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COMICS
REVIEW: REVISITING CLASSIC FANTASY THEMES MAKES MICE TEMPLAR A SATISFYING EXPERIENCE
I’ve been following this series since it began. It doesn’t have the traits of my usual picks - that is, no spandex, or space ships, or surprising resurrections. It doesn’t even have any secret identities! But what Mice Templar does offer is great story telling, and that’s enough to make it stand out from the superheroes crowding the racks.
Writer Bryan J.L Glass (Magician: Apprentice) and artist Mike Avon Oeming (Powers) are crafting this series in to the next great epic in sequential art. I’d compare it to Lord of the Rings since it deals with a dirty fantasy world rich in textured history, but it can also win favour with the Narnia crowd in the way it wraps deceptively cute anthropomorphic adventures in a cloak of adult themes. It would undoubtedly be a more engrossing experience reading the complete series, once finished, in collected form, but thankfully each issue has a handy reminder of what’s come before to refresh the memory. Since this is a bi-monthly series, this addition is particularly welcome and the casual reader should find enough with any issue to be hooked immediately.
REVIEW: ATOMIC ROBO WILL "RENEW YOUR LOVE" FOR COMICS
Atomic Robo made an impression on the comics scene last year the same way he does in this story; packed with action and pleasant surprises. From new publisher, Red 5 ( who seem to be picking their projects wisely), this series is the ideal gateway title.
If you’ve been away from comics for a while with all the soap opera spandex stories, or the ever-increasing adult tales wrapped in seemingly childlike packages, then you need to do yourself a favour. You need to buy Atomic Robo Volume 1. It will renew your love for the medium and give you faith in its future. Books that are simply fun and that can be shared with the whole family are a rarity on today’s stands. Robo is a new creation, yet he brings together the best bits of pulp adventurers as well as the fun of early Savage Dragon and the 'actiony' wit of Hellboy (the movie version).
First, a confession: I am an avid fan of the original Get Smart series. So, that said, you can understand that I approached the new Get Smart film with some trepidation - after all, it does come in the wake of some disastrous remakes like latest Pink Panther incarnation starring Steve Martin.
The trepidation was somewhat justified. Sure, the latest Get Smart does provide some laughs - there’s a cone of silence scene and a scene involving an aircraft and a crossbow that rivals the original series, but overall it doesn’t really come close to replicating the wit of the original.
To his credit, Steve Carell does a fair job of bringing Agent 86, Maxwell Smart, back to the screen and Anne Hathaway makes a reasonable effort at portraying his sidekick, 99, although her persona is a dramatic shift on that played by Barbara Feldon. Other cast choices aren’t so good - Alan Arkin isn’t terribly convincing as The Chief, David Koechner’s Larabee is just a mindless thug and Terrance Stamp was not a good choice for Max’s nemesis - Siegfried, the leader of KAOS.
DAVID ADAMS says the latest Get Smart movie doesn't hold a candle to the original... |
more...|
THE DISPOSABLE ONES A CONFRONTING LOOK AT LIFE AMONG COLOMBIA'S POOREST
Australian rugby league professional Jason Stevens steps a little out of his comfort zone in this Compassion Australia-funded Karbon International production of The Disposable Ones. The documentary is about children; more precisely those in Colombia who are branded the detritus of society in a culture stunted by poverty, frustrated by drug related civil war, and prone to family breakdown.
Predictably, the reel casts off in Australia where, around a dinner table, Jason discusses with family his reasons for wanting to experience a short spell in Colombia. It’s the children that primarily draw him there; those abused and thrown away by society, appropriately nicknamed ‘ninos gamines’ or 'the disposable ones'. His desire is to see how poverty affects them, what their lives are really like and ultimately, to come to a conclusion about how he can help.
CHOE BRERETON takes a look at one of the films in the Faith on Film Festival - the Jason Stevens' documentary, The Disposable Ones... |
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FAITH ON FILM: NEW FESTIVAL TO SHOWCASE CHRISTIAN MOVIES... |
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"EYES OPENED": FORMER RUGBY LEAGUE STAR JASON STEVENS COMES FACE-TO-FACE WITH THE PLIGHT OF CHILDREN IN COLOMBIA... |
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BOOKS: SEVEN WAYS TO CHANGE THE WORLD - JIM WALLIS' CHALLENGE TO A GENERATION LOOKING TO MAKE THE WORLD A BETTER PLACE
Get involved. That, in precis, is the message of US evangelical Christian political thinker and activist Jim Wallis in his latest book Seven Ways To Change The World: Reviving Faith And Politics.
Following on from his best-selling God’s Politics, Seven Ways To Change The World charts some of the positive moves that have been made in the US in recent years with regard to the vexed issue of religion and politics - particularly the loss of the hold of the ‘Religious Right’ as the only voice for Christianity in the US political sphere - and posits the idea of the political position of ‘conservative radical’ as an alternative to the left and right partisan politics currently on offer in the States.
Wallis then turns to seven major arenas in which Christians can make an impact and, in doing so, change the world for the better. These subjects he covers under the banner of his seven themes, such as 'Life and Dignity' and 'Equality and Diversity,' are broad and include everything from poverty to caring for the environment and tackling racism and sexism, through to human trafficking, slavery, abortion and the Iraq war.
