Power Girl Again

I’ve recently come to appreciate the new comic series Power Girl, published by DC (duh), which concerns said heroine’s exploits on Earth-1 in New York City. This book began last year under the incredibly talented pencil of Amanda Conner, and the typewriting skills of Justin Grey and Jimmy Palmiotti. All three have carried the series through its first year, but unfortunately, all three left after the first year. Now, it’s being held aloft by the art of Sam Basri and the storyline of Judd Winick. It’s clearly not the same comic. Amanda Conner’s art is virtually without peer, and she’s absolutely perfect for the characterization of Power Girl: kind of brash, punch-first-ask-questions-later, but genuinely concerned about her friends and juggling being a superhero and a businesswoman. The comic had a bouncy, playful spirit without feeling the need to connect itself to the overlying DC Universe continuity. Grey & Palmiotti kept the stories largely self-contained, episodic affairs that anybody could read and enjoy.

And Conner’s art…my gosh, it’s beautiful and iconic. She’s got a retro feel to her, and brings that to every character she draws. Her expression work is incredible, and between her lines and the writers’ script, Power Girl has the “right kind” of sex appeal that I’ve commented on before. I guess you could call it “Pin-Up.” Power Girl’s ample proportions are always apparent, but never distracting. It’s refreshing, and lets you admire the rest of Conner’s art. By the way, the Internet informs me that she worked on Vampirilla for awhile. I must find those particular issues!



Anyway, the winning trio has moved on, apparently sparked by Conner herself, who found a monthly book too taxing (I don’t blame her). Grey & Palmiotti have suggested that without Conner’s artwork, the book just wouldn’t be the same, and have departed with her. I agree—the book is completely different now, even just one episode in.

Winick is basically starting from scratch, and this first issue of the second year of Power Girl even details the Kryptonian’s backstory (more or less). He also makes it very clear that this storyline will be heavily leveraged on prior knowledge of the DC Universe’s convoluted backstory. This is not something I’m familiar with. For Power Girl, I came for Conner’s art and stayed for the lightweight story. Now that both are gone, I’m feeling wary of tagging along any more. To be fair, the art is great. Unlike Conner, Barsi doesn’t seem to believe in blacklines, so the art and colors look more like paintings than Conner’s art. His characters are expressive, sure, but Power Girl’s personality seems harder than she was before. Very few jokes are cracked. Sure, the stakes are higher, but I guess that’s part of the problem. I’m also having a difficult time understanding what the heck is going on, since I’m not familiar with all that Infinite Crisis stuff that’s influenced the DC Universe.


Still, I’m willing to give it a chance. I’m less interested in PeeGee’s superheroine story at this point and more invested in her double-life as the head of Starr Industries, which seems like an angle Winick is going to develop more than Grey & Palmiotti did. Still, the absence of the original team is very apparent, and it remains to be seen how well the book will do without them. I’ll stick around for a few more issues, but the book is going to have to get real good real fast for me to keep on caring.

I Should, Like, Blog or Something.

Things have been quiet, and not just because I've been reading a lot about ceratopsians and the Triassic. I'm also reading about big prehistoric cats and reviewing a bunch of video games. Reviewing things takes up a lot of time! But, perhaps more than the other things, the wife and I have been sucked into this old TV show, which we can't get enough of.

Spare time: gone. Which is a shame, because we could be, you know, shopping or whatever.

By the way, have you folks seen Toy Story 3 yet? Because if you haven't, you should. Like, instead of reading this sentence. Go, go, shoo! It's the best movie I've seen all year, and you will be reduced to a blubbering mass at the end.

Book Review: Triassic Life on Land

Triassic Life on Land
Hans-Dieter Sues & Nicholas C. Fraser
Columbia University Press (2010)
280 pages, 115 illustrations
$65.00 at the Columbia University Press website

Good news, everyone! Triassic Life on Land may be the most comprehensive “go-to” resource for all your Triassic queries! Want to know where one might find Typothorax or Proganochelys? This book’s got the answer. Want to know the floral composition of Buntsandstein? Sues & Fraser have you covered. Ever wonder what kinds of bugs were around during the Early Triassic of Gondawana? You’ll find it in this book.

