I wonder if the comic really is an anti-gun PSA or if we are supposed to take Zom and his huge guns seriously. Also, To counter the arguement "we're safe while we have gun", I don't see how guns will slow down the Ben's lasers and nukes
I love how the insluts its own characters ("Don't you like to think" for Kamandi, "low intelligence" for Ben Boxer and Co)
Just out of curiosity, have you skipped pages ? I don't quite understand how the bikes could have been destroyed by the plane crash since they were on them while it happened and would have been blown away along with them... Also, did Kamandi and his companions managed to outrun a spaceship with a van ?
I don't think the apocalyptic world is a book friendly environment. I don't remember in what period the series takes place, but in the far future, the books are more likely to end up as dust, like the future library in George Pal's Time Machine.
No Southland Tales reference for the severed finger ?
My GOD, I know how happy you will be once you review the last issue of Kamandi and finally wash your hands of this terrible Elseworld.
This has gotten me curious though, have you read any of Jack Kirby's Kamandi or do you plan on checking it out?
When they showed those corpses in the plane, I was hoping you would refference that one scene with the dead bodies in that ship from the Doctor Who episode "Asylum of the Daleks."
It's a brand new year and poor Linkara already has to review some new lazily-drawn, oddly-written foolishness.
To be honest, I'm kind of confused about the time in which the comic takes place. How long has it been since the apocalypse that took place in this ridiculous universe happened? If it was recent then whatever, but if it happened many years before the start of the first book, then there should be a lot of things that are inaccessible to the Order of People with Guns Bigger Than Their Muscles and Brains. A lot of the technology shouldn't work and resources (like food, water, and the bullets that our idiotic heroes keep wasting) should be hard to come by. The ability to read would be not only rare, but barely useful (since survival would be the priority). Even Mother Machine should be dreading the day that her own power sources finally give out since no one would have the technological know-how to replace them and she'd (for a lack of a better word) die.
Sorry, being a fan of this show, I should know better than to expect any logic from most of the comics that appear here. Good work, Mr. Lovhaug and I hope you enjoyed your New Year.
Maybe the title is a reference the the Crusin' series of games? :P
I'm playing a low intelligence character in fallout 3, but even they have enough sense to not read during combat, or some other stuff that happens in this comic. Guess I wasn't playing stupid enough.
They aren't made of stars, just covered in them. Although the horrible coloured checks remind me of orks from Warhammer 40k second edition.
Loved this episode! It's probably just because of the book itself since it essentially dates back to the start of the show, but this felt like I was revisiting an old episode from a few years ago.
Fun episode this week as always. God Kamandi At Earth's End was awful. Sort of afraid to see the reviews of the rest to see how awful it is. Had a lot of fun at AT4W Live this weekend at magfest among other things. Thanks to you, Channel Awesome, and Magfest for all the fun.
Vile John kinda looks like a mixture of a Warhammer 40K Commissar and an Ork Warboss combined. Also, how is the graffiti UNDER the sign's original text?
Yay! A fellow Candy Cove fan! Man, is that show hard to hunt down! Most of the recordings I could find would brake into static halfway through, if they aren't completely just static to begin with Seriously! Who in their right mind would even upload static to begin with!
But I digress The whole concept of a single colossal highway reminds me of a much better comic series, the Swiss series "Gipsy" http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gipsy_(comics) Heavily recommended, especially if you can get you'r hands on an uncensored version (I hope you know at least some French or German)
Also, is this the same Mother Machine as we saw in BlackHawks? If yes, we may witness some interesting stuff in the New 52
No story line this week. To bad your story lines are getting better and better. The review was good even though the original comic book was mind numbingly stupid and dull. I think that the thought that guns can solve every problems is still around today, at least in some circles.
Em anyway. Good job and I am looking forward to next week's review.
I have to admit, I was a bit disappointed with this episode. It might have just been the comic- I know there's only so much you can do, but I just felt this wasn't as good as most of your other videos. The jokes weren't that funny to me (except maybe the candle cove one in the credits) and all of them felt used. I don't know.
So um... Ran out of time to get back to the Story arc? Apologize if any of this was already said but you are in transit and I can't see what anyone else has said yet.
Did you take it as a personal challenge to avoid Mad Max and Ice Pirates in this? Because both of them had some interesting scenes that might have been useful. Ice Pirates even had a similar battle wagon with giant wheels of death.
If the "Great American Highway" was built after the "first apocalypse" who built it? There are no governments left after the apocalypse to build roads. Why would they waste their resources on building a highway? This is just like Thatch's plan to get land after the apocalypse. No owns anything and no one is in charge after the world has ended. God I hate it when Post-Apocalyptic stories do this crap. Good review.
Given what Linkara goes through in some of these plot lines, I hope there's reason to believe this year will be better.
So... if she's got no pockets on her pants, the next most reasonable place to store that severed finger would be... her cleavage? Not that it would surprise me in this stupid comic.
So if the word "Moby" is on his shoulder pad, what's he have written on his codpiece? I don't think Herman Melville would approve.
Anyway, of course books are important after the apocalypse, Linkara! Didn't you see that Twilight Zone episode?
Here's the thing- for all that is bad about this comic, was Kamandi that good or interesting in and of itself? I think I remember seeing a Brave and the Bold episode with it involved, and it looked like it could actually be decent. I mean, ripping off Planet of the Apes isn't exactly a bad idea because Planet of the Apes was pretty solid. It would kind of be cool to see a review of the Kamandi world as it was supposed to be, rather than this tripe, just to see what the heck they were supposedly drawing from or getting at. Might make it look even more patently ridiculous.
A highway FORTY MILES WIDE? What next, a presidential golf course the size of Montana? Perhaps Long Island is now an enormous parking lot to serve Manhattan. Maybe Maine is also the back garden for Stephen King's head in a jar. The possibilities are endless.
18:03: Wait, you skipped past the pay-off to the whole "Saphira likes books" subplot! It's good to read, because that means Saphira could read the instructions on a rocket launcher.
Yesss new review finally. I discovered your reviews in December in youtube and been archive-binging since! I'm not a big comics fan, but I enjoy your riffing style a lot.
I just hate the setting of a post-apocalyptic future, even more so if they're ripping off the look of the Mad Max films.
The only post-apocalyptic setting I actually like is the Land of Ooo from Adventure Time because it's not a barren wasteland filled with death and decay everywhere you look.
I wonder if this comic was created because someone at DC noticed that their rights over Kamandi were going to expire, and God forbid that happen! So they just hired the first guy they found to write it, and described it as "just like Mad Max."
I'm particularly pissed at what they did to Ben Boxer. He was Kamandi's friend, and had a cool power (turning to Steel like Colossus.) Really, if not for your snappy banter, Linkara, I wouldn't even watch the review, because this comic is BO-RING.
No comments? Am I going mad? Well Maybe now is a good time to post my first comment after two years of watching. Good episode Linkara.
I know other have asked you but would you consider reviewing 'Tintin in the Congo'? I know you don't read European comics but considering the guy who wrote the Tintin comics disowned as a bad comic it's more than fair fodder for Atop the forth Wall.
Keep going Lewis.
Also I hope you do a crossover with Oancitizan someday. You two are my favourites TGWTG reviewers =).
"I wonder if the comic really is an anti-gun PSA or if we are supposed to take Zom and his huge guns seriously. Also, To counter the arguement "we're safe while we have gun", I don't see how guns will slow down the Ben's lasers and nukes"
It frankly just makes the anti-gun message of Superman at Earth's End all the dumber.
"Just out of curiosity, have you skipped pages ? I don't quite understand how the bikes could have been destroyed by the plane crash since they were on them while it happened and would have been blown away along with them... Also, did Kamandi and his companions managed to outrun a spaceship with a van ?"
Nope, didn't skip anything. I had the same complaint in the episode - we seem to be missing pieces of this story.
"No Southland Tales reference for the severed finger ?"
Considered bringing it up, but felt that it'd be a bit forced.
wait, Let me get this straight,this comic is rob liefeild's pitch to a Micheal Bay Film with mad Max and the destruction of the Jersey Shore? THIS IS THE BEST COMIC IN THE WORLD! okay its not, but still any literally without those creepy jersey shore people I'm okay with. then again it does have M. Bison Youngblood style. and rob's deadpool makign a small cameo.
