http://search.deviantart.com/?q=by:Steelpengu&section=today deviantART RSS for by:Steelpengu en-us Copyright 2009, deviantART.com Sun, 20 Dec 2009 18:17:39 PST deviantART.com http://blogs.law.harvard.edu/tech/rss http://s.deviantart.com/minish/widgets/apple-touch-icon-precomposed.png http://Steelpengu.deviantart.com/journal/27884738/ http://Steelpengu.deviantart.com/journal/27884738/ Wed, 21 Oct 2009 07:42:53 PDT Alright, back to commission stuff! My new laptop is almost here and it wouldn't hurt to have some commissions to help pay for it! Hahaha!

For the record. I need money. And I will make you art. I'll do it of your RP characters, your secret yaoi fantasies, and whatever obscure fanart you can think of. If you don't like my prices, I'll swallow my pride and take what I can get. Make me an offer.

Single Characters:
pencils: 10 bucks
Inks (both pencil and inks): 15
Color: 20

Additional characters in same piece: additional five bucks

A full scene with background elements and stuff:
pencils: 20
Inks: 25
Colors: 30

If you want more than one thing in an order, I'll shave off five bucks off additional pieces.

For those that keep asking, yes I have Paypal.

So there. Note me. E-mail me. Comment.

Current Commishes:
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.

Completed Commissions:
[link]
[link]
[link]
[link]


Keep it coming folks!!!!!!

]]> *Steelpengu http://Steelpengu.deviantart.com/journal/27534721/ http://Steelpengu.deviantart.com/journal/27534721/ Fri, 02 Oct 2009 07:19:26 PDT

OMG! GO LOOK! GO LOOK!

--Commission STUFF--
I've got some free slots open folks. I can take whatever you can throw at me. Fire away!

For the record. I need money. And I will make you art. I'll do it of your RP characters, your secret yaoi fantasies, and whatever obscure fanart you can think of. If you don't like my prices, I'll swallow my pride and take what I can get. Make me an offer.

Single Characters:
pencils: 10 bucks
Inks (both pencil and inks): 15
Color: 20

Additional characters in same piece: additional five bucks

A full scene with background elements and stuff:
pencils: 20
Inks: 25
Colors: 30

If you want more than one thing in an order, I'll shave off five bucks off additional pieces.

For those that keep asking, yes I have Paypal.

So there. Note me. E-mail me. Comment.

Current Commishes:
(redrawing)
(roughed, blue lined)

Completed Commissions:
[link]
[link]
[link]
[link]

]]> *Steelpengu http://Steelpengu.deviantart.com/journal/26305642/ http://Steelpengu.deviantart.com/journal/26305642/ Fri, 21 Aug 2009 22:20:26 PDT
--Commission STUFF--
I've got some free slots open folks. I can take whatever you can throw at me. Fire away!

For the record. I need money. And I will make you art. I'll do it of your RP characters, your secret yaoi fantasies, and whatever obscure fanart you can think of. If you don't like my prices, I'll swallow my pride and take what I can get. Make me an offer.

Single Characters:
pencils: 10 bucks
Inks (both pencil and inks): 15
Color: 20

Additional characters in same piece: additional five bucks

A full scene with background elements and stuff:
pencils: 20
Inks: 25
Colors: 30

If you want more than one thing in an order, I'll shave off five bucks off additional pieces.

For those that keep asking, yes I have Paypal.

So there. Note me. E-mail me. Comment.

Current Commishes:
(redrawing)
(roughed, blue lined)

Completed Commissions:
[link]
[link]
[link]
[link]


Keep it coming folks!!!!!!

]]> *Steelpengu http://Steelpengu.deviantart.com/journal/26137608/ http://Steelpengu.deviantart.com/journal/26137608/ Thu, 23 Jul 2009 19:43:08 PDT
As of two weeks ago, my partner of the last two years has formally resigned from our company. This comes after many months of introspection and contemplation on his part, following the collapse of our efforts at the end of Frebruary and my illness during those months. In the more immediate months, I've assumed pretty much full control over the company anyway, so it was an amicable split. He has bigger fish to fry.

The downside now is that I'm starting from square one again. I own the company in it's legal forms now, however, and retain all the work I contributed. So a lot of wandering around in the dark is over with, considering the last two years as a first draft. I do have more help now than I did before, ironically. I've got an executive assistant, an accountant, and a web consultant. Which is more than we had before, really.

My current situation is getting our costs in order so I can get some fancy spreadsheets and projections to go with all our theoretical business plan BS. Once that's done and we know, in hard terms, what our needs and costs are, I'll be setting up a meeting with our local SCORE office to see if I can get a SCORE mentor. 'Cause that would rock.

Really, the only thing standing in the way of the site getting on its feet is a programmer. 'Cause, while we need code monkeys, we need a site architect the most. Someone who can interpret, reinvent, create, and think for themselves. And possibly with some experience with P2P networks.

On the production side of things, I still own pretty much all the stuff I did for content planning except the names of the two main characters of one of our web series. I'm in the process of recruiting some new actors and crew, but that's all secondary till the site and our services get underway.

I finished my first feature length script a little while ago. That was for my friend Mike, who owes me about 1000 bucks (damn you Bernstein!), for a production he wants to do with his buddies who are stunt performers. Getting them to do anything together is a bitch though, because their schedules are always in flux. For a while it looked like it was going to happen, much to my surprise, but lately Mike has dropped off the face of the Earth. Which is not unlike him, but incredibly annoying. He is a busy guy though. His personal website for the curious: [link] He doesn't update much and he's got all the style of a walrus, but we love him anyway.

I'm working on a new feature script, for my personal interest, as well as developing treatments and outlines and stuff for about a dozen other projects. It's all just waiting in the wings for the company to get on its feet.

So yeah, that's about where things are. I've got some art stuff too. I try to work on a little here and there to keep the skillz fresh. I'm redoing an old piece actually. I think the new version will be a nice re-announcement of my artistic existence.

PRINTS, POSTERS, AND THINGS YOU CAN BUY!
>>>> [link] <<<<

MY COMMISSION INFORMATION!
here!--> [link] <--- here!

In Memoriam:
[link]

"When you get to the end of all the light that you know and it's time to step into the darkness of the unknown, faith is knowing that one of two things shall happen: either you will be given something solid to stand on, or you will be taught how to fly." ~ Edward Teller ]]> *Steelpengu http://Steelpengu.deviantart.com/journal/25508175/ http://Steelpengu.deviantart.com/journal/25508175/ Tue, 30 Jun 2009 10:43:50 PDT [link]

Because I haven't read a single honest review of this movie. Every review has been a bullshit fest. This is a real review of this movie, telling you what you need to know, without spoiling the goods.

Michael Bay has made only two sequels in his career: Bad Boys 2 and Transformers: ROTF. And, believe it or not, they both have a lot in common. The first Bad Boys was a budget effort, with Bay working within constraints of time, funding, and company oversight. The first Transformers was likewise. That film was shaped largely by company skepticism, budget restrictions, and time. Bad Boys 2 is Bay unleashed. It is his masterpiece of mayhem, offensive comedy, and explosions. ROTF is also Bay unleashed.

I'll lay it down right now and say ROTF, like BB2, kicked all kinds of ass and delivered some terrific robot carnage. It's really less of a sequel to the first film and more of an extension, which I liked. It felt less like a 'here's your big movie, chew and swallow' and more like a serial story, where the characters keep moving on even after the credits end. They're not too eager to kill everyone and tie up all the loose ends. It feels more real to me that way, less contrived.

In many ways, ROTF does improve on its predecessor. There's more robot. In fact, there's a robot scene about every other minute. And they interact and perform with the human actors terrifically. Much of the robot dialogue in the first movie was written in post, which is pretty obvious when you pay attention to how many one liners and remarks there are scattered throughout their scenes. This time there is much dialogue and acting and interaction.

Prime takes center stage with as much if not more dialogue than many of the main human characters. Also, another complaint often leveled at the first movie is that Prime basically gets kicked around like a hacky sack by Megatron in the finale. Well, let's just say they make up for it in this movie. Just a little. The other Autobots get a line here and there. They never get to do as much individually as they did in the first film, but they each at least have some moments. It's the difficulty of adding more bots to the roster, but I'm glad they did. It's neat seeing this family of Autobots grow.

On the Decepticon's side of things, Megatron and Starscream are pleasantly chatty as well. Outside of Soundwave, they're the only 'Cons that do much talking or have any personality. In fact, that's where the movie starts losing some of it's polish. The Decepticons lack as much of a distinctive cast as the first film, despite having some uniquely awesome members in their rank. They just don't really get to do much except destroy destroy destroy and get destroyed. Also, just to forewarn those who are pumped about Devastator: he's awesome and exciting, but kind of shafted. He's the 'Bonecrusher' of this movie. The awesome, scene stealing baddie who should have had more to do.

On that note, the one 'Con who really had a lot of personality had nothing to say was Ravage. Ravage was the best evil robot kitty kat of death in the wide world.

