Posts Tagged ‘confusion’

10 items.

HIDING IN PLAIN SIGHT

by Tom on December 19, 2011 at 8:06 am
1 Star2 Stars3 Stars4 Stars5 Stars6 Stars7 Stars8 Stars9 Stars10 Stars
(25 votes, average: 8.20 out of 10)
Mission: Impossible, Ghost Protocol, name, confusion, disguise, Tom Cruise, Jeremy Renner, Simon Pegg,
Vote for Theater Hopper at Top Web Comics

I was having a little bit of trouble coming up with an idea for the Top Web Comics voting incentive sketch for today. So I kept it pretty simple and just drew a picture of Tom Cruise. It's a little wonky, but not too bad for 5 minutes at the drawing table. Vote for Theater Hopper at Top Web Comics to check it out.

Before I get into today's comic, let me just take a moment to talk about last week's comic. I was worried that it was a little too dark and gruesome, but you guys proved me wrong. Support for last week's Chipmunks comic was phenomenal. You guys did a great job sharing the comic on Twitter, Facebook and StumbleUpon and the result was one of Theater Hopper's HIGHEST traffic days in MONTHS.

Not only was last week's comic one of the most shared and visited on the site, it was also the HIGHEST RATED comic on the site.

I don't know if you guys have seen it, but there's those little stars between the comic and the blog post that you can use to let me know how much you like or dislike that week's comics. As of this writing, there were 49 votes and an average rating of 9.89 out of 10. That, like, NEVER happens. That's pretty much like 48 people giving the comic ten stars and one guy giving it one star. Crazy-unheard of.

I'm sure the ranking of the comic will flatten over time. But it was just another indicator of how well that comic connected with you guys and I appreciate it. I guess I didn't realize there was so much latent Chipmunk hate out there! Thanks again!

As for this week's comic, it started out as something completely different. I abstained from seeing Mission: Impossible 3 because I was feeling very much anti-Tom Cruise at the time. I kind of regret that now as several friends have told me that M:I 3 was very, very good. I should have know this because Phillip Seymour Hoffman is in it. So... duh.

I suppose there's nothing keeping me from seeing it now except for time and availability. If Netflix offered it through streaming, I probably would have seen it by now. Alas, that's not the case.

At any rate, the comic was basically going to be about how I was planning on seeing Mission: Impossible - Ghost Protocol, but how Tom Cruise was the absolute LAST reason I was seeing it.

And that's true.

For me, the primary reason to go is to see how director Brad Bird (The Incredibles, The Iron Giant) handled his transition from animation to live action. That doesn't happen very often - if at all. I guess I can't think of a lot of animators who have made that leap, can you?

Bird has a very action-oriented style to begin with and he also has a cynical sense of humor. I wanted to see how much of that could be infused into the Mission: Impossible franchise.

Probably the SECOND reason for me to see Ghost Protocol is for the preview footage they're showing of The Dark Knight Rises in IMAX. We're luck enough to have an IMAX theater in town and they're showing it. That's a big draw for me.

From there, I'm interested in seeing Jermey Renner and Simon Pegg. Tom Cruise falls somewhere below that. Really, if you're the 5th most important reason to see a movie, does it matter where you actually rank? Probably not.

Look - I want to like Tom Cruise again. He's got a lot of charisma and he generally picks good projects. But somewhere along the line, his enthusiasm and intensity wore me out. Tom Cruise will be 50 years-old next year. FIFTY! Anyone who acts like Tom Cruise does at 50 is either in gross denial or is running away from something. Maybe if I have millions of dollars to insulate myself from reality, I'd see life more like Tom Cruise sees it. But as of right now, it's clear to me we're not sharing the same planet.

I guess the thing that trips me out about the M:I franchise the most is that they've been making these films since 1996. That's nearly 20 years. In some ways, it's a very unlikely franchise that seems to propagate itself purely on Tom Cruise's ambition to prove that he can still do his own stunts.

If Cruise had opted out after the first or even the second movie, they might have continued making cheesy direct-to-DVD flicks or maybe even rebooted it again completely by now. But when you start talking about an action franchise that's approaching the 20 year-mark, you're talking about James Bond-level longevity. Is it any wonder that Jeremy Renner is being groomed to take over for Tom Cruise after he leaves?

