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Filtered by Data Analytics & Machine Learning, Distribution, Energy Resiliency, Integrative Omics, Subsurface Energy Systems, Terrestrial Aquatics, and Wind Energy
PNNL Researchers Make Splash with Machine Learning at SC19
At a conference featuring the most advanced computing hardware and software, ML in its various guises was on full display and highlighted by Nathan Baker's featured invited presentation.
DOE Offers Prize Funding for Marine Energy Technologies
The Powering the Blue Economy Ocean Observing Prize is now accepting applications for its first stage, the Discover Competition.
New AI Model Tries to Synthesize Patient Data Like Doctors Do
A new approach developed by PNNL scientists improves the accuracy of patient diagnosis up to 20 percent when compared to other embedding approaches.
Walls for Energy Savings and Comfort
A multi-institute research team is exploring ways to improve residential walls across America, making homes warmer and drier and delivering significant energy savings.
Using Deep Learning as a Searchlight for Dark Matter
Scientists at PNNL are bringing artificial intelligence into the quest to see whether computers can help humans sift through a sea of experimental data.
PNNL Garners R&D 100 Awards
The U.S. Department of Energy's Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL) is the recipient of two R&D 100 awards and one gold medal.
Sharing the Load Speeds Machine Learning
In today's digital age, the rabbit hole of connected information can be not only a time sink, but downright overwhelming. Even for high-performance computers.
National Grid and PNNL Collaborate to Capture Full Value of Grid Energy Storage
With support from DOE's Office of Electricity and National Grid, PNNL led a groundbreaking study to accurately assess the full value of grid energy storage investments across a wide variety of use cases.
Teams of Rivals: PNNL and LAS Collaborate on Machine Learning
Twenty-four analysts from U.S. intelligence organizations met in August for a machine learning activity with PNNL researchers Nicole Nichols, Jeremiah Rounds, Lawrence Phillips, and Brian Kritzstein.
PNNL, Sandia, and Georgia Tech Join Forces in AI Effort
Three powerhouses in the realm of artificial intelligence have become partners in a new research center created by the U.S. Department of Energy.
(-) Data Analytics & Machine Learning
(-) Distribution
(-) Energy Resiliency
(-) Integrative Omics
(-) Subsurface Energy Systems
(-) Terrestrial Aquatics
(-) Wind Energy


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Spider-Man: With Great Power... #3
It's hard to believe, but there's actually an area of Spider-Man's past that hasn't already been exploited by half a dozen retrospective mini-series. Until now, the brief period between Peter's run-in with a radioactive spider and the sudden death of his uncle had been left to readers' overactive imaginations and the deepest, darkest corners of his creators' minds. In With Great Power, the all-star tandem of David Lapham and Tony Harris set out to finally explore that short, influential period in the web-slinger's career.
I don't know that I've ever read a David Lapham story I didn't like. Ranked among his more recent work, With Great Power isn't his finest hour, but it's at least an interesting angle on a character who's been largely the same for the last forty years. It's actually so original a take, though, that I had trouble just identifying Peter. Spidey's always been a bashful, nerdy kid at heart, but the way he acts when he's in-costume throughout this issue is totally out of line with that. He's a dog, rushing from lady to lady, excess to excess, which doesn't exactly cast him in the same kind of light he's enjoyed for his entire existence. I can understand the need to beef up on the character's immaturity – after all, he's just a kid enjoying the spotlight for the first time in his life, and the wilder his adventures at this point, the greater his regret after his uncle's eventual death – but he's basically unlikeable. Lapham is a genius when he's writing hard-edged action and drama, but he seems uncomfortable with a more wholesome, mainstream story like this one.
I'm also a big fan of Tony Harris's artwork, having followed his contributions to Ex Machina over at WildStorm since the series launched. He brings a certain authenticity to the table, granting his cast a realistic, approachable appearance that doesn't try to hide its flaws. Although he's been enhancing the political atmosphere of New York's City Hall with that style in Machina for a couple of years now, I can't imagine that climate differing too much from the one found in J. Jonah Jameson's war room, and that makes his transition between titles a natural one. Harris's style is equally at home in an editorial conference as it is in a mayoral debate, and he brings exactly the right blend of false authority and bravado to his rendition of Jameson and the rest of his staff.
