May 2nd - Beard of the Day: Alan Moore

by Killion on May 2, 2009 12:06 PM CDT

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This might be the nerdiest post on this site ever.. but eff it...

If you still like comic even just a little, you know who Alan Moore is. Even if you don't, you probably know his work. The Watchmen, V for Vendetta, The League of Extrordinary Gentlemen and From Hell have all been made into films... Though only Watchmen really kicked ass as a movie too.. (Minus the lame sex scene that is... it must take a lot of effort to make the sex scene the lamest part of the movie but playing Jeff Buckley's "Hallelujah" will do that)

Moore is pretty exactly what you want your comic writers to be. He's insanely talented but batshit crazy at the same time. He is a practicing magician who worships a Roman snake deity named Glycon which he acknowledges to be a "complete hoax." (Thanks Wikipedia!)

Why pick Alan Moore today? It's Free Comic Book Day - that's why. I'm off to go get a free comic and pick up some others.. word

/Nerd out

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I didn't need you to tell me this guy is batshit crazy.

Just look at his rings and you’ll know exactly how nuts he is!

Anyone going to the road watch party tonight at the new bar outside Wrigley? Cornelison will be there singing the national anthems.

by Sportsgal on May 2, 2009 12:25 PM CDT reply actions

Eh...I might end up there since many other friends will be there.

Unless I can muster the courage to stand up to the peer pressure, that is. I have a feeling that’s going to be amateur hour. It’s bad enough its in Wrigleyville in the first place, but in Wrigleyville after a cubs game? No thanks. I prefer watching hockey when I’m surrounded by drunks, but not the Wrigleyville variety.

Got more soul than a sock with a hole.

by chrome on May 2, 2009 4:13 PM CDT up reply actions

I suggested Alan Moore. Woohoo!

Though the film version of Watchmen was a steaming pile of Hollywood shit.

Every aspect of the movie was fucking terrible: Ozymandias was undeveloped, the love story was exaggerated and took up too much of the plot (hooray, Hollywood), the irrelevant pop-radio soundtrack made me want to stab someone, and FUCK FUCK FUCK WHY DOES RORSCHACH SOUND EXACTLY LIKE BATMAN? (It does kind of addressed the central question of what actually constitutes heroism, though.) Other than that, it was a good “Oooh, goody, I like to watch things get blowed up!” kind of turn-your-brain-off Hollywood blockbuster. Maybe I’m just bitter because the graphic novel is 100x more intriguing and worthwhile.

I thought V for Vendetta was a better film than Watchmen, actually. Even though it kind of eschewed the anarchy theme of the graphic novel, I found it much more complete, much darker, and much more thought-provoking than Watchmen.

Thanks for giving me a great reason to post this picture:

NOW STOP IT RIGHT HERE

by mjthor on May 2, 2009 12:26 PM CDT reply actions

Wow.

It’s like I’ve entered some sort of nerd vortex.

by Sportsgal on May 2, 2009 12:33 PM CDT up reply actions

A nerd vortex of badass Hawk fans and badass comic-book writers!

Thanks chicagokill for the post of Alan Moore’s playoff beard. Anyone who doesn’t know Alan Moore’s work should have to take a week off work and catch up on some of the most critically acclaimed graphic novels ever (and then you will still only be a third of the way through his unbelievable work). It was Free Comic Book Day Saturday and you should have made your way to the comic-book store on Madison, which just happens to have an employee with season tickets to the Hawks and is very knowledgeable in both fields. The comments on this post have not mentioned some of his best work: Batman (The Killing Joke), The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen, Swamp Thing, Miracleman, and From Hell. Just for the record the record my wife does not read comics and I do, we both thought Watchmen was an excellent motion picture. And we both yell like freaks at the Hawks playoff games. If you are a true hockey fan and think that comics are for nerds I suggest you read one Alan Moore book(no, not Watchmen…it’s pretty deep) Killing Joke has to be the starting point. It’s 20 years old and is still fairly shocking and well written. Moore has disowned that story (just like any Hollywood representation of his work), but I think that is because he has gone batshit crazy and just wants to be left alone (for real, i’m not kidding). The Hawks are back in town Tues. and Thurs.; you better bring your WARPAINT!!!