This is an impressively researched, well-written, detailed study of the first third of the Mesozoic, and I suspect it will become the standard resource for studies involving said time period and the plants and animals that lived during that time. I especially liked the authors’ discussions about the various arguments that have cropped up around such colorful topics as subdivisions of the Triassic and how long they lasted, environmental conditions across Pangea, and extinction rates at the end of the era. The book is definitely at its best when it’s summarizing ongoing research: history lessons are always welcome. Unfortunately, the majority of the text is dominated by what’s essentially a faunal and floral list of the organisms one finds in the different Triassic-bearing rocks around the world. Now, this is doubtlessly valuable information, and I’m unbelievably happy to have it within reach, but this isn’t the kind of book you read before bed or while sittin' ‘round the fire.

I did appreciate the fact that the authors briefly introduce most of the organisms featured in the Triassic with more than just an off-hand mention. You’ll learn things about the organisms themselves, although I suspect that if you’re the kind of person who’s excited about this book, you probably already have a pretty good idea what Drepanosaurus is, or why Erpetosuchus’ dentition is so strange. Happily, the book is filled to the brim with wonderful illustrations. These are largely skeletal restorations or illustrations of plants. Many of the archosaur illustrations are by Gregory S. Paul (a selling point!), and most of the other illustrations are pulled from their respective original publications. There are no life restorations of animals or environments, which is a shame, and I expected at least a series of plates in the middle of the book—commonplace for this sort of tome—but none are present.

The best illustration in the book, and the only one of its kind, is a B&W reproduction of a Douglas Henderson painting concerning a phytosaur (Smilosuchus) and several smaller, scampering crurotarsians. The picture sits at the front of the book and gives you some indication of things to come, but betrays your expectations a bit. I would have liked to have seen more paintings or drawings of the Triassic environment. This is partially my own neuroses: I have a hard time visualizing things from a description alone, especially extinct organisms. Triassic Life on Land goes to great length to describe the Coelophysis Quarry at Ghost Ranch and the animals and plants that lived there, for example, but an illustration would have really brought it home. When it comes to long-dead animals and plants, a picture is worth far more than one thousand words.

My only other complaint is that the book just sort of ends. One second, the authors are talking about insect diversity going into the Jurassic, and the next second, we’re on the glossery. It’s sudden, and kind of jarring. There’s no “wrap-up” chapter, conclusion, or epilogue. The book just comes to a close without announcing that it’s doing so. In fact, the last three chapters of the book suggest that more could be written. The third-to-last chapter is a look at two particular Triassic environments and the organisms within (Solite Quarry and Madygen Formation). I’m not certain why these two formations were not covered in the other 90% of the book. They’re not especially noteworthy aside from documenting strange, controversial taxa (Longisquama, Scleromochlus). I don’t think they’re any more complete or illuminating than other places. At least, if they are, the authors don’t address how or why. Then there's a chapter about floral and faunal turnover during the entirety of the Triassic, which, if you'd been paying attention up until this point, you'd pretty much know.

The last chapter is about the Triassic-Jurassic extinction and the various theories that attempt to explain it. It’s the most interesting chapter in the book, and what I found interesting is that the evidence isn’t particularly convincing for any one scenario. The press release made a big deal about how the Triassic is where modern ecosystems are set up, but information to that regard is surprisingly scarce in the book. One could probably write an entire volume about this concept and its implications, or at least a chapter, but there is very little of it overall--just touches here and there throughout the text.

For the Triassic enthusiast out there, Triassic Life on Land is a very valuable, comprehensive, up-to-date reference book, providing quick access to a ton of Triassic information. However, I wouldn’t recommend the book to anyone else except maybe paleo-artists, who will swoon over the wealth of skeletal reconstructions offered in the book. There are some damn good dicynodont skeletons in particular, and even a few rhynchosaurs and aetosaurs. I would caution other readers, though: if you’re a casual paleontology fan or somebody who doesn’t care all that much about the Triassic, then the book is probably not for you. Like I said before, it’s very dry, and clearly a reference book. This is not bad—it’s great for a certain audience—but it’s by no means easy reading, and its subject matter is very specific. For its intended readership, though, this is a must-buy.

