I'll use the third tube.

Yesterdays Associated Press report about a Texas UFO siting caused me to reminisce about some of the cool sci-fi movies over the decades, so I will do a few posts on some of my favorites.

This Island Earth was released by Universal Pictures International in 1955. The Technicolor film is credited with paving the way for more ambitious genre films. In the well-regarded script, Dr. Cal Meacham receives an unusual package in lieu of what he had actually ordered. He receives a kit to build a very complex communication device called an interocitor. When finished, Meacham receives a message on it from a mysterious man named Exeter, who tells him he has passed the test he was given to participate in a special research project Exeter is running.

Intrigued, Meacham visits Exeter's facility, and finds an international group of top-flight scientists already present--including his old flame, Dr. Ruth Adams. However, Cal is immediately suspicious of the peculiar-looking group of men leading the mission.
Cal and Ruth decide to slip away from the facility, but as they take off in a small plane, they watch as the facility and all its inhabitants are incinerated, and their plane is drawn up inside a flying saucer. Inside they learn that Exeter and his band are aliens from the planet Metaluna, who’ve come to Earth seeking scientists to help them defend their planet in the war against the evil Zagons.

They arrive to find Metaluna under full enemy bombardment and falling quickly to the Zagons. Exeter's leader now intends to relocate their population to Earth and insists that Meacham and Adams be subjected to the Thought Transference Chamber in order to subjugate their free will. Exeter decides to help the humans escape, thus revolting against his own kind, before they enter the brain-reprogramming facility.

Cal overpowers the mutant creature accompanying them (but not before it wounds Exeter) and the three escape back to Earth. Upon entering Earth's atmosphere, Exeter sends the two on their way in their small plane, but he is too wounded to continue. With his ship nearly depleted of energy, he allows the saucer to crash into the sea.

Trivia: Many critics cite the films special effects as the strongest element in This Island Earth, which were ground breaking for their time and are still considered by many film buffs to be comparable to modern special effects. * [Note] The post title is a quote made by Exeter in the film.

Large silent object with bright lights was flying low and fast

It's 2008, and in the wake of last years Civil War crossover in the Marvel universe, anything is apparently possible.

No? Just ask Spider-Man.

He used to be married, his best friend was dead, his aunt was about to be [again] and everybody on the planet knew his "secret" identity, after he foolishly unmasked on television at the behest of billionaire/idiot Tony Stark.

Now the Associated Press is reporting that a UFO has been seen repeatedly over the past few weeks in Stephenville, Texas. Since the report is copyrighted, you'll have to seek it out for yourself, but the obvious source behind these wacky news reports is government testing of a brand-spanking new S.H.I.E.L.D. helicarrier.

I'm just saying!

Strike tailguns the JLA

As you can see, there were some mixed emotions present among the mighty members of the Justice League of America upon hearing of Warner Bros. Studios likely delay on the proposed movie version of their venerable team.

Justice League producers and Warner Bros. will decide whether to begin shooting from the script "as-is"or backburner the whole project until after the Hollywood writers' strike. Warner Bros. has to make the call by tomorrow – January 15th – in order to green light the film for a spring production start for a summer 2009 release, or else shelve it (along with any rewrite) until after the pesky strike is resolved. Adding insult-to-injury, the sequel to Superman Returns has been pushed back to 2010 (also due to the writer’s strike).

Only the Man of Steel, already heavily burdened by his awesome duties, appears to relish the extra downtime that this eventuality will allow him to enjoy over the next couple of years.

My 1st Comic Book Convention

One of the first full blown comic book conventions that ever I attended was the 1984 Heroes Convention in Charlotte, North Carolina. I had previously been to smaller mini-cons, most of which had been held by Heroes Con founder/organizer Shelton Drum, but after a stint in the Air Force, the '84 show was my real introduction to "larger" scale comic conventions.

Among many standout guests who appeared that year (including Star Trek's Ensign Chekov- Walter Koenig and Cerebus creator Dave Sim) were the DC comics "Superman trifecta": Julius Schwartz, Curt Swan and Murphy Anderson. I must admit that I've tended to judge every subsequent comic pro that I have been fortunate enough to meet against these three men.