Back to comparisons with Bad Boys 2, this movie has action scenes. Atleast one every five or ten minutes. It's packed with brutal robot butt kicking. It's also all steadily shot and clear to see. Not a whole lot of shaky cam, quick cut BS. You get to see all the little details getting blown off, torn out, and otherwise obliterated. However, I noticed that there isn't as much of the 'transforming' going on during their fights. I suspect some of that may have to do with budget, actually. Since more elaborate transforming while fighting scenes would have been a beast to render, on top of all the stuff already in the movie. I feel it's more of a decision of necessity rather than preference. Make no mistake, though, this movie still has tons of neat robot configuring and reconfiguring.

The thing this movie really doesn't improve on is the humor. The comedy relishes in Bay's penchant for offensive, inane humor. And you know what? In Bad Boys 2, it worked great! But in ROTF, not so much. Why? Well, two reasons: Will and Martin. Those two can take scenes like that and make them terrific. They can take all the racial humor and sex jokes and make it roll. But that stuff just doesn't belong in a Transformers movie. It doesn't. End of story. But it's there in ROTF. In rather gratuitous quantities. But, frankly, for every eye rolling sex joke or humping scene (this movie has so much humping) there's fifty dozen more aweso... ]]> *Steelpengu http://Steelpengu.deviantart.com/journal/25165946/ http://Steelpengu.deviantart.com/journal/25165946/ Sat, 06 Jun 2009 17:36:36 PDT
Many years go by, Metal Gear becomes the new classic and Castlevania becomes something of a redheaded step child, hidden away on handheld systems, no thanks to Koji Igarashi. See, Igarashi was SotN's assistant director. Somehow that makes a lot of people think he's some kind of god of Castlevania, like he should be in charge of the franchise. Well, Igarashi spent most of his tenure retconing the more interesting parts Castlevania, repeating the same damn game over and over again, and dry humping the generic bishonen corpse of all of his main characters. Did he produce some cool games? Sure, I liked the handheld stuff, but it was always a mystery to me: why couldn't this wunderkind producer extraordinaire actually further the franchise? The truth is that Iga's presence has been a plastic bag over the head of the series, slowly suffocating it. The man let Castlevania Judgement get made, people.

Enter Lords of Shadow. When I heard the rumor that Kojima's company would be having a hand in a new Castlevania I didn't believe it, but low and behold I saw the trailer. It's obvious that the game isn't by Igarashi, and if he's involved I bet he was locked in a room covered in barbed wire while they were making it. Because it actually looks good. Castlevania should be a franchise on the level with Halo, Final Fantasy, Devil May Cry. It should be a proud fore runner of the adventure game genre, but it has been relegated to doomed repetition till now. Mercurysteam, the company making it, they did another kick ass but all too short horror game: Clive Barker's Jericho. It's like, the only real credit they have, but it's a damn good one to be working on Castlevania. I'm expecting a Castlevania that delivers on the kind of horror and ghoulish atmosphere that the NES games always stoked my imagination with.

Castlevania seems poised to make a come back, with a bold new game, but really, like Robert Downey Jr., it never left. It was just strung out and lost and no one knew what to do with it. I imagine, while Kojima is not directing, his company will be acting as quality control, which is all good to me. The men are back to being manly, the monsters are back to being scary, the story has an air of seriousness lacking in the theatrical bishonen stage-plays that have been the standard. Oh, and it has Patric Stewart. You can't forget the Patric Stewart.

]]> *Steelpengu http://Steelpengu.deviantart.com/journal/25097763/ http://Steelpengu.deviantart.com/journal/25097763/ Tue, 02 Jun 2009 21:32:34 PDT
So, there you have it folks: my tummy is a lazy bitch. That's my problem. It empties 4.5 hours later than a normal stomach. YAY.

]]> *Steelpengu http://Steelpengu.deviantart.com/journal/24903339/ http://Steelpengu.deviantart.com/journal/24903339/ Sat, 23 May 2009 08:01:33 PDT [link] FOR FREE. These bad boys put their smooth tracks up for us to enjoy for nada mula. It's some of the coolest cuts you could be listening to and they don't cost you a cent. Pretty Lights is where it's at.

]]> *Steelpengu http://Steelpengu.deviantart.com/journal/24809393/ http://Steelpengu.deviantart.com/journal/24809393/ Sun, 17 May 2009 17:07:14 PDT
I need to open a film school just for video game adaptions. Was it this hard to adapt books when Hollywood was starting off? I mean, really now? You've got EVERYTHING DONE FOR YOU. All your concept art, all your characters are developed, all your story is prewritten, all your locations are figured out. And yet, it's like they need to make more work for themselves or something. I mean, isn't the POINT of adapting a comic book or a video game to save time and cash in on appeal? I mean, wouldn't be advisable to craft a product that's... I dunno... relatable to the source material? I mean, I've seen live action commercials for video games (Check out the old MK II commercial!) that out classed their movie counter parts ten fold. I'd take a two hour commercial for a video game over what they keep dishing out, sometimes. I mean, isn't it in Hollywood's nature to play it safe? So why do they keep experimenting? For once in your pitiful existence, Hollywood, would it hurt to actually just deliver an uncreative, safe adaption of something?

On the plus side, the Tekken movie just keeps looking better and better. The cast is solid, the costumes are pixel perfect, the sets look killer, and the story, thus far, actually adapts the game's plots. All that remains to be seen are if the fight choreography is good and if the directing is good. Otherwise, I'm hoping for it to be ATLEAST Mortal Kombat good, if not better.

]]> *Steelpengu http://Steelpengu.deviantart.com/journal/24774324/ http://Steelpengu.deviantart.com/journal/24774324/ Fri, 15 May 2009 17:42:45 PDT
]]> *Steelpengu http://Steelpengu.deviantart.com/journal/24689845/ http://Steelpengu.deviantart.com/journal/24689845/ Sun, 10 May 2009 16:08:00 PDT
Also, it feels good have Star Trek back.

]]> *Steelpengu http://Steelpengu.deviantart.com/journal/24571709/ http://Steelpengu.deviantart.com/journal/24571709/ Sun, 03 May 2009 18:07:37 PDT , who's been doing paintings over my pieces and he's getting so good at it I wanted anyone who still bothers reading my journals to know about him and his imminent bad assery. So check him out and fave his shit. If you do I might actually update my gallery! Whoooooooooo.......

]]> *Steelpengu http://Steelpengu.deviantart.com/journal/24397180/ http://Steelpengu.deviantart.com/journal/24397180/ Thu, 23 Apr 2009 16:13:51 PDT Taking all comers:
[link]

]]> *Steelpengu http://Steelpengu.deviantart.com/journal/24320836/ http://Steelpengu.deviantart.com/journal/24320836/ Sun, 19 Apr 2009 07:20:57 PDT
STRAWBERRY TART FTW!!!!!!

]]> *Steelpengu http://Steelpengu.deviantart.com/journal/24154429/ http://Steelpengu.deviantart.com/journal/24154429/ Thu, 09 Apr 2009 20:28:38 PDT
Of all the guitar pieces I've heard, and damn I've heard a lot of fucking guitar work, Ashane's cover is still one of my favorites. Every time I hear it, the slow, melancholy opening yells at me "I FUCKING LOVE THIS SONG," and sure enough from it's perfectly mellow intro it almost literally dynamites into one of most furious, passionate ninja's killing the fuck out of everything pieces of music ever. And just wait for his off the wall solo. I think God actually may have actually taken a break to bless his guitar when he hit the peak on it. I'm just saying. Everything about ninjas should aspire to the mastery of Ashane's face melting guitar work.

"Ninjascape" is a love song. It's a love song about ninjas. It's a love song about ninjas running really goddamn fast and killing the fuck out of monsters, demons, dragons, and other ninjas. See, that's the secret of ninjas. They aren't stealthy. They're that fucking fast. I was hanging out with some of my ninja friends jamming in guitar hero while they made fun of me, because ninjas are master guitarists and wouldn't be caught dead playing guitar hero, and someone mentioned Tenchu and EVERYBODY started laughing. True story.

Here's the link. Listen up. [link]

]]> *Steelpengu http://Steelpengu.deviantart.com/journal/24108347/ http://Steelpengu.deviantart.com/journal/24108347/ Tue, 07 Apr 2009 08:49:46 PDT

]]> *Steelpengu http://Steelpengu.deviantart.com/journal/24084953/ http://Steelpengu.deviantart.com/journal/24084953/ Sun, 05 Apr 2009 22:29:10 PDT
And I must say, The Midnight Meat Train is one of his best movies and one of the best horror films ever made. I am at a loss to find comparison within the horror genre. It brings to mind masterful pieces of gloom and doom such as The Thing and Candyman. It's film more about horror than scares, something I find very refreshing.

It is not without it's faults. The main character's girlfriend suffers a bit from melodrama. Some of the digital gore doesn't work as well as it could. But I'll be damned if the film didn't grab me by the balls from the opening scene only to force me to re-evaluate the entire movie after the ending.

