Jeff Trexler rounds up some evidence that mediation is slogging towards a settlement in the Superboy/Superman lawsuits, including a comment by Dan DiDio this weekend that “We’ve got SuperBOY Prime (yes, we can say that again).”

However, DiDio’s reference to Superboy is not the only piece of evidence to emerge this weekend. On Friday, the Siegels and Time Warner filed their joint progress report in the Superboy and Superman lawsuits. This report states that the parties have not reached a settlement, despite four mediation sessions attended by their lawyers and DC President and Publisher Paul Levitz.

But that does not mean that the situation is hopeless. The progress report concludes by noting that after the mediator returns from vacation, “he would be contacting the parties … to potentially continue settlement discussions.”

A crazed truck driver went on a gruesome rampage Sunday in Tokyo’s nerd-friendly Akihabara district, killing seven people. The horrible incident has received international attention, but the killer’s otaku-tendencies have not gone unnoticed as this Yahoo photo caption shows:

A disturbed comic-book fan who killed seven people on a stabbing frenzy in downtown Tokyo

From the main story:

As stunned mourners placed flowers, sweets and comic-book images at a makeshift shrine, new details emerged of how he kept a detailed log of his plans to wreak havoc in Akihabara, the hub of Tokyo’s comic-book subculture.

The assailant behind Japan’s deadliest crime in seven years, 25-year-old Tomohiro Kato, is a graduate of a prestigious high school who went on to do manual work at an auto components factory, reports said.

Above, the alleged killer is hauled away by police.

UPDATE: Check out Johanna’s list of Tokyopop’s greatest mistakes over the past two years:

The reviews are in! And Tokyopop’s online contract for the new “Manga Pilot” program has been dubbed everything from “appalling” to “vile” to “the most childish and disingenuous legal document I have ever read.”

What is it? Basically, Tokyopop has started the next iteration of their “Rising Stars of Manga contest/OEL” method of developing IP and talent, with their “Manga PIlot” program:

In this new program, promising manga creators are selected and hired by our editorial team to create a 24-to-36-page “pilot”—a short-form manga that will be used to determine whether or not a full-length manga will be created. The Manga Pilot will be published online for TOKYOPOP community members to review, rate, and discuss.

The contract for this program is posted at the link above, and it drew sharp, immediate and universal condemnation, starting with Lea Hernandez, for such passages as this:

““MORAL RIGHTS” AND YOUR CREDIT
“Moral rights” is a fancy term (the French thought it up) that basically has to do with having your name attached to your creation (your credit!) and the right to approve or disapprove certain changes to your creation. Of course, we want you to get credit for your creation, and we want to work with you in case there are changes, but we want to do so under the terms in this pact instead of under fancy French idea. So, in order for us to adapt the Manga Pilot for different media, and to determine how we should include your credit in tough situations, you agree to give up any “moral rights” you might have.”

To which Lea wrote:

There you have it, folks: Moral Rights are dumb because the French thought of them, so give them up.

Normally mild-mannered Bryan Lee O’Malley then stepped in with a crushing condemnation:

I’m going to go through this piece of shit with you, because I’m sure a lot of aspiring cartoonists read my blog and I want to do my part to help you all have a future.

Read my bloggy lips: if you sign this contract, say goodbye to THE FUTURE.

I’m not going to speculate about where they’re being untruthful. I’m just going to let them say what they’re saying. It’s bad enough.

(more…)

A judge has refused to overturn the conviction of Michael George this morning. The defense had attempted to get the jury’s guilty conviction vacated due to a lack of evidence, but the judge sided with the jury, George faces life in prison without parole after being convicted of the 19 year old murder of his wife, Barbara.

Several people sent us think link to a Boing Boing post about a children’s cancer charity benefit being shut down because of unauthoized use of DC characters. Organizer Alex explains:

I messed up. I just got notice that two of the Superman related auctions have been removed from the site and the rest are probably next. I don’t know what to do now. I have to start canceling auctions and issuing refunds. That means all the fees and such I’m now responsible for which is money i just don’t have, and I have no idea if I’m still obligated to the middleman ebay uses for their charity auctions.

I’ve gone ahead and canceled the auctions still running that featured Warner Bros properties. I’m not sure what to do about the ones (like the ones that were canceled by DC) that are already completed. I’ll be talking to ebay, paypal, missionfish (the people that handle ebay’s charity donations) the artists and auction winners.