But while his take on the Bugle staff, the scenery, the supporting cast and even the Fantastic Four are outstanding, his rendition of Spider-Man himself is a bit off. He doesn't feel right, doesn't match his surroundings. Harris's work is a fine blend of detail and simplicity – he conveys every important wrinkle in a lady's blouse, but never gives the rendition so much attention that it feels complicated. His Spider-Man takes that latter technique further than necessary, and comes across as empty and overly simplified. He doesn't look like he fits into his surroundings, and he's certainly not as exciting as he could be. Harris's work here is tremendous, but only when Spidey isn't a part of the picture.
Considering my opinion of the talent involved with this issue, I expected a lot more than I got. David Lapham's story is missing the touches of personality and detail that I'm used to, and it simply doesn't feel like a Spider-Man story. Tony Harris's work is largely on par with the rest of his efforts, doesn't show any signs of being rushed out despite working on two books this month, but he never gets a handle on the main character. At the end of this issue, I felt like I'd been promised something that was never delivered. It's a fine premise, but it never turns into what it could. Flip through this if you need to see what I mean… it's missing a few key elements.
Posted by drqshadow at 12:09 PM No comments:
Labels: david lapham, j jonah jameson, spider-man, tony harris
New Warriors #10
While the rest of the New Warriors have been going about business as usual, growing together as both a team and as a family, one member has been conspicuous in his absences. Although her teammates haven't caught on just yet, Jubilee has taken note of Night Thrasher's regular, convenient disappearing acts, and she wants to get to the bottom of things. But Night Thrasher himself is aware of her investigation, and has started taking steps to make sure she keeps quiet about her discoveries.
Kevin Grevioux has written the team into an interesting corner, despite a few hiccups with his dialog. He's built tensions to a boiling point, with field leader Jubilee openly questioning the actions of the team's captain, and the rest of the squad uncertain about whose side they're on. The group shares a certain unspoken bond, but aren't above bickering amongst themselves like a family. They share a recent origin, having each lost their mutant abilities during House of M, and as such are all still learning to rely on weaponry to achieve what they'd always been able to do by themselves. The primary conflict of the issue, Jubilee vs. Night Thrasher in a battle of wills, is well-written and cast in a light that gives them both a strong argument and makes the team's ultimate decision between the two understandable. The narrative does jump around a bit, disrupting the flow, but for the most part it's decent.
The artwork, provided by Paco Medina, alternately shines and recedes, like the sunlight on a cloudy day. When it's working out, it's some high quality work – he's got a light touch and a great knack for dynamic layouts. He clearly loves detailing a breathtaking backdrop, and he's given several occasions to do just that in this issue. But when he isn't giving it his all, as is the case on several pages, it's middling at best. When they're in the middle of a battle, the team strikes dramatic, expressive poses and puts on a show… but immediately afterward, the Warriors stand in forced, awkward positions and never seem to be at ease or comfortable. It's easy to pinpoint the precise moment the artist loses interest in the subject, which is too bad because he has talent to spare when he's motivated.
Medina never seems to have a handle on these characters. They lack identity, and outside of the intricacies of their outfits, all share the same body types. It's been a while since I've seen Jubilee in an ongoing series, but I don't seem to recall her ever having giant knockers and bulging biceps. It's something she shares with the rest of the women on the team, who could basically swap heads and uniforms without a change in the status quo. They're all the same height; the same weight; the same shape… surely there has to be more to them than that.
For the most part, that summarizes this issue – the feeling that there has to be more to it than this. Both the writing and the artwork are good, but not great. Grevioux and Medina do enough to maintain your attention, but not enough to capture your interest. Unless you already have a vested interest in these characters, there probably isn't enough here to merit reading it regularly. Flip through it and see for yourself.
Labels: jubilee, kevin grevioux, new warriors, night thrasher, paco medina
Mighty Avengers #11
Tony Stark's team of government-approved Avengers haven't had much chance to rest since they came together. Whether it's the threat of a new Ultron, the attack of Venom symbiotes in New York City or a time-traveling adventure with Dr. Doom, the action has been pretty much non-stop for these guys all year long. As if the endless battles weren't headache enough, when Iron Man and the Sentry returned to the present last month, their time-traveling companion, Dr. Doom, was nowhere to be found and an enormous explosion seemingly engulfed Stark.
Although I loved this book at its inception, I've soured on it over the last few months. Brian Michael Bendis has given the series a different flavor than New Avengers, focusing more on cartoony action in contrast to NA's more adult tones. And while it's cool to have such a unique pair of voices for Marvel's premiere super-group(s), I think he's gone a bit too far over the top with this series. It feels like Mighty Avengers is his way of apologizing to older fans who may have been turned off by his radically different take on the team in Avengers: Disassembled, which is noble but ultimately not something he's all that good at. The adventures are too stereotypical, the dialog too casual, the thought balloons too frequent – the gimmicks are starting to wear thin.
