A Quick Reminder...

...for those of you who prefer getting your comic books in a shop: Inspector Gadget's first issue from Viper Comics hits U.S. shelves TODAY according to what editor Jessie Garza told me twelve days ago. Look for Inspector Gadget: Gadget on the Orient Express in every book store/comic shop you're in.

Personally, I bought the book just a few days after online ordering became possible, so it's kinda ironic that I'm still waiting for my copy by this point. But I guess shipping to Europe does take its time. When I do get to read the book, my plan is to post an in-depth review of it right here. But that's not all... I have several other plans for this blog, including:

- A walk-through of Inspector Gadget's history in comic strips, from the 80s up until today. (That's right, Viper's effort is far from the first one to translate the Inspector into comic strip form!)

- A presentation of an original UK Annual starring Inspector Gadget, published in the 1980s.

- Gadget's ugliest cover art ever

   ...and, to quote the special features section of a DVD cover, MUCH MORE!!!

In other words, stay tuned. My studies are keeping me pretty occupied right now, so it's hard to tell exactly when I get the time to blog about all this cool stuff. Hopefully before too long. In the meantime, buy/read the comic and don't hesitate to comment here if you've got any viewpoints/opinions about it. Did you like it? Didn't you like it? If so, why? In a little while, you'll certainly be getting a lot of my opinions about it;)

How to Pay More for the Comic Book

My, how time flies. At least it felt like it must have when I suddenly came across the first issue of Inspector Gadget's comic book on Ebay - merely a week after its publisher, Viper Comics, first made it available to online customers. And the Ebay pricing is even four cents more expensive than it would be to buy the book directly from the publisher. I must say it's amazing how quickly the collector's value for comic books is rising these days.

Inspector Gadget's Theme Song Played 700% Slower

Yes, you have always wanted to hear this. Really. Do not miss this experience.

(Thanks, youtube user DCookStaVideo.)

Buy The Comic Book NOW from Viper's Online Store (or Amazon)!

Yep, just checked!... Inspector Gadget is officially listed for sale at Viper Comics' online Book Store! Click here to buy the 48-page book for $5.95! (Or alternatively, buy it on Amazon if you prefer that. It seems to be in stock at a lot of online places right now, which is probably the best confirmation we can get for the fact that the comic book you see right below these words is FINALLY OUT! :)

Oh, and before I forget: Viper's store is also offering two other versions of the Gadget comic. One, the Free Comic Book Day Issue with the first 15 pages (for $0.99); and two, the San Diego Comic Con Issue, which is just like the regular 48-page issue except for a specially drawn cover which makes it more expensive ($7.95). There, now you know. Happy purchasing! 

Great Inspector Gadget Cel For the Hard Core Fan

If you're willing to pay $194.71 or more for an animation cel, here's your chance to throw yourself into the bidding competition over this beautiful, original Inspector Gadget cel currently listed on Ebay (but only for a day or so more, so don't hesitate if you want to join in on the fun!). Taken from the second regular series episode, Down on the Farm, it shows Penny and Brain in action (or rather, after action) blowing up the door to M.A.D.'s secret rocket base.

It's an extremely steep price for one cel (too steep for me), but this particular offer is pretty interesting as you get the full background for the original frame in separate layers.

This gives you a chance to study the background without the characters on top of it...

...and you can even reconstruct the blown-up tower by removing the layers with the smoke and the hole and adding a layer with the door! Great behind-the-scenes-look at the process of shooting animation!

Below are the matching screen shots from the official DVD edition. Man, just look how faded and ugly these screen shots become when compared to the beautiful original cel (below bottom). I wonder if we'll ever see the Inspector Gadget series in a properly restored, CLEAR version.

I'd seriously re-watch every episode of the show right now if I had the chance to see them in the strong, fresh colors and clean lines which the above cel offers. Maybe one magical day in the future, we'll see such a restoration of the episodes happen...

Edit: The Comic Book is In Stores August 31, Available from Viper's Online Store This Weekend

A small correction on the status of the comic book: I recently posted a comment on Viper Comics' web site asking about Gadget's exact release date, and editor Jessie Garza responded:

Posted by Jessie on 19 August 11 at 6:36am

Sorry for the confusion. The book will be in stores on the last Wednesday of this month. Inspector Gadget book can also be purchased from the Amazon.com and also will be live for orders on the Viper Store ( http://www.viperbookstore.com/ ) as of this Weekend.

Jessie

In other words, the book is not out in stores right now - but will be in 12 days, as of Wednesday, August 31. Those not wishing to wait that long can order it online from Viper (and probably other retailers as well, though Amazon still hasn't got the book in stock) as of this weekend! (A quick check reveals that the book hasn't been listed at Viper's Book Store just yet, but the weekend is still young...)



And yes, the Viper Comics Book Store does ship overseas. I asked about that, too;).

Which Inspector Gadget Character are YOU Most Like?

You know you've always wanted to know...

Inspector Gadget's Comic Book is Out This Week; Thumbs Up (Mostly) from Detroit News

This August 16 review by Eric Henderson of Geek Watch (Detroit News) seems to confirm that Inspector Gadget: Gadget on the Orient Express will not be delayed until December. Here's the very first thing Henderson writes in his brief review:

"Viper is releasing a couple licensed kid titles this week, “Inspector Gadget” and “Johnny Test.”