Follow the money, people. Follow the money.

That's all I have for this week. Next week's comic might be delayed due to the Christmas holiday. I'll try to work in advance, but you know how that usually goes.

In the meantime, thanks for your continued support. If you liked today's comic and want to share it with your network, don't forget the ShareThis buttons below the blog post. You can use them to share this comic with friends through Twitter, Facebook, StumbleUpon or even e-mail!

If you have any comments about Mission: Impossible - Ghost Protocol, be sure to leave them below. I'm curious if anyone saw it in IMAX this weekend and what they thought of The Dark Knight Rises footage? C'mon! Spill!

Until then, have a safe and happy holiday! See you next week!

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TWO FACE SEALS THE DEAL

by Tom on August 19, 2009 at 12:00 am
1 Star2 Stars3 Stars4 Stars5 Stars6 Stars7 Stars8 Stars9 Stars10 Stars
(28 votes, average: 7.89 out of 10)
Love Happens, Aaron Eckhart, Jennifer Aniston, confusion, romantic comedy

I realize that I'm really getting ahead of myself with this comic - Love Happens doesn't open until September 18 - but the dialogue in today's comic was taken nearly verbatim from a conversation Cami and I had this evening and I couldn't shake it. So, there you go. A little slice of life from the Brazelton house on a Tuesday night.

Cami had me sit down to watch the season premier of Flipping Out last night and Bravo was incessantly running commercials for Love Happens in between Jeff Lewis's hissy fits. I thought it seemed strange that they were advertising what essentially looks like a direct-to-DVD release so early. I mean, the movie is a month away! But I suppose it was effective because I hadn't heard word-one about this movie until last night.

IMDB breaks down the plot thusly:

About a widower whose book about coping with loss turns him into a best-selling self-help guru. On a business trip to Seattle, he falls for a woman who attends one of his seminars, only to learn that he hasn't yet truly confronted his wife's passing.

But the advertisement sums things up pretty succinctly...

Jennifer Aniston is unlucky in love. Aaron Eckhart helps millions, but can't help himself. LOVE CONNECTION! Happy ending. Go home.

There. I just saved you eight bucks.

I wasn't lying, though, when I said I would see the movie for Aaron Eckhart. In my opinion, after The Dark Knight and Thank You For Smoking, the man can do no wrong.

I'm not really excited about the idea of seeing Jennifer Aniston in ANOTHER romantic comedy where she's unlucky in love. She's America's poster girl for failed relationships. I see enough of that on magazine racks and on E! News. Now you're going to ask me to sit through it for 2 hours?

Aniston is a reasonably talented actress. I wish someone would cast her in something where the plot is not driven by romantic entanglements. She should make a cameo appearance in some other movie where she swears like a sailor and punches someone out just to mix things up a little bit.

That's just my opinion. I could be wrong.

HEY! By the way, I reviewed the Blu-ray release of I Love You, Man here on the site yesterday. Hit the little back arrow to check it out if you missed it.

Other than that, I think I'm just going to hang around and dream about Aaron Eckhart's jaw line. I mean!... Eat beef jerky and watch ESPN! Yeah! Sportscenter! It's on right now!!

Later.

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FEAR OF THE FAIRER SEX

by Tom on November 24, 2008 at 1:00 am
1 Star2 Stars3 Stars4 Stars5 Stars6 Stars7 Stars8 Stars9 Stars10 Stars
(22 votes, average: 8.45 out of 10)
Twilight, Robert Pattinson, Kristen Stewart, teenage girls, terror, confusion

I'm being a little unfair to the teenage fans of Twilight. For example, when discussing the movie's $70 million haul this weekend, my wife asked why I had to pin it on teenage girls.

Well, because that's who is going to this movie. I haven't met one guy who has said "Yeah! I'm pumped to see it!" I mean, girls are taking videos of themselves waiting in line for the movie and posting them online.

Just so we're clear, I don't have a problem with girls doing this. I'm not making fun of them for that. I just want to point out to every chick that's ever dissed a guy for waiting in line for Star Wars or Lord of the Rings, you have no moral authority now.

