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		<title><![CDATA[Forum :: Crash 'n Klein Comics]]></title>
		<link>http://www.crashnklein.com/forums/index.php</link>
		<description><![CDATA[The most recent topics at Forum :: Crash 'n Klein Comics.]]></description>
		<lastBuildDate>Sun, 25 Oct 2009 20:02:39 +0000</lastBuildDate>
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			<title><![CDATA[What is Jonny K up to?]]></title>
			<link>http://www.crashnklein.com/forums/viewtopic.php?id=12&amp;action=new</link>
			<description><![CDATA[This is a thread of pure narcissism on my part. I’m entirely shameless, I know. Enjoy.]]></description>
			<author><![CDATA[dummy@example.com (Jonny K)]]></author>
			<pubDate>Sun, 25 Oct 2009 20:02:39 +0000</pubDate>
			<guid>http://www.crashnklein.com/forums/viewtopic.php?id=12&amp;action=new</guid>
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			<title><![CDATA[New Characters...]]></title>
			<link>http://www.crashnklein.com/forums/viewtopic.php?id=13&amp;action=new</link>
			<description><![CDATA[Here's where I'm/we're going to put characters that we have developed or are developing for our comics.  They could be major characters, minor characters, even characters that seemed like a great concept at the time, but just didn't pan out.  Also, once I've nailed down how I'm going to show these concepts, feel free to chip in your ideas as we go.  There will also be enough time to comment on said characters and make changes.  Stay tuned...]]></description>
			<author><![CDATA[dummy@example.com (N-Dub)]]></author>
			<pubDate>Wed, 14 Oct 2009 22:05:28 +0000</pubDate>
			<guid>http://www.crashnklein.com/forums/viewtopic.php?id=13&amp;action=new</guid>
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			<title><![CDATA[Crash N Klein Sightings]]></title>
			<link>http://www.crashnklein.com/forums/viewtopic.php?id=10&amp;action=new</link>
			<description><![CDATA[Free Comick Book Day was yesterday; did you go?

[url=http://img15.imageshack.us/my.php?image=westchester1.jpg][img]http://img15.imageshack.us/img15/7015/westchester1.th.jpg[/img][/url]

This is a Photo of me hanging out in Tds Enterprises in WestChester PA [url]http://www.tdscng.com/[/url]. For clarification, I'm the one wearing the mask! The darkly dressed gentlemen infront of me is Stephen Pytak, who writes a couple of really cool comics: ".40 Caliber MouseHunt" and "The Wild Damned".  My favorite nuance about this shot is that if you click to full view it, you'll see that the Alucard on Claire's [Girl with camera behind me] t-shirt is about to gun my ugly ass down! Go Alucard!

[url=http://img15.imageshack.us/my.php?image=l0c2cb2e03dd742a0b60d6b.jpg][img]http://img15.imageshack.us/img15/2944/l0c2cb2e03dd742a0b60d6b.th.jpg[/img][/url]

The mask is a bust of Psych, the carrion crow, who is one of the stars of "The Wild Damned" You can get more details, as well as merchandise if you're so inclined, on their website: [url]Mazzpress.com[/url]

[url=http://img15.imageshack.us/my.php?image=l8fca180eddfc47bbac7e94.jpg][img]http://img15.imageshack.us/img15/1339/l8fca180eddfc47bbac7e94.th.jpg[/img][/url]

I'm trying to keep up with the conversation, but all I can think is, "Damn I'm sexy"!

[url=http://img15.imageshack.us/my.php?image=l164e285392414b3eb9a5e5.jpg][img]http://img15.imageshack.us/img15/1305/l164e285392414b3eb9a5e5.th.jpg[/img][/url]

AAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHH Put the mask back on! It's HORRIBLE!!!

Independant comic guys for the win!]]></description>
			<author><![CDATA[dummy@example.com (N-Dub)]]></author>
			<pubDate>Fri, 25 Sep 2009 12:45:19 +0000</pubDate>
			<guid>http://www.crashnklein.com/forums/viewtopic.php?id=10&amp;action=new</guid>
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			<title><![CDATA[Art Avenue]]></title>
			<link>http://www.crashnklein.com/forums/viewtopic.php?id=5&amp;action=new</link>
			<description><![CDATA[Looking for: Art tips? Critiques? Ideas? Just want to show off?

