Fun Fact: Dead of Summer Book 2 was originally supposed to run 185 pages. Whoops!

THE PROBLEM WITH ACCOUNTABILITY

I’ve just wrapped up my second week with Wii Fit and I’m already hitting a rough patch. The problem with using Wii Fit everyday is that while it’s a good motivator to see the graph dip down as you’re losing weight, it’s also very discouraging to see the graph hit a plateau, or even peak when you’ve gained a bit. It’s at this stage I think I’ve got to reiterate that you can’t expect to see fantastic results using Wii Fit alone. It’s certainly fun, and it does give you a sense that you’re excercising and engaging in physical activity. What it doesn’t do is alter other habits that require an overhaul in order to see real results.

I say this because I have GAINED a half a pound since last week. I’m at 176.6 lbs. and my progress over the past seven days has been one of peaks and troughs and plateaus. I’ve been all over the place, and I think I have a good understanding why.
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Hey Gang:

Just a heads up.  We have decided to enjoy a holiday for once, and give ourselves the day off.

In turn…

• There will be no Dead of Summer for Friday, July 4th. The comic will return with a new page on Monday, July 7th.
• There will be no Derailed Podcast for the week of Thursday, July 3rd. The podcast will be back with episode 5, on Thursday, July 10th.

Thanks for your understanding, and have a great freaking fourth!

Bale versus Keaton. Keaton versus Kilmer. Kilmer versus Clooney.

Keaton versus Clooney versus Bale. Holy Crap!!!

You might have seen this floating around. If not, enjoy.

Battle of the Batmans!

I guess with the Dark Knight coming out, Hellboy had to have something, right?

Chuck star Zachery Levy kickin’ it with HB.

Hellboy: Inside The Actors Studio.

BOOYA!

…and the mainstream comic book train rolls on. Once the summer is over, we’ll see how long comics stick around the media. Enjoy it while it lasts.

As the lights begin to dim, a Dethklok logo flashes on the big screen.  A sold out venue of 1600 people in attendance all chant the name of a fictitious cartoon band. It’s an absolute wonderful spectacle and glee fills the air all around us. Dethklok, Dethklok, Dethklok…and repeat. Finally the time is upon us. It’s as if money was raining to the poor. The dream has become the reality. Nathan, Skwisgaar, Toki, Murderface and Pickles will be brought to life. Dr. Frankenstein or Brenden Small, the creator of Metalocalypse is fronting the group below the screen which will be showcasing the feature. Joining him are Gene Hogan on drums which you may know from such bands as Testament, Death Angel, Death and Strapping Young Lad. Also performing are Mike Keneally on guitar and bassist Brian Beller who are known for backing up Steve Vai of all people.

For fans of Metalocalypse, we are excited to have a metal band/cartoon that has fun with us and the content. With shows like Beavis and Butthead and Aqua Teen Hunger Force gone, Metalocalypse has the market on lockdown. And they nailed it too. The majority is content. Small has put us back in that comfort place with the show and then some. Seeing a touring cartoon was an ultimate plateu of enjoyment for me. I would love to see a tour after every new season of the show. That would be fantastic. Every year fans would get a batch of new songs with every airing season and then beat our brains out waiting for the traveling show to come to town. I know I am beyond blown away by what this is. Even Gorillaz never got this far. Could we see them step up as a response to this event? Animated videos are great but Metalocalypse took it to a whole new level. Could we get a Gorillaz tv show?

As far as the stage set up goes, it complimented the animation really well. With a mix of scenes from the cartoon series and animation made for the event, I had to remind myself to look down and remember to pay the musicians the respect they deserve. Which is an interesting thing. Those guys were playing their hearts out. It was sick! The whole show in it’s entirety is what you must applaude. It’s just easy to get sidetracked from so much going on. The overload of amazing things is something I want so much more of. A DVD of the tour would get viewed on repeat forever. I might never leave the house.

My favorite song of the night would have to be Bloodrocuted. The screen was showing the animated video for the song which features the band empowered by electricity among an actual storyline. Watching this one made me feel a true buzz from the show. The crowd was alive and you could just look around and feel it. Watching the cartoon band and listening to the live one, everything was in synch. We were all alive and buzzing while the very essence of Dethklok was coming through. From Dr. Frankenstein on stage to the electricity, 1600 people were all brought to life by this idea of an amazing band.

It was great to hear Brandon Small quote Baltimore’s murder statistics too. Towards the end of the night he was taking turns talking to the crowd in different characters voices. It was great to hear “Skisgaar” tell the crowd he was suprised we were all still alive due to the high murder rate this city has. Quite frankly so am I. That show was murderous!

I have to tell you, it’s pretty freaking sweet when you get a text message that reads”I got a Dead of Summer tattoo.” Pal and cast member Dan had this ink done today. Props to Rinks and the great folks up at the Ghost Town shop in Ellicott City, Maryland for all their work. Looks awesome. It’s truly an honor to be this humbled.

Reference comic page 294 titled Nightmares to see the original. You might remember that back from October of 2007.

Last night’s Dethklok show at Ram’s Head was one of the best shows I have ever been to, EVER! It was amazing. I’ll post my review sometime over the weekend. I took a few photos and after I gathered most of my body parts to reassemble myself, I went home ridiculously happy. Was anybody there? Anyone seen them on the tour yet? I want to discuss.

 See you soon.

OF MOUTHFULLS AND MUNCHIES

Last Friday I had the good fortune of lucking into a copy of Wii Fit. As an experiment, I’ve chosen to use ONLY video games as my method of weight management for the next month. I’m not a big guy by any stretch, but I’ve certainly got some pudge and pounds I could stand to shed. I’m not changing my eating habits too dreadfully, but I am consciously avoiding things I know are really bad for me. Gigantic slices of chocolate mousse cake, for instance. I miss those. I’d meant to do an intro to this segment last week, but laziness is a quality I have in spades.

I’ve had the game, and it’s certainly still a game, for a week now and here are my results for the first week:
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Episode numero THREE of DERAILED has hit the web.

Get ready for an hour of fun with myself, Nick, and our special guest, Ms. Jamie Baldwin.

Lock and load, it’s a wacky one!

Click here for this week’s podcast.

Saturday, I got together with Jami to create a poster/flyer image for the next Art Fight. Or, should I say Super Art Fight?! We’ll have the finished product up very shortly as the finishing touches are now being applied. The video is time lapsed so feel free to speed it up even more if you like. The design fits the theme for the next show which will be Monsters.

Sit back, relax and enjoy the ride. Two hours flows into seven minutes quite well while your listening to Sugar Hill Gang. Keep your eyes peeled for more details. The next Fight is in September and we have a lot of cool shit to get through between now and then. Prepare to be stunned by the AWESOME!