Tyler Creviston has a unique YouTube video where he has every single Kramer entrance, in chronological order from the Seinfeld TV Show.

The video after the jump.

A couple of months ago, I picked up 1001 Arabian Nights: The Adventures Of Sinbad: The Eyes Of Fire Vol. 1 trade paperback from Zenescope Entertainment.  I finally had a chance to read it and am writing to recommend the book. 

The series is written by Dan Wickline, Art by Gus Vasquez and  presents a reinterpretation and reinvention of Sinbad the sailor and his crew as they journey to a strange volcanic island in search of magical treasure.  The art is beautiful and the story telling flows. The combination results in an action packed and fun tale worthy of a Ray Harryhausen film.

I should also add that Dan Wickline uses his panels very effectively.  They are never cluttered and I don't think he ever uses more than five panels per page.  As an editor and writer, I have noticed that the urge is to try to overdue the amount of panels on each page.  Wickline is a perfect example of someone who is able to tell a rich and complex tale, while still being a panel minimalist.  And, yes.  I am sure someone is going to email me to point out that Watchmen has nearly a dozen panels on each page (someone always does whenever the topic comes up).  So,if you are Alan Moore, you can use as many panels as you want. The rest of us mere mortals should try to limit them to no more than six panels on a page. :-)

The trade collects the first six issues of the 1001 Arabian Nights series.

If you are a fan of sword and sorcery, you should pick this up.

More after the jump.

Universal Orlando has released a description and calendar related to its upcoming Mardi Gras celebration. The celebration Includes Authentic Mardi Gras Parade and Cuisine, Along with Live Performances by Acts Such as Aretha Franklin, 3 Doors Down and Miranda Lambert.

More after the jump.

The list of 73 of the 2010 Great Graphic Novels for Teens titles, drawn from 127 official nominations, is presented annually at the ALA Midwinter Meeting. The books, recommended for those ages 12-18, meet the criteria of both good quality literature and appealing reading for teens.

“There was a wealth of great titles to choose from this year,” said Eva Volin, committee chair. “This allowed the committee to create a well-rounded list that includes everything from European comics to manga, superhero titles to adaptations of classic literature. We think librarians will find this to be a very useful list.”

Members of the Great Graphic Novels for Teens Committee are Eva Volin, chair, Alameda (Calif.) Free Library; Marea Black, Burton Barr Central Library, Phoenix, Ariz.; Lisa Goldstein, Brooklyn, N.Y.; Jesse Karp, Little Red School House/Elisabeth Irwin High School, New York; Candice Mack, Encino Tarzana (Calif.) Public Library; Barbara Moon, Suffolk Coop Library System, Bellport, N.Y.; Kimberly Paone, Elizabeth (N.J.) Public Library; Michael Pawuk, Cuyahoga County Public Library, Brooklyn, Ohio; Jessica Smith, Bend (Ore.) Senior High School; Christian Zabriskie, Brooklyn, N.Y.; Dorcas Wong, San Francisco, Calif.; and Ian Chipman, consultant, Booklist, Chicago, Ill.

Congrats to the winners

More after the Jump:

I mentioned yesterday that I though D23 wasn't worth the money.  But, judge for yourself. they have released a listing of events for 2010.

The release after the jump.

I got the following from Erik Hendrix at SP! Nexus Magazine.

For Immediate Release:
SP! Nexus Magazine's Second Issue is out! Better than the first? You be
the judge!

On Monday morning, the January issue of SP! Nexus was released to the
public as a free PDF download, receiving more than 100 downloads in less
than 24 hours. Pretty good, right? Well, here's why.... The January issue
features interviews with Shannon Wheeler (Too Much Coffee Man), Sean
Gordon Murphy (artist for Grant Morrison's new book, Joe the Barbarian
which was released TODAY), Jay Piscopo (Undersea Adventures of Capt'n
Eli), a tribute to the late Spanish Wolfman, Paul Naschy, reviews of a
bunch of indie / small press / self-published books, some original
fiction, movie, book, and music reviews... and more... Clocking in just
under 100 pages, this magazine is worth a download ~ so go do it! If you
missed the December issue, go check that out, too!

