By Beau Smith As a kid growing up in the 1960s, I did all the stuff that boys of my age did: played sandlot football, watched cartoons, read comic books, collected baseball cards, played with toys, threw milkweeds at cars from behind the bushes (If you tell on me I'll just deny it.) Standing At The Sterling Gates Sterling Gates. What a moniker. If ever there was a hero's name this one qualifies. I don't mean to dwell on Sterling's name too much. I'm sure he's heard every comment on it growing up, good and bad. I like his name. It's got real character. In case you didn't know, Sterling is the writer on Supergirl for DC Comics. The guy is good and he's gonna get even better. The thing that impresses me most about Sterling's writing is his dialogue. Not everyone can write good dialogue; even veteran writers with long resumes sometimes never master the ability to write compelling and entertaining dialogue fir their characters. If Sterling is writing really good words right now, just imagine how much better it's gonna get. Check out his current work on Supergirl as well as some of his Green Lantern work. Tell him Beau sent ya. Far From Fragile  From time to time I like to remind all of your "Knuckleheads" out there that Busted Knuckles isn't the only column on pop culture that I write on a regular basis. I also write regular monthly columns for print magazines such as The Comic Buyers Guide, Sketch Magazine and Impact: The Global Action Entertainment Magazine. It's in Impact that I write the column "Far from Fragile". It's my personal views on not only action films, but I also put a whole new slant on comic books as well. This month, the fine British folks at Impact are letting you have a free sample of my "Far from Fragile" column. They've put my column online so you can get an idea of some of the fun things that go on at Impact. I'd really appreciate it if you'd take the time to click on the following link and check out "Far from Fragile". I'd love to have your feedback as well. Even better would be if you decided to start picking up Impact at your local comic shop, bookstore or newsstand. While you're there, you might as well buy The Comic Buyers Guide and Sketch Magazine as well. Make me rich and famous…well, famous...at least. Here's the link to Impact and my "Far from Fragile" column. The Superhuman Experiment  Marvel and DC Comics rule the world of Superhero comics and have for a long time, nothing wrong with that. They've been at it a long time and have more than earned their right to fight it out for the crown. There's also nothing wrong with someone new coming along and putting fresh spin on being a superhero. Such is the example of The Superhuman Experiment. The Superhuman Experiment is an exciting mesh of comic books, pop culture technology and the possible reality of being a superhero. Amanda Stevens and Test Subject X have been making the rounds at comic book and sci-fi conventions all over the country getting legions to join in on the adventure that is The Superhuman Experiment. It's really worth checking out. They've got a great, high tech site that I think you'll really enjoy. As always, tell ‘em Beau threw you there. Busted Knuckles Babe of the Week: Amanda Stevens Comic Book Character/Model It only seemed fitting that after plugging The Superhuman Experiment that the Busted Knuckles Babe of the Week should be one of the stars of the Experiment, Amanda Stevens! My good amigo Billy Tucci was the first to suggest Amanda to me and as always, when it comes to lovely, talented ladies, Billy is never wrong. Amanda is doing a superb job in getting the word out about The Superhuman Experiment. Being a firm believer and self-proclaimed pioneer in grassroots marketing, I'm very happy to see Amanda out there doing an incredible job of making The Superhuman Experiment a household word. As you can tell by looking at Amanda, she knows how to represent with class.    Busted Knuckles Manly Cover of the Week: Sgt. Fury and His Howling Commandos #1 One Shot Art By John Paul Leon Marvel Comics. It's not often that a new comic book makes it as a Busted Knuckles Manly Cover of Tthe Week. There's a reason. Most new covers are what I call fast food "McCovers." Covers that all look alike and lack that dynamic, testosterone power of days gone by when a cover was what sold a comic. The cover to Sgt. Fury and His Howling Commandos #1 One Shot has a great look and feel to it. You can see that the temptation to "update" the look of Fury and the commandos has been resisted and tribute to what has come before has been paid. I like the way John Paul Leon placed the heavy blacks and lighting on this shot. The colors matched just right to the line art and didn't hide anything. Oh, and did I mention that the whole issue looked good and read really well? Loads of nice art and great action here for old and new readers.  The Roundup  Ya know, it's a real shame. I hear the ABC Network is going to cancel or has canceled the new series The Unusuals. I find it to be a pretty good mix of comedy and semi-drama. The broad cast really makes it fun for me. As a viewer you never get bored and the editing is top notch. It's not a great series, but one that might get close to great if they let it hang on for a season or two. I don't understand how deadly serious, mind-numbing boring cop shows like Law & Order stay on forever with their gloomy, depressing story lines and shows with a little humor like The Unusuals get axed without a second thought. If you like Boston Legal then I think you'll enjoy The Unusuals. On June 4th you can once again look forward to new episodes of Burn Notice on the USA Network. As I've mentioned before here in Busted Knuckles, Burn Notice is what the 10 PM time slot should be. It's interesting, entertaining, just the right amount of action and likeable characters. Even the guest stars are cast to perfection. Burn Notice star, Jeffrey Donovan is a modern day James Garner. I can't give a higher compliment than that. Catch this show if you aren't already. Buy the first season on DVD. I've seen it as low as $19.99 at Target. As a reader of Busted Knuckles, you deserve it. Your amigo, Beau Smith The Flying Fist Ranch www.flyingfistranch.com beau@flyingfistranch.com |
