I Am Number Four, number two, scatological, Number One, Star Trek: The Next Generation, Riker, Number Five, Short Circuit, 9. Tim Burton, Timur Bekmambetov, Elijah Wood

Discussion (25) ¬

  1. Wombat

    Wait…is Johnny 5 asking if he should kill Cami in the last panel?

    • Tom
      Tom

      Kind of.

      Originally I was going to have Johnny 5’s reaction be much more harsh and have him say something dismissively cruel like “Bitch.”

      But that’s not how I think of Cami and I certainly don’t want that reflected in the comic. “Dissassemble?” was a little more benign and character-appropriate.

  2. tetsujin1979
    tetsujin1979

    Saw I Am Number Four at a free screening last week, and felt like asking for my money back! Don’t believe the trailers, what (admittedly quite good) action there is in this film is confined to it’s last 20 minutes. The rest of it is like an overlong episode of that late-90’s XFiles-For-Kids tv show Roswell, although I have read some reviews comparing it to Smallville.
    With Twilight set to end with the next film, it looks like studios are throwing mud at the wall and waiting to see what sticks. The ending, indeed the entire premise, is completely set up for a franchise, but there really is nothing here to recommend further entries.

  3. Jack
    Jack

    As an unsuccessful novelist, the fact that I Am Number Four got a film deal before it even came out makes me want to cry.

    The book was okay, but it only came out in August!

    Also it annoys me that it’s about aliens who know magic. No, not sufficiently advanced technology – MAGIC.

  4. strugglingwriter

    Well done, my friend. Awesome comic. Love the Johnny 5 line: “Disassemble”. Great!

  5. Funderbunk
    Funderbunk

    Well, it was your punchline that made me lose some of my drink by way of my nose, so good job!

    • Tom
      Tom

      That right there is every comedic writer’s dream.

      You just made my day. Thank you!

  6. Gordon

    This was great! I like seeing you play around with this much room!

  7. staatz
    staatz

    Oh man, that was great, my favorite one I’ve seen in a while. Disassemble-good stuff.

  8. Gray
    Gray

    I haven’t seen I Am Number Four and I doubt that I will, especially after reading a few synopsese (synopsi?) on line. It sounds like a spin on that old t.v. show, The Powers of Matthew Star. Yes, I know. I am old with obscure knowledge! Fear me! 😛

  9. hvg3
    hvg3

    I enjoyed it – it wasn’t great, but was still interesting. From what I can see, changes from the book (that is, shortening the story from months or more to days) was poor, but ultimately, left me wanting to see the next one.

    Not sure why they chose to make the three different species of aliens all die in the same strange manner (which doesn’t happen in the books, as best as I can tell). What is it with aliens dying and destroying all they hold/wear, too? (V?)

  10. LeAnna
    LeAnna

    First thing I thought of when I finished reading:

    NO DISASSEMBLE!!!!!!!!!!

    I recently rewatched Short Circuit and I loved it.

  11. Todd

    One of your best yet. I LOVE it. Not to say I’ve ever really disliked any, but this one definitely stands out. Thanks for doing this, makes my Mondays (or Tuesdays!) that much better! Keep it up!

  12. Rubix
    Rubix

    I love how Cami’s not weirded out by the enterprise’s first officer, a robot that thinks its alive, and that Tom is holding some kind of possessed voodoo doll. No it’s Tom’s explanation of 9 that drives her away.

    Also I love the alternate font for johnny number 5’s speech. I can hear him saying “disassemble?”

    • Tom
      Tom

      After 8 and a half years, this nonsense has become EXTREMELY commonplace for Cami! 😉

  13. Jim Ryan

    Hey, with a couple more panels and a willingness to go for TV references, you could have added Patrick McGoohan as Number Six….

    • Tom
      Tom

      It would have been worth it just to use the word “McGoohan!”

  14. bman

    Los locos kick your ass into OUTER SPACEEEEE!

  15. Liz
    Liz

    I was actually looking for Battlestar Galactica references once I saw where this was going, but I guess this is a movie comic. Also, the “disassemble” line made me burst out laughing and earned me some very strange looks from my coworkers. Well played, sir.

  16. Tracy

    Classic! I love that Riker made an appearance.

    • Tom
      Tom

      If I could co-opt Riker the way Joe Loves Crappy Movies has co-opted Captain Picard, I think that would be pretty funny.

  17. Bryan
    Bryan

    Dissasemble was a most appropriate word

    it could also be read as “should we all go our separate ways now?” since the little group of number references is no longer holding interest.

    it is a perfect word choice.

  18. Keira

    Thank you, Tom, you took me right back to my childhood with this comic. 😉

  19. Proudgeek
    Proudgeek

    Official RottenTomatoes.com Reviewers gave “I Am Number Four” 30%, while the audience gave it 69%. That’s saying something. This movie knows its audience… vacuous, fantasy-leaning older teens and young adults and should be judged by THOSE expectations. This isn’t Dark Knight, after all. Anyway I went into the theatre with low expectations, but was surprisingly HIGHLY entertained! I suspect that the novel is more detailed and fills in more backstory, because the movie version has just about as many gaping plot holes as it does high-octane action sequences. Again, this did not prevent me from suspending my disbelief and thoroughly getting in the spirit of things. There were pretty good special effects. Extraordinary teen – and future hunk – John Smith (Pettyfer) is a “fugitive” on the run from ruthless enemies sent to destroy him. Changing his identity, moving from town to town with his guardian Henri (Olyphant), John is always the new kid with no ties to his past. In the small Ohio town he now calls home, John encounters unexpected, life-changing events-his first love (Agron), powerful new abilities and a connection to the others who share his incredible destiny. Thought this might all sound a bit cliche, the story kept me on my toes. The peformances were acceptable (again, I had low expectations), and the comedy relief in the form of Sam (Callan McAuliffe) kept me engaged for the latter half of the movie. Bottom line: if you’re bored, there are worse ways to spend $10. I personally plan to see the sequel. Ironically, of course.

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