What do you think?

I picked up a new scanner today, and decided to re-post a picture I've already put on this blog, along with the same picture, taken with the new scanner. If you click both pictures, it becomes pretty obvious which picture came from which scanner. The top picture is kind of blotchy and faded, while the the bottom pic is darker and smoother, and looks a lot closer to how it looked in the Outsiders comic book I pulled it from. I'm still fooling around and tweaking things when it comes to the new scanner, but all in all, I'm pretty happy with the initial results.

What can I even say?

Sometimes a picture is worth a thousand words!

When you just have to post something...

Whew, I just finished typing a 7-page history paper on the year 1968(don't ask)and checked out the blogs I follow for any new content. Every night I always check out the blogs I follow before I even check my own blog out for any new comments. That's probably my favorite thing about this whole "blogging" experience, finding you few like-minded individuals who are willing to dedicate an inordinate amount of time talking about comic books! Anyway, it's getting pretty late and I've got to be up early tomorrow, so I figured I'd just take a random picture from my computer and post it with little to no explanation. For the record, I've scanned 851 pics to my computer so far. Using Random.org's random number generator, I'll be posting picture #359!
Hell, with Roy Harper, there was like a 50% chance I'd have gotten a picture of him making out with some woman! That dude must have swapped spit(among other things...)with like half the women in the DCU!

Post #201 for 2009!

I didn't realize that my last post was #200 for the year. So, in celebration of reaching that lofty number, here's a knock down, drag out, dirty fight between Nightwing and Arsenal from the old Outsiders comic book. Remember, these two are actually close friends! With that said, I'd hate to be one of their enemies!

Only 799 more posts to go to reach my goal of 1,000 posts for the year!

That Damn Red Arrow!

You know, sadly this scene really doesn't surprise me at all... Roy just seems like the kind of guy who'd snake your girlfriend right out from under you.

The MANY trick arrows of Oliver Queen.

OK, so between classes I've been reading through Showcase Presents: The Green Arrow Volume 1. First off, this tpb is HILARIOUS! I love the old, super dramatic, 1950's way of comic book storytelling, and that is in full effect here. Thus far, I've read about 18 different GA stories. I just wanted to list the MANY trick arrows Ollie(or other archers)has used so far in this tpb. Luminescent Arrow- Illuminates a target

Vine Arrow- Releases a vine to wrap up a target

"Big Ben" Arrow- A time bomb arrow

Lava Arrow- Duh, it spews lava

Jujitsu Arrow- Grabs someone with a "Jujitsu leg hold", whatever that means...

Heli-Spotter Arrow- A mirror arrow that rotates in the air

Spotter Arrow- Places a falcon's hood over someone

Boxing Glove Arrow- THE famous arrow with a boxing glove attached

Flashlight Arrow- Shines some light on a situation

Rope Arrow- Helps GA and Speedy reach lofty heights, or wraps up their enemies

Umbrella Arrow- It's an umbrella attached to an arrow... What more can I say?

Mummy Arrow- Wraps up foes in mummy wrapping

Boomerang Arrow- Usually used to grab stolen loot and bring it back to GA

Rain Arrow- An arrow with a shower head attached...

Cable Arrow- Used to wrap up heavy objects with steel cable

Cocoon Arrow- An arrow that weaves a cocoon around a target

Jet Arrow- A jet powered arrow

Firecracker Arrows- Used to blow up small objects

Chain Arrow- Wraps a chain around an opponent

Acetylene Arrow- Produces cold, harmless heat

Balloon Arrow- Explodes to distract GA's foes

Plastic-Net Arrow- Wraps someone/thing up in a gooey plastic net

Parachute Arrow- Produces a small parachute when fired

Short-Circuit Arrow- Short circuit's electrical objects

Aqua-Lung Arrow- Used to breath underwater...

Radio Arrow- Allows GA to communicate with others via a two way radio

Fountain Pen Arrow- Leaves a trail of ink behind an object

Dry-Ice Arrow- Leaves a trail of dry ice

Flare Arrow- Lets up a warning flare

Two Stage Rocket Arrow-??? I read the comic and I don't know what it did!