Truthfully, I wish this kind of thing would happen more often. I was thinking about how utterly confused I was by the Twilight phenomenon until I decided, "You know what - good for them." Seriously. How often does something like this come along for teenage girls? As it pertains to movies, I mean. People weren't exactly lining up around the block for midnight showings of the last Sandra Bullock movie, you know? Romantic comedies shouldn't be the exclusive domain for "chick flicks." Why can't they have a kick-ass franchise like Twilight? For some girls out there Twilight is to them what Iron Man is to me and I think that's AWESOME.

Does that mean I'm going to see Twilight? Unfortunately, no. At least not right away.

But not out of stubbornness. More out of timeliness. I wasn't prepared mentally to face the crowd that was sure to be there over the weekend. Now with the Thanksgiving holiday fast approaching, I'll probably have to take a pass.

Still, Jeffery Wells over at Hollywood Elsewhere makes a good point. "Guys of all ages can go to this thing and learn (i.e., remind themselves) how to act with their girlfriends and wives in a way that will most likely lead to some action. This is not a painful-to-sit-through, young-girls-only movie. It goes down fairly easily, plus it's a major phenomenon that anyone who fancies himself to be any kind of cultural pulse-taker is absolutely required to see."

Suggesting the movie communicates a coda for behavior that will get you laid later on is kind of crass and not the message I was attracted to. Rather, being a cultural pulse-taker, I feel I owe it to myself to check things out lest I flap my gums further. So I may make time for this yet.

Cami is seeing the movie with her book club Tuesday night. So I'll have to see what she thinks. If she likes it, I'll probably try to check it out later.

That's it for now. Be sure to listen to The Triple Feature podcast tonight at 9:00 PM where we will discuss Twilight and more.

See you then!

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POSTERS SOMETIMES OBSCURE THE OBVIOUS

by Tom on October 15, 2008 at 12:00 am
1 Star2 Stars3 Stars4 Stars5 Stars6 Stars7 Stars8 Stars9 Stars10 Stars
(6 votes, average: 8.83 out of 10)
Sex Drive, poster, confusion, donut

On paper, the plot for Sex Drive sounds like a mix between Superbad and Road Trip. Really not unlike any teenage sex-romp written in the last 50 years. It's all about losing your virginity, man. It's crazy the amount of emphasis our culture puts on it.

That said, if your plot was as rote as "high school senior steals his brother's car to hook up with a girl he met on the internet," you'd probably do everything in your power to differentiate yourself from your thematic predecessors. Certainly the poster for Sex Drive does the trick. Beyond the title - which is a dead give away - everything about it obscures what the movie is about. It works. It's eye-catching. Josh Zuckerman in that bizarre donut / bandito costume in front of a white background... the image sticks with you.

Incidentally, Zuckerman played the young Dr. Evil in Austin Powers: Goldmember a few years back. He got great notices for that impersonation and has had plenty of television and movie work since then. I just think it's funny how that stuff comes around.

I don't know why, but I think Zuckerman has the chops. That moment in the trailer when he's in the costume, having a conversation with Clarke Duke and he's operating the mouth...

"Why ya' gotta work the mouth when you talk to me?"

"Sorry. It's a... it's a habit."

The shame in his voice. That line delivery gets me every time.

I guess there was a sneak preview for Sex Drive on Saturday night. I didn't get to see it, but my pal Joe Dunn did. He said maybe they don't push the envelope with the humor as far as they should, but the characters are spot on - and that's pretty much the reason I wanted to see it anyway. So it's a win-win. I don't think Cami is all that interested in this one, though. She's of a very persistent political mindset right now and wants to see W. this weekend. So we'll probably see that together and then I'll sneak out of the house later to watch Sex Drive on my own. Hey! Another win-win!

That's all I've got for today. But in case you missed it, I reviewed the recent DVD release of The Foot Fist Way and posted it on the site yesterday - so be sure to check that out.

Have a great Wednesday, everyone!

