I’m very proud of my prestige format range of graphic novels featuring The Swede. I thought it would be fun to show some random preview pages from the most recent entry, “Casino Cruise”. Everyone’s favorite assassin boards a week long gambling cruise to eliminate his latest target. He even has time for some recreation, maybe even a bit of rest. But the plan changes drastically, once the Swede finds out why his target’s actually on the ship. Some sneak preview pages…
That’s your first in depth preview, and copies of Casino Cruise in both print and digital, can be found HERE.
I hope you enjoy the story! For previews of all the Swede volumes, including links to purchase, please visit https://www.thekillerswede.com/
Some 60 years ago, some friends of the family went to Sweden and came back bearing gifts. They gave me a little set of building blocks called LEGO. Over the next several years, I made a number of things with the blocks and held onto a lot of bricks over the decades, sometimes using them for various projects.
Of course those who know me are cognizant of me getting into comics, becoming an illustrator, later creating, producing and selling comics. My favorite comic character is The Thing, and this blog is even nick named, “The Thing Is”.
Side note: If you want to see what all I’ve done and have available for purchase, check out my linktree profile with all the links to the comics, products, designs, etc. HERE
One of my most fervent hopes as a kid was the ability to some day create the Fantastic Four’s headquarters, the Baxter Building, out of LEGO, and here we are, 50 years later, where a company that sells knock off LEGO building blocks has finally put forth a knock off Baxter Building. I thank them for providing possibly the last build I will ever do. I have not done any builds in decades, so this statement is not hyperbole.
Now, seeing this solicitation on Amazon, I was skeptical. There were some questionable photoshop bits, and yes, everything is off-brand, and frankly, only $200 for over 6,000 pieces? We all know that when it comes to LEGO builds of this magnitude, it’s usually half that number of pieces at twice the price, so this off brand seemed a bit iffy. Too good to be true. I steered clear. For a long while.
But then the family wanted to know what I wanted for Father’s day and viola, I put it on the list. A scheduling conflict forced an early Father’s day and here it was. And it just so happened that I had nothing to do last week. Four and a half dedicated building days later, I was done.
As I go through the different stages, I’ll point out a couple bits. The first level is a receptionist lobby with chairs, decorations, newspapers, a sculpture and two doors that open. Whether we can actually SEE all this crazy detail once the walls close up is another matter I’ll talk about later. In back, that’s the Mole man’s monster breaking through the ground, and in front, although it’s not easy to see in the solicitation, beneath the front doors that open, it does indeed say BAXTER BUILDING.
The middle section of the building does indeed have a space shuttle that sits inside it. Each level built around it has viewing landings coming off the elevator entrance on each floor. I can only guess that this might be the old rocket that carried the FF into space where they got their powers. Otherwise, I’m not sure why they have a shuttle in their building. They DO have a section on the building side where their Pogo plane sits, waiting for take off, AND they do have the first version of the Fantasticar, the old flying bath tub, which is a wonderful touch. They do have a number of yellow “4’s” stationed around the building. The first one, over the front doors, I covered with blue pieces because, well, the FF wouldn’t have a yellow four on their building. White, blue or black? Sure. Or leave it off and no 4, but not yellow. This does become a thing later.
Slowly, the floors rise to cover the shuttle while adding the viewing ports. Strange hatch on that fourth floor which lifts up to reveal a hole for some purpose. I’ve decided I might investigate some type of interior lighting to add in here. There are a lot of windows on the building but some light would really help to see all these amazing things in the building.
Finally, near the top, we get a look at Reed’s lab. Once again, SO much detail. Couple chairs, coffee mugs, a sandwich, microscope, computer, keyboard, mouse, various biological and crystalline samples hanging about, plus some complicated, Jack Kirby-esque device in the middle.
As I prepared to close up the roof, I bemoaned all the things that won’t be easily seen inside, and I think again about getting some lighting. Although *placing* the lighting might even be difficult (likely impossible without ripping everything apart). The big yellow 4 is up there and I still plan to paint it blue. Although frankly, for whatever reason, the yellow doesn’t bother me as much as it originally did. and yes, I already had the Fantastic Four First Steps LEGO FF vs Galactus set. So I’ve already got my heroes and villain.
