Batman Tumbles Into Jaipur

Tumbler Tour

Hey Batman fans, I just wanted to let you all know about the Tumbler Tour that is currently crossing the U.S. For those you don't know what the Tumbler is, it is Batman's car of choice in the movie Batman Begins. Check out the website and see if you are close to a city that will feature the incredible vehicle. Can't wait for the latest Batman movie, The Dark Knight Rises.

Day 19 - Jaipur

Designed by Sebastien Pauchon

Jaipur is the capital of Rajasthan, and it's a pretty fan-freak-in-tastic 2 player trading game. Each player collects different goods and sells them for a certain amount. The value of each good varies and each value decreases with time, but holding out until you can sell 5 of the same good can pay of huge with special bonus chips. Players can also use camels to obtain multiple goods a turn and the player with the most camels at the end of the game earns 5 bonus points as well. I won the game in a round 3 match against The Wife tonight. The game is really well done, and it is a quick 2 player game with good quality components. A fun game, and definitely worth your time and money if you wanted to buy it and that is How Lou Sees It.

DC Logo and a Barrel of Monkeys

New DC Logo

Well, as I was enjoying Free Comic Book Day this last Saturday I noticed that the DC logo had changed. It took me of guard a bit, because I have only really experienced the two previous logos. I really thought the previous logos were fantastic. There is a lot of debate over the new logo and I'm not sure how I really feel about it yet. The idea behind the logo is pretty cool, especially with it animated. The idea is that it shows the letter "D" which is peeled back to reveal a letter "C" underneath it. Well, here are some pics of the old and new logo. What do you think?

Day 5 - Barrel of Monkeys

The classic game of linking monkeys arm in arm. I like to think that they sing Kumbaya when they are all in the barrel. They have made a guest appearance on Toy Story, but the game and the monkeys like to keep it low key. The game is very simple. You dump out the monkeys and then link as many monkeys as you can. When one or more fall off, you count the remaining monkeys and add them to your total. The barrel says that the first to 12 monkeys wins. To make things more interesting you can of course make the number larger or add time limits etc. The Wife and myself played the official rules (but if the beginning player reaches or surpasses 12 first, the other player still gets a chance to add to his/her total as well). We played best 2 out of 3 and I came out the victor tonight. Some may say that I perhaps had the advantage because like the monkeys, I am very hairy. It didn't hurt any, I can assure you that...although the title of Monkey King has already been taken by this guy (impressive...and that is How Lou Sees It.)

Free Comic Book Day 2012 and Day 2 of AGAD

Free Comic Book Day is tomorrow everyone! Don't forget to check out your local participating stores to get your free comic books. The Avengers came out to celebrate today.

Day 2 - The Rivals for Catan
A game designed by Klaus Teuber


The Rivals for Catan is a fun 2 player card game version of Settlers of Catan. The card game uses the same general idea as the original Settlers game where you expand by building roads, settlements, and cities to be the first to obtain a set amount of victory points. The game uses square shaped cards for just about everything with 2 dice and 2 wooden marker tokens. It uses a pretty Ingenious system for keeping track of your resources (turning your region/resource cards 90 degrees to either gain or spend them) making good use of the cards. The game also has good flexibility and a great replay value with the addition of three different "expansions" or eras that can be played with. For a shorter game, you can play with just the basic deck cards, and for something new you can add in one of the different "era" decks adding a nice variety. You can also play with all of the era card decks for a longer experience. The game takes the general theme and idea of Settlers of Catan the board game and makes for a great 2 player version that adds variety and a bit of different strategy to the mix. It takes about 45 minutes to 1 hour to play and the length can vary with how many victory points you are playing to according to the different cards used. The game tonight was a good one and there always seemed to be a lack of sheep on both ends during the game. My wife had the Strength Advantage and I had the Trade Advantage. The game was very close at the end, but my wife pulled it off a turn before I could. That makes us both 1-1 as I continue on my A Game A Day (AGAD) quest. Fans of Settlers and newcomers a like will enjoy this fun card game and that is How Lou Sees It.

Seattle: The New Gotham

Apparently Seattle has become corrupt and dangerous just like Gotham, but don't fear just yet because where crime is...there can also be found Phoenix Jones Guardian of Seattle. Phoenix Jones is just your average citizen with some body armor and some fight training going out in costume to do good. He apparently isn't the only one either, being joined by Thorn, Green Reaper, Gemini, Catastrophe, and Buster Doe among others calling themselves the Rain City Superhero Movement.

Unfortunately Benjamin Fodor (aka Phoenix Jones) made headlines in a bad way this week as he is being charged for assaulting some people with one of his high tech gadgets...pepper spray (Seattle Superhero Arrested). You can also read more articles about Phoenix Jones @ www.seattlepi.com. There is supposed to be a decision on this case come Thursday and until then his costume has been confiscated. Our capes are off to you Phoenix, may you forever continue with vigilante justice and the Batman way.

