goblinjareth

It would be very hard to catch, but I'm guessing that if they did, the copyright would be null. Or they could get sued for copyright infringement depending on what their AI of choice was pulling from... it could easily be framed as plagiarism. Especially considering some AI have been caught pulling from fanfiction

Interesting... I've been wanting Young Avengers in the MCU for a long time, but this trend of slowly introducing them one by one is kind of exhausting. Especially if they end up making YA a TV show, it's not that hard to introduce some of them during that show. But instead, everyone has to get their own side character feature.

"Risk" is so nebulous... I always wonder what it really is. I work for an independent studio, so far less affected by the strike, but my contract/wage/treatment are frankly ridiculous. What risk are the executives taking on that I'm not? They aren't investors; they aren't personally floating loans and upfront costs. I'm just someone in the marketing department that can bear the brunt of their last minute grand ideas with very little room to disagree, and the marketing department will always bear the brunt of the blame and public backlash if those grand ideas backfire. I keep working for bs overtime to implement their ideas because they want something for the morning at 7pm, but they get paid an inconceivable amount more than I do? Not really looking to argue with you, just a little rant.

I grew up on the Teen Titans cartoon and always had a soft spot for Monsieur Mallah and the Brain, so I've always been on the lookout for Doom Patrol 34. Beyond the sheer craziness of the story, Grant Morrison actually has some very interesting thoughts on the nature of body vs. consciousness and a good sense of humor.

On Marvel Unlimited, I think they've done away with paying per book, but you can pay per book elsewhere (like Comixology). If you read at least 3 floppys per month, Marvel Unlimited is worth the money, and they have basically any backissue you could hope to find. Comixology Unlimited is (unfortunately) owned by Amazon now, but it's cheaper than Marvel per month and has Marvel, DC, Image, Dark Horse, Kodansha, etc.

This whole attitude around the show is really getting me excited and is exactly what I'm looking for in animation... it's such a flexible medium with so many talented artist; why not go as far and insane with it as you can? All of the best adaptations in the past 20 years have chosen to do something emotionally faithful but artistically and narratively unique.

IATSE is also eligible to receive help from the same community fund that the lower wage WGA/SAG workers are getting assistance from.

To be fair, that is how a writers room works. Very few people are writing on every episode. The showrunners oversee the overall story, and extra writers are often brought on to flesh out the sub-plots. For example, the first season of Stranger Things was either at the WGA minimum or one under depending on interpretation of the policy. The Duffer brothers wrote ep 1 & 2, episodes 3-7 all had different single writers, and episode had the Duffers plus one more. Oftentimes, the showrunning/directing/producing is what gives something its unified voice, not the scriptwriters. The Mandalorian S1 also had the same amount of episodes and writers as ST1. In that case, it was Jon Favreau's responsibilities as a showrunner, not a writer, that held it together. I think there needs to be pre-set exceptions for what can have less writers, such deadline stipulations that can kind of "exchange" writers for a longer writing period. But having the WGA's requested amount of writers is not unprecedented in good television

New visuals from an Entertainment Weekly exclusive article, including the clearest look we've gotten at Roxy

The weird thing is... that's how it's been used for the last 7 years or so. A bunch of tech bros started referring to all computer learning as "AI" and presented it as this shiny new infallible thing, but many of these features have been integrated into creative programs for ages. Mocap, asset resizing, and more have always been used to assist the actual artists by providing a base to work from. All of these new "AI translation programs" are using the same computer learning model that Google Translate switched to in around 2013.

Yeah, I don't think they're going to get the writers room minimum they're asking for. But I feel something needs to be set in that regard, whether it be a smaller minimum or timeline requirement, because the cuts they've made leave no room. I think Stranger Things has actually had weaker writing as they reduce the number of writers per season, but they started with 6 in season 1, which is one less than the WGA proposal would have required. Not all of them worked on every episode, but it seemed to help them keep their separate plotlines relevant and connected. You're right that the streamers are not profitable. Netflix was successful because it was unique, and now they're just reinventing cable. And that the streamers never hired a lot of writers. I was referring to network TV hiring more. Think of how many writers you see on a single season of Doctor Who to this day. Zaslav is honestly pulling the wool over his investors' eyes. He says they saved $100m (which comes in part from not paying the striking workers) with very little breakdown on where the rest came from; meanwhile they also just lost at least $65m on The Flash alone due to the amount they spent on marketing. Max lost nearly 2 million subscribers in Q2. Ultimately, with the AMPTP finally back at the table after social perception has remained pretty in favor of the unions & AI has lost its shiny "new thing" hype, I think the WGA will get a deal in late October and SAG-AFTRA in late November.

The WGA is supposedly close to a deal, which basically hinged entirely on some of those points. The AI stuff was basically being stonewalled because the AMPTP refused to put anything against it down on paper. I suspect some of the fine text one those things will really determine whether or not it goes through. We may not have all the financials, but they can certainly afford to pay that many writer. They used to actually. Their pay has not kept up with inflation at ALL, so in order to even catch up to their quality of pay 10 years ago, they needed a high percentage raise. And the WGA was not asking for all writers to be employed, which is a bit of a weird rumor being spread. They want writing room minimums that match common practices from 10 years ago. Having two writers on unobtainable deadlines enables them to pay garbage with no bonuses or raises and has resulted in a lot of the decline of TV writing we’ve seen. I’m a little biased, I have very little patience for the AMPTP after all of their blatant propaganda and union busting tactics. They’ve lost far more money in the strike already than it would cost for them to pay the WGA what they want, and they still found money to hire a special crisis PR firm. If your boss can’t get away with mess like paying you two months late, the studios shouldn’t either.