While this sounds very very crappy, esp. given all the other charity auctions going on, bear in mind this was mostly likely a Warner Bros. thing and had nothing to do with DC Comics. Boing Boing readers were reminded of the time that Disney lawyers requested a children’s day care center paint over murals of copyrighted characters Mickey and Donald, etc. GRINCH.

DATELINE covered the Michael George case on Friday and a complete transcript and video excerpt are up.

Lenora Ward: She knew our names. Immediately when we would walk in, she would light up with a smile. Many times, she would actually come around the counter to greet us.

But not on this early evening, just after 6 p.m. Tom and Lenora had thumbed through the bins and found their comic, but no one was there to take their money, not Barb or her husband Michael, the co-owner. Some teenagers in the shop weren’t being waited on either.

In addition to the expected lurid graphics, there are also some old photos of the store as it looked in the 90s.

Were the 90s really so long ago that that car looks like an LeSabre or something?

According to a tipster, this Friday’s Dateline NBC will cover the Michael George case, as long rumored:

The promo I just saw for this Friday’s Dateline NBC was slugged as “two decades later can they solve the comic book murder?” and they showed a photo of Michael George’s wife and the front of his store, so I guess that’s the story they’ll be covering.

On at 10 PM, NBC, and most likely re-run on MSNBC ten thousand times.

You’ll recall that George was charged and convicted of killing his wife almost 20 years ago, and faking a robbery as a cover-up. His conviction is currently under appeal, and George could still go free, as the evidence against him is considered circumstantial enough to merit a renewed request for a directed verdict. A directed verdict would overturn the conviction.

Two suspects have been arrested in the shooting of comics retailer David Pirkola local papers are reporting The two are teenagers, while a third is still sought.

The suspects are 18-year-old James Muriel-Neal Thompson and 19-year-old Marvin Michael-Marquis Jones. Thompson and Jones remain in the Kent County Jail on $500,000 bond and face a Monday probable-cause hearing in Kentwood District Court.

Despite being shot in the abdomen during the Friday incident, Pirkola was awake and conscious when Kentwood police arrived on the scene at 2757 Ridgemoor Drive SE around 7 p.m., according to a warrant affidavit filed with the Kentwood District Court.

Pirkola provided police with a description of the man he said shot him. Some collectable cards taken from the store were found south of the store, the affidavit showed.

iFanboy is still running a fundraiser to help Pirkola with his sizeble medical bills.

Even the Rome News - Tribune cartoonist is getting in on the act of making sport of DA Leigh Patterson, who prosecuted the Gordon Lee case and apparently has a reputation for doggedly pursuing shaky “quality of life” cases like this.

The Rome News of Georgia delvers a dyspeptic analysis of the Grodon Lee spectacle and the behavior of DA Leigh Patterson:

NOT TO SHOCK Ms. Patterson, or give her another cause for action, we saw the same thing in the flesh (though not Picasso) in an HBO prime time feature recently and suspect quite a few minors did, too, given this was in the context of a patriotic American history presentation. Watching it might even have been a school assignment for some.

Greater Romans, who probably paid this case only limited attention — it’s certainly been eclipsed by the similar long-lasting war against the Entice Adult Store — largely don’t know how much of a new black eye this case has given them. Not only has it been featured in The New York Times and Publishers Weekly, but when the dismissal was announced from the podium at the big New York Comics Con gathering, it brought cheers both long and loud.

[Link via Blog2]

Everyone has IRON MAN fever! The film, opening Friday, has gotten fab reviews from everyone but the New Yorker, and Robert Downey Jr’s performance is being hailed as one of his best ever, and a new benchmark for a superhero movie.

However there have been a few glitches along the way. Tireless Jeff Trexler alerts us to a legal spat over a screening. It seems the blog TechCrunch set up an early screening viaa source unknown, which Marvel Studios objected to.

Whoever decided to authorize an early screening without looping in Marvel, the company that made the movie, was not thinking. The 2005 distribution agreement between Marvel and Paramount provides, in article 10, that “Marvel shall be meaningfully consulted on the release pattern and distribution pattern” of the film; Article 7 also requires Marvel to be consulted for all commercial co-promotions and tie-ins. That the screening was apparently arranged through Paramount’s group sales department will probably have behind-the-scenes ramifications; this incident does give the impression that Paramount is something of a loose cannon, with few if any internal controls at the local level.

