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Our Present to All |
CHRISTMAS SPLURGE
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23/12/06
CM Team
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As this year draws to a close, we proudly offer the epic second part of our
Candleman saga:
CANDLEMAN: INFERNO.
There's the cover and the first three pages now, with one new page every
Saturday coming. (maybe two pages if you're lucky.)
Well, we're knackered, and off to take a [possibly] well-earned break.
Merry Christmas everyone! Enjoy!
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A Pre-Christmas Special |
CANDLEMAN: SNOW WARS
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19/12/06
Geoff
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To anyone who hasn't found out yet, there is a brand new three-page
Candleman strip courtesy of Chris at
http://cripspink.blogspot.com.
We'll be sure to make it a permanent addition to the main site's archive soon.
Candleman: Inferno will be arriving on Saturday 23rd.
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It's... |
CANDLEMAN SHORTS #3
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13/12/06
Geoff
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How could a garden chair pose such a menace to the Candleman?
Watch it at YouTube.com
Anyone watching, please rate our videos!
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New Pictures and ComicSpace |
MUCH GOOD STUFF
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08/12/06
Geoff
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For anyone who doesn't know yet, we have added yet another site to the Candleman
network:
http://www.comicspace.com/candleman
This is a bit like MySpace.com, but specifically for comics networking.
If you're a webcomic creator and haven't seen this yet, it's very worthwhile
and I recommend you register there. Sign up and be our friend!
Also freshly uploaded are eighteen new pictures on the
gallery page. They're a mixture of fairly new colour ones plus a bunch of
interesting older pictures I dredged up from the dark recesses of the Candleman
folder which were in dire need of putting up there.
Candleman #2: INFERNO is starting to look very lovely. The first
five pages will be up sometime before Christmas Day; I don't know what exact day
yet. When it's ready it's ready, as they say. (Whoever they are.)
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More of the Not-Same |
OTHER UPDATES
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25/11/06
Geoff
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Just letting everyone know that Chris is posting new sketches and various
Candleman related artworks every day on his personal blog at:
http://cripspink.blogspot.com
So if you're following what we're doing and want regular updates (Mon-Fri) from
his side of the process, then make sure you check it out. It's full of pictures
that aren't going to be seen here. At least not yet.
There should also be a glut of new pictures in the
gallery soon - a few finished examples of colouring ideas we've been trying
out, as well as some tasters of our epic new Candleman comic. It'll be out
around Christmas time.
Gift-wrapping service comes at an extra charge, though.
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The Running Candleman |
CANDLEMAN SHORTS #2
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19/11/06
Geoff
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Now here is the second instalment of our little Candleman Shorts series.
Is it a candle? It it a plane? Is it a joke? Is it a statement?
Or is it something like a kind of action test for something bigger, bolder, longer,
sillier, more complex and measured in minutes, not seconds?
Who knows?..
Watch it here if you haven't already seen it.
Hope you like it.
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Flash to Flesh Becomes Candleman |
A NEW HALLOWEEN...
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31/10/06
CM Team
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A New Candleman!
As you may have already noticed on the index page, things have been kicked up a notch - Candleman is now for real! (Sort of.)
We proudly present the first of our "Candleman Shorts" - a series of virtually incomprehensible video clips designed to confuse, amaze and lend an insight into the world as Candleman sees it. Plenty more will be on their way, Tom willing. And eventually a proper film... Fingers crossed.
There's also the YouTube site it's actually on - feel free to go there and post us a comment if you're in the mood.
Future new episodes will be shown on the index page, and there will be a dedicated page for all the episodes on this site once we've got a few out.
The Heroic and laid-back Candleman symbolically lights the candle of his website's first birthday pumpkin! (He doesn't blow it out, though.)
He thanks everyone who has visited the website during the last year, and hopes you'll keep coming back.
|
 | Get Your Random Reviews At: |
| STRAIGHT TO VIDEO
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| 18/10/06
Geoff
| It's high time we introduced
something new, so here is a new blog-style section devoted to voicing
our largely leftfield opinions of whatever we find on a
shop shelf, in a magazine, a jumble sale, or the living room carpet.
It's called STRAIGHT TO VIDEO.
And that man up in the corner is, in fact, Yul Brynner.
Didn't you know he runs a video rental shop of the same name in Candleman's world?
Sure,
he's been resurrected as a figment of imagination on the interweb, but
it's out of respect that we do this. He was such a cool guy, and he
deserves a video shop of his own.
Such a pity it's full of second-rate videotapes. (or not?)
Among
any regular reviews we will be doing, our basic aim for a "special STV
review" is to find something old or new (films, board/video games, TV,
food/drink, toys, etc.) that is generally looked down on,
and give it a second chance, either accepting it for its flawed
brilliance or consigning it to the pile of rubbish from whence it came:
Was The Beast Must Die really that crap?
Is VHS truly evil?
Is Commando actually worth watching again?
We're interested to find out the direction it will take (much like this whole website!), but we're sure it will be
original. And if it isn't, we'll lobotomise ourselves. OK?
Here's another copy of the link for good measure:
http://stv.candlemania.co.uk
Visit with a mind free of cloudyness... or something.
|
 | At Long Last |
| CANDLEMAN
ISSUE #3
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| 28/07/06
Geoff
| And
Now...
The very Candleman returns for the final time in his
first story:
THE LEGEND OF DARKNESS FALLS - #3 of 3.