Well, about the log/diary thing... I don't find it very unlogical to write those in a post apocalyptic world. People tent to safe precious things, this also counts for thoughts and, especially, memories. It's the number one reason why diaries exist anyway. And it's not only for yourself, but also for upcomming generations. I'm a fan of the whole Fallout Lore, a series that, in my opinion, manages a great balance of a post apocalyptic world. And they use logs extremly well, as you often travel from terminal to terminal to read the old logs, that tell you the story of what was going on in the past - and what exactly went wrong.
Buuuut... I somehow doubt that anyone in this comic is clever enough for so much foresight or cares about anything regarding future or past... And having a reason for writing a log, doesn't make it good or neccessairy as well... XD
Btw, I laughed hard at the pre-intro scene :D Great opening for the review!
And thus the new year begins with Kamandi...could be worse, could be more Marville.
I thin someone just wanted to mish-mash every futuristic story ever and see what happens...and unfortunately the answer is this mess. Seriously, the whole bit with the books really felt like a cheap version of "Farenheight 451", which was about the key of how books allow for the continued usage of critical thinking in an era where everything is handed out to you...wait. Anyway, that book is good and this sort of just does it's best to try and reference it and does so horribly. And of course, more Road Warrior and more chicken heads. (weirdly two of my favorite books have a similar concept of "thought", being that and Norman Jester's "The Phantom Tollbooth"...)
Things I am learning from reading the comments, Candle Cove is awesome and I should look into whatever it is. Sounds familiar but I admit to knowing nothing more than the name's existence.
No Klingon Blood Wine for this? Or is the heavy "booze" only for Marville?
I half expected the Cybermat to suddenly blast the comic because it sensed you were in danger from the massive amounts of stupid.
Linkara, you missed an awesome opportunity to use a clip from the "Twilight Zone" episode "Time Enough at Last"! After the Biomechs blew up the Library of Congress and Sephira starts whining about the lost books, there was a perfect chance to show Burgess Meredith whining, "It's not fair!"
Also, the other thing that was necessary in the '90's was pouches. Lots of pouches. And shoulder pads.
He's making a log so that it will one day be read by an alien, re-emerging, or evolved species. This is a common theme in much of the post apocalyptic fiction I've read. *Wink* Or he's doing it so that the Doctor may one day read it.
The way things are going these days books may very well outlast humans to pass on the knowledge of our species. Humans are miraculously gifted at losing knowledge and technology. Also information on any skill or fact you may need to know will be stored in a library. Everything from spelling to lock- and gunsmithing. The library of congress in Washington D.C. is a governmental research library with over 32 million cataloged books (non-fiction), more than 61 million manuscripts (fiction), over 1 million us government publications, and more. Also philosophically speaking books are full of thinking.
@10.06' people commonly bring books onto airplanes so they can have something to do during the flight. well... at least they did before the digital age.
@ 11.25 *applauds*
@16.55 Dude I still design them like that *points at self doing best Spooning with Spoony impression* 90's kid... oh yeah...
Lastly, scientifically speaking every atom in our universe was once part of a star, as stars are the factories of our universe, so in truth we are made of former stardust.
I think possibly your Schlock Mercenary fandom is leaking through into the Linkara writing. Not that that's a bad thing, though...if only we could get some dark matter beasties from Andromeda to take out Ben Boxer now.
Do you read Broodhollow by Kris Straub? If not, it's a webcomic by the guy who wrote "Candle Cove" and the other Ichor Falls creepy pastas, set in Ichor Falls' sister city.
All those villain suggestions. I'm now starting to wonder if Channel Awesome could do a bumper exchange. Get Phaelous, Doug, NC, and the rest to all make their own bumpers that help cross promotion and just post them for all site contributors to use.
I could see most of your bumper bits working well in many of the other videos just as well as reusing them here.
@ Description *looks at the boys* Nt,...not always when well written. If not for set up moments of humor and parody in the boys, it'd be a terrifying look into how screwed we be if superheroess weren't really heroes. Also how those "heroes" are only kept in check by ruthless companies and a group of psychos working for the government.
This obviously is written and drawn by team who doesn't understand how technology works at all, or what militarily works, but act if they do. Quality of writer and or artist can cripple what is other wise a decent concept.
The concept of a kid ,raised by a computer in relative comfort, being sent out into the waste land as he discovers things about himself and the world=great concept. how it's written here, poorly used concept and poorly written mess.
I picked up a complete run of it that someone had taped back in 1973 at a local market a couple of weeks back, though I think there's something wrong with my copies. Was the water always supposed to be red, or is that just a combination of age and trying to play NTSC videos on a PAL VCR/TV combo?
The more I see of this comic, the more i'm convinced it's an extremely bad rip-off of Judge Dredd - The Cursed Earth. Same travelling objective, same frequent use of firepower, similar post apocalyptic setting, same over the top characters and even aspects of the art style; but none of the awareness or quality of writing.
You know, books and literacy can still prove VERY important in a post-apocalyptic setting Remember, as long as humanity survives, there's still the chance of re-building, and maintaining the old knowledge can be very helpful with that No mater how much the church may have screwed society up during the dark ages, they can still be credited with keeping at least parts of the antique sciences alive after the fall of Rome
As far as people comparing this comic to 40K goes, it's really not a coincidence The whole franchise essentially started as "StarTrek as re-imagined by Rob Liefeld" in the late 80s However thanks to it having a relatively compelling story (largely achieved by ripping-off Dune, Solomon Kane, Starship Troopers, and Elric of Melniboné) and tongue-in-cheek nature, it managed to survive until this very day And while the designs became infused with elements of High Gothic over the decades, the influence of the EXTREME 90s look is still very visible, especially in the overabundance of huge guns and massive shoulder pads In a way, Warhammer 40k is an example of how 90s comics could have been if more effort was put into them http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TLGJlDGMZE0
linkara all i will say is....."deadpool month" Let the beuties of the merc with a mouth shine... and possibly open it like nc when he did star trek or schwrtzenager month (idk how to spell)
"Books are full of thinking!" Well this comic certaintly isn't! I was starting to think of the Batman Reading PSA during that scene. For some reason I can't remember any of the characters' names, except for Kamandi... just becuase his name is in the title. That is how forgettable this comic is! Good review, Lewis.
"Do you read Broodhollow by Kris Straub? If not, it's a webcomic by the guy who wrote "Candle Cove" and the other Ichor Falls creepy pastas, set in Ichor Falls' sister city."
o.o I don't know who you are, but I love you for bringing the existence of this to my attention. I adore Candle Cove, but nobody I know has ever seen it.
I have to wonder why they chose that still for the comic -- there were better episodes to pick from.
>As far as people comparing this comic to 40K goes, it's really not a coincidence >The whole franchise essentially started as "StarTrek as re-imagined by Rob Liefeld" in the late 80s
???
Warhammer 40,000 is Warhammer Fantasy in space.
Warhammer Fantasy is Warhammer in the form of a tabletop wargame.
Warhammer is Advanced Fighting Fantasy for adults.
Advanced Fighting Fantasy was Fighting Fantasy in the form of a proper RPG.
For those who aren't into gamebooks, Fighting Fantasy was Dungeons and Dragons for single players and in book form.
You HAD to reference Candle Cove? D: I just stopped watching that show and now the nightmares will come back..
To be serious though, Candle Cove probably has some of the best stories written about it, the creepy thing about the pasta being the lack of super natural phenonema. This didn't happen, but it COULD. That's a bit scarier than the slender man or The Rake in my opinion.
I loved Jack Kirby's original Kamandi series. I grant that he lifted some basic ideas from Planet of the Apes--snd a chronic problem with any book Mr. Kirby wrote himself was stilted dialogue and characterizations. But his imaginative ideas and powerful visuals always more than made up for this, lifting the series from beyond just being a POTA ripoff to something really unique and entertaining.
I've had opportunities to give class-room lectures about Kirby, Ditko and their work at Marvel. I always included some panels from Kamandi as part of showing just how awesome Jack Kirby's imagination was.
That's why I was so disappointed in the 1990s update. It was as if the creators of that series purposely turned their imagination off. If I remember correctly, I think I gave up on it after the first two issues.
