Mike McKone's fan art game is DANGEROUS!

Fam... I stumbled onto Mike McKone's Twitter account today, and his fan art commissions kept breaking my heart, they were so good.  The more it hurt, the harder it was to look away...

Mike Hawthorne BODIED this HULK VS THING cover...

 Mike Hawthorne can draw his ass off.  Check out what happened when Marvel asked him to draw this Hulk vs Thing cover to Marvel Two in One #3.  TRIGGER WARNING for all the Artists in attendance: Even though it hurts, you won't be able to look away...

Preview: THUNDERBOLTS #1

 When I heard they were rebooting Thunderbolts without Luke Cage as the leader, my interest in the comic vanished. Then I read this preview starring General Thaddeus "Thunderbolt" Ross recruiting an all-star team of anti-hero badasses for his own personal strike team. Interest unlocked...

Walt Simonson + Red Hulk = Yes, Please!

I'm actually pretty impressed by my own indifference to the whole Avengers VS X-Men crossover going on at the so-called House of Ideas... but I might actually buy Avengers #28, because my favorite artist of all time looks to be in rare form judging from this preview...

PREVIEW- Defenders #6 (mostly because Misty Knight's on the cover...)

 I like all the characters in The Defenders, but for some reason, putting them all on one team under that moniker almost guarantees the book will be super-lame. I know there is a legion of people who love the kooky Defenders stories of times past, AND I see that the book is written by The Immortal Iron Fist scribe Matt Fraction, but that doesn't get my hopes up either. On the other hand, Misty Knight's on the cover of this one, so...

#begBorrowSteal- "Ultimate X: Origins" by Jeph Loeb & Art Adams

Guest post by Michael Lagocki

The Ultimate X: Origins graphic novel is a must buy for superhero fans. I’ll try to quickly (har) break down why and then leave the rest to your good senses.

Word to @EdPiskor: The Hip Hop/ Comics Connection

The Hip Hop/Comic Book Connection by Ed Piskor

PREVIEW- Incredible Hulk #1

 Those silly fools at Marvel are looking to get in on the reboot fever with the all-new, all-different (but still incredible) Incredible Hulk #1, written by red hot scribe Jason Aaron (Astonishing Spider-Man & Wolverine ). Also since DC snagged Jim Lee, Marvel threw huge piles of money and virgins at superstar artist Marc Silvestri (The Darkness). Peep...

What a COON!

I Finally Watched the "Hulk Vs" Joint...

I watched the Hulk Vs joint at my man Khalid's crib. For some reason, I wasn't all that interested in watching it when it came out last year (despite all the fanfare), but blessed with a few hours to burn yesterday, I decided to give the jolly green giant a spin, once Khalid mentioned that he had this on tap...

HULK gets MAD GREEN!

a comic art collector recently purchased a Near Mint copy of The Incredible Hulk #1 for over $125K as part of an auction of rare comics and art totaling $4.8 million. the debut issue of The Incredible Hulk #1 (CGC graded 9.2, for all the hard core collectors out there), long considered one of the hardest silver age Marvel joints to find in high grade, was bought for a mind-boggling $125,475 at Heritage Auctions' Vintage Comics and Comic Art Auction in Dallas last month. when this issue came out, the Marvel line of superhero comics as we know it didn't yet exist (it was second only to Marvel's flagship title, The Fantastic Four). there was no Spider-Man, Avengers, or X-men. like most of Marvel's early comics, Hulk brought human emotions, motivations, and situations to the superhero genre that people hadn't seen before, contributing to its long-term appeal. also like most early Marvels, Hulk was created by comics legends Stan Lee and Jack Kirby.
holla!
-samax

SMASHING!

that dude Cully Hamner (Black Lightning:Year One, Red) will be at Baltimore comicon this weekend, for all those who plan to be in attendance, 'longside his Gaijin bredren Brian Stelfreeze, Karl Story, Doug Wagner, and Laura Martin. Cully and Colorista extraordinaire Laura Martin will have this limited edition She Hulk print with 'em for you to cop, so be advised! He's also taking pre-orders for commissions, so get more info from him at cully@gaijinstudios.com.
holla!
-samax
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Revisiting (the revisiting of) a Classic.

