The Motor City Comic Con is not a newcomer on the convention scene, but I can’t help but feel it’s a late-bloomer still unsure how things are meant to run.
The 2012 convention was held in Detroit, Michigan, last month and turnout this year appeared much higher than the rain-plagued 2011 event. Walking through the comics side of the Suburban Collection Showplace proved difficult as crowds clamored around the various comic and collectible vendors. Big name artists like Ethan Van Sciver and Talent Caldwell were almost always seen talking with fans or busy working on sketches.
But conventions like this are also a good place for smaller, local talents to find a wider audience. I Love Lightning Bugs, a band heralding from Royal Oak, Michigan, had a booth showcasing both their music and a new comic book illustrated by local artist Mindy McPeak featuring the band members adventures into the paranormal. First looks suggest a Gorillaz-esque alternative reality but with protagonists based on real people.
They’ve done movies and they’ve done comic books, so it only makes sense that our favorite high-faith hitmen, the Boondock Saints, get their own video game.
Joystiq first caught wind of the game when it was revealed that cast and crew of the 1999 cult classic The Boondock Saints would be on hand at next month’s South by Southwest Interactive festival to make some kind of game-related announcement. Then the banner you see above was discovered on the website of Critical Mass Interactive, with word below it that they had been awarded the rights to make a Boondock Saints game by director Troy Duffy.
Long before two Irish brothers became prayer-reciting vigilantes in south Boston, their father went on a similar crusade against the mob. Before the legend of “Il Duce,” there was the life of Noah MacManus. Fans of the cult classic film The Boondock Saints know there were a lot of unanswered questions about the man whose name wasn’t even revealed until the sequel. Though the second film answered many of those questions, the series took to a new medium shortly thereafter, with 12 Gauge Comics publishing a trilogy of comic series exploring the character’s backstory. Now, the whole story is collected in a single graphic novel for the first time in Boondock Saints: In Nomine Patris.
Every day, Amazon offers up “Lightning Deals,” limited quantities of various products for a discounted price for a 4-hour window of time. You have to be on the lookout for these deals and once the item runs out within that four hours, the sale is over. Meaning, if you see something on sale that you want, buy it immediately before it’s gone.
Typically you don’t know what will be on sale until the minute it gets posted, but as part of their Holiday event, Amazon has released this week’s Lightning Deal schedule for Movies & TV on DVD and Blu-ray. See list of today’s deals here below, along with more information on how these special deals work.
There’s also TONS of extremely low prices and great deals on DVDs and Blu-rays right now, so visit the TOP HOLIDAY DEALS page to see the wide selection.
Also, Amazon’s Blu-ray box set deal of the week is the Glee: The Complete First Season Blu-ray Edition for only $34.99 (that’s 50% off the list price of $69.99). The TV Deal of the Week is Married…with Children: The Complete SeriesDVD box set for only $116.99 (that’s 53% off the list price of $250.95). Both deals are valid only for this week through December 18, 2010.
MONDAY, DECEMBER 13, 2010
5:30 a.m. – 9:30 a.m. PST
Dr. Seuss’ How The Grinch Stole Christmas (Deluxe Edition) DVD – $9.99
Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs (Single-Disc Edition) DVD – $9.99
The Boondock Saints Mobile Game Platform: iPhone, iPad and iPod Touch App
Developer: Boondock Saints, LLC
Price: $2.99 iTunes
The brothers McManus have come to the iPhone, iPad, and iPod Touch in the form of a duel stick shooter game, complete with its own story that lives up to the characters from the cult film The Boondock Saints.
Let me first say that I like the idea of this game, which was probably overly ambitious given the platform. Players can choose either Connor or Murphy to charge into each level to do some mindless shooting with a range of weapons. The 14 total levels also feature gameplay by Noah and Romeo at certain points. After accomplishing each mission, you get a tattoo to show your experience.
The mobile game nails most characterization of the Boondock Saints movie, but the basic mechanics make the gameplay painfully slow as well as the response time to movement. And while I chose to play this game on a handheld device, the controls may be better with the larger screen on an iPad.
Still, like many of the very first arcade games in the ’80s, someone with skillful hand-eye coordination and lots of practice can definitely succeed.
Students of the Unusual™ comic cover used with permission of 3BoysProductions
The Mercuri Bros.™ comic cover used with permission of Prodigal Son Press
