John Carter.

I really enjoyed this movie. Sadly I think it suffered from Waterworld syndrome. This is a condition where tech savvy troll-like nerds get so caught up bashing something before they can see it, that word of mouth kills the momentum of what could be a successful film.

Of course even more to blame than the fanboy backlash is whoever was hired to market the film to North America. A terrible ad campaign. Poster, TV Spots, Movie trailers that didn’t do the film justice. Especially the outdoor campaign. Despite the poor marketing I went to see it (I was craving some classic sci fi and have had my fill of star wars pop culture).
I was pleasantly surprised. I hope this film gets the audience it deserves once it hits home video.

Now there were some amazing pieces of art made to promote the movie. We didn’t get to see any of it here in the states, but here is a peek.

(above is a gorgeous classic Sci Fi poster that never saw the light of day.)

Here is an amazing Russian Theatrical Poster for the film. (I may have to start collecting Russian movie posters)

To our awesome readers:
I am proud to say we’ve kept The Concrete World live on the net for over two years with virtually no interruption in updates. That’s 6 pages a month, 9 chapters, 144 pages of true cyberpunk. Our readership couldn’t be better right now… which pains me to bring the next bit of news.

We are going on a temporary hiatus for a period of time in 2012 while I focus on the release and promotion of two other projects. A film I wrote and directed called HEAVEN SENT is about to start making the film festival circuit and I will be traveling along with it, as much as possible.

In addition, and I am very EXCITED to announce, my novel THE FREAK TABLE will be released in a few more months. Since this is my first novel to be published and a project that is very near and dear to my heart I will be putting the majority of my time and creative focus promoting it.

Sorry to leave everyone on such a cliffhanger… But I assure you The Concrete World won’t be offline for long, and soon, just like Paule, Felix… and maybe Sera you’ll be soaking back in.

We’ll continue to update the blog for CW, and we have a couple of fun mini comics that will go live during our hiatus. Please stay tuned, and I hope you also take the time to check out The Freak Table.

Sincerely
Gavin Hignight

Written and created by Hal Hefner it’s Heavy Metal Magazine’s first venture into the cyberworld of webcomics.

Don’t let the modern method of story telling fool you, this sci fi epic, has a very literary feel to it. It reminds me of Dune by Frank Herbert.

Here is the link to the first page. I suggest you start there. This comic has been going strong and regularly so there is much content for you to enjoy.

Greetings! We’re back from winter break this week and do we have a treat for you… How about a guest pinup from Artist, Illustrator, FX Artist and all around super talented Meaghan O’Keefe from OPEN WOUND FX!

We’re excited to have Meaghan’s art go live just as the comic hits one of it’s major plot points. Everything takes a drastic turn in this weeks update and I think her art is a chilling hint at what’s in-store for Felix, Paulie and Sera.

Meaghan is currently working on illustrating the comic book Identity Thief for Fanboy Comics. You may recognize their current book Something Animal, which is available now, as being illustrated by our pal Robert Burrows.

For more on Meaghan’s art click HERE

For more on OPEN WOUND FX click HERE

We’ll see everyone Tuesday for a “soak in” on some real DREAMtech.

What a great night to go to gallery openings in Los Angeles! Robots, Cyberpunk, Ultraman and free donuts… Seriously doesn’t get much better than that!

Last night we made a stop at Corey Helford Gallery in Culver City for the opening of “It’s a Jungle Out there” featuring new work from Eric Joyner. Work that featured robots, jungle adventure and donuts. Need I say more?

Afterward we ended up over at CoproNason, CoproGallery for “Conjoined 2″ which had some very interesting art. But for me, some of the most exciting art for the night was a show “Android Awakening” by Peter Gric also at CoproGallery. Amazing art! It got my imagination soaring, reminding me of classic science fiction novel art, but also modern edgy cyberpunk imagery! Great stuff! Here’s images for those of you who didn’t make it. If you are in the LA area, there’s still time, but shows just went up.

Corey Helford Gallery
8522 Washington Blvd
Culver City CA 90232

CoproGallery – Bergamot Station
2525 Michigan Ave. T5
Santa Monica, CA 90404

I’ll probably grow tired of hearing about the Mayan Calendar and coming apocalypse pretty quickly. But in the mean time, at least it inspired a Mad Max themed New Years Party!

Here are some pics from the event in Hollywood for New Years Eve 2012. I didn’t see Lord Humungus so everything worked out just fine.

HAPPY NEW YEARS EVERYONE!!! Thanks for for following our webcomic every month!!

During the holidays I was at a popup market in Hollywood and had the good fortune of coming across the wares of jewelry maker and designer Skins & Stones. The style of magically infused jewelry as well as the personal style of the designer herself caught my eye instantly.

My favorite being the small, square, cleanly designed Pincher Bug Pendant. Every item in the collection looks good, but more importantly has deeper meaning behind each image.

Lucky for you, Skins & Stones has an online store, so you can stock up on the talismans yourself. By going HERE.

Besides the official site you can also find them HERE on Facebook. Or at Shiang New York

Looking at Skins & Stones items reminded me of the classic role-playing game Shadowrun. Shadowrun for those who might not remember did a fantastic job of combining an Urban Cyberpunk World with Old World Magic. The art, characters and fusion of cyber and magic was always appealing to me. I feel like this jewelry does the same.

