Down On The Upload: Downloading Avenging Spider-Man, Part 2

EDITOR’S NOTE: This article is part 2 in a short series about downloading a digital comic book from Marvel’s online store. Actually, it’s a very short series considering this is the last part. You can find part 1 here. And if that doesn’t sound interesting, you can find cats talking to each other here.

After I muddled through figuring out how to give Marvel enough personal information to be able to read the digital copy of Avenging Spider-Man they’d offered to give me for free with my purchase of the print edition, and I finally was looking at the book in Marvel’s computer comic reader, it occurred to me that nothing in any of the Web pages I came through told me how to find the book again later. Lemme look at the app… aha! There’s something about subscriptions! Let’s click that!

Up On The Download: Downloading Avenging Spider-Man, Part 1

Okay, so: digital comics! I think I’ve established that I’m not really a fan of the concept of digital comics. I like my weekly Wednesday trip to my local comics store, where my local comic store owner, who knows me by name and asks me if I’ve ever been told that pants are an always choice, hands me my books and recommends new ones for me.

However, Marvel was good enough to give those of us who bought Avenging Spider-Man #1 last week a code we could use to redeem for a free digital copy of the book. And as much as I like my stack of books every week, if I’m honest with myself, I’ve always considered myself an early adopter. And while I might be lurching into middle age, I like to believe it’s not so far in that I’m unwilling to try new things. Because if I am, it’s time to scratch “threesome” off my list and tag the list’s title with “bucket.”

So let’s download us a comic!

We’re Done Being Afraid

It’s Wednesday, and it’s several hours past whiskey o’clock, and you know what that means:

That’s right, it is the end of our broadcast day.

But with a weekly take that includes the new Justice League, Batman, X-Factor (Which we routinely love but have never yet reviewed), Atomic Robo, DC Universe Online Legends (Which pleasantly surprised us last month), and… Jesus Fuck; is that another fucking Fear Itself book? Oh, Fraction…

Well, either way, it’s a lot of books, and we need time to read them before we tell you if you should.

See you tomorrow, suckers!

Something Here Is Made Of Steel

It's probably not her telepathy that's turned you into a drooling vegetable.

Who knew that Emma Frost was actually being fashion forward and not a ginormous slut in her everyday battle wear of corsets and hooker boots? While plenty of super heroines have been outfitted, charitably, in questionable attire, outside of your typical convention cosplay and Halloween we don’t generally find super hero couture to be at the forefront of cutting edge fashion.

Until now.

Superhero couture will come to television on Tuesday, November 29, 2011 at 10pm (Eastern) on CBS.

Oooo, exciting!

Aren’t you excited?

You’re not excited.

Why aren’t you excited?

I can keep doing this, you know.

Real, live semi naked ladies with spandex and wings after the jump!

DC Universe Online – Good, Evil, and the Politics of Ass Kicking

It’s time for my bi-fortnightly contribution to the site.   I just recently learned that bi-fortnightly actually means “every four weeks”, not “bisexual night in Rob’s blanket fort” as I was originally told.  Rob and I will be speaking further about this discovery and its implications. – Lance

So DC Comics’ MMORPG, DC Universe Online went free to play earlier in the month.  Thinking, “the price is right!” I grabbed my mouse, put on my Batman Underoos and dove right in.  And waited.  After about five days, DC got their hardware issues unscrewed and I was off to the races with PunchKicker, a Community-inspired hero.  I have to say, in terms of atmospherics DC really gets it right.  Metropolis feels like Metropolis.  It’s sunny, optimistic and full of life.  Gotham City, in turn, feels like the last gasping breath of a dying wino.  Seriously, it’s eerie how close they got on that one.  Come to Rob and Amanda’s house on Club-a-Wino-to-Death night and you’ll see.

Crisis On Infinite Midlives Podcast Episode 7: The Skidmark of Justice

You thought we’d given up, didn’t you? No such luck; it’s a day, which means it’s time for another exciting episode of the Crisis On Infinite Midlives Podcast!

