Starbolts 2013 Preview

Hail!

With the new year upon us, I thought I'd take another break from the current storyline and show you all what to expect from the 'Bolts in the coming year. This is just a preview of what's to come. Obviously, I decided to show the Starbolts vs the Legion. Oh, what's this? No sign of Demonstorm, Medea and Dragonfly in that pic? Well, DS and Medea wouldn't join the fray right away. They are too busy being above it all.

As for Dragonfly, why isn't he with his friends? Hmm. That's a good question. I'll reveal why when the story wraps up in the coming year. As you can see, I've included just about everyone associated with the team. Well, all I can fit in in such a small area. There'll be more Starbolts goodness coming. This isn't ALL that is happening!

Of course, I'll have more videos and comics next year as usual. Who knows what else the future may bring. 2012 for me has had its ups and downs. We can only hope that the coming year can bring happiness and less fear. As for the Starbolts? Well, I think they're going to be doing what they do for quite some time!

Enjoy the comic and I will see you all next year!

Starbolts #177.5: The Christmas Concert

 

Happy holidays, everyone!

The holidays are here and today I bring you a special holiday edition of the Starbolts! This year, I decided to go a different route by having Aquita sing the holiday classic "Jingle Bell Rock" and have some action to go along with it. When I was working on it, I realized it was like the singing scene in the decidedly non Christmassy movie, "The Fifth Element". I made sure to have Bluestreak make a note of that in the comic. Because...why not? Hahaha.

It took me a while to find a snow texture I could use. I think it came out okay. You might be wondering why there's no snow in the ground in the other scenes. Well, that's because Dastara City, where the action takes place, is located near DC. DC doesn't get that much snow.

This was a fun comic to make. However, now I have Jingle Bell rock in my head. That's probably my own fault there. Hahaha. Everyone have a safe and happy holiday! I'll be back next time with something good! What will it be? Tune in and find out!

Starbolts #177: The Aquan Invasion of Earth

There's a rule I have in my stories. In every reality,  Robkas must be denied. Doesn't matter how, why, when or whatever. Robkas must never get Aquita. EVER! Only because he's a jerk in every reality. In this one, he turns into a hulking brute reminiscent of Hulk villain Abomination. It took me a while to get the sprites for the transformation sequence right.  It works. But, I could tweak them.

Let's talk about that for a bit. Remember, this reality and the regular reality have the same people in them. M'anta, Aquita and Shrall never became avatars of the Gods, though. So, dark gods created three new avatars for war, death and the underworld. The question you have to ask yourself is...will these three show up in the prime reality? We shall see. You'll have to keep guessing.

Curious. Robkas already has powers in the regular reality. Who is going to be "War" if I decide to bring that trio of avatars to the regular universe?  Also, what powers will Death and Underworld have? Time will tell friends as I spend the next few comics focusing on Jenna and co.

I wonder if Dark Mateo will get anywhere with Dark Aquita. We shall see. Funny how he changed his tune from a few issues ago, huh? I guess this Mateo doesn't think with his head.

See ya next time!

Starbolts #176: Dragonfly's Turn

Hail!

This week, I've introduced a couple new baddies for the Legion team. Their names are: Syntax and Jack Lantern. I think Jack Lantern'll be a bit of a fourth wall breaker like Marcus is. In fact, he may even be the perfect opponent for him. We'll see. I also introduced alternate M'anta or...is that Shrall? Wait and see. Looks like the Starbolts in the alternate reality are going to have their hands full in the coming issues.

Also, it shouldn't surprise anyone that Robkas's first question when he snaps out of it is "Is Aquita alive?" The guy's a horny toad. Also, I don't think he's the one to ask about honorable Aquans.

Speaking of Aquita, my friend Freyamau drew this picture of Aquita:
 http://cferra1.deviantart.com/#/d5mvqwv

I colored it in and I think it came out VERY well. Freya is a good artist and you should check out her work here:  http://waitingforcoffee.deviantart.com/


In other news, I'll be scripting the Ultimate Spider-Man #1 review this week. I'm not a fan of the Ultimate universe. So, it will be interesting to see how this plays out. In the mean time, enjoy this week's comic! 

Starbolts #175: The Artifacts of the Gods

Hail!

We're now at Starbolts #175 and the countdown to Starbolts #200 will begin! What will happen to our heroes between now and then? You can bet there'll be a lot of action as we've seen in this comic that the tides have been turned. The battlefield has been leveled! At first, I was a bit hesitant to use the macguffins to help save the day. Then I realized, how many times have items been used as deus ex machinas in comics? The Ultimate Nullifier stopped Galactus. Several items can do something super special awesome in anime. It's really up to the writer to show how they are used.

Here we have the amulet I introduced back in the early 100s of this comic. By itself the sword, armor and amulet are harmless. Well...aside from the sword being a pointy thing Shrall can use. The other two won't be used much. I was thinking that once the three combine, they change M'anta's suit into some kind of armor of the Gods. But, meh, I'll have to think on that one.

The Aquan trio also saw their parents this week. I wanted a scene where they talked to the "force ghosts" of their parents. I tried to add little things after like Aquita going to Mateo's side when they come back. It was an emotional scene. Speaking of Aquita, later I will establish that she went back to Aquarius to discipline her mind. She also picked up a mind trick as you can see here. It's nothing fancy. If the amulet didn't go off, Mateo would have said "Nothing beats the real thing."

In other news, it's December and I've entered ColortheGrayScale's Secret Santa project. Check out the details here:  http://www.colorthegrayscale.com/secretsantaproject  

Last year, I got a neat mask from a fan. We'll see what happens this year as the holiday season continues. Until next time, everyone!

Comic Showcase #12: Thunderbolts #1

Starbolts #174: Love and Loss

When I hear Ethan Knight speak in my head, I'm picturing him sounding like Film Brain or Welshy. They both have voices that would fit well with the mystical nature of this character. He is an ancient mage who is blessed and cursed with immortality. He has seen much in his life and originally I was going to have him talk about how he knew the 'Bolts from when they were kids. But, nah. No need. It's going to become apparent that the 'Bolts and Ethan go way back.

