Monday, March 29, 2010

SuperQueeros! for March 31st, 2010

This is a huge week in comics (Blackest Night ends and X-Men: Second Coming begins!) and also it's chock full of queer characters and queer character cameos!

First off, a mea culpa: Though I reported that Gotham City Sirens #10 was coming out on March 3rd, it's actually shipping 28 days later! Thankfully, the world hasn't zombie-apocalypse'd in that time (sorry Cillian), so you should still be able to pick it up at your local comic book retailer, this Wednesday, March 31st, 2010!

Detective Comics #863
This is the last Batwoman comic for a while. We know from the June solicits that July will see the return of Batwoman to Detective Comics, but in what capacity (guest star, lead character, etc) I know not. So snap up the potentially ultimate issue of the comic-sphere changing team-up of Rucka-and-Kate in Detective Comics! Oh, and the creepy original villain The Cutter is going to get his comeuppance, which is gonna rock too.

Female Force #13: Ellen Degeneres
AWESOME!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! The All-American lesbian queen of comedy gets her own comic book! I'm gonna swoon...

Dark Wolverine #84
OH WAIT NO NOW I'M SWOONING! This comic features a hot kiss between Bullseye and Dark Wolverine, one not followed by gay-panic!!!! I have no idea how this comic is going to wrap up Daken's storyline/time in the spotlight that was Dark Reign, but I'm SUPER excited for his further bisexual, sociopathic exploits! More kissing with boys!

New Mutants #11
This issue is looking to be another queer-cameo book. Karma and the rest of the crew get shooed out of the room by Dani pretty quickly this issue as our "Valkyrie from Hel" repays the debt she owes to the Norse goddess Hela. Her task? Wrangle some god-souls into Hel. I'm hoping we'll see another Dani vs. Ares fight, but I'm so unfamiliar with the Norse gods and the list of SEIGE casualties that I'm not holding my breath. Either way, the forecast is 100% for god-level beat downs.

Wonder Woman #42
New crazy-awesome Wonder Woman story! That's all I know, and that's all I need to know! #getit!

Madame Xanadu #21
I don't know that much (read: anything) about the queer content in this book, but it was nominated for a GLAAD award, so it earns a spot on this list until proven queer-exclusive!

Cloak and Dagger #1
The book opens with an Anole and GREYMALKIN (he's not dead!) cameo and stars Cloak and Dagger, the single most fierce pairing of super-teens ever created. Per square inch, this is probably the gayest book on the market this week.

Saturday, March 27, 2010

Scarlet Betch Episode 20: "Second Comings..."


Scarlet Betch is back at it again. Jason and Anthony dish about the latest in queer comic book news. The return of Kitty Pryde, the aimless misadventures of Monet and Guido, Green Lantern Corps, that silly Magneto fellah, and much much more!

Featured music for this week is The Feelings' "Love It When You Call"


Direct Download

Thursday, March 25, 2010

Chris Evans Tapped as New Cap', Marvel Plans for Another Film Flop

Hollywood Reporter posted a story about Marvel offering the role of Captain America to Chris Evans. I am so under enthused by this prospect. Sure Chris Evans has the steely muscular build (and abs you could sand plywood on) required for the job, but nowadays a good bod comes dime a dozen amongst the Hollywood leading men.

Evans' knucklehead persona and obnoxious crooked grin don't speak to the inspirational quality of Captain America. He's supposed to be everything we admire about the red, white, and blue... and not in the NASCAR racing, beer guzzling, hog-riding way. But the Abe Lincoln, Thomas Jefferson, "we hold these truths to be self-evident" kind of way.

And you expect me to believe that Chris "Flame On!" Evans is going to produce that?

Marvel had a good thing going with Iron Man, but it's clear that unless some miraculous director swoops in and imbues Evans with some decent acting chops, Captain America will go the way of the Fantastic Four... oh wait! Wasn't he ALSO in that failed film franchise? (To be fair he wasn't nearly as painful as Jessica Alba trying to pretend to be as smart as Sue Storm)


Wednesday, March 24, 2010

Scarlet Betch Episode 19: "Hercules and Northstar Sitting in a Tree"


Scarlet Betch is back at it again. Jason and Anthony dish about the latest in queer comic book news. The newest queer character in the Marvel universe, 7 decades of Marvel women, Rogue's increasingly creepy relationship with Magneto, and much much more!