They really made quite a positive impression on me!

"Julie" Schwartz continued to appear at Heroes annual summer con for many years up until his passing and Anderson has appeared several more times there as well, but sadly Curt Swan passed away the very summer that he was set to make a return appearance in Charlotte.

These men and so many of their peers, folks who created the golden and silver age of comics that has thrilled generations of fans were always courteous, jovial, engaging, respectful and humble towards their fans every time that I observed them. Schwartz was somewhat bombastic, but that seemed to be part of who he was, Anderson & Swan were surprisingly humble in the face of fan adoration. Their contributions to the Superman Legacy, DC comics and fandom in general has been more than adequately (and justifiably documented), but one thing that summed up the impression that they made on me beyond those traits that I've already cited was their ... professionalism. These men never came across as primadonnas, and if any such group of pros could have deserved to suffer such an affliction, it would have been the legendary "Swanderson" team and their minority whip, Julie.

I have continued to be a regular Heroescon attendee and have also been to venues in much larger cities. At this point, I couldn't even really tally up the number of celebrity comic creators that I've had a chance to meet . . . . . this is a great hobby after all, but that 1984 Heroes Convention is, has and will remain one of my favorites ever. And let me add a "thank you" to my pal, Shelton for hosting all of those shows over the years AND for bringing so many awesome comics pros to the Queen City of the Carolinas.

1970's Flashback (?): She-Hulk

Jennifer Walters is the small, somewhat shy cousin of Bruce Banner (aka the Incredible Hulk) and the daughter of Los Angeles County Sheriff William Morris Walters. Agents of crime boss Nicholas Trask, who had crossed paths with her father, shot and seriously wounded her on a day when Banner happened to be visiting. Since there were no donors with her blood type available, Banner provided blood for a transfusion; although his radioactive blood transformed Jennifer into the green-skinned She-Hulk when the mobsters tried to finish her off at the hospital.

As She-Hulk, Jennifer possessed powers similar to those of her cousin, but at a reduced level. She also possessed a less monstrous appearance and was also never prone to the type of rage-induced rampages of her famous cousin. Although initially, her transformations to She-Hulk were triggered by anger, Jennifer eventually gained control of her transformation when Michael Morbius cured her of a lethal blood disease.

Eventually, Jennifer decided that she is going to remain in her She-Hulk form permanently - preferring the freedom, confidence, and assertiveness that it gave her compared to her more timorous and fragile "normal" form. After a brief solo career, She-Hulk joined The Avengers and participated in the Secret Wars - sparking her long standing rivalry with the newly empowered Titania. Following Secret Wars, she temporarily replaced the Thing as a member of the Fantastic Four.

During her tenure with the F. F., the She-Hulk was instrumental in preventing a radiation leak aboard the downed S.H.I.E.L.D. Helicarrier. However the radiation exposure had a drastic effect on Jennifer: she could now no longer transform back into her original form. However, this was an agreeable turn of events for her since she preferred being She-Hulk anyway, but it was revealed much later that her inability to transform was purely psychological.

Trivia: Although The Savage She-Hulk # 1 is cover dated February 1980, its Christmas holiday-themed advertising makes it clear that it was released late in 1979. Therefore, the She-Hulk is perhaps the last major creation of Stan Lee during his most prolific and critically acclaimed period, the 1960s and '70s.

Review: The Twelve # 1

Writer J. Michael Straczynski (Babylon 5) and artist Chris Weston (Enemy Ace: War in Heaven) just debuted the first issue of their year-long, twelve part Marvel Comics series called, The Twelve.

Billed as "A Thrilling Novel Of Tomorrow", The Twelve reintroduces an even dozen of Marvel's largely forgotten, golden age characters from way back in the 1940's when the company was known as Timely Comics. The Black Widow (the lone female hero), the Blue Blade, Captain Wonder, Dynamic Man, Electro the Robot, the Fiery Mask, the Laughing Mask, Master Mind Excello, Mr. E, the Phantom Reporter, Rockman and the Witness fall victim to Nazi scientists at the close of WWII and are left in suspended animation for the subsequent decades between then and now (August 2008; per the story).