As for Crimson Justice? Jeez, that guy can ruin a mood, can't he? Well, he is a Setleth and they can be VERY annoying. It sucks that there'll have to be a willing sacrifice to save Jenna. The question is, true believer, who will it be? Time will tell! We're on the road to Starbolts #200 starting now and who knows what surprises await us!

 For now, I am planning on doing the Thunderbolts review soon. So, keep a look out for that. I've also picked out my Marvel Now book to cover. Oh, Marvel Now. So much to say. So little time.

See ya next time!

Starbolts #173: Lightning Strikes

 Hail! This week's comic was originally going to be a little darker with Manta going crazy and electrocuting all of the things. I decided to tone it down some because he knows it isn't his Jenna that died. The real Jenna's alive and is stuck in some reality. Now Mateo is back and we'll see how they can get everyone back on a more mass scale. Who knows how that's going to happen! Well, I do. But, it's fun to tease readers. =)


In other news, work will begin soon on the Thunderbolts #1 review. After that, I decided to change some things around. I don't really have a fixed schedule like some of my friends do. But, it seems to me that Marvel Now is becoming a new thing and I'll have to cover one of the comics that comes out during Marvel Now. I was going to review Captain America: The Winter Soldier arc for the comic from this decade. I think I'll be covering a Marvel Now book and something else for this century. Enjoy the comic and I'll see ya next time!

Starbolts #172: Lovers Quarrel

 Hail! A few days without power can't keep away the weekly comic production. Let me tell you, it was quite annoying to not be able to work on it. Still, I hope more people in the Northeast are getting their electricity back. New York and the other mid-atlantic states got hammered by the storm and I really hope things return to normal for them soon. Now, what do we have this week? WELL...this week we have Manta facing the alternate Jenna. Unfortunately, Demonstorm got in the way and now has Manta by the throat. Things are not looking good for our hero. I wonder what this will mean for the real Jenna? Will she be able to return once the others come back? Is she doomed to live out the rest of her days in that dark reality? Whatever the case is, next week, Manta is not going to be happy. I have plans. Let's just say that it isn't wise to kill someone, let alone an alternate version of your wife in front of him. Can you say...."ZAAP!"? In Comic Showcase news, I'm glad I got positive feedback on the Spider-Man wedding video. It was fun to make. I initially intended to do a Ferris Bueller style ending to the video. But, eh...I ran out of time. It happens. Next vid will be full of '90s goodness. Yes. An ACTUAL Good '90s comic. Shocking, right? See ya next time!

Comic Showcase #11: The Wedding of Spider-Man

Starbolts #171: Reality Bites

This week's comic had a very interesting beginning. At first, I was going to simply intersperse regular Jenna and alternate Jenna action. Then, I decided that would be too confusing for people. So, I decided to just stick to the action in the Dark Starbolts' home reality. That's where all of Earth's heroes are. Some have been captured. Some haven't.


I also thought it'd be neat to pay homage to one of the most classic X-Men covers of all time. Panel 2 is a direct reference to Uncanny X-Men #141's cover. The story is cool too and initially I was going to call it "Days of Future...Whatever" or something. However, the 'Bolts aren't in a dystopian future. They're just in a reality where everyone thinks the metahumans are ALL bad. The costumes haven't changed for Ethereal and Dragonfire because there wasn't any real need to change 'em. Besides, they both look cool.


Next time I am going to post a video where I talk about the wedding of Peter Parker and Mary Jane Watson. Should be good. So, stick around for that.


P.S. Felt so good to be writing normal Marcus again instead of having to type in one unbroken sentence.

Starbolts #170: Saint Anne Landing

 Huh. Evil smells like wet hot dogs. I'll have to remember that. Personally, I thought evil smelled like goat cheese. Oh, well. Hail, everyone! After a little break, I am back with a new comic and this week M'anta calls out Jenna! This is going to be all kinds of awesome! Initially, I was going to do a closeup on M'anta in the last panel. However, I couldn't figure out a way to make it look good. I have a template. It'd be better suited for a smaller image.

In other news, I've been reading the Spider-Man alien costume saga again and the wedding comics to prepare myself for the video. I'm finding Spidey to be really different from what we're used to seeing him nowadays. Sure, it has a lot to do with how comics are written by different writers and such. It's just really telling how the older Spidey handles problems compared to nowadays.

Back to the comic, I'm planning a huge battle between Jenna and M'anta, obviously. It's going to be big and I promise I won't spoil anything. I will say that things may not go as M'anta planned. Mwahahaha. Yeah, right. I'm not that cruel. Or...am I?

Another thing I wanted to mention is my friend Justin's project. You know Justin as JewWario of TGWTG.com/BT and other places. His Famikamen Rider project has already reached the 10K mark and I'm really excited for the project. He is now looking for manga artists for his Famikamen Rider series. If you can draw in the manga style, drop him a line at  JewWario@live.com

The world needs heroes and the Famikamen Rider isn't just the one we need. It's the one we deserve. Or...something like that. Cheers!

Starbolts #169: Heroes Return

Welcome to the 169th Starbolts comic! This week, I step a LITTLE out of my comfort zone. I'm not used to writing mystical characters and this group, Nightstrike, are mystic based. In this comic, we have: Dragonblaze, Lazarus, Hybrid, The Ethereal and Ethan Knight. There are two missing members I haven't made sprites for. They are: Crucifix and Scarlet Eve.

Nightstrike actually comes to us from a friend of mine who passed away a few years ago. He and I would frequent an X-Men message board called Mutant Underground. He told me about his characters and gave me details on how each person was. He even gave me a fact file ALL about Nightstrike. Before he died, he graciously gave me his characters to use. So, here they are. They showed up once in a while in my comics beforehand. This is really the first time they actually did stuff.

So, to that I say...RIP Michael Rehor aka Neo1977. You are missed and thanks again for Nightstrike.

Comic Showcase #10: Giant Size X-Men #1

Starbolts #168: Tanis Phone Home

 Hey, everyone!