So there you have it. Issue 1 of Inspector Gadget's comic book is getting released this week. While the delay didn't turn out to be as long-lasting as feared, I still think Viper could have made some kind of announcement regarding the fact that one of their books were a month-and-a-half behind schedule. But at least it is out.



I'll try to get hold of the book and review it myself as soon as possible - but for now, I'll point you to Eric Henderson's review, which seems mostly enthusiastic about Gadget:

"I was a big “Inspector Gadget” fan as a kid, (...) so it was a treat to read that. (...) 

"The book flows pretty well like an “IG” episode, and I could still hear the original voices in my head as I read."

Henderson does point out one drawback, which I agree with to an extent:

"The only place that the book fell short was in the art. The characters are recognizable, but Penny’s face is a bit off, and Gadget’s face looks almost unrecognizable in a few spots. It also appears the pages were drawn for a physically larger product, so sequences feel cramped in the current format somewhere between standard comic and digest. Odd shadow work in the coloring doesn’t help."

I've felt much the same way about José Cobá's artwork, I must admit, while reading the 15 preview pages. Henderson's comments on Gadget and Penny's faces are dead-on; and I'll try to elaborate on this in my own, future review. Still, I think Cobá's shadow work can be defended, as that style of shadowing - or close to it, anyway - was used extensively in the original TV show. (Of course, the book's shrunk format perhaps being too small for this kind of shadowing is another matter.)

Anyhow... until next time, be on the lookout for THIS in comic shops - and please tell us in the comments when you do find the book in a shop, just to confirm once and for all that it truly is released!



EDIT: The book is not out in stores this week. It will be available for online ordering as of this weekend, but won't hit the store shelves until August 31. Check my latest post on the subject.

The Master of Disguise-O

Let me begin this post by saying that I'm absolutely, positively no fan of the Icelandic children's series Lazytown. However - sync one of their songs to clips of M.A.D. Agent Presto Change-O from the classic Gadget episode The Infiltration, and you somehow get a very appealing mix...

This AMV was done by YouTube user BevinKB back in 2007 and, while the video quality may be somewhat lacking, the syncing and timing is great. Not to mention believable: I certainly wouldn't put it past a self-absorbed villain like Presto Change-O to sing such a narcissistic song about himself. 

(Okay, okay! I'll post the original Lazytown video, too, so you can compare. Gotta admit the villain is actually a bit amusing to watch while performing this song...)

(What's that? You want to hear the song in its original Icelandic version, too? Fine! Okay! But just because it's so damn catchy. I can't believe I just said that about a Lazytown song.)

What The New Inspector Gadget Comic Might Have Looked Like

Found these on deviantArt a little while back and realized I had to post them here. This comic page (above) and pin-up illustration (below) are official Inspector Gadget art samples done by comic artist Andy "ND!" Genen for Viper Comics! 

   You see, back when Viper were trying to decide on the artist for their upcoming Inspector Gadget book, they apparently arranged a so-called "tryout" to find that person... letting several artists draw their version of the Gadget universe. So these are the samples that Mr. Genen produced for that assignment.

Genen's Inspector Gadget didn't make the cut, but his samples give a fun glimpse into an alternative interpretation of the Inspector in comic book form. Here's what the artist himself says about the experience (in his deviantArt comment for the pin-up):

"This was a pin-up I did for the "Inspector Gadget"-tryout at Viper Comics. Attentive followers of my stuff may recognize the background I recycled here (in fact, I had less than 24 hours to crank out a page and a pin-up...and within those 24 hours, I had no electricity for about 5 hours...)
I had SO MUCH FUN drawing those characters!!"

Despite the harsh deadline and electricity shortage, I have a feeling Genen is really genuine when shouting out how FUN it was. There's a real sense of fun to his artwork, at least - though the characters do look pretty odd at times (especially Penny - what happened to her nose and hands??). But that oddness is part of the fun!



(Oh, that's right: Click here to visit the main deviantArt page of Mr. Genen and check out some of the other cool stuff he's drawing.)

SECOND FIRST LOOK: The Rest of Inspector Gadget's Comic Book Preview

Since we're still waiting for that first, official issue of Viper's comic book, I thought I might as well post the rest of the preview pages included with the Inspector Gadget: M.A.D Dash iPad game (especially seeing as that game is currently available for free on iTunes). A full review of these comic pages is on its way - but meanwhile, read for yourself and let us know what you think! Presenting pages 6-15 of Dale Mettam and José Cobá's Inspector Gadget on the Orient Express (continuing where we left off in my February 14 post)...

Page 6...

Page 7 and 8...

...page 9...

...page 10-11...

...page 12-13...

...AND page 14-15, ending the preview with a genuine splash (page)!

Go, Go, Gadgetinis Wallpapers!

Came across these nice-looking Gadget & the Gadgetinis wallpapers and thought I'd post them here for fans of this modern Gadget spinoff. While Gadgetinis has its share of flaws, this French-produced 2002 series is arguably the best revival of Inspector Gadget since the original show - and the only one to involve all three original creators (Jean Chalopin developed it and wrote most of the episodes, Bruno Bianchi directed and produced and Andy Heyward served as executive producer). Despite not personally being the show's biggest fan, I do hope the complete series makes it onto English-language DVDs one day (France is currently the only country to have seen such a release). But for now, enjoy the wallpapers.

(Thanks, MultBox.Ucoz.Ru.)