Brace yourselves. Blake Petit, columns editor of ComiXtreme.com, published a startling finding about women and comic books.

"I want to talk about what women would want out of comics now. And here's the thing I think will surprise people … women want exactly the same thing as men: engaging characters, intelligent stories and great art."

All together now: Duh.

Comments like that used to irritate me. Now they just make me tired. I mean, next we'll read that women like food that tastes good and cars that get good gas mileage. And breathe oxygen.

Granted, many, if not most, comic books are written for men, probably because drawing babes with boobs is a whole lot simpler than developing a compelling story. (Not that I'm against babes with boobs.) But AfterEllen.com makes a point of letting you know when we find good comics that we think you'll like. Whenever I have a chance to spend more time in my comic store than it takes to pick up my subscriptions, I find new titles that appeal to me. And more are on the way.

I'm eagerly looking forward to Echo, by Strangers in Paradise creator Terry Moore. … continue reading

I keep coming across lists I can't really improve on, so I'm just going to list them. In a list. Of lists. (A few of these are via Pop Candy, which is always a good source for lists and, well, just about everything else.)

1. 10 Star Wars toys that unintentionally look like other celebrities

When I was a kid, I often complained that my Princess Leia action figure just wasn't made right — it kept toppling over. And it annoyed me that her gun was so flimsy and useless, especially compared to Chewbacca's giant over-the-arm weapon. But at least the '70s toy version of Leia didn't look like Christian Bale:

And then there's Mon Mothma and Laura Bush:

The list includes other frighteningly spot-on comparisons, like Han Solo/Josh Brolin and Yak Face/Robert De Niro.

2. 13 movies worth preserving

EW.com readers recently named the films they'd like to add to the National Film Registry. I agree with Raising Arizona and The Women — and with the reader who submitted the latter and said, "I can't believe it's not already there." … continue reading

For years, Strangers in Paradise fans have speculated about a movie or television series based on the adventures — and love story — of Katchoo and Francine.

I didn't really expect it to happen, mainly because I couldn't imagine a producer who could fully appreciate the genius of Terry Moore's storytelling. But at last weekend's Xena convention, Steven Sears, who produced Xena, announced that he and Moore are working together to bring a live action version of SiP to television. Sounds like a match made in, well, paradise.

Sears and Moore got to know each other after the SiP issue in which Francine and Katchoo appeared as Xena and Gabrielle.

Once Moore finished the comic series — marvelously, I might add — he decided to get in touch with Sears and actively pursue making a TV show. Of course, the writers' strike has to end and they have to find a studio and make a pilot and get the series picked up and other minor details, but I can't help being excited about the prospect. And I can't help imagining who will play Francine and Katchoo. … continue reading

I didn't realize how much I missed series television until Wednesday, when I found myself getting excited about Thursday's premiere of Lost. A lot of people have been looking forward to it, I know, but I, well, lost interest in the second season and didn't really miss it. Even Elizabeth Mitchell couldn't get me back into it.

Then I saw Whitney's blog at Pop Candy about TV shows she's discovered during the strike. So I asked myself, "Self, what exactly have you been doing during those prime television watching hours?" Once I stopped waiting for an answer (I've been taking my medication, I promise), I realized that I've entertained myself pretty well — without watching a single minute of Celebrity Apprentice.

Like Whitney, I've discovered a few shows that I never would've watched otherwise. Discovery Channel's MythBusters has become a favorite. I'm not sure why.

OK, Kari Byron's not the only reason. The show is a geek's dream come true. The MythBusters team creates experiments based on urban legends, rumors and popular beliefs to determine which ones are true, feasible or ridiculous. Episodes I've seen have tested movie myths like whether a lock can be broken with a handgun, whether a person can fall through several layers of awnings and survive and whether grabbing onto a vine could save you from sinking into quicksand. Cool. … continue reading

Are you ready for Tori Amos: The Comic Book? The ethereal piano goddess with the Titian hair will have her songs turned into a graphic novel anthology called Tori Amos’ Comic Book Tattoo, slated for release this summer.