This comic comes out the day of the biggest announcement in the history of Channel Awesome. The flagship show "Nostalgia Critic" has ended and Doug Walker is planning a new show and a new future for the company he helped to create back in 2008. You might be asking what this has to do with me. What does this have to do with the Starbolts comic? A lot, actually.

If it weren't for the Nostalgia Critic show, I wouldn't have found the site and a place to post these silly comics week after week for the past four plus years. I know there are other venues, but, the site has a great community from the blogs to the contributors. I've said that a lot to many people and it doesn't make it any less true

People involved with the company have even helped me with the comic. I remember when Michaud helped me with the comic margins the day the site changed the layout. I remember getting confidence from my friends who told me to keep going and never give up. I don't just do these comics because of the site. I do it because I love it. I love comics and I love doing the odd video every once in a while. It's fun and now it's a good time to reflect on how much things have changed. For me at least.

It's important to know that ThatGuyWithTheGlasses.com is not ending by any means. It's just evolving into something more.  I'll miss The Nostalgia Critic show and look back at it with fond memories. I remember much of what Doug and Rob covered and it made me laugh. It's always best to remember the good times something has brought you in times like this. Is it hard? Yeah. But, we move forward and embrace new things.

New things are on the horizon and I understand why the Nostalgia Critic show has ended. When I found out about it, I wasn't sad. I wasn't angry. I just understood because sometimes you need to spread your wings and seek out new challenges. That's what I did when I started the comic all those years ago. Channel Awesome is growing and we're just along for the ride. Are people angry? Probably. It's important, I think, to remember that the site isn't going anywhere any time soon.

The Nostalgia Critic will always be around in my memories as the type of show that highlighted the highs and lows of the age in which I grew up in. ('80s and early '90s). The show means a lot to other people and I think the Walkers understand that. There have been other sites whose creators dropped off the face of the Earth and never shared what the creators have been up to. Channel Awesome had the courtesy to explain what was going on. You have to respect them in that regard because it would have been too easy to simply say "Forget you, fans. We're leaving!"

It inspired people to seek out their dreams and the people behind the scenes created a community around the show and others. It will continue to do so. Nostalgia Critic, the site and several people involved inspired me to continue my comic. I love doing it and I just have to say thanks. Thank you, Doug, Holly, Mike, Rob and everyone else. Through the show I've met a lot of good friends and now isn't the time to be sad. Now is the time to reflect. It's a brave new world out there and like the characters in my comic, we need to meet the future head on.

Edit on 9/11/18: The comments in this blog do not reflect my current feelings on Channel Awesome.

Starbolts #167: Dark Angel, Dark Angel

Wow. What can I say about this week's comic? I can tell you that Angela/Kevin's scene was a bit more romantic the last time: http://thatguywiththeglasses.com/blogs/latest/entry/starbolts-152-angel-of-mine

Question. Do you think Dark Angela actually loves Dark Kevin? Or is she manipulating him? What did she do to Crystal and Mateo? We'll find out next week. It's going to take a bit for M'anta and co to get to Earth. So, I figured I'd do a couple comics showing the Earth side of things before the big brawl.

I had a bit of a decision to make regarding the fire in panel 2. I could have made a fire effect with Paint.net, the program I use. The problem is that the fire looked a little globby. So, I opted for sprites instead. It's just as well. You can see the sprites being burned better. Another option I had was shattering the image like glass. Haven't really figured that out, yet. Oh and the group shot shows all the Starbolts and their allies. Notice Hammer isn't there. He isn't a reserve. He'd rather be a lone wolf.

In other news, I'm prepping work on the Giant Size X-Men #1 review. That should be a lot of fun. =D Until next time!

Starbolts #166: Interstellar Fanboy

Aquarius has Shrall, Aquita, Manta, Tayalla, Centurion and Latro. Dovianni has Pal'idin.  Leonid IV has Garazo. Introducing the newest hero of the Alliance: Crimson Justice! Is he annoying? Yeah. But, at least he can fight. That's what matters. I like to think of this little guy as a mix between Deadpool and Radical Edward from Cowboy Bebop. Friend of mine introduced me to that show and I saw how crazy the guy was.

Still, CJ is his own character. Try to imagine a Setleth as a super hero. It's a pretty silly concept. I also wanted to have a brother/sister talk with M'anta and Aquita. Sadly, it was interrupted by Crimson Justice. Oh, well. Next week we're going to see what the bad guys have been up to. Hijinks will definitely ensue!

See you next time!

Comic Showcase #9: Fantastic Four #1

Starbolts #165: The Queen's Gambit

 The Queen's Gambit is a move in chess and I thought it'd be apt for this comic's title. Aquarius has a new queen and her name is Tayalla. She appeared in a few comics off and on. Her story is that she was a member of the royal guard and she fell in love with Prince Shrall some time after the death of his father.

Speaking of which, I decided to show a glimpse into the Occupation itself. Hmm. I wonder whose costume Criam J'arrsti's suit is like. Hmmmm...the mind boggles. I didn't change Danar's look because I figured he ALWAYS had a thing for flowing robes. Brown ones no less. Do you honestly think he'd have some imagination? Hahaha.

Well, at least he's appeased and we can get the show on the road. I don't think M'anta and Aquita will ever call Tayalla "Mom". That'd be gross, yo.

I'll have more about Tayalla and Shrall later. Tune in next time when I'll be reviewing Fantastic Four #1!

Starbolts #164: Trial and Error

The Phoenix Wright games are some of my favorite games of all time. I tried to include a bit of the style in the trial up there. Granted, there's an Aquan twist. Since this a royal court and more like an inquiry, no lawyers are present. Still, Danar managed to pull some strings and got the court to go ahead with trying the trio.

My only complaint is that there's no table for M'anta to scream "OBJECTION!" Anyway, the comic this week also shows some funny bits with Garazo. We haven't seen him in a while and I thought it'd be best to put in his and Tayalla's reactions since having it be the trial alone would be kind of boring wouldn't it?

That's what I did. Try to add some reactions because I knew it was going to be a long haul.

In other news, I'll be scripting the Fantastic Four review soon. So, expect to see that in a few weeks. Why Fantastic Four? Well, it's hard to tell the history Marvel Comics without it.

