Hmm. That sounds like a great pitch for this blog-thing: "Be Momentarily Distracted!"
First up today: A big thank-you to Scipio from the Absorbascon for the kind words, and I'm glad you got a laugh out of Fate zapping Superman, just like the rest of the Justice League. And the Society. And the Seven Soldiers...
Second, when I picked Random Happenstance for the name of this blog, it wasn't just because it was the first name to occur to me. All right, maybe it was the first name that didn't have swears or an obscure comics-related reference with swears, but as it stands the name has become eerily prescient. Because even if I have a potential post completely written, on more than one occasion so far finding the actual comic in question has been like pulling teeth.
For example, I've been trying to find Captain America Annual #7. Aquarian guest stars, and he's been appearing here and there in the blogs lately. I wish I remembered who first referred to Aquarian as "Marvel Jesus," 'cause I wish I could take credit for that one. But I clearly remember Cap putting Aquarian in an armlock to make him drop the cosmic cube. I'm pretty sure it's #7...shuffle off to Grand Comic Book Database. Look up Cap Annuals. See that #7 is in fact the one I'm thinking of, but realize I also had #5 back in the day, and have no idea where either one is. Curse loudly in my cube. Duck down below eye level, realize I still have like five hours of work left. Bite down on fist, curse loudly.
Well, if I don't find those two, I may check the comic shop for 'em, since I don't think those will be back issue gold. I really loved the annuals when I was younger, and some like Amazing Spider-Man Annual #15, with Punisher and Doc Ock and Frank Miller, or X-Men Annual #6, with Dracula; still hold up today. Instead of those, I found Thor Annual #9 in a box of mostly Captain America, and we'll discuss that one tomorrow!
Other bloggers: I use the Happenstance Method:
1. Think of something funny from a comic I probably have somewhere.
2. Look for that comic in my pile of unorganized comics.
3. Find something else, blog about that.
How do you do it? I understand it's a sin to blog about blogging, but I'm genuinely curious! Let me know! And trust me, your blog secrets might not be exactly safe with me, but I won't be using them, as that would involve "planning," and "foresight," and "organization."
My process is simple: I've chosen to review series of comic books where the series in question goes for at least 30 issues. Since I only review one issue of each series a week, this means I can go over six months without thinking. For me, that's important. Love your site.
ReplyDeleteDan
www.astonishingtales.com/review/listcomics.html
For me, Wednesday is "review comics I bought that day" post. The next couple of days usually involve me expanding on those, whether it's me ranting about how there are clues all through Robin #150 that Cassandra Cain isn't really evil (oops), or doing a breakdown of the good, bad, and ugly of Annihilation Silver Surfer #3.
ReplyDeleteBut what I find happens then is, while reading those comics, my brain will make some sort of weird connection, or leap and I'll find something barely related to talk about the next day. An example is me stating that contray to Ms. Marvel #1, Johnny Storm would never be able to score with Carol Danvers, but Hawkeye might, which lead to a post the next day about how Avengers:Diassembled was all about Wanda wanting Hawkeye to be the father of some children for her.
It's the style that seems to work best given the majority of my comics are not with me, and I have no scanner to add panels to the posts even if they were here. Hopefully that's of some use.
I try to be all organized and stuff, and sometimes it actually works, but it usually ends up being a whim.
ReplyDeleteSome I consider for weeks and weeks before I get around to them, i.e. today's Black Condor post.
Others just pop out, i.e. Crisis On Earth-K, which was inspired by my stumbling across a mid-60s "retcon" of Wonder Woman that involved characters being shoved in a desk. (And I found it before Scipio - hee!)
Sometimes I get random panels and wait for a topic to emerge - i.e. there's currently a shot of Superman exiling Supergirl into the Phantom Zone that needs a context.
And finally, if it's about Supergirl, I'll probably write something up. I think I've written more about here than any other character.
No matter what, though, the same three or four people seem to visit the Fortress regardless. And I'm always grateful.
Hope this helps!
Nothing to do with me, but I think that my favorite blogs are the ones that have sort of a raison d'etre, or at least some guiding principle. A couple of my favorite blogs at the moment are Blockade Boy and The Diary of Ralph Dibney. Not only are they hilarious, but I pretty much know what to expect, and I like that, because they're plowing fertile ground that not many others are. Sometimes blogs can be a real mixed bag when they're too random, though I do like Random Happenstance and a few others in this vein.
ReplyDeleteI recently started a character-based comics blog. It's a different formula from what you're doing, so I can't really help you with the question of what you should blog about, though I will say that I think you're doing a fine job.