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Review by Clay N. Ferno for LeaguePodcast
Read MoreThis year’s FanExpo Boston takeover of Boston Comic Con came with not only a change of venue, but an entirely different experience for BostonCon fans. The change in venue from Seaport World Trade Center to the much larger Boston Convention and Exhibition Center was a welcome to accommodate more fans. It did seem a bit odd that Fan Expo had nearly an entire room dedicated to a line queue when some vendors and artist alley tables were on top of each other with not much room for people to ‘squeak by’.
I’m familiar with well-run conventions in the same space, most notably PAX East, so I don’t think my overall iffy experience at FanExpo was a unique one. First time convention volunteers and ushers gave wrong or poor information. The Guidebook App was difficult to track down. Signage was messed at a major floor entryway that said EXIT. Instead of fixing the sign on day 2, they just posted two guards there to send people in the opposite direction.
For answers to the many questions Rebirth leaves the fans with, we headed to “Meet The Publishers” panel at New York Comic Con on Saturday afternoon.
The packed room full of Damian Waynes, Reys and our favorite, an older gentleman dressed as Wonder Woman, munching on some Kettle Korn.
DC Entertainment’s co-publishers, Dan DiDio and Jim Lee opened with the usual jokes and self-congratulation for the Rebirth line. Among the tidbits mentioned during the presentation:
Microsoft’s E3 is this week and last night’s preview trailers have us throwing money at our laptop screens waiting for the next iterations of console games.
Here are 5 things we are looking forward to the most, and that’s only Day 1!
Insomniac’s new Spider-Man game for PS4 looks like the best web-slingin’ action that we haven’t seen since Web of Shadows.
What’s going on with Peter’s white spider though? Hopefully his costume will be skinnable in DLC. Better or worse than what the CEO of Parker Industries is wearing on his chest currently, a glowing monstrosity!
Bethesda’s The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim gets a re-render for modern consoles with Skyrim Special Edition on PS4/PC/XBOX ONE.
Nothing will bring you more joy than watching Geordi (Levar Burton) and Bones (Karl Urban) command a starship from the bridge in virtual reality. That is until you get to do it yourself!
You’ll see all the news this week about NYCC beating out SDCC this week in attendance, so it’s notable that I got my ass to the Con on a Yo! Bus for four days of bumping into fans, dizzying cosplay and one heck of a good time. For an early evening panel after spending my whole day traveling, the seats at the Javits Center welcomed us for one of my favorite publishers.
We took a look at the popular licensed properties held by IDW from the IDW & Hasbro: Transformers, Ponies & More panel at New York Comic Con, Day 1 - Thursday, October 9 2014 at 6:15pm.
My only question is, why did my favorite book for life - G.I. Joe get relegated to peeling potato duty. I mean, “ & More”?
That’s a bit insulting to our nation’s Special Mission Force!
But Senior Editor John Barber and Mike Costa made up for it — by announcing Snake Eyes: Agent of Cobra, the next installment in the Cobra Files seasons.
Plus, some more “Truly Outrageous” announcements, nearly missed by the regular Friday through Sunday Con visitors!
Learn how we can increase your sales, develop your brand, and generate interest in your site.
[READ MORE AT ADVENTURES IN POOR TASTE]
Honored to moderate this one!
Continuing our preview of Boston Comic Con and this weekend (starting today!), Earth Prime Time cracked the tape on the mylar bag that is this column to share with you big news for comics and hip hop. Darryl “DMC” McDaniels will be previewing the October release of DMC Graphic Novel #1 at Boston’s ever expanding convention. Dig comic guy and Adidas fan Clay N. Ferno moderates the Darryl Makes Comics panel on Saturday in the Amphitheater at 4pm.
Available exclusively at #BostonCon is an issue #0 of DMC with a Boston Comic Con convention ‘variant’ cover. These are typically the hottest items at a show of any size, but when you cram an already iconic logo with DMC sandwiched between two red bars, you have the most recognizable symbol in hip hop. Comic artist and convention guest Koi Pham (Daredevil, Avengers, Scarlet Spider) apes Steranko’s 1968 Incredible Hulk Special #1 with a new hero about to be squished like Atlas. It’s DMC with Godfather hat, fat gold chain and Ultra Goliath shades! Only 100 will be available!
