Zero Angel Richardson's Blog, page 3
July 18, 2016
Long time, no see
Hi everyone,
Life's been hectic the last few months and especially the last month, but that's no excuse.
I was getting big numbers with superhero news and my anime reviews and that occupied my imagination for a while, but I'm back on track with my mathematics books and I've made significant progress in the Cross Adventures books. (On the personal front, I've made significant progress with my house as well).
Read more »
Life's been hectic the last few months and especially the last month, but that's no excuse.
I was getting big numbers with superhero news and my anime reviews and that occupied my imagination for a while, but I'm back on track with my mathematics books and I've made significant progress in the Cross Adventures books. (On the personal front, I've made significant progress with my house as well).
Read more »
June 27, 2016
Batman v. Superman Ultimate R-rated Edition Review
I didn't watch BvS in theaters. Ultimately, I thought Man of Steel was an OK movie, but it didn't leave me craving more. It felt bloated and too much like fanfic (in a bad way), but ultimately I gave it a positive review and I was at least interested to see where it would go.
The studio shot themselves in a foot a bit by announcing there would an R-rated cut of the movie released because people like me that weren't rushing out to the theaters would just go, "OK, I'll see it when the director's cut comes out". Especially with the negative reviews focusing specifically on the choppy editing of the film.
I'll assume you've seen the film, so spoiler alert.
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The studio shot themselves in a foot a bit by announcing there would an R-rated cut of the movie released because people like me that weren't rushing out to the theaters would just go, "OK, I'll see it when the director's cut comes out". Especially with the negative reviews focusing specifically on the choppy editing of the film.
I'll assume you've seen the film, so spoiler alert.
Read more »
June 2, 2016
War of the Ages — Settings and Timelines
Hi everyone,
I promised I'd share information about the different sort of settings you'll be seeing in the WotA Universe stories coming up. Since the main series is currently abandoned, you'll only be seeing short stories and novellas in that setting (some featuring characters that you know and love of course!).
Let's jump right in with the WotA Main Series setting:
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I promised I'd share information about the different sort of settings you'll be seeing in the WotA Universe stories coming up. Since the main series is currently abandoned, you'll only be seeing short stories and novellas in that setting (some featuring characters that you know and love of course!).
Let's jump right in with the WotA Main Series setting:
Read more »
Publishing Update
Hi everyone,
Just wanted to give a quick update and talk a little more about my current projects. It's amazing how busy I've been the last few weeks, but I don't want anyone in a lurch wondering what's going on.
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Just wanted to give a quick update and talk a little more about my current projects. It's amazing how busy I've been the last few weeks, but I don't want anyone in a lurch wondering what's going on.
Read more »
May 27, 2016
Thoughts on Hydra Cap and the Death of Spider-Man or "Why Comics are Dumb"
I don't feel like I can do any sort of justice to the Hydra Cap story. Most of what needs to be said has been said. I'll mention that I whole-heartedly support the fans that feel betrayed by this and they are right to be upset. Here's a great article that I think says what needs to be said from a perspective I hadn't even begun to consider when I was initially outraged: On Steve Rogers 1: Antisemitism and Publicity Stunts
So what will I be talking about? I want to address comic books in general and the characters in them.
I don't think it's a stretch to say that the characters are bigger than the stories they are appearing in. It's why the image above can have weight to you even entirely out of context and even though these are Earth-1610 versions of the characters you know and love, not the original Earth-616. Don't get me wrong, each character can have amazing stories, but they become something that exists independently of their stories. If you identify someone as Captain America or Superman, the entire world now has an opinion on what that means. That's not a bad thing.
It means that even out of context, characters and stories can have true emotional impact (although negatively, this is what lets companies do the click-bait crap that prompted this article).
Read more »
So what will I be talking about? I want to address comic books in general and the characters in them.
I don't think it's a stretch to say that the characters are bigger than the stories they are appearing in. It's why the image above can have weight to you even entirely out of context and even though these are Earth-1610 versions of the characters you know and love, not the original Earth-616. Don't get me wrong, each character can have amazing stories, but they become something that exists independently of their stories. If you identify someone as Captain America or Superman, the entire world now has an opinion on what that means. That's not a bad thing.
It means that even out of context, characters and stories can have true emotional impact (although negatively, this is what lets companies do the click-bait crap that prompted this article).
Read more »
May 18, 2016
Why Fan Boys are Wrong to Think Spider-Man Belongs in High School
Yikes, could I get more click-baity? I'd like to say I'm not here to start an argument, but that's exactly what I'm here for. Throughout the glory of the last year (finding out Marvel would take the creative reins on Spidey, getting a kid with some natural athleticism with acting chops cast as Peter Parker, and finally seeing Spider-Man face off against other superheroes and deal with Robert Downey Jr drafting him while flirting with his aunt), the one thing I've heard over and over again is that Peter Parker is "back in high school where he belongs".
