Hi, I’m Karl Madsen, ComicsOnline Editor, comic geek, music aficionado, and horror fan, and this is my first shot at a blog. The reason I’m writing this is to answer questions I get asked periodically, and also as an introduction.

So, one of the nice things about having business cards while in school (yes, I’m still in school at my age), is when forming study groups I can just hand out cards so the site is promoted as well. It does get tiresome when I keep getting asked what makes me think I can be a reviewer. I haven’t taken any journalism classes, and the closest I got to working in movies was as an usher at the local theater when I was in high school.

This got me thinking about what makes a good movie. I mean maybe I’m not qualified to review a piece of entertainment. But then I realize “Who is?” and “Why?” I remember Roger Ebert panning Ace Ventura: Pet Detective, by saying in an interview that he was glad to have seen that movie because then when he was asked what the worst movie he saw that year was he wouldn’t have to think about it. I guess you can’t be right all the time. That’s when I realized that a review is simply the opinion of someone who gets paid to give their opinions to a lot of people. And I have opinions, pretty good ones too, if I do say so myself.

Now I’m thinking about what makes a movie good. My usual retort is that I like my comedy slapstick, my gore bloody, and my nudity full frontal. It goes beyond that, and it goes into what I am willing to accept. This holds true for all genres; sci-fi, thriller, action, horror, even comedy. We enter all movies with an expectation of disbelief, but how much disbelief is negotiable. I wish I had a formula to share, but for every rule there is at least one exception to the rule. The only constant is that I must be entertained, and no Tom Cruise (sorry, I can’t forgive Interview with a Vampire). So what makes the entertainment factor? That’s something to explore in an upcoming blog or two, as well as what I can and can’t accept.

Most importantly, I would like to hear from other fans of music, comics, movies and T.V., and anything that interests you. I might even have some giveaways for special occasions. Let’s have one now; if I’m going to do this regularly I think I should have a name for the blog. I’m thinking Shock Value, but if someone comes up with a better name, I’ll reach into my bag of goodies.

By the way, when asked what qualifies me to be a reviewer, I tell them that they give me the right every time they ask what I think of something. That and someone will allow me to publish my opinions. My mother is so proud.

P.S. I was purposely vague so I would have something to write about later. Just a little thing called job security.

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