Upon awakening, the heroes quickly ascertain the truth of their situation and slowly begin to acclimate to the present day. Narrated by the Phantom Reporter, the tale effectively informs the reader of the heroes powers (or lack of same) and then jumps right into what is to be the maguffin. One of their number is apparently found murdered on the last page of this issue, but therein lies the rub. Despite adequate media indications that this very thing is the crux upon which the series will spin, the overall manner in which it plays out in the introductory issue is jarring to say the least.

The Phantom Reporters narration reveals that the "death" takes place much, much later than what we've just read of the heroes return to the world in this very issue, and also after they've just been encouraged to again take their places as heroes for the nation [in the wake of the huge Civil War crossover, to boot]. Indeed the physical appearance of the Phantom Reporter is certainly different on that last page, as is that of his obviously deceased former compatriot. As much as I was looking forward to this issue, the break took me immediately outside of the story that Straczynski was weaving - - - and unnecessarily so, in my opinion.

Fortunately the art is very good by Weston and it alone will draw me back for more of the mystery, but I hope that we aren't going to be similarly yin & yang'ed for ten more issues before everything is all-too-neatly tied up in the final issues denouement.

Either way, these quirky heroes are welcome back. Let's just hope that they all don't bite the bullet during the course of the series.

1970's Flashback: The Falcon

The Falcon (Sam "Snap" Wilson) first appeared in Captain America Vol. 1, #117 (Sept. 1969). Created by writer-editor Stan Lee and artist Gene Colan, the Falcon most frequently works with Captain America, and also later became a member of the superhero team the Avengers.

The Falcon debuted nearly three years before Luke Cage, Marvel's first African-American solo series superhero. The Falcon is also the first superhero of African descent not to have the word "black" as part of his superhero name, preceding the John Stewart/ Green Lantern by over two years. Although the Falcon traded in his original green outfit and adopted his more familiar red & white costume at the onset of the 70’s, it wasn’t until Captain America # 170 (February 1974) when the Black Panther and his Wakandan scientists created artificial wings for the Falcon, providing him with the power of flight, that Sam Wilson really lived up to his avian name.

Trivia: The Falcon's deceased nephew Jim Wilson, was the Incredible Hulk's sometime-sidekick and one of the first openly HIV-positive comic-book characters.

1970's Flashback: Warlock

Adam Warlock originally appeared in the two part Fantastic Four #66-67 (1967) as Him; an artificially created being produced by the scientific trio known as The Enclave. Him subsequently appeared as an adversary in Thor #165-166 before he was totally revamped as an allegorical Messiah figure by writer Roy Thomas and artist Gil Kane in Marvel Premiere #1 (April 1972).

This version featured Warlock on the genetically engineered planet Counter-Earth (located on the far side of the sun) for two issues before spinning off into its own title, The Power of Warlock, which ran through issue #8 (Aug. 1972 - Oct. 1973). After yet another quest appearance, this time in The Incredible Hulk # 177-178, Warlock received another reprieve under writer-artist Jim Starlin. In the critically acclaimed storyline "The Magus Saga",which began in Strange Tales #178-181 (Feb.-Aug. 1975) and continued into the revived Warlock series for issues #9-15 (Oct. 1975 - Nov. 1976), Starlin wrote, penciled (eventually co-penciling with Steve Leialoha, and initially self-inked an epic arc involving Warlock in war with a corrupt, religious space empire, his demagogue future self, and the cosmic super villain Thanos.

1970's Flashback: Ms. Marvel

As a qualifier,this week there will be four "1970's Flashbacks" focusing on Marvel Comics characters who originally appeared in the 1960's, but who achieved their greatest prominence beginning in the disco decade of the 70's. First up Carol Susan Jane Danvers aka Ms. Marvel.