One of the interior art teams — MadTwiinz Mike and Mark Davis — with be joining DMC at the panel Saturday. These dudes have worked on a ton of animation you’ve seen before, Boondocks, Black Dynamite and How To Train Your Dragon:Riders of Berk. I can’t say much about the pages secretly slipped out of a gatefold for me to peep, but I can use words like ‘dynamic’, ‘colorful’, ‘fun’ and dope!
The book, now available for Diamond pre-order (JUL141175) is set place in an alternate 1980s. In this history, instead of rocking a mic and becoming a Rock and Roll Hall of Famer, dude takes his knuckle rings to the streets…to mete out justice!
What we’ve seen so far is fun street level superhero action, like Marvel heroes Daredevil and Luke Cage. You might ask yourself what it’s like to be a superhero. DMC made himself one and it’s awesome. With nods to the New York City run by Ed Koch that birthed hip hop legends DMC with Wild-Style graffiti and turnstile jumping this truly is a different comic story and one worth reading.
Launching a comic in this market is hard, we know, we’ve done it. But launching a whole new publishing imprint is even harder. That’s what (D)arryl (M)akes (C)omics is, an imprint. We’re thinking that what we’ve seen in these pages combined with one of the rap’s pioneer’s singular vision of a comic book company could be great for the industry. Recent books by Ghostface and MF Grimm have done well to pave the way for these three stripes to be kickin’ the comic market straight in the teeth.
BOSTON COMIC CON. SEAPORT WORLD TRADE CENTER, 200 SEAPORT BLVD., BOSTON. FRI 8.8 – SUN 8.11. FOR FULL EVENT DETAILS VISIT BOSTONCOMICCON.COM
LEAGUE PODCAST IS AT BOSTON COMIC CON BOOTH W3
[READ MORE AT DIGBOSTON.COM]
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Yo Joe! Getting throttled by the drill Sergent of my childhood, Sgt. Slaughter, just minutes after meeting fellow Arashikage Clan Member Snake-Eyes Ray Park so that we can team up with Scarlett to take on the Baroness and some Cobra troopers before hoping in the TARDIS to escape the Daleks was not another pumpkin coffee induced daydream.
This happened IRL this past weekend at Supermega Fest in Framingham. As Con Season draws to a close and we will soon stop buying expensive variant action figures for ourselves so we treated ourselves to one last nerdout with cosplayers, comic and toy vendors, TV stars, Ron Jeremy, Christopher Lloyd and so much more at the Sheraton Framingham Hotel this past weekend. As a firstimer to Supermega, I recommend the trip next year to not just comic fans, but pop culture fans in general.
First impressions are that this is slightly more schizophrenic show than the previous cons we have attended this year, and less of a comic book focus. Also, the format seems to be crammed into the Sheraton in Framingham, leaving vendors to set up in hallways off of the main ballroom and signing area. Not that that is a complaint, it makes for more creative ways to adhere to the Prime Directive:
Comic artists were there, including our friend Jamal Igle, who is hard at work telling everyone about his all ages young heroine, Molly Danger.
[READ MORE AT DIGBOSTON.COM]
ADS:
We could all use another convention, right? Maybe you didn’t have a whole weekend to spend in New York City for one of the two largest shows in the world! Or maybe you had an awesome time at the Boston Comic Con and, like many, feel they deserve more convention-ing this year because, obviously! This weekend, travel south for the biggest show in the smallest state, Rhode Island Comic Con on Saturday, November 2 and Sunday, November 3. Here is what we are looking forward to this weekend.
Last November, the day my MacBook (white, 2007, RIP) literally up and died after Q from Star Trek touched it (a connection) we took in our first Rhode Island Comic Con. We met Xander, had an intimate panel experience with Thor mastermind Walter Simonson hosted by Forces of Geek’sStefan Blitz, and delighted in the autumnal vibes of Downtown Providence over a deep dish pizza. This Saturday I aim to recreate those good vibes and see what RICC 2013 has to offer.
Like many conventions these days, the celebrity appearances often trump any comic news or artists appearing at the convention.