And there you have it. A tremendously involved and exhausting build that did indeed take 4 and a half days–but worth it. And I’ve got the LEGO FF in their flying bathtub. Scale’s a perfect fit. They even provide a couple transparent flagpoles where you can attach Johnny to fly around. A HERBIE is also provided that you can attach to a “flying” pole.
There were a few extra things I didn’t bother with, such as a fully functioning construction crane that I see no reason to have, unless it’s a nod to needing to fix the building after some enemy attack, but nah. Also, there’s a bizarre item that looks kind of like a hot dog on a target that can attach to the side of the building. No thanks, whatever it is. Finally, there’s another big yellow 4 on the rooftop. No need. So, if there are any FF fans out there that would be interested in having their own Baxter building. It exists. In the meantime, I must investigate possible lighting.
And if there’s any blue paint in the basement, because the Thing is…
Those of you who know of my history, are aware that for decades, I’ve been drawing advertising storyboard frames and creating and publishing comics. What these two vocations have in common is sequential art. Telling a story visually through a series of panels, or frames.
What I’d like to do is reach out to those interested in learning how to better tell a story visually. Those who might want to create a web comic, a print comic, even someone who may want to sharpen their skills before they show some comics company their portfolio.
So, I’m offering up sessions to those interested. Here’s how it will work: you can contact me at my email address: rickjlundeen@gmail.com and let me know if you’re interested. I do charge $50 for a session, which you can pay me via Paypal through my email address.
Then, I’ll send you a scenario. A written scene that you’ll have to break down visually into panels and pages, say 4 or 5–more if you wish. Then you would send me pics or scans of the pages. I would then assess and give you feedback.
As for my qualifications, you can look at *my* portfolios. There’s my illustration site, “Rick J Lundeen Illustrations”–you can check out the link HERE… which shows you many samples of my work, in both advertising and comics.
OR, you can check out my most recent comic series, The Swede HERE… which gives links to my other comics, descriptions, and previews of each of The Swede books in the collection.
This opportunity goes out to the artists who want to learn how to better convey action and emotion, a visual narrative from panel to panel, frame to frame. For the feedback/critique itself, we can do it over the phone, via face time, or just in writing, whatever your preference.
I look forward to working with you. Take care. -Rick
Since I’ve heard some more positive feedback on the swede series, I thought it was about time to once again share links on where people can order the series.
First up is the Swede’s site: thekillerswede.com –there, you can find previews for each and every book, and links to buy them. At the bottom of the home page, you’ll find even more links to my various comics sold on IndyPlanet, as well as my TeePublic and RedBubble sites with my designs. Please stop by and check ’em out.
And for those who want to dive right in, HERE’S the link to the full Swede book series.
Please check out all my offerings and spread the word. The Swede is here.
This December, Joe & Anthony Russo are returning to direct the film Doomsday for the MCU. Robert Downey Jr. is returning to play Dr. Doom, as Marvel’s Multiverse Saga nears its completion.
But before the movie hits, there are a few things you should know about the character of Victor Von Doom, also known as Dr. Doom. You should know the established character under the mask.
Dr. Victor Von Doom is *arguably* the greatest villain in the history of Marvel comics. He’s the arch nemesis of the Fantastic Four — especially Reed Richards, but he’s basically mixed it up with all the heavy hitters in Marvel over the decades.
Von Doom was born in Eastern Europe of Romani descent. His mother was a sorceress who was taken to hell by demons when he was very young. He often rummaged through his mother’s books of spells and incantations. The rest of the time, he observed his father at work.
Von Doom Sr. was a doctor of medicine, who ran afoul of authorities in the small country of Latveria when he couldn’t save the life of its king. Von Doom went on the run, taking his young son with him. He died on the trail, but his son was a survivor, and a brilliant student, who in time found his way to America to study science.
It was at university where the arrogant and entitled Von Doom met fellow student Reed Richards, the only other mind on his level. Victor’s subconscious inadequacies saw Richards’ intellect as threat. Before an experiment, when Reed tried to point out a dangerous error in Von Doom’s calculations, Victor became enraged, throwing his rival out. The experiment in question was an attempt to reach the afterlife, crossing over to find and save his mother. But Reed’s calculations were indeed correct, and Victor’s mistake caused an explosion that left his face horribly disfigured. A living hell for anyone, but for one as vain as Von Doom, it drove him toward an unyielding anger and the brink of insanity. He blamed the accident on Reed.
