Zombi Mexicano by Keith J. Rainville

There is not enough literature on Lucha Libre movies and comics. Fortunately for us, we have amazing people like Keith Rainville who gushes with enthusiasm over the subject matter. Just in time for El Día de los Muertos, Mr Rainville has released his newest book, Zombi Mexicano. This book talks about how the "momias" of Mexican decent aren't as equivalent to their Egyptian counterparts, and are a closer kin to the American zombie. From there, he dives in to history, and into the great movies featuring these hideous undead. I just received my copy today, and I'm pretty thrilled, it was well worth the money!

Such a slick cover. Love the warm tones, and the creeps whom I think were in La Mansion de 7 Momias.  

Some snippets of color and black and white pictures from the book.
You have to do yourself a favor and pick up this book. Any lucha libre nut, or foreign horror fan should have this in their library! Buy your copy here at Keith Rainville's site: http://frompartsunknown.net/

Born and Raised: El Hijo del Santo

Hey everyone, sorry for the giant time lapse since last post. Rather than a long winded apology, let me simply say I've been obviously busy, but lucha libre is still in my heart, and this blog is always on my mind. Mea culpa, mea culpa, mea maxima culpa.

But now, let's talk about this great little interview I found!

I don't know much about Born + Raised with Chuey Martinez, but I find it amazing that he was able to sit down with the legend, El Hijo del Santo!! Only slightly jealous that he gets to dine with the man! This one is also subtitled, so kick back and enjoy!

Guacamelee!

Yes, I spelled that correctly, Guacamelee. I just heard that there is another lucha related game coming out very soon! I don't know much about it, but from the screenshots, it looks as though you play as a Blue Demon clone, and it's a side scroller scifi action game.

Check out these screenshots and a video:

I'll be keeping an eye out for more info about this intriguing game!

El Cuadrilatero Lucha Zine

Well, you know how I said I couldn't get on this project until after the convention? Well, I'm bumping it up, hoping to print before the con! Currently, I'm wrapping up a mini comic (Down to one page, one cover, and two panels), but when that's put to bed, this guy is what is next:

Mock up cover for issue 1 of El Cuadrilátero

I'm going to be replacing the photos with illustrations, I want to really give this a good treatment. I want the zine to look professional, something worth keeping. The first issue will consist of a primer on lucha libre. I want this little sucker to be a good book to give to a lucha-newbie, who can get caught up on the basics of everything lucha libre entails, from the ring, to the movies, comics, music, and more. When I start getting closer, I'm going to put a call out to other artist who want to submit art. But my favorite thing is that I will be putting MY own comic in the back of every issue. My luchador, El Gran Búho, The Great Owl, will have his own story. I want this magazine to feel like the old Nickelodeon magazines, or Disney Adventure. You know, information, plus art, and comics! The comics will be very reminescent of the Sensacional de Luchas mini comics produced in México (Stay tuned, I'm planning on a blog this week about these comics).

El Gran Búho head turn around, and mask design

A page from an unfinished story

An early design for a river monster, a la Creature from the Black Lagoon

An early design of a monster created in the footsteps of Frankenstein

Hopefully this will keep you enticed for a while.  I'm starting to scan some old lucha comics I've collected over the years, and I want to show them to you all in an upcoming blog. I'm shooting for next week at the latest.

Something coming soon!

Hello! Sorry for the delays in posting, it's been hectic. But mid May I will be posting regularly again. Currently, I'm prepping for the 2012 Spokane Comicon, and right when I have a moment free, I will be producing my first ever zine:

This zine will be much like this website, covering all things lucha libre, from music, art, comics, movies, all the way to the real deal. I want to cover it all, and get it into the hands of fans of all levels!More to come soon, thanks for your patience!
-Jesse

The Rock and Blue Demon

Recently, The Rock went to México to promote the opening of Journey 2: The Mysterious Island aka El Viaje 2: La isla misteriosa. While there, he took a photo with my favorite luchador chaparrito, Blue Demon!