The project was announced in this month’s SPIN magazine, and apparently some 70 artists have already signed on to transform Tori’s deeply personal and sometimes abstruse lyrics into artwork. The 400-plus page full-color collection should be ready in time for the San Diego Comic-Con this July. … continue reading

Have you ever had that dream where it’s the future but it’s not the future — like, everything kinda looks the same but somehow you know anyway that it’s the future — and you’re standing there enjoying a fruit smoothie and all of a sudden Kristanna Loken as a Terminator and Summer Glau as a Terminator both come around the corner and you’re all, like, “Oh no!” but it’s OK because they’re fighting each other? But you’re kinda freaked out anyway and you don’t want to get hurt, so you run into this muffler shop that’s nearby but when you get inside it turns into some kind of Ye Olde Inne and Saloon and Charles Barkley is there playing the piano? And you look outside and the Terminators have spotted you and they’ve decided they want to fight you and they start running towards the muffler shop/Ye Olde Inn and Saloon so you hide behind the counter, but there’s this midget there who’s dressed up like Where’s Waldo (except that he’s also wearing a vest) and he’s totally looking at you with eeeeevil intent and he’s holding a knife? So you decide that you’d rather take your chances with Kristanna Loken and Summer Glau (Terminators or not) than with a murderous midget dressed up like Where’s Waldo so you go back outside ... and when you get outside it’s snowing and the Terminators are making out and then a unicorn comes along and offers you some gum and then you wake up?

Well, if you’ve ever had that dream, then there’s a chance that your dream could come true this Sunday at the Los Angeles Comic Book and Science Fiction Convention! Yes, folks, on the 13th, Summer Glau and Kristanna Loken (along with Leelee Sobieski) will be making an appearance and signing autographs at the fabulous Shrine Auditorium Expo Center. If my dreams mean anything — and I think they do — then there’ll be Terminators fighting and making out everywhere.

What? It’s totally possible. This one time I had a dream about my car breaking down and then 8 months later it happened! That’s not just a coincidence. … continue reading

When the Buffy the Vampire Slayer Season 8 comic turned out to be so true to the television series — and so much fun — many Joss Whedon fans dared to hope that more of his canceled shows would continue in graphic form. Angel fans got their wish in November (with mixed reviews) and now comes confirmation that a new Serenity comic will be published in March 2008.

Serenity: Better Days is a three-issue series set between the end of Firefly and the 2005 Serenity feature film — the same setting as Serenity: Those Left Behind, which was published in 2005. … continue reading

The nominations for the 35th annual Annie Awards were announced this morning. Never heard of the Annie Awards? They recognize the year's best animation in several categories, from film and TV to video games and commercials.

This year's Best Animated Feature nominees include fairly obvious choices ilke Bee Movie, Ratatouille and The Simpsons Movie. But I'm more interested in a little gem called Persepolis.

Persepolis is based on the graphic novels (essentially a memoir in two parts) by Marjane Satrapi, who grew up in Iran during the Islamic Revolution. Satrapi now lives and works in France, and Persepolis features the voices of two French national treasures, Catherine Deneuve and her daughter Chiara Mastroianni. If you're not already fascinated, take a look at this stunning trailer: … continue reading

As a long-time reader of Birds of Prey, I was disappointed when writer Gail Simone left the series. Her love for the characters showed — and she was one of the few female comic book writers working on a superhero title. But soon after, DC announced that Simone's next project would be none other than the story of Diana Prince, aka Wonder Woman.

Shortly after the announcement, Simone summed up her feelings about Wonder Woman. "This book is about the best goddamned warrior planet Earth has ever known, and she happens to carry a mystical arsenal around just for the hell of it. If a writer can't make that interesting and fun, they really shouldn't be writing superheroes."

Do I hear an amen? … continue reading

[Warning: Spoilers galore!]

Since March of this year, many Buffy fanatics have been Glory-ing (I couldn't resist) in the season 8 comic book resurrection of Buffy and the Scoobies — both proper and fringe. The last three comics have been devoted to our favorite uber bad girl hero, Faith. And now, three-fourths of the way through the four-issue Faith story arc nihilistically titled "No Future For You," we've got ourselves one heck of a cliffhanger.

Even if Faith's head is not precisely poised on the chopping block, Lady Genevieve Savidge (aka Gigi) is wielding a mean-ass ax and feeling more than a little betrayed. How, oh how, will Faith extricate herself from this pickle? We'll find out when the current Faith story line wraps up in issue No. 9, due out Dec. 5 (with the best. comic. cover. ever.). Until then, let's discuss how she got to this point in the first place, shall we?

Issue No. 6 opened with Faith stationed at the hellmouth in Cleveland — and no, that isn't redundant. Cleveland is actually quite a lovely city, despite how much I hate, loathe and despise their football team. I'm an evolved woman. I can compartmentalize pretty much everything.