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OR IT WAS ALREADY BROKEN

by Tom on July 16, 2008 at 12:00 am
1 Star2 Stars3 Stars4 Stars5 Stars6 Stars7 Stars8 Stars9 Stars10 Stars
(6 votes, average: 8.50 out of 10)
Tony Stark, Iron Man, Bruce Wayne, Batman, different, similar, confusion, seizure, brain

People who travel in geek circles are already aware of the Batman / Iron Man comparison and where you fall on that divide basically depends on a handful of factors. But, truthfully, in the early days of comics, you couldn't throw a rock without hitting a super hero with a large bank account that he used to fight crime. Green Arrow was basically a direct rip-off of Batman. He had an Arrowmobile, people. AN ARROWMOBILE.

The Arrowmobile

I took the opportunity to address the concept of the idle rich using their deep pockets to better society once before - back when Batman Begins was in theaters. Personally, I find it funny that Cami still has to take pause and verify Batman's character arc in both the previous strip and this one - just to make sure she's right.

I like that strip a lot and I wish I could have reused the joke. Because, truthfully, I had a hard time picking a direction in regards to my week's worth of comics for The Dark Knight.

I guess what I'm saying is that it's really hard to make fun of The Dark Knight. It's easily the most anticipated movie of the summer, looks excellent and features amazing, much buzzed about performances. Really my only "in" is to poke fun at the over-the-top natures of The Joker, but after Heath Ledger's passing, that would just look tasteless.

So, in turn, I decided to use The Dark Knight as the background of a larger story and Tom's established history as a hard core Iron Man fan as the catalyst that kicks things off. It's nothing epic, mind you. But these comics will be more about Tom and his geeked out brain than they will be about The Dark Knight specifically.

Trust me, it's going somewhere. That's why I put that little "To Be Continued!" in the corner. See? I'm always thinking of you!

That does it for me today. But if you're looking for more grist for the mill, watch these videos that outlines the differences AND similarities between Batman and Iron Man. It's all part of the hilarious series of "I'm a Marvel... and I'm a DC" clips that can be found on YouTube.

ENJOY!

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BOOKS NEED AN A.V. OUTPUT

by Tom on March 12, 2008 at 1:37 pm
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(9 votes, average: 8.89 out of 10)
library, books, confusion

Some of you aren't going to like this comic because it doesn't reference anything specifically movie-related. Some of you will be annoyed that you have to read Monday's comic to even understand the reason why Tom is in a library in the first place.

I say, "I don't care. This one is for me." Sometimes it's just fun to do something random and paint Tom as more stupid than usual. "Too stupid to live," I believe is the phrase.

Hey, if the writers of The Office can have Michael drive into a lake because a GPS in a rental car told him to, I can get away with having Tom insist literature come with an A.V. option.

Face facts, there aren't that many interesting movies hitting the multiplex in the next few weeks. March looks like an unusual dry spell. We talked about this curious fact during Monday night's broadcast of The Triple Feature podcast. Yet, we were still able to fill an hour full of rich, buttery movie discussion. You should download it and give it a listen if you haven't already. It was a good show. We didn't have a lot to talk about in terms of new movie releases, but we had fun talking about some of the latest DVD releases and the new Speed Racer international trailers. Fun times!

Not much else to report from Casa de Brazelton except today is my last day at my 9 to 5 job. I performed as a web designer for an insurance agency for the last 5 and a half years. I found another opportunity doing web work for a larger insurance company and I start that job on the 24th.

What does this mean to you? Maybe not as much as it does to me. Admittedly, I've been stressed the last week. But I'm taking some time off before starting the new gig and that means a site redesign I've been kicking around since last October might finally see the light of day before the end of the month. Theater Hopper will become my 9 to 5 for the next week. So in addition to dedicating myself to the redesign (which includes integration with WordPress, I might add), I'll also be working on a few DVD reviews to post here to the front page. So keep your eyes peeled for those!

In the meantime, I'm wrapping up my job duties today, celebrating with my soon-to-be-former co-workers tonight, swinging by the comic book shop to pick up a few books on the way home and getting ready to see Henry Rollins perform a spoken word show here in Des Moines tomorrow night. Did I mention the first wave of Iron Man toys that tie in to the movie hit shelves today?

The next few days are going to be sweet.

See you here Friday!