Seriously, Bendis's thought balloon experiment in particular is out of control. About a third of this issue is a chat between Doom and the Avengers, and the imaginary bubbles are so frequent and overdone, I wanted to scream. It was a cool idea when he first introduced it with the launch of this series, but at this point it's become Frankenstein's monster, overpowering its creator and causing a big mess. Paired with a story that centers on time travel, (a tricky proposition of its own) that means this issue is seriously tough to read. I'm not even entirely sure what really happened.
Marvel legend Mark Bagley is providing the artwork for this storyline, one of his last for the publisher before he becomes exclusive DC property, and he's had much better showings. When he took on Ultimate Spider-Man for the book's first hundred issues, he clearly stepped up his game. His work was phenomenal month in and month out, possibly the best of his career, and it was a perfect match for the tone of that series. Thus far on his brief stretch with Mighty Avengers, he's taken just as big a step in the opposite direction. His work here is nothing compared to what he proved he could do elsewhere. It's not exciting, even in situations that one would assume would almost fill in the action automatically. He doesn't have a feel for the characters. His renditions of the Black Widow, Ares and the Wasp are nasty, and his Doom is missing the impressive, showy nature that's always made him stand out. Bagley's working with an incredible cast, but he just isn't doing anything with it.
I wish I could say I loved this issue, but I just can't. The story never really took hold, the resolution was sudden and coincidental at best, and those damned thought bubbles were everywhere. Paired with a sub-par effort from Bagley, that means the entire issue came across as a disappointment. I expect more from these guys, but I guess not every experiment can be an unbridled success. Flip through it to stay current, but don't expect much.
Labels: brian michael bendis, iron man, mark bagley, mighty avengers, ms. marvel
Marvel Illustrated: Picture of Dorian Gray #4
The latest in Marvel's series of adaptations from famous stories, Oscar Wilde's Dorian Gray is the story of a portrait, a young man and a wish. When Dorian Gray commissioned a famous artist to produce a portrait, he loved the finished product – but also openly lamented that the painting would remain youthful forever, while he was doomed to fade into old age. After openly wishing he could trade places with his reflection in the painting, overnight it became clear that his dream had come true. Over twenty years, the portrait began to show the ravages of time and the alterations in his personality, while Dorian himself remained youthful and handsome.
Of all the literature Marvel's adapted recently, I think this is the most apt to succeed in its new format. The story is spread out over such a long period of time that the regular monthly chapter breaks are more at home than they are in, say, Treasure Island or The Dark Tower. Writer Roy Thomas, aware of that peculiarity, has embraced it. The pace of this series is a good match for the medium, and Thomas does a nice job of carrying over crucial parts of the book's narration without burying every panel in it. A lot of the dialog is stilted and overly proper, but since the book is set in a historic period and the characters are clearly upper-class rich folk, it's not that big a deal.
Although he already has a nicely developed cast of characters to deal with, Thomas gives them each an extra touch of individuality and personality that makes up for the series' relatively short page count. His writing is concise but effective – he's able to effectively tell a giant story in a tiny package without sacrificing anything valuable – and that's extremely important in this situation.
Sebastian Fiumara's art is a nice partner for the story – he brings a good understanding of the era, complete with accurate wardrobe and scenery, but keeps the book from getting too bogged down in it or out of touch. Where the artists on previous Marvel Illustrated books have treated the imprint as a second rate job, Fiumara shows a lot of pride in his work. While he occasionally has problems with basic proportions and anatomy, (in one panel, Dorian's hand is small enough to belong to an infant) I could never question his effort. His work is awesome when it's kept simple, which it is for most of the issue, and even when he gives in to the urge to add a few excessive details, his linework remains unique and interesting. Action is infrequent in a book like this one, but on the brief instances that he's given something active to work with, he maximizes their potential. He especially blossoms in the dark, near-colorless atmosphere of this series, and uses that to his own benefit in the same way that Alex Maleev did during his run with Daredevil.
I was both surprised and impressed by The Picture of Dorian Gray. The writing captures the mood and the drama of the Oscar Wilde original, while granting the series its own personality. The artwork perfectly captures Dorian's slow descent into madness, at the same time placing readers in a specific time period without boring or losing them along the way. I'm as surprised as you might be when I recommend you buy this issue, along with the three that came before. It's not without its blemishes, but it's as strong a title as the Marvel Illustrated line has ever produced.