DAVID ADAMS is challenged afresh with Jim Wallis' latest book, Seven Ways To Change The World...|
more... |
MUSIC: TOBYMAC'S FIRST LIVE DVD SHOWCASES HIS BEST
dcTalk helped me become a Christian. I saw their Welcome to the Freak Show live concert on VHS and couldn’t believe they were a Christian band. Surely Christian music had guys in braces playing harps and singing, “Hallelujah,” all the time. Right? Wrong-thankfully. I loved that album and listened to the tape so many times I destroyed it. Then when Jars of Clay, Newsboys and delirious came along all my misconceptions about Christianity were swept away. Contemporary Christian music has been an integral part of my life since.
dcTalk’s last album of new material, 1998’s Supernatural, was certainly a fitting swansong from the groundbreaking boys, and the demand for an immediate re-union was high. I don’t think many people expected TobyMac to be the most successful solo artist after the split. With the soaring voices of Michael Tait and Kevin Max “that guy that does all the rapping” had to work hard to get noticed. But he did, and it paid off.
KRIS BATHER takes a look at TobyMac's first live DVD... |
more... |
The idea began when Mark Fogarty, a full time youth pastor, felt God calling him to a ministry of helping small churches to use new media on a limited budget. He started Muddy River Media, a non-profit mission society that exists to consistently provide free, quality media resources for churches, and it does it by providing them for download on the internet. The most interesting content on the site is the growing array of videos that can be used in church, studies, children's ministries or outreach events, some packaged complete with printable leader's guides.
JAMES CROOK finds a website packed with resources for churches... |
more... |
Earlier this month , yet another teenager died as a result of gang-related violence in London - the eighteenth this year.
An Independent on Sunday investigation suggested that almost 14,000 people a year are injured in knife attacks. Some authorities believe the number may be much higher, because many people do not report their injuries for fear of reprisals.
In his second article on the issue, MAL FLETCHER writes about the problem of youth violence in the UK...| more... |
THEY SAID IT
“Young friend, God & his people expect much from u, because u have within u the Father’s supreme gift: the Spirit of Jesus – BXVI"
- Pope Benedict XVI in a text message sent to 150,000 pilgrims attending the opening mass of World Youth Day in Sydney. For previous 'They said it'...| more...
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DID YOU KNOW?
THE
STATISTIC
Number of people said to have been killed as a result of a campaign of genocide in Darfur allegedly master-minded by Sudanese President Omar Hassan al-Bashir, according to International Criminal Court Prosecutor Luis Moreno-Ocampo:
Click here to go
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FORUMS THIS WEEK
PETROL PRICES
The price of petrol is hitting record levels in Australia and around the world. What are your thoughts?
SIGHTPOLL
Should Australian ban or introduce a checkout levy on plastic bags?
THE 'BIG IDEA'
Hundreds of ideas came out of the Federal Government's 2020 Summit on the weekend addressing a plethora of issues confronting Australian society. Which idea stood out to you? And what's your big idea to make Australia a better place?
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here to go
to the forums to have your say...
To me, humility is about being self-forgetful. How hard is that? I find that the more I think about this issue, that it is fundamentally about trust. When I don’t forget myself in the sense that Jesus meant, then I am clinging on to my way of doing things and not trusting.
SEEING THE EYES OF CHRIST IN THE POOR
The other morning I had an experience involving a homeless man who sometimes can be seen at the bus stop I frequent each morning on my way to work. This particular morning he was at the corner of one of the intersections where I cross the road waiting at the lights when I was walking up to them. As I approached the lights the homeless man and I exchanged eye contact for a second, so I said ‘How you going mate?’
NILS VON KALM'S blog on faith, life and how it all might fit together...|
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STRANGESIGHTS:
IT'S A BIRD, IT'S A PLANE - NO, IT'S GORDON BROWN!...
Following on from former British PM Tony Blair's appearance on The Simpsons, his successor, Gordon Brown, has also leapt into the animated world with an appearance in Marvel's comic, Captain Britain and MI13. The PM, working alongside the fictional intelligence agency MI13, is apparently involved in defeating aliens intent on invading known as Skrulls.
DAVID
ADAMS writes about the odder side of life...|
more... |
Sight's
trial podcast is now available to download online. The first of what we
hope will become a monthly feature, the podcast features discussions on
The Da Vinci Code, giving donations as presents, Wow! featuring
Switchfoot and a "live" cooking demonstration by "celebrity
chef" Jamie Crookiver.
• Grammy Award winners in the Gospel categories;
• Delirious? set to release final album with Stew Smith as drummer;
• Hillsong United to release iHeart Revolution : With Hearts As One project; and
• Newsboys win honors, ready for Rezfest... |
more... |
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YOU AT SIGHT!
We're looking for journalists,
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I’ve been following this series since it began. It doesn’t have the traits of my usual picks - that is, no spandex, or space ships, or surprising resurrections. It doesn’t even have any secret identities! But what Mice Templar does offer is great story telling, and that’s enough to make it stand out from the superheroes crowding the racks.
Atomic Robo made an impression on the comics scene last year the same way he does in this story; packed with action and pleasant surprises. From new publisher, 
Get involved. That, in precis, is the message of US evangelical Christian political thinker and activist Jim Wallis in his latest book Seven Ways To Change The World: Reviving Faith And Politics.
dcTalk helped me become a Christian. I saw their Welcome to the Freak Show live concert on VHS and couldn’t believe they were a Christian band. Surely Christian music had guys in braces playing harps and singing, “Hallelujah,” all the time. Right? Wrong-thankfully. I loved that album and listened to the tape so many times I destroyed it. Then when Jars of Clay, Newsboys and delirious came along all my misconceptions about Christianity were swept away. Contemporary Christian music has been an integral part of my life since. 
The idea began when Mark Fogarty, a full time youth pastor, felt God calling him to a ministry of helping small churches to use new media on a limited budget. He started Muddy River Media, a non-profit mission society that exists to consistently provide free, quality media resources for churches, and it does it by providing them for download on the internet. The most interesting content on the site is the growing array of videos that can be used in church, studies, children's ministries or outreach events, some packaged complete with printable leader's guides.
Earlier this month , yet another teenager died as a result of gang-related violence in London - the eighteenth this year. 