Anyway, Faith is tasked with the unenviable nasty cleanup jobs, like staking kiddie vampires, and is entertaining the recriminating voice in her head. Her existence is entirely in the shadows, solitary and stark, mirrored perfectly in how depressingly decrepit her apartment is. No finely appointed Scottish castle teeming with activity for our girl Faith. Her slayer stipend must be paltry. … continue reading

I bought a couple of issues of the Buffy the Vampire Slayer comic while the show was still on. They were OK, but, with the notable exception of a two-issue story about Willow and Tara (by Amber Benson and Terry Moore), I didn't find the series interesting enough to add to my subscription list. Then came "Season Eight," with Joss Whedon himself at the helm, and by issue No. 2, I was hooked.

What surprised me most about the comic was not that the dialogue and pacing were in keeping with the show — after all, Whedon wrote it — but that the characters had the same look and feel of their live action versions. Pleasing fans of a cult classic isn't an easy task, but that is exactly what artist Georges Jeanty has done.

As you might expect from obsessive Buffy fans, no detail is too small to be noticed. When Jeanty released pencils for the cover of No. 2, for example, it sparked a debate on Whedonesque about the appropriateness of Buffy's sneakers. Maybe it's just me, but when I see that picture, I don't think of footwear. … continue reading

I guess there might be better ways to start a Monday than by reading an online comic by Joss Whedon and Fabio Moon. But there can't be many of them.

Sugarshock is one of several titles in the MySpace Dark Horse Presents collection. In the first issue, "Battle Royale With Cheese," the band Sugarshock (mostly riot grrrls, plus robot Phil on bass) delivers messages to secret government agencies and competes in a Shrimp 'n' Taco Rock-Off on the way to the Intergalactic Battle of the Bands. The lead singer and main character, Dandelion, offers up plenty of Buffy-esque quips. Let's just say I'm already hooked.

New issues will be uploaded monthly and will always be free. Click on over and have a happy Monday!

The massively popular comic Y: The Last Man, written by Brian K. Vaughn and illustrated/drawn by Pia Guerra, is getting the big screen treatment. According to The Hollywood Reporter, Carl Ellsworth (Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Xena: Warrior Princess) is on board to write the script and D.J. Caruso (Disturbia) has been tapped to direct.

Although the April 16 issue of Time magazine claims that actresses are nearly an endangered species in many of the movies being produced in tinseltown, a cinematic rendering of Y on the horizon means nothing but work for legions of actresses. I mean — and I don't think this is giving anything away, since it happens within the first couple of pages in the very first issue of Y — any mammal with a Y chromosome perishes, except for one dude, Yorick Brown, and his (male) Capuchin monkey, Ampersand. The cast of billions from there on out is nothing but women as far as the eye can see, and then some more. I for one would love to sit in on the casting calls that'll go out for this one! It's all action and a mad dash for control of the world; countless hidden agendas; backstabbing, both literal and figurative; and women sharing their love with other women. … continue reading

It's a bird. It's a plane. It's superhero stamps from the U.S. Postal Service. That's right, ladies: Run, don't walk, to the nearest post office and snatch up those brightly colored goodies depicting Elektra and Spider Woman. Wait, Spider Woman? Who the heck is Spider Woman? She's one of two female comic book characters depicted among the ten new superhero stamps just issued. The new release includes Marvel heroes such as Spider-Man, the Hulk and Captain America.

This is this second set of superhero stamps to be released by the USPS. The first came last July and included ten heroes from the stable of DC Comics. Again, the powers that be found two female heroes they deemed worthy of inclusion. Both Wonder Woman and Super Girl made the grade. … continue reading

It's not just 13-year-old kids who get themselves into trouble on MySpace. When director Jon Favreau thanked Caesars in Las Vegas for "for their hospitality, generosity, and Swank accomodations" after an Iron Man shoot, that capital S in "Swank" fueled speculations that Hilary Swank would appear in the film. This week, producer Avi Arad was shocked into admitting Swank will make an Iron Man "cameo" (along with Samuel L. Jackson as Nick Fury, if you're a comic fan who cares).

The bigger news: a drop-in role in Iron Man has everybody speculating that Swank (and Jackson) may be earning superhero creds now for a bigger starring role in some future Marvel franchise. She certainly can beef up enough to be convincing: … continue reading