the Ultimate Wolverine Vs Hulk mini started out extremely dope, but after 2 issues it seemed to fall off the face of the earth. when series artist Leinel Yu turned up on Secret Invasion, i just assumed the VS match that saw Wolvie's body torn in half (!) wasn't gonna get completed... but now, it's back! click the pic for a preview of Ultimate Wolverine Vs HULK #3, continuing the brawl for... nothing in particular...
holla!
-ghettoManga.com
comics.hipHop.news.art.culture

Celtics Smash Lakers to Lock up the title

Celtics destroy Lakers in boston, 92-131
the Celtics must have went to the multiplex and watched Incredible Hulk before game 6 Tuesday night... 'cause they came out and got their BEAST on in this one, playing like the superhuman defensive juggernaut that had everyone in the league shook the first part of the regular season, opening up to a monstrous 20-3 start. after the acquisition of Kevin "the Big Ticket" Garnett from the Timberwolves (to go with Ray "He Got Game" Allen and Paul "the Truth" Pierce) had the Boston faithful whispering "championship" and the haters screaming "overrated", the Celtics lived up to the challenge... but not with out a few road bumps along the way.after that 20-3 start, the Celtics lost to the Big Brother of the east, the mighty Detroit Pistons, the most significant of their 5 losses in an 11 game stretch last winter before thumping the Mavericks to remain perfect against the tough western conference at the All-Star break. even though the Celtics had the best record in the NBA and consequently home court throughout the playoffs, it was a tough road... they struggled to maintain the intensity to beat the lowly Atlanta Hawks, who forced a game 7 on the Celts, who would not win a road game until they faced Detroit in the Eastern Finals. the difference was Ray Allen, who for whatever reason, just disappeared for most of these playoffs. Once Allen found his shot against the Pistons, it was over.
and then there were the Lakers, led by the new-look Kobe Bryant. with the addition of Derek Fisher and Pau Gasol, the Lakers were barreling through opponents, reviving the vaunted Laker mystique, and calling forth the Kobe/Jordan comparisons. the first day of voting, before game one, 80% of ghettoManga fans felt the Lakers were a lock to win it all, since most people made it out to be just a scoring battle between Bryant and Pierce. certainly, few could question Kobe's obsession with leading a Shaqless team to the only achievement that mattered to him anymore, or that basketball (more than any other team sport) allows a great player to take a team on his back for extended periods, but the greatest player in the game today was still not a match for a team of Boston's stature, character, and yes, desire. as one reader put it, Boston would win "because of the hunger, fam"... and he was right. after referee controversies, big leads blown by both teams, both coaches recognized that the more aggressive team had won every game leading up to game 6.
after 5 games, the voters knew the time. 64% favored Boston, who had lost two of the three games in LA, but who had the advantage of playing the two final games at home. the first quarter was close, thanks to a blinding 11 point performance by Kobe, but the defense held Kobe down the rest of the game while simultaneously muzzling his teammates, stealing the ball from the Lakers 18 times and holding them to just 3 offensive rebounds. On offense Kevin Garnett, Ray Allen and Paul Pierce combined for 69 points, 21 rebounds and 16 assists. in the face of the defense that Houston's Tracy McGrady called "the best defense I've ever seen," Kobe wasn't able to elevate his teammates or his game enough to compete. Kobe has grown a lot since his squabbles with Shaq and crying when they got trained by the Spurs a few seasons ago. he's even matured since he was barking to be traded last off-season.
but as good a story as it would have been to see him climb out of Shaq's long shadow, it was better to see Garnett's tears of joy, Allen's turnaround to earn the Finals MVP, which was still given to Paul Pierce, because he suffered in Boston through the lean years... yeah, the gamma-green explosion form 100-pound weakling to massive unstoppable force was good enough for the Hulk... it worked pretty well for the NBA Champs this season, too...uno.
-gM

ONCE again, back is the INCREDIBLE...

it's a GREAT time to be a comic book nerd....
so i went to the matinee to catch The Incredible HULK, the new action/sci-fi flick based on the fan favorite Marvel monster comic... and it was DOPE!!! in case you're wondering, it totally ignores the existance of Ang Lee's much-maligned 2003 attempt, and reboots the franchise, so there's no need to fear Nick Nolte strolling onto the scene and turning into a lightning bolt... which is not to say that The Incredible HULK exists in a vacuum, because it doesn't.
The Incredible Hulk - Secret (Spoilers!)