=D

Starbolts #163: Return to Aquarius

If I said it before, I'll say it again. Tess Danar is a jerk. How did he get to be Prime Minister of Aquarius? Well, we'll see soon enough. What is his beef with the Aquan trio? Well, that goes back a ways. I've had it written that Danar is a J Jonah Jameson type since he's always hated M'anta, Shrall and Aquita. M'anta, especially. He's hated how two of the trio dated and married outside their species. He's not going to change. You'd think he'd mellow out some since his daughter is now a superhero, too. Heh. Not. At. All.

Danar's had it in for the trio even when they were kids. He'd always snoop around the palace seeing what the three were up to. That led to Shrall playing jokes on him. When they got their powers, he then found a new reason to hate them. Especially once they became Starbolts.

Well, that's a bit into the mind of Tess Danar for you. I've only scratched the surface of this guy's behavior. I love writing him as he's so over the top! Will the guards actually take him seriously? Eep. I hope not. Then again, you never know WHO is under those helmets. Heh. Heh.

See you all next time!

Comic Showcase #8: Marvel Comics #1

Starbolts #162: Race to the Finish!

 Hail!

Today, I have some news! Other than the newest comic, I have updated my Deviantart account. On it, you'll find all my old comics and eventually I hope to have ALL of them on there. That could take some doing. I have the first fifty or so comics up. Here's the deviantart page: http://cferra1.deviantart.com.

 Back to the comic, as you can see Manta has finally escaped Earth. I really like how the shuttlecraft came out so I will most likely keep the design. What I did was I looked at a model I made out of legos years ago and turned it into this sprited shuttlecraft. Perhaps I will share the picture some day. Not sure.

A little note on Crystal. In past stories, she was written as a bit promiscuous and had a bit of an attitude problem. That's what alternate Crystal refers to here. It's funny, isn't it? Dark Crystal ends up having more sense than regular Crystal ever did. Now that I cleaned up her sprite, I'll probably be using her more. Oh and Princess? Lady doesn't stand a chance against Jenna. In ANY reality! 

Next time, I'll be doing a video. What will it be about? Well, a comic of course! In fact, it will be a very OLD comic. That's all I'll say as I venture back into the Marvel Universe. OOPS! There's hint number two! I better stop before I give it all away! See you all next time!

Starbolts #161: Manta Busts Loose

You can't tell me Robkas didn't deserve that punch! If the segment was any longer and he'd have broken into song. Trust me, I'm the writer. I'd have had him break into a musical number about love, loss and other such things. Would it have won a Grammy? Probably not. Would it have been sickeningly sweet? You bet it would! The guy's crazy for Aquita even in an alternate reality.

Either way, the plot's moving along at an even keel. More action is coming now that Manta busted out of that tank. There's a legit reason as to why the telepathic thing worked on Crystal and not on Jenna. I'll go into that soon. Speaking of that, I actually had a discussion about the morality of Manta using that tactic. Should Manta have used his telepathy to make everyone remember? Don't know. Who can say? He can't use it on everyone at once. So, he's gonna go get help.

In the mean time, I've learned that Fantastic Four and Daredevil are getting new cinematic reboots. What does that mean? Well, it means that the movies aren't at Marvel Studios for one. We shall see how it goes. I may vlog about it. Not sure.

That about does it for this week! See ya!

Starbolts #160: Darkness Before Dawn

My, my. What a mess! Let's see. We have Manta in a tank he can't get out of since the red thing is blocking his only way out. We have him telepathically messing with Jenna. I initially wasn't too sure about that, by the way. When I first wrote it, it sounded creepy. So, I changed it. One can only guess what she saw. I think it's kind of obvious.

I was going to add more Legion vs Dark Starbolts in the last panel. But, nah. Would have taken away from the battle's scope. The others ARE there. Just not on screen. So, Dark Angela's kind of creepy. We'll be seeing more of that and the others soon.

Enjoy the comic!

Starbolts #159: The Dark Starbolts

Bad day is right. M'anta is having a really rough day. First: He finds himself on a team where everyone was a baddie the last time he checked. Then, he finds out Aquarius is gone. (Or is it?) THEN he gets jumped by Dark Mateo. AND FINALLY he finds out his wife is with Dark Mateo. That's enough to stress anyone out.

Dark Mateo's design is similar to that of Archangel when he first appeared. He had metal wings and a dark personality. As you can imagine, Dark Jenna is going to be a bit of a pyromaniac. Hence the codename "Firestarter". Good movie from the '80s, by the way. Probably one of the few really good Stephen King adaptations.

So, what's going to happen next? Why is M'anta unaffected by all of this? We'll see next comic. I made some more tweaks to Manta's sprites. I like it a lot. In fact, I also like Dark Mateo's wings. I wonder how they'd look on regular Mateo. Hmmm...

(Yes, I've already used those wings on regular Mateo.) More Dark Starbolts goodness next time!

The Legion #158: Brave New World

I really hope that the "The Legion" title doesn't throw people off. I'm just referencing that time in the '90s when the X-Men books changed titles when the Age of Apocalypse happened. Good series, by the way. Check it out. Marvel renamed books like Uncanny X-Men to Amazing X-Men. Good thing this doesn't happen today, right? *Sees that Thunderbolts is being renamed Dark Avengers* Well, crap.

Thunderbolts does change their title every few years or so, doesn't it? Anyway, back to the topic at hand. Today's comic sees the debut of a new sprite for Manta. It's a little altered. I think I can tweak it. Also, in a shadow is Mateo's new sprite. Well, new wings anyway. I'm always looking to improve the sprites I make. I have a guide that helps and sometimes I feel like changing things a bit.

So, yea, things are heating up this week. M'anta's in a brave new world. Are we going to see these Dark Starbolts? Is this a parody of AOA? Is what Robkas saying true? Find out next time!