Because of the danger the experiment posed to the university, Von Doom was also expelled.
Left with almost nothing, he travelled to the far ends of the earth, finding himself amidst a sect of monks who sensed the power and the greatness within him. Then came the day when he prepared himself to reenter the world, not only to exist in it, but to rule over it. He ordered the monks to fashion him a suit of armor as part of his new identity. Then, all that was left was the metal mask, that would forever hide his face from humanity.
But his servants cautioned that it was still red hot from the forge. Doom didn’t care.
He returned to the Romani camp of his birth to gather his parents’ belongings, then traveled to Latveria, where he overthrew the old regime, and took the throne by force.
It was soon after that when he learned of the existence of the Fantastic Four, led by Richards.
They’d have many battles throughout the years, as Doom would grow more and more powerful, with his intellect, technologically advanced armor, and an ever growing knowledge of sorcery.
I just thought you should know a bit about Doom as he’s been portrayed over the years in comics. In the movies, they’ve never gotten him anywhere near close to correct. He believes himself to be deserving of ruling the world. He’s delusionally egomaniacal, with a fiery temper, but at the same time, he has a code of sorts. He’s not a barbarian. He’d never abuse women or children.
In his country of Latveria, he rules with an iron fist, demanding his subjects be happy, and give him their love and loyalty as he generously protects them from everything, including freedom.
If you question, mock, or underestimate him, you take your life in your hands.
These things are all part of what makes him a wonderful villain. And a HUGE part of that is the mystery of his eternally hidden face. You never see his face, as it’s the disfigurement that drove him to the edge of madness and truly created Dr. Doom. A brilliant, powerful being, trapped forever behind a mask, where you only ever see what’s in those eyes. The pain, the power, and the anger.
Alfred Hitchcock was the master of suspense because he was smart enough to know that the audience’s imagination was the most powerful tool he had to work with when crafting a terrifying tale.
Never seeing Doom’s face is a big part of his allure. That darkness, the mystery of what’s underneath the mask— your imagination is doing the heavy lifting. Unfortunately, we live in an era where instant gratification rules and there’s little to no mystery. Many creators can’t wait to kick open the doors and take that mystery away. The most unimaginative of them in the comics have even taken away Doom’s mask once or twice. Much like the Joker over at DC, where at different times, in comics and film, the stunted imaginations of certain writers have given the clown prince of crime a real identity, revealed there have been more than one Joker, told his backstory, and that he’s immortal. They’ve demystified the Joker, opened him far too much, and over saturated the market with him.
I’d rather they don’t denigrate Doom’s character the same way.
So you might see where I’m going here in regards to Doomsday. There are a couple potential issues here in regards to the character of Doom.
One: ego—-RDJ often tends to show his face. He’s an actor after all. And as just about anyone will tell you, they’re paying him 100 million to be in it, so it’s very likely that they’ll be showing his face. BUT the second they show his face… “Hey, it’s Tony Stark!”, a reaction that will probably take you out of the film, basically derailing the whole Dr. Doom thing. It’ll be all about Stark. Is he a variant? Adopted?
The above pic could be a fake, or just between scenes, as he’s got the mask in his hands.
Maybe he is Victor Von Doom—RDJ has said exactly that, that he’s NOT playing Stark. He IS Von Doom. That’s great, but it won’t matter. Not a bit. BECAUSE OF HIS FACE.
When that happens, all things Von Doom will be pushed aside, which would be an incredible loss, throwing away such a great character, all on a gimmick. Basically, he won’t be the “real” Dr. Doom.
And all because of the Jonathan Majors criminal situation. That’s why Kang was out and they pivoted to Doom.
Two— another part of what has made Doom an incredible character is his life long hatred of Reed. But there’s been no build up, no acknowledgement that he’s ever existing as far as the FF First Steps movie goes. The rivalry is non-existent. So no pay off there. No satisfaction there.
I’d almost rather they’d recast Kang. After all, they had an entire council of Kangs. Just pick another one. After all, he’s an actual Avengers villain, with some previous screen time and build up. Just plopping Doom down in his place, on the face of it, feels like Doom’s a throwaway, or substitute character.