Wait. What?
I can't be the only one that did a double take, right? "Peter Parker is a kid in the new movies like he should have been all along."
"Spider-Man is irreverent and mouths off in costume and he's a kid, exactly like he is in the comics."
You're full of crap.
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Wait. What?
I can't be the only one that did a double take, right? "Peter Parker is a kid in the new movies like he should have been all along."
"Spider-Man is irreverent and mouths off in costume and he's a kid, exactly like he is in the comics."
You're full of crap.
Read more »
May 2, 2016
May Publications
Hi everyone!
This month I will be releasing two sections of the new "Zero Does Math" series on the nonfiction side of things (focusing on Precalculus for the first 6 or 7 of these). I'm pretty much done with both sections and the only delays are on licensing of a graphing utility which I am hopeful to finish up soon (if things stall on that front, I'll have to release without graphs, although I'm interested if people would rather have hand-drawn graphs in a professional book than no graphs at all).
On the fiction side of things, I'm torn between a couple of different stories I've been developing. So if you have an opinion, now is the time to make your voice heard!
Here's a rundown of the stories I'm considering for this month:
Read more »
This month I will be releasing two sections of the new "Zero Does Math" series on the nonfiction side of things (focusing on Precalculus for the first 6 or 7 of these). I'm pretty much done with both sections and the only delays are on licensing of a graphing utility which I am hopeful to finish up soon (if things stall on that front, I'll have to release without graphs, although I'm interested if people would rather have hand-drawn graphs in a professional book than no graphs at all).
On the fiction side of things, I'm torn between a couple of different stories I've been developing. So if you have an opinion, now is the time to make your voice heard!
Here's a rundown of the stories I'm considering for this month:
Read more »
April 30, 2016
Thoughts on Recent Spider-Man News
Hi! There's been a lot of recent Spider-Man news that I haven't really weighed in on and you may have or may not have heard about. This post I'll be talking about the following topics:
In fact, it's possible I'm a little out-of-date here. I'm trying to avoid any spoilers for the next week so I haven't been on Facebook, Twitter, Spider-Man blogs etc to do research. Anyway, let's get into it ^_^
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Spider-Man Movie TitleAs far as I know, none of this constitutes a spoiler for Civil War (both Robert Downey Jr and Chris Evan are signed on for Avengers Infinity War in 2018 and 2019, so whatever happens to them in this next movie, it won't prevent them from appearing in Infinity War which takes place a year after Spider-Man's movie), but I will save the new footage of Spider-Man for the end. As much as I loved seeing it, I wish I could have seen it for the first time in theaters (a gif ruined it for me as I was browsing the web, so I went and found).
Marvel in Creative Control of Spider-Man Movie
No Venom in the MCU
Zendaya as "Michelle"
Robert Downey Jr and Chris Evan's Role in Spider-Man Movie
Vulture as the Villain in Spider-Man Movie
New footage of Spider-Man in Civil War
In fact, it's possible I'm a little out-of-date here. I'm trying to avoid any spoilers for the next week so I haven't been on Facebook, Twitter, Spider-Man blogs etc to do research. Anyway, let's get into it ^_^
Read more »
April 28, 2016
Spider-Man: The Animated Series (1994) Season 1 Review
Spider-Man: The Animated Series aired from 1994 to 1998 (5 seasons). It was my personal introduction to Spider-Man and where I fell in love with the character. I expected to be bemused revisiting a cartoon show made in the 90s, but I was surprised at how well done it is after all. Here are my thoughts on Season 1.
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April 22, 2016
"Ultimate" Spider-Man Animated Series — The Worst Spider-Man
Warning: I don't usually feel the need to warn people about the use of strong language, but since I am reviewing a "kid's" show for once, I guess I'll warn you. I'm going to swear . . . a lot.
I never gave "Ultimate Spider-Man" a fair shot.
I don't really pay too much attention to cartoon shows that debut nowadays on American television. I'd seen one or two episodes of the MTV Spider-Man and a handful of episodes of the Spectacular Spider-Man.
I loved seeing Spider-Man in any form, but the MTV Spider-Man didn't wow me and the Spectacular Spider-Man was just too difficult to watch (didn't have DVR or even cable at the time to be honest).
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I never gave "Ultimate Spider-Man" a fair shot.
I don't really pay too much attention to cartoon shows that debut nowadays on American television. I'd seen one or two episodes of the MTV Spider-Man and a handful of episodes of the Spectacular Spider-Man.
I loved seeing Spider-Man in any form, but the MTV Spider-Man didn't wow me and the Spectacular Spider-Man was just too difficult to watch (didn't have DVR or even cable at the time to be honest).
Read more »
