Pop Culture Safari!

Comics Journal takes a look at new Smurfs books

As ickingly annoying as these little blue people appear in their animated form (a new CGI Smurfs movie is on the way), the comic strips they stem from were pretty good, reports the Comics Journal. Peyo's original Smurfs comics from the 1950s are now being reprinted by Papercutz and I may need to give them a look.

From the Journal:

the Smurf stories I’ve seen so far are sagas for all-ages, and the artwork, a delicious mixture of bigfoot and “little foot,” deploying a Disneyesque passion for visual detail in settings and backgrounds

The Smurfs #2: The Smurfs and the Magic Flute

The Smurfs #6: The Smurfs and the Howlibird

Amazon steps up streaming service

Looks like their set to go head-to-head with Netflix as a streaming platform.

From Variety:

The e-tailer plans to offer a single subscription fee for unlimited streams or downloads of movies and other entertainment fare through its Amazon Prime service that will provide studios with yet another digital platform through which they can generate revenue for their projects outside the megaplex.

Official plans have yet to be unveiled, but the company let it slip to Amazon Prime's existing members Tuesday that it will soon offer "unlimited, commercial-free, instant streaming of 5,000 movies and TV shows." That could start as early as the end of the month, insiders at the company say.

Details on Wonder Woman TV pilot

Via the Futon Critic:

1. What's the main thrust of the show? Meet Diana Themyscira. By night, Diana fights crime as Wonder Woman, a Los Angeles-based superhero. By day, Diana runs Themyscira Industries, which among other things, sells Wonder Woman-related merchandise to fund her crime-fighting efforts. And since the public knows Diana Themyscira is Wonder Woman, she's recently invented a secret identity, Diana Prince (complete with a Clark Kent-esque disguise involving contact lenses, glasses, pulling her hair back and a housecat named Desi), to allow her a more normal perspective on the world.

2. What does the costume look like? The script only details it as "a colorful spandex suit." It won't be the original, iconic costume though (don't worry, she still keeps it hung in her closet). Despite that look being the company's top seller, Diana insists her current outfit is a tad more appropriate.

3. What about her gadgets? The golden lasso of truth is there, as are her bullet reflecting bracelets. In lieu of an invisible plane (or being able to fly), Diana uses various sedan-sized aircrafts, made by BMW no less ("The Ultimate Air Machine").

New comics Feb. 2, 2011

Stuff I'll buy:

Little Lulu Volume 26: The Feud and Other Stories My daugher loves these.

AMAZING SPIDER-MAN #653 For my son and me.

UNCLE SCROOGE #400 As I mentioned, the Duck titles are back to printing classic reprints, which is just dandy with me. My kids like these, too.

Things I'll browse and (maybe) buy:

DC UNIVERSE ONLINE LEGENDS #1 Penned by Marv Wolfman, a new weekly limited series. I'll browse and maybe buy.

LEGION OF SUPER HEROES ANNUAL #1 Featuring the team of Paul Levitz and Keith Giffen. I loved their 80s run on the title. Of course, I have no idea what's going on in the title now, not really having followed it since those days.

SUPERMAN 80 PAGE GIANT 2011 This appeals to my sense of nostalgia -- a big anthology of short, presumably standalone, stories featuring the Superman Family. Depends on how it strikes me.

DOCTOR STRANGE FROM MARVEL VAULT Penned by Paul Stern, a "lost" standalone story about Doc Strange's early days is definitely worth a look.

The Strange Case of Edward Gorey As a Gorey fan, I'm curious about this one: "...a loving memoir of a singular artist, written by a best friend."

New collections of note: