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Archive for ‘December 29th, 2008’
3 results.
Hi, Folks!
Well, we’ve had our 2008 Year in Review blog, so now it’s only appropriate that we follow it with our 2009 Goals blog. This is going to be a big year for us, and Benita has dubbed it the “Year of Johnny Saturn.” I say, heck yeah!
In the early weeks of January, we are going to change over to running the strip not two times a week, but three times per week! Monday, Wednesday, and Friday! This is a huge commitment for us, because (as I am sure you can imagine) the art is pretty detailed. I don’t care. If we can’t do it now, then we can never do it. I never say never.
On Tuesdays and Thursdays, for now on, we are running “Inside the Sketchbook.” This is a rare look into my private Sketchbooks, letting you see the development of the Johnny Saturn characters, usually with commentary. I’ve already done all scanning for this, and it is going to rock! It was a lot of fun for me to put this together, and it should be quite informative on who these characters are.
Benita and I have other things in the pot and simmering, and we’ll serve those up at the appropriate time. For now, the changes I’ve listed above are huge! New material five days a week, plus all the regular blogging you’ve come to expect from me.
Welcome to the Year of Johnny Saturn!
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In the last four or five years, there have been people who don odd costumes and go out to protect the public. Really. I first heard about this a few years ago on National Public Radio, and the superheroes they highlighted were Indianapolis-based. This caught my attention, because I live near Indianapolis. One of these was (and is) Doktor Discord, and the other was Mr. Silent (now retired). You can find out about many of these people on the World Superhero Registry at http://worldsuperheroregistry.com.
For the most part, these would-be superheroes are a cross between Cosplay and unofficial neighborhood watches. They seem to be more local personas than people who take the fight to the criminal underworld. This is appropriate, because I would hazard that the vast majority of these folks have no martial arts background, and nothing in the way of functional body armor. They, as a general rule, lack crime-fighting gadgets such as jetpacks, power armor, and the like.
Superheroes in comics are defined by violence and their ability to kick ass. That doesn’t work for real-world superheroes. The law is not sympathetic to vigilantes, and beating the crap out of criminals can result in jail-time, fines, and serious judgments against the hero. State and local laws vary, but for the most part taking justice into your own hands is frowned upon. There are professions that allow this, such as security guards and bounty hunters, but they work under strict guidelines.
The real-life superhero movement has been called a reaction to 9-11. Maybe, but I personally doubt it. My guess is that the superhero has become a more powerful archetype for change in the last ten years due to all the successful live-action superhero movies. I would say that it is also a response to the human desire to put on a mask and become someone else for a while. Has there not also been a corresponding growth in Halloween costumes? Has the cosplay community not also grown?
There is a comic book, and a movie spawned by it, called Kick Ass, about a would-be superhero. The real world superhero movement far precedes Kick Ass.
Will this trend continue? Great question.
On a related note, here is the cost, as figured in Forbes Magazine, to become Batman and maintain his high-rolling lifestyle.
The Bottom Line
Final Cost: $3,365,449
The Training: $30,000
The Suit: $1,585
The Belt: $290
The Car: $2,000,000
The Cave: $24,000
The Alter Ego: $1,109,574
The Butler: $200,000
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