In fact, i think i can tell you without giving too much away, that this film follows in the footsteps of that other, better Marvel heropic Iron Man, in that it grounds Hulk firmly in the Marvel Universe. the fun thing about it is they manage to do it without taking away from the movie-ness of it... nerds... i mean enthusiasts like myself will have a blast geekin' over minutia, but the filmmakers didn't let the easter-egg hunt interfere with the story moving along. Incredible Hulk is a real movie, with emotion, stakes, decent acting, and a semi-believable plot that the average summer blockbuster fan can enjoy whether they know the multiple incarnations of the Hulk or not!
The Incredible Hulk - Hulk vs. Abomination

now, go watch it and let me know what YOU thought!
holla!
-gM

you know what it is...

The Incredible Hulk smashes its way into theaters June 13th... click pic for the new trailer...
holla!
-gM

Most Hated...

the battle of the most Hateds
continues in HULK #2no comicbook character has more controversy surrounding him lately than Iron Man (well, maybe spiderman... but i don't wanna talk about that...). this time last year, was anybody checking for him? since he spearheaded Superhero Registration that sparked Civil War in the marvel Universe , Tony Stark (now head of S.H.I.E.L.D.) is definitely the most Hated Superhero in the marvel universe. like Dick Chaney, but with better hair... a close second, however is the traditionally most hated hero, the Rampaging Hulk. at the end of the overblown crossover series World War Hulk, they actually dropped a nuke on Hulk! they got Bruce Banner locked up underground, and all's well...

There's just one problem: there is a new Hulk running the streets. he's mean, he's smart, he's RED, and he's gunnin' for Tony in a big way. in HULK #2, this new red Hulk sneaks onto the new SHIELD helicarrier and... lets just say, it doesn't have that new Helicarrier smell anymore! the new HULK series is by Jeph Loeb and Ed Mcguinness, last seen together monthly on Batman/Superman. i've decided Loeb is at his best with McGuinness. his work on this book is head and shoulders better than on Ultimates 3, where he seems to be struggling to get the right tone for the characters and superstar artist Joe Madureira. former Joe Mad knockoff Ed McGuinness has long since grown into a star in his own right, and he has just the right style for Loeb's kinda goofy/kinda serious writing... while they are struggling to get it right on Ultimates, HULK is just right!
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Ultimate Avengers DVD...

Marvel has released the Ultimate Avengers DVD, loosely based on The Ultimates, which was itself a reimagining of The Avengers, a mainstay Marvel comic starring heavyweights like Thor, Captain America, Hulk and Iron Man... didja follow that?
the gyst of Ultimates was to take the long running Marvel comic (created by: you guessed it, Stan Lee and Jack Kirby), strip it of all the years of continuity (which can confuse new readers...), and recreate the characters in, and for, the modern day. the job fell in the very capable hands of writer Mark Millar and artist Brian Hitch, both of whom had made their mark on the critically acclaimed dark superhero romp, The Authority. the Ultimates, with high sales and critical acclaim, was an unqualified success.

now, as Millar and Hitch are ready to end their run on Ultimates (their current story arc, the aptly and cleverly titled "Grand Theft America", will sadly be the duo's last) after two years, marvel is bringing the DVD version to the small screen, apparently adapting Millar and Hitch's first story arc, which sharply updated the rebirth of Captain America, the origin of the team, brought together to stop the Rampaging Hulk...

A big fan of The Ultimates, i admit to being reluctant about the DVD... initial reports that marvel passed on the networks to retain the flavor of the book had me hopeful that the uber-gritty edge of the original books would be reatained; however, advance reviews suggest that many of the cooler, dark elements are absent (for example, no domestic violence between Giant-man and Wasp [trust me, that mess was the bomb in the comic...]). still, i will give it a look, hopeful that it's not too bubble gum. after all, they could have made more money by going with fox kids or something.

if you see it first please let me know what you thought...
otherwise, i'll keep you posted.

a'ight?!

samax.
www.ghettoManga.com