I could definitely see this getting up to a 9.0. Pre C&P, probably 7.5-8.0? Depends on any how the little defects fall. Ultimately, you have great taste, and this is a gorgeous cover. Neal Adams has some of the best composition of his era.

That's entirely on the AMPTP then, because they refuse to budge on a vast majority of basics. Full rejections on basically all proposals (or mess suggestions) until a week ago. Non-streaming companies are nearly on the verge breaking out of the AMPTP because streamers refuse to share the numbers, and they're getting screwed by independents like A21 fully agreeing to the WGA and SAG-AFTRA proposals, proving they are fully possible to follow.

New screenshots from an LA Times article

I mean any talk like that is going to be minorly political, but I get where you're coming from lol. It's less about his right to film (it is his right) and moreso the impression it makes on people around you. There is press, and there is Press. When it's professional Press, there's a certain level of expectation already established where them having professional-level equipment exudes an expectation that they will act professionally and are coming from a place of reporting as a job. When it's a random person with a (albeit decent) amateur's camera, it starts off on the wrong foot, because they could be anyone. Funny you should mention cosplay, because I am a cosplayer. Someone taking a candid with a semi-professional camera doesn't bother me. Honestly, I would like them to ask mostly so I can exchange socials with them, because I love con photographers! But some rando taking a picture on his phone while I'm digging around in my bag in the ATM line (true story) comes off as inconsiderate/selfish. Like why do you want a terrible quality photo while I'm looking for my debit card? If someone comes up to me at an event with the ameteur camera already rolling, there's every chance it could be for one of those hyper critical YouTube essays or weird TikTok "I'm accosting you on the street" videos, which I wouldn't want to be a part of, since we haven't established the social contract of being honest upfront.

Yeah with the amount of chipping I'd lean towards 5.5. Unfortunately it's one of those things that doesn't have a basic fix, but on a personal level, I think the important part of the cover looks great. It's one of those classic text-filled colorful covers that I've always loved about Journey Into Mystery/Thor.

With the amount of defects, I would probably expect a 6.0-6.5.

Also worth noting in the case of major wildfires, they are often burning much hotter and longer than what fireproof safes are meant for - regular house fires. So in they case of CA and Maui, it would not really help, and there's nothing really on the market for it. There's only so much you can do in the end, and it would be far more productive to worry about minor disasters that more likely to affect us as individuals... like waterproofing for burst pipes. At a certain point, it is the same as any other trinket, decoration, or collectable unfortunately, and all you can do is start over with insurance payouts.

Screenshot of O'Malley's IG story emphasizing that it's not going to be line-for-line. I'm excited to see what Science Saru does with the character designs because they did such a great job adapting Devilman and Star Wars visually. And as long as Envy Adams gets more of a personality than she did in the movie, I'll be satisfied; I think she's one of the most underrated developments in the books.

If they're not taking it seriously, some of the unnecessary crossovers are pretty fun reads. Archie vs. Sharknado was great. Actually bad ones though... the Eminem/Punisher thing was just kinda weirdly unoriginal. Reads like weird power fantasy fanfic, and it still makes me shake my head that it was able to happen at all. Just a kind of crappy pay-to-be-involved comic that pales in comparison to good musician tie ins, like Kiss, GWAR, and Toe Tag Riot. And maybe this is a hot take, but Doomsday Clock was also just a slog to read. Every character was a shadow of their original selves in personality, and neither universe was more fulfilled for their collision. Despite how gritty and serious both DC and Vertigo could get, Watchmen just did not have related history, messages, or intentions to the rest of DC.

$5 and under for all non-key issues, and under $20 (perhaps lower) for #1s of less notable books. Getting into key issues, popular series, special variants, etc. it depends. I think $50 is the threshold for me on "affordable" books that aren't things I'm dedicated to, and it's the highest I'd expect a casual reader to pay for any single issue. Comic collecting is a pretty expensive hobby, so while I wouldn't balk at spending more on certain books, I would not call things "affordable" past that point, even if it is certainly worth that price. I think lately there's been a weird attitude around the word "affordable." Most things, especially collector things, would never be considered "affordable."

Picked up the Seance maquette during Dark Horse Direct's recent sale, and I'm pleasantly surprised by the quality of all of the parts involved. I didn't buy it originally because I was afraid the price was solely related to the size, but it's actually fantastic construction with a great paint job. The exclusive pin and print were also high quality, and the packing was basically bulletproof. Makes me more likely to buy another figure for them should they ever do more characters I like, and I wish the old White Violin maquette wasn't such a high resale price.

I think going in with the expectations that that a dealer will be your friend is just a weird subset of the attitude that retail people exist specifically to serve you. They're there running a business, making money... and anything is only worth what people will pay. If it's out of your price range, there's a point where you just have to accept it's not meant to be in that moment. Not to even get into the fact that walking up with a camera strapped on, when you're clearly not press... is a pretty great way to make a bad first impression. It is strictly basic business in the face of a go pro when you don't know where the footage will end up for what reasons.

I would call it a minor defect, though others may call that moderate with it being pretty obvious/on the cover, but either way I see this being safely an 8.0-8.5