By virtue of the mood alone, you know that there is no promise of an easy resolution. It's so fatalistic, like watching stars collide. It's cosmic. It's inevitable. Seeing the main character get drawn into an irrational pursuit of a midnight subway train murderer is like watching a bug hurtling towards a bug zapper in slow, dream like motion. There's something so beautiful in the moment, something so tragic but satisfyingly unstoppable.

Meat Train oppresses from the first frames. Every facet of the film oozes the kind of tactile reality I thought Hollywood had forgotten how to achieve. I feel like I could small the rain on the streets and feel the rigid subway bench seat against my rear. Everything was a sensory explosion for me. And yet Kitamura refrains from brisk editing, choosing to very deliberately create very surreal murders. Events that are both horrifying and stunning and perhaps even darkly funny.

The soundtrack is exquisite. It's a bleak synthetic score reminiscent great soundtracks like Halloween and Ennio Morricone's The Thing. It's full of brooding, drawn out base lines and quirky tittering melodies. It was like listening to a spider laying down its long foundation strings and then gleefully darting the cross threads. And it's all very melancholy, similarly to Candyman. Like I said, it's an advertisement for the spiral downwards to come.

The Midnight Meat Train does for the current generation of horror films what Dead Space did for the current generation of horror games, bring back a sense of class and artistry. It wears its influences on its sleeve for those who know and demonstrates a keen education and respect. Ten years from now, Meat Train will be the horror film new filmmakers are calling their inspiration. A happy fuck you to the studio execs who buried the film's theatrical release and publicity in favor of The Strangers.

]]> *Steelpengu http://Steelpengu.deviantart.com/journal/23639213/ http://Steelpengu.deviantart.com/journal/23639213/ Wed, 11 Mar 2009 07:47:22 PDT
*Spoilers if you are unfamiliar with Watchmen*

I've heard from several people who didn't like Watchmen that they concede, they like Rorschach. Well, most of you people may or may not realize that Watchmen is a deconstruction of what a superhero is or is supposed to be. In fact, it's probably one of the few instances where the characters are known for their real names and not for their spandexed alter-egos... except for one: Rorschach. No one in the story does any superheroing till the very end except... Rorschach. Everyone makes it through the end of the story alive except... Rorschach. I think there's a pretty clear message here, but I'll discuss it further anyway.

When Alan Moore created Rorschach he built him in the mold of Batman. There's reason number one. Even though Dan Dreiberg's Nite Owl II features a distinctly Batman design, his character has much more in common with Clark Kent and Superman. He is compassionate and soft spoken, awkward and human. Rorschach is almost none of those. He is confident, decisive, and decidedly black and white. If you come into Watchmen expecting a movie about superheroes it's only natural that you gravitate toward Rorschach. He embodies the classical superhero concepts, most particuarly his unwavering moral perspective.

But here's the catch people, of all the characters, Rorschach is the only one who cannot cope with the moral complexity of Adrian's scheme. The moral of the story is that in reality, that kind of superhero doesn't work. They've got an expiration date. That's the whole point of Watchmen. That's what's so epic about it. It's that sometimes you don't get to beat the bad guy into submission, sometimes the bad guy isn't a bad guy, sometimes they might be right. If you're trying to enjoy Watchmen as a typical superheroic endeavor of course you wouldn't like it. It's telling you that everything you came to see is bullshit.

In the end even Rorschach knows this. His death, particularly in the film, is one of the most heartbreaking moments because as he takes off that mask he loses all the pretenses of the character that is Rorschach and joins the rest of the cast as a person, a human being. Because there's nothing left for Rorschach, just a world for Walter Kovacs. And Walter Kovacs is dead.

On a similar note these are the same reasons I didn't like Dark Knight the first time. I wanted Batman Begins. I wanted something typical. Then I realized I was being an ass and doing myself a disservice. Dark Knight delivered the destruction of Batman, the breaking of Batman. It's the film's coy brilliance in that I think it's tricked 90 percent of it's loyal followers into thinking that Batman wins. He doesn't. The whole conclusion of the movie is Batman finally giving into the Joker's desire to break his moral code. The Joker set it up as a win/win situation. One way or another, he got Batman to get Gotham to turn against him. He got Batman to ACCEPT that, to CONCEDE to it. Because in reality, Batman doesn't work. Just like Rorschach. Superheroes don't work.

We want our heroes taken seriously, but we don't want to see serious films about them. They can be entertainment but they can't be art. Even in the world of comics Watchmen is still an anomaly. It's epic in it's conception, it's ideology, it's argument. Watchmen is an onscreen - onpanel debate. It's Moby Dick not Jaws. And Rorschach is it's Captain Ahab. So when you talk about how awesome Rorschach is or that you love Rorschach, it is to me as when men would approach Guinevere Turner about American Psycho, professing that they felt a kin to Patrick Bateman. Adventures in missing the point, people.

]]> *Steelpengu http://Steelpengu.deviantart.com/journal/23599338/ http://Steelpengu.deviantart.com/journal/23599338/ Sun, 08 Mar 2009 19:58:47 PDT
Watchmen was like finding religion. It was like every first love. The best bouts of depression. And every childhood fear. It was sublime. There are a few movies I call perfect, whose execution was either so brave, so well realized or so tight. I hold Watchmen in account for being such.

Zack Snyder's Watchmen is a fevered dream of another time that could have happened, that might have been, where the world is ending with every frame. Broken characters and ruined politics, lives wasted and lives redeemed. It captures every ounce of the novel's tale of retired superheroes whose empty lives are filled again in the last moments of the earth's breath.

I am terribly biased on this. I'm intimately familiar with the novel. I can often recall it's potent images and sequence of events anytime. It's characters are almost a kind of family. However, do not believe that this would have me prejudiced in favor of the film. In fact, I was both afraid and elated. I had only loosely followed it's rather sudden production and having seen the trailers and costumes I was hestiantly optimistic. Once I actually heard dialogue however my optimism diminished. I was afraid again. I wasn't sure about these actors. The delivery in the trailers seemed to flat and without power.

I was wrong.

Wrong.

I would say Snyder's Watchmen has given depth to the characters beyond even the book. while much of the book's bulk is excised (the movie is still almost three hours people) the actors bring nuance and interpretation to the scenes I had never considered. Rorschach's grand finale is the greatest example of this. Christian Bale take notes: this is how you bring humanity and complexity to a superhero. That scene was not what I had ever read and had a kind of heart and reality that stunned me.

All of the actors are stand outs. All of them know exactly what to do, how to do it, and when. Of special note is Jeffrey Dean Morgan, whose Comedian by virtue of some scene rearranging is robbed of some of his redeeming moments till late. I call him out most of all because the steady reveal of his characters complexity suffers to the hands of time restriction, but his performance adds a robustness that I had never read in the book. Dialogue that had always seemed black and white or flat become podiums for his character to grow and reveal how hard it is to judge him.

Another thing the movie does that I felt trumps the book in some ways is how it managed to more concisely create it's parallels and points. I felt that at the end Watchmen's grand treatise of how do you moralise or make sense of such a tragedy is made much clearer on a human level in the interaction between Laurie and her mother. I'll always think of Moore as a great writer with great sophisticated ideas, but I don't think he always writes the human element as well as the conceptual ones. Snyder's Watchmen is like a bridge between the passions of real people and the weight of Moore's moral quandry.

Snyder's Watchmen finds a terrific balance of music and image, character and story. It's bitter sweet, serious funny. When Nite Owl and Silk Spectre get hot and sweaty on Archie after a night of superheroing set to Leonard Cohen's "Hallelujah" yeah, the juxtaposition is funny, but it's also endearing and sweet and clumsy and wonderful. Yes, people, superheroes fuck, and it's just as weird and awkward and passionate and raw as anything we do or more so. Watchmen is a lifetime in 2hours and forty minutes.

Is the movie better than the book? It's different and deserves to sit on the shelf right next to it. In some ways I'd saw it fills a void in the book that I never knew the book had. It made the experience richer. I love the characters on a new level. I can't wait for the extended DVD cut (which Snyder has promised).

Watchmen was magic.

]]> *Steelpengu http://Steelpengu.deviantart.com/journal/23564869/ http://Steelpengu.deviantart.com/journal/23564869/ Fri, 06 Mar 2009 21:20:31 PST
Now they still get aggravated but it's different. It's a lot less violent and a lot more discomforting. I've sent in the first two parts of my stool sample (yay!) but I had to do a third part that they didn't tell me about the first time (pain the butt!!!). Sadly, collecting it during their office hours today was not to be. Hopefully I'll get something back on them (cross your fingers everybody! That means I can take antibiotics for it!) if not then hopefully my ultrasound next week will reveal something.... (which means I get to be an organ less!!! yay!!!!!) What seems to boggle everyone is how both chronic and un-typical of serious illness my troubles are. I mean I've had similar symptoms to these over the last year off and on, but never concentrated like this and never so much that it took me out for more than a day.

