Thank you for your interest, young man



As promised, the Ninja Mafia shirt photos are now viewable in the shop. Some of them are clearer and better framed, but I love them all equally.



In my never-ending quest to be exactly like Jeph and John, I'm going to do the whole top-ten-albums-of-the-year deal at the end of this year. I don't really think I'm qualified to pick the year's "best" albums, but I should at least be able to defend my personal favourites. And since we've reached 2004's half-way point, now is as good a time as any for me to share my favourite five so far. If you're anything like me, you probably like to "try before you buy," so I've included the names of a couple of "must hear" tracks from each album that I think will sell you on the whole discs.



A.C. Newman - The Slow Wonder

I never really got into the New Pornographers, but their frontman's debut solo album had me hooked instantly. A great pop-rock album that comes heavily recommended by three-out-of-four webcartoonists.

Must Hear: Miracle Drug, Most of us Prizefighters



Franz Ferdinand - Franz Ferdinand

Kind of like the Strokes, only with a pulse. Actually, it's exactly like that.

Must Hear: Jacqueline, Take Me Out



Slipknot - Vol 3.: The Subliminal Verses

Fantastic on its own, but plain astounding considering the band's back catalog. From a group I used to enjoy simply because they were so ridiculous comes a CD that I enjoy because it is SO GREAT. More variety, depth and musicality than you'd expect from nine screaming dudes in masks.

Must Hear: The Blister Exists, Danger - Keep Away, Opium of the People



The Living End - Modern Artillery

This disc was technically a 2003 release in some parts of the world, but North America finally got with it earlier this year. It's a shame that these guys still don't have much of a following here, since they keep getting better and better with every album.

Must Hear: Jimmy, One Said to the Other



Clutch - Blast Tyrant

Clutch is great. RAAAR! I'm sure getting sick of writing these album descriptions.

Must Hear: Cypress Groove, The Mob Goes Wild



Listen, love, purchase.



Sam Logan

I'm just a crosshair



Whew! I just got home from the Canada Day celebrations, and I nearly forgot to update the website before going to bed! Man, that would have been a stupid way to break my perfect updating record. I was going to post the photos of readers in their Ninja Mafia gear tonight, but it's way too late to get started on a project like that. I'll put em all up on Monday though, I promise!



Spider-Man 2 was fantastic. It's easily my favourite comic-to-movie adaptation ever. I don't know what combination of stellar acting, computer animation, animatronics and witchcraft was required to make a live-action Doc Ock appear genuinely menacing, but apparently this flick's creatives did. Alfred Molina owns every second he spends on screen.



Sam Logan

There ain't no giving it up, we're just movin' on up, straight to the top



I hope you are enjoying all of these strips with ten thousand characters crammed into every panel. After this storyline is over, I think I'm going to have to run "The Adventures of Mr. Black Square in the White, Windowless Room," for a few weeks, just to recover. I drew this strip weeks ago, and my hand still cramps up just looking at it.



The title of today's rant comes from the song "The Step" recorded by the uniquely named !!!. I think Chik Chik Chik is the accepted romanized spelling. Anyhow, the song is seriously funky. Check it out, but don't judge it until you've heard it the whole way through. It's a slow build.



Spider-man 2, the one summer blockbuster that I am interested in seeing, premiers tommorrow. I don't imagine I'll actually be braving the massive opening-night lines to see it, but I would like to see it soon. I enjoyed everything about the first movie! Well, except maybe the Goblin's costume.



Oh, and that part about how George W. Bush had business dealings with the Osborn family. That was a bit of a stretch.



Sam Logan