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ALIEN VS PREDATOR VS THE AUDIENCE – WE LOSE

by Tom on August 18, 2004 at 12:00 am
1 Star2 Stars3 Stars4 Stars5 Stars6 Stars7 Stars8 Stars9 Stars10 Stars
(6 votes, average: 8.83 out of 10)
Alien vs. Predator, AVP, Lance Henriksen, knife trick, gestation, skull, dating, Zach Miller, Joe and Monkey

Well, I'm back in the comic saddle, as it were. There are certain perks that go along with that. Like an extra incentive sketch for you! Click here to vote for Theater Hopper on buzzComix and see what happens to Tom when he gets a little too close to one of those creepy Alien egg-things... We've kind of slipped down the charts a little bit at buzzComix, so hopefully this new sketch will help Theater Hopper jump up a couple places on the list.

One last shout-out to Dave Hinkle who gave me an excellent guest comic on Monday to help me get back into the groove after the Chicago convention. Check out his comic, Security's Finest for me, will you? Dave's guest comic has been removed from the archive and now found a home on the Bonus Materials page.

What do you think of the extra-special cameo in today's comic?

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ANYTHING BUT LAUGHING

by Tom on August 4, 2003 at 12:00 am
1 Star2 Stars3 Stars4 Stars5 Stars6 Stars7 Stars8 Stars9 Stars10 Stars
(6 votes, average: 8.50 out of 10)
ANYTHING BUT LAUGHING

Just because it needs to be said; Thanks to everyone for helping to put Theater Hopper into the Top 10 at TWC!!!

It happened sometime over the weekend, and I am on cloud 9! You guys are too cool for words. Thank you so much for your support. I really appreciate it. Let's make sure we don't slip down the list - be sure to vote every day!

The timing of this achievement couldn't be better. Why? Because tomorrow is Theater Hopper's ONE YEAR ANNIVERSARY!

The whole thing kind of snuck up on me. I kind of wish I had something planned. But now that I've made myself aware of it, I've been re-energized!

I have a giant "to-do" list for the site that I am planning on taking care of soon. It includes an advertisement system, updates to the forum and new merchandise. I'd like to do some t-shirts, but pre-orders are going to have to happen first.

Anyway, I'm just saying that after kind of plodding along for a little while, I've got another shot of juice to keep me going.

Thanks so much to everyone who has helped me along the way. I never really thought I would make it to one year, mostly because I abandon these kinds of projects in favor of something new.

But the interation with people has made this so rewarding and I don't want this to stop. For the first time, I really feel like I'm doing something that is communicating with a lot of people. I love talking to you guys, sharing ideas and debating with you. It is by far the largest perk of doing this site.

Thanks again. You guys are the best.

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BIZZARO WORLD

by Tom on January 22, 2003 at 12:00 am
1 Star2 Stars3 Stars4 Stars5 Stars6 Stars7 Stars8 Stars9 Stars10 Stars
(12 votes, average: 8.00 out of 10)
Kangroo Jack, upside down, confusion, number one, box office

I think for a lot of you, panel two will be worth the price of admission alone. But let's keep our eye on the ball here, people! Kangaroo Jack was the number one movie in the country last weekend! WHAT HAPPENED?!

I swear, you go away to Minneapolis for ONE weekend...

Honestly, I about dropped a stone when I read how this dung heap stole the top spot in box office. $17.7 million dollars in three days. That's pretty good by anyone's rule book. Just think of all the quality films that will never see that in an entire theatrical run. The Pianist, for example. Right now, Jerry O'Connell is somewhere laughing at all of us.

I'd like to think people paid good money for this dreck because there was some sort of national amnesia that prevented consumers from remembering other celluloid turkey's from "Down Under". The faint recollection of any Paul Hogan movie should have jolted any sensible movie-goer into screaming out of the theater.

Maybe ol' George Dubya is spiking the water supply in preparation for war with Iraq. This weekend was just a test run to see how well the masses follow orders. Just now I can picture television sets across the nation broadcasting hidden subliminal messages behind an episode of Friends.

"You will see Kangaroo Jack. You will enjoy this fine piece of cinema."

At this point, all I can muster is a sick shudder.

In other news...

