The Latest Oz Comics

Our comic book order for the month came yesterday. And you know what that means, right? New Oz comics! So, here's what came:

• The Legend of Oz: The Wicked West #11. Jack, Tip, Scarecrow, Tin Man, and the Lion find evidence that Ozma has been at Mombi's ranch, but they're holed up by bounty hunters. Someone may have to make a sacrifice to save the rest. Pipt, it turns out, may have his own best interests at heart, and not General Jinjur's. Bungle makes a discovery, Jinjur comes very close to getting what she wants (but may not like it once she gets it), and could the new wicked witch be...Gale???
• Oz #3 from Zenescope. Dorothy, Glinda, and the three freedom fighters managed to dispatch a whole pack of...somethings that are after them, and Glinda gets the second part of the Veridian Scepter — but at what cost? Oh, yeah, and the Wicked Witch is spying on them. And now there's a prophecy to contend with, too.
• Fables #134. What's Bigby been up to the last few issues? We find out here. But no Oz content.
• Because of some of the quirks of getting my comics mail order (and also, I suspect, release schedules), I also got The Legend of Oz: The Wicked West #12 (the regular issues aren't listed on Big Dog's website yet), which is mainly about the origins of the Flying Gorillas. Yes, that means wild west versions of Gayelette and Quelala! But the main storyline hasn't been forgotten, with the four gorillas guarding our party at Mombi's ranch. Hey, can someone please explain to comic book publishers and movie studios and the like that the flying monkeys originated in the book, and are therefore public domain? You don't have to change them to baboons or gorillas or anything like that. Warner Bros. lawyers don't have a case.

One other Oz item that arrived, but I haven't unwrapped yet, is the 2014 Zenescope Oz calendar, reproducing several of the covers from the series. Considering how Zenescope draws its female characters, I'm not sure Laura's going to approve of this. But it is unusual, and probably a lot less common on Oz fans' walls this coming year than calendars from The Movie, Oz the Great and Powerful, and Wicked (yes, you can get all three).

Oz in Jeopardy!

We've got a double dose for you today! First off, on last Wednesday's show, which was the first quarterfinal match of this year's Tournament of Champions, one of the categories in the first round was Little People in Lit. This is clearly a slam dunk category for an Oz clue, and sure enough, there was one under the $600 card — but not what I was expecting!

Jay, an oncologist who was at the center lectern (and who'd won $107,203 in his previous five wins on the show) rang in first and quickly responded with, "What are nomes?" Nope, not a single Munchkin in the category! Sadly, Jay did not go on to win, but his score was good enough that he's likely to appear in the semifinals next week as a wild card.

And just yesterday, my Jeopardy! desk calendar had an old clue from way back in 2007 as the clue. Interestingly, the clue was originally worth $400 in the Jeopardy! round. This time around, it was a $1200 Double Jeopardy! clue. So I guess the writers of the calendar are not always sticking to the original games and values.

Oz in Jeopardy! calendar edition

My Jeopardy! daily calendar has this clue today, in the category Pets in Fiction:

A CLASSIC 1900 BOOK
SAYS HE "WAS NOT GRAY;
HE WAS A LITTLE BLACK DOG,
WITH LONG, SILKY HAIR"

Turn the page over to see the correct response, and of course it says, "WHO IS TOTO?"

We have another winner, at last!

After not hearing back from my first random drawing winner, I tried again, and struck gold this time. So congratulations to Jessica DeCandia. Her calendar should be on its way to her today or tomorrow.

We have winners!

Just in case anybody was wondering, yes, I have picked two winners in the "Win a Year in Oz" calendar giveaway contest. I'm just waiting to hear back from them before I post their names, and the winning essay. So if you entered, check your e-mail, already!

Only one more week!

Just a reminder, kids: We've only got one more week to go in our contest! Yes, you could win a free 2010 Wizard of Oz (movie) calendar, thanks to our friends at Andrews McMeel Publishing. We have two copies to give away, so send in your answer to this question:

How would you spend a year in Oz

The best answer gets a calendar, and the other entrants (and yes, there are some now) will be thrown into a hat and another random winner will be pulled out. Just send your entry to me at contest@thewizardofoz.info by midnight Pacific Standard Time, December 11. I'll do my best to get the names of the winners out over that weekend, and get them into the mail so you'll get them before the new year begins.

You can still win a year in Oz!

Hmm. I still don't seem to have any entrants for my little contest to win a 2010 Wizard of Oz calendar, thanks to the nice folks at Andrews McMeel publishers. So, I'll mention again that all you have to do is send me a little notice about what would you do if you could spend a year in Oz. It could just be a quick sentence or two, or a more elaborate story or poem or song or video or however else you want to express yourself. The best entry gets a calendar, and a random drawing of the other entries will result in someone else getting one. So don't worry if you don't think your answer is any good, you still have a chance. Deadline is December 11. Send your entry to me at contest@thewizardofoz.info.

Win a year in Oz!

Well, okay, not quite. But the nice folks at Andrews McMell Publishing sent me a few copies of the 2010 Wizard of Oz calendar, and I'm going to give two of them away here on this very blog. All I need from you is a short answer to this question:

What would you do if you could spend a year in Oz?

The best answer — the one that's the most fascinating or intriguing or original or just makes me laugh the loudest — gets one, and the names of all other entrants I'll throw into a hat and pull out the other winner that way. I'll also publish the winning entry here on this blog, and any others I particularly like, with the writers' permission. The deadline is December 11 (that gives you just one month), I hope to announce the winners on December 13, and I should be able to get the prizes out to you in time to use them on the first day of January (unlike some other Oz calendar publishers I could name — yes, I'm looking at you, International Wizard of Oz Club). Please do not use the comment ares of this blog to submit your entries. Instead, send them straight to me at contest@thewizardofoz.info. Along with your entry, please send me a legitimate name and e-mail address. Trolls, flames, spams, and anyone sending multiple entries will be disqualified. So get those creative juices flowing!

Oz in Jeopardy!

I don't think it's a surprise to anyone by now that I'm a big fan of the game show Jeopardy! And I have another Oz clue for you today. It doesn't come from the show today, however, but from this year's daily desk calendar. The April 11 clue is in the category Theater for $1200:

When this hit musical opened in 2003, we learned in a new way that it isn't easy being green.

Do I really need to tell you that the correct response is "What is Wicked?" Well, if I did, then I guess you now know.

Just in time to celebrate L. Frank Baum's birthday...

The Oz Club's 2007 calendar showed up in the mail today.

I think they're a little earlier than usual this year.