Comic Showcase #7: Bat-Hombre

Starbolts #157: No More Heroes

All I can say about this week's comic is...DAMN. I know the arc is supposed to be light hearted and it is. When the opportunity presents itself. A joke a minute can ruin a comic. Today, I've revealed just why Demonstorm does what he does. He feels he can save Earth from itself by making it part of his empire. He feels he has saved Demonsk when in reality it's like Apokilips on a good day. I wanted to avoid his apparent lust for Angela this week because that'll come into play soon.

I actually attempted to try and reference several Marvel crossovers in this comic. House of M and Age of Apocalypse. But, the problem is I don't know how to create a crystal effect for them. Speaking of Crystal, she was the one who made the call to the 'Bolts in the warroom. She and Kaori are actually inside Nor-Mad, btw.

So, stuff is happening like Delclina, the Aquan God of the Sky swooping in to save M'anta at the last second. What could he want? What's happening? Find out in the next comic!

Starbolts #156: Villain Roll Call

Your life sucks, Tanis? Well, you made your bed and now you have to lay in it. Seriously, this group of baddies IS a bit insane. I was going to have the Aquita droid be naked and have censor bars over the naughty bits. But, I think that's too creepy. Even for Robkas. Nah, having her clothed is somehow much better, right? Hmm...I don't know if I'd go that far. Robkas is still going after a robot Aquita. That's a reference to an anime, btw. Friend of mine introduced me to an animé called Chobits and there are robot women built for sex in that animé. Ahh, Japan. Keeping it classy! It's not the craziest animé I've ever seen. That award goes to FLCL. Robot teddy bears with machine guns, guys. ROBOT TEDDY BEARS WITH MACHINE GUNS!

I upgraded Braun's robot a bit. Now it's fully sentient. I may change the chest piece because I am not a fan of it. It seems kind of lackluster when compared to the rest of the robot's features. And yes, that is a Doctor Who reference.

Speaking of the Doctor, I am trying to find Dr. Who/Star Trek: The Next Generation so I can read it. I heard mixed things about it and I want to judge for myself. Anyway, now we know a little more about the villains. The question is...what is Demonstorm planning? Tune in next time, true believers!

Starbolts #155: Going Rogue

 Hail!

There's nothing like a week's vacation to clear up the cobwebs, right? I spent a week in Virginia just visiting and relaxing. It was a lot of fun. It's really nice down there!

Anyway, I have a few things to talk about.

1. Will someone call the waaaaaambulance on Tanis? Is that even spelled right? Is there a right way to spell "waaaambulance"? I don't know. Maybe someone out there in Internetland knows. All I know is that DAMN...someone's got a scheme cooking and it isn't Tanis.

2. I have some Comic Showcase news. I'll still be working on the series as usual. However, I think I am going to need help. What I want to do is cover a history of Marvel and to do that I need scans of the first Marvel. Marvel Comics #1. I need to see if I can find that. Only then will the history seem complete. I'll try to find it on my own. I am pretty sure it's out there somewhere. Any help, though, is appreciated.

For now, I have a donation to review. That one is...going to hurt. See ya laters!

Starbolts #154: Angry Dragonfly

Hey! Guess what today is? Well, aside from it being the day after the Avengers movie premiered and el cinco de Mayo, it's FREE COMIC DAY! So, do yourselves a favor and head on out to the nearest comic shop and pick up some comics. Why? Well, there are some good picks this time around. I got my picks and I'll probably end up reviewing one of them. It depends, ya know?

As for the Avengers movie, I'll be doing a vlog on that. So, watch out for that one to come sooner or later. As for THIS comic? Damn...Tanis is a whiner isn't he? I kind of wanted to replace his dialog with "WAAAAAH!" Oh, well. And hey...what's that in the last two panels? A Sleeper Agent switch? This can't be good. I won't spoil what happens. All I can say is. Hooboy. Things are gonna get hot around here.

Starbolts #153: Bring On the Bad Guys

This week's comic has a bunch of firsts. This is the first time I've shown Demonstorm in full since waay back when the comic started. For this occasion, I completely redesigned his sprite. In a bit, I will also redo his wife, Medea's sprite. This isn't the whole group I am showing, by the way. More baddies will be joining this group I have called "The Legion". They are going to make some trouble for our heroes. That is a fact!

Seriously. We have:

1. Granite.
2. Cobra
3. Robkas
4. Princess
5. Spectra
6. Valentine
7. Tornado
8. Dreadwing
9. Punchline
10. Braun

And of course Demonstorm. This group has a lot of power. Now...what could they be planning?

The only villain I am missing is Pal'idin's old mentor. I haven't decided if I will use him or not. There will be other villains, though. Just wait. Just...wait. HAHAHAHAHAHA!

Starbolts #152: Angel of Mine

 There's a bit of a story behind this week's comic. A few friends and I were discussing how to best handle love scenes in comics. I wanted to create something special for Kevin and Angela since they're the third of my couples in the story.  Kevin for all his incredible genius is very introverted and shy. He's the kind of guy who wakes up and sees his gorgeous girlfriend and just wonders why out of all the guys in the world, she picked him. Angela, being an empath was always the caring sort. She is caring, but, you do not want to cross her.

When I initially wrote the scene, I had several ideas in mind for how to get the two together. I figured the best way would be that Angela picked up his thoughts while the base was empty. He would be typing in a journal or something and she'd come in. They'd talk a bit and Kevin, finally feeling like he can do something about his feelings for her decides to go for broke. Variables be damned.

I've studied love scenes in comics and I wasn't going to show anything graphic when I finished. I figured I'd cut away to shots of the city and then finally with the two in bed. I think that's one way to handle it and it works out well.

So, that is this week's comic. The next few comics are going to be a bit on the funny side. (I hope) Then we'll get into a new storyline. Someone once asked if there was going to be any consequences with Angela and Kevin having sex. I can't think of any at the moment. It's best to leave it as is. We shall see if there are any. We shall see!

Starbolts #151: A Man Out of Time

Here we have the true epilogue to the last storyline. Jack for the lack of a better word is feeling quite upset. That is until Anya came around. I think she'll be good for him. Mark and I always thought she'd steal him away to do some crazy missions or something like that. Now she is a reserve Starbolt along with Shrall and Garazo. This means that when there's trouble the 'bolts can't handle by themselves, they'll call in the reserves.