David Pirkola, owner of Apparitions Comics and Books in Kentwood, MI wasshot in a a robbery on Friday evening . Pirkola is in critical but stable condition. According to the police, a man entered the store abut 7 pm, demanded money, shot Pirkola and fled.

The police are still investigating the crime, and anyone with information is urged to contact them.

Ifanboy has set up a fundraising drive to raise money to help with keeping the store open. The Bendis board has also rallied.

UPDATE: More on efforts to help Pirkola:

“This isn’t something you do to get rich,” said Peter Ryan, who is one of the partners in the Kentwood store as well as another store in Lansing.

He said most comic book store owners are fans who turned their love of the medium into a business, but one that operates with tight margins. It is a job that rarely comes with perks like comprehensive health plans, so an Internet site has been set up to collect money to be used for health costs and also to help Pirkola keep the store open.

On comic book-related Web sites, word of the robbery has been passed nationwide. Ronald Richards, of San Francisco, offered to use his comic book Web site as a host site for the account set up for Pirkola.

CBLDF PR:

The Comic Book Legal Defense Fund scored a victory last Friday when prosecutors dismissed all charges against Rome, GA retailer Gordon Lee. Neil Gaiman announced that Judge Larry Salmon signed off on the dismissal on Friday evening at New York Comic Con.

“This is a victory for Gordon, and a victory for comics,” says CBLDF Executive Director Charles Brownstein. “For more than three years, the comics world has stood behind Gordon’s innocence and now we are vindicated.”

The dismissal comes after more than three years and $100,000 of CBLDF resources were spent to prove Lee’s innocence. The battle was waged against a prosecutor’s office that grossly overcharged Lee at the start of the case, and proceeded to cause multiple delays, including throwing out and refiling charges a year and a half into the case, and creating a mistrial when the case finally went before a jury last November.

(more…)

Artist Stuart Immonen reports on an annoying internet rip off:

Yesterday, my pal Darren Di Lieto, from The Little Chimp Society website, emailed with some upsetting news. Turns out someone scraped the contents of his website and published it into a 350-page book being sold online for $100. You can read more on this post in Darren’s blog.

This book — which reprints without permission several dozen artist interviews which Darren had posted on the LCS blog — transcribes these interviews word-for-word, including the artwork, and was “published” under the title “Colorful Illustrations 93°C”. The book even includes a CD with all the illustrations from the book, all lifted off the site as well. Here’s a link to a gallery of scans that Darren made of each page of the book, with a close-up below of one of the two spreads which feature the interview Darren did of me (I can’t help but notice the thieves omitted the illustration of the two big gay muscle Daddies, chickens!):

More details in links.

Newsarama has a full write up of the stunning announcement from Neil Gaiman:

At Friday evening’s “CBLDF Presents An Evening with Neil Gaiman,” the guest of honor began the evening with a surprise announcement. Just after taking the stage following an introduction by Bill Hader of Saturday Night Live and the just-opened Forgetting Sarah Marshall, Gaiman announced that the Gordon Lee case has been dismissed.

Gaiman told the story of the case, and how the copy of the Alternate Comics #2, a Free Comic Book Day comic that was accidentally given to a child during a Halloween celebration in 2004 in Rome, Georgia. Gaiman’s brief summary of the case included what he characterized as mistakes by the prosecution, adding that, to date, the case had cost the CBLDF over $100,000. Gaiman said that, in his view, the Rome, GA prosecutor was specifically determined to send Lee to prison.

But now, Gaiman continued, the judge has signed off and all charges against Gordon Lee have been dismissed.

Can we just say: justice has finally been served in a case that never should have dragged on as long as it did. The full link has more comments from CBLDF director Charles Brownstein.

Over the weekend we received about a zillion links to this call to arms at Animation World Magazine decrying an upcoming amendment to the Orphan Works bill soon to come up for vote:

In short, if Congress passes this law, YOU WILL LOSE THE RIGHT TO MAKE MONEY FROM YOUR OWN CREATIONS!

Why is this allowed to happen? APATHY and MONEY.

Artists have apathy and corporations have money.

We need to be heard in order to protect our incomes, our creations and our careers. GET OFF YOUR ASS!

