Ambassador's Dispatch

February 2, 2001          vol.1 no.4

        My, my, my. February 2nd. Ground Hog's Day. And on a Friday, no less. That takes me back.

        You see, it was on just such a day and date in 1979 that I went out on my first date with Ari - though back then she went by her first name, Suzanne - who would become my wife a little over six years later. Now it's 22 years since, and where there were two there are now four (five if you count the Max, the cat), and I really do need to keep all of that in mind when a week seems rough and I bemoan the less-than-perfect state of my life.

        Deadline for the latest Legends is tomorrow, so the week started with finishes on my zine. That having been done and sent off to our CM days ago is another reason for jumping in and getting this update done two days early. I'm just waiting for the illustrious CM to send out some comfirming emails to let me know my zine arrived.

        I'm reluctant to get back into matters of national politics, at the risk of blackening my mood, but a week that included initiatives from the White House to - and let's not play games with this - fund religious groups... marks a dire time for this nation. Add the Ashcroft confirmation, and the "bipartisan" moves made to show us how gracious the GOP wants everyone to be now that it's their man in the White House and they wouldn't want the next four years to be eaten up with endless attacks that would eat up nearly all the time and energy and keep almost anything from getting done... you know, the way they did for the past eight years... and it's time for new blood pressure meds. Knowing how these weekly pieces build up, though, I did want to note these items while they're current. The sense that new infamies are right around the corner is growing.

        Next week should see my next shipment of comics arrive from Westfield, so I should be back in the thick of newer comics. Between now and then I'll likely work in some of the stragglers from my previous shipment. I'll be trying to show a greater range of titles and genres in my reviews section... but I'm still going to let my tastes of the moment drive me.

        What are you thinking about the state and future of Marvel?  Setting aside the consideration of what their financial state is - the last quarter of 2000 at least saw them looking at the possibility of running out of operating capital - Joe Quesada is at least stirring things up creatively. I don't fault him on most of the big changes so far, even if I don't care at all about the Ultimates line, and find that it's laying the groundwork for an eventual either/or battle between them and the old line of same-named heroes. The influx of creative talent we'll be seeing in a couple months has managed to get me interested enough to at least do some early, experimental ordering of the new Spider-Man and (God help me) X-titles for the first time in years.

        This week sees the start of a review section on tv and video items. Look for it back on the main page if you're interested.

        I'll see you here next week.

                                                                                           Send mail to: Mike Norton

                                                                                           Take a look back at previous Dispatches:

                                                                                                Ambassador's Dispatch no.3 (January 28, 2001)

                                                                                                Ambassador's Dispatch no.2 (January 21, 2001)

                                                                                                Ambassador's Dispatch no.1  (January 14, 2001)                                                                                                                                           

                                                                                                      ..or go Back To The Embassy!