This is the Forum for you!
Go ahead and post all of your latest artistic creations, doodles, sketches, paintings, sculptures, carvings, inks, clay, vector, tatoos WHATEVER! Show us what you got!]]></description>
			<author><![CDATA[dummy@example.com (N-Dub)]]></author>
			<pubDate>Fri, 25 Sep 2009 12:38:31 +0000</pubDate>
			<guid>http://www.crashnklein.com/forums/viewtopic.php?id=5&amp;action=new</guid>
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			<title><![CDATA[Can you see any pages?  I can't...]]></title>
			<link>http://www.crashnklein.com/forums/viewtopic.php?id=11&amp;action=new</link>
			<description><![CDATA[Just a placeholder for pages when we get to put them up, as well as an error topic if the pages don't load right.

While I'm at it, let's get some pages up, yes?]]></description>
			<author><![CDATA[dummy@example.com (N-Dub)]]></author>
			<pubDate>Wed, 23 Sep 2009 00:29:24 +0000</pubDate>
			<guid>http://www.crashnklein.com/forums/viewtopic.php?id=11&amp;action=new</guid>
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			<title><![CDATA[Mighty Morphin' Power Ranger gets Death Sentence!]]></title>
			<link>http://www.crashnklein.com/forums/viewtopic.php?id=8&amp;action=new</link>
			<description><![CDATA[Now that's a story that catches your attention doesn't it?! 
Lately I've been hearing and seeing the story of Skylar Deleon, former power ranger, repeated over and over again. I didn't even think that California [i]had[/i] the death penalty. Apparently he and his wife pretended that they wanted to buy a yacht, took it for a test drive, then beat up the couple who owned it, tied them to anchors, and threw them over board. The bodies were never found (I'm thinking horror/revenge movie how about you?). It is easy to understand the appeal of the story, after all, who doesn't love social entropy? I do. "A beloved childhood icon becoming a vicious murderer? What has this world come to?"

So I imagine at this point you're asking, "Which ranger was it? Not Tommy! Or Billy? Please don't say it's Zack!". Well, you can relax folks it isn't any of those. Skylar was on the show, but he wasn't actually a power ranger. I know what you're thinking, "Bulk or Skull" right? WRONG! In reality this guy was an extra in just one episode! ONE! And yet every other time I see this story reported by major and amateur news outlets Deleon is described as a former "Power Rangers star". Go ahead, Google it and see! When did murder stop being interesting enough to hold the headlines on its own? I guess it just sells more papers this way.

Anyway, the full story can be found here: [url]http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/lanow/2009/04/skylar-deleon-gets-death-sentence-in-newport-yacht-murders.html[/url]
It's a pretty creepy tale actually.]]></description>
			<author><![CDATA[dummy@example.com (Jonny K)]]></author>
			<pubDate>Tue, 08 Sep 2009 21:24:37 +0000</pubDate>
			<guid>http://www.crashnklein.com/forums/viewtopic.php?id=8&amp;action=new</guid>
		</item>
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			<title><![CDATA[What's the best series you've read recently?]]></title>
			<link>http://www.crashnklein.com/forums/viewtopic.php?id=3&amp;action=new</link>
			<description><![CDATA[...[other than The Denim Avenger of course.]

I am constantly on the look out for awesome new graphic novels and trade paperbacks.   Here’s your chance to tell me exactly what I SHOULD be reading! I invoke you all to totally “geek out” and tell the world how original, surreal, subliminal, and meaningful your favorite stories are. Make sure to include exactly what it is about the book that speaks to you; is it: The dialogue? The characterization? The art? The plot? The symbolism? 

You tell me about your Favorites and I’ll tell you about mine, if all goes according to plan we’ll all end up with a few bullets added to our reading lists.]]></description>
			<author><![CDATA[dummy@example.com (N-Dub)]]></author>
			<pubDate>Sat, 05 Sep 2009 19:53:21 +0000</pubDate>
			<guid>http://www.crashnklein.com/forums/viewtopic.php?id=3&amp;action=new</guid>
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			<title><![CDATA[Cosmick Updates]]></title>
			<link>http://www.crashnklein.com/forums/viewtopic.php?id=7&amp;action=new</link>
			<description><![CDATA[Cosmick is the newest concept comic that Nick Jesse and myself are working on. Nick has completed the script for issue 1, so now it's all on Jesse and I to get the boards in order. Artwise we are trying a very unorthodox art jam style collaberation; first I pencil in all of the characters with background ranging from blank to extremely detailed. Second the pages go over to Jesse who completes the pencilling and makes all the changes she wants; then she lays down her marker/pencil combination to bring some vibrant color the page. Third and finally the pages come back my way and I scan them and add touch ups in photoshop. The end product is something like this cover page.