I've been hinting at Anya/Jack for some time now. We'll see how this relationship goes, yes?

In other news, I have the first two issues of Avengers vs X-Men. I'll definitely review the entire series once I get the whole storyline. The story ends in September. So, we have quite some time before we actually get to that crossover. In the mean time, I'll review other things. I can't wait to go over Avengers VS X-Men. It's actually good. Then again, it's only two issues in at the time of this writing. Who knows what turns it'll take? Who knows what twists will take place? All I can say so far is...Damn, Cyke. You're a jerk!

See you next time!

Starbolts #150: Holding Out For A Hero (Part 2)

For some reason when I see the shiruken with the axe I hear "The Touch" by Stan Bush in my head. It doesn't help that I actually have the song playing as I type this. An alternate title for the comic could have been "More than Meets the Eye" However, I think I used that title before when I had Norad transform a lot. So, I decided to go with another 1980s thing. Holding out for a hero is a great song by Bonnie Tyler. You may have heard it in the Shrek movies and even in the Short Circuit films. It's very apt for this scenario. Anyway, this storyline is over. What awaits Earth's newest heroes in the future? We'll see, true believers. We shall see. Sufficed to say that the next few comics will be a great deal more lighthearted. After all, things did get real for a while there, didn't it? Question. Will the 'Bolts keep the robot? Well, it's Agents of S.T.A.R. property anyway. So, why not? Jack just stole it back from the bad guys. The question of how it got into D.I.S.C.O.R.D.'s hands will be answered next week. In the mean time, thanks again for reading the comic and enjoying the storylines. I love writing and producing the comic. I thank you all for reading. Take care! P.S. Thanks go out to the author of the Megatron/Optimus Prime sprites. I found them online and altered them. Sadly, there was no name attached. So, thanks!

Comic Showcase #6: Top Five Marvel Crossovers

Starbolts #150: Holding Out For A Hero (Part 1)

One Hundred and fifty Starbolts comics. That’s a lot of comics. I’m not going to argue with anyone and say that isn’t daunting. You all know as well as I do that comics are a business where there are multiple #1 issues, reboots, crossovers and events happening every year it seems. Every comic is someone’s first as the great Stan Lee once said. Thankfully, mine are archived. I know I’ve probably reached 150 a long time ago. However, this is in canon. All the Point 5s and such do not count.
Writing the comic has always been fun and posting it online for everyone to read has been great, too. I started the story in prose form and while that did well, I really wanted to just make a comic out of my story. I had sprites as I cannot draw very well. I used them and just went from there. I posted the first comic in late 2008 in the TGWTG blogs and since then I am pleased that it’s been very well received there.

Along the way, many people helped me out with the comic. My collaborator, Mark and I have bounced ideas back and forth on various storylines. I’ve talked to many people about the comic and layout. To spotlight any one person would be too little and to spotlight everyone would be name dropping. Instead, I will just say thank you to everyone who has helped me along this strange, strange journey.

You have all given me the guidance, the confidence and inspiration I needed to keep going. I know this all sounds incredibly sappy. Hey, I’m making a speech here on my 150th issue. I’m ALLOWED to be sappy! I digress. My friends have all helped me to make everything possible. By extension, they’ve also guided me through my animation projects and of course Comic Showcase. Their advice is always welcome even to this day.
If someone were to ask me in 2007 that I’d be part of a community that would accept my story and help in the way they do now, I’d say flat out that they were dreaming. Back then, I used to be trolled because people didn’t like certain aspects of the story. I still continued to write. It was just weird how close minded some people could be when it comes to superheroes. Oh well. Thankfully, this isn’t true now.

Comics are a passion of mine. I don’t do this for fame, glory or anything. I do this because it’s fun and because I have a story to tell. My stories were inspired by the comics I grew up with and in some cases cartoons from the 1980s and even Star Trek. Everything I’ve ever been exposed to as a kid has really generated into this story where young heroes take up the heroic mantles of their parents and stake out their own destiny.

Will there be more issues of Starbolts? Of course! There’s always stories to tell. There’s always adventures to be had. I’d like to once again thank the fans and of course everyone who has helped me. ThatGuyWithTheGlasses’s blog system has been the home of the Starbolts since 2008 and they’re not going anywhere. They will always be around to safeguard her shores. Plus, I'll be posting here.

Enjoy this week’s comic and I will see YOU in the funny pages! Stay tuned for part 2!

MMO Grinder: City of Heroes

A while back, my friend Jon "ChaosD1" Burkhardt reviewed City of Heroes on his show MMO Grinder. I figured now was the time to put the vid up here. It premiered on MMO Grinder.net and has a hero in the video you may recognize from the comic.



That's right! It's Manta from the Starbolts! I admit I am not a fan of how the mask/helmet looks. But, I was able to get the powers right. Enjoy the show! You can watch MMO Grinder on Blistered Thumbs, MMO Grinder.net and on Youtube.

Enjoy the show and check out more MMO reviews by ChaosD1!

Starbolts #149: A Matter of Life and Death

Manta used thunder punch! It was super effective! Heh. Okay, that was kind of lame. Nevertheless, the situation's heating up on D.I.S.C.O.R.D. isle just in time for the 150th comic. Speaking of that. I haven't decided if I want to make it a video like Starbolts #100 was or just make it an extra long comic. I figured I could flip a coin or let you all vote in the comments below. Both will still be a lot of work and will be WELL worth it.

I'm also looking to change Jenna and Manta's sprites for the occasion as well. They're about due for a revamp, I think. This will also mean I'll have to change the Manta outro in my videos. That shouldn't be TOO hard. I like doing the outros and I've actually just finished one for Quetzal.

A lot's going on in this comic this week. The life and death struggle continue. What's going to happen with Stan Whitefox? Where is Sickle? Where did Angela and Kevin disappear to? So many questions....They WILL be answered.

See you next time!

