Hey there All,

There is a lot of good stuff going on this week. My wife, who until recently was a bit bummed about her job, started getting into the wonderful world of illustration!!! She bought a whole bunch of Prismacolor markers and set about the task of learning how to color like a champ. After several illustrations I sent her a link from the Atomic Think Tank where an artist just getting into sketching was asking for some criticism. She blew through the illustration in no time flat and then scanned it in and did a bang up job with some photo shop special effects. I love the way that this turned out!

As some of you know, RPG Objects is going to war . Although putting them in charge of the war in Iraq would probably yield better results, they are actually time machining it back to the era of World War II to give product material to their Blood and line of d20 Modern Products. One of the products I am psyched about was leaked onto EN World today as a tie in for the World War II line to the Blood and Vigilance setting. Part of the Modern Dispatch line, The Kampfgruppe Eugenik, will be a listing of a six-villain team to be used against golden age heroes. I love the idea of using supers in a WWII game as it brings out the adventure in the era while at the same time allowing one to address the atrocities that were seen during that time.

Many fans of the Star Wars franchise will recognize the name Red-5 as the call sign for Luke Skywalker in the movie A New Hope. This name will be a tip of the hat to Lucas in a newly created comic book publishing company.

CALGARY, AB — February 12, 2007 — The creators of some of the internet’s most popular entertainment websites announced today they are launching a new comic publishing company that will introduce its first titles this fall.

Red 5 Comics is the creation of Paul Ens, former director of Lucasfilm’s StarWars.com and Lucas Online, and Scott Chitwood, co-founder of TheForce.net and contributor to ComingSoon.net and SuperheroHype.com.

True to the passions of its founders, Red 5 Comics will produce cinematic-style stories that appeal to the same avid movie and comic fans who already frequent their websites. The Red 5 line-up will be a combination of creator-owned and internally developed titles. Individual comic issues will be sold in both traditional print form at comic shops and in downloadable electronic formats online.

“Over the years, we’ve had the great pleasure to cross paths, both online and in-person, with many talented and creative people,” said Ens, “from artists, to writers, to filmmakers and actors, and countless enthusiastic fans. Not only have they been a great inspiration, but we plan to include many of them in Red 5 as well.”

Among the titles currently in development are…

· Abyss - Kevin Rubio’s short-film, TROOPS, was one of the first true video events on the internet. His latest creation, Abyss, tells the comedic and dysfunctional tale of the relationship between a son and his powerful supervillain father. Lucas Marangon is drawing the series, re-uniting the popular creative team behind the wildly imaginative Star Wars: Tag and Bink comic series.

· Atomic Robo - Brian Clevinger (NuklearPower.com 8-Bit Theater) and Scott Wegener (Negative Burn, Wicked West 2) chronicle the Action Science adventures of Nikola Tesla’s robot across the twentieth century and beyond.

· Midknight - Tom Hodges (”How to Draw Star Wars”, WizardUniverse.com’s “Artists to Watch” 2006) creates and illustrates the exploits of a husband-and-wife team who fight crime from the office by day and on the streets of Philadelphia at night.

· Neozoic - Created by Paul Ens (Star Wars: Evasive Action), Neozoic imagines a gritty sci-fi / fantasy world where dinosaurs did not become extinct, and humanity lives under the constant threat of giant predators. The art of J. Korim (Rotogin: Junkbotz) brings the world to life.

· Afterburn - When half the planet is destroyed by a solar flare, out of the ashes emerge the action adventures of Jake and his treasure-hunters for hire. Afterburn is written by Scott Chitwood and Paul Ens, drawn by Wayne Nichols (Lady Supreme: Supreme Sacrifice), with covers by “Rock Star of Illustration” Matt Busch.

Red 5 Comics is proud to be presented by ComingSoon.net and SuperheroHype.com, two of the best-respected and most-visited fan-based movie websites on the planet.

To find out more, read the creators’ blogs, sign-up for the newsletter, check out the latest comic industry headlines, or apply to become a creator, visit Red 5 Comics online at http://www.red5comics.com

Stay tuned for more inky goodness as HAZARD Studios has some exciting stuff coming down the pipe!