Recommended for Fans (of the Triassic)

Experimenting

If I ever wrote a fanfic (and I'm not saying I will), it would be about the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, although they wouldn't be teenagers any more. They'd be middle-aged, living separate lives. Donatello (above) would found a successful tech engineering firm, specializing in cybernetics. I have ideas for all four turtles, and as I come up with designs for each one, I'll post them here. Do you readers like the simplified head? Does it still read as a Ninja Turtle?

Look! It's Diabloceratops!

Gotta wonder how well he plays the fiddle.

Zach's Figure Reviews: Diana Prince (Wonder Woman)

After the anime-heavy Power Girl last time, I'm ready to move onto something a little more respectable. Here's another entry in the Ame-Comi line, and the last figure in that series I bothered to buy. Diana Price is, as the picture indicates, Wonder Woman. Everybody loves Wonder Woman except DC, who has rebooted her like eight times since she was created. To be fair, Diana has some issues that keep her from being awesome: lame villains, an invisible plane, and a lasso as her primary weapon. Sometimes she can fly, and she's usually super-strong, but there's never been a solid base, here. Of course, we all really fell in love with Linda Carter, not Wonder Woman herself. So there's that.


Wonder Woman is definately one of my favorite figures because the designer took so many great risks with her costume, and I think they all pay off. My biggest beef with Wonder Woman's traditional costume is that it's glaringly patriotic. Diana's from ancient Greece, for pity's sake, not the Midwest. Her costume should reflect her own country, not the one she ends up living in. This figure's costume has red, white, and blue, not in an obnoxious way. This look more like a costume that an Athenian princess might actually wear. I like how relatively spartan it is: the breastplate is held on by straps, and the one spaulder is on the same arm as her shield. She shield is very awesome.


Here's a picture that shows the details of the costume. The breastplate is nicely defined, and the "rim" shows up as a "W". The straps have their own inserts, and there's a belt for holding that ridiculous lasso. The lasso is real string, by way. That's a nice touch. Like I said, I really like Diana's shield. It's layered and looks something like a turtle shell. The spaulder is cool, and a bunch of accessory belts loop around her neck and shoulders. One interesting design desicision was to make Diana's hair long and tentacle-like. You can especially see that in the next picture.


I don't know how much I love the hair-tentacle look, but it's unique, and it frames her upper body pretty well. It also sort of masks the fact that her head is actually very small. I like the little headpiece she has: it's simple but effective. We'll look at her awesome sword in a minute, but I'll also take this opportunity to mention that, compared to Batgirl and Power Girl, Wonder Woman has a pretty conservative bra size. There's not even cleavage coming from the breastplate. Normally I'd find this irritating, but I'm okay with it for this figure. It works.


Here's a picture of her lower half. The thing to take away here is that, like Power Girl, Wonder Woman has very short shins (and feet). The detail on her boots is pretty fantastic, though: there are even little wings on the backs. However, she's wearing heels, and her left heel is a little lengthier than her right one. Thus, she can't stand on her own: she needs the help of a J-hook. If you've never used a J-hook before, join the club! It's basically an L-shaped thing that sticks into the back of Wonder Woman and forces here into a standing position.


Here's the hole in Diana's back. Unfortunately, it doesn't really match the hook's terminal end. You have to really fiddle with the fit to get it right--the correct pose will have the base of the hook basically between Diana's feet, not behind her. I'm not a fan of the J-hook, and the manufacturer assumes that if you're buying this figure, you must have experience with J-hooks, because they didn't include instructions. By the way, I'm glad Ame-Comi downplayed the silly bracelets--she only has one, and it's not all that special. My friend Erik would say that Diana has no ass, which is true. I would counter that a big ass would be difficult to cover with that star-spangled cloth.


Here's the base with the hook attached. The base of the hook securely fits into the round base via peg-and-hole. It can be rotated, but not much. How 'bout that cool sword? I promised we'd take a better look at it!


