentally, with a conversation you don’t realize is being listened to or when you think someone has seen the property in question. Intentional spoiling, though, is just mean.

There’s so much entertainment in entertainment that’s limited already. When I watch Burn Notice, I’m pretty sure Michael won’t die. He’s got a 22-episode contract. It’s a fair assumption that Superman won’t die (again) and if he does, he’ll be back.

That doesn’t mean that I want Captain America Dies splashed across the news when it happens. It may not be permanent, but it’s still a surprise.

There are so few genuine surprises in entertainment, and it’s such a cool moment when you’re in the moment and go “Oh, wow, I didn’t see that coming.” When you’re a writer or a big fan of storytelling such moments are even more appreciated because, to paraphrase Cuba Gooding in Jerry Maguire “You’ve been to the puppet show and you’ve seen the strings.” You can see things coming.

And why would you want to deny people those moments of surprise and joy? Again, it’s mean. I hold news media particularly responsible. Any group that frequently uses teases (Such as “Find out at eleven how water can kill you!”) should appreciate leaving a couple surprises in life.

I won’t be getting the new Harry Potter until early tomorrow, since I had this weekend confused with when I had to leave for San Diego, although I did have the book rerouted to my house. I’m not going to stay up all night and read it either. It’s the last one, and I’d like to savor it a little bit. But when I come back from California, for sure, I’ll be done and ready to discuss it with you.

In private, under the cones of silence, and in hushed tones. I wouldn’t want to spoil it for anyone.

Freaky Friday Buzzboy!

If it's Friday, it must be Buzzboy time. This page is pretty cool, I think. I did some things coloring the borders black to try to get the more serious, somber tone across, as well as trying some different things with shadow and tone and I think it worked pretty nicely. Click it and see.

Zappity-zap! Don't Talk Back!

Yet another Buzzboy page, and I think it turned out pretty well. This one was done in the morning, as opposed to the last one. The Indians played yesterday afternoon, if you can call losing to Chicago the way they did "playing", so I wasn't working to the Tribe.

Speaking of Chicago, I've mentioned once or twice before a secret project that is now being used in the Chicagoland area. I'll be getting some images of it soon and I will be able to talk about it a little more. Of course, no project can live to this kind of build-up (except, of course, Love and Capes #5, the greatest printed comic in this or any other millenium) but I think it's pretty cool, and it's for a pretty high-profile company, and both the client and I are very happy with it.

Way to Go, Garko!

I've knocked out another Buzzboy page, this time a two-page spread. I hadn't intended to get it done last night, but the Indians decided to throw an extra-inning affair thanks to Ryan Garko. So as long as I was up, I figured that I could do some work. So far, this is my favorite page, both artwise and colorwise in the book. The creator of the book just e-mailed some some digital kudos, too.

You can tell when a page is going to come together. It's when you can't resist working on it, and when you keep telling yourself "oh, one more panel and I'll quit for the night" until the whole thing is done.

Today's Haul

Today's artwork sampling: I'm back on the Wacom, as I'm coloring more Buzzboy.

I've also gotten the complete shipment of Love and Capes now. It'll be in stores soon. I spent a chunk of the day sending out review copies, so hopefully it will be showing up on some comics sites and magazines, too. I also sent out the big Mark and Abby display to my booth in San Diego, so as of now, I think everything is either in California or in transit, with the exception of myself and things that I'm bringing myself.

I've got a goodish weird feeling about this San Diego Comic-con. Let's hope I'm right.

Get Them While They're Hot!

Guess what I got today, hot off the printer? (Activities Press, by the way. They do a phenomenal job!) That's right, Love and Capes #5! They look beautiful, and should be in stores in a couple of weeks, and then available on the website a couple of weeks after that.

That's a Big Couch

I meant to post this a little while back. It's a photo of me and Loonette and Molly from The Big Comfy Couch taken at the Licensing Expo in New York last month. I did some artwork for the Couchies through the fine people at Weekly Reader magazine. When I saw them there, I had to drop by and say "hi". Much like the previous Star Trek photo I posted, their company had a photo shoot area set up.

I'm still not sure how the Show went for me. I think it's still too early for things to shake out and come back from the event. I think by the end of the year I'll have a better idea.

