One Bear,One Blog......

After a few months of build up DC Comics has begun it's annual title crossover event : Blackest Night.

The cross overs can be a hit and miss affair - 'Crisis on Infinite Earth' was a bullseye hit.

'Infinite Crisis' was also a square-between-the-eye's hit.

'Final Crisis' was a big miss. I mean WTF happened? The plot (too confusing to describe here) was convoluted to the point of well...convolusion.

The only interesting thing to come out of the series was the death (although he really isn't) of Batman. Interesting because now Dick Grayson has inherites the mantle of the Bat and the different Batman titles have a whole new dynamic.

And now we have 'Blackest Night'.

Over the last couple of Years DC has killed off some of it's hero's. Blue Beetle, Martian Manhunter, Aquaman, Elongated Man....to name but a few.

Writer Geoff Johns has expanded the Green Lantern mythos by creating a whole slew of corps, all represenative of the emotional spectrum. FOr example, the Red Lanterns are full of rage, the Indigo Lanterns are representative of Hope, the Pink Lanterns are Love..and so forth.

But the Black Lanterns...

The Black Lanterns are anti-life and the series opened with the Black Lantern Power rings descend through the cosmos seeking out dead flesh to be their host's..dead flesh such as Blue Beetle,Martian Manhunter....you get the picture!

Issue one came out this week and Geof John's has done a cracking job of kicking it off with a bang - the resurrected Elongated Man ripping the heart out of his old team buddy Hawkman...then placing a Black Lantern ring on his dead hand...

A good start, let's hope it doesn't disappoint like these series that have come before.

Matt Smith looks cool as teh new Doctor - a bit of geeky Professor image with tweed jacket (with elbow paches) and bow tie.

Looking forward to New Years Day!

So a friend of mine recently became a father.

We've been friends for over ten years now, we met when we were both employed by the same for beerscompany but in different hotels.

We would go out - not just the two of us but a crowd of colleagues - every Friday night for beers, starting at The Crown in Seven Dials and this would in turn become an all night session ending in an indian at the Balti House, also in Covent Garden.

Mmmmm I can still see the huge family naan breads they used to serve and we would devour accomapnied with a CTM.

That's a Chicken Tikka Masala to the civilians.

I was around when he split with his girlfriend of five years and was more than a little instrumental in his meeting his next girlfiend and uiltimately his wife and mother of his child.

We shared a flat for a few years and this was a real batchelor pad - even though one of the batchelor's was gay - and generally only got a good clean when the previousely mentioned girlfriend would stay at the weekend.

Curry's on a Friday, Lasagne on a Saturday, beer flowing, barbecues on the roof of the flat and homemade Long Island Tea.

Happy times.

I then left to go to Manchester and we stayed in touch.

Emails a couple of times a week, the odd phone call, that kind of thing.

I remember popping down for a weekend to help them move into their new flat and I distinctly remember carrying all his bloody CD's up four flights of stairs.

Anyway..

When I returned to London to live with G we kinda rekindled our close friendship and became drinking buddies once more.

No longer downing beer by the pint we had moved on to a more sophisticated fayre of Bourbon and Cocktails.

It was during one of these many drinking sessions that he asked me to be his best man at this wedding and I can honestly say my heart burst with pride at the prospect.

Plus I got to organise his stag weekend,which I have to say was very good.

I don't think Dublin has recovered yet.

And now a year later he is a Dad.

And I get that their lives have changed on a major scale, I get that he is now responsible for a helpless human being and he is now a family man.

I get that his focus must now be his family and his time is precious.

I get that drinks can't happen on the same weekly basis as they used to, or the extreme that they used to in the past.

I get all that.

But a selfish little part of me misses my drinking buddy.

Stupid, huh?

A year later and the old blog muscle is a little atrophied and will need some flexing so bear with as I attempt to get back into this.

So where have I been?

Well, New york to begin with, last November.

Then the Caribbean at Christmas.

Then the South of France for a week in May this year.

oh, in between these trips I did do SOME work...

Kinda.

And now G and I sit amongst packing boxes as the flat is packed away and we ready for our move to the new House.

That's right, a frickin' house!!

I can't begin describe how happy this makes me.

The flat has been fine, we have been living together for over two years now and we have simply outgrown it.

Too many comics, I keep being reminded.

We need the space and the in the new place we will have just that.

It's a nice three bedroomed place set over four levels.

It has a very low maintenance garden ('natch) that was meant to be a haven for the BBQ coniseur, such as my good self.

It also has a nice sized cellar perfect for storing a bottle of vino..or 90!

It's just what we need.

But at the end of the day, after all is said and done it's just a house.

Wherever G is, that's my home.

''If you have a camera I suggest you take it out and look to your right'' said the bus driver.

He was referring to the fantastic view of the Manhattan skyline that becoming clear in the distance.

We had boarded the 7.15 bus to Woodbury Common, it was full with people with suitcases - serious shoppers.

I turned to the right but all I could see was hair.

Lots of hair.

Her afro was HUGE.