Jeff Lofgren

by pucknut on May 4, 2009 8:19 AM CDT up reply actions

I thought the Watchmen movie was alright.. it did make a lot of stupid choices but it was entertaining. I always read Rorschach as having that kind of gruff voice so I didn’t mind it. I thought Jackie Earle Haley was probably the best part of the movie… Hard to believe Kelly Leak grew up into that..

I never actually saw the film version of V for Vendetta though..

Second City Hockey

by Killion on May 2, 2009 12:37 PM CDT up reply actions

I'll admit...

I started reading the Watchmen graphic novel after I saw the movie and now enjoy the movie more. The stuff in the book about how these guys all became “super heroes” really made the movie make more sense to me. Although seeing that sex scene (complete with thrusting motions) on a 6 story tall IMAX screen may have scarred me for life. The guy was hot, but I really didn’t need to see a giant picture of his naked ass.

by Sportsgal on May 2, 2009 1:19 PM CDT up reply actions

I don’t have much nerd cred on this since I didn’t read either (or any) of the graphics novels, but I agree with your ratings on the films. Watchmen was OK. I probably would have liked it better I assume if I did know the backstory going in. I really liked V for Vendetta though. Even now that seems like a frighteningly plausible path for the world to go down.

/dork out

by stickhandler on May 2, 2009 1:13 PM CDT up reply actions

I always like watching V for Vendetta around the 5th of November

:-)

"He shows up every day to play, he plays hard every day, and he shows up to beat your butt." ~Ozzie Guillen on AJ Pierzynski, 3-17-09

R.I.P. Harry Kalas 4-13-09

by HappyHuman on May 2, 2009 1:14 PM CDT up reply actions

Great movie

by Shooby34 on May 2, 2009 3:16 PM CDT up reply actions

Awesome movie

If I can't be a good example, I'll just be a horrible warning

by Trixietrx on May 2, 2009 4:03 PM CDT up reply actions

The Watchman movie sucked...

…and big time! Although the V for Vendetta movie wasn’t that bad, but wasn’t great either but it didn’t have me saying Fuck Me Gently half-way through the movie that is for sure. Saw ‘The Watchmen’ on IMAX what a waste of $12!!! Didn’t Alan Moore write ‘The Spirit’ comics as well? Haven’t seen that movie yet but it couldn’t be worse than the Watchmen which often reminded me of another movie my ex-girlfriend made me watch in the theatres ‘White Noise’-complete garbage!!!

by hawks61 on May 2, 2009 2:38 PM CDT up reply actions

It's Watchmen, not "The Watchmen."

NOW STOP IT RIGHT HERE

by mjthor on May 2, 2009 3:01 PM CDT up reply actions

but yeah, the movie sucked.

and no, The Spirit was Will Eisner.

NOW STOP IT RIGHT HERE

by mjthor on May 2, 2009 3:03 PM CDT up reply actions

And Will Eisner...

Was not an insane whack job. That was Frank Miller ruining everything he touches, as usual. RIP, All-Star Batman and Robin.

by AirTrafficAJ on May 2, 2009 4:42 PM CDT up reply actions

Yeesh

Why are all the good modern comic writers wackos?

"He shows up every day to play, he plays hard every day, and he shows up to beat your butt." ~Ozzie Guillen on AJ Pierzynski, 3-17-09

R.I.P. Harry Kalas 4-13-09

by HappyHuman on May 2, 2009 12:34 PM CDT reply actions

All good writers have something wrong with them

The great authors were drunks or drug addicts, it’s only natural that crazy people write some of the best stuff too.

by pepe126 on May 2, 2009 4:46 PM CDT up reply actions

From Kerouac/Bukowski to Alan Moore/Grant Morrison

I dont know if all good writers start out as wackos, but they do seem to end up that way. Maybe it has something to with that whole seclusion thing and not going to enough hockey games, kind of like Jack Nicholson in “The Shining”. Alan Moore truly is a crazy genius, with scripts that are notorious for minute detail and accuracy, just look at all the reference work he does in every chapter of “From Hell”, his interpretation of the Whitechapel/Jack the Ripper murders. Go Hawks!

Victim was found murdered with a Chelsea Dagger.

by pucknut on May 4, 2009 8:42 AM CDT up reply actions