The sword is huge, and when I first got Diana, I didn't know how to put the sword in her hand. Her fingers don't bend, and the end of the sword's handle was too big to slide into her palm. But wait--the end of the handle actually pops out so that it can be threaded through her palm and recapped on the other side. Poifect! Wonder Woman was the first Ame-Comi figure to cost $60, which I happily paid in this case. There's a second version of her out now, holding a Medusa head, and clearly from the hands of a different sculptor. I don't like it as much as this original one. Ame-Comi is also coming out with a new varient of THIS figure, with a different color scheme. It's not as dynamic as this one. Princess Diana is a hair taller than Batgirl and Power Girl because of her 'do, but it's not really noticeable. She's a fantastic addition to any superheroine colletion, and I can't recommend her enough, if you can still find her.

Zach's Figure Reviews: Karen Starr (Power Girl)

I'm back for another exciting figure review. Yesterday we stared at Barbara Gordon, and today we'll be tackling Superman's cousin, Kara Zor-L. On Earth, she assumes the identity of Karen Starr and runs a successful engineering firm. She's currently starring in her own mini-series, illustrated by Amanda Conner. Really top-shelf work. The writing is similarly excellent. It's a shame the team is leaving after a scant twelve issues, because it's one of the better comics I've read in a long time. This particular version of Power Girl is another Ame-Comi creation, and more distinctly anime-inspired than Batgirl was.

The most alarming aspect of this figure is how much the designers changed Power Girl's outfit. It's usually pretty basic: white bodysuit, red cape, blue gloves and boots, and a golden shoulderpad and chain. Here is a good example of her modern costume. This statue's giant chain is the only real annoyance. She doesn't even have a shoulderpad for it to attach to--the chain just sort of begins at her neck and attaches to her back. The practicality of such an accessory is hard to justify in the comic, but here? Even moreso.


It's not obvious from the front, but in lateral view, you can see how exaggerated her knee posture is. They're apparently reversable, which is a super-power I didn't know Power Girl had. Take that, Superman! She's got a little more ass than Batgirl, and a lot more breast, too (we'll get to that in a minute). Overall, I like her pose--it's clearly inspired by comic art--but her proportions are a little odd. And I don't just mean her waist-to-bust ratio, either. She's got ridiculously long legs and a very short torso. I blame the anime influence.


Here's a good look at her cape. Power Girl has always had a strange cape. It's more of a ribbon than a proper cape, trailing behind her as she flies through the sky. I like the zig-zag pattern it adopts here. The cape frames her well from the front. This shot also gives you a look at her legs. Look at how long her thighs are, at the expense of the shins! There's also a pretty good shot of her gauntlets, which move been upgraded from here gloves to computer terminals. I'll have a better picture of that later. Also note the overall color scheme: whites and blues, which I like.


And here's the oblique view. The chain is pretty noticable now, as are her exaggerated knees. This photo also makes clear how ginormous her rack is. You could eat dinner off those things. Of some concern is Karen's bubbly expression: it doesn't look playfully determined so much as bubbleheaded beach blonde. One of the things I like most about Power Girl as a character is that she's well aware of her...ahem...assets, but approaches it with humor and sarcasm. A knowing smile or raised eyebrow, that sort of thing. "My eyes are up here," she might say to somebody oggling her chest. There's none of that here.


No, this Karen Starr looks kind of empty-headed. Again, I blame the anime influence. I suspect that Power Girl had a different designer than Batgirl or Wonder Woman. I like her hairstyle, though: it's simple and the proper length, and ever so slightly fall in front of her eyes. Her eyelids have purplish eye shadow, by the way, whcih is a nice touch. It's also worth mentioning that her computer...things are actually attached to her gloves by a yellow band, so they're not actually part of the glove. Still, their purpose isn't exactly clear. In the comic, Karen Starr is the first to admit that she punches first, asks questions later. For communications, she uses a basic earbud headset.


Here's a picture that illustrates my problems with that chain thing. It doesn't seem to function, and it's too big. You might also notice how far up her "boots" go, although I hestitate to assign the word "boot" to the blue part or her leg. Oh, one unfortunate misstep for this figure: it's very clear that Power Girl is made up of two parts: legs and upper body. You can clearly see the mold articulation at the top of her hip, where the skintone meets the bodysuit. There's a little bit of a rim to her hip. It's completely unnoticable at any distance, but upon close inspection, it's pretty obvious.


