Episode #17 features:
Popcorn Junkie: Chronicle
Round Table: NCP’s Top 5 Heroes
And a special Feedback.
Click More for the Show Notes
That’s right Fight Fans – DC have announced a series of prequel comics focusing on the Watchmen, Alan Moore’s seminal classic from the 80’s, and the interwebs have exploded.
In the blue corner we have DC Comics. the owners of the Watchmen and the creative team behind the new stories:
Rorschach by writer Brian Azzarello and artist Lee Bermejo, Comedian by Azzarello and artist J.G. Jones, Minutemen by writer/artist Darwyn Cooke, Silk Spectre by Cooke and artist Amanda Conner, Nite Owl by writer J. Michael Straczynski and artists Joe and Andy Kubert, Dr. Manhattan by Straczynski and artist Adam Hughes, and Ozymandias by writer and original Watchmen editor Len Wein with art by Jae Lee.
They also have the blessing of Watchmen artist Dave Gibbons.
In the red corner we have the many people who believe that the Watchmen is the greatest comic story of all time and that it is a) almost blasphemous for anyone other than Alan Moore to continue the story in any way, or b) it is perfect the way it is and shouldn’t be continued at all.
This group also have the unofficial backing of Watchmen creator Alan Moore with his statement describing the prequels as “completely shameless.” “I tend to take this latest development as a kind of eager confirmation that they are still apparently dependent on ideas that I had 25 years ago.”
Lets get ready to rumble!
Blue Corner – It is common knowledge in the comic community that DC screwed over Alan Moore with the rights to the Watchmen, and they have been screwing with him for many years after. But, although I am totally on Mr Moore’s side regarding this, the simple fact is that DC would be insane not to consider a project like this. They are a business and a project like this is almost a license to print money. Even the people that are nerdraging over this are going to buy it, if only to have the ammo to continue their assault. And the creative teams are interesting – Darwyn Cooke is a legend and I’m always welcome to some Joe & Andy Kubert, J.G Jones and Adam Hughes art, but Straczynski is average at best (Rising Stars was a cool idea that went nowhere, Superman: Grounded was one of the worst Superman stories ever), and I don’t think Jae Lee is a good choice for Ozymandias. I trust Darwyn Cooke to show this project the respect it deserves.
Red Corner – I agree that it isn’t necessary to have Watchmen spin offs. It is a complete story and doesn’t need to be expanded on. But I don’t see a problem with doing so. Alan Moore himself had plans for spin offs and only stopped due to his falling out with DC. Watchmen is brilliant, but it isn’t sacrosanct. The story is so rich and detailed that ideas for spin offs would almost write themselves.
I’m not afraid to say that I’m looking forward to this project. I love Watchmen, I read it every year, and I’m excited to be able to read more adventures in that world. Would I prefer Alan Moore to be writing it? Of course, but not because of any sense of ‘blasphemy’. I would prefer he be working on it because he is my favourite comic writer of all time, and having him back on his greatest achievement would be too exciting to describe. But, as I said earlier, I trust Darwyn Cooke, he hasn’t let me down yet. And besides, even if they are crap, that doesn’t affect my love for the original story. They are separate entities and can be enjoyed or dismissed as such. This series is one of the most obvious money grabbing exercises I have ever seen (second only to the Star Wars prequels), but so what. The Comic Industry is in trouble and just like Avengers vs X-Men this event is bringing attention to the industry,
And that’s good for comics.
As reported on CBR and Bleeding Cool, artist Al Rio passed away on January 31st.
I’m a big fan of Mr Rio’s artwork, from his run on Gen13, to his work on Shi, and Voodoo. He also worked on other ‘Bad Girl’ characters like Lady Death and Purgatory, as well as the Grimm Fairy Tales (but I didnt collect those).
He was a natural choice to replace J Scott Campbell, with a great style that complemented Campbell’s work and then expanded on it. Of course he will be remembered most for his ‘Good Girl’ style, and I never understood why DC didnt put him on Supergirl. Mr Rio leaves behind his wife and children and our well wishes go out to them.
Welcome to the Fifth instalment of Who Review, my ongoing quest to watch and review all available episodes of SF’s longest running television series, Doctor Who. This week, we’re off to locate the hidden Keys of Marinus!
For a complete listing of the previous Who Review posts please click here – Who Review Archive
EPISODES
The Keys of Marinus (6 Episodes)
BROADCAST DATES
11 April – 16 May 1964
THE DOCTOR
William Hartnell
In Cold Blood is a Death Knight spec that wraps your enemy in frigid winds and a flurry of heavy strikes. The main reason is due to Might of the Frozen Wastes with Butchery in conjunction with glyphs of Frost Strike and Howling Blast. Chill of the Grave allows you to build up a lot of rune power, up to a maximum of 130 with Runic Power Mastery, for a total of 4 Frost Strikes in rapid succession. In order to gain that rune power, you simply use your Obliterate after having applied your diseases to your foe.
http://www.wowhead.com/talent#jbhMZGcRbfzRdbuc:MamqMbmMc
Also, there is a lot of survivability with this spec found in Hungering Cold, Scarlet Fever, Chilblains, On a Pale Horse, and Endless Winter. It’s hard to complain against your enemy dealing 10% less damage, your enemy being stuck for 3 seconds, having 30% shorter duration of slows, and free casting spell disruptions! Also Hungering Cold is always entertaining for survival purposes, especially if it is used after Howling Blast, since Frost Fever won’t break the effect. Also Dark Succor will help replenish any lost life while going in PvE, but for PvP or raiding, you may want Strangulate or Death Grip. The points in the Unholy tree are an interesting choice that are up to you, but are still very important. The 30% extra damage is very handy, however, going with a 12 second longer duration would allow for more uses of Obliterate and Frost Strike without having to reapply your Plague Strike, Howling Blast, or an Outbreak cool down.
As for your rune of choice, if you keep your diseases on your enemies, then your Obliterate will pretty much always deal more damage than your Frost Strike (and I do not know how much Mastery is needed to make Frost Strike surpass it, if it even can). I do know, however, that it is just plain funny using either Razor Ice or Cinder Glacier to further increase the damage of your Frost Strike to make it somewhat close, and be a better form of burst damage. My character is in somewhat decent gear, and my critical hits were for 30-39 thousand damage and each strike was right when the GCD was completed, so I would say that is fast enough damage. Oh, and of course you should be in Frost Presence for the quick build up of rune power and extra frost damage.
For all of these reasons, this spec will help you take down any threat In Cold Blood!