RDJ originally auditioned to play Dr. Doom in the 2005 Fantastic Four movie. Considering how they ended up handling Doom in that film, I’d actually say he dodged a bullet. But it does seem as though he’s committed to this new part in some way. RDJ has shared sneak peeks of him with old school comic book pics of Doc Doom from the ‘60’s. That’s nice! But as we saw in the post credit scene of First Steps, Doom apparently removed his mask and showed his face to young Franklin Richards, but instead of the child looking scared, he’s smiling, or maybe instinctively using his powers to fix Doom’s face. We won’t know until later, but again, unless, they CGI a different puss on him or apply some prosthetics, same old Tony-face issue.
And even though every YouTube “creator” with editing software keeps putting out videos with RDJ in Doom’s armor, without his mask, staring everyone down (gosh, they’re so creative), that’s got nothing to do with what actually’s going to be in the film.
I don’t know. I suppose it’s still within the realm of possibility that RDJ goes the respectable route of Hugo Weaving in “V for Vendetta”. We never once see Weaving’s face in the film, and yet it is a master class in acting. I have nothing but respect and admiration for the man, putting his ego aside, and embracing his passion for the craft, and truly inhabiting the role of “V”. Truly a tremendous portrayal. Phenomenal. And he didn’t even have the advantage of the audience seeing his eyes at any point—-Something Downey *would* have available to him, peering out through the mask.
I usually have nothing but faith in the Russos. The four films they’ve directed for Marvel have been the best by far. At the same time, they’re not above catering to certain actor’s inane requests. Case in point: Endgame’s silly, fat Thor. And in this film, RDJ is also calling a lot of the shots. He said he’d only come back, and as Doom if the Russo’s came back to direct. He’s also giving a lot of input, with Stephen McFeeley (the writer*) and the Russo’s. So I feel as if this is mostly his baby.
*Another concern is that Christopher Markus is not involved. He was McFeeley’s writing partner for “Captain America: The First Avenger”, “Winter Soldier”, “Civil War”, “Infinity War”, and “Endgame”. So this has been a well established two man writing team since the beginning of the MCU. Now, they’re down one pretty important contributor.
Yes, the entirety of the MCU and more will be in this film. Loads and loads of heroes. But for me, this success of this whole thing hinges completely on Doom.
One of the many unfortunate things of getting to an advanced age, is that almost every day, you hear about the passing of some entertainer you grew up listening to or watching.
So it is with the loss of comedic legend Catherine O’Hara. Now, there’s been a lot of coverage on her past accomplishments over her long career, her background, etc., complete with interviews with those that knew and loved her, so here, I’m going to just add a couple notes of my own in honor of her life.
I first saw Catherine in SCTV in the late ‘70’s, and then after that, mostly in the Christopher Guest films. “Waiting for Guffman” and “Best in Show”, among others, but my personal favorite is “A Mighty Wind”.
The premise is that there’s to be a big, televised reunion special of three different folk groups, all of whom used to record for an old time producer. The story revolves around the organization and prep involved in putting on the show. Highly, HIGHLY recommended. As is the norm with the Guest films, it’s mostly improv, with a host of top level improv comedians creating the world as we watch.
But the most amazing thing to me is that these comedians did all their own singing, played their own instruments, and mostly wrote the songs they performed, and did so brilliantly. The three groups: The Main Street Singers was a large group headed by Jayne Lynch, John Michael Higgins, and Parker Posey, along with another half dozen background group members. Higgins actually assembled the 9 part harmonies for each song himself. The Folksmen were Michael McKean, Christopher Guest and Harry Shearer, who proved years earlier that they could write, sing and play as Spinal Tap, so no surprise there. After crafting a dozen heavy metal comedy songs then, they did it all over again with a batch of folk songs.
The mind-blowing surprise *to me* was the revelation that was Mitch & Mickey, played by Eugene Levy and O’Hara respectively. According to the film, back in the duo’s hey day, they were in a relationship, and when it ended, so did their partnership. The movie sees Levy’s Mitch as a very confused, laid back, somewhat damaged and distracted Mitch, coming back to reunite with O’Hara’s Mickey, who’d moved on in life, and got married.
It’s Mitch and Mickey and their relationship that form the backbone of the movie. In their younger recording days, they were in a relationship, but Mitch had trouble committing and Mickey finally had to move on. 25 years later, the question on everyone’s mind is what’s in their hearts now? And can they bring back the magic? It’s to Levy and O’Hara’s credit that we pretty quickly are taken with these two, and of course, we’re rooting for them.