Stirring words and we’re all for artists not losing control of their works. But is this really all that it seems? Apparently, not really, as no bill is actually up before Congress at this time. This link would seem to refute many of the scary calls for petitions and so on:

But Mark Simon apparently believes that enacting legislation to handle orphaned works in a way that protects people who legitimately try to find the original copyright holder, but can’t, will lead to the effective invalidation of copyright on ALL UNREGISTERED ART EVERYWHERE OMGZ CALL OUT THE CAVALRY. His article, which I linked above, is miserably poorly researched, jumps to completely illogical conclusions, and, most retardedly of all, implores artists to letterbomb Congress in protest of proposed legislation which does not actually exist. Someone please tell me where this guy is getting the crack he’s smoking, because I want to avoid that streetcorner and everything in a six-block radius, kthx.

We’re not ENTIRELY clear on which side of this is correct but the hysterical tone of Simon’s piece tipped us off right away.

MEANWHILE, non orphaned work can be stolen as the tale of indie rock band Crystal Castles appropriating the work of indie artist Trevor Brown shows.

mentioned before - a pair of stupid kids doing electronica stuff who decided they’d use my art for their first 7″ record cover without bothering to seek permission - the same image also stolen for “official” crystal castles t-shirts - their excuse and reasoning being: we found the image on an old flyer, with no credit, so we didnt know who it belonged to or who to ask we figured if we used it, the artist would eventually make him/herself known well, the artist did quickly learn about it and made himself known - then proceeded to waste months listening to their lame apologies and promises - but never got anything - not even a lousy copy of the record - all they did was belatedly stick a credit to me on their web site (ie myspace page) for the t-shirt design, as if that made everything hunky dory - the 7″ sold out fast but i asked them to stop selling the shirts

The art in question is based on a photograph of Madonna to which Brown added a swollen black eye, but even that doesn’t mean the right to profit from his work. Brown specializes in Lolita-style art of little girls with swollen shut black eyes and other very very disturbing and controversial imagery. But that doesn’t mean he should get ripped off. Meanwhile, we really like Crystal Castles. Chris Butcher has more.

Following Michael George’s conviction last month of the 1990 murder of his wife, his attorney, Carl Marlinga, has asked for an acquittal based on the “flimsy” evidence presented during the trial. Marlinga asked for this directed verdict during the trial but was denied.

But Marlinga has renewed the request in the wake of the conviction.

“There’s going to be a fight on this one either way,” Marlinga said.

On Thursday, Biernat ordered lawyers on both sides to file legal briefs, explaining in writing whether and why he should reconsider the issue before George’s sentencing, which is scheduled for May 27.

With this sort of legal maneuvering likely to go on for some while, Marlinga’s prediction that the case could go on for years could well be accurate.

Okay a few links to tide you over.

Jeff Trexler continue his coverage of the case with a FAQ and an explanation of why DC isn’t “doomed.”

Comics Should Be Good! has an FAQ written in non legalese, and and interview with copyright attorney Brendan McFeely:

Despite the Court’s explicit ruling, several factors remain in play. “[DC] does not need to account for profits earned outside the US,” McFeely said. “[The Siegels] have only recaptured these rights within the United States. The court also found unequivocally that DC retains all rights outside the United States. I suspect that Siegels’ lawyers will find a way to appeal this.”

McFeely continued, “It’s a bit up in the air currently exactly what this means: the Court also found that major elements of the Superman mythos were created long after the original material published in ‘Action’ #1. Lex Luthor, Myxyzptlk, Titano, kryptonite, Kandor, Brainiac, the Phantom Zone and Zod, just for starters, were all created after ‘Action’ #1. But the key elements of Superman, his abilities, his appearance, his dual identities and his basic abilities were all present in that comic, so its very likely that DC and Time Warner will have to cough up a very, very large amount of money to the Siegels.”

A few historical links. Jamie Coville’s The History of Comic Books has some of the history surrounding the creation of Superman.

It should be known that Siegel and Shuster did not share in the wealth generated by Superman. The two had sold the rights to the characters along with the first story for 10 dollars a page. Siegel did ask for increases in page rates and did get them, but they still were only getting very small portion of the income Superman was generating. A 1941 magazine article in the Saturday Nights Evening Post went into detail about how the money was being distributed. It reported that in 1940 The Superman Shop got $75,000 dollars. $16,000 of which went to pay the staff and other expenses, leaving $59,000 to split between the two creators. Meanwhile Harry Donenfeld was bragging to reporters his take home pay from Superman was around $500,000. The article writer believed it to be half that, Liebowitz would only admit that it was over $100,000. Superman Inc., the company set up for Superman licensing made 1.5 million dollars that year. There was no mention on how much DC co-owner Jack Liebowitz was getting paid.

