For someone who is outside the realm of comics, a comic con is certainly a lot to take in.   There are cosplayers of all ages, ranging from Green Lanterns to Mr. T.   Boston comic con is certainly an experience that will take a lot of drugs and booze to forget.

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Every now and then a human being is born unto the Earth who has ability beyond the natural. Wielding these transcendent powers, this individual has the ability to do that which most cannot even fathom. Good? Evil? Artist? Warrior? All that’s known for sure when one of these folks drops in is that things are going to change.

I was afforded the distinct pleasure of interviewing Benjamin Santiago, an artist doing the dirty work for those of us who were raised on Super Nintendo and science fiction. This is the dude behind a wonder-trove of visual delights, FANTOMA.ORG, and a slew of ill videos.

Hit the jump and check out this feature with Benjamin Santiago. Not only did he answer all of my wacky questions, but he also made an OL EXCLUSIVE VIDEO!

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Harrenhal already seems like it could be the likeliest place in Westeros for a ghost to take up residence.   Arya Stark is basically dead to the world; small wonder she finds herself in a position to be Harrenhal’s newest specter, a girl whose words can now kill.

Sunday was about Game of Thrones’ characters gaining new ground in unexpected places.   Finding new sources of strength where they never imagined them to be.   And naturally, having those new gains define character arcs and plots for the rest of the season.  A setup episode of connective tissue necessary at this season’s midpoint.

Before all that setup could happen, and just as the show was teasing us with the prospect of an alliance between Highgarden and the North, we had to see what became of Stannis and Mel’s love-shadow.   And we did.

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Not only am I the Dude, but I’m also A dude.   Like most males that are stuffed with testosterone and swagger like pirate god kings I love violence.   Let me be a bit more specific, I like the idea of violence.   I’d rather see it done in a movie or on a TV show in real life.   Better yet, I’d rather be the one doing the violence in a video game.   Today’s High 5 will look at the tools of the trade.   These are the weapons I’d want to wield if I was about to run through the streets on an anger fueled GTA killing spree (Probably in Salem, MA … driving in that city is aggravating).

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In 1992 Dave Mustaine welcomed us to tomorrow. To be fair, this presentiment was most likely the product of combining hours of guitar-slingin’ with label deadlines and, of course, heroin. But the man wasn’t wrong. By the end of the 1990s, the world would be altered irrevocably, requiring us to adapt or perish.

A new Allegory of the Cave called The Matrix bullet-timed its way into our collective consciousness, reminding us that its of the utmost importance to wonder about the very nature of reality.   The Internet skulked into our homes, providin’ us with unprecedented access to democracy and porn and free/stolen/whatever music. And then Star Wars fucking died.

Again, Uncle Davey had tried to warn us.

Look around. Grandpa’s got a Bluetooth in his head, the teens use Twitter to goad one another into suicide, and SkyNet has invented a self-driving car in the hopes of obliterating human agency. So how do we survive the hustle in bustle of the post-cybernetic revolution?

We talk about the shit that makes us happy! Welcome to the Monday Morning Commute! This is the spot where I show you how I’ll be entertaining myself into the weekend. Your task is to hit up the comments section and share the wares you’ll be using. It’s really just show-and-tell with typing, but aren’t we all pretty much children these days anyways.

Let’s rock.

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If you’re a regular passenger of Spaceship OL, you know that we love us some comic books. As a crew of over-caffeinated pop-culture junkies who’ve read, watched, heard, and played all of the standards, what we also love are new ideas. Needless to say, we get especially jazzed up when we come across comic books that’re filled to the brim with the unconventional, the experimental, or even just the atypical.

Unfortunately, if you know anything about comics it’s that most of `em are just re-tellings of the same stories that’ve been around for years. You think the Big Two are primarily concerned with novelty and innovation? Then why did DC just retcon its continuity for the six-billionth time? Why is the current crux of the Marvel universe another battle between its heroes?

Something’s rotten in the state of funnybooks.

However, there are those who’re doing their best to push the limits of the paneled medium. These artists and writers dedicate their livelihoods to creating quality comics that take chances with their characters, settings, themes, compositions, and structures. And in the current comics climate, it seems that Image Comics is a nexus of creativity.

I reached out to Image publisher Eric Stephenson in the hopes of getting his thoughts on a few questions concerning the state of the medium. To my surprise, he responded! Huzzah! Behold the power of the Internet!

Hit the hyperspace button to check out what Stephenson had to say about dwindling readership, adaptations, digital comics, Pepsi-Cola, and more!

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OL has been given first crack at previewing A God-Awful, Small Affair, the first installment of OMNI from first-time writer Allen Drinkwater (who is, apparently, a friend of this site). After checking out the preview materials and being completely won over by the artwork of Manny Hernaez, I’ve decided to oblige.

Set on the Mars of 2090 CE, this comic follows Detective Farmer Murdock as he attempts to complete his final mission. The catch? The task at hand is to assassinate two of the planet’s most well-respected statesmen. The ensuing tale is filled with violence, rock’n’roll, nefarious secrets, and even a hint of the miraculous.

Hit the hyperspace jump to check out some samples!

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Hey you!

What’re you doin’ here? You’re lookin’ for beer reviews? Well, why don’t you hit up one of those aggregators that treat brewing as a time-honored art and present user comments with averaged scores? Oh, you’re not really interested in muddling up beer-drinking by quantifying it? I can appreciate that. Huh? You say that you’d put more stock in the opinions of a stark-raving lunatic? More than a well-informed opinion, you’re seeking a heartfelt knee-jerk response?

If that’s the case, I’d say you’re in the right place.

My name is Rendar Frankenstein. I am quasi-fictional, enthusiastic, and ready to drink beer. Fasten your seatbelt, return your tray table to the upright position, and prepare for the hyperspatial-jump.

Today, I’m going to detail my experience with Walker’s Reserve.

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Akira Kurosawa’s Red Beard is a work of profound humanism, so much so that its titular character is generous enough to give center stage to those around him who really need it: the broken, the destitute, the disenchanted, and the dying. As overseer of everything in his medical facility in 19^th century Edo (now Tokyo) for its impoverished citizens, the red-bearded Dr. Kyojō Niide (Toshirō Mifune) observes what each inhabitant (staff and patients alike) requires to get better. Some need medication; others need meditation, as the past can weigh on the sick as much as present maladies. And a will to live–something that the poor could hardly fathom previously–can be more important for the less fortunate than fortuitous health. Although the events of the film undoubtedly revolve around Red Beard, it is his acquiescent disposition and charitable openness toward revolution (both narratively speaking and even in some ways subtly social) that give everyone else a chance to shine. These other characters–coming and going, improving and dying–are allotted a fair chance in the world for once; they are given liberty, which allows them to find some peace and comfort–true health, in any state.

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The first time we see a Free City of Essos, far from the territories subject to the Iron Throne, we learn that the area surrounding its gates is called the ‘Garden of Bones’, so named for all those denied access to Qarth, left to die outside its walls.

More grim still, is that Sunday’s episode of Game of Thrones  takes that title for its name as well.   Viewers everywhere seemed to agree, the episode proved this world is becoming almost unbearably dark.   The name ‘garden of bones’ juxtaposes an implied beauty or serenity — life — with the reality of death, the physicality of death; all that remains after life is gone, and Sunday was all about coming to terms with death.

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