The Greatest Super-Villian Weapon Ever?

I've been watching 1967 cartoons on the DC Super Heroes: The Filmation Adventures DVD. I believe I have stumbled across the most nefarious weapon ever created. It appears in the Green Lantern episode, Sirena, Empress of Evil.

Sirena fires the magnificent Magno-Beam, which is somehow "attuned to Green Lantern's brain waves."

Oh! It also contains a bird.

The bird follows the fired beam directly to Green Lantern's head, knocking them both unconscious.

It's genius in it's simplicity.

Spider-Man Tablecloth Art

Today I'm sharing one of my favorite pieces of art in my possession. A Spider-Man sketch by John Byrne and Mark Bagley on a piece of textured, plastic tablecover. It was a gift from friend Anna-Maria Cool.

Anna-Maria was a guest at DragonCon back in 1997. She had recently stopped drawing Barbie comics for Marvel and was currently drawing Elvira for Claypool. At some point, Mr. Byrne scribbled a ballpoint pen drawing on the table to Mr. Bagley, who then inked it with a Sharpie.

I love the fact that it's a spontaneous drawing done only for fun!

Click on the image below to clearly see the texture of the plastic tablecover. It's one of the things that make it cool.

While I'm sharing art, I'll also post some of Anna-Maria's work. This piece, which is framed and hanging on my wall, is from the profusely illustrated novel Toto of Oz, written by Gina Wickwar. Besides the beautiful illustration, I love how quirky it is as a single piece of art, taken out of context.

Okay, I can't let just one (quirky) piece of Anna-Maria's art represent her work. I'll scan in another, from the same book.

Wow, this post is all over the place with art images. Here's another one. My version of Anna-Maria herself, from Halo and Sprocket: Welcome to Humanity.

Okay. I'm done.

Up, up, and WHAT?

With the success of Flintstones Vitamins, why isn't there more pharmaceutical products branded with familiar characters?


Maybe DC Comics could cash in on it...

Or, maybe not.

Do you know what happens to a toad when it's struck by lightning?

I ordered a new Bowen mini-bust today. I'm excited enough to blog about it!

Whoa. Two frog posts in a row.

Galactus' Helmet Just Gets Happier and Happier!

When Jack Kirby first revealed Galactus at the end of Fantastic Four #48 in 1966, his helmet top basically resembled an unenthused Kermit the Frog face.


By the time Alex Ross was painting him for Marvels in 1994, Galactus' headwear had been de-kermitfied, and was getting a little cheerier, like a happy monkey.


In 2007, as Gabriele Dell'Otto portrayed him on Annihilation: Heralds of Galactus covers, his helmet has gotten downright giddy!

...And people say that comics have gotten darker over the years...