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THE GAMECOCK ♦ Friday, February 1, 2002 5 e - * CONTACT US - THEY SAID IT Story ideas? Questions? Comments? ANONYMOUS: “Learn from yesterday, live E-mail us at gamecockmixeditor@hotmail.com for today, and hope for tomorrow.” REMEMBERING rnTTiri TJT7'T3AI?Q Lriih ilHjiiUiliO Sept. 11 heroes star in tribute comic books ► BY TUG BAKER TIIKII.V.MKCOCK A bolt of crimson and blue drops onto the hard pavement of the dust tilled streets. Spider-Man looks up at a distraught couple coming to ward him. The questions they ask will haunt him forever. “Where were you? How could you let this happen?” The events of Sept. 11 are still overwhelming. While there could be no escaping the cold hand of re ality as the world watched the im ages on CNN that day, it is still hard to fathom such an event ever occurring in our lifetime. Isn’t someone supposed to come and save us? Where was Spider-Man? > Superman? Where were our he roes? The truth of the matter is that Sept. 11 taught us more about true heroism than we could ever learn from a comic book. Understanding this lesson better than anyone else, the comic book community rallied together and helped the only way they knew how. Since that fateful day, many comic book companies have produced special tribute books to honor the real American heroes. On Oct. 17, a little over a month after the attacks, the first such book, Marvel’s “Heroes” was re leased. “Everyone wanted to do something to help, but they won’t , le t us move bricks and mortar. This gives us a focus to help,” Marvel Editor in Chief Joe Quesada said. “Heroes” was the 64-page poster dook couaDoration oi top names in the field, and it focused on the po lice officers and firefighters who risked and lost their lives. Some pictures featured Marvel super heroes standing alongside the NYPD and FDNY; others simply fo cused on the emergency workers by themselves. “Heroes” flew off the shelves as comic fans and non-fans, knowing that all proceeds would go to the NYPD, FDNY and the Red Cross, paid $3.50 to help the cause. Many consumers bought three or four copies in order to help out all that > tli ■ \ could. Besides the sales prof its, Marvel set up an auction for all the ordinal art from the book, and raised over $66,000 for the Twin Tov, rs Fund. The auction brought a great deal of media attention to how comic book publishers were doingtheir part in the aftermath of the tragedy. “Heroes” is in its third printing now and can be found at most comic retailers. Overachievers from the start, Mai vel did not stop its support with just one comic. Only a week after die release of “Heroes,” Amazing i jder-Man No. 36 was released. The cover is plain black, and the sioj-y inside was the first and only cup be to deal directly with how the tragedy affected the superheroes of the Marvel universe. The story fol lows Spider-Man as he and other superheroes lend a hand in the res cue effort following the collapse of the towers. Writer J. Michael Straczynski, regular Amazing Spider-Man writer and creator of “Babylon 5,” admitted that he didn’t want to write the story at first. However, he and the editors at Marvel realized that Spider-Man, more than any of their other characters, represent ed New York City; therefore, telling the story through the eyes of Peter Parker was the only way to go. Amazing Spider-Man’s sales went through the roof, selling 86,436 copies and becoming the seventh best-selling comic in October, ac cording to Chad Bowers, comics manager at Heroes and Dragons in Columbia. Why the incredible suc cess? “All the other books are man on-the-street stories, and Amazing (Spider-Man) was the first to look at it from the superhero angle,” Bowers said. It was that originality that has brought the value of the is sue from its $2.25 cover price to around $25. Marvel’s next offering was this month’s “Moment of Silence,” which began with a forward by New York Mayor Rudolph Giuliani and featured work by Kevin Smith. The book told real stories of Sept. 11 from families and witnesses. One even concerned a Marvel employee’s fa ther who was killed while helping firefighters in the rescue efforts. Alternative press was tne next comic publisher to produce a trib ute issue, entitled simply “9-11.” DC Comics banded with inde pendent publishers Oni, Chaos!, Dark Horse and Image Comics to produce a two-volume set entitled “September, 11.” Released last week at $9.95 each, these issues weave a variety of stories. There is everything from a speculative piece on what happened on Flight 93 to a fanciful tale where Superman’s dog Krypto brings a 10-foot-wide water bowl to exhausted rescue dogs. While their characters could not be around to help out in the wake of Sept. 11, comic book publishers have most definitely done their best to fill in for their superhero cre ations by highlighting the valor and bravery of America’s real heroes, the men and women who sacrificed their lives for the greater good. The question posed to Spider Man still remains. Where was he? Near the end of Amazing Spider Man No. 36, the hero utters the only answer he can think of: “I have walked with gods and wept with an gels. But to my shame, I have no an swers.” Comments on this story?E-mail gamecockmixeditor@hotmail.com Several comic book publishers have put out special issues, including Matvei Comics, Alternative Press and DC Comics. Amazing Spider Man No. 36, right, was a m^or success and featured an allblack front cover. t*» »o*»fiktvr come *<-of wtirf**. * A*t!t?