[url=http://img259.imageshack.us/my.php?image=testy.jpg][img]http://img259.imageshack.us/img259/7712/testy.th.jpg[/img][/url]

We'll try to keep the updates coming, and post them in this forum.]]></description>
			<author><![CDATA[dummy@example.com (N-Dub)]]></author>
			<pubDate>Sat, 05 Sep 2009 19:52:31 +0000</pubDate>
			<guid>http://www.crashnklein.com/forums/viewtopic.php?id=7&amp;action=new</guid>
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			<title><![CDATA[On Knitting]]></title>
			<link>http://www.crashnklein.com/forums/viewtopic.php?id=1&amp;action=new</link>
			<description><![CDATA[The forum description says we can discuss knitting and Damnit, discuss knitting we will!!

- Is "Knit One,  Purl Two.    Repeat  * to * Single crochet to the end.   Chain one. Turn." Still the accepted best system or no?

- What moral concerns do advancements in knitting technology raise in today's society?

- Is the international Yarn embargo destroying the American family?

Thoughts?]]></description>
			<author><![CDATA[dummy@example.com (Jonny K)]]></author>
			<pubDate>Thu, 27 Aug 2009 14:49:08 +0000</pubDate>
			<guid>http://www.crashnklein.com/forums/viewtopic.php?id=1&amp;action=new</guid>
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			<title><![CDATA[Project MixTape]]></title>
			<link>http://www.crashnklein.com/forums/viewtopic.php?id=9&amp;action=new</link>
			<description><![CDATA[I had an idea! [I know, rare right? Shaddup!] 

 Remember when the ultimate way to tell someone how you felt about them was to create a mix tape? If you are to young to recall (damn generation Zers), a mix tape was a compilation of songs which together netted an emotional average that approximated your feelings. Their are tons of band websites, video websites, and radio websites out there all of which can be used to listen to free music whenever you have an internet connection.

So, here is my challenge to you: Post here a list of 10 hyperlinks to awesome music that you think meshes well together. Give me your grunge, your classic, your indie rock! Send me your J-pop, your death-metal, and your huddled masses... wait, no. changed my mind. keep your huddled masses, I just want your music! 

My play list to follow....]]></description>
			<author><![CDATA[dummy@example.com (N-Dub)]]></author>
			<pubDate>Thu, 04 Jun 2009 00:01:10 +0000</pubDate>
			<guid>http://www.crashnklein.com/forums/viewtopic.php?id=9&amp;action=new</guid>
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			<title><![CDATA[Weird Hobbies]]></title>
			<link>http://www.crashnklein.com/forums/viewtopic.php?id=6&amp;action=new</link>
			<description><![CDATA[I get asked about twice a week if I'm a visual arts major; the answer is, "No, actually I'm a Biology major". After I answer the question something strange happens, they think I'm joking. Apparently the popular belief is that if you enjoy science you are automatically doomed to dwell in a harsh, artistically handicapped void; forever sequestered to your test tubes and bunsen burners unable to appreciate the virtues of line and composition. Personally, I think drawing and science fit together beautifully (a topic which may be a good idea for it's own thread).  Most of my fellow nerds consider drawing as a bizzare hobby for a scientist, which got me thinking; I'm fascinated by the strange skill sets that people develop over the course of their lives. In addition to various kinds of art and biology, I also: practise trap/skeet (shotgun shooting), go survival camping, collect antiquated videogame systems, and  pick padlocks (only the ones from my ever growing personal collection of course).

So what about all of you? Do you have skills that shouldn't fit together or do you have an incredibly rare hobby? Go on, don't be shy, brag a little! What makes you weird?]]></description>
			<author><![CDATA[dummy@example.com (Jonny K)]]></author>
			<pubDate>Wed, 01 Apr 2009 02:34:55 +0000</pubDate>
			<guid>http://www.crashnklein.com/forums/viewtopic.php?id=6&amp;action=new</guid>
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			<title><![CDATA[Increasing incidents of sexual deviance in comic books]]></title>
			<link>http://www.crashnklein.com/forums/viewtopic.php?id=4&amp;action=new</link>
			<description><![CDATA[Now that we've wiped the forums clean of pornographic material, here comes Jon with the smut! I thought the best way to beginning a topic like this would be to paste in a few quotes from the CODE OF THE COMICS MAGAZINE ASSOCIATION OF AMERICA circa 1954.