Net Arrow- Unfurls a net over someone/thing

Siren Arrow- Lets out a loud scream

Drift Wood Arrow- Arrows that have drift wood attached to the ends

Tear Gas Arrow- Releases a barrage of tear gas

Smoke Screen Arrow- Releases a blinding wave of smoke

Arrow-Bomb- A bomb attached to an arrow

Arrow-Mine- A underwater mine attached to an arrow

Fan Arrow- Fires a fan that disperses any smoke around

Drill Arrow- An arrow with a drill head attached

Fake Uranium Arrow- Gives off waves that simulate radiation... OOOOOK...

Bazooka Arrow- Arrows that explode like bazooka shells

Oven Arrow- Causes an object to become red hot

Ink Arrows- Arrows that explode with ink

Ring Arrow- Wraps a ring around GA's foes

Tumbleweed Arrows- Fires tumbleweeds that stir up dirt and sand. NOW, I've seen it all...

Hoop Arrow- Form a hoop to wrap up someone

Sun Arrow- Causes a ball of blinding light

Gun Arrows- Arrows that fire bullets

Ice Cutting Arrow- An arrow that, you guessed it, cuts through ice

Avalanche Arrow- An arrow with a snowball attached, which could create a snow slide on a hill

Harpoon Arrow- Used to harpoon objects out at sea

Buzz-Saw Arrow- Cuts through any tree

Antler Arrow- An arrow with moose antlers attached... Why???

Handcuff Arrow- Fires an arrow with handcuffs attached

That's a lot of trick arrows, and I'm not even half-way through this tpb yet!!!!! Where does Ollie find the time to create these arrows AND fight crime? And why would anybody need an Antler Arrow?!?!

Fun with Cheshire.

Well, I'll say one thing about getting involved with Cheshire, it'll never be boring!

Batman and Arsenal.

Two quick questions. #1, is Roy Harper crazy or what? Roy, that's BATMAN! Watch what you're saying man! And #2, why the HELL is Batman's cape saying "Daddy!"???

My feelings exactly!

Hey, this image pretty much sums up my feelings towards the entire Secret Invasion concept!
Boy, this blog is probably going to have alot of negative reviews on it by the end of the week... By then, I should have received and read the rest of the Secret Invasion storyline. I wonder just how angry the end of that ridiculous crossover is going to make me...

Some comic book lovin'

Since I'm in a good mood due to the impending end of my college semester, I figured I throw out some pictures of heroes who also seem to be in pretty good moods!

Back in a more innocent time...

Things were sure kind of weird back in the day... Why would millionaire Oliver Queen and his teenaged ward Roy Harper be sleeping in the same bed??? It's kind of funny looking back on a scene like this and realizing that back when this picture originally ran, nobody probably thought twice about it. Boy, how times have changed!

Green Arrow (series 2[?]) #33

Overall- I really enjoyed this comic book. I guess that's no surprise, because I really like the characters of Oliver Queen and Roy Harper. This comic deals with Ollie and Roy's last mission together, while Roy was still Speedy, after the whole Roy/heroin issue. Man, was Roy pissed at Ollie during this mission, and rightfully so. After Roy and Ollie beat the bad guy's, Roy quits their partnership, and out of spite, Ollie blows up the Arrowcar(God, do I love that name!).

Anyway, in the present, Mia, alerts Ollie to the fact that someone is claiming to have the Arrowcar, and is selling it on an online auction. Ollie acts like he doesn't care, but he does some detective work and finds out that it is really the Arrowcar. Mia and some f-list villain named the Scavenger both bid on the Arrowcar, but they both lose out to a certain Bat-billionaire from Gotham City.

Bats, of course leaves the Arrowcar for Ollie, and as Ollie and Mia go to pick it up, Scavenger attacks. Scavenger, being an f-level villain is defeated in quick order, and Ollie drives the Arrowcar home... or not. The Arrowcar breaks down, and rather then allowing it to fall into the wrong hands, Ollie blows it up, this time for good. After returning home, Ollie gives Roy a call to reminisce about the Arrowcar, as well as the better times he had with Roy.