I have no pain beyond cramping. None. Not yet anyway. >.> No gall bladder pain, no intestinal pain, no pain when pooping, no pain when breathing. In fact the only pain I felt before was a slight burning sensation that was quickly cleared by my friend Tums. I've been tested for Coeliac's, Cancer, fissures, Crohns, Hylobacter Pylori, Stomach Ulcers, Hemmoroids, and your mom. The real remaining things that it could be are ruptured appendix, gallbladder, an intestinal bacteria infection, or intestinal parasites. Now, also remember I went through a bitch of testing last year for all these symptoms, which inclued testing my appendix and my gallbladder, both were nadda. So unless I've suddenly ruptured one or the other I'm not expecting those to be the issue.

My money is on bacteria right now. Since if left untreated it can breed and colonize and cause longterm symptoms. I would say parasites, but I haven't really lost shown any major vitamin or nutrient loss, nor until recently have I shown any weightloss (mostly weight gain). Also, I'm getting shockingly better, despite barely eating ANYTHING. Maybe the fasting resulting from not being able to eat normal food is helping my body clean out. Who knows. I know I don't. And my doctor hasn't really made any particular conjectures.

From now on, however, whenever I need to get tested for an illness, I'm going to demand we start with the simple stuff (blood, urine, stool tests) because I swear, I've been sick for three weeks and did anyone say it could be bacterial? nooooo... Did they say it could be parasites? noooooo.... It was either cancer, or gallbladder or Satan. If they'd checked sooner when my symptoms were REALLY bad, I might not have had to suffer for so long. I've danced the serious illness dance before and every single bloody fucking time all I hear is "you're a young man, you're healthy, you're fine, there's nothing wrong with you!" So when they want to get serious about checking for serious stuff they can kiss my ass and check my stool sample first.

]]> *Steelpengu http://Steelpengu.deviantart.com/journal/23458384/ http://Steelpengu.deviantart.com/journal/23458384/ Sat, 28 Feb 2009 20:16:44 PST
]]> *Steelpengu http://Steelpengu.deviantart.com/journal/23232144/ http://Steelpengu.deviantart.com/journal/23232144/ Mon, 16 Feb 2009 09:57:30 PST

]]> *Steelpengu http://Steelpengu.deviantart.com/journal/22914477/ http://Steelpengu.deviantart.com/journal/22914477/ Fri, 30 Jan 2009 23:01:53 PST
There's just this void inside. Somtimes, trying to fill is what I think drives me. Sometimes I think it's the hope that I won't have to. It's like three weeks ago when I was binge barfing on monday. I couldn't remember what it felt like to not feel torn up, compacted, dried up and wretched inside. I kept myself going just so I could get back to a point where I did remember. Sometimes all I think I want to do is remember.

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"When you get to the end of all the light that you know and it's time to step into the darkness of the unknown, faith is knowing that one of two things shall happen: either you will be given something solid to stand on, or you will be taught how to fly." ~ Edward Teller ]]> *Steelpengu http://Steelpengu.deviantart.com/journal/22883490/ http://Steelpengu.deviantart.com/journal/22883490/ Thu, 29 Jan 2009 11:08:48 PST
Today I've been feeling particularly murderous about it. We were supposed to have a meeting three weeks ago to get everyone on the same page, but I got sick for a week, then he got sick for a week and this week I had my colonoscopy so I lost two days. He wants to be done by the last week of February. I know he won't be until mid March. I'm going to have a little chat with my partner in a few about it and get things straight. But it's going to be a long couple of weeks ahead, and I'm going to be doing my best not to kill myself or others.

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"When you get to the end of all the light that you know and it's time to step into the darkness of the unknown, faith is knowing that one of two things shall happen: either you will be given something solid to stand on, or you will be taught how to fly." ~ Edward Teller ]]> *Steelpengu http://Steelpengu.deviantart.com/journal/22260997/ http://Steelpengu.deviantart.com/journal/22260997/ Mon, 29 Dec 2008 13:02:43 PST
So a word to critics out there seeking to poo-poo upon excessive violence, crazed action, and ridiculously stunt filled mayhem movies: don't let us know that it delivers.

Because calling a pot a pot does not offend the pot, it merely allows everyone else to know they're getting what they payed for.

Also, why Capcom didn't make a Resident Evil movie themselves sooner, I don't know. Is Degeneration mediocre? Maybe, but still a hundred times better than any of the live action debacles.

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"When you get to the end of all the light that you know and it's time to step into the darkness of the unknown, faith is knowing that one of two things shall happen: either you will be given something solid to stand on, or you will be taught how to fly." ~ Edward Teller ]]> *Steelpengu http://Steelpengu.deviantart.com/journal/21565187/ http://Steelpengu.deviantart.com/journal/21565187/ Wed, 19 Nov 2008 12:03:45 PST > [link] <<

I can't watch Quantum of Solace the same way again after this. Nevermind the terrible helicopter bit, it's the opening titles that count and the song! Now that's a fucking follow up to Cornell's You Know My Name. That's how you open a fucking Bond movie. God, QoS, it was a passable epilogue for Casino Royale, but was a barely there Bond movie. Forster's direction was almost painfully mediocre compared to Campbell's controlled, Hitchcock-ian style. I say almost, it's got some nice dashes of creativity here and there. But shit, after Casino all but redefined the character I expected more dramatic, effective experiments with the Bond conventions. Not the either complete removal of, or trite cosmetic "surprise look what we did" moments (gun barrel sequence I'm looking at you).

I love how the video game intro weaves nice modern touches of the action of the film weaving into the dreamscape of a music video and back again, not unlike the opening of Die Another Day, but it's the whole opening action scene as a Bond opening title. BRILLIANT! I even love the theme of the song, it's totally applicable to the new Bond's post Vesper attitude, just like how Chris Cornell's song alluded to the absence of "traditional" Bond elements in Casino with title line "You know my name." There's also the fact that, regardless of how stiff some of CG car chase is, I can actually understand what's happening in it and it has some genuinely great shot choices.

I've been saying it for years, video game makers know how to make movies better than filmmakers these days.

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"When you get to the end of all the light that you know and it's time to step into the darkness of the unknown, faith is knowing that one of two things shall happen: either you will be given something solid to stand on, or you will be taught how to fly." ~ Edward Teller ]]> *Steelpengu http://Steelpengu.deviantart.com/journal/21483172/ http://Steelpengu.deviantart.com/journal/21483172/ Fri, 14 Nov 2008 10:54:52 PST
Time to change my underwear?

No!

It's time for an ANECDOTE!

so this one time when I was living with Steve in O-house, that's a dorm where I went to college by the way, he was a in the bathroom, see, and we had just come up from J. O.'s Cafe, school cafeteria. Now J.O.'s doesn't settle well with anyone, but with Steve it rocketed through his digestive system like a freight train strapped to the space shuttle. The walls in the dorm are solid concrete, right? and my bed is right up against one, the one on the bathroom side, and I'm on my bed minding my own business while Steve is in the bathroom when I get a whiff of something that can only be described a dead cat being microwaved on week old Taco Bell left overs. And so Steve comes out of the bathroom fully loosing the vaporous beast upon me. I mean this was so bad I had to leave my side of the room. But that was just it, it pocketed on MY SIDE of the room. So Steve was like, hey I'll frebreeze it. So he did. and my side of the roomed smelled like atomic butt fumes and febreeze.

the end.

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"When you get to the end of all the light that you know and it's time to step into the darkness of the unknown, faith is knowing that one of two things shall happen: either you will be given something solid to stand on, or you will be taught how to fly." ~ Edward Teller ]]> *Steelpengu http://Steelpengu.deviantart.com/journal/21313419/ http://Steelpengu.deviantart.com/journal/21313419/ Tue, 04 Nov 2008 07:45:53 PST
We're far enough in the process that it's time to start talking about it for what it is in our hearts and ambitions and not what it is on paper. We're creating a unique entity, a kind of business model that has only existed in parts here and there, brought together under single umbrella for filmmakers everywhere in the world. Yeah, we're going to be global if I have any say in the matter. We're building a studio in gigabytes instead of brick and concrete. A studio where the cool concrete of your local street corner and the warm grass of your backyard are our studio walls. It is meant to rise above the basic restrictions of the existing 100 odd year old system that has become a monetary cesspool. You really can do anything with little creativity, a lot of balls, and no assumptions about what you can do. Technology has made it possible more than ever. I've seen it. I've seen young filmmakers shooting on the digital medium with a quality that effortlessly matches professional grade material. The idea that it can be done not only needs to be perpetuated but supported equally with content.

It's like we're all victims of abuse, stuck thinking that things have to be a certain way because that is how it has been, despite there being no logical reason that it can't be otherwise. I hear so often people referring back to the Hollywood model and moving out to Los Angeles, without a questioning thought in their head. Creative solutions don't exist to people. They can have their cities and modern convenience, but I crave the frontier, the undiscovered country.