From General standards—Part B
“(2) All scenes of horror, excessive bloodshed, gory or gruesome crimes, depravity, lust, sadism, masochism shall not be permitted. “

From Costume 
“(1) Nudity in any form is prohibited, as is indecent or undue exposure. 
(2) Suggestive and salacious illustration or suggestive posture is unacceptable. 
(3) All characters shall be depicted in dress reasonably acceptable to society. 
(4) Females shall be drawn realistically without exaggeration of any physical qualities. 
NOTE.—It should be recognized that all prohibitions dealing with costume, dialog, or artwork applies as specifically to the cover of a comic magazine as they do to the contents. “

From Marriage and sex 
“(1) Divorce shall not be treated humorously nor represented as desirable. 
(2) Illicit sex relations are neither to be hinted at nor portrayed. Violent love scenes as well as sexual abnormalities are unacceptable. 
(3) Respect for parents, the moral code, and for honorable behavior shall be fostered. A sympathetic understanding of the problems of love is not a license for morbid distortion. 
(4) The treatment of live-romance stories shall emphasize the value of the home and the sanctity of marriage. 
(5) Passion or romantic interest shall never be treated in such a way as to stimulate the lower and baser emotions. 
(6) Seduction and rape shall never be shown or suggested. 
(7) Sex perversion or any inference to same is strictly forbidden. “

From CODE FOR ADVERTISING MATTER
“(2) Advertisement of sex or sex instruction books are unacceptable. 
(3) The sale of picture postcards, ‘pinups,’ ‘art studies,’ or any other reproduction of nude or seminude figures is prohibited. “


Nowadays the CCA is dead, and comic books are better for it. Writers and artists are no longer required to produce flat, trivial, glop in order to soothe the writhing paranoia of concerned mothers. On the other hand, with their new found freedom some creators have begun to embrace highly salacious imagery. I’ve honestly seen more intense sexual content within the pages of big label comic books than I ever have in the movie theater [and I’m just talking about American comics]. 

Comics have always contained some material that could be described as sexually deviant. Those of you who are comic history aficionados will recognize the name Frederick Wertham, he was a psychiatrist that described comic books as a, “hypodermic injection of sex and murder”, and you can imagine all of the wonderful things he had to say about the relationship between Batman and Robin... well this picture pretty much sums it up:

[url=http://img113.imageshack.us/my.php?image=justwoww.jpg][img]http://img113.imageshack.us/img113/8558/justwoww.th.jpg[/img][/url]

You can see where Wertham got his accusations from. If you have a magazine full of people from ages 17 to 30 in revealing latex costumes and masks repeatedly subjecting each other to varying forms of pain through torture and physical violence, you either have a possibly illegal dirty adult magazine or a comic book. But I'm not concerned with discussing the ambiguities of the classic superhero format, I’m more interested with how other readers are receiving blatant scenes of rape and bondage in non-pornographic comic books. Is it a reflection of our culture’s continuing moral decay, or is the art form of comics evolving into a complex media which is capable of addressing more mature themes than its juvenile ancestors? 

It's true that comic books need to be free to explore psychologically, morally, and emotionally complex issues without censorship. I tend believe that this is all part of the growing pains of graphic novels, creators are trying everything in an effort to discover what CAN be done with comic books. I don't really wish to cite too many other specific incedents of sexual deviance that I've seen recently (maybe I will later) but I think most of us have read Alan Moore's "Watchmen". I was startled, even uncomfortable, when I read the scene in Watchmen between the Comedian and Silk Specter, a fact which I was reminded of when I watched the new movie. However, I cannot shake the idea that there is something important about that uneasiness; I am a member of a desensitized generation, we believe we have seen everything because Hollywood has done their best to show us everything, but I was made uneasy by a comic book. Honestly, I was happy to feel that undulation of anxiousness; it reminded me that I am still capable of being affected in such a way. The marginalized comic book format was able to produce an emotional response that I haven’t received from literature, paintings, or movies: Why? Probably for the same reason that it is easier to ask a friend to rip a band aid off your hairy leg than it is to do it yourself. In a movie time constantly moves forward, the director controls your experience for you, but I a comic book the reader has absolute control over the passage of time, they have to put in effort in order to continue the story and if the reader comes to a vulgar portion of the comic, well… they have to pull the band aid off of their own leg. To use Wertham’s analogy they inject themselves with sex and murder.
Comics are a powerful medium, and powerful media can be used to address powerful issues.
 How do you feel about the direction that some comics are headed in? Tell me, is it wrong? Right? Offensive? Exhilarating?]]></description>
			<author><![CDATA[dummy@example.com (Jonny K)]]></author>
			<pubDate>Tue, 31 Mar 2009 00:31:44 +0000</pubDate>
			<guid>http://www.crashnklein.com/forums/viewtopic.php?id=4&amp;action=new</guid>
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