2 YEAR BLOGGIVERSARY!! -or-The "BEST OF" vol 2: 2009-2010

 I'm not sure quite how, but somehow I managed to make it to 2 years of producing dubious "content" (of varying quality) for this blog!
(This, on top of the prior 10 years or so of my merely being an omni-present commenter/ know-it-all loudmouth on others blogs, message boards and random street corners.)

So, I thought it fitting to revisit a few of the "high-points" of this past year's blog-post entries.
Disclaimer: What might constitute "High-Points" may differ from person to person. I'm sure we can ALL agree that when the average content level is a mere "meh", anything above snore-inducing is a "high-point".

Unfortunately, I didn't DO this sort of thing for my FIRST year, so I'll be quickly working one up and "Ret-con posting" it in the proper place for anyone who wants to revisit Year One.

Who knows how to market himself? This guy!

OK, seriously...
Well... seeing as how I began my blogging on a whim one October day, two years ago, any semblance of a calendar-year can be tossed right out the window. So, we will focus on what I blogged from OCTOBER 11, 2009 to today.

Feel free to use this opportunity to peruse some of these old posts - whether you have read them already or not, there is actually some really good stuff in here.

Let's see:

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- How about we start off with a tribute to JACK KIRBY, an anecdote wherein I met the legendary creator, and detail the few instances where he drew Doctor Strange - [HERE]

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It seems fitting to recall that I gave extensive publication histories for two of my favorite characters:
- MAN-THING - [HERE]
- DOCTOR STRANGE (in my 200th Post - wherein I search for what should have been issue # 200 of Dr. Strange) - [HERE]

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- Interested in comic-themed apparel? T-shirts? Hats? Ties? Underpants??
Well, then THIS multi-part series is for you. Showcasing my insane collection of comic-themed garb, with plenty of pics and histories of the items and manufacturers (and I even drop some publication knowledge in there) - either follow along in order, or jump to whichever post strikes your fancy:

MYSTIC GARB : DR. STRANGE APPAREL SERIES:

- part 1 : CAPS and TIES : [HERE]
- part 2 : SOLO APPEARANCE T-SHIRTS : [HERE]
- part 3 : TEAM-UP APPEARANCE T-SHIRTS : [HERE]
- part 4 : THE "OTHERS" / "6-DIMENSIONS" T-SHIRTS : [HERE]
- part 5 : "THE END" of GARMENTS  : [HERE]
- Supplemental Entry #1 : [HERE]
- Supplemental Entry #2 : [HERE]

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- On the subject of super-hero garb, Halloween is approaching, so take a walk down memory-lane with me as I showcased myself photographed (back in 1997) wearing a couple of home-made Doctor Strange costumes that garnered me a "win" in the Wizard Magazine annual costume contest:
DOCTOR STRANGE HALLOWEEN-COSTUMES - SPECIAL-EDITION! 2009 - [HERE]

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- Liked that? Interested in grown men playing dress-up as comic characters? Well, if you're either a cosplay enthusiast or just a weird comic fan, this series, wherein I dressed up as DR. DOOM for a series of vid-shorts will make you laugh, cry and doubt my sanity:
And Now... A Word From DOOM !
- Episode I : "BAH!" - [HERE]
- Episode II : "SNUGGIE!" - [HERE]
- Episode III : "NOG!" - [HERE]
- Episode IV : "PROSTITUTE!" - [HERE]

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- Yikes! See that last one? "Prostitute?" What the heck's THAT all about?
Well, if women who have lust on their minds is a big draw for you, then you need to check out the long-running, continuing series that I affectionately call:
CLEA LOVES SEX.
- 4th ENTRY -"Dead Can Dance" (the Horizontal Boogie) -  [HERE]
- 5th ENTRY : "OOO + XXX" (hugs and kisses) - [HERE]
- SIXTH SEX - THE X-X-X EDITION - [HERE]
- Addendum : Limericks from the Book of Vishanti  - [HERE]

Previous entries were from 2008 - 2009, but can still be found via links in each of these entries.

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- And, to give equal time, just to show you that Dr. Strange also goes all-out to score points with the ladies (well... Clea mostly). This is for the young lovers out there... just to show you how high the dating bar has been set by Doctor Stephen Strange.
DR. STRANGE; VALENTINE SUPREME (-or- The Hoary Hosts of Hallmark) - [HERE]

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- If original artwork is your lure, I presented a series of posts (which tied into a series from my other "Art-Blog") wherein I showcased some of my own original artwork - all of which feature Doctor Strange.
(with some also featuring Man-Thing, Scarlet Witch, Spider-Man, Clea, Dormammu, Eternity, Nightmare, The Ancient One and The Defenders; Silver Surfer, Namor the Sub-Mariner and Hulk)!


While some are "professional" submission samples, a few go waaaaay back to my childhood and my first attempts at drawing the mystic master.
 Teaser samples are found in these posts, with the full-reveal in posts on the sister site (via provided links).