Regards,

Walt

We went to the movies yesterday to see Ghost Rider. I had a great time with it as I am a fan of the comics and think Nicholas Cage is a nut (in a good way). The movie played along the path of the typical character back story leading up to current events. Nicholas Cage plays Johnny Blaze, a stunt rider who years before made a pact with the devil in order to save his dad from cancer. There were slight deviations and mish mashes from the comics done in the movie. It is my opinion that this was done to make a broad reaching character that had more than just I’ll beat you up while I am on fire. Nicholas Cage was a bit overdone as Johnny Blaze with the Elvis like glasses and stare (he poses several times like he was going to sing Jailhouse Rock). Eva Mendez was a bit more credible and grounded the film a bit (if that was possible). The special effects in the film were very tight when they came to Ghost Rider but lacked in other places.

The story starts with a young Johnny working in a carnival doing tricks on a bike with his dad. Johnny is approached by a mysterious stranger who offers him help for his father, who is keeping an illness a secret. Taking the deal, Johnny soon is left to make his way in the world leaving all he knows behind, including a younger version of Roxanne, who later in the film is played by Eva Mendez. As events unfold, the stranger comes back to Johnny to put him in play against the vile “Blackheart,” who aims to bring hell on earth. Johnny takes on the mantel of the “Ghost Rider” in order to stop Blackheart and ensure safety for those that he cares for.

I had a great time, as the film was mostly eye-candy and a fun romp through the Marvel Universe. If you are a Ghost Rider fan then seeing this on the big screen is a must. If you are not a Ghost Rider fan and you have a wall screen or a giant plasma… You could always wait for the video.

If you’ve seen the film please chime in…

Regards,
Walt

I don't suck...you do!

There are those rare times in life that come along and bite you in the rear. One of those times came out of no-where and body tackled my wife and I. But as in all things…we will just keep on keeping on and then come back later and spit into some one’s eye.

Earlier last week my wife called me at midnight (she worked overnights) to tell me that she had been fired from her job. After hearing the circumstances of the dismissal, any laymen whose only exposure to the law is the TV could tell that this was a wrongful dismissal and the place where she worked had handled the entire ordeal unprofessionally and wrongfully. Ever fiber of my being told me to go down to her employer and beat his bony little backside for being a complete moron. Thanks God I am not into fiber or I might have ended up in jail. There were many mistakes that were made on the part of this employer and as a result I have people screaming at us to take legal action. We could VERY EASILY take this person and his company for a large chunk of change and embarrass them in their eyes of their peers. They not only violated several laws and codes of conduct in my wife’s dismissal but they also shot themselves in the foot for firing one of the best staff members they had. At the end of the day, my wife gets to look to a future full of promise and these people will still be spite filled idiots so full of themselves that they can’t see their tragic faults. There are a few diamonds in the rough (and they not only know who they are, they know we love them) but they are in the minority. In short, good riddance Mother F***ers!

Anyone who wants to send a well wishing or make her a job offer [wink, wink] can go to the front page of the HAZARD Studios web site and send it to my email address. I will make sure that she sees it.

Other than the aforementioned nonsense…things are going well. I was foreseeing that I was going to go to Fort Leonard Wood for MP training but as is usually the case the Army has dropped the ball so most likely I will be staying here for a bit. With that being the case, re-enlisting is looking less and less attractive as I don’t want to be part of an organization that can’t pull their head out of their ass to see where they are going.

That means MORE time for art and games!

If you haven't checked them out already...Please take a trip down to Fear the Boot! The Forums are fun, the podcast is great and you can learn all sorts of great things about table top role playing games. Definitely a must listen if you are into podcasts about RPG's.

Project 13 is set to get back on track after another month when I should have this interrupting project out of the way. For those of you just tuning in, Project 13 is about a future that could exist if the powers that drive the universe all smoked a fat bag of crazy. Futuristic technology combined with superhuman abilities and an expansionist drive, run a setting for d20 Modern. The next story element for Project 13 (along with original art) should hit the stands some time next week.

I am also thinking about running another contest this April in conjunction with the Second Year of HAZARD Studios. April 4^th is Our Birthday (I think) and we will be launching another HAZARDous Character contest to celebrate. This year up for grabs will be free character web space as well as Gift Certificates to Amazon dot com and EN World dot com.

Well, That’s it for now…

Until next time…

Make it HAZARDous!

Walt