Featured music for this week is Feist's "My Moon, My Man"


Direct Download

Monday, March 22, 2010

SuperQueeros! for March 24th

Each week I find the queers in comics and let you know who's gaily kicking @$$! This week:

Wildcats #21
The Wildcats are on the fence as their first post-Apollo and Midnighter story finishes up. Based on the preview, if Apollo isn't the deus ex machina, at least he'll get a cameo. Based on the solicits, however, the writer wants to kill off some people: hopefully Apollo isn't going to become a death-for-Midnighter's-character-development. #candysouthern

X-Factor #203
M and Guido are going on a trip to smack some betches down. No Rictor and Shatterstar this issue, but expect a whole lot of smack down and associated awesome. Also, according to the solicits, we'll "never guess who's behind it all". I choose Penance, based on the dream sequence that starts the issue and the fact that Peter David can do awesome things with characters whose only purpose was to act as plot devices.


Corner of the Queer Eye:
Uncanny X-Men #522
Though not prominently featuring queers, UXM always has quite a few gay cameos. Much more importantly, though, KITTY COMES BACK THIS ISSUE!!!! #buyit

Justice Society of America #37
We might get to see the Obsidian Egg this issue! The baddies are turning on their power-negating engine that they made out of my favourite hapless gay security guard/superhero. All in all, a nice story that doesn't seem to have any (awake) queer characters only because the gay guy's dad saddled him with trope-based abilities. #InfiniteEnergyPowers

Saturday, March 20, 2010

Marvel Unveils Newest Rainbow Brigade Member: Hercules (and maybe Namor)

I have never been particularly drawn to the character of Marvel's Hercules. He always seemed like the poor man's Thor, and his costume choices were uninspiring to say the least. Between the boisterous drunken carousing and the stylized "have at thee" dialogue, I always wrote off Hercules as a B-list brick Marvel editors would pull out every now and then to fulfill a cameo role.


His partnership and close friendship with Amadeus Cho brought him back onto my radar, as Amadeus is one of Marvel's more interesting rising stars, plus created by the ever dreamy Greg Pak. But it was not until Hercules' death that I have become truly interested in the character.

As some of you may know, it's hard out there for a god-- at least in the Marvel Universe. Between the besieged Asgard and New Olympus falling apart, those mythic heroes seem to be falling left and right. The most recent has been the long-time Avenger, Hercules.

I picked up a copy of Hercules: Fall of an Avenger #1 this past week just to peruse. I am very interested by Amadeus' eventual rise to become Hercules' replacement as the Prince of Power, so I thought I'd brief myself on the happenings. What I was shocked by was the seeming acknowledgement that Marvel's most piggish, sexist, hegemonically masculine character, Hercules... is in fact, bisexual. Check out the scan after the jump:

Friday, March 19, 2010

Detecting Detective Comics

Batman solicits for June just came out, and the summary for detective comics has a very interesting last line:

DETECTIVE COMICS #866

On sale JUNE 23 • 40 pg, FC, $3.99 US
Written by DENNIS O’NEIL
Art and cover by DUSTIN NGUYEN
1:25 “DC 75 Anniversary” Variant cover by WALTER SIMONSON
Continuing the spirit of celebration from BATMAN #700, comics legend Dennis O’Neil’s returns to the Batcave in this stand-alone, 40-page issue! O’Neil spins a tale of the Dick Grayson Batman intertwined with those classic days when Batman and Robin, the Boy Wonder, patrolled the mean streets of Gotham City!
And come back next month for the return of The Question and Batwoman!

If you remember, Detective #864 and #865 both feature BatMAN stories, just like #866. So what happened to warrant a return to Kate Kane? Is she returning as the main feature, or is she just joining her ex in the back up story? And is Rucka taking back over on the writing duties? I remember a very interesting quote on just that subject:
"Don't be foolish: If you give me Detective and think Kate ain't gonna be in it, you're daft."

The answer to those questions, and whether or not Detective Comics will stay on my pull list, will come in time. Until then keep your eyes glued to the Betch!