This convention is no exception. Last year we had the Batmobile from Batman ’66, this year, Batman himself Adam West (and Family Guy mayor of Quohog, RI) with faithful sidekick Robin Burt Ward are scheduled to appear. That’s not all, Bat-fans! Rounding out an almost unprecedented reunion of sorts is Catwoman Julie Newmar, who will knock you out with her cat-claws. Now that DC Comics is publishing a Batman ’66 series, I’m sure these stars will be signing a lot of comics with their likenesses this weekend–perhaps for the first time! Saturday, Stefan hosts a Bat-panel from 3pm-4:30pm in Room A.
[READ MORE AT DIGBOSTON.COM]
College friends Grek Pak (Action Comics, Planet Hulk, Eternal Warrior) and Internet famous musician Jonathan Coulton held a panel at New York Comic Con to explain to the world that needs saving about the wildly successful Kickstarter comic based on ten of JoCo’s most popular songs, themes and lyrical insanity.
As so many legends go these days, “It all started with a tweet”.
Issue #1 of Code Monkey Save World (MonkeyBrain Comics) is available on ComiXology on Wednesday, October 16.
Greg Pak stood at the panel with sculptor and comic book artist Sean Chen, JoCo’s assistant Drew Westphal aka Scarface and Jonathan Coulton to his left. Upcoming covers for the debut four issues of Code Monkey Save World were revealed to an audience of JoCo and Greg Pak fans. The amazingly talented series artist Takeshi Miyazawa (Ultimate Comics Spider-Man, Spider-Man Loves Mary Jane) was not in attendance
[READ MORE at FORCES OF GEEK]
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| Convention Report by Clay N Ferno |
Valiant Comics remains committed to their rabid fans with a series of announcements tied to top industry talent and is expanding on the current Valiant Universe with new titles and crossovers in 2014.
Valiant Comics Director of Marketing Hunter Gorinson introduced an impressive series of panelists including Greg Pak, Fred Van Lente, Matt Kindt, Clayton Henry, Dinesh Shamdasani, Alejandro Arbona, ChrisCross and more at the Must Read Valiant panel on Saturday.
The panel starts off with the reveal to the pre-con teaser about the return of “The (Original) World’s Worst Supehero Team”.
The lead off announcement is that series creators Christopher Priest and M.D. Bright are returning to Quantum and Woody for a limited series set in the original Valiant Universe. No plans on expanding on the original universe beyond this series, we’re told, this is a special exception to reunite the team.
Starting in issue #5, fan favorite Mara artist Ming Doyle joins James Asmus on the current Quantum and Woodytitle, introducing the goat!
For those not in attendance or watching the live stream, yesterday’s Batpanel was chock full of Spoilers (see what we did there?), updates, praise for fan enthusiasm and announcements.
John Cunningham (VP Marketing, DC Comics) introduced an all star family of writers including Batman: Eternal showrunner Scott Snyder and the artist Greg Capullo to a room full of eager fans and classic Jokers at the Javitz Center. Introduced were James Tynion IV, Marc Andreyko, Ann Nocenti, John Layman and Peter Tomasi.
Cunningham started off by thanking all for supporting the books but also for supporting the We Can Be Heroes fundraising campaign, raising more that $2 million last year. He also announced a new video podcast from DC, DC All Access, which will show an insider’s view into the DC offices and announce upcoming projects.
First up, Bat-wise was the introduction of Scott Snyder and Greg Capullo to talk about current Zero Year issues and what we can expect in the days to come. The 64 page introduction of the New 52 origin hit shelves earlier this week, and Capullo’s redesigned Batman costume debut is an outstanding reference to Detective Comics #27.
Snyder admits that initially he wanted to keep all aspects of Batman: Year One as the origin story for Batman, but later fretted that with the changes of the New 52, Year One doesn’t exactly fit. Both Scott and Greg have had high anxiety about delivering and changing the right Batman origin and are expressed gratitude for the fan’s enthusiasm for what they have done with the book.
Batman: Zero Year deliberately references all things Batman, including the aforementioned Detective Comics cover, Batman: The Animated Series and beats from Frank Miller’s Batman: Year One.
Issue #25 pages were revealed exclusively at the Con as well as the three part over arching chapters of Year Zero, to be spread in total over 11 issues. The three parts of the story are Secret City, Dark City and Wild City.