I decided to update the poll there in the upper right hand corner of the blog. In our previous poll, I asked "What Do You Like Most About Theater Hopper?" Of the 153 of you that replied, a whopping 73% like the strip the most. 8% like the blog, 7% like the consistency, other 7% liked the writing, 3% enjoy "other" (care to elaborate?) and about 1% like the art - which is kind of redundant if you like the strip.

The remaining options - the reviews, bonus material and about page - all raked in a fraction of a percent. Meanwhile, the lonely links section scored a big goose egg.

I wasn't really expecting anyone to say that the links section was their favorite part of the site. So maybe it would have been more scientific to inquire what you like LEAST about the site. It would also seem to make sense that I would run that poll today so I'd know where to trim the fat off of the site. But I'm not doing that, because that would be predictable.

What I was most surprised by was how much writing and consistency was valued. To say you like "the strip" sort of implies that you like the whole package. But to say you appreciate the writing or the consistency says "These are specific aspects of the strip that I value. I want more of this!" So that's something I'm going to stick to over the long haul.

In regard to the new poll, I'm beginning to explore revenue-earning options. The site is at the stage now where I feel we have a pretty strong following. I've exhausted just about every available resource in terms of making the site known to the public (trading links, crossovers, making my presence felt on message boards) and am thinking about producing some extra material for the fans.

How this will shape up, I don't know. I can say that I like the way Penny Arcade does things with their Club PA promotion. Donate what you think is fair, and we'll send you something extra. At this point, I'm just asking if you could donate, what would you like in return. Click the link beneath the poll for more information.

Thanks again for making this all worthwhile.

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YIN AND YANG

by Tom on January 13, 2003 at 12:00 am
1 Star2 Stars3 Stars4 Stars5 Stars6 Stars7 Stars8 Stars9 Stars10 Stars
(8 votes, average: 9.25 out of 10)
Pretty Woman, Julia Roberts, Adaptation, confusion

I gotta tell ya, I had one hell of a time coming up with an idea for today's strip, so there is no grand story behind it's origin. Just lots of grabbing at straws. I doubt I could spin gold from the one I chose, but I'm not going to get a nasty rash from it, either. The less said the better. It's just one of those days.

I had a pretty low-key weekend and, unfortunately, couldn't muster the energy to get out and see any of the movies I wanted to see. That's okay. Everyone needs a do-nothing weekend every now and again. It was nice not to have any obligations.

Cami, on the other hand, was able to make it out to the multiplex and took in Two Weeks Notice with a friend. Cami is usually my movie partner in crime, but I was more than happy to sit this one out. But I had second thoughts when both her and her friend came back to report that the film was both genuinely affecting, well written and acted. They seemed sincere and not at all blinded by any notions of romantic overkill most of these movies try to cram down your throat.

If anyone else has seen it, I'd be curious to hear your reactions. I'm wondering if I may have lost an opportunity to rack up some brownie points on a movie that wouldn't have been that tough to sit through.

I finally decided to replace the poll regarding Top Web Comics. It had a better turn out this time around with about 180 submitted votes. The final percentage came out with 50.8% of people saying I SHOULD NOT join the TWC and the other 49.2% said I should.

Jeeze, not only is the American voting public split on whether or not to have one party to run the government, but it apparently boils down to matters as mundane as these!

I pretty much had my mind made up on the matter before I posted the poll and felt with a large share of certainty that I would no affiliate myself with the TWC. But I ran the poll simply to see if there was enough public opinion to convince me that, hey, maybe the TWC isn't so bad after all. I guess my initial assumption was correct. Thanks to everyone who voted.

The new poll is a little on the softball side. It's basically just an opinion poll to see what aspect of the site you like the most. The results probably won't bring about much change, but if there is a surprising percentage of you who really hate the About page, who knows? It might get the heave-ho.

I just want to give a quick shout-out over to the people at the Webcomic Choice Awards for their new site, WCA: Webcomic News. Eventually, the two sites will merge and they are still in there beta phase, but I wanted to call attention to a great idea that The One has put together. If he plays his cards right, I can see this becoming a major hub for web comics that doesn't revolve around vote-whoring or ugly competition. He has an awesome PHP-Nuke set up that makes things easy to navigate and infinitely customizable. Go check it out.

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