• Well, as we’d expected, it was a very quiet Christmas newswise, thankfully, since it was a busy one otherwise. Hope you all had a Merry one. So, as the wrapping paper and gift piles are cleaned up, and the leftover cookies eaten or packed away, it’s time to take a breather and check in with stuff. First of all, the Maxim scan IS posted down below with the last story, and wow…We should be careful what we ask for before a holiday break, as we got TONS of copies of it: So, not to leave anyone out, thanks to Matthew Cantau, John Zukatus, WynTahChyld, Nny &Adam B. Mark for the scans.

Only a few days left on that logo contest, and we’ve got an announcement ready, though we’ve yet to make a FINAL decision. So, if ya want to get in on that last minute consideration, ya still got time. The entries have all been so unique and incredible though, thanks to all of you for taking the time to send one in. We’ll be sure that they all get seen.

We’re prepping a small update with some post-Christmas tidbits for ya, nothing of major note, just the usual small stuff that gathers over time. Check back for that later tonight or tomorrow morning when you’re back at (ugh) work after a nice long weekend. Until then…

• Things have been relatively quiet lately, as we assume most folks are getting ready for their big holiday celebrations. This usually means less news, at least less BIG news, as even the Internet normally slows down a bit over Christmas. We’ll be gone off and on through the weekend for family stuff, but will check in from time to time to make sure that nothing major happens as far as news goes. So, don’t be alarmed if the site goes dormant for a couple of days, since we’ll likely take a breather from updates to spend time with our families and friends. Hope you’ll all be doing the same.

The logo contest is wrapping up with just 9 days to get your entries in. We’ll announce a winner on New Years Day, along with (hopefully) our new J&SBSB website. Thanks to all who entered, this is going to be a TOUGH decision, indeed.

Alright then, let’s have a look at today’s news:

• Today’s most popular submission: Jay & Silent Bob appear in issue #37, page 37 of Maxim (coincidence?) in a joke toon entitled ‘Where’s Ol’ Dirty Bastard?’. Jay and Bob can be seen in the center of the toon.
• IGN names Mallrats as #9 of their Top 10 DVDs of all time. A pretty big honor considering all that’s out there (though we think they could have gone even higher with that fantastic documentary and deleted scenes section). Anyway, check out the list right HERE.
• Here’s a link to a DVD Forum discussion about Jason Lee. Surf over if you’d like to see some of Lee’s skating pics from the old days.
• Here’s an exclusive report from the set of a flick Ben Affleck‘s currently filming, “Changing Lanes”:

• On the newgrounds.com website, there’s a Clerks cartoon (done with stick figures) called “Clerks Condensed”. We hear it takes forever to load though, so we’ve yet to check it out. Watch at your own risk.
• Finally today, HERE’S a new article on Kevin’s appearance at Bloomsburg University a couple months back. Check it out and we’ll see ya when we see ya. Happy Holidays, folks.

• The Psycomic site is back AND includes a fresh new DTM from Kevin, “The Tenth Anniverary Column”. This week, Kevin sits down with David Duchovny himself for a meet-and-greet, as the guy’s not up for a J&SBSB role, but just meeting as a friendly get together type of thing. What happened during this much-anticipated get together? And what about Kev’s thoughts on Buffy? (Ed: Trust us, Kev, start watching if you’re at home Tuesday nights, it’s not tough to catch up!). Here’s a taste:

Read the rest at the newly resurrected Psycomic.com! Will we get ANOTHER new edition tomorrow, being that it’s Friday? Time will tell…

Our inside source says that Psycomic is now in the process of paying the bills and they’ll be back online soon! Just wanted to let ya know, be on the lookout for the new column anytime now. Remember, we’re unable to verify this, so consider it just RUMOR now. At any rate, it’s positive news, and we look forward to more of Kev’s rantings soon.

Joe Quesada has been challenging Spawn (as well as a way cool line of toys) creator Todd McFarlane to come back and do some penciling in comics again, to help revive the industry and excitement a bit. His latest proposal is where we get involved, as he’s asked Todd if he’d come back to do a 2-book (but each its own one shot) Spawn/Spidey crossover, one done by him, the other, Todd. He even tapped Kevin Smith who submitted an outline (that these webmasters would LOVE to read) for the story (Kevin would also write Marvel’s, maybe even both books, as well). Years ago, when Spawn was getting underway, Image and DC each did something similar with their own Batman/Spawn crossover one-shots. So, it certainly seems like everyone is interested if Todd would just get involved (Todd, are ya listening?). Here’s Joe’s full open letter courtesy of Comics Newsarama:

Wow. This is some exciting stuff, indeed. Let’s hope something comes of it, as we’re sure these suckers would set sales records all over the place. Come on, Todd, the ball’s in your court, don’t let us down!