La Roca y El Blue Demon

I've read a few websites that have mentioned a possible new Blue Demon film. Maybe The Rock could come and make a cameo, or is that too big of a dream?

Woman in Black

So on Superbowl Sunday, I went and saw Woman in Black, and I just had to share with you all what I thought. I know, I know, it's neither obscure or luchatastic, but honestly I have to say that this film is probably the best film interpretation I've ever seen of La Llorona.

La Llorona, ah yes, every Hispanic child's nightmare engraved by parents and grandparents across the Americas. The legend of Llorona is essentially this:

A woman falls in love with a man who is of wealth and lineage, most likely a Spaniard, and she bears two of his children during this romance. But he never lives with her, he never marries her, and eventually cuts off this affair, possibly to return to Spain with another woman. In hysteria, she drowns her children and by the time she realizes what she has done, she has gone completely mad. Some stories say she committed suicide, others say she wandered the banks of rivers wailing through bubbling tears, "Ayyyy mis hijos!!" until she wasted away. Now her spirit haunts the rivers, snatching young children who shouldn't be playing so close to a wild river. It's also said she attracts young men from afar, and then scares them with her haunting look of death, sending them back to live a life of fidelity.

Woman in Black carries many of these themes, and it's so exciting that it took the famous kings of British Horror, Hammer Studios, to bring this to theaters all over. The Woman in Black is a tale of a woman who is torn away from her child, possibly due to mental illness, and then she witnesses the death of her child through the attic she is left in as a prison. She offs herself, and her mad spirit haunts the town, killing children with vengeance. Daniel Radcliffe, of Harry Potter fame, plays Arthur Kipps, an out of town accountant who has come to settle some finances in the home of the Woman in Black, and this outsider soon realizes the town is hiding a dark secret.

I was afraid I would see Mr. Radcliffe and unable to shake Harry Potter from my mind, but he was a solid actor. Not one note of Harry Potter showed through in his acting, but this could be possibly be due to the fact I've only seen two of those films. I really thought he was great though. The direction, the setting, the effects, all together were wonderful. This is by far the best 21st century horror movie I have seen, hands down. I honestly hate the turn of horror these days with "torture porn" and ultra violence. I prefer the classic Universal and Hammer Studios where the gothic victorian horror is overwhelming, and the overall feel is a crescendo of chills going down your spine. Setting, and subtly are key to a good film like this.

I'm not going to give this a thorough review, simply because I can't ultra analyse it with multiple viewings, and snatch a few screenshots. But I will say, if you are a horror fan like me, you will enjoy this film! Cheers to Hammer Studio, I can't wait to see what else you will be doing in the future.

 

Please don't confuse Arthur Kipps with that boy with the stick and the scar.

Lucha de Sound: Espectaculo en la Universidad

Do you live in Washington State, and crave some lucha libre excitement in your life?! Well look no further than Lucha de Sound: Espectaculo en la Universidad! Saturday, February 18, 2012, starting at 7pm (doors open at 6pm). at the University of Puget Sound - Memorial Fieldhouse in Tacoma, Washington!

This is an event not to be missed! CHiSPA (Community for Hispanic Awareness) and Lucha Libre Volcánica (formerly Luchadores Independientes de Washington) are putting on this wonderful event. Ticket prices are $9 for the public, and $6 for campus community members! Tickets can be purchased online here! Where else can one get raw excitement of masked wrestling in Washington State? This is it! Clear your schedule folks!

For more updates, check out the Facebook Event page!

Lucha Fury now on iPad as Street Wrestler

First off, sorry for the lack of updates. It's been a busy six months or so, but I promise to update more frequently!

Now, to the game Street Fury. Do you remember Lucha Fury on XBLA and PS3? It's a brawler, much like the classics such as Final Fight, Golden Axe, and Streets of Rage. Well now the game has been ported to the iOS, and is available on both iPhone and iPad!