From comic creator Dario Carrasco Jr....

Hey folks,

Just want to pass along to you of my interview at Pulse regarding my upcoming Mask of the Gargoyle feature in Digital Webbing #24 this July. It sheds some lights to the creation of the Gargoyle character. Have a great read! Thanks!

Read the full interview at Comicon.com's Pulse.

For more on Mr. Carrasco, visit his site, PANDAY STUDIO.

So, whaddya think of the new look?

The old one was kinda stale, and I was experimenting with all the stuff on blogger. I'm really not well-versed when it comes to html/internet/web thingamajigs, so I was a bit nervous about which settings to change in this blog.

It's nice to finally have a "comments" feature, so I know if anyone's really reading this blog (I wish!) or if I'm just talking to myself over the internet. So for all three of you (har har) who come here often, leave a comment! I'd sure appreciate it!

RANDOM THOUGHTS...

I just realized na puwede naman pala akong mag-Pilipino sa pagsulat dito. I've been unconsciously restricting the language I use here to English only, but ngayon ko lang naisip na puwedeng "Taglish" or pure Pinoy ang gamitin ko. Kung alam ko lang mag-Ilocano e di ginawa ko na din...

The past few weeks, wala akong masyadong energy. It seems that I'm almost always drained at the end of the day, which is strange since the past week or so it wasn't too busy at the office (this week na lang)...

The "energy-drain" also seems to have lessened my drive to work out/ exercise. I've been working out diligently at home for close to three years now, but nowadays I'd be lucky to eke in two sessions in a week. I really have to start exercising again regularly... AYOKO NANG TUMABA ULI!!!!! Going to the gym is out of the question. I don't like gyms too much, plus medyo masakit sa bulsa. Kailangan magtipid dahil...

After living almost my entire life in Parañaque, we're finally moving. Yes! Regular running water, here I come! Anyway, we found this nice townhouse/ apartment compound in San Juan. The rent is higher (expectedly) but we save money on gas and toll fees (yup, ang mahal ng toll sa South Expressway). I don't mind the physical aspect of moving, it's the other things like changing the address sa records mo sa office, banks, SSS, etc. etc.; disconnecting our current PLDT and applying for a new phone line again; atbp. Also, I'm worried about how Jade will feel about the new house. Malamang manibago siya. It's a whole new period of adjustment for her and Kuki and I want the transition to be as smooth as possible...

Gah. Gotta get a little shut-eye. Woke up early this morning because the car was "color-coded" (such a stupid thing to call that particular traffic scheme), and got here in the office too early (6 freakin' AM!). Official work hours don't start 'til 9AM, so I've got at least an hour to s...l...e....e....p............ zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz.....

MASKARADO #4

MASKARADO #3

Anyone who knows me knows that I'm a HUGE wrestling fan. Oh yeah. Since I was a kid, I really was into pro wrestling. Like my "hilig" for comics, it just never seemed to die down. Now I'm 33 years old, and I still watch it faithfully, even going so far as to read every single tidbit of info that I can on the internet, specifically on ProWrestling.com.

So to all you Pinoy wrestling fans out there, isn't it cool to have BATISTA as WWE Heavyweight Champ? Why, you ask? Because the big guy is actually HALF-Filipino. Some of you may have known this, but it took me a while to believe it. After much research, I came across his profile in Wikipedia...

"David Bautista best known as Batista (born January 18, 1966 in Washington, DC) is a professional wrestler currently working for World Wrestling Entertainment's RAW brand, and is the RAW brand's current World Heavyweight Champion.

Of Filipino and Greek heritage, he is married with three daughters. His wife Angie is a survivor of ovarian cancer."

So I hope he's champ for a long while... if JBL could hold on to the WWE Championship for almost a year, I don't see why Batista can't do the same with his championship.

Talagang kahit saang sulok ng mundo, may matatagpuan kang Pinoy.

Here's the second strip for the week...

Now that I've learned how to post pics on this blog, I've decided to post the entire original run of MASKARADO here. I'm taking my cue from all the webcomics proliferating on the internet. I hope to post around 1-2 strips a week, so be sure to check back here from time to time.

This strip ran from February 20 to August 30, 1992. I'm scanning these from the original printed newspaper, so the images are a bit dirty because of the not-so-good printing back in those days. I've tried to clean up the strips as best i can, and I've completely re-lettered them so they can be read more clearly.



For more webcomic goodness, Check out the Monday Comics Webring.