Mike Catron’s page has a letter Jerry Siegel wrote in 1975 attempting to get publicity for his continuing attempts to get what he felt was his share of the profits of Superman.

Obviously, this case will go to appeal, and the legal battle will go on for years and years. I couldn’t find any mention anywhere of the age of Joanne Siegel, the original inspiration for Lois Lane, but she has to be in her 90s. Begin to ponder the years of fighting this woman has gone through, and this legal victory — one that has come not through any groundbreaking legal precedent, but through the application of established copyright law — and you can’t help but think the good guys have won, at least for a day.

With that in mind, the attitudes displayed on many message boards accusing the Siegel family of “greed” or worrying that this is a terrible decision for the character of Superman are stunning examples of ignorance and selfishness. They are the reason we have laws that apply a higher degree of ethical and moral judgement than the rabble is capable of. Granted, copyright law is the not a subject that the man or woman on the street would be expected to have a sound grasp of. But the case of Joe Shuster and Jerry Siegel – living in poverty for years even as a character no ever denied they created made hundreds of millions of dollars — is infamous as one of the most unfortunate examples of financial disparity in the history of intellectual property.

And with his shaman’s magic, Grant Morrison managed to get their story, once more, into the pages of All-Star Superman. The story of Siegel and Shuster is the story of comics, in all its shoddiness, inspiration and endless battle.

The law finally caught up.

In a stunning decision, the heirs of Jerry Siegel, co-creator of Superman, have been granted the copyright to Action Comics Vol. 1. Jeff Trexler has more links and details. The concluding paragraph of the court decision is worth quoting in it’s entirety.

After seventy years, Jerome Siegel’s heirs regain what he granted so long ago – the copyright in the Superman material that was published in Action Comics Vol. 1. What remains is an apportionment of profits, guided in some measure by the rulings contained in this Order, and a trial on whether to include the profits generated by DC Comics’ corporate sibling’s exploitation of the Superman copyright.

While many details of the decision remain to be worked out, including the fate of Superboy, this at long last rights one of the greatest injustices in the history of comics, whereby the creators of the tentpole character of the superhero genre sold all rights away for $300$130.

Breaking. We’ll have more details and analysis later.

More: Jeff Trexler has a FAQ with lotes more background:

Q: Do the Siegels have creative control over Superman comics?

A: No. The court explains, quoting an earlier case, that “each co-owner has an independent right to use or license the use of the copyright. . . . A co-owner of a copyright must account to other co-owners for any profits he earns from licensing or use of the copyright.” (p. 66) However, if the Shuster heirs regain copyright in a few years, then the future of Superman comics gets rather complicated, since all domestic copyright in the Action Comics #1 material & its derivative works will vest in the two families.

Q: What about Superboy?

A: That’s a separate case, although procedurally it is consolidated with the Superman case for discovery and pre-trial purposes. The question of the Siegels’ rights to Superboy is as of yet unresolved.

Also: the New York Times analyses the ruling::

Compensation to the Siegels would be limited to any work created after their 1999 termination date. Income from the 1978 “Superman” film, or the three sequels that followed in the 1980s, are not at issue. But a “Superman Returns” sequel being planned with the filmmaker Bryan Singer (who has also directed “The Usual Suspects” and “X-Men”) might require payments to the Siegels, should they prevail in a demand that the studio’s income, not just that of the comics unit, be subject to a court-ordered accounting.

Mrs. Siegel and Ms. Larson said it was too soon to make future plans for the Superman character. But they were inclined to relish this moment.

UPDATE Saturday: Nikki Finke has some interesting things to say

For instance, Joanne Siegel (who’d been the sketch model for Lois Lane) wrote a 3-page letter back in 2002 to then Time Warner CEO Dick Parsons calling the company “greedy” and “heartless” and acting “just like the Gestapo … your company wants to strip us naked of our legal rights… Is that the reputation you want?” The answer is a resounding yes. Because for years Warner tied with Disney for its aggressive unwillingness to settle these kinds of legal disputes and its absurd eagerness to risk going to court. Its corporate counsel would hire litigation piranhas hungry for billable hours who pledge to make each case go away by exhausting the patience and resources of the creators or rightsholders. It’s a thoroughly effective but completely disgusting way of doing business.

free creator ringtone

SMS text messaging was worth over 100 billion dollars in annual revenues in 2007 and power ringtone rangers average of messaging use is 2.