Here's the other end of the chain. It just kind of attaches to her neck AND the ribbon cape, which makes absolutely no sense (what if the chain pops off? What then, Karen?). Despite my dislike for the computer thingie, it is nicely detailed, with buttons and a little screen. I like to think that it functions as an old-school communicator--the contact's face shows up on the little screen, and Power Girl presses the green button to work the comm. But why would she have one on BOTH gauntlets? And what's the circular disk above each hand? Am I just over-thinking this?


And here's a look at the entire chain, which, again, is too big. Notice the two circles on her torso: the top one is some kind of gold gem, and the bottom one is a hole in the suit, exposing her navel. The anime stylings of the face are also pretty blatant from this angle. Also, I don't know if I've mentioned this yet, but GOOD GOD she has big breasts. Just think about it for a second: they're being held up and together by whatever superstrong material that bodysuit is made of. I can't figure out how this version of Power Girl remains upright, especially with her feet so far behind the rest of her (because of the exaggerated knees).


Is this a gratuitous breast shot? Probably. But it is also illustrative of Power Girl's asymmetric posture. Also, check out the wierd "handles" on her boots. Again, they serve no purpose. Power Girl is a good figure, but not great. Certainly not to the same quality (to my mind) as Batgirl. Being one of the earlier Ame-Comi figures, Power Girl came in at $50. Every Ame-Comi figure since has retailed for $60. She's the same height as Batgirl, too: about 8.75 inches tall. She articulates to her base via pegs under her feet. Unfortunately, given her pose, she's a bit more unstable than Batgirl is. I don't know if I'd pay the same amount for her now, knowing what I do about her. If you have a fondness for the character or just really like busty anime figures, you might look online to see if you can find her for cheaper.

Zach's Figure Reviews: Barbara Gordon (Batgirl)

Hey, let's do something different. Since I'm waiting for three books in the mail, I can't really comment on terrestrial Triassic fauana, marine reptiles of Kansas, or all those beautiful new ceratopsians. So, the meantime, why not something new? As you may or may not know, I collect superheroines and gaming girls...in figure form. Much to Scott's chagrine, they are "inaction figures," lacking any sort of articulation. This confounds and befundles my friend: he wants toys he can play with. I want toys that are pretty and double as art references. They are rarely cheap, but I love 'em anyway. I often visit other websites to scope out future and current available figures (Tentacle Armada and Tomopop are good references) and these websites often have figure reviews. Hey, why not write my own? So let's start with one of my favorites, Barbara Gordon--otherwise known as Batgirl.


Batgirl is from DC Direct's experimental Ame-Comi line. They have produced a lot of figures at this point, including two others that I own and six or seven that I just don't like the art direction of (Harley Quinn and Poison Ivy are particular sticking points). Some of their newer figures are pretty nice, like the "old-style" Catwoman and Black Canary. They've even released the current all-black version of Batgirl, but I don't like the pose, and I don't think the character fits this line very well. Now the company has produced their own versions of Batman and Robin loosely based on
The Dark Knight Returns. I'm not a fan. Anyway, let's talk about Batgirl herself...


Batgirl is, of course, Batman's second sidekick after Robin. She is also Commissioner Gordon's daughter. The poor girl is eventually shot by the Joker, leaving her paralyzed from the waist down. Not one to give up so easily, though, Barbara puts her tech skills to use, taking on the mantle of the Oracle, and basically serving as Batman's field operator. She's even in Batman: Arkham Asylum, so hey.


It's a very dynamic pose, though the parallels to Saturday Night Fever are hard to ignore. Maybe she's at the club and didn't have time to change? I don't know. While this may be a small detail, I really like her cape--it drapes over her shoulder and drapes down and folds up, like it's being hit by the wind just a little. Aside from the partyin' posture, Batgirl looks pretty capable here, complete with a spartan utility belt, some kind of pouch, and a nicely-sculpted Batarang. If there's one thing I don't like about her outfit, it's the spikes on her gauntlets and boots, which look a little forced. They should've stuck to the simple curved blades for the gauntlets and removed them entirely on the boots.


Okay, she's got a big rack. She's a comic book heroine--it's gonna happen. At least she's not Karen Starr. One thing I do like about her...breasts (aside from the fact that they're breasts, and they're volumous) is that the bat symbol wraps around them, as it would on a skintight outfit. One confusing aspect of the costume is that there appears to be a vestigal zipper just below her dirty pillows. I almost wonder if the original sculpt had an open zipper that bared a lot of skin and cleavage, but further edits covered her up but forgot to remove the zipper? Who knows. Anothr thing to note is the presence of orange lines running up and down the" suit. They're not functional, but they do give the costume a subtle color "kick" that I think improves the overall color scheme.