Thursday, March 18, 2010

I Was A Teenage Cyborg or CRAZY CONTACT LENSES

Whether its Robocop, Terminator, or BSG Cylons, nerds love cyborgs. We are now getting closer and closer to becoming the high tech uber-men of science fiction thanks to scientists at the University of Washington who have developed solar powered augmented contact lenses. These lenses are intended to be embedded with hundreds of small LEDs in order to create images directly on the eye. The scientists postulate that the use of these lenses could be used for anything from augmented reality applications to assisting hearing impaired people identify location of noises. via inhabitat


Alls I know, is I want me some Geordi LaForge eyes:



Monday, March 15, 2010

Scarlet Betch Episode 18: "I'll Be Dancing"


Scarlet Betch is back at it again. Jason and Anthony dish about the latest in queer comic book news. The big Buffy Twilight reveal, Power Girl vs. Wonder Woman + Gay Achilles action, Batwoman gets even more awesome, and much much more!

Featured music for this week is Lady Gaga's "Telephone ft. Beyonce". Yes, every gay in the world is listening to this song, so sue me... we're a gay effin' blog. :P


Direct Download

SuperQueeros! for March 17th, 2010

Each week I scour the weekly solicitations for all that's queer in comic-dom. This week:

Happy Saint Patrick's Day!!! It seems that all the queer characters are off celebrating; there are only two titles making this week's list!

The Authority: The Lost Year #7
The Authority are trapped on a world where the Engineer and the Doctor rule warring nations (one hemisphere each) and in which Apollo was caught in the crossfire! Now The Authority's version of Apollo has been captured and it's up to the team to get him back before the two bereaved Midnighters end up killing each other. However, none of these scenarios answer the eternal question, how far would Midnighter go with himself? #crossedfingers

Dark Avengers #15
Osbourne's secret weapon is revealed! Will The Sentry end up dying, thereby answering the prayers of his million and one detractors? Will Daken factor at all into this book? Will Karla make a move to sleep with Victoria too? Some of these questions will be answered and some come from the fanfiction I'm writing! Find out all the answers this month (though not necessarily in Dark Avengers #15)!

PS - I'm not actually writing Moonstone/Victoria Hand fanfiction, even though anything Hand does is HOT. #sexylibrarian

Thursday, March 11, 2010

Banana Hammocks Now Made From Bananas


Australian underwear company hailed for making the "wonderbra" for men have unveiled a new line of underwear created from banana plant textiles. Ecouterre reports:

A world's first, the made-in-Australia men's unmentionables comprise 27 percent banana fiber (made from the bark weave of the plant), 64 percent organic cotton, and 9 percent Lycra. This combo, according to company spokesman Lloyd Jones, makes for a fabric that's lightweight yet absorbent.


"Naturally, you can't really add anymore banana fiber than that because it might be a bit squishy," says Jones. And although the skivvies give "banana hammock" a whole new meaning, they don't actually smell like bananas, so you won't have to fend off snack-happy monkeys from your nethers.


We'd still keep our eyes peeled, though, if we were you.

I'm all in favor of more eco-friendly underwear. Especially if they come with the hunk in the video after the jump (no nudity, but possibly nsfw).

Monday, March 8, 2010

Rep. Eric Massa is Awesome, Despite Accusations of Sexually Inappropriate Behavior

House Representative Eric Massa has been in the headlines recently for his very public declaration of resignation due to the accusations by staff members of sexual harassment. Massa spoke on the allegations against him and offered up an explanation and details of the event in question on his radio show:


"I sat down at the table where my whole staff was, all of them by the way bachelors. One of them looked at me and as they would do after, I don’t know, 15 gin and tonics, and goodness only knows how many bottles of champagne, a staff member made an intonation to me that maybe I should be chasing after the bridesmaid and his points were clear and his words were far more colorful than that,” Massa said. “And I grabbed the staff member sitting next to me and said, ‘Well, what I really ought to be doing is fracking you.’ And then [I] tossled the guy’s hair and left, went to my room, because I knew the party was getting to a point where it wasn’t right for me to be there. Now was that inappropriate of me? Absolutely. Am I guilty? Yes."
I'm not overly concerned over the moral degradation of our nation's leaders. That ships been sinking for the past few decades now. But what I AM overly intrigued by, is the consumption of delicious sci-fi pop culture by our nation's leaders. And it totally looks like Rep. Massa is a BSG fan. #win.