How exactly would a TV, VCR and/or books still actually exist decades after the apocalypse? I can barely get a TV to work after five years.
And Saphira knows how to use the Library of Congress organizational system?
And if the writers' had been more competent they would have realized that jokes like 'taking the wife and kids on vacation' really doesn't sound intelligent from a post-apocalypse generation. Sadly little things like actually making your story feel like a post-apocalyptic world where the hubris of man has doomed the species is well beyond the abilities of these writers.
Dear lord, what is up with the guns in this comic? She shouldn't even be able to lift that "pistol" with both hands Oo
And my only explanation for wasting millions of dollars on making a highway so wide that it can no longer be classified as a highway is that the "first apocalypse" was caused by mutated grass.
Okay, Candle Cove is one of those creepypasta things, right? Is there any way I can look up details of it without being exposed to any potential nightmare fuel?
Jarkes: TVTropes has a couple of pages on it. The SugarWiki version discusses it as if it was a real show so as to avoid spoilers, and the DarthWiki version is a more direct, matter of fact analysis. I'd recommend reading the SugarWiki version first.
Alternatively, <a href="http://www.ichorfalls.com/2009/03/15/candle-cove/>just read the original.</a> It's not really that scary.
Yes, I em aware of the origin of Warhammer 40000 as the sci-fi counterpart to Warhammer Fantasy Battles
I used the "StarTrek as re-imagined by Rob Liefeld" as an analogy for people who are not familiar with the franchise An I found more similarities to 40k with StarTrek than Star Wars especially as far as the races go Eldar -Vulcans Dark Eldar - Romulans Orkz - Klingons Nekrons - Borg Tau Empire - Dominion And I em aware that the 40k races are supposed to be counterparts to the classic fantasy races, but that can also be seen as an example of fantasy tropes in StarTrak, but I digress
The point is, if you gave Rob Liefeld, or one of his imitators, the task to re-imagine StarTrek, the results would be very similar to Warhammer 40000 The franchise has essentially become a safe-haven for a huge number of 90s tropes, allowing them to survive till this day, an an example of how they can work if used properly http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lT5Gy079OWw http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L-hvozUG74Q http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x6JaV-jgFHM http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6GDRe0OHbZg
There was also an episode from a previous season of "Brave and the Bold" that was set entirely in Kamandi's future. Gorilla Grodd escaped into the future and Batman pursued him there--teaming up with Kamandi to stop Grodd from conquering the world with a gorilla army.
It was awesome. Now there was a show with a creative staff that DID know how to use their imaginations.
Anon- Erm, no. To stretch things that far, then you might as well say it's Lord of the Rings by Rob Liefeld, or Halo by Rob Liefeld, ect.
Something being dark and having guns in it does not make it X by Rob Liefeld.
Also, not all the races are fantasy races, though most of them are, and the ones that aren't can be stretched, but Star Trek? Orcs are not noble warriors with a code of honour, they are space mushrooms that love to fight. Necrons are not borg either. The only ones that work is Vulcans and Romulans, and that's only because they are both elves and dark elves in space. I am not familiar enough with the Dominion, but unless they are high tech space communists with a hidden agenda and a visual style based on samurai and anime, then no.
Now, I'm not a comic expert, but I thought the 90s was overly muscular men covered in pouches, messy design, using oversized guns and excessive violence in the name of XTREME! and are so bad arse as to be able to walk off a rocket to the chest with sheer bravado.
40k has the big guns and excessive violence, but there are no superfluous pouches, lots of dying horribley and a consistent dark gothic design aesthetic. I guess if you took a lone space marine captain and made that the focus you could make it 90s extreme-ish if you wanted.
If people aren't familiar, then just tell them it's dark gothic fantasy, but in space, with guns. I'm someone very familiar with the material, and even I'm having a hard time stretching it to fit your description.
Ironically, a minor part of the fiction is the humans "dark age of technology" which is said to have been a low point for mankind where they were obsessed with machines, but it is implied it was something like Star Trek before everything went bad.
Eldar - A dying race of psychics living on vast planetary colony ships made of psychic bone constructs. Responsible for the creation of Satan with more sex, drugs 'n rock and role. Their society has developed a path system to focus their energies to help better their survival and avoid falling to Chaos. Extremely manipulative and likely to shoot humans.
Vulcans - A race who live life purely through the dictations of logic and are a part of a major multi-species power. Avoid violence whenever possible.
Dark Eldar - What happens when BDSM fanatics become forcibly daemon worshippers to ensure their survival. Mass pirates, slavers and devourers of souls. Responsible for some of the most disturbing acts in the known galaxy. Not interested in expanding into an empire, simply taking more slaves.
Romulans - Space Romans with the tendency to manipulate others. Desiring constantly to take more power. No interest in slaves.
Orkz - Humanoid plants whose latent psychic abilities allow them to alter reality when enough force is gathered. Half their technology is reliant upon this ability. Leftover living weapon from the War in Heaven. Have no fear of death due to escaping the Nightbringer's fall somehow. See war and violence as a source of entertainment. Largely used as the fanchise's intentional sense of humour.
Klingons - Space vikings, heavily ritualised and go into battle for glory and blood. Do not have psychics which can create steam powered mecha.
Necrons - Servants of elderich star vampires and the survivors of a great war with the old ones. Seemingly unkillable, each individual model will simply come back stronger. Survivors of a great war with the Old Ones tricked into possessing metal bodies. Fly around in giant pyramids/crescents.
Borg - Origins unknown. Cyborgs with a desire to capture and convert all to their way of life.
Tau Empire - Humanoids with the desire to unify all sentient under a single banner due to titanic war which almost wiped their species out. Ruled by a sub-species of their own kind capable of imparting spiritual and mental guidance, possibly also control. Use flying mecha and auxiliary forces from hundreds of races. Hinted to be under the control of a far more sinister force and possibly a far more Orwellian society than was first shown.
Dominion - Empire ruled by liquid shapeshifter xenophobes with contradictory actions and the ideology of "because I say so". Force all other species encountered to obey their will out of fear of mass rebellion and extermination of their kind. Never go into combat, using instead genetically engineered soldiers. No mecha present in armed forces.
There are few to no similarities between the two, let alone directly comparable factions. Please do not try and reduce it to being a dark rip-off of another franchise designed by someone whose story thoughts extend to "guns & pounches".
I agree with most of the arguments as I already said before, 40K really has more in common with Dune and Starship Troopers My point is that the franchise came to be in a period where the types of designs seen in this comic were at the height of their popularity, which also explains why several commenters here as well as on TGWTH were reminded of it
the influence is most visible in the first 2 editions (published during the 80s and early 90s) http://wh40k.lexicanum.com/mediawiki/images/5/58/417px-WH40KCompendium.jpg http://wh40k.lexicanum.com/mediawiki/images/3/35/CodexImperialis.jpg http://wh40k.lexicanum.com/mediawiki/images/b/b0/Codex_Ultramarines_FCover.jpg http://wh40k.lexicanum.com/mediawiki/images/d/d8/Codex_Space_Wolves_2nd_Edition_FCover.jpg http://wh40k.lexicanum.com/mediawiki/images/b/b1/Codex_Imperial_Guard_2nd_FCover.jpg http://wh40k.lexicanum.com/mediawiki/images/9/9e/Codex_Orks_2nd_FCover.jpg
I also had my reasons for comparing the races I did
Both Eldar and Vulcan are psychic races The Vulcan are guided by reason and logic, and often appear emotionless. This is basically what the Eldar wish to become. Eldar do experience emotions much more intensely than any other species. This combined with their psychic powers and the excessive decadence of their society lead to the birth of Slaanesh, and the fall of their civilization. The Eldar path system was created in order to suppress the Eldar's emotions, and have them act for the collective good of their species instead (they can still get very emotional, but they are trying)
This is also similar to the schism between the Vulcan and Romulan, where as the Vulcan rejected their emotions for the sake of pure logic, the Romulans held on to their old way of life Similarly, the Dark Eldar willingly continue living in the same decadence that destroyed their empire, even as the unwilling slaves of Slaanesh, showing very little regret (besides the enslavement part) Also, the "Space Romans" description fits the Dark Eldar pretty well too, alto it's more of the Caligula type of Romans (they are even huge fans of gladiatorial games)
It's also worth noting that while humans in the Star Trek universe were rather reasonable even before the Federation was founded, the vast majority of humans (at least those in charge) in the 40k universe are xenophobic, genocidal zealots, who believe that humans are the only species that has any right to exist. The rest are bloodthirsty cultists who believe that the entire universe should burn to the ground. Seeing how humans are the 3rd most numerous race in the known universe (after Tyranids and Orks, who aren't much better, if not worse), it's no wonder the Eldar are so hostile to everyone
To the Orkz and Klingons, it's true that the boyz are much more savage, and their technology is more crude, but they both fulfill the niche of a warrior race, that values ones combat prowess over everything else. They both prefer to engage in hand-to-hand if they can get away with it, and look down upon such concepts as pacifism. Also, there are strong hints that the Klingons were originally a genetically engineered warrior race as well, who grew to destroy their creators.