Continued after the Jump.

As most of you know, D23 is a Disney program based on building a fan community of Disney enthusiasts. Basically, it’s a club for Disney by Disney.   Basically, D23 is the first official community for Disney fans, which is a kind of amazing since Disney has been around for almost a century in some form or another (I guess there were official Mickey Mouse Clubs, but this is the first company wide fan organization).  However, more amazing is the fact that I have absolutely no intent of joining D23.  As you can tell by the large amount of Disney reviews and information on this site, I am a huge Disney fan.  I was married in the Disney Wedding Pavilion and regularly travel to both Disney World and Disneyland both with and without my family.   And anyone who has been to our house thinks that they are visiting a Disney Hotel.  So, why would someone as obsessed as me with the Mouse not join this exclusive club?  The answer is simple.  It’s not worth the money.  When the club originated, it was $75.00 per year to join.  For this annual fee of $75.00 you received a four issue magazine subscription to D23 Magazine (with a cover price $15.95, which comes to $63.80 if you bought them on the newsstand—"Wow, that's a savings of over negative fifteen percent.").  But wait, there is more.  You also had the chance to spend more money to buy exclusive high priced merchandise from a special D23 website (which everyone can access), as well as tickets to exclusive events.  I remember hearing about a Mary Poppins event on an episode of Inside the Magic where the listener got to sit in a group and see the cast for 10 whole minutes.  There just aren’t enough exclusive events near me to justify the expense.  I am not alone.  In fact, not even Ricky Brigante, the host of the aforementioned Inside the Magic podcast and one of the creators of Orlando Attractions Magazine has not yet joined D23.  (BTW, if you are in any way a Disney Fan, you should check both the Inside the Magic podcast and Orlando Attractions  Magazine as they are top notch.  I daresay that Orlando Attractions magazine blows D23 Magazine out of the water and is 1/3 of the price.  Not only that, but if you subscribe to the magazine at www.attractionsmagazine.com/subscribe.php, you actually get a 16 percent discount  off the newsstand price on the subscription—unlike the 15 percent markup in D23.  But I digress.)

Well, Disney has apparently heard the concerns and has attempted to resolve the issue.  They have created new tiers of membership in D23.  Now, for $34.99 a year, you can buy a Silver membership in D23 (they still offer the original terms now dubbed “Gold membership” for $74.99).   What do you get as a Silver member:

D23 Members in both the new Gold and Silver tiers will receive a membership card; a suitable-for-framing member certificate (for new members); opportunities to attend special D23 Member events throughout the year; access to exclusive, limited-edition merchandise and collectibles; and 2010 gift of "Disney Undiscovered: A 23-Month Calendar of Disney's Unrealized Masterpieces."

Basically, Disney is offering D23 without the magazine.   So, now for $34.99, you are getting what used to cost members an extra $11.19 (and still does in the gold level.)  No thanks.  At $15.00 maybe I would, at $10.00 I definitely would.  Instead, Disney jacked up the price 312 percent as a punishment for not buying their magazine.

Don’t get me wrong, D23 are doing some fantastic event s (which I will list later this week).  And if I lived anywhere near any of them, I might reconsider.  I just feel that if D23 is truly for the fans, then Disney shouldn’t be pricing it so high.  I don’t know if Disney is making any money off D23.  What I do know is that D23 should be a loss leader and not a profit center.

The press release and details about the membership tiers after the jump:

When I lived in New York, I used to work at 787 7th Avenue, which is just above Times Square.  As a result, I spent a lot of time and money in the Times Square Virgin Mega Store.  Since moving to DC, a trip to New York wasn't complete without a visit to the store.  Their selection of obscure scifi movies, hard to find books and Broadway cast albums was unparalleled.  And, I was very said to see that it was closing--another victim to the economy (and, I guess, the success of iTunes).  Now, that I see what Disney has planned for the space, I can see that I will still be spending a lot of time and money on the premises.  I can't wait for this new Disney Store to open.

More details after the jump.