After resisting the urge for so long, I finally gave in and got myself a Photobucket account, after reading in Jonas' Blog how simple it is to post an image on one's blog. Well, here goes my first test...



Did it come out all right? It's the uncolored cover to MASKARADO's next issue (number 6, to be exact). Some people have expressed a great liking to Maskarado's painted covers, but time constraints have prevented me from continuing to do so. Maybe in the future I'll get around to painting again.

There were two nuns...

One of them was known as Sister Mathematical (SM), and the other one was known as Sister Logical (SL). It is getting dark and they are still far away from the convent.

SM: Have you noticed that a man has been following us for the past thirty-eight and a half minutes? I wonder what he wants.
SL: It's logical. He wants to rape us.
SM: Oh, no! At this rate he will reach us in 15 minutes at the most! What can we do?
SL: The only logical thing to do of course is to walk faster.
SM: It's not working.
SL: Of course it's not working. The man did the only logical thing. He started to walk faster, too.
SM: So, what shall we do? At this rate he will reach us in one minute.
SL: The only logical thing we can do is split. You go that way and I'll go this way. He cannot follow us both.

So the man decided to follow Sister Logical.

Sister Mathematical arrives at the convent and is worried about what has happened to Sister Logical. Then Sister Logical arrives.

SM: Sister Logical! Thank God you are here! Tell me what happened!
SL: The only logical thing happened. The man couldn't follow us both, so he followed me.
SM: Yes, yes! But what happened then?
SL: The only logical thing happened. I started to run as fast as I could and he started to run as fast as he could.
SM: And?
SL: The only logical thing happened. He reached me.
SM: Oh, dear! What did you do?
SL: The only logical thing to do. I lifted my dress up.
SM: Oh, Sister! What did the man do?
SL: The only logical thing to do. He pulled down his pants.
SM: Oh, no! What happened then?
SL: Isn't it logical, Sister? A nun with her dress up can run faster than man with his pants down.

And for those of you who thought it would be dirty, say two Hail Marys!

I just watched Star Wars: Revenge of the Sith last night with Kuki, and it was a satisfying way to end the Star Wars series.

SOME SPOILERS AHEAD...


THE BAD: Dialogue really isn't George Lucas' strong point, especially during the dramatic scenes between Anakin and Padme. I can't help but wince sometimes when they deliver their lines. But to be fair, there are some good lines. Although there are also inconsistencies in what some characters are saying. Like one time when Anakin says his loyalty is to the "Republic," then a few minutes later in the same scene he refers to it as the "Empire."

THE GOOD: Good fight scenes, and the much-hyped lightsaber duel between Anakin and Obi-Wan intercut with Yoda's duel with Palpatine is great to watch.

RANDOM THOUGHTS:

I'm disappointed in General Grievous, who's supposed to be a badass (as seen in Cartoon Network's CLONE WARS) but it seems Obi-Wan didn't have much difficulty in defeating him.

Man, these Jedi love to chop off hands!

While watching the movie, i was quite unconvinced with the way Anakin turned to the Dark Side. it seemed too quick. But then I realized that he had been under Palpatine's wing for quite some time, so the seeds were already planted some time ago.

Padme's death was a letdown, seeing as how she gave up on living because she thought Anakin was lost to her forever. Hey, what about your kids, huh!? Didn't you consider fighting to live for them??!?!

Obi-Wan is more of a badass fighter than he lets on.

Same goes for Yoda.

I guess Chewbacca must be pretty old, huh? He's an adult in this episode, so that must mean he's about middle-aged by the time A NEW HOPE comes around.

The part where Darth Vader weeps for Padme is kinda cliché, but it works in establishing what a tragedy his life has become, and makes you feel sympathetic for him by the time of his redemption in RETURN OF THE JEDI.

So what did they do to all the clones? Were the Stormtroopers still clones of Jango Fett? Most of them (almost all, excluding the ones killed in battle) were pretty much still alive when the movie ended. Is this why Boba Fett never takes off his helmet?

Threepio and Artoo being mind-wiped explains why they don't remember Obi-Wan and everything that has gone before, but why doesn't Darth Vader remember them, seein as how Anakin actually BUILT Threepio?

Artoo is a joy to watch, as always. He is one kick-ass droid.

I guess that's all my thoughts on Episode III for now. Watch this movie. You'll be leaving the theater wanting to watch the original trilogy all over again.