The Necrons started off as an organic life form, who were tricked by the C'Tan and converted into machines, loosing their free will in the process (and please, do NOT mention the stuff written by Matt Ward, it DID NOT happen, nothing that guy ever wrote ever happened!) Now they are systematically exterminating all organic life they come across, and feeding their souls to the C'Tan. Similarly to the Borg however, they posses the capacity to forcibly convert other living beings into more of their kind. Also the omnipresent green glow that's accompanying them at every step, and the fact that they traverse the universe in geometric shapes kinda helps making the connection
The main difference between the Tau Empire and the Dominion is the fact that the Tau ethereals genuinely believe that what they are doing is for the best of everyone (and seeing how genocide is the only thing the other major races offer, with the exception of the Eldar who'll most likely just ignore you unless thy thing you a threat of potential pawn, and the Dark Eldar who'll make you BEG for death), they may as well be right Also similarly to the Dominion, the Tau prefer to use political and economical means to force new planets into their Empire's fold, and will only use military force after all else has failed. Add to the fact that it is occasionally implied that the Tau themselves were manipulated into the founding of their empire by another, completely unknown race, and you can see the parallels.
I em not claiming that all of these are intentional (in fact, the Tyranids and Daemons don't seem to have any counterparts in the ST universe), merely give reasons for my earlier comparison
I'm also apologizing to Lewis here, for having to sit through this I'd rather take this sort of thing to a forum, but sadly, this is just a blog
Anonymous: I see where you're coming from, but I think you're really stretching the fact that Star Trek and Warhammer 40,000 make use of some of the same tropes. Indeed, one could equally argue that the Warhammer 40,000 factions are related to Doctor Who groups. In fact, I'm going to do that right now:
*Necrons: Cybermen. Completely robotic civilisations who wish to exterminate all organic life. (Note that unlike the Cybermen and the Borg, the Necrons cannot assimilate organic beings. Also, while the Necrons and Cybermen are completely robotic, the Borg have some organic components)
*Eldar: Time Lords. A super-advanced society that once ruled the galaxy, but has since become arrogant, isolationist, and introspective.
*Tyranids: Zarbi. A race of bug-like beings with a society and caste system based on that of social insects.
*Orkz: Uh, Sontarans maybe? Draconians? I need to know more about Doctor Who
I can only speak for myself, but the reason I mentioned it was the weird colours and patterns. 40k version 1 and 2 were like the strange first series of a TV show, before it found it's footing.
Specifically, Orks used to look like this http://wh40k.lexicanum.com/mediawiki/images/9/9e/Codex_Orks_2nd_FCover.jpg Look at the weapon. It's a gun and a chainsaw.
A couple of early edition faction designs looking odd (they looked bad then too) does not make your comparison valid.
Furthermore, when you have to bring in the C'Tan, a deep part of the fluff, it shows that using "Warhammer 40k is Star Trek via Rob Liefeld" as a short hand really doesn't work the same way that saying it's "Halo via Rob Liefeld" doesn't work. There are similarities certainly, but they are typical for the sci-fi genre.
As mentioned, saying "It's dark fantasy, but in space." works well. SM are space knights, Eldar are space elves, Necrons are undead in space, Orks are, well, orcs.
It's reached the point where the entire argument has fallen apart. Remember, the original point was "this comic reminds people of 40k, because 40k was basicly Star Trek if it was made by Rob Liefeld."
Just what I needed to begin the first new AT4W of the new year, a classic Counting Crows song!
ReplyDeleteNice review I hope that you can do a review of another Kamandi comic soon and by the way it was a rv not a van even it it was a little hard to see
ReplyDeleteI think that was an RV, not a van. Those would have cooking equipment, and possibly a TV as well.
ReplyDeletePerhaps the only true earth apocalypse novel is The Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy, it also has a lot of THINKING! ; )
ReplyDeletebtw, Yay commercial bumper!
Gotta say...I was half-expecting a Nestle Qwik Club joke whenever you started talking about all the random crap in the van. xD
ReplyDeleteNice review.
ReplyDeleteI wonder if the comic really is an anti-gun PSA or if we are supposed to take Zom and his huge guns seriously. Also, To counter the arguement "we're safe while we have gun", I don't see how guns will slow down the Ben's lasers and nukes
I love how the insluts its own characters ("Don't you like to think" for Kamandi, "low intelligence" for Ben Boxer and Co)
Just out of curiosity, have you skipped pages ? I don't quite understand how the bikes could have been destroyed by the plane crash since they were on them while it happened and would have been blown away along with them...
Also, did Kamandi and his companions managed to outrun a spaceship with a van ?
I don't think the apocalyptic world is a book friendly environment. I don't remember in what period the series takes place, but in the far future, the books are more likely to end up as dust, like the future library in George Pal's Time Machine.
No Southland Tales reference for the severed finger ?
Awesome Candle Cove reference!
ReplyDeleteNow that was an awesome show, not like that Happy Appy bullshit (alto it did get better near the end, kinda)
You know, I have to agree with the comics' protagonists
Things are ok as long as you still have you'r guns
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t6CXAaI1OAo
Also, why can't I get rid of the feeling that this thing is somehow a prequel to Warhammer 40000?
My GOD, I know how happy you will be once you review the last issue of Kamandi and finally wash your hands of this terrible Elseworld.
ReplyDeleteThis has gotten me curious though, have you read any of Jack Kirby's Kamandi or do you plan on checking it out?
When they showed those corpses in the plane, I was hoping you would refference that one scene with the dead bodies in that ship from the Doctor Who episode "Asylum of the Daleks."
What's worse... Kamandi or Marville?
ReplyDeleteIt's a brand new year and poor Linkara already has to review some new lazily-drawn, oddly-written foolishness.
ReplyDeleteTo be honest, I'm kind of confused about the time in which the comic takes place. How long has it been since the apocalypse that took place in this ridiculous universe happened? If it was recent then whatever, but if it happened many years before the start of the first book, then there should be a lot of things that are inaccessible to the Order of People with Guns Bigger Than Their Muscles and Brains. A lot of the technology shouldn't work and resources (like food, water, and the bullets that our idiotic heroes keep wasting) should be hard to come by. The ability to read would be not only rare, but barely useful (since survival would be the priority). Even Mother Machine should be dreading the day that her own power sources finally give out since no one would have the technological know-how to replace them and she'd (for a lack of a better word) die.
Sorry, being a fan of this show, I should know better than to expect any logic from most of the comics that appear here. Good work, Mr. Lovhaug and I hope you enjoyed your New Year.
A Long December again? You spoil me, man. Thanks again, love it!
ReplyDeleteDon't fuck around Linkara. Those book were HARDBACK.
ReplyDeleteGeez, I really miss Candle Cove. I wish they'd put that out on DVD already.
ReplyDeleteMaybe the title is a reference the the Crusin' series of games? :P
ReplyDeleteI'm playing a low intelligence character in fallout 3, but even they have enough sense to not read during combat, or some other stuff that happens in this comic. Guess I wasn't playing stupid enough.
They aren't made of stars, just covered in them. Although the horrible coloured checks remind me of orks from Warhammer 40k second edition.
Loved this episode! It's probably just because of the book itself since it essentially dates back to the start of the show, but this felt like I was revisiting an old episode from a few years ago.
ReplyDeleteYou so had the chance to make a Thunderdome joke in this episode just from the title alone.