[READ MORE AT FORCES OF GEEK]
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| Report by Stefan Blitz and Clay N Ferno |
Boston Comic Con has been rescheduled for this weekend, August 3-4, at The Seaport World Trade Center. Founder Nick Kanieff joins us for a two part interview about the challenges of moving this great independent comic book show and the incredible growth Boston Con has seen since its first years. The Boston comics community was looking forward to the show in April, and now are even more ready to get together this summer as a celebration of comic books and pop culture at the rescheduled date and venue.
DIGBOSTON: Can you tell me how you started running this show?
NICK KANIEFF: We had our first show in 2007. I had been a collector most of my life. I got to a point where I decided to sell my collection. I had some good friends that ran a comic book store, I asked them the best way to liquidate the collection, they suggested a combination of eBay and going to Cons and setting up as a vendor. There is a little show that’s been run here for 15 years. I set up there, was selling my comics and I noticed that it was a small show and the vendors were unhappy. It wasn’t what I remember as a kid. I remember there was an electricity in the air. It was crowded with people, it was colorful. It was a huge trading floor, it was a stock exchange with so much excitement. I started poking around, how come Boston doesn’t have a major comic book convention? No one could give me a good common sense answer to that question.
If I could start a show and bring back the magic, the allure, the electricity that I felt as a kid, then this thing can go through the roof.
I did just that. I started the show in 2007 at the Back Bay Events Center with 900 attendees. Three-four times the amount of the existing show, that had been there for 15 years.
The show has gone from 900 people to last year’s 10,000. We moved from Back Bay Events Center to The Hynes. Unfortunately, the Boston Marathon tragedy happened and we postponed and rescheduled to The Seaport. Our estimated attendance for 2013 is between 12-15,000 people.
It’s just gotten bigger and better and we are now nationally recognized and ranked and a show people come to from all over the country.
We’re putting Boston back on the map as a major city that has a major comic book convention for fans that deserve it. Boston deserves a well-run, big comic book convention. We’ve hopefully given that to them. My goal at the end of the day is to put on the best show that I can. The way I know that I’m successful is if the fans, the vendors, and the artists all walk away saying we had a great time, a lot of fun, we made some money and that was the best show I’ve ever been too.
I just want to make it bigger and bigger and better.
That’s great. I’ve been going since 2009, and each of the Cons keeps getting bigger and bigger — to the benefit of the Con. There was plenty of space, and lots of happy people last year. I have just as good a time at Boston as I do at New York.
That’s the barometer, when a fan like yourself says that, I know we are doing our job right.
[READ MORE at DIGBOSTON.COM]
HEY…PART 2 is HERE!
Sunday, August 4, 2013
The Dear Hunter Tour with
Oh My Glob. Whatever!
A Triple Shot full of surprises and WTF moments, but not over at DC this week.
Adventure Time flips the script as the princesses save Finn and Jake, we find out the secret of the Mothervine from Ultimate half-brother Quicksilver in the Ultimate Wolverine, and in the future we see someone else behind the devil horns in the penultimate issue of Daredevil: End of Days.
ADVENTURE TIME #15
WRITER: Ryan North
ART: Shelli Paroline, Braden Lamb
Publication Date: April 18, 2013
Price: $3.99
Publisher: Boom! Studios
UPC: 84428400279001511
Buy it HERE
FREE SIGNING, in lieu of BOSTON COMIC CON panel on SUN. 4/21 at COMICAZI.
| This is changed to a SIGNING at COMICOPIA! #BOSTONSTRONG - Shelli Paroline (Adventure Time) x Braden Lamb (Adventure Time, Ice Age, Duck Tales) |
FACEBOOK EVENT
Magic Man is such a butt. He thinks it’s cool to crash Princess Bubblegum’s Princess High Tea Party with his Magic.
Meanwhile, outside Jake and Finn wish they could get in but at least have the respect to honor the only rule—princesses only!
In an attempt to silence the rantings of our favorite purple princess, Lumpy Space Princess (LSP), Magic Man casts a spell to silence her!
We could have used like, a few more panels of like, LSP calling her friend Melissa who by glob just needs to hear about this lumping party, but Jake wearing Finn as a suit dives like James Brady to stop the spell.