11. Honorary Mention… THE LAST STARFIGHTER (I know, I know I cheated but it’s hard to cram only ten on this list) The Arcade Game in the film that I wanted to play so badly (and am still unsure if it was ever really available to play in real life) and of course The Death Blossom maneuver in the climax of the film. As a kid, I freaked out, when the hero Alex Rogan used the untested special maneuver. It doesn’t get any more 80s sci fi than that.

10. The Twilight Zone episodes “Steel” and “Midnight Sun” Steel tells the story of a robot boxer (sound familiar…) and his washed up boxer of a trainer, who, to win the big fight, will put himself in harms way. This is a fantastic episode with great acting and a thought provoking story. And Midnight Sun… one of the freakiest episodes I’ve seen. Watching it made me feel very uneasy (and entertained of course!)

9. Macross Frontier: I ignored almost everything that has been made to follow up the original and classic Macross Series… That is until Macross Frontier was made. Easily as good as the original series. It’s what Next Generation is to Star Trek. A solid storyline, with great characters and tech! The makers of the series seemed to know everything that worked with the original and placed it in this modern series. A series that compliments the original in every way, without taking away from it. For those like myself who don’t have a lot of time, it’s a great anime to get into, as it comes in at just under 30 episodes.

8. The Screwfly Solution by Raccoona Sheldon: One of the best sci fi stories I’ve ever read. A great short story, you can read it for free HERE.

7. Star Wars Micro Collection: There are many things in Star Wars to love and hate. I won’t spend too much time on it, as the current fan and pop culture acceptance of Star Wars has the property moving at light speed without my help. But I will point out one Star Wars related item worth mentioning. The Star Wars Micro Collection Toyline by Kenner. Nothing has come out since that catches the magic of the series in the way these small toys and playsets did.

6. Galactica jumping into the upper atmosphere of New Caprica and launching vipers in the episode Exodus Part 2. Sometimes a painful series to be a fan of, the modern Battlestar Galactica definitely had its ups and downs and fans needed emotional stamina just to tune in every week. This series constantly kept me on the edge of my seat. If you haven’t watched it beginning to end, you should. The mini-series that started it all is simply put, amazing television. But later in the series, there is an action sequence and military maneuver by the heroes that will blow your mind. It’s now referred to by fans as the atmospheric jump… or the Adama Maneuver.

5. The Episode “Doomsday” during the David Tennant era of Doctor Who. What can be better than earth being taken over by Daleks and Cybermen at the same time? How about the Daleks and Cybermen turning on each other in an all out battle? With The Doctor in the middle, of course, trying to save Earth and everyone he knows. There is a moment, right toward the end, as everything seems most dire, and you are about to lose one of the main characters when something epic happens. I remember cheering aloud during my first viewing of it. I don’t want to give it away, because if you haven’t seen it, you’ll enjoy it as well. I will say, for Doomsday to have the impact it did on me, you will need to watch the Entire Christopher Eccleston run and all the Tenant episodes leading up to it. You won’t be sorry.

4. Transformers The Movie (1986): When Optimus Prime sees what he has to do and does it. It’s hard to believe a cartoon show, essentially written to sell toys, could have such an impact on so many. But Transformers the movie did just that. Almost everyone in my generation (at least those fanboys that enjoy sci fi, fantasy, etc…) knew exactly where he or she was when Optimus Prime died. But it wasn’t just that he died, or how incredibly bold a choice it was for the makers of the film to make… It was how his character died. In a blaze of self sacrificing-ass kicking glory. You watch him look over the ridge, roll up his sleeves and get to work and cartoon, toy or not, you are inspired.

3. Classic Star Trek: It doesn’t matter how many times you watch each episode. They are timeless and amazing. Arguably still, the best science fiction television show made. Go watch an episode now.

2. Highlander the series: I’m going to just say this. I like the Highlander TV Series much more than the films. There, I said it. Let the fanboy powderkeg of nay-saying ignite. Now don’t get me wrong, I love the movie. Well, the original film. Everything that came after lost site of everything the TV series managed to pick up and do so well. If you sit down and watch Highlander the series from beginning to end, you are taken throughout time on an epic journey, battles of good vs evil, trials of friendships, and tales of how fragile life is whether you are mortal or immortal. The original film laid the groundwork, but this series with it’s bold choices and long form serialized content (before that was fashionable) went above and beyond. Adrian Paul and the writers and producers of the series created a timeless hero and complex character.

1. Patrick Troughton as Doctor Who: I don’t know what I like more… the era these episodes were produced in, or the sensibilities of the man himself. I absolutely love Patrick Troughton as Doctor Who. It’s an absolute shame we don’t get to watch more episodes from his run, the BBC now famously known for willingly recording over many of his episodes during the early days of Doctor Who and video/TV production. He was the “cosmic” or “space hobo” Doctor Who and arguably one of the most charming incarnations of the character. Two “complete” series available on DVD I suggest you watch are THE INVASION and TOMB OF THE CYBERMEN. There are moments in THE INVASION where Troughton and Frazer Hines display Laurel & Hardy-like masterful comic timing… all while defeating The Cybermen.

Okay, everyone, thanks for checking out this list! If there is something missing, drop by our facebook page and let me know. I’d love to hear your thoughts of great moments or items from science fiction. I’m already planning an additional list for this time next year because there are clearly WAY MORE than 10 great moments in science fiction for me to talk about. Happy New Year and remember… Watch the Skies!!!

Like many, we here at The Concrete World, celebrate his funky moves and street justice, so we’ve drawn him into the comic. Come back tomorrow and see him in the November Update!

Dance on techno-soldiers!

You can now watch my first episode from Season 2 Iron Man: Armored Adventures by
CLICKING HERE