ReplyDeleteSo does this thunder road lead us to or Beyond Thunderdome?
When you got to the title, I thought you were going to say they should get Beyond Thunder Road.
ReplyDeleteFun episode this week as always. God Kamandi At Earth's End was awful. Sort of afraid to see the reviews of the rest to see how awful it is.
ReplyDeleteHad a lot of fun at AT4W Live this weekend at magfest among other things. Thanks to you, Channel Awesome, and Magfest for all the fun.
How'd you get that footage of Candle Cove? I look everywhere online and I can never find it.
ReplyDeleteYou know what book isn't full of thinking? This one!
ReplyDeleteVile John kinda looks like a mixture of a Warhammer 40K Commissar and an Ork Warboss combined. Also, how is the graffiti UNDER the sign's original text?
ReplyDeleteAm I a big enough jerk to post "first"? ...yes, for once, I am.
ReplyDeleteAnyway. Your reviews of this series are always a hoot. I expect this one to be no different!
Any idea when you're going to rip apart The Culling?
ReplyDeleteWow no comments yet.
ReplyDeleteTo bad I was kind of hoping for a storyline this week, but the review was still good and I even chuckled at some of your lame finger jokes.
Yay! A fellow Candy Cove fan!
ReplyDeleteMan, is that show hard to hunt down!
Most of the recordings I could find would brake into static halfway through, if they aren't completely just static to begin with
Seriously! Who in their right mind would even upload static to begin with!
But I digress
The whole concept of a single colossal highway reminds me of a much better comic series, the Swiss series "Gipsy"
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gipsy_(comics)
Heavily recommended, especially if you can get you'r hands on an uncensored version (I hope you know at least some French or German)
Also, is this the same Mother Machine as we saw in BlackHawks?
If yes, we may witness some interesting stuff in the New 52
Wow no comments yet, I am early it would seem.
ReplyDeleteNo story line this week. To bad your story lines are getting better and better. The review was good even though the original comic book was mind numbingly stupid and dull.
I think that the thought that guns can solve every problems is still around today, at least in some circles.
Em anyway. Good job and I am looking forward to next week's review.
I have to admit, I was a bit disappointed with this episode. It might have just been the comic- I know there's only so much you can do, but I just felt this wasn't as good as most of your other videos. The jokes weren't that funny to me (except maybe the candle cove one in the credits) and all of them felt used. I don't know.
ReplyDeleteI look forward to your next video though!
So um... Ran out of time to get back to the Story arc? Apologize if any of this was already said but you are in transit and I can't see what anyone else has said yet.
ReplyDeleteDid you take it as a personal challenge to avoid Mad Max and Ice Pirates in this? Because both of them had some interesting scenes that might have been useful. Ice Pirates even had a similar battle wagon with giant wheels of death.
I hope Kamandi gets Space Herpes.
If the "Great American Highway" was built after the "first apocalypse" who built it? There are no governments left after the apocalypse to build roads. Why would they waste their resources on building a highway? This is just like Thatch's plan to get land after the apocalypse. No owns anything and no one is in charge after the world has ended. God I hate it when Post-Apocalyptic stories do this crap. Good review.
ReplyDeleteGiven what Linkara goes through in some of these plot lines, I hope there's reason to believe this year will be better.
ReplyDeleteSo... if she's got no pockets on her pants, the next most reasonable place to store that severed finger would be... her cleavage? Not that it would surprise me in this stupid comic.
So if the word "Moby" is on his shoulder pad, what's he have written on his codpiece? I don't think Herman Melville would approve.
Anyway, of course books are important after the apocalypse, Linkara! Didn't you see that Twilight Zone episode?
Excuse me...*turns on fan girl mode* OMG YOUR AUSTRAILIAN ACCENT IS SO HOT!!!! *turns off fan girl mode* Well I finally got that out of my system
ReplyDeleteHere's the thing- for all that is bad about this comic, was Kamandi that good or interesting in and of itself? I think I remember seeing a Brave and the Bold episode with it involved, and it looked like it could actually be decent. I mean, ripping off Planet of the Apes isn't exactly a bad idea because Planet of the Apes was pretty solid. It would kind of be cool to see a review of the Kamandi world as it was supposed to be, rather than this tripe, just to see what the heck they were supposedly drawing from or getting at. Might make it look even more patently ridiculous.
ReplyDeleteA highway FORTY MILES WIDE? What next, a presidential golf course the size of Montana? Perhaps Long Island is now an enormous parking lot to serve Manhattan. Maybe Maine is also the back garden for Stephen King's head in a jar. The possibilities are endless.
ReplyDeleteGood, another comic I won't have to go look for. :-) Thanks, Linkara!
ReplyDelete18:03: Wait, you skipped past the pay-off to the whole "Saphira likes books" subplot! It's good to read, because that means Saphira could read the instructions on a rocket launcher.
ReplyDeleteSomewhere, LeVar Burton is screaming.
Yesss new review finally. I discovered your reviews in December in youtube and been archive-binging since! I'm not a big comics fan, but I enjoy your riffing style a lot.
ReplyDeleteI just hate the setting of a post-apocalyptic future, even more so if they're ripping off the look of the Mad Max films.
ReplyDeleteThe only post-apocalyptic setting I actually like is the Land of Ooo from Adventure Time because it's not a barren wasteland filled with death and decay everywhere you look.
I wonder if this comic was created because someone at DC noticed that their rights over Kamandi were going to expire, and God forbid that happen! So they just hired the first guy they found to write it, and described it as "just like Mad Max."
ReplyDeleteI'm particularly pissed at what they did to Ben Boxer. He was Kamandi's friend, and had a cool power (turning to Steel like Colossus.) Really, if not for your snappy banter, Linkara, I wouldn't even watch the review, because this comic is BO-RING.
Quick question, how many Kamandi at Earth's End in there?
ReplyDeleteAlso great review
No comments? Am I going mad?
ReplyDeleteWell Maybe now is a good time to post my first comment after two years of watching.
Good episode Linkara.
I know other have asked you but would you consider reviewing 'Tintin in the Congo'?
I know you don't read European comics but considering the guy who wrote the Tintin comics disowned as a bad comic it's more than fair fodder for Atop the forth Wall.
Keep going Lewis.
Also I hope you do a crossover with Oancitizan someday. You two are my favourites TGWTG reviewers =).
"I wonder if the comic really is an anti-gun PSA or if we are supposed to take Zom and his huge guns seriously. Also, To counter the arguement "we're safe while we have gun", I don't see how guns will slow down the Ben's lasers and nukes"
ReplyDeleteIt frankly just makes the anti-gun message of Superman at Earth's End all the dumber.
"Just out of curiosity, have you skipped pages ? I don't quite understand how the bikes could have been destroyed by the plane crash since they were on them while it happened and would have been blown away along with them...
Also, did Kamandi and his companions managed to outrun a spaceship with a van ?"
Nope, didn't skip anything. I had the same complaint in the episode - we seem to be missing pieces of this story.
"No Southland Tales reference for the severed finger ?"
Considered bringing it up, but felt that it'd be a bit forced.
wait, Let me get this straight,this comic is rob liefeild's pitch to a Micheal Bay Film with mad Max and the destruction of the Jersey Shore? THIS IS THE BEST COMIC IN THE WORLD! okay its not, but still any literally without those creepy jersey shore people I'm okay with. then again it does have M. Bison Youngblood style. and rob's deadpool makign a small cameo.
ReplyDeleteWell, about the log/diary thing... I don't find it very unlogical to write those in a post apocalyptic world.
ReplyDeletePeople tent to safe precious things, this also counts for thoughts and, especially, memories. It's the number one reason why diaries exist anyway. And it's not only for yourself, but also for upcomming generations.
I'm a fan of the whole Fallout Lore, a series that, in my opinion, manages a great balance of a post apocalyptic world. And they use logs extremly well, as you often travel from terminal to terminal to read the old logs, that tell you the story of what was going on in the past - and what exactly went wrong.
Buuuut... I somehow doubt that anyone in this comic is clever enough for so much foresight or cares about anything regarding future or past... And having a reason for writing a log, doesn't make it good or neccessairy as well... XD
Btw, I laughed hard at the pre-intro scene :D Great opening for the review!