Here is a good detail shot of her accessories. Whether in a crime-infested alley or on a catwalk, Barbara Gordon is always prepared for a fight. This is an impressive figure in terms of little details. Even the ventral side of her gauntlet is not devoid of detail. You can also get a better look at the red lines and zipper here, and her small but effective kneepads (insert inappropriate kneepad-related joke here). I should add that her hair is semi-translucent, and that translucence improves toward the terminal end of each strand. It's a nice effect.


"You know it's all right, it's okay, we can live another day. It's okay to understand the New York Times' effect on man! Whether you're in trouble or whether you're a lover, you're stayin' alive, stayin' alive. See the city breakin' and everybody shakin' and we're stayin' alive, stayin' alive. Ah ha ha ha stayin' alive, stayin' alive..." Hey, is it just me, or does her cowl look like a WWI bomber helmet? I actually really like the goggles, though I wonder how that cowl stays on without a chin strap or something. Actually, it's always been like that for Batgirl, hasn't it? Her hair prevents her cowl from attaching to her cape. Also, um...back pain in the future, I think.


If only I had a disco ball, this picture would be complete. She's got a nice curve at the waist. She's not particularly hippy, but she's hippier than Karen Starr (just wait until we get to Karen Starr). It's worth mentioning that Batgirl's cap is not attached to her back. It's a solid piece of plastic, sure, but you can bend it back if you want and see her entire figure. And it's a nice figure, if a little exaggerated (just a little). Batgirl was the first of the Ame-Comi girls to come out, and this was like two or three years ago. At the time, I got her for $50, which I think is a fine price. She is 8.75 inches tall, and articulates with her base via pegs. I've never seen her in stores since I bought her, so I'd bet that she's "out of print." If you can find her online though, I highly recommend Batgirl.


So there you have it. Should I keep doing these figure reviews? In addition to being helpful, I'm trying to provide a few chuckles so that non-enthusiasts won't mind reading this drivel. Leave comments, and if you're lucky, I'll move forward with Powergirl or Wonder Woman tomorrow.

Mai Shiranui: Unaffordable

I've been looking for a kickass Mai Shiranui statue/figure for years. I have found it. This is that figure. The manufacturer is taking preorders right now. But even if you discount my current financial situation (which is not...awesome), she's a little spendy. We're talking $275, and I don't think that includes shipping.

From JAPAN.

So I'll have to hold off. Still, I think she's pretty big...in terms of height. She might be as tall as or taller than Brandy. I'll keep an eye out, but I don't think I'll be able to afford this incredible figure.

In Which I Invoke the Voth

Screw the "Dinosauroid." Star Trek: Voyager taught us that one branch of the Dinosauria escaped Earth before the K-Pg extinction and traveled to the Delta Quadrant. They are the Voth, and they evolved from lambeosaurines. I think pachycephalosaurs would be an equally-good alternative.

Why do I bring this up? Oh, no reason. I've just been revisiting my "DinoNoir" idea lately. I think it's got legs, and I'd like to restart its engine.

Ceratopsian Overload!

Last week, after many painful delays, Indiana University Press finally published New Perspectives on Horned Dinosaurs, which features a crapton of new horned dinosaurs, including the much-anticipated Diabloceratops (above--image stolen from Dave Hone's blog). There's also Medusaceratops, who is known from parietals and seems like it should be included in the genus Albertaceratops; Coahuilaceratops, a monsterous chasmosaurine with four-foot brow horns; and Rubeosaurus, a centrosaurine that looks like a leveled-up Styracosaurus. But that's not all: published in journals last week, we have an island-hopping bagaceratopsid, Ajkaceratops, and a Chinese centrosaurine, Sinoceratops, who has unique forward-curved parietal spikes.

So now that I know the book is out, I just have to wait patiently (PATIENTLY) for it to arrive on my doorstep. See, I ordered it like three months ago when it was 60% off. Remember that? Good times.