Labels: dorian gray, marvel illustrated, roy thomas, sebastian fiumara
War is Hell: The First Flight of the Phantom Eagle #1
If there's one thing Garth Ennis doesn't fear, it's boundaries – the concept of doing something that's out of fashion, or something that hasn't been done before, it doesn't faze him. War is Hell is a prime example: the shelves aren't exactly overflowing with stories about the world's first fighter pilots, confusedly strafing the skies during World War I before the inclusion of parachutes were deemed appropriate (higher-ups feared that the aircraft would be abandoned too quickly if pilots were provided an escape route). But Ennis has a story to tell, and when he's motivated like this, it's best not to get into his way.
He's clearly done a good bit of research, too, because while the storytelling itself may be fictional, its backdrop is draped in authenticity. Bits and pieces of trivia, tidbits and facts dating back nearly a full century are scattered about this issue, and they do nothing but enhance the story. While the actual storytelling is about as subtle as a butcher knife, coated with the writer's trademark gallows humor, (the personality and ultimate fate of Captain Clark is pure Ennis) that historical backdrop gives it the right dosage of reality to keep things grounded and generally readable.
One of the writer's longstanding faults is his passion for foreign accents and regional dialects, and that's especially noticeable here. When a pair of British officers share a conversation near the issue's outset, it's bathed in a combination of military jargon and eastern European lingo that I found borderline illegible. That the dialog is so tough to follow is a bad thing, too, because there's so goddamn much of it. When the action is focused on the skies and the war taking place up there, it's pure adrenaline and straight action, but once the squadron's wheels touch grass, it's wall to wall discourse.
Handling the artistic chores is Howard Chaykin, who I've had absolutely no time for recently. His work on Wolverine was so bad, I audibly groaned when I opened this issue and discovered that he was the artist. Surprisingly, though, his work within this issue is much, much stronger than his efforts with the hairy mutant. Chaykin is still a long ways from my good graces, and his panels are still very difficult to read on a few occasions here, but he's at least proven that he does have something to contribute. While he often struggles to accurately portray a human subject, his work with aircraft and the landscape is absolutely gorgeous. When he illustrates the unbridled madness of a dogfight - explosions, gunfire and bodies floating around the page in a chaotic slow dance - the result is both horrific and beautiful. It's obvious that the skies are where his passion lies, and it's a shame that he doesn't get more of an opportunity to show that off in this issue.
Ultimately, your opinion of The First Flight of the Phantom Eagle is going to depend on your opinion of Garth Ennis. If you share his black sense of humor, as I do, you'll laugh out loud a handful of times throughout the issue. If you don't, well, you might want to turn your attention elsewhere, because despite the aid of some great research and a compelling subject, much of the issue exists solely to set up the next morbid punchline. It's not the writer's best work, but it's an entertaining and original jaunt through the history books all the same. I'd recommend you borrow it if just to try something different, although your mileage may vary.
Posted by drqshadow at 9:51 AM No comments:
Labels: garth ennis, howard chaykin, phantom eagle, war is hell
Following the events of his first arc since returning from "the sleep of the gods," Thor is completely and utterly exhausted. I suppose rebuilding the mythical settlement of Asgard and individually seeking out its inhabitants is a bit more work than one man can handle in a single storyline. This month, the Thunder God rests, which releases his mortal counterpart, Donald Blake, into the Asgardian streets.
I'd enjoyed the few preceding chapters of this new Thor that I'd read, mainly because writer J. Michael Straczynski had been spinning a different type of yarn than I was used to. Where the book's previous runs had lost my interest by focusing on long speeches in Middle English and deep, frequent ventures into Norse mythology, Straczynski grabbed my attention by placing Thor in a modern environment. I liked the comparison between the modern perspective and the ancient sentiment of the Thunder God himself, and felt it was a fresh take on a character that I'd long since grown tired of.
With this issue, Straczynski veers from that path and returns to territory that should be familiar for long-time fans of the character. While he tries to balance this shift with an alternate storyline that focuses on Donald Blake's adventures in the modern world, the bulk of the story belongs to Thor. Within just a few pages of the story's return to high-and-mighty mythical themes, I was once again turned off to the character. I can understand that there's an audience for this kind of long-winded, complex storytelling with an ancient flavor, but I don't count myself among its followers. This issue feels like a huge step back to the status quo after the series had taken such a decidedly different direction with its first story arc.