Starbolts #148: Old vs New: Starbolts

If there was ever a need for a "DUN DUN DUNNNNNN!" sound effect, it'd be here in the last panel. I assure you, I am not ripping off Ghost Rider with that look Cobra has. There are some mystical voodoo going on here and next time, I think Jack's going to want answers. The question is...will Cobra give it to him? Probably not. But, hey, one clone is gone.. A few are left.

I would have added more fighting with the grunts, but, that wouldn't be necessary. I really wanted to focus on Jack's fight, a quiip or two from the others and show just what Angela and Kevin are up to. You'll be seeing more of them next time as they're going to be fighting some thugs. Should be good.

We're also two comics away from Starbolts #150! What do I have planned? Well...How about a double sized animated finale to this saga? We'll see. Time will tell. Yes...time will tell.

Starbolts #147: The Dead Shall Rise

Oh, man. what a comic this week? Don't worry! Next week I am going to show Soldier Six and the Starbolts fighting. I will take your bets right now. Who is going to win? What will be the outcome? YOU make the call! I also hint a bit at who the swirling tornado is. He has a history with one of the Starbolts on the mission. One of the female ones. So, it can only be Jenna, Angela and Aquita. Hmm...if it isn't obvious by this point, I don't know what to tell you. The hints are there. The question is...is the tornado all it seems to be? Stay tuned!

Speaking of big reveals, how about those skeletons of Soldier Six? Those took a while to make, actually. They were kind of fun to do. Sucks that Cobra is missing a head and Mask is missing...umm....his entire body? Anyway, stay tuned next week for when the 'Bolts are going to be fighting Soldier Six. What an epic confrontation. I'll need an awesome title for next week's comic. Hmmm....Decisions....

EXCELSIOR!

Hey all! This weekend, I got the surprise of a lifetime and I owe it all to my friends, Richard and Laura. They are admins over at the Channel Awesome wiki and they went to MegaCon in South Florida over the weekend. Beforehand, they had said to me that they'd try to get Stan Lee's autograph. I said "Cool." In the end, they couldn't. I was a little bummed, but, I understood. It was Stan Lee for God's sake! I was fine with it...until they did something incredibly awesome! They actually went up to Stan Lee and had him record a special message for me.

Here's what he said to me:

"Hey, Chris. This is Stan Lee and I gotta tell you...you have a gal here who really cares about you. Because she dared to come over while we were having dinner at the table and she said drop everything because you gotta talk to Chris. So, that's what I'm doing. You're a lucky guy, Chris and I hope you're doing well with whatever you're doing and now I am going to stop talking and go back with my friends. EXCELSIOR!"

A while after, they had called me and let me know about the message. To say that I was happy would be an understatement. Last night, I saw the message and I was VERY happy. You might be wondering why I was happy. Well, there's a story behind that.

Growing up, I never really idolized celebrities. Oh, sure, I'd love Hulk Hogan and Mr. T or someone. But, my real hero was Stan Lee. He co-created some of my favorite Marvel characters and has really inspired me to get into writing. In fact, some of the Starbolts are inspired by Stan Lee's writing philosophy. Heroes with heart. Heroes who could be just about anyone regardless of what kind of person they are.

Stan Lee is an inspiration and always will be because his characters ,like Spider-Man, always grew on me more than Superman or Batman. They took on a life of their own. That isn't to say Supes and Batman are not larger than life. They are. I just have a personal connection with some of Stan's creations.

His writing style influenced me and got me into writing in the first place. I'll even let you in on a secret. Stan Whitefox, the director of S.T.A.R. is actually named after Stan Lee. Corny? Yes. Awesome as hell? HELL YA! The man is an inspiration and has touched the hearts of millions worldwide. Including myself.

Richard and Laura getting the clip means a lot to me because they know more than anyone that I love Stan Lee's work. He's a legend among comic fans and I really have to thank my friends for the clip. Thanks again, guys!

So, to that, I say, Face Front, true believers. A lot of awesome artistry is on the way. EXCELSIOR!

Starbolts #146: The Island of Horrors

For the record, I didn't recolor Scarlett like that because I forgot the pink fleshy tone. Something is happening to the clones. I won't say WHAT it is. It should become clear if anyone's read anything about clones and cellular degeneration. At least it isn't scurvy. Anyway, this comic took a while to make because I needed to figure out what exactly I wanted to make the landscape. I went for something like Desolace in World of Warcraft combined with what happened to Mount Saint Helens when it erupted. Sufficed to say, it's not that green.

It is recovering, though. Anyway, we're in for a big battle. Stay tuned. This is going to get dark and fast.

Heroes and Villains

Hello there!

Today, I spent a great deal of time updating the heroes and villains pages. They really needed some cleaning up. Please check them out when you can as I've added some information about what's been going on in the story as well as their backgrounds. The heroes page was the one that got the most updates. I just added minor stuff for them as they needed to be added. That and I put in pictures for the heroes.

I may add in more characters over time. For right now, I think the page looks good with its overhaul. I have to thank some people like Belle who helped me with the grammar for the page. Thanks a lot!

See you all Saturday with a new comic!

Comic Showcase #5: Superman #1

Starbolts #145: Steve, Agent of D.I.S.C.O.R.D.

And that is how you interrogate someone. Someone has to be the good cop and someone invariably has to be the bad cop. Why? Because that's how you make thugs talk. It's probably for the best that I didn't make it like the Dark Knight interrogation scene. Only because Steve here isn't like the Joker. Poor Steve. He's going to be going to jail and the last woman he saw is a Russian superspy who hit on him and then crashed all of his hopes and dreams in one full swoop. See, you CAN accomplish great things without superpowers. You just need years of government training. I've been debating making Anya a full time Starbolt. We shall see. Right now, she's like the Black Widow in early Avengers comics. She was their friend. But, didn't join the team until the '70s.

The references here were fun to do. I had to toss in a Leeroy Jenkins reference AND a Gizmoduck reference before I left Moneybagger's. It needed to be done. I look at that suit and I don't think I'll be making any more sprites for that. It's just too silly looking and ineffectual in combat. One flat tire and you're out.