There's something wrong with muttonchops' death scene, but I can't put my finger on it.
ReplyDeleteCrap. Imagine the army-worth of people needed to man all of the tollbooths on that road.
ReplyDelete"Dammit! That jerk just cut across 2748 lanes of traffic to make his exit. WATCH THE EXIT SIGNS OR GET OFF THE ROAD, YOU ASS!"
And thus the new year begins with Kamandi...could be worse, could be more Marville.
ReplyDeleteI thin someone just wanted to mish-mash every futuristic story ever and see what happens...and unfortunately the answer is this mess. Seriously, the whole bit with the books really felt like a cheap version of "Farenheight 451", which was about the key of how books allow for the continued usage of critical thinking in an era where everything is handed out to you...wait. Anyway, that book is good and this sort of just does it's best to try and reference it and does so horribly. And of course, more Road Warrior and more chicken heads. (weirdly two of my favorite books have a similar concept of "thought", being that and Norman Jester's "The Phantom Tollbooth"...)
Things I am learning from reading the comments, Candle Cove is awesome and I should look into whatever it is. Sounds familiar but I admit to knowing nothing more than the name's existence.
ReplyDeleteNo Klingon Blood Wine for this? Or is the heavy "booze" only for Marville?
I half expected the Cybermat to suddenly blast the comic because it sensed you were in danger from the massive amounts of stupid.
Here's to another year!
Very nice. I also dislike laziness in comics and other media, which is why I dislike most of the cartoons now on.
ReplyDeleteLinkara, you missed an awesome opportunity to use a clip from the "Twilight Zone" episode "Time Enough at Last"! After the Biomechs blew up the Library of Congress and Sephira starts whining about the lost books, there was a perfect chance to show Burgess Meredith whining, "It's not fair!"
ReplyDeleteAlso, the other thing that was necessary in the '90's was pouches. Lots of pouches. And shoulder pads.
Where is my Brute Force, Linkara? I must know how the epic saga comes to an end!
ReplyDelete"No Southland Tales reference for the severed finger ?"
ReplyDeleteI would've done a Kiss Kiss, Bang Bang reference.
Maybe she raided the airplane for copies of The DaVinci Code?
ReplyDeleteYou could just make all of the commercial breaks about Sniper Blu, and I would be completely satisfied.
ReplyDeleteI would be hilarious to have the villains do the commercial breaks.
ReplyDeleteLord Vyce (floating in space): Don't go anywhere, not like I'm going to.
He's making a log so that it will one day be read by an alien, re-emerging, or evolved species. This is a common theme in much of the post apocalyptic fiction I've read. *Wink* Or he's doing it so that the Doctor may one day read it.
ReplyDeleteThe way things are going these days books may very well outlast humans to pass on the knowledge of our species. Humans are miraculously gifted at losing knowledge and technology. Also information on any skill or fact you may need to know will be stored in a library. Everything from spelling to lock- and gunsmithing. The library of congress in Washington D.C. is a governmental research library with over 32 million cataloged books (non-fiction), more than 61 million manuscripts (fiction), over 1 million us government publications, and more. Also philosophically speaking books are full of thinking.
@10.06' people commonly bring books onto airplanes so they can have something to do during the flight. well... at least they did before the digital age.
@ 11.25 *applauds*
@16.55 Dude I still design them like that *points at self doing best Spooning with Spoony impression* 90's kid... oh yeah...
Lastly, scientifically speaking every atom in our universe was once part of a star, as stars are the factories of our universe, so in truth we are made of former stardust.
Webcomics and Creepy Pasta abound!
ReplyDeleteI think possibly your Schlock Mercenary fandom is leaking through into the Linkara writing. Not that that's a bad thing, though...if only we could get some dark matter beasties from Andromeda to take out Ben Boxer now.
Do you read Broodhollow by Kris Straub? If not, it's a webcomic by the guy who wrote "Candle Cove" and the other Ichor Falls creepy pastas, set in Ichor Falls' sister city.
"Anonymous said...
ReplyDeleteI would be hilarious to have the villains do the commercial breaks.
Lord Vyce (floating in space): Don't go anywhere, not like I'm going to."
Okay that would be extremely funny. Mechakara, "If I have to listen to him, so do you, stay put!"
Though seeing the clip of Vyce in the metal Pollo body with the SPAAAACE Core floating by would be plenty awesome too for a mid-roll bump.
All those villain suggestions. I'm now starting to wonder if Channel Awesome could do a bumper exchange. Get Phaelous, Doug, NC, and the rest to all make their own bumpers that help cross promotion and just post them for all site contributors to use.
ReplyDeleteI could see most of your bumper bits working well in many of the other videos just as well as reusing them here.
"Don't you love it when the comics that are supposed to be more edgy and realistic are, in fact, MUCH sillier?"
ReplyDeleteSoooo in short you're saying it's like the New 52 then?
@ Description
ReplyDelete*looks at the boys*
Nt,...not always when well written. If not for set up moments of humor and parody in the boys, it'd be a terrifying look into how screwed we be if superheroess weren't really heroes. Also how those "heroes" are only kept in check by ruthless companies and a group of psychos working for the government.
This obviously is written and drawn by team who doesn't understand how technology works at all, or what militarily works, but act if they do. Quality of writer and or artist can cripple what is other wise a decent concept.
The concept of a kid ,raised by a computer in relative comfort, being sent out into the waste land as he discovers things about himself and the world=great concept. how it's written here, poorly used concept and poorly written mess.
gee, why doesn't it surprise me that after the apocalypse, Candle Cove is the last show to still air
ReplyDelete*Checks the credits on the cover.* Are we sure Rob Liefeld wasn't the artist? Advisory post maybe?
ReplyDeleteOh man, Candle Cove! Weird show.
ReplyDeleteI picked up a complete run of it that someone had taped back in 1973 at a local market a couple of weeks back, though I think there's something wrong with my copies. Was the water always supposed to be red, or is that just a combination of age and trying to play NTSC videos on a PAL VCR/TV combo?
Man I'm so annoyed how this girl hips are sticking out in every panel o_O
ReplyDeleteIronicly I didn't know who Kamandi is until he appeard in Brave and the Bold cartoon.... o_o
The more I see of this comic, the more i'm convinced it's an extremely bad rip-off of Judge Dredd - The Cursed Earth. Same travelling objective, same frequent use of firepower, similar post apocalyptic setting, same over the top characters and even aspects of the art style; but none of the awareness or quality of writing.
ReplyDeleteYou know, books and literacy can still prove VERY important in a post-apocalyptic setting
ReplyDeleteRemember, as long as humanity survives, there's still the chance of re-building, and maintaining the old knowledge can be very helpful with that
No mater how much the church may have screwed society up during the dark ages, they can still be credited with keeping at least parts of the antique sciences alive after the fall of Rome
As far as people comparing this comic to 40K goes, it's really not a coincidence
The whole franchise essentially started as "StarTrek as re-imagined by Rob Liefeld" in the late 80s
However thanks to it having a relatively compelling story (largely achieved by ripping-off Dune, Solomon Kane, Starship Troopers, and Elric of Melniboné) and tongue-in-cheek nature, it managed to survive until this very day
And while the designs became infused with elements of High Gothic over the decades, the influence of the EXTREME 90s look is still very visible, especially in the overabundance of huge guns and massive shoulder pads
In a way, Warhammer 40k is an example of how 90s comics could have been if more effort was put into them
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TLGJlDGMZE0
John Mourby: If the crossover is a movie, I'd say Ang Lee's Hulk (meandering, kind of pretentious comic adaptation). If a comic, I'd say The Filth.
ReplyDeleteAfter looking back on recent tragedies, I'd have to say the fondness of guns in this comic is worisome.
ReplyDeleteHey Linkara..i know this is not related to the comic but..Opinion on the reveal trailer of Pokemon X and Y?
ReplyDeleteHoly carp. This comic is so extremely nineties. Big guns, big cars, big stupid clothes. Seriously, it's got everything nineties in it.
ReplyDeleteExcept for a Sega CD, of course.
linkara all i will say is....."deadpool month" Let the beuties of the merc with a mouth shine...