With more and more superheros surfacing, I believe it will be only a matter of time 'till America's Superman will reveal himself to us. Until then, keep your eyes to the skies and be aware of any new newspaper writers in your area.

My thanks to all you superheros out there who are keeping our streets clean.

On a somewhat related side note, here is a picture of what could be $2,000,000:

If only I had millions of dollars to spend on a comic book. This Action Comics #1 (the first appearance of Superman) is the best known condition and could be auctioned off for 2 million dollars. This comic recently (April of this year) was recovered from being lost to the world. It was stolen back in 2000 time frame and now is to be auctioned off to the highest bidder. Nicolas Cage (the previous owner who had his copy stolen) is hoping to have it returned to him, but it looks like a sticky situation.

The famous cover has appeared in different cover variations throughout the years on more recent comics...and in comic book story-lines:

Action Comics #1 will forever live on, and for around 2 million you could have the comic that started it all. Not a bad investment if you ask me.

Good grief Charlie Brown? How about good grief Clark Kent...and that is How Lou Sees It!

10th Anniversary of FCBD!

Visit the website, locate a store, and go get your free comic book next Saturday. How can you miss the 10th anniversary?

And that is How Lou Sees It.

Superman Grounded

Superman and I go way back, and believe it or not I owe it all to Holiday Inn. Not only did kids stay free back then, but one night back in 1994 they were also giving the kids a free comic book if they wanted one. Being the charming child I was...I got 4 (Animaniacs, Batman, Supergirl, and Superman). Little did they know that that simple act would change a lot about my life.

That simple introduction to comic books was a very dangerous one and for one obvious reason...I'm a collector. I have a coin collection, stamp collection, rock collection, marble collection, dice collection, pin collection, and a game collection, just to name a few. Oh, yeah, and I also have a comic book collection. What started out as 4 free comic books is now a collection just over 300 valued over $1,000.

I really enjoy the collecting of comic books, but I also really enjoy reading them (an important thing in my opinion when one collects something). Comic books to me are art and story. To help you appreciate the art form and writing style that is comic books, let me recommend a few things: take a look at my favorite comic book artist's work (Alex Ross), read "Maus", and take a look in a comic book shop and pick out one that stands out to you and read it (or ask to borrow one of mine, I have favorites).

As we are on the subject of comic books already, let me discuss movies/tv based on comic books. Comic book stories and characters have always been portrayed in other media besides the actual comic book. If you are going on a long road trip, let me recommend  getting a few old radio shows for the drive (Superman in radio form is pretty entertaining or my favorite may be The Shadow). As the world moved from radio to the screen, so did follow our super friends.

In 2002 Spider-Man changed how comic book movies were viewed and how superheroes were viewed in general. With Spider-Man's huge success on screen, Spider-Man was everywhere! Comic book movies could be highly profitable, and thus the movies followed....X-Men, Iron Man, The Incredible Hulk, Superman Returns, and Batman etc. Some more popular than others. Not only did other superheroes  join Spider-Man on the screen, but they returned in sequels! We are only brushing off the surface now. With many more movies scheduled for release...Batman: The Dark Knight Rises, Thor, The Avengers (Introducing Captain America), another Spider-Man, Green Lantern, and many more. For a current list of all the movies based off of comic books, click here.

I have really enjoyed most of the superhero movies myself. The movie industry and the world population is eating it up. Why? Because a lot of people enjoy the story telling and characters that come from the comic book universe. Each of these superheroes have a legendary origin and stories upon stories have been written about them already (some for over 70 years). The characters have a lot of depth to them and have refined themselves over the years.

Comic books transport us into another universe; people with amazing powers or abilities standing up for what is right. I really enjoy Alex Ross and the comic books he has been involved in, because he makes them more real (click here to see some of my favorites in one book). They also include my two favorite pieces of artwork (Superman and Batman), where Superman and Batman are shown like never before. After the battles and it gives a look more inside their lives.

Let me update you on what Superman is up to currently. Superman has been away on New Krypton, and when he comes back to earth (similar to Superman Returns the movie) and people have mixed views of his return. Some people are angry with Superman for leaving them for a different planet. They feel that more and more Superman has lost touch with the American people. Superman gets to thinking about that, and decides to slow things down. He is going to walk across America, no flying and no super speed. He is going to walk through towns and get to know the American people and their every day problems (the series is entitled "Grounded"). He started this back last year and will continue for the next few months (there was a contest before the storyline started and people could enter and say where Superman should go close by near cities...one being Salt Lake City).

Currently Superman is in Boulder, Colorado and is on his way to Salt Lake City next month (along with Bruce Wayne)! I'll keep you updated each month on where the Man of Steel is on his journey.

And that is How Lou Sees It!