The character first appeared (as the non-super-powered Carol Danvers) in Marvel Super-Heroes #13 (March 1968) and then as Ms. Marvel in Ms. Marvel #1 (January 1977). Danvers is a retired U.S. Air Force Intelligence agent turned NASA Security Chief, and a romantic interest to the extraterrestrial hero Captain Marvel. After she is caught in the radiation emitted by the explosion of the Kree "Psyche-Magnitron" device (technology which was derived from Marvel’s Kree home world), Carol gains superhuman strength and the ability to fly, among other talents, and becomes Ms. Marvel. During her series' short life span, Ms. Marvel was portrayed as a distinctly feminist hero. Following periods where she was involved with the Avengers & the X-Men; during which she was known as Binary and Warbird, Carol has returned to her identity of Ms. Marvel and is currently leader of the Mighty Avengers team.

Classic Cuties: Raquel Welch

Bombshell blonds had been all the rage in Hollywood for quite a while, when Jo Raquel Tejada - better known as Raquel Welch - first made the scene in the swinging Sixties. Following a brief career as a weather girl, and after a smattering of television guest appearances, the former beauty queen grabbed everyones attention with her second feature film, the sci-fi hit Fantastic Voyage in 1966. A string of movie roles followed: One Million Years B.C., Bedazzled, Bandolero!, Lady in Cement, Fathom & Myra Breckinridge.

You have to give the sultry starlet her chops, for all of the cheesecake shots, photo and film shoots she has prolifically stood for, she has never posed fully nude, opting to keep some things to her self. Dang it! Raquel later won accolades for her Broadway role in Woman of the Year, started home fitness and wig business empires and managed to marry a total of four lucky guys.

For my money, she is still the litmus test by which all other celebrity gals should have to measure up to.

In theaters on May 22, 2008 .....

Here are three Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull photos from Vanity Fair, which has an extensive interview with the creators (Lucas, Spielberg & Ford) behind the third film sequel to 1981's Raiders of the Lost Ark.

"The story is set in 1957, and this time Dr. Jones goes up against cold-blooded, Cold War Russkies—led by Cate Blanchett in full dominatrix mode—instead of the Nazis he squashed like bugs in previous installments. Making a return alongside Ford is Karen Allen, as Marion Ravenwood, Indy’s pugnacious true love, last seen in the first film. Rising star Shia LaBeouf joins the cast in a role that no one connected with the film will confirm is the love child of Indy and Marion."

Review: Legion of Super-Heroes #37

Jim Shooter got his start in the comics business, when he was fourteen years old, by forwarding a script to DC Comics editor Mort Weisinger (who was in charge of the Superman family of titles back in the Sixties). Weisinger liked what he saw and put Shooter to work, not knowing his actual age, beginning with Adventure Comics #346 (July 1966), for which young Shooter provided not only writing duties, but pencil breakdowns as well. Shooter also created several new characters for the Legion of Super-Heroes including Karate Kid, a teenage superhero who predated the martial arts fad of the 1970s; Ferro Lad, a teenage superhero who can transform to living iron; and Princess Projectra, who could cast realistic illusions.

Now after a storied career that eventually saw Shooter rise to become the head honcho at Marvel Comics, and following his legendary run at Valiant in the 1990's, Shooter has returned to where it all began by assuming scripting duties on DC's Legion of Super-Heroes #37. He's joined by topnotch art find Francis Manapul and inker Livesay. And right on page one, there is his "old" creation Karate Kid firmly squaring off against a huge, bug-ugly, that is part of a wave of such beasties that are assaulting various United Planets locations in the first of what will be a multi-part initial story arc.

There are no dramatic departures, visually from what Waid & Kitson, did during their run on the title, but for fans of Jim Shooters classic Legion, there is much to be thankful for here.

I've seen a couple of reviews that felt the first several pages featured some stilted dialogue, but I disagree. I found myself easily absorbed by the goings on, and am really looking forward to the deepening mystery of what is afoot in the Legion's universe. Manapuls art is perfectly suited to the "teen" heroes and he seems to be well-suited for the title. Frankly, I haven't felt this good about the fate of the Legionnaires in several years.

If you like sci-fi action, superheroics and want to be part of the ride, you won't be disappointed by the set-up in this issue. Give it a try. Maybe you'll stick around for the near future.