Phoenixes Other Than Jean Grey

I saw Harry Potter and The Order of the Phoenix last night. I won't spoil anything, although I really think that anyone who cares has probably already read the fifth book.

Order of the Phoenix is my least favorite of the series so far. For the most part, it was a bunch of characters who should be talking to each other not doing so. They also tended to act to advance the plot, more than acting in character. The book also ends with one of the longest bits of exposition I've read in a while.

And I understand and appreciate what Rowling was doing. Harry's a teenager and one who's had a ton of bad happen to him. He deserves to become petulant and sullen at some point. But appreciating the attempt and thinking that it works are two different things.

(I want to take a moment hear to plug like crazy Creative Screenwriting magazine's podcasts. They're a how do and how come of how movie scripts come together and how they come to film. They did a podcast on Pirates of the Carribean: Dead Men's Chest, which while I liked okay, it just didn't click for me after I saw it. When I heard the podcast from the writers, I had a new appreciation for what they did, or at least tried to do. I still don't think it succeeded, but that's okay. It's always better to attempt to reach too far rather than not far enough.)

So, having said that, I really liked the movie of Order of the Phoenix. Paring down the script as much as they needed to make it a two hour film helped get rid of the characters-not-talking issue I had. There's a lot of story that got lost or just a brief nod, admittedly, but it holds together nicely. And, I have to say, I think the music really stepped up a notch, being the first one since the John Williams score to stay with me after we left. The military-esque march as they're flying over London sounds great, and heralds the beginning of a war, too.

I think the Potter films leave a fair amount of room for the director, too. The first Chris Columbus film was pretty well just shooting the book, and with the warm gold fill light and loving pans, and worked pretty well. The second got a little too Chris Columbus-y (how many shots of kids screaming at the camera can we have?). But the third felt like a Potter story and yet Alfonso Cuaron brought a new flavor to it. The fifth one had the same "still Potter, but with different seasoning" to it.

The fourth movie? It felt like it was just going through the motions (…walking through the part…) and had no character to it. It was kind of stale. So I was glad to find I liked the fifth as much as I did.

Being the fifth movie in a series, I probably don't need to recommend it much. Either you're on board or you're not. But, if you are a fan, I think the fifth installment will do right by you.

Comic-Con? Connnnnnnnn!

With a little over a week before the huge San Diego Hollywood Shillorama and Comic Convention, I thought I'd take a moment to describe the funness that will be happening at the Maerkle Press booth.

First off, we're at Booth #2000 at Hall C in the Independent Publishers Pavillion. I'll be sharing my booth with my fellow co-conspirator Paul Merolle and Toon Tumblers. I can't recommend Paul's glasses highly enough. They're almost all I drink out of. (In fact, I'm currently enjoying a Diet Lemon Snapple out of a Colossus glass.) Paul will have some new glasses there, all of which were designed by me. Please, buy them and help subsidize my salary.

So what will I have at the booth?

Giveaways
The Love and Capes buttons are back! There'll be a limited number of the previous "pink" Love and Capes button design, and the new "blue" design, too.

And, there's a new set of Love and Capes bookmarks, each featuring a four panel sequence from some of your favorite moments from Love and Capes #2-3. Thanks to the kind people at Wizard Graphics, Inc. who supplied these for me.

Premieres
There will be an extremely limited number of Love and Capes Glasses available, thanks to the aforementioned Toon Tumblers. I don't have the exact pricing, but they should be between $10-12 each.

And, as mentioned so many other places, I'll have the Love and Capes T-shirts. The red shirts are available for a donation, any donation, to The Hero Initiative. And I'll have the standard black ones available for $20.

Depending on shipping schedules, too, there might, just might, be the fifth issue in a certain heroically super situation comedy there as well.

Contests
The deadline for the "Who Wants to Create a Superhero" contest is coming to a close soon, but you'll still be able to get entry forms and enter at the show.

I'll also be raffling off an appearance in Love and Capes #6. Just sign up at the booth

And Everything Else
The complete run of Love and Capes will be available for purchase. I'll have a limited number of Raider: A Cold Day in Heaven and Raider: Dead Men's Tales.

Whew! That's enough, isn't it?