In 3 months we'll be in beta, 3 months after that we'll be live. At first we'll be nothing more than just another video site glittering in the space of the internet, but by the end of next year we'll have witnessed the birth of a new sun where once there had been space dust. And by the time I am dead, there will be an entire new industry built on the business models we're establishing. It is not hopes and dreams; it is certainty or failure, do or die. This is bigger than anyone person in involved. Not just the concept, but the principles. It is going to stand for an ideology that I want to share and perpetuate among my fellow filmmakers. I have a saying that baffles some and amuses others. It goes: man could fly if only he did not believe in gravity. I will tell you that the statement is truth and let you determine what truth I mean. It is the truth of that statement that I wish to impart on others, to embolden and reinforce them. Because I don't believe in gravity, and God help me, we're going to fly.

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"When you get to the end of all the light that you know and it's time to step into the darkness of the unknown, faith is knowing that one of two things shall happen: either you will be given something solid to stand on, or you will be taught how to fly." ~ Edward Teller ]]> *Steelpengu http://Steelpengu.deviantart.com/journal/21137256/ http://Steelpengu.deviantart.com/journal/21137256/ Fri, 24 Oct 2008 08:39:35 PDT
So today, I have slept in an extra hour and took a shower for the first time in several days (because when i get home I pop open my computer and keep working), and am doing laundry. It's better than a nap or food, it's a day in a controlled environment with my cat, my computer, and clean underwear.

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"When you get to the end of all the light that you know and it's time to step into the darkness of the unknown, faith is knowing that one of two things shall happen: either you will be given something solid to stand on, or you will be taught how to fly." ~ Edward Teller ]]> *Steelpengu http://Steelpengu.deviantart.com/journal/20317269/ http://Steelpengu.deviantart.com/journal/20317269/ Wed, 03 Sep 2008 23:42:21 PDT
It'll be interesting working with both of my leads, since they have very limited acting experience, as well as very different martial backgrounds. I keep emphasizing that they're interest in acting will dramatically increase after they see themselves failing miserably in the early footage. Behind the scenes we've got some solid people helping us out, and I don't doubt that more will join as we continually push the series beyond its constraints. Hopefully too, this music fest will open doors for the series as well. We're hoping that one of the bands we're contacting would be interested in performing the series theme song, as well as making potential appearances in it.

I swear I'll have real art sometime in the future. Maybe.

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"When you get to the end of all the light that you know and it's time to step into the darkness of the unknown, faith is knowing that one of two things shall happen: either you will be given something solid to stand on, or you will be taught how to fly." ~ Edward Teller ]]> *Steelpengu http://Steelpengu.deviantart.com/journal/19944814/ http://Steelpengu.deviantart.com/journal/19944814/ Thu, 14 Aug 2008 00:42:16 PDT
It's also one of the funniest things I've ever seen. It's Star Wars. It's the prequels. And Anakin's got a beef with... well... there's too much double entendre in this sentence already. If you've ever seen Clerks, or simply like people doing funny things to the prequels watch this.

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"When you get to the end of all the light that you know and it's time to step into the darkness of the unknown, faith is knowing that one of two things shall happen: either you will be given something solid to stand on, or you will be taught how to fly." ~ Edward Teller ]]> *Steelpengu http://Steelpengu.deviantart.com/journal/19457029/ http://Steelpengu.deviantart.com/journal/19457029/ Fri, 18 Jul 2008 01:48:32 PDT
And Heath's Joker is beat for beat how he's always been in my head. His mannerisms, his voice, his facial ticks. He was just exactly as he is in my mind's eye. If Johnny Depp can net a best actor nomination for Jack Sparrow (which while a great character, was ludicrous in my book), then Heath deserves a nomination for his Joker, who is an vastly more complicated and rich character.

The Dark Knight truly is a gigantic movie. Gigantic in scope, gigantic in it's moral quandries. It's so huge that I think it requires digesting, even to those who love it a first time out. It's a brutal, astounding, and shocking experience and not a movie for the light hearted or those who don't watch many horror movies. Now, to wait for their Return of the Jedi, which will hopefully bring the black soul of the Dark Knight together with the epic granduer of Batman Begins.

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"When you get to the end of all the light that you know and it's time to step into the darkness of the unknown, faith is knowing that one of two things shall happen: either you will be given something solid to stand on, or you will be taught how to fly." ~ Edward Teller ]]> *Steelpengu http://Steelpengu.deviantart.com/journal/19193350/ http://Steelpengu.deviantart.com/journal/19193350/ Thu, 03 Jul 2008 23:06:29 PDT
Update!
I realized recently that my commission link was broken. Well, not broken but it was linked to an older commission journal and I didn't realize it. It's now linked the right journal which is much cheaper.

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"When you get to the end of all the light that you know and it's time to step into the darkness of the unknown, faith is knowing that one of two things shall happen: either you will be given something solid to stand on, or you will be taught how to fly." ~ Edward Teller ]]> *Steelpengu http://Steelpengu.deviantart.com/journal/18645510/ http://Steelpengu.deviantart.com/journal/18645510/ Tue, 03 Jun 2008 13:30:36 PDT

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"When you get to the end of all the light that you know and it's time to step into the darkness of the unknown, faith is knowing that one of two things shall happen: either you will be given something solid to stand on, or you will be taught how to fly." ~ Edward Teller ]]> *Steelpengu http://Steelpengu.deviantart.com/journal/18450321/ http://Steelpengu.deviantart.com/journal/18450321/ Thu, 22 May 2008 16:06:14 PDT
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"When you get to the end of all the light that you know and it's time to step into the darkness of the unknown, faith is knowing that one of two things shall happen: either you will be given something solid to stand on, or you will be taught how to fly." ~ Edward Teller ]]> *Steelpengu http://Steelpengu.deviantart.com/journal/18243738/ http://Steelpengu.deviantart.com/journal/18243738/ Fri, 09 May 2008 14:58:19 PDT
Did I mention the film tears down cinematic boundaries like no tomorrow? I don't think a movie has been this creatively gutsy since the 60's when Breathless introduced the jump cut.

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"When you get to the end of all the light that you know and it's time to step into the darkness of the unknown, faith is knowing that one of two things shall happen: either you will be given something solid to stand on, or you will be taught how to fly." ~ Edward Teller ]]> *Steelpengu http://Steelpengu.deviantart.com/journal/18166459/ http://Steelpengu.deviantart.com/journal/18166459/ Sun, 04 May 2008 14:30:34 PDT
If only this were back in the days where sequels took priority in production after a successful venture.

I'm also really looking forward to the Incredible Hulk, too. I think since it's riding on the coat tails of Iron Man's roaring success it'll do pretty well in it's own right. And don't get me started on what will surely be the indominatable film of the summer, The Dark Knight. Every time I hear that pulsing, percussive theme from Begins I'm right back in the tumbler, ready for another ride.

Also, Forbidden Kingdom is fantastic, and that's even after a second viewing. This year is already off to a great summer movie season.

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"When you get to the end of all the light that you know and it's time to step into the darkness of the unknown, faith is knowing that one of two things shall happen: either you will be given something solid to stand on, or you will be taught how to fly." ~ Edward Teller ]]> *Steelpengu http://Steelpengu.deviantart.com/journal/17923469/ http://Steelpengu.deviantart.com/journal/17923469/ Sat, 19 Apr 2008 07:19:52 PDT
"Frank Miller? But "The Spirit" isn't about whores."

I can't stop laughing. Maybe because it's early and I barely slept.

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"When you get to the end of all the light that you know and it's time to step into the darkness of the unknown, faith is knowing that one of two things shall happen: either you will be given something solid to stand on, or you will be taught how to fly." ~ Edward Teller ]]> *Steelpengu http://Steelpengu.deviantart.com/journal/17882545/ http://Steelpengu.deviantart.com/journal/17882545/ Wed, 16 Apr 2008 15:09:43 PDT
Now, CHUD.com has been doing a series called "You've got it all wrong" about how 'great' movies have become horribly overblown past their time. "No Country" is a perfect candidate for that series right now. I've never seen such a overblown studen... I mean proffessional film. Never has a film been so pretentious and yet so shallow. Ever. You can give me a good talk about its issues of fate and violence, but I doubt you'd be able to win me over. I've read as many critiques and analysis of the film as I could find to see if I could find an argument to change my opinion, but no. It's all a bunch of bullshit. I've heard the argument that the film portends to examine how people deal with extreme violence. But the only thing I noticed was a lazy, unconcerened sheriff reading the newspaper and shooting the breeze, and a self-absorbed, too young looking to be retired or aging vietnam vet who proves time and again how much he's a douche. Neither man deals with anything.

All the characters spend their time haphazardly roaming between scenes like ships in the night, oblivious to what is going on. The drug money is just a macguffin, but so was the plot. It's like the film makers sat down as said "we want to say 'X' but we'll throw everyone off by shooting 'Z' and then we'll really mess them up by overly putting focus on 'Y'" and byt the time it all comes back to 'X' you just plain don't care anymore. My favorite part was the very beginning and the very end. Everything else just felt so scatterbrained and empty of any amount of tension or creativity. It's like the Keanu Reeves or Tom Cruise syndrom, where Tom Cruise is always playing Tom Cruise playing at being a race car driver/secret agent/ f-15 pilot.