This saves the princesses’ voice but Finn and Jake fall silent!
The boys are able to communicate using pictures in their speech balloons, a technique only possible in comic books! Much like the recent A Glitch is A Glitch episode, AT continues to effortlessly push boundaries of all mediums. Fans of the show should be all over this book!
Our video game pal BMO is able to communicate with the boys because he is the best at emoticons. After some sammiches, they meet up with the Action Hero princesses defeat Magic Man! Princess Bubblegum has the plan to recover their voices and it totally works!
The Princesses get to save Finn and Jake for a change and LSP is among the heroes!
Don’t skip the Downton Abbey referencing 8 page BMO backup story by Jeremy Sorese. BMO’s memory banks are full, but Princess Bubblegum and Peppermint Butler have a crash plan to recover BMO from defensive mode!
ULTIMATE COMICS: WOLVERINE #3 (of 4)
WRITER: Cullen Bunn
ART: David Messina
Publication Date: April 17, 2013
Price: $3.99
Publisher: Marvel Comics
UPC: 75960607887500311
Buy it HERE
Jimmy Hudson (Ultimate X) has family secrets. Many family secrets. Raised by adoptive parents James and Heather Hudson he is on a mission to find out more about his past. His biological father is Wolverine, who died by the hands of Magneto in Ultimatum.
The story is told half in flashbacks with Logan as the star. The previous Ultimate X storyline had me a bit interested, mostly because we had just gotten through Ultimatum and legend Art Adams was on art duties. I fell off after a few issues.
This mini-series written by Cullen Bunn caught my eye because I am a fan of Cullen’s work onVenom. The man can write thoughtful stories that are full of action and cool plot points. The subplots here and the flashbacks are on par with the pacing and storytelling of the Venom book and there are always great cliffhangers at the end.
Many years ago Logan is investigating Project: Mothervine, a secret government project to produce mutants, when he meets The Witch, Magda Lensherr. Magda was at one point married to Magneto, and they sired creep Quicksilver and his sister Wanda (Scarlet Witch). After Logan and Magda hook up, it is revealed that she is Jimmy’s biological mother. Meaning, if you follow the genealogy strings that Jimmy and Quicksilver are the not only brothers, but the only surviving members of the family.
The end of the issue leaves Jimmy and mutant travel companion Black Box imprisoned in an undisclosed Quicksilver jail. They plot their escape and overthrow of Pietro. Next issue will be the last of the mini, and we are rooting for our new Ultimate Wolverine to take on the strength of his father’s legacy to face the evil Lensherr as he rises as a powerful evil mutant.
DAREDEVIL: END OF DAYS #7 (of 8)
WRITER: Brian Michael Bendis, David Mack
PENCILS: Klaus Janson
FINISHED ART: Bill Siekiewicz
COLORS: Matt Hollingsworth
Publication Date: April 17, 2013
Price: $3.99
Publisher: Marvel Comics
UPC: 75960606046700711
Buy it HERE
This is a future tale, a Dark Knight Returns for Daredevil written and drawn by creators who have had a long history with The Man Without Fear.
This is a true masterwork, years in the making, that delivers on so many levels with each issue. The collected edition of this book will be a recommendation for years to come as an example of how to tell a story.
Daredevil has been murdered, in the public eye, by Bullseye.
Matt speaks one final word, “Mapone”, and it is up to Daily Bugle reporter Ben Urich to write the story of Daredevil and find out what Mapone might mean. Is it a name, a hideout, an enemy or a long lost son? We’re no closer to discovering the answer as issue #7 rolls around.
While visiting The Church of the Hand, Incorporated, Urich is telekinetically overtaken by Tanaka after inquiring about Mapone. Tanaka demands to see Ben’s notes and asks him what he knows about Daredevil’s trainer, Stick. Urich narrowly escapes, but is he unharmed?
Ben makes his way to an address he was tipped off about, and finds some information but only before being trailed by The Hand ninjas.
A young Daredevil rescues Urich with the aid of The Punisher. In the fracas, Urich is struck by an arrow, and in a soon to be classic reveal, the new Daredevil unmasks and comforts the reporter.