Marko Djurdjevic, most recently known for his work as Daredevil's cover artist, provides the visuals this month. Djurdjevic's style is something of an acquired taste, particularly when he's dealing with the actual Asgardian denizens. He never seems to fully take hold of the mythical setting, at least not in the same way he does the scenes taking place in the modern world. When we're following Donald Blake around America, his work is very good – his personality shines through in the details, which are abundant, and he constantly fills the frame with unique, inspired camera angles. When the setting switches back to Thor's perspective, be it in Asgard or another mythical setting, Djurdjevic's work stumbles. His characters grow stiff and overcomplicated, while his backgrounds lose those great touches of personality. He's a completely different artist when he's illustrating civilians than he is when he's portraying the heroes themselves, and I greatly prefer his work with the former.
I'm sure many fans will rejoice at the release of this issue, hailing it a return to form for the series, but I found myself disappointed. Marko Djurdjevic's artwork has the unfortunate task of following up a run by Olivier Coipel that I absolutely adored, and though it has its own merits, it can't compare to what came before. J. Michael Straczynski's storytelling has slowed down markedly since the last time I read Thor, not to mention the change in direction, and before long I found myself counting the pages until the issue was finished. I'd flip through this, especially if you're a longtime fan of the character, but in my eyes it fell short.
Labels: asgard, j michael straczynski, marko djurdjevic, odin, thor
Ghost Rider #21
Since Johnny Blaze reprised his leading role in the pages of Ghost Rider almost two years ago, he's been hit with a series of revelations that have changed the way he looks at himself. Particularly surprising was the realization that the spirit of vengeance which shares his body wasn't of demonic origin as he'd always presumed, but was actually assigned to him as part of a heavenly "black ops" program. When God doesn't want to get his hands dirty, I guess, he dials up the guy with the flaming skull and a magic motorcycle. Only now, the angel in charge of the whole program has developed grand aspirations, including but not limited to the highest post of them all. The angel, named Zadkiel, wants to evict God from his throne and rule heaven in his place. I guess some people never learn…
Roland Boschi contributes the artwork this month, and while he's certainly a step up from what Javier Saltares was producing the last time I read an issue of Ghost Rider, he's got a few rough patches of his own. His work blends the simple, gestural qualities of Tim Sale with the composition style of the Kubert family, but doesn't compare favorably to either. On the occasions that he seems to get it, such as an early scene-setting panel that portrays Blaze's morning campsite, the artwork is vividly Kubert-inspired, but missing a sense of life and identity.
When his style emulates Tim Sale's, it retains that sense of mesmerizing simplicity, but totally misses the beauty of the Long Halloween artist's linework. Where Sale's illustrations live and breathe, painting their way across the page, Boschi's work is unrefined, jerky and often clumsy. Often, his characters' facial expressions don't match what they're saying or doing. Yet, every once in a while a flicker of hope will peek through. Boschi has the tools to make something of himself… he keeps a good pace, and can tell a story with or without the aid of word balloons. He isn't there yet, but with a bit of refinement and a more discernible identity could become someone noteworthy.
Like his partner, Jason Aaron's writing is a marked improvement over Daniel Way's efforts a few months back. His storytelling is much easier to follow, despite a few awkward shifts from inaction to sudden, jolting fireworks and knife fights, and he shows restraint and a knack for legibility in much of his dialog. I can safely say that this month's conflict is one of the more unique pairings I've ever stumbled across, and while it occasionally gets a bit too close to cliché for my liking, it never actually carries itself over the top in that respect.
Even though it directly involves a battle between angels and repeated references to biblical material, the story really isn't what I expected. That's both a good thing and a bad thing – on one hand, Aaron is exploring new territory with a character that's badly needed that kind of a vision for decades. On the other, his quirky writing style and oddball situations have almost completely reversed the book's personality in a very short period of time. In my eyes, it's a welcome change because what came before was just rotten, but he runs the risk of alienating older readers by changing the game on them so drastically with little warning.
Ghost Rider is grasping for an identity right now, and while both Boschi and Aaron certainly provide something different in that arena, I'm not sure they're a permanent solution. But, to be fair, they are at the very least a step in the right direction. Flip through this, even if the character has never appealed to you. It's trying to reinvent itself, which is more than I can say for a lot of books in a similar predicament.
Labels: ghost rider, jason aaron, johnny blaze, nurses, roland boschi
Punisher #55
This month's Punisher serves as an epilogue to the gigantic "Barracuda" arc that climaxed last month, a sort of tying up of loose ends... as if tearing the villains nose off, slicing away both of his arms, sticking an axe in his chest and unloading a full clip, point-blank into his face wasn't conclusion enough. At the same time, it also serves as an introduction to Garth Ennis and Goran Parlov's next (and final) arc together – a nice segue from one horrifically violent war zone to the next.