ReplyDeleteand possibly open it like nc when he did star trek or schwrtzenager month (idk how to spell)
"Books are full of thinking!" Well this comic certaintly isn't! I was starting to think of the Batman Reading PSA during that scene. For some reason I can't remember any of the characters' names, except for Kamandi... just becuase his name is in the title. That is how forgettable this comic is! Good review, Lewis.
ReplyDelete"Do you read Broodhollow by Kris Straub? If not, it's a webcomic by the guy who wrote "Candle Cove" and the other Ichor Falls creepy pastas, set in Ichor Falls' sister city."
ReplyDeleteo.o I don't know who you are, but I love you for bringing the existence of this to my attention. I adore Candle Cove, but nobody I know has ever seen it.
I have to wonder why they chose that still for the comic -- there were better episodes to pick from.
>As far as people comparing this comic to 40K goes, it's really not a coincidence
ReplyDelete>The whole franchise essentially started as "StarTrek as re-imagined by Rob Liefeld" in the late 80s
???
Warhammer 40,000 is Warhammer Fantasy in space.
Warhammer Fantasy is Warhammer in the form of a tabletop wargame.
Warhammer is Advanced Fighting Fantasy for adults.
Advanced Fighting Fantasy was Fighting Fantasy in the form of a proper RPG.
For those who aren't into gamebooks, Fighting Fantasy was Dungeons and Dragons for single players and in book form.
That's where Warhammer 40,000 came from.
You HAD to reference Candle Cove? D: I just stopped watching that show and now the nightmares will come back..
ReplyDeleteTo be serious though, Candle Cove probably has some of the best stories written about it, the creepy thing about the pasta being the lack of super natural phenonema. This didn't happen, but it COULD. That's a bit scarier than the slender man or The Rake in my opinion.
Great review.
ReplyDeleteI loved Jack Kirby's original Kamandi series. I grant that he lifted some basic ideas from Planet of the Apes--snd a chronic problem with any book Mr. Kirby wrote himself was stilted dialogue and characterizations. But his imaginative ideas and powerful visuals always more than made up for this, lifting the series from beyond just being a POTA ripoff to something really unique and entertaining.
I've had opportunities to give class-room lectures about Kirby, Ditko and their work at Marvel. I always included some panels from Kamandi as part of showing just how awesome Jack Kirby's imagination was.
That's why I was so disappointed in the 1990s update. It was as if the creators of that series purposely turned their imagination off. If I remember correctly, I think I gave up on it after the first two issues.
I'm surprised you used all those finger food jokes and passed over the "pull my finger" ones...
ReplyDeleteAnother bad issue for an already bad series. How long will it be before we get to see the Bearded Idiot?
ReplyDeleteGreat way to start out the new year!
How exactly would a TV, VCR and/or books still actually exist decades after the apocalypse? I can barely get a TV to work after five years.
ReplyDeleteAnd Saphira knows how to use the Library of Congress organizational system?
And if the writers' had been more competent they would have realized that jokes like 'taking the wife and kids on vacation' really doesn't sound intelligent from a post-apocalypse generation. Sadly little things like actually making your story feel like a post-apocalyptic world where the hubris of man has doomed the species is well beyond the abilities of these writers.
Dear lord, what is up with the guns in this comic? She shouldn't even be able to lift that "pistol" with both hands Oo
ReplyDeleteAnd my only explanation for wasting millions of dollars on making a highway so wide that it can no longer be classified as a highway is that the "first apocalypse" was caused by mutated grass.
Okay, Candle Cove is one of those creepypasta things, right? Is there any way I can look up details of it without being exposed to any potential nightmare fuel?
ReplyDeleteJarkes: TVTropes has a couple of pages on it. The SugarWiki version discusses it as if it was a real show so as to avoid spoilers, and the DarthWiki version is a more direct, matter of fact analysis. I'd recommend reading the SugarWiki version first.
ReplyDeleteAlternatively, <a href="http://www.ichorfalls.com/2009/03/15/candle-cove/>just read the original.</a> It's not really that scary.
TF2 reference? Has this been going on a lot lately?
ReplyDeleteHere's a fun fact: Kamandi appeared in "Batman: The Brave and the Bold" where he and his entire planet were blown up by the Joker.
ReplyDelete@Rhodoferax
ReplyDeleteYes, I em aware of the origin of Warhammer 40000 as the sci-fi counterpart to Warhammer Fantasy Battles
I used the "StarTrek as re-imagined by Rob Liefeld" as an analogy for people who are not familiar with the franchise
An I found more similarities to 40k with StarTrek than Star Wars
especially as far as the races go
Eldar -Vulcans
Dark Eldar - Romulans
Orkz - Klingons
Nekrons - Borg
Tau Empire - Dominion
And I em aware that the 40k races are supposed to be counterparts to the classic fantasy races, but that can also be seen as an example of fantasy tropes in StarTrak, but I digress
The point is, if you gave Rob Liefeld, or one of his imitators, the task to re-imagine StarTrek, the results would be very similar to Warhammer 40000
The franchise has essentially become a safe-haven for a huge number of 90s tropes, allowing them to survive till this day, an an example of how they can work if used properly
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lT5Gy079OWw
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L-hvozUG74Q
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x6JaV-jgFHM
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6GDRe0OHbZg
There was also an episode from a previous season of "Brave and the Bold" that was set entirely in Kamandi's future. Gorilla Grodd escaped into the future and Batman pursued him there--teaming up with Kamandi to stop Grodd from conquering the world with a gorilla army.
ReplyDeleteIt was awesome. Now there was a show with a creative staff that DID know how to use their imaginations.
Anon- Erm, no. To stretch things that far, then you might as well say it's Lord of the Rings by Rob Liefeld, or Halo by Rob Liefeld, ect.
ReplyDeleteSomething being dark and having guns in it does not make it X by Rob Liefeld.
Also, not all the races are fantasy races, though most of them are, and the ones that aren't can be stretched, but Star Trek? Orcs are not noble warriors with a code of honour, they are space mushrooms that love to fight. Necrons are not borg either. The only ones that work is Vulcans and Romulans, and that's only because they are both elves and dark elves in space. I am not familiar enough with the Dominion, but unless they are high tech space communists with a hidden agenda and a visual style based on samurai and anime, then no.
Now, I'm not a comic expert, but I thought the 90s was overly muscular men covered in pouches, messy design, using oversized guns and excessive violence in the name of XTREME! and are so bad arse as to be able to walk off a rocket to the chest with sheer bravado.
40k has the big guns and excessive violence, but there are no superfluous pouches, lots of dying horribley and a consistent dark gothic design aesthetic. I guess if you took a lone space marine captain and made that the focus you could make it 90s extreme-ish if you wanted.
If people aren't familiar, then just tell them it's dark gothic fantasy, but in space, with guns. I'm someone very familiar with the material, and even I'm having a hard time stretching it to fit your description.
Ironically, a minor part of the fiction is the humans "dark age of technology" which is said to have been a low point for mankind where they were obsessed with machines, but it is implied it was something like Star Trek before everything went bad.
I think even the members of Youngblood have better fashion sense.
ReplyDeleteNormally i'm one to avoid such arguments, but:
ReplyDeleteEldar - A dying race of psychics living on vast planetary colony ships made of psychic bone constructs. Responsible for the creation of Satan with more sex, drugs 'n rock and role. Their society has developed a path system to focus their energies to help better their survival and avoid falling to Chaos. Extremely manipulative and likely to shoot humans.
Vulcans - A race who live life purely through the dictations of logic and are a part of a major multi-species power. Avoid violence whenever possible.
Dark Eldar - What happens when BDSM fanatics become forcibly daemon worshippers to ensure their survival. Mass pirates, slavers and devourers of souls. Responsible for some of the most disturbing acts in the known galaxy. Not interested in expanding into an empire, simply taking more slaves.
Romulans - Space Romans with the tendency to manipulate others. Desiring constantly to take more power. No interest in slaves.
Orkz - Humanoid plants whose latent psychic abilities allow them to alter reality when enough force is gathered. Half their technology is reliant upon this ability. Leftover living weapon from the War in Heaven. Have no fear of death due to escaping the Nightbringer's fall somehow. See war and violence as a source of entertainment. Largely used as the fanchise's intentional sense of humour.
