Airship27

FRIDAY THE 13th POTPOURRI

  • On 13 Mar | '2009

Greetings Loyal Airmen.  Another Friday the 13th has rolled around and we've an odd assortment of subjects to
share with you this morning.  So let's get to them.
       

After telling all of you how we ended up with a actual piece of the WATCHMEN movie, it was time for Valerie and me to actually go see the movie that is currently topping the box office charts.  We've posted a longer, more complete movie review at various spots on the net and won't bore you with that here.  Rather we will say we both liked it a great deal, the Air Chief more than Val.  But then again that's because we've been a fan of the comic book upon which it is based and have been waiting over twenty years to see it.  We particularly enjoyed Jackie Earle Haley's portrayal of the fedora wearing Rorschach, Patrick Wilson's Night Owl and the love Malin Ackerman's Silk Specter.   We saw an afternoon matinee filled with only adults.  We point this out because of stories that have been emerging ever since the movie made its debut about shocked parents having to leave theaters because of the adult content.  Which truly bothers us a great deal.  Not because the movie is for adults, but that those parents are so guileless as to not know what an R rating means.  That they would simply assume because it is a “superhero” story, it must be for the whole family.  Right, and every comedy out there today must be okay too?  Duh.  When the WATCHMEN series was first published, DC Comics made it quite clear it was intended strictly for mature readers.  Movie ads and trailers highlight the violent content extremely well and that R rating is there for all the world to see.  Yet, these “parents” blindly walk into theaters dragging their little ones behind them and within minutes are exposing them to rape, a pregnant woman being gunned down and two adults having kinky sex in a floating mechanical owl.  Then these same mothers and fathers are storming out of the movie hall and damning the movie.  Huh, huh. Nope. Doesn't work that way folks.  As parents these people had a responsibility and they failed it.  They shouldn't be blaming the studios for their own shortcomings.  We trust anyone who hasn't seen the movie yet, after reading these comments, is now clear on the subject?  WATCHMEN IS FOR ADULTS!!!

        

While on the movie kick, might as well continue with several new DVD's we picked up recently.  Of course the normal process is to go see a movie at the local cineplex, then, if you enjoyed it, months later buy it when it comes out on disc.  Sadly, these economic times make seeing all the movies we'd like to see impossible and as weeks roll along, both Val and the Air Chief find themselves missing certain flicks.  So, we save our pennies (like everyone out there today) and wait for the DVDs to come out.  In the past two weeks two weeks we bought two such titles that we had missed at the theaters.  One we felt would be a sure winner, the other we took a gamble on. That one was AUSTRALIA, the sweeping epic starring Hugh Jackman and Nicole Kidman, written and directed by Baz Luhrmann.  The Air Chief can't say enough good things about this movie.  If you, like me, miss all those grand old stories with vast landscapes and truly wonderful characters, do yourselves a favor and rent this movie.  And if you've got a big screen TV, then you'll soon be in seventh heaven, as the photography is just stunning throughout.  The story, the acting …everything is simply top notch and it is an old fashion, wonderful viewing experience.  Please, do not miss it.

Whereas the sure thing title was TRANSPORTER 3 starring my favorite action star, Jason Statham.  It is another rollicking chapter in the life of Frank Martin, a man who makes his living driving certain questionable packages from point A to point B.  The first two entries in this series were so much fun, we had no doubts this one would display the same over-the-top stunts and it delivers even more than we imagined.  When a car is racing across the top of a moving train, then you can believe your old Air Chief is in movie action heaven.  Statham never fails to deliver and has truly revitalized the action movie with his recent offerings such as the TRANSPORTER series, last year's CRANK and DEATH RACE. And we're told CRANK 2 is coming out soon.  A real cause for celebration.

                   
                                                      JOSH  BECKETT

What with the little snatches of warm weather March has been providing us, amidst the still infrequent snowfalls, baseball is in the air with its promise of better days.  And this year, in two very exciting venues.  The normal Red Sox Spring Training camp is in full tilt down in Ft.Myers, Florida and from what we've been able to see and read, the team is showing some very good signs.  Ace pitcher, Josh Beckett, who had a lackluster season last year, seems to have somehow shaken off his ennui and appears to be pitching to his level again.  Fingers crossed he can keep that going.  Meanwhile young John Lester, who clearly showed the world he too is an ace when it comes to hurling, is simply staying constant and his outings indicate 2009 is going to maintain his rise to prominence as one of the finest left handed pitchers in baseball.  All of this is great news.

At the same time, the international contest known as the World Baseball Classic is back and we've been really having a blast rooting for Team USA.   They won two out of their first three games and have moved on to Round Two.  Among the players are two Red Sox favorites, Kevin Youkalis and Dustin Pedroia.  Youk has already belted two home runs for Team USA.  And we have to confess, its really a lot of fun watching these play along side of Mr.Yankees himself, the terrific Derek Jeter.  We're cheering this team on to victory and hope you are too.

And there you have for this week, Loyal Airmen.  We've been out straight with our pulp projects these past few weeks and are hoping to announce not one, but several new titles in the coming weeks.  We are also planning our convention appearances for the year.  Rob Davis and ye old Air Chief will be attending the Windy City Paper and Pulp Con the first weekend in May, so we hope to see lots of you there.  It will be our third year going to this great show.  On June 14th, I'll be a guest at Larry Doherty's Comic Con in Lowell, Ma., where we will be debuting the relaunch of MR.JIGSAW, our comedy superhero.  We plan on having lots of copies of issue 1 & 2 at this show.  So if you live in the New England area, please, mark your calenders now.

That's wraps it up, Loyal Airmen.  Have a great week and see you back here next week.
Ron – Over & Out.

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