SuperQueeros! for March 10th, 2010

Each week I scour the weekly solicitations for all that's queer in comic-dom. This week:

Dark X-Men #5
The last issue!!!! I know that Dark X-Men really don't have a place in a Heroic Age, so it is with teary eyes that I bid farewell to my favorite X-title of the year. O Dark X-Men, you had it all: bisexuals, spot-on characterization of A-list through D-list characters, depression, cold blooded murder, people made of pure psionic energy, pure psionic energy made of people, and even the Green Goblin! But I know that you're not going to let me down, Dark X-Men. I know that this, your last issue, is going to be full of the things we love: violence, mental insanity, explosions, and dashed hopes. Also, I hope you take that bomb or whatever it is out of Mystique because I'm gonna want her to be a free agent again. No offense Normie, but working with you she can't meet any nice girls. #gonnabeawesome

Secret Six #19
CATMAN-CENTRIC STORY! I love how all DC (not just Gail! INO!!!) loves their blond beefcake. And this next Secret Six storyline, all about Catman scratching his way through his checkered past, is going to be no exception. Add to it the socio-sexual Ragdoll, two lesbians, and one ripped, hairy daddy and you have the queerest comic on the stands today. Pick it up! #gailluv

House of Mystery #23
OMFG. Anyone who read last issue knows that this sh*t is. F***ed. Up. I CAN NOT wait to see the fallout from last issue! Fig is going to MURDER someone, and probably not figuratively! Also, this is a really casually queer inclusive title that ends up being one of the most gay-positive books I've read. Watching goblin geeks get rejected by goblin studs is super cute/real, and knowing that it's the set up for an awesome underdog story later in the year is just heartwarming. Plus, did I mention how every other character is a festering pastiche of childhood traumas? Yeah. Love this book.

Gotham City Sirens #10
The cover to this month's issue is beautiful! Also, this book has been getting some really positive reviews in the past issues. I know we've been paying attention to it since it started, and that I'm not really sure how queer this book really is, but it's funny, it's sexy, and it tells stories from the point of view of some the DCU's most interesting characters: the Bat-Villains. Riddler continues his guest appearance this month as he tries to help the Sirens NOT take the fall for a murder they've been framed for. Who are a villain's villains? Find out in GCS #10!

Wednesday, March 3, 2010

We are one step closer to Star Trek

Gizmodo posted about these wicked cool completely flat input devices being developed by Minebea, a Japanese company. They require no top keys and avoid those awkward keyboard maintenance including shaking all the dust and crumbs that fall into your device. But more importantly, I see a direct through line from these flat input devices:




To this:

Monday, March 1, 2010

SuperQueeros! for March 3rd, 2010

Each week I scour the weekly solicitations for all that's queer in comic-dom. This week:

Detective Comics #862
This week it's the middle chapter in Rucka's three part, time-hopping tale of parallelism, Cutter, and the second to last issue of Batwoman's Detective run before she jumps to her own title. I'm excited to see what Rucka brings to the characters by running them next to each other, and the art by Jock is pretty baller and moody. The Cutter himself is probably the most viscerally creepy villain I've read in comics, despite that fact that he's another one of those much re-hashed, silence-of-the-lambs, collector-killer types. If you like shows like Criminal Minds, this is def the book for you!

Buffy the Vampire Slayer #33
It's the one before the one where Twilight reveals his identity! That was a little bit anti-climactic, but if you've been following this book you know that BtVS is just picking up steam. They've raised the stakes with Buffy's newfound (probably temporary) abilities, and returned everyone to tip top strength (or death). Half the Scoobies are hostages and the other half have let the enemy into their camp. We know that Twilight is going to reveal himself, and many of us already know who he is, but the intense focus on that one reveal means that we know nothing about all the other, plot-driving events that are going to unfold. So what is about to go down? For once in the history of advance-solicited comics, we have no idea. EDIT: BAM! newsarama.com has an interview with the author and this issue IS the big reveal!!! #twelvetimesasexcited

Authority #20
Is that Rainmaker on the cover?????? Is this book STILL queer-inclusive with one of my fav bi characters of all time? Why does no one update the Wildstorm wiki pages? Some of these questions may be answered in this book, and as soon as one of us picks it up to find out, we'll post the answers right here! (Seriously, though, I dislike queer-exclusive Wildstorm a lot. Do you know if Sarah's in this book now?)