There have been a lot of takes on Nick Fury over the years: Stan Lee's James Bond-style portrait, Jim Steranko's legendary surreal, experimental version, Brian Michael Bendis and Mark Millar's mastermind of the Ultimate Universe; in the opening pages of this issue, Ennis adds his twist to the patch-eyed veteran, and it's just as inspired as the creators who have come before. His Fury is angry at the world, at his friends and at himself, and seems to be constantly three inches from a blind rage. While that's a very different side of the character, it's not an altogether unbelievable one either, considering what he's gone through in the last few years. His Fury has a lot in common with the Punisher, which also makes a lot of sense. These two have been working with and around each other for years, and it's understandable that they've become so similar in the twilight of their lives.
While Fury's physical appearance in this story is fairly fleeting, his impact is felt throughout the issue. With this storyline, Ennis gives the indication that he intends to wrap up every single remnant from his four year run with the character, (in MAX format, that is) even those that readers may have thought were already dead and buried. In just the first few pages, he ties the Punisher's constant run-ins with Barracuda, along with almost every misadventure since the series launched, to one specific source... and Fury's every bit as pissed about the culprits as Frank is. If Punisher MAX were a video game, this issue would be introducing the final boss. While the breathless explanations and revelations grow a bit too wordy and involved around the midway point of the issue, it comes off as a necessary evil. Three pages of intense dialog and references to countless back-issues are a fair price for the mother of all story arcs.
I'm not sure what more I can say about Goran Parlov's work that I haven't already said before. I love the guy's work, which was particularly well-suited to Barracuda, and while he occasionally stumbles in his first issue since that character's elimination, the majority of his work is still firing on all cylinders. He doesn't dominate the reader's attention unless the story calls for it, and in an issue that's as word-heavy as this one, that's a godsend. His greatest strength is his ability to almost effortlessly give each character a unique, consistent face, even amongst the masses, and that skill has never shone brighter than right here. He's good enough to know what part he needs to play in the process, and for this issue that's to introduce a metric ton of new, unique faces and try to stay out of the way of the word balloons.
As first chapters go, this one wasn't Ennis and Parlov's best. It's got a lot of potential to deliver the goods as the storyline unfolds, though, and after what they've put together over the last few years, I'm willing to give this team the benefit of the doubt. It's a strange premise for a Punisher story, but sometimes those offbeat, unexpected arcs are the ones I look back on the most fondly when a run like this one concludes. Give it a borrow, especially if you've been reading the series, even erratically, during Ennis's run. It could be his finest hour or his meager last hurrah, but you'll no doubt be lost if you try to come in halfway through the arc.
Labels: barracuda, garth ennis, goran parlov, nick fury, punisher
Fantastic Four #555
Following their critically acclaimed work together on The Authority and, more recently, The Ultimates, Mark Millar and Bryan Hitch have turned their collaborative attention to Marvel's first family, the Fantastic Four. For Millar, it's somewhat familiar territory – he portrayed the team as teenagers in the inaugural issues of Ultimate Fantastic Four, but it's fresh territory for Hitch, not to mention a more deliberate prod into sci-fi for them both. Their previous work always had that intellectual, adult twitch, but it's been constantly set against the backdrop of a fast-paced action scene. With Reed, Johnny, Sue and Ben, the story's always been much more focused on the act of exploration and adventure than the fight at the end of the road.
Fortunately, that fact isn't lost upon Millar, whose writing shifts almost effortlessly to suit the situation. I've found that all of the best F4 stories share the ability to transcend pen and paper, to carry that sense of awe and wonder all the way off the page and into the reader's imagination. In Fantastic #555, it took about six pages to hook me for the rest of the issue. While I'm sure it'll change at some point in the near future, for now this story has no specific villain, no evil force that must be stopped... and the world doesn't stop turning in its absence. If anything, it's twice as interesting because there's nothing to distract me from the weighty concepts at the story's center.
If I'd read this book when I was younger, I don't think I'd have enjoyed it all that much. Millar fills the page with big language and heavy ideas. This isn't the bright, cheery squad of adventurers you'll find in the F4 films or cartoons, and in my simple opinion, that's a very, very good thing. While the story is generally lacking in action, (none of the Four even put their powers to use until the last few pages of this issue) it remains a fascinating read. It stands entirely on the strength of its concepts and the characters' reactions to them, and while that's far outside of the norm for a mainstream superhero book, the change of pace is welcome.