• The newest issue of Wizard, #113, has five pages from the first issue of Green Arrow. Culminating in a nifty two-page spread, it’s a compelling opening to the series. Most of it is a conversation between Batman and Superman atop the Daily Planet building during the Final Night business, but it’s a great conversation that seems to tell a lot about the relationship between Supes and Bats. Parallax makes a cameo, as well. We don’t want to ruin it for the folks who haven’t seen it yet, but in the accompanying article, Kevin says that things really pick up in issue seven when Hal (Spectre) Jordan turns up. Sounds like the makings of another great series.
• Psycomic: Still no news, aside from a post on the View Askew WWWBoard that promised the site was coming back YESTERDAY which, as we know, didn’t happen. Sorry folks, we’ll let you know more as soon as we do.
• Dogma is in the top 50 rented flicks of 2000. It made a tidy sum of $34.9 million, which is actually more than what it made theatrically ($30.6 million).
• The New York Observer has a movie map of the New York City area, where Kevin is the only person listed in all of New Jersey. The text isn’t great, but the map itself is fun.
• Just to show that View Askew fans make a difference, here’s the results of that poll we mentioned the other day from “My Video Store”:

• Finally today, some cool pics for ya. First, this artwork which is one of the coolest Jay & Silent Bob takes we’ve seen. It comes from this website www.bloomonkey.com where it was runner up for a Korn album cover contest. WAY cool, kudos to the artist! Heck, I’d hang that on my wall.

We’ve also got four shots from Kevin at the Academy earlier this month, one signing, and three from the Q&A session podium. Everything expands, click for a better view.

• We expected the famous Psycomic column to return today, but server issues still keep the site offline. We’ve heard an unsubstantiated rumor that Psycomic may be a bit behind on paying some server bills, and that’s what’s holding things up. No idea if this is true or not, but it would make sense. At any rate, sit tight, we’re sure that whatever columns were written will surface somewhere, whether that be here, at View Askew, or elsewhere, and that Kevin will continue the tradition even if the original Developing The Monkey doesn’t come back as it was. Stay tuned.

• With all the goings-on out on the west coast, it’s been a while since we’ve heard from Kevin through the WWWBoard, which made his recent return even sweeter. Surf over if you’d like to read all the posts and info, but if you want a quick summary, here’s the latest from the man himself:

• The Dogma SE DVD should be available soon for preorder through the Stash online and in person, of course.
• The Clerks animated feature is being worked on right now and WILL happen!
• Jay & Silent Bob Strike Back is “…more plot oriented, and not sketch-like (a’la ‘Clerks’).”
• One of the drawings we posted yesterday will be the final artwork for the front of the new Clerks Animated Series DVD. Very cool and much deserved after Bailey’s wonderful job with them.
• J&SBSB starts filming on January 17th and will likely employ a 2:35 aspect ratio using Super 35.
• The WWWBoard posting system will remain as two seperate areas for now.
• On the upcoming Psycomic columns, when posted: “All nine columns (ten, if you include the one that’s been delayed due to site problems) are about the one week of casting we did in L.A. back in October. Once I’m done talking about that (which is about two columns away), I’ll get more current.”
• Filming on J&SBSB will take place in Hollywood and some select areas outside of LA.

That’s about it, but some damn cool stuff in there, for sure. Kev really manages to share a lot in those posting sessions of his. Anyway, if we missed something, feel free to share it in the TalkBacks, but that covers the cool stuff from what seemed to be out there.

• The VSDA has nominated DOGMA as the Rental Sleeper Hit of the Year! Also nominated: “Boys Don’t Cry”, “Mystery, Alaska”, “Snow Falling on Cedars”, and “The Straight Story” (A very good flick if you’ve yet to see it, by the way).
• Those of you looking for all the extras on View Askew DVDs and any others ya may have around may want to check out www.cheatcc.com, as they’ve got all the hidden gems listed there (though nothing those of you with the discs probably haven’t already seen, but still).
• Last week in Barrhead, Alberta (Canada) the Barrhead Public Library banned Clerks – The Comic Book for being too lewd. We’re sure the guys that worked on the book are most pleased: Now they know they’ve arrived. 🙂
• A site called The Wit and Wisdom of Mick Collins, which chronicles posts from a View Askew WWWBoarder, has gone live. Check it out if you’re a fan of his work.
• Finally today, Matt Damon fans: Check out the new flick “Finding Forrester” for a cameo in the flick.