As always, I loved the interaction between Roy and Ollie, especially after Roy kicking his heroin addiction, with no help from Ollie. Roy was just nasty to Ollie, and deep down, Ollie knew he deserved Roy's wraith. The relationship between Ollie and Roy is one of the deepest and multifaceted ones in all of comic books, and whenever it is explored, I am very happy. This comic gets a 7 1/2 out of 10 from me.

Ahhh, the 80's...

Sorry about the lousy picture quality, but anyone who doesn't appreciate Roy Harper's(Red Arrow) fashion sense is CRAZY! In case you can't tell, I'm being VERY sarcastic. Seriously though, did people really dress like THAT in the 80's?!?! Just take a moment to take it all in... Now, I'm no fashion snob, I basically walk around in a t-shirt and jeans year round, but Roy's outfit is just plain hideous! Cheshire isn't looking much better...

That blasted junkie Speedy!

This is one of my all time favorite images in comic book history, only because of the reactions of Hal and Ollie. Ollie is in obvious shock, because since it's Ollie we're talking about, he misses all the signs of Roy's ongoing drug abuse. Hal on the other hand is just one mean SOB here! Hal just seems totally unfazed by Roy shooting up and rips into Ollie. Remind me to never piss off Mr. Jordan...
Ollie being the kind hearted and forgiving individual he is(Yeah right!!)deals with this revelation by trying to knock the drugs out of Roy... Sorry Ollie, that's not quite how it works...
Finally, Ollie has enough of physically abusing Roy and throws him out to live on the streets with the rest of the "sniveling punks" . Speaking of a mean, cold-hearted SOB...
Anyway, Hal, feeling badly for Speedy, tracks him down living in an alley near a dumpster and takes him to Black Canary, since as Hal puts it, "I don't have any experience in helping someone with your problem." Why would Hal think that Dinah has experience in helping recovering junkies??!! That's really typical of Ollie and Hal back in the day, when they didn't want to deal with something, they'd dump it in Dinah's lap!
Thanks to Dinah's efforts and care, Roy is able to cure his addiction cold turkey, putting poor Dinah through hell in the process. Ollie, ever the idiot, decides that since Roy isn't an addict anymore, everything is fine again, even though he abandoned Roy, and forced him to LIVE ON THE STREETS! Roy, understandably doesn't forgive Ollie and gives him a well deserved shot to the face. It would take many years for the wounds between Ollie and his ward, Roy to heal. To this day, Roy is still much closer to "Uncle" Hal and Dinah thanks to them helping him through his most trying period.

Wow, this story was pretty heavy stuff for comic books back in the early 70's! I can't believe that the Comic Code Authority would even allow a story like this to see the light of day. Denny O'Neil and Neal Adams really put together a great story, and everyone should definitely try to get their hands on these issues(I wound up picking them up in a TPB)if they haven't already. It was really fascinating to see the way each character interacted with each other and themselves, concerning Roy's addiction.

Oliver Queen, Parent of the Year???

For anybody wondering why Roy Harper turned out to be the womanizing, flirtatious, at times loose cannon he is today, just remember who had a large hand in his upbringing. I can't help but laugh at Ollie's "sage" advice to his 16 year old ward!

Black Canary is INSANE!

So, Oliver Queen finds out his kid sidekick is addicted to Heroin. What does a sane and caring guy like Ollie do? He beats the hell out of Speedy and throws him out to live on the streets. Hal Jordan, feeling bad for Roy, finds him and sends him to live with Black Canary. Hal, being Hal, doesn't bother to tell Dinah a thing about Roy's drug problems and drops Roy off at her doorstep before taking off! So, Dinah has to help Roy beat his withdrawal from the drugs on her own... Yeah, that's just the guy I'd want to marry. Your sidekicks on drugs, and you're a multi-millionaire, able to afford the best rehab clinic in any town, but your answer is to let him rot on the streets? What the #### does Dinah see in Ollie!!!!!