Bryan Hitch's artwork remains constant from his contributions to The Ultimates. In anyone else's hands, I don't know that the nature of Millar's words would have carried the same weight. Hitch brings a certain validation to this book, which justifies the written word his talent accompanies. He goes a long, long way toward making Millar's high-concept story a much more believable experience. His characters have weight to them, they're muscular, but they don't come off as a cluster of Adonises, either. They look like I have to imagine real people would, if real people spent their days spontaneously engulfed in flame, sailing effortlessly through the sky.
The level of detail in his backdrops is one of a kind, simple enough to keep the panels legible and moderately clear, but tightly rendered enough to mesh beautifully with the foregrounds. When he pulls back the camera and allows the scenery to dictate the storytelling, as he does on a few occasions here, there's simply nobody in the world like him. When the Human Torch tackles a mysterious assailant full-force, driving her through buildings, most artists would choose a tight shot of the pair grimacing, flexing and hurling through space. Hitch puts them far in the backdrop, an almost incidental detail in his portrait of New York's evening commute. It's every bit as striking a visual, but it also ties that moment to the real world. As a result of these kinds of decisions, none of his work can be mistaken for pin-ups, (it's simply not something that suits his style) but that doesn't mean they carry any less impact. He's a great partner for this kind of a story and Millar's lucky to have worked with him so frequently.
In case you didn't get the picture from what I've said so far, this is some dynamite work. After Ultimates 2 slowed down near the end of its run, I thought about skipping the duo's take on this book, but that's a mistake I plan to correct immediately. I can't recommend you buy this book any more strongly. Millar and Hitch's Fantastic Four is exactly what you'd expect it to be... fantastic.
Overall Score: 10
Labels: bryan hitch, fantastic four, human torch, invisible woman, mark millar, mr. fantastic, thing
Avengers Fairy Tales #1
If the mere title of Avengers Fairy Tales doesn't summarize the story's themes clearly enough for you, I don't know what more I can do to help that process along. In this original one-shot, writer C.B. Cebulski does his best to tie the Avengers universe to the mythos of Peter Pan in the same vein as Neil Gaiman and Yoshitaka Amano's The Sandman: Dream Hunters. On a few spectacular occasions, the comparison works, especially in the finer details, (The Wasp, for example, fills the role of Tinkerbell) but the big picture has a few snags.
Since it's relegated to just a single issue, the story feels like it gets off the ground much too quickly, and numerous opportunities for big, impressive visuals and amazing moments are passed over in favor of completing the story within the all-too-brief 23 page format. Some of the characters' counterparts in this story just don't seem to be a good match, either, and rather than eliminating them from the narrative, (or, perhaps, taking a little more creative license and inserting some new faces to the mix) they're just crammed into the picture anyway. That's a real shame, too, because for the most part the story is working really well, and the majority of the comparisons between Lost Boys and Avengers are surprisingly suitable… but just those few moments of weakness are enough to put a damper on the whole thing.
Joao Lemos's accompanying artwork is marvelous, and would feel right at home behind the cover of any number of children's books. Which isn't to say his style doesn't translate well to a more adult palette, either… quite the opposite, to tell the truth. Lemos's artwork is so clean and easy to comprehend that it allows the reader to really pinpoint and enjoy the grace and elegance of his gestures and compositions. His light, airy style is even further polished by Christina Strain's gorgeous colors, which respect the simplicity of his work while enlivening its surroundings. The issue's visual style casually floats from ethereal, dreamy watercolor to crisp, sharp separations between darkness and light, in the same vein as a good manga. The pair works together to create a visual that's frequently on the same level as the best Miyazaki films, the most fantastic Moebius comics. I don't think I could sing much higher praise.
This is quite an interesting concept, and in a few specific moments it really seems to click and deliver on its boatload of potential. The artwork in particular is genuinely beautiful, a perfect fit for the aura that should be surrounding this kind of a story, and the writing gives it as much opportunity to impress as it can afford. It's greatest downfall is its page count, however, and it frequently seems to be screaming at the top of its lungs for another issue or two to really flesh the concept out appropriately. Still, when it's working it's really working. Go ahead an borrow this if you get the chance, it retains all the finer aspects of a great old-fashioned fairy tale, while pairing them with a strangely familiar cast of characters.
