The Six on the Sixth.

Just thought I'd tell everyone that the full first issue of the Six will be released on the Sixth of March. That's coming up!

that's all I have to say today... take it easy.

The State of Movies Address

So there's one thing I hate more than Hollywood. And that's waking up to this much news of how Hollywood is fucking up this time. Let's get to it, shall we?

First off. Remember that movie that came out this past summer? It was a modern retelilng of a classic cartoon from the 80s? Transfigurines? Changing-Robots? I forget what it was called, but the point is, now that it has garnered so much money, Hollywood is redoing ALL the 80s movies.

They followed up the fairly decent robot flick with Alvin and the Chipmunks, which I heard sucked nuts. (badumtsch)

And now they're continuing their spiraling decent into madness with... brace for it.... a SMURF movie. That's right. I've seen a picture, and the animation looks as lazy as a Veggie Tales movie. I guess we'll have to wait and see.....

Just be glad it's not live action, like that video going around the internet... right?

Next up on the trainwreck-called-hollywood ride is Alice in Wonderland. Yep, you heard me right. Disney is so desperate for new ideas that they're re-hashin old ones.

The new version of their classic (And undoubtedly better) film will be 3D (oh, novel!) and is being directed by (shudder) Tim Burton. Now, I respect their decision about directors a bit, I mean it does make sense, but close your eyes and you can visualize Tim Burton's AIW already! We don't need to see this "visionary" director's take on the story since he's pretty much just done it with all his other movies.

I would rather see Guillermo Del Toro's (the NEW Tim Burton) version, or better yet, a Michel Gondry version. My point is, if you're going to redo your own idea, do it different.

fuck.

Ok, moving on, we've got Leonardo DiCaprio, who's making the most irritating decision I've seen in a while.

Anyone remember Akira? Any slight anime fans will, but to call it an anime, imbues it with stigma that it doesn't deserve. The *movie* was epic. Completely well animated, and actually intelligent, which is usually not the case in anime (re: Dragon Ball Z). I suppose many, however, never saw it because it was an anime. A Shame.

Well, Leo seems to agree with me, so he's taking the powerhouse anime to the big screen, and changing all the details to have a white cast (including himself and Joseph Gordon Levitt - who I am a big fan of - in the main two roles, Kaneda and Tetsuo respectively). They're changing the setting from future Neo-Tokyo, to Neo-Manhattan (sigh) and will likely tweak a number of other details and in the process completely lose track of what made the anime film so great.

On the other hand, DiCaprio is a very capable man, and there could still be good in him. This, while the most irritating of the news, is also the only one that I have any hope for at all.
And here are a few other pieces of information that really grinds my shit.

So who was hoping now that Sylvester Stallon has "returned" he'd promptly "go away"? Me too. Too bad he's sticking around and making more garbage movies about his old characters that people loved.

The ones people loved are all dried up now, and instead, he's making a sequel to Cliffhanger... whatever that was.

The legendary fighting game series Street Fighter is getting made into a movie, and that'll undoubtedly suck, as the best VG adaptation we've seen so far has been Silent Hill, (also, apparently getting a sequel) and it wasn't even that great movie-wise (I was impressed with it's fidelity though).

And finally, Hasbro has teamed up with Universal to release 4 movies based on some of it's major toy series. Some of the contenders include Monopoly (already announced as being a Ridley Scott film) Battleship, Ouija, Clue, Stretch Armstrong, and Magic: The Gathering.

Most of this info I read off Rotten Tomatoes, so kudos to them putting that together, and not objecting to my silent editorializing of their content....

As I look through this stuff, I just can't help but feel how fake it all is. I'd like to point out that all of the movies I have mentioned here are rehashes of ideas. No new thought.

And while Universal and Fox and Miramax and all the others slowly suck up all their remake resources, I can't help but wonder what happens when everything has been redone....

Do we watch them again?

The Six Update

Hey all.

The uh, site's not finished yet, and I gave myself a deadline that I didn't live up to, so to at least slightly hold to my word, here's the first ten pages of the Six.
Page 1
Page 2
Page 3
Page 4
Page 5
Page 6
Page 7
Page 8
Page 9
Page 10

I would have just put them up as images, but they were getting cut off on the side and it looked stupid, so there you go.

I hope you guys enjoyed the beginning, there's plenty more to come, and by the end of the month, the site should be set up and ready to go. I'm probably going to go with freegalling-flightless.com

Anyway, take it easy and see you in a few days!

Airwaves

So today I'm on the radio!

At 1PM on Ottawa University's student radio station I'm talking with host Laura Osman about the internet as a medium for comics - webcomics!

We'll be chatting about the different pros and cons of the medium vs. printed form as well as the rise and fall in webcomic popularity over the last little while.

It's going to be fun!

As for my stuff - I know, I'm late as usual, but Later on today I'll be posting the first ten pages of the Six, and follow up at the end of the month with the full issue.

In more personal news, I have found a house in Toronto. I'll be moving in may-ish and I'll be living with some of my close friends who attend York University.

So stick around folks, I'm picking up steam.

February

February is a big month for J. Mackenzie Graham.

man oh man.

But I'm starting to finally develop multi-tasking, which is great.

My life is finally back on track, spiritually. Here are the things I'm working on now...

-Mozhaets: A Dystopian Science Fiction (returning in February)

A science fiction comic set in a futuristic world. Sid, a loudmouthed, nineteen year old "murderer" who has been transferred to a minimum security space station gets a chance to escape captivity. Along for the ride are Malik - an old CEO-turned-fraud, Loukka - a techno-terrorist, and her sidekick Ezekiel - a quiet, trusting, weapon of intimidation.

The four travel the stars looking for a home, only to find that it might have been better in jail.

Check it out as it returns - my teenage magnum opus - in the middle of February.

-The Six (beginning in February)

A super-stylized super hero comic.

Centered around six special individuals who learn to master their given powers, and whose lives intertwine.

Each of the six characters is given six issues to tell the story from their point of view. The first being the Remarkable Zombie Boy. An emo kid teenager who tries to kill himself, only to realize that he can't die!

Is he indestructible?

Who are the other five?

Find out! (well, a little) on February 15th!

-Aim For The Head

The little movie that CAN!

I will finish this film if it takes me the rest of my life. Filming will pick up again in february, for both Aim for the Head, and it's sequel, Grim City. More on that later.

Other projects are stewing. Here are some things to look forward to in the coming months:

-A short (written, no art) story set in the Mozhaets Universe

-The return of MATTMAN, an oldie-but-a-goodie for those who are truly down with the JMG.

-A Zombie... comic?

-A Controversial Creed: an assassin with a twist. Short comic with a punch.

-After Mozhaets has finished (don't hold your breath) two follow-up projects that will match it in epicness:

The Mancer: Set in a fantasy world, two young men's lives are comandeered by a ruthless, and nightmarish leader. Where does he come from? What's his deal? And why can no one look him straight in the eye?

The Night The Lights Went Out: Not much I can talk about on this one... but I'll leave you with this question: When a society relies on technology for food, entertainment, life, and even thought, what happens when the power goes off?

All this and much much much much MUCH MUCH more, coming from your humble narrator.

And all of it will be found on my new webpage... it's not up yet, but it will be by the 15th of February. It will house all my projects, and will be called Freefalling & Flightless.

This blog is the beginning of this website, and will be embedded into the main page when it's up.