* <r»w, sronitt rt *f»fwm 94L SEPTEMBER lltK 2001 /- 1/ a moment o f silence . mi®*. MOVIE REVIEW “Slackers ” slumps into teenage comedy mold “SLACKERS’ Starring Jason Schwartzman ★ ★ out of BY ADAM MCALLISTER THE (.'AMECOCK It continually amazes me that Hollywood has so many choices tor feature films, yet they keep on heading back to the same well, ► dis;ging up tripe and re-serving it. Such is the case with Screen Gems' latest offering, "Slackers." It lias all the makings of yet another teen failure and offers few reasons to demand an audience's time and money. The cookie-cutter plot is an amalgam of previously seen youth-centered story lines, most of which spent very little time in theaters. In "Slackers," we follow a trio of college seniors heading towards their final walk into the rest of their lives. The twist? These guys have yet to spend one honest day's work in their scholastic careers. Whether it's a search for exam answers or an elaborate scheme to pass a class, Dave, Sam and Jeff (generically played by Devon Sawa, Jason Segel and Michael C. Maronna, respectively) find a way to place more effort into avoiding work than doing the work itself. However, a problem arises during one of their impossible plans when Ethan (portrayed by the slumming Jason Schwartzman) catches the boys in the act and threatens expulsion - unless they get him a girl. But not just any girl. He wants Angela (James King), the object of his twisted, almost stalker-esque imagination. Entwined within this ridiculous tale, the producers decided to add elements of many teen films of the past. We find the gross-out comedy fundamentals, made famous and improved upon in films like "There's Something About Mary" and "American Pie.” Also 'nan attempt at cinematic redemption, we see the ever-popular teen romance oddly mixed in at the end. But with the 87-minute running time, this mix never comes to fruition. Even the characters, to no one's surprise, are derivatives of cliches seen throughout the past few years. The exception, however, goes to Schwartzman, who should be recognized from the near cult classic "Rushmore." Rarely have we seen such a strong film debut from a young, talented actor followed up by such a terrible choice. Nevertheless, Schwartzman's poor selection in material shouldn’t take away from his performance, one of the few bright spots to be found. His antics, together with the original songs he wrote for the film, come together to make a fun yet bothersome character. The production team behind the film has other recognizable features to its credit, like "I Still Know What You Did Last Summer," "Saving Silverman" and "Urban Legends: Final Cut." That in itself should be a warning sign. Behind the camera, making his feature directorial debut, is Dewey Nicks. Nicks has made quite a name for himself over the past decade, first working in print advertising and then graduating to popular television ad campaigns. His past seemingly comes back to haunt him with a frantic shooting style that rarely translates into comedy. It's obvious to see that Nicks' ideas are grounded in solid thought, possibly leading to: bright future; however, stylistically this outing went overboard and subtracted from what little story remains on screen. "Slackers" ultimately translates to one thing: an uninspiring and undistinguished teenage comedy, hopefully of a dying genre. This one should even skip your rental list. Comments on this story?E-maci gamecockmixeditor@hotmail.com Jeff (Michael C. Maronna), Dave(Devon Sawa) and Sam (Jason Segel) are roommates scammlng their way through college. PHOTO BY PETER SOREL Naming the new canon of rock MARKHARTNEY gamecockmixeoitor@h6tmail.com Fast-forward 20 years. Creed is now classic rock. People watch "That OO’s Show" but still don’t know how to refer to the decade (assuming "That 80’s Show” succeeds, which, we all must admit, is a long shot). Certain songs will be identified with our generation. For my listing purposes, I’m going to stick with the years I remember truly becoming a fan of music, from the late ’80s to a few years ago, when Limp Bizkit, Korn and all the rest started whining more than Kurt Cobain and Eddie Vedder. If you think bands like Linkin Park saved rock, you probably also own the "Pearl Harbor" Special Edition DVD and your vote will not be counted. These songs are not the best songs of our time, nor are they the most successful. These are the songs whose words are stored in our subconscious, whose melody will conjure a place and time that you will try in vain to describe to your child, who now listens to the Grammy-winning Monkeys Banging On Garbage Cans. Before we forget, I’m going to write them down for you. "SMELLS LIKE TEEN SPIRIT by Nirvana. Obviously. This song was the beginning and end of the ostensible grunge movement that made Seattle bands like Soundgarden cool, however briefly. This song’s video simultaneously ruined MTV by giving art college hacks the belief that they could direct. JEREMY by Pearl Jam. Second-most obvious. Weren’t you confused when Jeremy killed his whole class? Wait, no, he committed suicide. It all makes sense now. If there was ever a song that screamed "angst," it was this. Millions of teenagers immediately identified, since Kurt Cobain was mostly mumbling. "ONE" by U2. Since I limited myself to one song, I chose this for its simplicity and resonance. Other songs from "The Joshua Tree" are certainly competitive, but slightly too dated. They remain one of the two most consistently relevant acts in music, partly due to Bono’s knowing God personally. "LOSING MY RELIGION" by R.E.M. Once again, a mostly unintelligible song. Its chorus, however, speaks to the alienation that Generation X felt from their parents and society, mainly because they were too lazy to work. The second-most consistent band of our formative years. "UNDER THE BRIDGE" by Red Hot Chili Peppers. Funk-rockers turn soft and enjoy the biggest hit of their careers. They were cool before this, so everyone claimed to have heard all about them before "BloodSugarSexMagik . 90s balladry at its finest. "Today" by Smashing Pumpkins. The prequel to "Tonight," this put Billy Corgan and company in the spotlight until they turned into vampires and combusted. That’s where I’ll end. I could add something by Stone Temple Pilots or The Cranberries, but I feel I’ve compromised enough with the Pumpkins: I remain open to suggestions. I regret leaving off bands like Radiohead and Ben Folds Five, but not Counting Crows and Phish Matthews Traveler. In closing, I urge those of you who don’t know the words to “Istanbul (Not Constantinople)” and “Blister In the Sun” to return your copies of “The Fast and the Furious” and proceed to Manifest. ---3T Hartney is a fourth-year Chemistry student.