Klingons - Space vikings, heavily ritualised and go into battle for glory and blood. Do not have psychics which can create steam powered mecha.
Necrons - Servants of elderich star vampires and the survivors of a great war with the old ones. Seemingly unkillable, each individual model will simply come back stronger. Survivors of a great war with the Old Ones tricked into possessing metal bodies. Fly around in giant pyramids/crescents.
Borg - Origins unknown. Cyborgs with a desire to capture and convert all to their way of life.
Tau Empire - Humanoids with the desire to unify all sentient under a single banner due to titanic war which almost wiped their species out. Ruled by a sub-species of their own kind capable of imparting spiritual and mental guidance, possibly also control. Use flying mecha and auxiliary forces from hundreds of races. Hinted to be under the control of a far more sinister force and possibly a far more Orwellian society than was first shown.
Dominion - Empire ruled by liquid shapeshifter xenophobes with contradictory actions and the ideology of "because I say so". Force all other species encountered to obey their will out of fear of mass rebellion and extermination of their kind. Never go into combat, using instead genetically engineered soldiers. No mecha present in armed forces.
There are few to no similarities between the two, let alone directly comparable factions. Please do not try and reduce it to being a dark rip-off of another franchise designed by someone whose story thoughts extend to "guns & pounches".
I agree with most of the arguments
ReplyDeleteas I already said before, 40K really has more in common with Dune and Starship Troopers
My point is that the franchise came to be in a period where the types of designs seen in this comic were at the height of their popularity, which also explains why several commenters here as well as on TGWTH were reminded of it
the influence is most visible in the first 2 editions (published during the 80s and early 90s)
http://wh40k.lexicanum.com/mediawiki/images/5/58/417px-WH40KCompendium.jpg
http://wh40k.lexicanum.com/mediawiki/images/3/35/CodexImperialis.jpg
http://wh40k.lexicanum.com/mediawiki/images/b/b0/Codex_Ultramarines_FCover.jpg
http://wh40k.lexicanum.com/mediawiki/images/d/d8/Codex_Space_Wolves_2nd_Edition_FCover.jpg
http://wh40k.lexicanum.com/mediawiki/images/b/b1/Codex_Imperial_Guard_2nd_FCover.jpg
http://wh40k.lexicanum.com/mediawiki/images/9/9e/Codex_Orks_2nd_FCover.jpg
I also had my reasons for comparing the races I did
ReplyDeleteBoth Eldar and Vulcan are psychic races
The Vulcan are guided by reason and logic, and often appear emotionless. This is basically what the Eldar wish to become. Eldar do experience emotions much more intensely than any other species. This combined with their psychic powers and the excessive decadence of their society lead to the birth of Slaanesh, and the fall of their civilization. The Eldar path system was created in order to suppress the Eldar's emotions, and have them act for the collective good of their species instead (they can still get very emotional, but they are trying)
This is also similar to the schism between the Vulcan and Romulan, where as the Vulcan rejected their emotions for the sake of pure logic, the Romulans held on to their old way of life
Similarly, the Dark Eldar willingly continue living in the same decadence that destroyed their empire, even as the unwilling slaves of Slaanesh, showing very little regret (besides the enslavement part)
Also, the "Space Romans" description fits the Dark Eldar pretty well too, alto it's more of the Caligula type of Romans (they are even huge fans of gladiatorial games)
It's also worth noting that while humans in the Star Trek universe were rather reasonable even before the Federation was founded, the vast majority of humans (at least those in charge) in the 40k universe are xenophobic, genocidal zealots, who believe that humans are the only species that has any right to exist. The rest are bloodthirsty cultists who believe that the entire universe should burn to the ground.
Seeing how humans are the 3rd most numerous race in the known universe (after Tyranids and Orks, who aren't much better, if not worse), it's no wonder the Eldar are so hostile to everyone
To the Orkz and Klingons, it's true that the boyz are much more savage, and their technology is more crude, but they both fulfill the niche of a warrior race, that values ones combat prowess over everything else.
ReplyDeleteThey both prefer to engage in hand-to-hand if they can get away with it, and look down upon such concepts as pacifism.
Also, there are strong hints that the Klingons were originally a genetically engineered warrior race as well, who grew to destroy their creators.
The Necrons started off as an organic life form, who were tricked by the C'Tan and converted into machines, loosing their free will in the process (and please, do NOT mention the stuff written by Matt Ward, it DID NOT happen, nothing that guy ever wrote ever happened!)
Now they are systematically exterminating all organic life they come across, and feeding their souls to the C'Tan.
Similarly to the Borg however, they posses the capacity to forcibly convert other living beings into more of their kind. Also the omnipresent green glow that's accompanying them at every step, and the fact that they traverse the universe in geometric shapes kinda helps making the connection
The main difference between the Tau Empire and the Dominion is the fact that the Tau ethereals genuinely believe that what they are doing is for the best of everyone (and seeing how genocide is the only thing the other major races offer, with the exception of the Eldar who'll most likely just ignore you unless thy thing you a threat of potential pawn, and the Dark Eldar who'll make you BEG for death), they may as well be right
Also similarly to the Dominion, the Tau prefer to use political and economical means to force new planets into their Empire's fold, and will only use military force after all else has failed.
Add to the fact that it is occasionally implied that the Tau themselves were manipulated into the founding of their empire by another, completely unknown race, and you can see the parallels.
I em not claiming that all of these are intentional (in fact, the Tyranids and Daemons don't seem to have any counterparts in the ST universe), merely give reasons for my earlier comparison
I'm also apologizing to Lewis here, for having to sit through this
I'd rather take this sort of thing to a forum, but sadly, this is just a blog
Candle Cove IS REAL? :O
ReplyDeleteAnonymous: I see where you're coming from, but I think you're really stretching the fact that Star Trek and Warhammer 40,000 make use of some of the same tropes. Indeed, one could equally argue that the Warhammer 40,000 factions are related to Doctor Who groups. In fact, I'm going to do that right now:
ReplyDelete*Necrons: Cybermen. Completely robotic civilisations who wish to exterminate all organic life. (Note that unlike the Cybermen and the Borg, the Necrons cannot assimilate organic beings. Also, while the Necrons and Cybermen are completely robotic, the Borg have some organic components)
*Eldar: Time Lords. A super-advanced society that once ruled the galaxy, but has since become arrogant, isolationist, and introspective.
*Tyranids: Zarbi. A race of bug-like beings with a society and caste system based on that of social insects.
*Orkz: Uh, Sontarans maybe? Draconians? I need to know more about Doctor Who
well yeah, that's kinda the point
ReplyDeletefinding something similar that many people already know to give them an overall idea
and as far as Necrons and assimilation go
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HIi_KR3jCpk
I can only speak for myself, but the reason I mentioned it was the weird colours and patterns. 40k version 1 and 2 were like the strange first series of a TV show, before it found it's footing.
ReplyDeleteSpecifically, Orks used to look like this http://wh40k.lexicanum.com/mediawiki/images/9/9e/Codex_Orks_2nd_FCover.jpg
Look at the weapon. It's a gun and a chainsaw.
A couple of early edition faction designs looking odd (they looked bad then too) does not make your comparison valid.
Furthermore, when you have to bring in the C'Tan, a deep part of the fluff, it shows that using "Warhammer 40k is Star Trek via Rob Liefeld" as a short hand really doesn't work the same way that saying it's "Halo via Rob Liefeld" doesn't work. There are similarities certainly, but they are typical for the sci-fi genre.
As mentioned, saying "It's dark fantasy, but in space." works well. SM are space knights, Eldar are space elves, Necrons are undead in space, Orks are, well, orcs.
It's reached the point where the entire argument has fallen apart. Remember, the original point was "this comic reminds people of 40k, because 40k was basicly Star Trek if it was made by Rob Liefeld."
point remains, there's nothing strange about one 90s property reminding people of another 90s property
ReplyDeleteGeeze, that comic sucked, I couldn't pay much attention to the review because of it bored me. It's good to see the return of the Tf2 Sniper
ReplyDeleteAt least by using an amalgam of every post apocalyptic movie ever, their reference pools went... Beyond Thunderdome
ReplyDeleteNah, I think I prefer Don't Hug Me, I'm Scared over Candle Cove. I just feel that it's more creative.
ReplyDelete