- 1st in the Series - 4 Wizard magazine cover submissions - from the year 2000 - [HERE]
- 2nd in the Series - 11-Page "Secret Defenders" story- from 1993 - [HERE]
- 3rd in the Series - 6-Page "Doctor Strange" story - from 1989 - [HERE]
(with Stan Lee critique anecdote)
- 4th in the Series - "Doctor Strange" pin-ups - from 1989 back to 1980 - [HERE]
(with John Byrne critique anecdote)
- 5th in the Series - web-site banner headers "Defenders" - from 2002 - [HERE]

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Of course, SOME comic-blog readers actually like to read about... oh, I dunno... comics!
So, here are some crazy in-depth reviews:

- The MYSTIC HANDS of DOCTOR STRANGE # 1 - [HERE]
- STRANGE V2 mini-series # 1 - 4 - [HERE]
- GIRL COMICS # 2 : "Rondeau" - [HERE]
- THUNDERBOLTS # 144 - 145 - with MAN-THING - [HERE]
- WEB of SPIDER-MAN # 6 - with MAN-THING - [HERE]
- DOCTOR AMERICA : Occult Operative of Liberty - [HERE]

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- But what kind of blog would this be if I didn't rant and rave once in awhile...mostly against Brian Bendis' treatment of Dr. Strange in the pages of New Avengers:

- Pick a Card... ANY Card... No. Not THAT One. (Muckraking Marvel's Magic Make-Over) - [HERE]
- DITKO, oh, DITKO - Why Hast Thou Forsaken Me? (WHY is Bendis allowed to destroy one of the founding fathers of Marvel comics?) - [HERE]
- The EYE of the BEHOLDEN (Review of New Avengers # 4) - [HERE]

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- Like to watch TV and films? Like reviews of same? Then these bits of TV-related commentary may be of interest:
- SUPER HERO SQUAD : NIGHT IN THE SANCTORUM - an in-depth (no. REALLY, in-depth) review: [HERE]
- Dr. Strange "Appearance" on 'That 70's Show' - [HERE]
- Dr. Strange in an AVENGERS "PRE-MAKE" Fan-Film - [HERE]

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- On my birthday this year, I revisited a subject and solved a 20-year-old mystery about my ROM : SPACEKNIGHT "action figure" - all the while linking to the previous year's birthday post as well, wherein the whole thing culminates. Oh, yeah... and I "dress up" like ROM... sorta. - [HERE]

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- And, of course, we here at the Sanctum Sanctorum Comix blog also have our own "Awards Show", the "SANCTUM AWARDS".
I present "Sancty's" to deserving "Best of" and Worst of" categories.
Sometimes this is the only place where I may discuss certain titles, storylines or products.
Other times, I am revisiting older posts with my votes.
Either way, a thorough overview of the year's official product output is reviewed.
The 2009 SANCTUM AWARDS - can be found [HERE]

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I would be remiss if I didn't thank the many friends, fans, readers, followers, fellow-bloggers and wonderful souls out there who have helped, inspired, cajoled, cudgeled and commented.

A list of but a scant few (in no particular order) are:

-Neilalien-

-Howard Hallis-

-Mike Sterling and his "Progressive Ruin"-

-Fox from  "Strange Occasions"-

Lee from "Rom, Spaceknight Revisited"

-Dave from "Blog for ROM Fans..."-

-Darren from "Lonely Geek's Swamp - a Man-Thing blog"-

-Plok from "A Trout in the Milk"-

-Holly-

-Sean Aaron-

-The Groovy Agent-

-John Sisson-

-googum from "Random Happenstance"

-Erick from "Wonderful Wonderblog"-

-The Grand Comic Database-

-waaaay too many awesome blogs and forums-

-numerous "anonymous" commenters-

- soooo many more blogs and people who have been there along the way -

and 

-Susannah-

One very special reader who helped keep me blogging - most literally - by giving me an awesome laptop set-up for no other reason than she is awesome.

The tale of that can be found in a post called:

ANGELS on EARTH - Behold... Metatron! [HERE]

And creators without whom this blog would be about my collection of rare molds, spores and fungus':

-
- Steve Ditko -

- Jack Kirby -

- Stan Lee -

- J.M. DeMatteis -
- Steve Gerber -

- Dan Green -

- Steve Englehart -
- Gene Colan -

- Marshall Rogers -

- Michael Golden -

- Paul Smith -

- Mike Ploog -

- Dan Adkins -
- Steve Rude -
- Bill Everett -
- John Byrne -

- Peter Gillis -
-Roger Stern -

- Frank Brunner -

- Kevin Nowlan -
- Chris Warner -
- P. Craig Russell -

- Gerry Conway -
- Sandy Plunkett -
- Alan Davis -
- Mike Allred -
- Mark Buckingham -
- Howard Chaykin -
- Kurt Busiek -
- Mike Weiringo -
- Al Milgrom -
- Rudy Nebres -
- Tom Sutton -
- Steve Mellor -

- Ian Akin and Brian Garvey -

- Sal Buscema -

- Bill Mantlo -

and many, many, MANY more!

And that should do it.
Sure, there are a lot more entries - but not all of them are merit-worthy, or while they may be good, are just silly hit-and-run style posts.
Some are to showcase new products or comics that were to be released, and others are tongue-in-cheek bits of whimsy, or tips of the hat to various holidays.
I have a lot like that - some quick Photoshop, an Action figure or comic scan and what passes for "wit" = a quick blog post.

But if you like that sort of thing, open up the blog-history drop down lists and just jump around.

I'll catch you all in a few.
Lots more planned for YEAR 3!
Join me, wont you?