It feels like the whole movie is playing at being a movie that's playing at being an artsy neo-Hitchcockian thriller. It has all the ideas and all the stylistic elements in place but they're just imitation, like I'm watching someone pretending to do what they think Hitchcock would do, rather than just doing it. There was just no substance in the film. None. It gives the impression of self reflection but instead comes off as indulgence. I was really looking forward to seeing it back in theaters but never got a chance. If someone on here wants to try and defend it to me go ahead. I would very much like to be able to enjoy the movie, but I just thought it was shallow, stupid, and misguided.

Gone Baby Gone on the other hand, while it didn't completely blow me out of the water either, presented very interesting arguments and issues. In some ways what you get on screen isn't really any more compelling than an episode of CSI, but the film's meditative moments really help it be better than that. Anyone can have the know how to point a camera and methodically go through shooting over the shoulder shots, establishing shots, etc. I find 90% of cinematography really generic and uninspired. Gone Baby Gone suffers from that from time to time. I end up thinking "okay, so what makes this any different than eight dozen other movies out there."

What keeps Gone Baby Gone afloat is what my friend Ross termed "a good moral quandry." The film really makes you realize why Michelle Monaghan's character doesn't want to get involved with the central plot. At first you think, come on, it's the right thing to do. who's it going to hurt? And very soon, during a sequence in a bar, you start thinking about the collateral. About how Affleck's character lives in this neighborhood, about how every toe he steps on knows where he lives too, about how he doesn't have a police force or a badge backing him. And slowly his character gets sucked into this quicksand pit of good intentions. We always think about how if we saw someone in trouble we'd go help. But we wouldn't. Be honest here. If you saw a guy hold a gun on someone, or pull a knife, or threaten them, you will 99% of the time mind your own damn business. It's self preservation. If you help that person out, you could could get hurt, killed, robbed, raped, maimed. You can go on living peaceably with your own life if you let the crime happen and pass.

Casey Affleck's character embodies the part of us that says 'yeah we'd help our fellow man in need!' but his girlfriend, Michelle Monaghan's character, represents the reality of it. And the whole film, while not always spoken out loud, is an argument between those two aspects of our nature. However, the argument is often posted out loud, through conversation and debate. This is a point that I'm fence posted about since it can be forced at times, like it just reads to clearly that 'this is the conversation where we discuss the moral of the story.' However, they are some good conversations so I'll let them slide. In the end, no good deed goes unpunished and Casey Affleck has to tak... ]]> *Steelpengu http://Steelpengu.deviantart.com/journal/17818837/ http://Steelpengu.deviantart.com/journal/17818837/ Sat, 12 Apr 2008 18:03:37 PDT
The article: [link]
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"When you get to the end of all the light that you know and it's time to step into the darkness of the unknown, faith is knowing that one of two things shall happen: either you will be given something solid to stand on, or you will be taught how to fly." ~ Edward Teller ]]> *Steelpengu http://Steelpengu.deviantart.com/journal/17740889/ http://Steelpengu.deviantart.com/journal/17740889/ Mon, 07 Apr 2008 23:53:22 PDT
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"When you get to the end of all the light that you know and it's time to step into the darkness of the unknown, faith is knowing that one of two things shall happen: either you will be given something solid to stand on, or you will be taught how to fly." ~ Edward Teller ]]> *Steelpengu http://Steelpengu.deviantart.com/journal/17580590/ http://Steelpengu.deviantart.com/journal/17580590/ Sat, 29 Mar 2008 21:17:53 PDT
I've also been really... not hungry for art. I've been pretty mellow lately, but suffering from a strange tinge of sadness whenever things calm down. I don't know what it is. I was super depressed a few weeks back, but then I realized I hadn't actually seen another human being in over a month. Fixed that. I've got a lot going for me right now, so it's not my prospects. I guess it's just been the general absence of people. Stupid people.

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"When you get to the end of all the light that you know and it's time to step into the darkness of the unknown, faith is knowing that one of two things shall happen: either you will be given something solid to stand on, or you will be taught how to fly." ~ Edward Teller ]]> *Steelpengu http://Steelpengu.deviantart.com/journal/17564937/ http://Steelpengu.deviantart.com/journal/17564937/ Fri, 28 Mar 2008 21:36:09 PDT
Maybe I should start wearing a mask when I ink.

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"When you get to the end of all the light that you know and it's time to step into the darkness of the unknown, faith is knowing that one of two things shall happen: either you will be given something solid to stand on, or you will be taught how to fly." ~ Edward Teller ]]> *Steelpengu http://Steelpengu.deviantart.com/journal/17534126/ http://Steelpengu.deviantart.com/journal/17534126/ Wed, 26 Mar 2008 23:27:23 PDT
I'm going back to drawing a new Vampire Hunter D pic, which I've spent sometime figuring out an approach to the character that works for me. It's been years since I felt comfortable drawing D. He used to be a pet subject since I was a big Amano emulator back in high school. Taught me a lot and helped me break down a lot of artistic barriers, personally. But that style doesn't even begin to translate to what I do now. I actually ended up recalling some old instruction sheets for the Batman Animated Series for the animators and how to handle the new animation style. The language on the sheets always cracked me up because they rather specifically say that Batman does certain things "because they look cool." But what they did with that series is not only strip Batman of his details, but also strip his character down to what worked and only what worked. So I've started thinking the same about D: Expressing with his eyes intead of with his face, focusing on his form and shape instead of the gaudy jewelry and gear Amano always dresses him up with. What does D need with all that jewelry anyway? I mean, the guy barely takes an interest in anything but is work and his immediate health needs. I'd imagine if anything he'd have gear for supplies and such. Stuff he never uses but buys in case he needs it. There's even instances to support that notion in the books, like one time left hand remarks about an expired medical kit he has that he bought and never used.

Also, what's with the superhero cape? The first book clearly says coat. Which to me reads travelers cloak or a duster. Amano's art supports that notion making it look like a sleevless old Victorian coat, like what Peter Cushing would wear in The Horror of Dracula. But in VHD: Bloodlust it's almost nothing more than a cape. And what the hell is D wearing in that movie? Latex? I mean, I appreciate the more streamlined version of his design, but he seemed almost too naked. Oh well, I know the author liked the movie, so what do I know? I like the movie, it's gorgeous. I'm just making notes here. my line of thinking is usually that the first film captures the just how foreign and weird D's world is, as well as how rustic and haggard. It was very much a Hammer horror movie animated. It had the same odd pacing and stiff acting and archetypal designs. While Bloodlust captured the granduer and elegance of the nobility, as well as D's fights. I mean, the animation is smoother, but the very literal depiction of the world as sort of western really irked me. It's like they didn't even try to interpret the material. I like both movies for entirely different reasons. But I think I tend to speak more highly of the original simply for it's bolder artistic vision. That and despite that Bloodlsust touts itself as being derived from Amano's art, the original movie was designed by Amano personally. Something a lot of people seem to not realize. So there.

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"When you get to the end of all the light that you know and it's time to step into the darkness of the unknown, faith is knowing that one of two things shall happen: e... ]]> *Steelpengu http://Steelpengu.deviantart.com/journal/17364482/ http://Steelpengu.deviantart.com/journal/17364482/ Sun, 16 Mar 2008 14:16:56 PDT
From an acting perspective, Rhona Mitra is everything Millia Jovovich has been trying to play for the last ten years. I.e. a bad ass. She's got the chiseled features and amazing bod of Kate Beckinsale, but with a face and attitude that's all business. She plays her role as the Major with Kurt Russel efficiency. I was frequently reminded of two of Masamune Shirow's lead females Major Kusanagi and Duenan Knute while watching her. She's got the Major's hair and emotional distance, with Duenan's hidden softness and tough girl badassery. Despite her near dead pan delivery of her character she's addictive to watch because where other heroes hesitate or think twice she goes straight for the balls.

Speaking of, the action is brutal, while never being as splattery as Marshall's "Dog Soldiers," though a little over edited in a few places. I was expecting something a bit more gory, but that doesn't mean I wasn't satisfied. It's still not a subtle movie. It's kind of the antithesis of The Descent, it's characters are light, the action is fast, the plot is simple. It's high on style and it doesn't spend time plumbing its depth. And honestly, I couldn't recommend the movie more, especially to people who remember the good old days when you couldn't swing a dead cat without hitting a knock off of "The Road Warrior" or "Escape from New York" or "Conan." Sure there was genuine crap in the lot, but then there were inspired bits like what "Doomsday" is. Full of freedom and creative energy, exercises in pure genre havoc.

Unfortunately, this little gem of bad ass has been released in jack theaters, while piles of mammoth shit like "10,000 B.C." get massive releases. Well, I'll tell you what, if you want the real deal see "Doomsday" and let the cavemen go extinct again. Nothing would tickle me more than to see Doomsday top the charts over "10,000."