In this week’s episode, we talk about:

• How to get comics into the hands of children (Give a store to Jerry Sandusky! What, too soon?)!
• What to pay your kids for allowance (Or, Sundusky’s Lawsuit-Be-Gon)!
• New Jersey Comic Conventions (or: SDCC with GTL and MPV meaning HEP3!)
• F***ing Digital Comics: How Do They Work (Great, if you hate paper and reading comprehension)!
• The pros, cons, Novas, Phoenixs (Phoenixes? Phoenices? Phoenicians? Penises?) and Wonder Twin clones of Marvel Point One!
• Our favorite non-reviewed books of the week, and:
• Fisting a ham (Oh, it’s in there)!

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 47:11 — 43.2MB)

Subscribe: Apple Podcasts | Android | Google Play | Stitcher | TuneIn | RSS | More

As usual, if you listen to this at work, you should wear headphones! Unless your boss is into that hot, sweet, man-on-piglet action (And if he is, thanks for listening, Coach Sandusky)!

Thanks for listening, suckers!

Lord of The Thighs: DC’s February Solicitations

Yesterday was a big day on the DC Source blog, where they apparently decided to try and recapture that excitement and magic of the first month of the New 52 by showing off every… single… cover of every… single… comic that they’re releasing in February, the six month anniversary (or six month-aversary? “Anni” means “year”. So technically, anniversary isn’t the right – what’s that? No, you’ve been drinking! but I digress.

You can go straight to the source (get it?) for the full list, but here are some of the highlights. And lowlights:

Aardman Animation Takes On Batman; My Brain Explodes. Film At 11.

You know, sometimes when I’m watching Cartoon Network, usually, but not always, during Adult Swim, I think, “Am I drunk?” However, watching this trailer for the proposed DC Nation block of programming, set to air on Cartoon Network next year, I find myself thinking, “Am I drunk enough?”  The following video and programming info comes via Bleeding Cool. Go pour yourself a couple fingers of brain-be-gone, come back and hit play.

Doubleteaming: Avenging Spider-Man #1 Review (Analog Edition)

EDITOR’S NOTE: Avenging Spider-Man is the first book in a new Marvel Comics initiative where they provide a free download codes for a digital copy of the book inside the print edition’s back cover. This review is about the story and art itself. We will be publishing a secondary review about what it was like for me, who has never downloaded or read a digital comic in my life, to try and download and read the digital copy. I imagine it will be slightly more difficult than downloading pornography, which I accidentally did four times while writing this paragraph.

Amanda made me promise that I wouldn’t start my review of Avenging Spider-Man #1 ranting about Marvel’s lack of internal logic in it’s own continuity. She made me swear that I wouldn’t start screeching about how the book depicts Mayor Jameson taking time to officiate the New York Marathon not ten days after the conclusions of the Spider-Island and Fear Itself events, both of which had left Manhattan looking like a fraternity toilet the morning after Bladder Bust night. And she made me promise on a stack of Holy Books (Well, my issues of Miracleman) that I wouldn’t sneer in pointing out that Thor is shown in this book as the most dedicated Avenger, reporting to duty to battle a giant robot despite a prior commitment made in Fear Itself to decay and smell bad.

So, being a man of my word, let’s talk about Avenging Spider-Man #1 on it’s own merits. To start with, the title “Avenging Spider-Man” is a much better title than “Marvel Team-Up”, which is really what this book is.

It’s All In The Reflexes – Review Of Wolverine #18

There was a time when a man could be kingpin of the Chinese criminal underground in San Francisco in relative quiet and safe anonymity. Just be left to while the days away, occasionally kicking some uppity newbie Triad ass, collecting whatever protection money you had coming to you. Leave the city for weeks, months at a time on Avengers or X-Men business and come back, pick up where you left off.

Wait, what?

Yeah, Wolverine has lots of secrets.

Spoilers, a large sweaty man in a diaper and dragon chow after the jump.