(NOT) SPENDING MONEY IN SAN DIEGO:
A few months back, I told you about how gay activists were boycotting the Manchester Grand Hyatt, a major location for those attending Comic Con International at San Diego, because of the hotel owner’s donations to anti-gay causes including Proposition 8 which will de-legalize gay marriage in California.

It does my heart good to hear that the boycott is being discussed by some of the creators who will be attending the Con this week. At this point, it’s too late to decide to give up a room at the Hyatt as a moral stand. However, as Christopher Butcher points out, the Hyatt is also a popular place to get a drink with three bars that are usually crowded every night and, thus, it’s still possible for LGBT-supportive Con attendees to take a stand – with so many bars in the area, why not spend your drinking money elsewhere?

Being one of the closest hotels to the Convention Center, the Manchester Grand Hyatt is known as a good place to spot comic creators and one reason to get a drink there is the possibility of spending time around popular artists and writers. Hence, I’m happy to see various industry names like SLG Publications’ Jennifer de Guzman, DMZ and Channel Zero creator Brian Wood, supporting the boycott in comment threads at Butcher's site and at The Beat. Meanwhile, the always-outspoken Lea Hernandez suggests people save their bar tabs and send it to the hotel as documentation of how much money they didn’t spend at the Hyatt’s bars.

Oh, and while we’re on the topic of who gets your money when you’re in San Diego, might I remind you about the time the nearby Omni Hotel shut down Margaret Cho’s performance because they disapproved of her material?

WHO WATCHES THE FILM TRAILER EDITORS?:
Last week, we got a trailer for the Watchmen movie and, overall, it looks great. Still, I’ve got to ask – why does a trailer for a movie that’s supposed to deconstruct and examine the superhero genre look so much like a typical superhero movie trailer? I’m a little worried here.

You can check out the trailer here, what do you think?

I know a high-profile, big-budget movie like Watchmen isn’t going to find a wide enough audience by playing up the themes and moral questions raised by Alan Moore, but without those parts why bother turning Watchmen into a movie? Maybe I would feel better if there were a falling bottle of Nostalgia Perfume amongst the visuals?

WE'VE GOT MEET UP SIGN!:
If you want more to anticipate in San Diego (and if you’re going, you’ve got plenty of good stuff ahead) here’s one more thing to get excited about – the Gays in Comics meet up on Saturday night. This year’s event at Flicks will be the first team-up between Prism Comics and gay comics site Pink Kryptonite. I really need to make sure I don't miss another trip to Comic Con next year.

After the break: Anti-gay comics and comic book villainesses!

ALSO A CRIME AGAINST SEQUENTIAL ART:
I guess I can’t avoid the topic of the anti-gay comic that Oklahoma County Commissioner Brent Rinehart sent out to voters, which is just ugly in so many ways. Not only does the comic use some of the usual anti-gay rhetoric against an Attorney General who fought the Boy Scouts of America’s discriminatory policies, it's just a really bad comic.

Can we make Rinehart read a copy of Understanding Comics before he does something like this again?

Oh and depicting a devil as a gay advocate? Thanks for not hiding your absolutely cartoonish view of gay people.

The comic has the Box Turtle Bulletin flashing back to the fundamentalist comics by Jack Chick and his simplified view of gays that was so informed by untrue stereotypes that they’re equally hilarious and disturbing for their ignorance.

I totally understand laughing at Chick’s ridiculousness, but knowing that there are people who think this is what gay people really are like gives it all a disturbing undercurrent for me. Where do you fall on the comics of people like Rinehart and Chick – trainwreck joke or disturbingly too revealing?

BRING ON THE VILLAINESSES:
Over at our sister site, StuntDouble named some of the comic book villainesses who deserve to be seen on the big screen. I love the suggestions – and we are due for a Harley Quinn played by someone other than Mia Sara – but, the fun part of a list is suggesting additions, so here are a few more villainesses I’d like to see:

Circe

Circe’s a great villain for he calm strength and the way that her deadliness is based in her intelligence. But the best part of putting Circe on the big screen is that she’d best be used in a Wonder Woman movie which, let’s face it, is long overdue.

Madame Rogue

A screening of Terminator 2 will remind anyone what a visually dynamic foe a shapeshifter can be and the former Doom Patrol nemesis brought a frighteningly ruthless nature to how she used those powers. Madame Rogue appeared on the small screen fairly recently on the Cartoon Network’s Teen Titans, and that show really demonstrated the character’s potential.

Scandal Savage

The daughter of Vandal Savage, another immortal villain. Scandal is a tough fighter, a shrewd businesswoman and a formidable schemer. She was a villain that villains should have been afraid to cross.

Roulette

I’ve always had a weakness for villains who used elaborate traps designed specifically for a particular hero, like Arcade in the Marvel titles and Grimbor the Chainsman. Villainous casino owner Roulette brought a similar dynamic to JSA, and she’d be great in any team movie if Warner Bros ever got to adapting any of DC’s team books.

Just be glad I stopped before I got to the Legion villainesses (or decided better about the Golden Glider) ... which supervillainesses do you think are due for some attention?