Then comes the night of the big performance. When filming, all the performances were filmed live on stage. We see The Main Street Singers, The Folksmen, and finally, after a bit of nervous drama, Mitch & Mickey.
Okay.
Enough of my spoilers—- go rent, buy, see the movie. And please, please PLEASE find and listen to the movie soundtrack. It’s got all the songs from the movie, with extra cuts that didn’t make it into the final edit. Most of the songs that didn’t make it in seem to be from Mitch & Mickey. Why is that?
Could be that they were cut for time, or they just didn’t fit some of the comedy scenes. And why is that? Well, Levy & O’Hara wrote most of their own songs, with the exception of “There’s A Kiss At The End Of The Rainbow” which plays a big part in the film, that was actually written by Michael McKean and his wife, Annette O’Toole.
But here’s the thing. It’s a great song, but I think I like the other M&M songs even more, particularly “When You’re Next To Me.” the song that gets played over the ending credits. Levy sings and plays guitar, while O’Hara sings and plays the auto-harp. While “Kiss” was indeed a powerful, beautiful, impactful song….. when I heard “When You’re Next To Me”, *that* song melted my heart.
Did O’Hara actually go to the trouble to learn how to play the auto-harp for this? Given the quality of the songs, and the lyrics, I can only guess that she’d had previous experience, but it doesn’t really matter. After hearing the soundtrack, and being SO moved by their songs, my first thought was “Oh my god, I wish they’d put out a full folk music album.” And I’ve barely ever gotten into folk music, but when something like those songs strikes a chord within you, it’s something that’s hard to forget.
I also suspect that after listening to the other folk songs written by Levy & O’Hara, I think they did their job too well. These were touching, emotional, powerful stories put to song. Truly magnificent. But unlike the funny or goofy songs written by the other two groups, these simply weren’t funny. They were fantastic, but it would be too easy to get swallowed up by them, making the shift back into improv comedy all the more jarring.
While it may seem unusual to spotlight Catherine O’Hara for her musical talent, after over 50 years of her remarkable comedy, if I don’t do it, I’m not sure who will. Do yourself a favor, and watch A Mighty Wind.
I thought I’d take this opportunity to showcase one page from my latest graphic novel featuring The Swede–Book Six: Casino Cruise. In the story, our favorite hit man is on a cruise to observe his target. Of course, having a whole week to observe the intended victim, the Swede does have some time to unwind. Here’s the page in question.
The whole point of this page is to illustrate the passing of an entire day at the bar. This is the kind of challenge I like, utilizing nothing but light and shadows, along with other subtle visual cues to get the message across.
The Swede – Book Six: Casino Cruise is available for purchase at the link HERE.
And for more previews from the rest of the collection, please visit the killerswede.com
This 60 page graphic novel focuses on just one assignment. The Swede’s target this time will be on a week long cruise, participating in a Texas Hold ’em tournament. Of course, with a whole week to observe his target and plan out his kill, our hit man will be confined to one ship wandering around outside the 3 mile limit, have a bit more time to relax, and maybe make a friend or two. Things don’t go exactly how the Swede imagines it, but he’ll have to adjust on the fly. Before the killing begins.
This is the biggest, longest adventure I’ve ever put together for my Nordic kinsman, and I hope you enjoy it.
you can find previews and links to the entire series at thekillerswede.com
Just thought I’d mention that on Saturday, November 15th, I’ll have a table at artist’s alley at…
And I will have a table that will look *something* like this, only in a library…
Yes, I will be selling copies of my comics, including:
The Swede graphic novel series, which you can find out more about at thekillerswede.com —HERE.
Along with copies of Mickey & Maj, Super Unicorn Mega Chop, 100 Covers, Sheriff: Black & Blood, The Bombardier, and Monsters Out of Time, most of which, you can find over on Indy Planet HERE.
Plus, I’ll be selling my art prints of superheroes as well, both modern and retro prints.
And over at Teepublic, you can find over 200 of my designs available on a ton of merchandise, HERE.
And even more designs can be found at my RedBubble store, found HERE.
And finally, is my first novel, “Where Have All The Heroes Gone?”, available at Amazon in hardcover, paperback and Kindle formats HERE.
I’m sure I’ve forgotten something, but you get the drift. If anyone happens to be in Lincolnshire the day of the con, I look forward to seeing you. Until then, the Thing IS.
thingis.home.blog 