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"When you get to the end of all the light that you know and it's time to step into the darkness of the unknown, faith is knowing that one of two things shall happen: either you will be given something solid to stand on, or you will be taught how to fly." ~ Edward Teller ]]> *Steelpengu http://Steelpengu.deviantart.com/journal/17341427/ http://Steelpengu.deviantart.com/journal/17341427/ Sat, 15 Mar 2008 04:00:13 PDT
I know you spent some time with Eisner, interviewing him and what not, during his later years and that you love the man to death. But, while I don't have an issue with your creative decision to beef up Ellen's character... WTF. I can only say that I'm thankful you had the good sense to listen to those meddling women in your life who apparently taught you lessons in feminine power that you only just realized. And again, I find myself laughing at you, laughing with you, that only you could be so incredibly derogatory and at the same time so appreciative of women. There are days when I wonder if you ever get your own joke. I'm pretty sure you do. I think Dark Knight Strikes Again is evidence of this. Either that or a horrible confirmation of the negative.

In either case, it takes a good director to listen to his producer and let his actors guide him, to rein in his crazy ideas if he doesn't already have a built in bullshit meter. So, while I was at first striken by horror, I know find myself rather curious again of your adaption of "The Spirit." Perhaps, what inkers and editors have put up with for years might be undone in some small way by Hollywood women. They may be looser, but they're a helluva lot meaner.

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"When you get to the end of all the light that you know and it's time to step into the darkness of the unknown, faith is knowing that one of two things shall happen: either you will be given something solid to stand on, or you will be taught how to fly." ~ Edward Teller ]]> *Steelpengu http://Steelpengu.deviantart.com/journal/17265402/ http://Steelpengu.deviantart.com/journal/17265402/ Mon, 10 Mar 2008 02:18:10 PDT
only it sounds more like whurrrk. more of a strain on the "er" sound.

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"When you get to the end of all the light that you know and it's time to step into the darkness of the unknown, faith is knowing that one of two things shall happen: either you will be given something solid to stand on, or you will be taught how to fly." ~ Edward Teller ]]> *Steelpengu http://Steelpengu.deviantart.com/journal/17155866/ http://Steelpengu.deviantart.com/journal/17155866/ Sun, 02 Mar 2008 20:22:02 PST
MY COMMISSION INFORMATION!
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In Memoriam:
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"When you get to the end of all the light that you know and it's time to step into the darkness of the unknown, faith is knowing that one of two things shall happen: either you will be given something solid to stand on, or you will be taught how to fly." ~ Edward Teller ]]> *Steelpengu http://Steelpengu.deviantart.com/journal/17048396/ http://Steelpengu.deviantart.com/journal/17048396/ Sun, 24 Feb 2008 19:59:18 PST
I went on a little vigilante spree, recently.

I watched the original 70's Death Wish, with Charles Bronson and the newer film based on that novel's sequel, Death Sentence, with Kevin Bacon.

Death Wish was pretty watered down from age, not nearly the brutal, exploitative feature it was when it premiered. However, despite some hammy acting from its supporting cast, I really thought it was an interesting feature. It had a lot of mood and very desolate cinematography. And Charles Bronson's protrayal of the conflicted but empowered man avenging himself upon the criminal populace of New York for the assault and murder of his wife and daughter was really engaging. The film's biggest fault to me was that it always felt a little... by the numbers at points. The shot design passes up opportunities to construct images relevant to the characters emotions or situation, and instead settle on over-the-shoulder shots and straight ons. While at points the cinematography excels at prividing a grit and a realism to it, nigh documentary like at points, it just feels like it lacks ambition.

Morally I found it very interesting in that it's not the perpetrators that Bronson's character hunts down, but rather, more realistically, it's whatever element of crime that he comes across or, later, begins to lure to him. So the film remains rather morally ambiguous, it doesn't have that kill the bad guy and everything is better attitude. I also really dug on how his actions affected city politics, as well as the mindset of citizens.

Death Sentence on the other hand was also pretty good. Kevin Bacon's performance was stellar. It ended up being less of a vigilante film and more about the consequences of violence. I kept reading reviews talking about all the shooting and frankly, I think they're full of bull. There's barely any "shooting" until the finale, and even then. The film's message was much more straight arrowed than Death Wish's, and according to the original author of both books, Brian Garfield, more in line with the message of both Death books. My biggest qualm, which is also one of the films strengths, was that it gave the protagonist a villain to slay. And while the film made it work, it still made the morality far more black and white. It had a very clear: this is good, this is bad, but we feel better that he shot teh bad guy. Unlike Death Wish, where there is no bad guy, just a man trying to find solace in the hopes one of the muggers he kills was the one who wronged him.

Sentence suffered most to me, from its very modern approach to wringing emotion out of the viewer. It left me rather cold and annoyed at points, when the emo-pop music starts to play when you're supposed to feel bad or something. It just killed it. The film's score was really good and I don't think the actor's needed any help. The weakest actor of the bunch was the detective lady, who had the vocal range of cardboard and stern cardboard. But that's okay, because she wasn't the focus. John Goodman was in the movie, too, and he was suitably unsettling and rather captivating in his performance. He really gets your attention in the scenes he's in.

Between Sentence and Wish, Sentence was a lot more conscious of it's metaphorical dynamic. As I said about Wish passing up opportunities of relevance for a straigh delivery of plot, Sentence constructs itself with poetic ironies and self awareness. I particularly appreciated the under current of father's and sons, as well as the Taxi Driver motif at the end. Death Wish was really a one man show, in that respect. It was all about Bronson and his pain and how he deals with it. Sentence was more about the family unit as a whole and a father's responsibilities. The only family member who has enough screen time in Death Wish to empathize with is Bronson's son-in-law who is such a pansy and a douche it really just further encourages the audiences' desire to see Bronson pick up that pistol and start popping off some muggers.

Frankly, I think that's what we pay to see though. Audiences haven't changed much in history and we've always paid to see our slaughter. Just now we like to pretend it's not the slaughter but the moral we're paying to see. Between the two, Sentence has the better pay off, but Wish is simply more violent through out. Sentence isn't terribly violent, though. I mean, the ending is pretty heavy on the blood and thunder, but it has about as much total violence as Martin Scorcese's Taxi Driver did. Both films though really do give you that itch, though, in the back of your mind, the one that gets you angry about crime and the wrongs done in the world. Regardless of their moral messages, I think both movies prove equally that we don't like fair treatment of wrong doers, we just want to shoot them. And in some way, that is fair treatment, in the Death logic that is. *Steelpengu http://Steelpengu.deviantart.com/journal/16945763/ http://Steelpengu.deviantart.com/journal/16945763/ Mon, 18 Feb 2008 12:37:22 PST
Unfortunately, Sunday night I ended up with immobilizing stomach pain, gas, cramps, dizzyness, and threw up with such force and velocity that my vomit didn't just throw up but sprayed. You could even still see whole pieces of dinner in it. Pretty cool and pretty gross at the same time. After a few hours of curling up in a ball under some covers on an inflatable mattress and hugging a bottle of pepto like it was my lover I got better. The fact that I emptied the entire content of my stomach in three seconds probably helped. My doctor thinks I migh have either ulcers, be getting ulcers or could have gall stones. So, many tests are on the way. I told my doctor I don't test well. He laughed.

"When you get to the end of all the light that you know and it's time to step into the darkness of the unknown, faith is knowing that one of two things shall happen: either you will be given something solid to stand on, or you will be taught how to fly." ~ Edward Teller

In Memoriam:
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COMMISSION ME! I DRAW STOOF FOR YOU!!!!!!!
here!--> [link] <--- here! ]]> *Steelpengu http://Steelpengu.deviantart.com/journal/16878169/ http://Steelpengu.deviantart.com/journal/16878169/ Thu, 14 Feb 2008 09:14:16 PST
"When you get to the end of all the light that you know and it's time to step into the darkness of the unknown, faith is knowing that one of two things shall happen: either you will be given something solid to stand on, or you will be taught how to fly." ~ Edward Teller

In Memoriam:
[link]

COMMISSION ME! I DRAW STOOF FOR YOU!!!!!!!
here!--> [link] <--- here! ]]> *Steelpengu http://Steelpengu.deviantart.com/journal/16765046/ http://Steelpengu.deviantart.com/journal/16765046/ Thu, 07 Feb 2008 05:41:20 PST
Character Portraits:

Character Portrait (lines): 10 bucks
Character Portrait (rendered): 15 bucks
Character portrait (color): 20 bucks
Character Portrait (really nice colors):25 bucks

Full body character stuff:

Full Body (lines): 15 bucks
Full body (rendered): 20
Full body (colors): 25
Full body (noice colors) 30

Big stuff, like scenes and what not:
Two characters, no background: 30 - 50 bucks, depends on what you want
three or more: 50 - 100+ you're asking for a wallet dent if it's something that'll take me more than a weekend.