It wasn't easy coming up with the decision to have D.I.S.C.O.R.D. be on the island that exploded. It makes sense that they'd be there. It was the site of their greatest defeat. It will be the site of their great rebirth. Hence the new name "Phoenix Island".

What we find there the next time is going to be gruesome. I'm warning you right now. Bones everywhere. Desolate landscape. Will Jack find the bodies of his friends? Now you can probably tell why there WAS no clone of Jack. It was because he was saved. So, yeah, this is going to be hard on Jack.

Before I go, I wanted to thank writerzblok for helping me out with some stuff. Thanks again! Man, the next comic isn't gonna be pretty.

Starbolts #144: Sneak Attack!

Hail!

Well, this week has been a long week. I'm not going to go into details as to why. But, I hope that the next few weeks are easier. It should be. Anyway, this week's comic has a bit of a spotlight on Angela and what she can do. There's a reason why I've been spotlighting her. Even in the midst of Jack's story! There's a reason for it and it should become clear in the next arc.

In video news, I hope to have a new vid out sometime soon. I've been preoccupied with some stuff like I said. Things should clear up soon and I can work on a vid. Will it be a review? Will it be an animation? Will it just be a dancing monkey? Hmm...probably not the third. Those are hard to come by. Enjoy the comic!

Starbolts #143: Angel of Light

Long comic this week, right? Sorry about that. Haha. I wanted to accomplish a few things this week.

1. Show how crazy Moneybagger is. I think that was accomplished ten thousand fold.

2. Have a character arc with Angela. Why her? Well, this week I made a new outro with her and completely redid her sprites as you can see. She's got a new look and I needed to explain it. What better way to do it than by saying "Yeah, your powers evolved more Ang. You got more control over it."

3. I also needed a bridge between this and next week's comic. Various things will be hitting the fan that day. ALL OF THE THINGS!

I also wanted to show just how close Angela and Kevin are. It'll become important after this arc and especially in the next one when...Sorry. I just got a note from my lawyer. He said to stop talking. Er...typing.

Anyway, enjoy this week's comic!

Starbolts #142: Trial and Error

Here's a moral question for you all. Is D.I.S.C.O.R.D. right in its claim that Whitefox and co are in the wrong for sending the Soldier Six kids to their deaths on some forgotten island? AND that he's been doing that again with the Starbolt program? OR is Whitefox right in that they've been doing all they can to help the children reach their potential? I see this as two sides to the same issue. D.I.S.C.O.R.D. isn't evil for evil's sake. True, they want to destroy order. However, they feel that they have to shape the world to suit their needs. That is what they're about. THAT is why they are still around. People will follow what they feel is right and D.I.S.C.O.R.D. is one of those organizations that would sugarcoat their deeds in the name of their own righteousness. That is what makes them a threat.

And that is Philosophy 101! This is an age old question. It's up to you to decide who is right. These villains aren't evil for the hell of it. They want a new world order!

Anyway, today I introduce two new sprites for Andrea and Stan. I really needed to change them if they were going to be in the focus this week. They needed a change. Speaking of Andrea, did you see her speech? Damn. You do not want to piss her off. To put it mildly, Mrs. Whitefox went to the Mrs. Weasley school of motherhood. She will be everyone's mom. However, if you hurt any of her kids, she will end you.

She's that tough and I hope I conveyed that well. Andrea is the second Lady Liberty and there's a reason for that. It goes far beyond her powers. It comes from the strength of her character and willingness to lead. She's strong and has always been the type of leader to look out for her charges. Yes, Jack is her flesh and blood son. However, every Starbolt they have trained has become more than just a soldier in a fight against evil. They helped to raise them along with their parents.

That about does it for this week. Next time, we'll be checking in on the Whitefoxes other kids. I hope they're up to proving themselves in the face of Soldier Six. The question is...which side will Jack choose?

Starbolts #141: The Six Zillion Dollar Android

Gentlemen, we can make him better than he was. Stronger. More powerful than a locomotive. Able to leap tall buildings in a single bound. Ahh, the 1970s to 1980s. Your live action science fiction shows were so quirky, funny and quotable. And most importantly they were marketable. VERY marketable. Especially if you're in that coveted 18-30 demographic.

So, what do we have here? We have Norad's nanobots arguing over how to rebuild him. I wish I could have thought up a line for the purple nanobot. I couldn't really think of anything. I did want to show her. If you recall, Norad was a lovely shade of purple a while ago. That was the same arc that gave us Nor-Mad and Blu-Rad. As you can see Blu-Rad is still depressed as ever. After all, he does have a brain the size of a planet.

Next. we have Norad going fps. I tell you...THOSE panels were a trick to do. I had to make his eye cover a sort of 3D plain. It was interesting. I may do it again. I'm not too sure. Initially, Norad was going to be a head on a hand. I didn't like how that looked when I drew the sprite. I just made him be a little crab like. He won't be in that form long. I could have made a super duper gigantic mech. But, that's neither here nor there. I have Nor-Mad for that. I think that's enough for anyone to be honest.

Facebook and other stuff

Hail!

In my haste to put up the 2012 trailer, I neglected to put up the link to the Facebook page I set up for Starbolt Productions. You can check it out here: http://www.facebook.com/pages/Starbolt-Productions/109799699073466

There, you can keep up to date on everything as well as posts here. I was thinking of making an official Twitter for this site. I don't think I'll need that to be honest. Instead, just follow me at the usual spot: http://www.twitter.com/cferra1227

You may also notice a new link at the right there. That's BW Media spotlight and it's run by my good friend, ShadowWing Tronix. He's a good guy and has a great site. Check it out here: http://bwmedia.wordpress.com/

I think that's enough linking for now. In the mean time, I hope 2012 will be the best year yet. I've got loads of stuff planned and I hope everyone enjoys it!

Take care and happy new year!

OH! And I forgot to mention that Manta from the Starbolts is in the newest MMO Grinder by ChaosD1. You can check out the action here: http://www.blisteredthumbs.net/2011/12/mmo-grinder-coh/

I had a fun time playing Champions Online. However, it's City of Heroes that really grabbed my attention. It's a fun game and I was able to make Manta look somewhat decent in COH. Check out the review!