Wednesday, October 12, 2011

3 YEAR BLOGGIVERSARY!
-or-
The "BEST OF" vol 3: 2010-2011

 Hey, Hey!  
I'm not sure quite how, but after a very lean and difficult year, somehow (yesterday) I managed to make it to 3 years of producing a fair-to-middling amount of "content" (all of varying quality) for this blog!
(This, on top of the prior decade or so of my merely being an omni-present commenter/ know-it-all loudmouth on others blogs, message boards and random street corners.)  What I’m saying here is, obviously, I have no other life. This is my home and you are my people. Welcome!

So, I thought, in the vein of anniversary episodes of various television shows, I would, once again, produce a “best of” post - thus revisiting 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".

Who knows how to market himself? This guy!

OK, seriously...
Well... seeing as how I began my blogging on a whim one October day, three 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, 2010 to OCTOBER 11, 2011.

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, as a reflection upon my scant 3 years of running my own blog, we start off with a tribute to one of the most historic bloggers (especially in regards to Doctor Strange) as I reported upon the 11th year for – and last official post of - NeilAlieN - [HERE]
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In regards to this being, primarily, a comics blog, it seems fitting to recall that I gave an inside look into my own nature, and what comics have meant to me and how they have made me the man that I am today - [HERE]


I also wrote about how comics (and super heroes in particular) can be a great way to bridge the ground between adults and children and a fabulous way to “reach” kids on common ground – [HERE]

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While speaking of introducing comics to new readers, in reply to a write-in query, I made a long, very informative post on the history and nature of Doctor Strange – [HERE]

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In a similar vein, I also set up a different informative post that dealt with the immortal nature of Doctor 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).
While this series was actually made in the previous year (2009), I have since added to it throughout the past year as well, and as such, each of the following posts have been made “new”.
 - 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]
- Supplemental Entry #3 : [HERE]
- Supplemental Entry #4 : [HERE]
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- On the subject of comic-themed apparel, I (less than) humbly launched my own line of shirts with these posts announcing my first wave of products with my all-original artwork and designs.
Teaser # 1 – [HERE]
Revelation – [HERE]

And while it is technically "cheating", because this was posted a week or so after the Oct. 11th cut-off date, this is the Official launch post – [HERE]

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- If original artwork is your lure, I presented some of my own original artwork featuring ROM; SPACEKNIGHT – which was drawn for a charity auction to raise funds for the care of the tragically incapacitated writer; Bill Mantlo!
While there are several posts showing the work in progress, the FINAL piece (which includes links to those aforementioned “in-progress” posts) was showcased [HERE]

The entire sequence can be found (in reverse order) at this link [HERE]

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- There are also a bunch of HOLIDAY POSTS (I won’t list them all, but will showcase the best of them here)!

HALLOWEEN SPECIAL-EDITION! 2010  - DOCTOR STRANGE AUDIO PLAY - [HERE]
THANKSGIVING 2010 - The culinary tastes of Doctor Strange – [HERE]
ST. VALENTINE’S DAY 2011 – “Kiss My Giant-Sized Man-Thing” - A look at the many loves of Manny - [HERE]
EARTH DAY 2011 – An anecdote about recycling and some Defenders art – [HERE]

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- Let’s not forget NEW YEAR’s DAY, which saw an addition to my long-running MARVEL CALENDARS SERIES – [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:

- TOMB OF TERROR – with MAN-THING # 1 - [HERE]
- THUNDERBOLTS # 154 – with MAN-THING & DOCTOR STRANGE - Love… Like THUNDERBOLTS Straight to My Heart – Part 1 : An Ode to Muck and Magic .  - [HERE]
- THUNDERBOLTS # 155 - with MAN-THING & DOCTOR STRANGE - Love… Like THUNDERBOLTS Straight to My Heart – Part 2 : Strange Thing… You Make My Heart Sing! You make everything…GROOVY! - [HERE]
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- But what kind of blog would this be if some of my reviews didn't rant and rave once in awhile...mostly against Brian Bendis' treatment of Dr. Strange in the pages of New Avengers:

- EYES WITHOUT A FACE –or- Tell Me, WHO ARE YOU? – A review of New Avengers v2 # 5. - [HERE]
- EYE CARAMBA! –or- F*** YOU, IT’s MAGIC! (A VERY in-depth review of New Avengers v2 # 6 – and an overview of issues # 1-6) - [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 (sadly,I didn’t blog about many this year):

- Man-Thing "Appearance" on 'That 70's Show' - [HERE]
- The VENTURE BROS’ Dr. Orpheus has a cameo in the awesome music video; Shallow Gravy; “JACKET”  - [HERE]
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- What about video games? Marvel vs Capcom 3 was released – with SHUMA GORATH, DORMAMMU as playable characters (and the advanced news of ULTIMATE Marvel vs Capcom 3 – with the addition of DOCTOR STRANGE as a playable character) and I was all over it – in multiple posts:
- I receive my Limited Collector’s Edition of MvC3 [HERE]
- More videos of Shuma Gorath in action and cameos of Doctor Strange and Man-Thing [HERE]
- Ultimate Marvel vs Capcom 3 – Doctor Strange fighting videos and artwork [HERE]
- Breakdown of all of Doctor Strange’s UMvC3 moves (2 long videos) – [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 2010  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. Thank You all!


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 –
- Jeff Parker -
- 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 4!
Join me, wont you?

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