We’ll be both sad and satisfied when this story is done. Bendis and Mack have included all of the rogues, most of the ladies and tropes of 49 years of continuity in this limited series set in the future.
Next April will be Daredevil’s 50th, and this collection will be a great way to commemorate that anniversary. Masters Janson and Sienkiewicz know the dark world of Hell’s Kitchen well, and rival only Frank Miller himself in drawing countless ninja on a page.
Well done, sirs.
[READ MORE at FORCESOFGEEK.COM]
League Podcast Comic Con After-Party 4
SAT. APRIL 20, 6-9PM
LEAGUEPODCAST 4TH ANNUAL BOSTON COMIC CON AFTER-PARTY.
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League Podcast & Rock On! Concerts Present:
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What better way to start off the year then to get excited about April’s Boston Comic Con? The lineup of guests was announced as we were struggling to get our shopping lists completed. Here’s who we are excited to see this year at one of the largest growing shows of the year. Plus, we get to party with the LeaguePodcast on Saturday, April 20 at an undisclosed but familiar location known for beers, costumes, and loud yelling.
Since expanding into the Hynes Convention Center in Boston’s Back Bay, Boston Comic Con has prospered into one of the largest on the East Coast. You may not be aware, but we Bostonians love to brag about the place and can hardly contain ourselves when it comes to taking our out-of-state friends for a drive along our confusing roadways and rotaries. Boston has some great homegrown talent working in the comic book industry and this is the place to show off for all of the busy artists and writers coming here. This time the convention is set a month after PAX East and a week before many creators head to Chicago’s C2E2, so we are excited to have this many awesome creators under the Hynes roof this year.
Boston Comic Con is Saturday, April 20 and Sunday April 21, with passes available for single day admission or for the weekend.
[READ MORE at DIGBOSTON.COM]
As part of our obsessive completist series here at Earth Prime Time, we fill in the time gap from a computer-less week with coverage of the first annual Rhode Island Comic Con (November 3-4, 2012). I was asked to moderate my first panel at a comic book convention with actor John de Lancie, best known to Star Trek: The Next Generation fans as the mischievous villain Q and to Bronies as Discord in My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic.
Fortunately for all involved, right before the panel, Forces Of Geek editor-in-chief Stefan Blitzinformed me that my ‘moderation’ was now to be downgraded to ‘introducing John and sitting next to him’. John is an engaging speaker and has spoken to hundreds of audiences in his time. He didn’t need my help up there. Self-doubt and nervous energy had already pervaded my senses just as the 11AM Red Bull started taking effect.
Somehow, I just knew that my 12 plus hours of Netflix ‘research’ and my 10 questions for an actor of John’s caliber were not good enough.
Well, not good enough in comparison to the questions his die-hard fans would have for him. I was still busy revising my queries on I-95 just minutes before.
I was showered, caffeinated and a strange combination of unprepared and over prepared.
In the panel room we delayed the start of the talk to allow more people an opportunity to get inside. The line outside was long as first-time convention volunteers attempted to process hundreds ofBrowncoats, Jedi, Finns and Fionnas. Day 1 of Rhode Island Comic Con was off to a slow start but there were already over 30 people here for John De Lancie’s panel. Snacking on a convention breakfast of leftover M&Ms, I broke out my 2007 White MacBook to take a final look at my questions. I was confronted by the gray Mac Screen of Death and Matrix digital rain. I’d seen it before. This was a gasp, a final plea from ol’ Lappy to for me to say ‘goodbye’ to her just one last time.
For some reason when it was time to go on to the dais, I brought her with me.
“Maybe Q can fix my computer”, I must have thought. Nay. No snapping of fingers could fix the logic board.
John did pick her up, though. Using her as a prop and coaster for his coffee was a right send off for the old bird.
Was I disappointed that I didn’t get to ask my all of my questions? The answer is unequivocally “No.” I got to sit back and listen to John with best seat in the house.
Below, please check out the full hour of John de Lancie (also Donald Margolis on Breaking Bad, Eugene Bradford on Days of Our Lives, Frank Simmons from Stargate: SG-1) discussing his craft, music, writing and his involvement with BronyCon: The Documentary.
[READ MORE at DIGBOSTON.COM]
Walt Simonson and Stafan Blitz from Forces of Geek 
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