Oz Squad

 

I've written before about my life-long fascination with L. Frank Baum's Oz books and their many multimedia spinoffs.

Like most people, I saw the Wicked movie opening weekend and loved it, just like I loved the musical and the books it's based on.

But for my money, the best revisionist Dark Oz of all is the Caliber Comics version. Yes Caliber, home of goth vigilante The Crow and zombie apocalypse road trip DeadWorld, did a take on Dorothy and her pals, and it's grimngritty as all hell.

Image from Romance In Rags, the one where Scraps, The Patchwork Girl Of Oz, tries to win The Scarecrow, currently suffering from a mind control spell by the witch Mombi and working for the evil Nome King, back to the side of the Emerald City freedom fighters.  

The series was recently released as a series of trade paperbacks, essential reading for all you My Chemical Romance fans.

I'm A Cult Hero

 

Now that this early incarnation of The Cult is back, I hope they use their old logo on the t-shirts.

Welcome Foolish Reader

 

Well, your ol' pal Wimbledon Green has done it again!  After nearly 20 years, I have finally completed my collection of all seven issues of the SLG Haunted Mansion series, at last scoring the elusive issue #4.

Now that I have it in my hot little hands, I can see why this issue was so hard to find at a reasonable price: every story is drawn by a good artist!

You've got Lenore's Roman Dirge, Serenity Rose creator Aaron Alexovitch, the spooktackular Drew Rausch-  this is a murderer's row of goth comics...literally.

Well, now that my collection is complete I can finally relax and rest in peace. Muah ha ha ha ha

Twisted, Sister

 

Disney's Twisted Wonderland manga by Yana Toboso, Wakana Hazuki, and Sumire Kowano is the perfect successor to Kingdom Hearts.

Perfect in that it is: 1. Japanese, 2. Based on a video game, and 3. Doesn't make a damn bit of sense.

I'm gonna be honest, I skimmed through this one.  The beginning starts off like a sports manga about kendo,  which I was enjoying, but after a couple of pages the main character is whisked away to Hogwarts Night Raven College  where he has to compete with classmates? And one of the classmates is into Queen of Hearts cosplay?  And he has to dorm in the Haunted Mansion?

Like I said, I skimmed it. 

Anyway, if you like the cellphone game and/or Goth Disney, you'll probably like this book. Volume 2 comes out tomorrow, I believe.

Disney will tear us apart, again

Edit:  Wimps.


 

Haunted Bela

Here's an oldie but goodie from way back in 2007:

Haunted Mansion/ Bela Lugosi's Dead mashup

 (incredibly, the link still works)

(Pictured:  Haunted Mansion sneakers)

Psychobilly Freakout

So yesterday was apparently "Rock Around the Park," a day out at Disneyland for "the rockabilly and psychobilly subculture."  Sounds like fun.  

Goths have "Bats Day," rockabillies have this...when are surf fans going to get our s**t together??  I want a Disney day too!

Finally, a movie for me!

From Gawker's list of Seven Cartoons That Deserve Their Own Movies:

Gummi Bears

Original: A family of mystical creatures lives in a tree and gains magical bouncing powers when they drink their special juice. With the help of a young page, they fight against an evil duke and his army of ogres.

Updates for Film: I really hate when movies blend animation with live-action like in The Chipmunks but there's really no way to get around this, is there? The remake shouldn't be so bright, cheery, and infantile as the original. Give it the Tim Burton treatment and make them sort of dark and grotesque. Play up the drug angle because all these bears are doing is living in the forest and dosing themselves with some strange brew all day.

Who Would See It: Goth stoners.

Related Story

Chip Witch

"Witch Convention" from Walt Disney's Comics and Stories #223.
Written by Nick George, Art by the great Al Hubbard.

Put away the eyeliner, Robert

Goth is dead.

Very Good Advice

Burn down Hot Topic

Remember back in the 90's, when it seemed like Disney had no idea what to do with The Nightmare Before Christmas? The only Nightmare tie-ins you could find were the soundtrack CD, a couple of books, and the Burger King watches. Rather than working against the property, though, the lack of merch was kind of cool; the lack of cheesy tie-ins made the movie felt more 'special' than all the other cartoon garbage out there. Nightmare was a movie for us, maaan!

Unfortunately, nothing gold can stay. The kids who were 6 or 7 in 1994 grew up and became teenagers... Broody, gothic, smeary eyeliner, emo teenagers with loads of disposable income. Just like that, the merchandising floodgates opened.

The following images are the result of a Google Image Search for "Nightmare Before Christmas Merchandise."












Believe me, there's a ton of Nightmare s**t out there; this is just scratching the surface. I tried collecting Nightmare stuff for a while, but it's just. too. much.
Don't believe me? Try it yourself!

American Gothic

Disney images from the Tim Burton show at the Museum of Modern Art:

Concept art for Burton's claymation-style 1982 short "Vincent."


Concept art for "The Black Cauldron." Sadly, Burton's designs weren't used for the film.


Images from Slate's Burton Exhibit slideshow.

Curiouser and curiouser

Yesterday I went to the movies (Youth in Revolt, and yes it was great). At the theater they had these "Preview" magazines, thinly-disguised promotional material for upcoming Disney films (a side note: Jerry Bruckheimer's The Sorcerer's Apprentice? REALLY DISNEY??)

This Alice in Wonderland...I dunno if it's going to be any good, but it's got style. I think the fact that it's a sequel and not a straight-up remake is probably a good thing, even if it does remind people of Return to Oz. I've been a Burton-head since the first Batman so I'll be there opening night; I wonder if audiences are going to take the trip with me.

Stupid like a fox

This is a scene from an officially licensed Disney comic:

It's slightly less creepy in context. Honest!

How great were the SLG Haunted Mansion books? Seriously, I can't believe that Disney green-lit a "Rated T for Teen" series in the first place, let alone that they allowied this little doozy to go to press.

I haven't yet read the Gargoyles, Tron, or Wonderland series, but I hope they also take an "outsider" approach to the Disney properties. I'd much prefer to see unique twists on established properties like this than the neverending Princess and Tinkerbell crap I see at the mall.

From Haunted Mansion #3, SLG Publishing, 2006. Written and illustrated by D.W. Frydendall.

The Secret Origin of Ezra

Scanned from Haunted Mansion #7, SLG Publishing, 2007
Written by John Hastings, Drawn by Jon Morris

I just started collecting these Haunted Mansion comics from SLG Publishing (formerly known as Slave Labor Graphics). These books are definitely going after the older teen market, rather than the traditional young kid/aging collector audience that most Disney comics aim for. Last time I checked, these books dould be found on the shelves at Hot Topic, right next to Johnny the Homicidal Maniac, Lenore, and Emily the Strange. I'm not a moody teenager (anymore) but I'm digging these comics. Most of the issues are available from the SLG website...check em out.

C'mon, Burton

From Jill Thompson's (bafflingly, inexplicably, preposterously) rejected Nightmare Before Christmas comic. Apparently, Burton didn't want to license a Nightmare comic, but then they turned around and made the manga anyway. Stupid.

via Robot 6

Eeeee-vil Wo-man

Maleficent by Richard Friend. Taken from I Love Cartoons! Many more Disney characters are featured there, along with other amazing renditions of your favorite Saturday Morning pals.