New Year, New Heroics

A "captive" audience enjoys my exhibition video for
Heroes & Villains at Norman Rockwell Museum.
Photo ©Jeremy Clowe. All rights reserved.

Hi again. We're already at the middle of January... can you believe it? I've been keeping busy as usual. This month actually marks my twelfth year of working in the Communications/Marketing department at Norman Rockwell Museum... I know, that's a long time. 

So I have been continuing to give quite a few direct interviews lately. Last week saw me as a live guest on Kingston, New York's WKNY Radio, talking about the Museum's latest offerings; and this weekend YNN News in the Capital Region is airing a segment about the Heroes & Villains exhibition, which includes an interview with yours truly. You can find the link here, but I think you need a Time Warner account to pull up the video.

Speaking of video, without further ado... here is the short documentary I created for Norman Rockwell Museum's exhibition of Heroes & Villains: The Comic Book Art of Alex Ross:



I'm happy with the way this one came out, and the way that I succeeded in working on it alongside other duties for the Museum. Being a one-man band, these productions usually take quite a bit of time to do right, and I don't always have that luxury while managing the press department. In the past I have nearly "killed" myself, working literally non-stop from work and outside work to produce such videos... but this time I followed the methods that seemed to work in the past, and simply made revisions along the way. Hence, you are finally seeing a version I consider "complete."

Another great kick for me the other day was to finally see the movie trailer I created for the exhibition. It is currently playing before all main features at both the Beacon and Triplex Cinemas in the Berkshires, and what a thrill it was to see it unfold on the big screen (I even heard a few gasps of excitement from the audience!). I think Ross' artwork really lends itself to the movies... very cinematic.



On the topic of comic books, I finally caught up with some recent copies I had lying around. I have to say, I am not a fan with what they are doing with Spider-Man (artwork or story). Last month they published the last few issues of the long-running Amazing Spider-Man title. Leading up to the final issue of #700 (spoiler alert) was the revelation that Spidey's old foe, Doctor Octopus, had actually switched bodies with the web-slinger. Doc Ock was actually on his deathbed... which meant that it was actually Peter Parker who was on life support (I know, only in comics). The whole story line was very intriguing, but ultimately disappointing as the last issue revealed that Parker had actually died. The new "superior" Spider-Man is a version of Peter Parker who actually has the mind of Otto Octavius... with all of Parker's memories, but essentially a new character... still with me? Meh. It's like New Coke... why tamper with perfection?

Hey you, get off of my wall!... Keeping Spidey real
at Norman Rockwell Museum.
Photo ©Jeremy Clowe. All rights reserved.

Of course no one stays "dead" forever in comic books, so I'm sure if enough people disagree with the direction, the real Peter Parker will be back. However, I think they have harmed the overall story line for one of the seminal superhero characters... as if the Clone Saga, One More Day, and Brand New Day messes weren't bad enough! 

I remember talking with Alex Ross back in October about the challenges of sustaining comic book continuity. Played out in real-time (from the point of his first appearance), Spidey would be in his mid-60s by now... so unless you're going to write him as a much older character, you've got a problem. What is the solution... keep revising the history? Rebooting the series for new generations, or keeping the story line very much set in a particular time period? I might favor the latter. There is actually a comic book workshop coming up at a school in the area, which I'm thinking about signing up for... giving the old visual storytelling chops a workout. Whether you are working on ongoing stories in film or comics, I think that a clean narrative is essential, and there are probably smarter ways to work around such issues in a work of fiction (i.e. Terry Moore's books, which my wife loves).

Anyway, the Heroes & Villains exhibition continues at the Museum through February 24, and I am still finding new details in Ross' artwork that surprise me. As for the amazing Spider-Man, I am scheduled to don my Spidey suit once again for the Museum to accompany some upcoming programming... but believe me, I'll be portraying the classic Stan Lee/Steve Ditko version of "Peter Parker," not some cheap imposter... because ain't nothing like the "real thing!"

Related Links:

"Comics in the Classroom," YNN News, January 12, 2013

"Events in landmark 'Spider-Man' issue have fans in a frenzy," CNN, December 31, 2012