Candleman
and Willi are in danger of being torn to shreds by a ravenous
werewolf, and their only hope of survival is a small fork.
Possibly
a silver one...
Read
it here.
Also
, this issue marks the first of some important changes we are making to
the production of Candleman - one being myself taking over on
colouring.
We
are planning to move over to completely vector graphics &
text for the next Candleman comic; we aim to make at least
one
distinct improvement to the quality of our output every issue.
Our
next project - RED MONKEY - is well on the way, and the first issue
will be ready soon.
There are some concept images for it in the gallery
section.
|
 | Going To
That Special Hell |
HELLBOY:
STRANGE PLACES
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| 29/06/06
ChrisP
| HI
there folks.
Those of you who know me will be familiar with
my fanatical Hellboy
adoration. To those of you who don't, I'm quite a fan boy for the big
red lug. So you can imagine my excitement when Amazon informed me of
the new Hellboy graphic novel, comprising the latest of the issues of
the comic series since Conqueror Worm.
I
rushed it
home and read it over a weekend, and was a little galled. It pains me
to say that a product of the genius of Mike Mignola left me cold, but
it did.
The first story in the book, The
Wish, is a
satisfying and fairly standard Hellboy romp, with Hellboy being
captured by a big monster and having to slug his way to victory, whilst
throwing in the odd humorous quip.
However, the second
section, The Island, was a deep
disappointment.
I
felt it lacked direction and the magic that held me enthralled in the
early days. I felt that Mike had lost direction not only with the story
but the art too: his style (always defined) seems to be overtaking him
on these pages and I found myself thinking, 'What the hell is that?' In
a
few places.
My opinion is simple. The split from the structure
provided by the BPRD was a mistake, for it seems
that both remaining factions are lacking something. The BPRD
comics are fab and have some brilliant ideas and scenarios, but I often
find myself wanting Hellboy to come in and smack that critter
with
his big stone hand against the backdrop of a huge BOOM
sound effect.
I
feel that the newer Hellboy adventures need the structure and control
provided by the organisation of the BPRD; having Hellboy stumble across
these strange adventures seems a little contrived and it messes with
the pace that felt so nice in the original comics. Ho hum. All things
must change, and I s'pose Ill have to deal with that.
And
after all, this is but an opinion. I still love Hellboy, but I love
what he was, and I live in the hope that he'll
return to form.
6/10 candles.
DarkHorse.com
- Hellboy: Stange Places TPB
If
you already love Hellboy, you should own it for completeness. If you're
looking for a comic to find out about Hellboy, then avoid it and pick
up Wake the devil instead - a
far better novel on all counts.
Or you could buy
these awesome toys and make up your own story:
Hellboy
Mez-Itz Twin Pack Hellboy & Rasputin
|
 | Hooray! |
CANDLEMAN
ISSUE #2
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| 24/02/06
Geoff
| We
at Candlemania are
proud to
present the second iteration of:
CANDLEMAN - THE LEGEND OF DARKNESS FALLS.
More action!
More animated bits!
Very late!
See it here!
Due to many circumstances beyond our control, in addition to
real life,
it took way longer than we anticipated. We're not dead, there's more on
the way, with a view to some differently styled flash comics after this
series has finished.
Don't miss the third and final episode - coming (much)
soon(er)!
CANDLEMAN WILL BE BACK!
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 | Call
Me Snake... |
ESCAPE
FROM NEW YORK (DVD)
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| 18/01/06
ChrisP
| Take
a trip back and
forward
all at the same time:
I rescently perchased a copy of the beautifully remastered and extra
ridden ESCAPE FROM NEW YORK. A classic Sci-Fi adventure from the time
of big hair, big shouldered suits and mobile phones that you could
efficiently club a seal to death with.
That's right folks, the 80s.
Directed by horror legend John Carpenter and made on a budget
of about
20p, the film follows the antics of unlikely hero, Snake Plissken (Kurt
"Overboard" Russel), as he kicks ass on his way to rescue the President
of the United States (Donald "I can see perfectly" Pleasance), who for
one reason or another is being held captive by Issac "Shaft" Hayes on
the island of Manhattan that has been turned into a maximum security
penitentiary for all the scum of the country.
The things to look out for, are the fantabulous casio keyboard sound
track, composed as usual by John Carpenter himself, and probably one of
his best. It's catchy, you will be humming it. The movie also boasts a
voice over at the start by Jamie Lee "Halloween" Curtis, and matte
paintings by James Cameron (Aliens, Titanic, Terminator, T2). You gotta
start some place.
Over all, its a great romp. Dont expect high brow
entertainment, it's
gonna come in on our score chart of cool as about an 8 out of 10, it
does suffer slightly from a lack of set pieces I feel, but you may
disagree, and feel free to, but dont expect me to change or waver in my
opinion, bitches. Moohahahahahahahah!
Buy it.
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 | Candleman
Issue 2 Coming Soon... |
A
HAPPY CLAPPY NEW YEAR TO ALL
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| 01/01/06
Geoff
| Where
has the time gone
since
October?
The past, I suppose. The last few formative months have been slow as
regards to output, but things are bound to speed up as we settle into
our creative grooves and develop things further.
This new year should see Candlemania.co.uk go from strength
to
strength, candle to candle or something like that - with a variety of
new material, and new features like reviews, competitions and loads of
crazy crap we haven't thought up or would like to say anything about
yet.
As always, feedback and suggestions are greatly appreciated.
Keep checking us over the next month, good things come in long,
drawn-out packages...
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