So that's about it. Prices may vary based on specifics, but what's there is largely what it'll be. I have a pay pal account. NOTE ME I can work very fa$t when prompted properly.

Also, I have a commission contract for freelance work that I'll adapt to each commission as needed.

And don't forget! You can buy "A Life of Ravens" from Amazon.com, featuring numerous illustrations from yours truly as well as many other talented artists!

"When you get to the end of all the light that you know and it's time to step into the darkness of the unknown, faith is knowing that one of two things shall happen: either you will be given something solid to stand on, or you will be taught how to fly." ~ Edward Teller

In Memoriam:
[link]

COMMISSION ME! I DRAW STOOF FOR YOU!!!!!!!
here!--> [link] <--- here! ]]> *Steelpengu http://Steelpengu.deviantart.com/journal/16125186/ http://Steelpengu.deviantart.com/journal/16125186/ Thu, 27 Dec 2007 14:26:01 PST
"When you get to the end of all the light that you know and it's time to step into the darkness of the unknown, faith is knowing that one of two things shall happen: either you will be given something solid to stand on, or you will be taught how to fly." ~ Edward Teller

In Memoriam:
[link]

COMMISSION ME! I DRAW STOOF FOR YOU!!!!!!!
here!--> [link] <--- here! ]]> *Steelpengu http://Steelpengu.deviantart.com/journal/15922016/ http://Steelpengu.deviantart.com/journal/15922016/ Thu, 13 Dec 2007 18:29:14 PST [link]

and go show some love to my man, Steve at

"When you get to the end of all the light that you know and it's time to step into the darkness of the unknown, faith is knowing that one of two things shall happen: either you will be given something solid to stand on, or you will be taught how to fly." ~ Edward Teller

In Memoriam:
[link]

COMMISSION ME! I DRAW STOOF FOR YOU!!!!!!!
here!--> [link] <--- here! ]]> *Steelpengu http://Steelpengu.deviantart.com/journal/15732986/ http://Steelpengu.deviantart.com/journal/15732986/ Fri, 30 Nov 2007 16:29:52 PST
But it's that art which seems designed for the gallery that makes my stomach turn. That work which is as though the artist merely painted by numbers some washy still life or smudgy abstract. I'm particularly harsh on still lifes. Often enough I just want to hand the artist a disposable camera and tell them to take a photo next time. I mean, great, you're an excellent copyist. I do a good impression of Jim Carey. But can you do that's, well, you? Frankly, good art, to me, is about creation and creativity. There is no creativity beyond materials in the world of the still life. How you handle the interpretation of the still life is the boundary in which creativity lies. So what of all those dandy watercolor flower vases then? Those I've nothing better to do with my time than take community art classes and show off my work to my rich friends? I grew up with art like that around me, and the older I get the more contemptuous I grow of it.

See? That's why I really don't belong in a gallery. I'd just piss everyone off. I mean, this one time I was talking with this fellow who's a local artist and some local art agent about my work, right? And the agent lady is talking about opportunities to get myself out there ans such, and I'm wearing my 'Cthulhu is my homeboy' t-shirt with a comic book in my hand and the artist asks me "What do I paint?" HA HA HA! WHAT DO I PAINT! I looked him square in the eye and replied "I don't." The look on his face was priceless. His first assumption was that I painted. He didn't ask me what kind of art I did, he asked me if I painted! Do I paint. Pheh.
__________
addendum

I think it should be made clear that I frankly have no issue with galleries per say, more that I have issue with the art culture that thrives in their petry dish. I get an e-mail flyer from a gallery for a small works exhibition and all I have to do is take one look at their sample pieces to realize I wouldn't be wanted there. But that's just it, where is there a gallery for the kind of art I do? How about the kind of art Neolucky does? Or Sally-Avernier? Or even Vegasmike? I mean, sure some of those folks have a kind of venue, but there isn't a gallery, a real, traditional art setting for them to get the respect their hardwork deserves. The internet, you could argue is that gallery, but it lacks the culutural support that traditional galleries offer.

Also, I said "Frank Frazetta" in my high school art room today, and the kid next to me said "Who's that?"

"When you get to the end of all the light that you know and it's time to step into the darkness of the unknown, faith is knowing that one of two things shall happen: either you will be given something solid to stand on, or you will be taught how to fly." ~ Edward Teller

In Memoriam:
[link]

COMMISSION ME! I DRAW STOOF FOR YOU!!!!!!!
here!--> [link] <--- here! ]]> *Steelpengu http://Steelpengu.deviantart.com/journal/15209242/ http://Steelpengu.deviantart.com/journal/15209242/ Wed, 24 Oct 2007 22:31:48 PDT
Character Portraits:

Character Portrait (lines): 15 bucks
Character Portrait (rendered): 20 bucks
Character portrait (color): 20 bucks
Character Portrait (really nice colors): 40 bucks

Full body character stuff:

Full Body (lines): 20 bucks
Full body (rendered): 30
Full body (colors): 30
Full body (noice colors) 45

Big stuff, like scenes and what not:
Two characters, no background: 40 - 75 bucks, depends on what you want
three or more: 50 - 100+ you're asking for a wallet dent if it's something that'll take me more than a weekend.

So that's about it. Prices may vary based on specifics, but what's there is largely what it'll be. I have a pay pal account. NOTE ME I can work very fast when prompted properly.

And don't forget! You can buy "A Life of Ravens" from Amazon.com, featuring numerous illustrations from yours truly as well as many other talented artists!

"When you get to the end of all the light that you know and it's time to step into the darkness of the unknown, faith is knowing that one of two things shall happen: either you will be given something solid to stand on, or you will be taught how to fly." ~ Edward Teller

In Memoriam:
[link] ]]> *Steelpengu http://Steelpengu.deviantart.com/journal/15208614/ http://Steelpengu.deviantart.com/journal/15208614/ Wed, 24 Oct 2007 21:23:40 PDT
"When you get to the end of all the light that you know and it's time to step into the darkness of the unknown, faith is knowing that one of two things shall happen: either you will be given something solid to stand on, or you will be taught how to fly." ~ Edward Teller

In Memoriam:
[link] ]]> *Steelpengu http://Steelpengu.deviantart.com/journal/15091940/ http://Steelpengu.deviantart.com/journal/15091940/ Tue, 16 Oct 2007 18:04:52 PDT
I just got my two personal copies of 'A Life of Ravens' in the mail today! For those of you who don't know, 'Ravens' is a book I contributed illustrations too back in December. All in all I'm pretty pleased with how everything turned out. I know it was a harried process and really put a lot of pressure on Bob (Giadrosich, also a Deviant!). He had to do the layouts himself which, for better or worse manage. I wish I hadn't had school to contend with at the time, otherwise I would have offered to help share the load. It's a pretty neat little book and comes at a damn sweet price for the 140 some odd pages of art and poetry contained within.

So head over to Amazon or follow the [link]d_bbs_sr_1/002-3955804-4436800?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1192579036&sr=8-1 and pick up a copy! Help get it out there and maybe that'll mean more work for me!!! Ha ha!

Also, I'm open for commissions. Note me any time about it and we'll see what we can do. I adjust price based on picture content, details and so forth. Really dense stuff tops out at 75 bucks or higher. So that's kind of the end cap. Most work, I imagine will be below that.

And for those of you out there YES my black and white work my be colored by you. If you want to give it a shot let me know! I've got large scale original scans I can send you if you want!

AUTOBOTS! TRANSFORM AND ROLL OUT!

"When you get to the end of all the light that you know and it's time to step into the darkness of the unknown, faith is knowing that one of two things shall happen: either you will be given something solid to stand on, or you will be taught how to fly." ~ Edward Teller

In Memoriam:
[link] ]]> *Steelpengu http://Steelpengu.deviantart.com/journal/14720810/ http://Steelpengu.deviantart.com/journal/14720810/ Thu, 20 Sep 2007 20:11:06 PDT . So I figured I'd remedy that and point you all to THIS:

We talked about doing this years ago, and apparently she'd done a couple of half finished versions off and on, but a few nights ago she and I stayed up and hammered it out. She suffered my suggestions and critiques. I suffered her AMAZINGLY FAST COLORING SKILLZ. Holy crap, she is a friggin' machine. Any way, Samus for the win!

"When you get to the end of all the light that you know and it's time to step into the darkness of the unknown, faith is knowing that one of two things shall happen: either you will be given something solid to stand on, or you will be taught how to fly." ~ Edward Teller

In Memoriam:
[link] ]]> *Steelpengu http://Steelpengu.deviantart.com/journal/14662145/ http://Steelpengu.deviantart.com/journal/14662145/ Sun, 16 Sep 2007 15:42:39 PDT [link] does it seriously get any better?

"When you get to the end of all the light that you know and it's time to step into the darkness of the unknown, faith is knowing that one of two things shall happen: either you will be given something solid to stand on, or you will be taught how to fly." ~ Edward Teller

In Memoriam:
[link] ]]> *Steelpengu