Tarantino Comics - Issue 38

Today's issue of Tarantino Comics was completed at CGS Super Show 2013.  Illustrated by Bill Ellis, Tarantino Comics #38 was inspired by the under-represented Jackie Brown.

If you look at old pulp covers, there's usually a classy broad with a crime title in the background.  Making homage to novels like those in the Hard Case Crime line, Bill successfully transforms this Jackie Brown cover into an intriguing issue that you'd want to pick up.  With Pam Grier in the forefront, "The Switch" title makes reference to the "Killing" scene between the ATF and Ordell's gang (Melanie and Louis).  I'm sure Bill's design of the cover would make Elmore Leonard proud.

I met Bill through the Comic Geek Speak and Wild Pig conventions.  He's an awesome guy and likes pop culture (He put a Boondock Saints spin for an entry in my Muppet Show vs. Sesame Street Sketchbook).  To see more of Bill's work, check out old strips of his webcomic at http://www.allnewissuescomic.com/

The Killing - This Time... No Twin Peaks Comparison

I pretty much love every original show that comes from AMC (however, I'm not a fan of their reality shows).  Although this season of Mad Men has been intense, I've been needing a little more "crime" in my TV viewing.  Luckily the return of The Killing has satisfied my hunger...

I truly enjoyed the first two seasons of this detective drama.  However, I agree with the masses and thought the story was too drawn out.  Believe me - I loved Twin Peaks.  But just as Laura Palmer's murder overstayed its welcome, Rosie Larsen's death lasted a season too long.

Luckily, AMC developed some really cool characters:  Detectives Linden and Holder (played by Mireille Enos and Joel Kinnaman).  Unlike TNT's "last-named-shows" (i.e. Rizzoli & Isles, King & Maxwell, Franklin & Bash), The Killing is a title with true character development happening in a single overarching case.  Despite complaints from critics, AMC had the guts to throw their awesome duo into a different situation rather than just canning the show.

So with a light drizzle outside and a Cup of Joe in my hands, I thoroughly enjoyed the Season 3 premiere.  From what I've seen so far, here's a couple of reasons why I think this season will be successful:

• Linden's obsession:  Like many detective characters, obsession can be their downfall.  This season presented how Linden is building herself back up to a "normal" life.  But as we've learned in seasons past, Linden is obsessed with justifying the victim.    With a series of murders paired with a M.O. familiar to her back story, this provides the perfect setup of getting Linden back into the game (or quite possibly her demise).
• No son:  I liked the "little man," but it helps having him live in Chicago with his father.  This way Linden doesn't have to worry about her son and can focus on the case at hand in Seattle.
• A Serial Killer Story:  This story is dark (including the imagery).  Previous seasons lingered on conspiracies involving the Rosie Larsen case.  This time, it involves a series of murders involving child prostitutes.  Yes, this is pretty dark subject matter, but it's intriguing and even has a Seven vibe. 

  

 

So there you have it - I can't wait to see how the rest of the season plays out!  I have very few doubts, so hopefully it does well.. so we can have another "killing" season.

The Killing - Kubrick Did Film Noir?

Stanley Kubrick is a well known film director, making monumental movies such as The Shining, A Clockwork Orange, and 2001: A Space Odyssey. However, little did I know as I was searching for Film Noir on NetFlix, Kubrick made a black-and-white 1956 masterpiece known as The Killing.

Johnny Clay, played by Sterling Hayden (the guy who broke Al Pacino's jaw in The Godfather), is a criminal mastermind who wants to score one last heist before retiring and running away with his beautiful gal. The goal is to steal $2,000,000 from a horse-racing-track. In order to conduct the heist, Clay ensembles his team of merry men, each with a specific job:


This movie has everything: Action, drama, comedy, romance, and suspense. And like all classic noir, the scenery is covered with dark shadows and has a plot twisted by a back-stabbing Beauty. However, it's the continuity that sets this film apart from others. The story is told in a linear fashion, but when it comes to the time of the heist, the perspective of each heist member is told in a parallel fashion. For instance, when the Wrestler is causing a distraction, you see Johnny being let into a locked room. After this perspective is finished, the camera switches to the Window Teller: We see him let Johnny into the locked room, while the Wrestler can be seen fighting police officers through the doorway. Without watching every character's point of view, you won't know how Johnny escaped with the money.

We can tell this movie was told in the 1950's as the final message of the film is that crime doesn't pay. Most of the crew's fate was death. However, if you were lucky enough to get away with the money, eventually all of your cash would be chaotically blowing across an airport landing strip with authorities waiting to take you in.

I enjoyed this movie so much, that it makes my top 10. I even enjoyed small things such as Johhny Clay's disguise, as it resembles the clown masks used at the beginning of the Dark Knight. I'm also sure this movie influenced Tarantino in some fashion, as he used the same type of storytelling during the money exchange in Jackie Brown. As much as I like horrowshow ultra-violence and the old-in-and-out, this movie proves you can still tell a great story without it.

So on Death List Five, The Killing ranks #5.