A jury has found Michael George guilty in the slaying of his wife 17 years ago.

George was accused of shooting his wife, Barbara, in the head on July 13, 1990, and making the crime look like a robbery. The jury found George guilty of first-degree murder, felony firearm, insurance fraud and obtaining money from an insurance agency under false pretenses.

The four-man and eight-woman jury began deliberations Friday afternoon after listening to the testimony of nearly 50 witnesses in the trial that drew national media attention.

Prosecution and defense have rested, closing arguments have been made. It’s up to the jury to decide whether retailer/convention organizer Michael George killed his wife 18 years ago. The DA has argued that only George had the motive and opportunity, and that there was no robbery, as claimed. The defense has countered by pointing out that the evidence against george in this cold case is all circumstantial, and his mother and two daughters have testified he was asleep on the couch when the murder took place.

It’s up to the jury to decide who’s telling the truth.

The Detroit Free Press has more.movie archive browse celebritymovies asswatcher freebeing whipped movie of womenmovies bus bang jessicachildren movies pornmovies masturbatingmovie hentai samplegrill studio movie Map

We’re happy to report that the Jess Fink vs Hot Topic brouhaha has been ended with a satisfying and righteous conclusion:

“I would like to first and foremost, appologize for this situation. It is very important to us to support artists and their ventures and it just makes my stomach turn when something like this happens. We in NO way would have written this artwork if we had known it was someone else’s design. We work with many vendors that sell us “generic” artwork and we put our faith in those vendors to not sell us stolen or immulated artwork.”

On top of this she offered that they would like to buy some of my designs.

Also from what she said I have a feeling no one is going to be buying anything from “NewBreedGirl” for a long time.

I don’t know if I will in fact do the designs for Hot Topic or not yet, but all I really wanted in the first place was for the shirt to not be sold and so I think I am satisfied with how this all turned out, and that I didn’t have to take it to court.

I hope this isn’t an anti-climactic ending for anyone, I am not going to blow up Hot Topic with a rocket gun or brake any one’s neck bones, but I think I am happy with it.

In yet another happy turn of events, Rachel Nabors has had a very successful fundraising to finance the extensive dental work she needs:

It’s official. We’ve raised at least $5,000 toward my jaw surgery! Let’s see, that either covers the braces or half of the surgery (provided it doesn’t involve widening the roof of my mouth). Last I checked tonight, we were at $5,588.04 USD. I still need to use part of that for shirts, but we’re over five grand! Wooooo!!! Check out that bar graph!

The Macomb Daily continues its in-depth coverage of the Michael George trail. The latest testimony came from Theresa Danieluk, a friend of accused killer George who claims that after the death of his wife, he made advances to her and also made disparaging remarks about his dead wife, calling her “unattractive” and “heavy.”

“You look very, very very pretty today. Thanks for coming in. Sincerely, Michael,” says the note penned on Comic World stationery, which included the store telephone number. Danieluk read the note in court under questioning by assistant Macomb prosecutor Steven Kaplan.

Danieluk, who said she was engaged at the time to the man who is now her husband, said she never called him. But he called her, making comments such as, “I saw you today, you looked pretty today,” while talking to her and leaving recorded messages, she said.

In other testimony, long time friends of George reported that he had turned down their offer of posting a reward for finding the killer.

More comics trouble in Connecticut, where an expelled high school student was arrested in Groton, following a threatening video he posted on YouTube which contained quotes from Naruto.

In the video, which Brown addresses to the students of Grasso Tech, he writes, “The Corpses Crimson Bitter Tears Will Flow And Mingle Through The Endless Sand Feeding The Chaos In Me and Making Me Stronger.” The quote is taken from
a fictional anime series about a character named Gaara who, according to several fan sites, claims only to feel alive when he kills.

While kid-friendly, life-affirming NARUTO would seem to be an unlikely role model for a would-be trouble-maker, school authorities now take a dim view of such videos after recent high school shooters were found to have posted video warnings here and there.