Posted by drqshadow at 9:49 AM 1 comment:
Labels: avengers, c.b. cebulski, captain america, fairy tales, joao lemos, quicksilver, scarlet witch, wasp
ClanDestine #2
ClanDestine tells the story of Adam Destine, a normal human turned immortal after a dream-clouded encounter with an ethereal, angelic woman. In the eight hundred years he's survived since being granted with such overwhelming longevity, Adam has fought wars, toppled dynasties and produced more than a dozen children... each of whom has a special power or two of their own. As Writer / Artist Alan Davis' long-forgotten pet project, ClanDestine ran for a dozen issues in the mid '90s (not to mention a few high profile one-shot crossovers) before being cast aside for nearly fifteen years. Like its namesake, however, the story lives on and Davis has finally returned to resume it's telling.
A good amount of this issue takes place through a series of flashbacks, which have the potential to be especially cool, considering the lead character's rich history during landmark moments throughout human history. Those stories are kept so brief and fleeting, though, that before I could begin to immerse myself in them, the narrative would suddenly snap back to the present, abandoning the ancient tales before they've even begun. When the storytelling is set in the present world, it's kept so busy and overfilled with new faces, new attitudes and overlapping storylines that I never felt like I was truly given a chance to gather my bearings. Davis is trying to cram four issues' worth of story into the first dozen pages, and the result is a big mess.
The dialog, especially during the opening battle scene, is so tough to follow and continuity-laden that it led me to shake my head more than once. Who has time to shout something like "You are more than human, but I do not recognize you as sons of Attilan... whatever your origin, you defy the will of Tral, so you must die" while being charged by a tiger/man with a scythe on an open battlefield? On top of that... Sons of Attilan, the Will of Tral, the Shalu Monastery... these are all openly discussed within the issue's first four pages, but as a new reader I have no idea what any of them mean. How can I appreciate the importance of these events if they're referencing a cluster of events that presumably took place in a series that was published in 1994?
Davis' artwork, sadly, has lost much of its luster. His layouts are still fairly strong, although they occasionally grow too complicated and difficult to read (he's a big fan of crowding the panel with unnecessarily close shots of the characters in action) but his decades in the field have taught him a lot in this regard. It's his actual rendering that's slid recently. When he was paired with Chris Claremont on Excalibur years ago, Davis effortlessly gave his characters rich personality, individuality and depth with a minimum of strokes. It's something that really set him apart in the late '80s and early '90s, when excessive detail was the norm, and is a lot of the reason why I remember that run with Captain Britain, Nightcrawler and Kittie Pryde so fondly.
That Alan Davis has evidently been left in the past, as these artistic contributions are largely overthought and excessively complicated. While his signature dynamic action poses are still evident throughout this issue, they're paired with an unfamiliar abundance of extra textures and unneeded details. While much of the industry has seemingly moved to embrace a style that the writer / artist helped to develop earlier in his career, he's shifted closer to the style evidenced by the "serious" strips in a Sunday newspaper. There's a small degree of playfulness remaining in his work, but it's hidden deeply behind a frequently drab, surprisingly hollow façade. For years, I've loved this guy's art, but it's just not the same.
ClanDestine is a classic example of a good concept that's been allowed to outgrow its boundaries. Alan Davis's imagination remains sharp, but his self-censorship has evidently gone to lunch. On the fleeting moments that his ideas are an unbridled success, (like when Walter, the gargantuan intellectual, must use a pair of pencils to strike the keys of his typewriter) they're quickly overshadowed by a reckless abundance of word balloons and more dangling plot threads than could be resolved in a full trade paperback. This isn't without its moments of inspiration, but you've got to dig pretty deep to find them. Flip through this if you're a fan, otherwise don't waste your time. It's not intended for new readers.
Posted by drqshadow at 10:55 AM No comments:
Labels: alan davis, clandestine
War is Hell: The First Flight of the Phantom Eagle...

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaCommonCrawl


About a year ago, a girlfriend of mine showed us "one of the best gifts she's ever been given." In an age where literally everything is literally life-changing, I often take these hyperboles with a grain of salt. But in this case, I think she was on to something.


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text:
European Traction
Diesel and electric haulage on the Continent
Haulage Calendar
…In A Day
Gen!
Author: europeantraction
The Prater Liliputbahn, Wien
This brief article concerns an interesting operation in Wien (Vienna), that will very easily fit into an itinerary of a family holiday as well as a trip purely for railway interest.
At 15 inch gauge (the same as the Romney Hythe & Dymchurch and Ravenglass & Eskdale Railways in the UK), this will not be for everyone and certainly features at the smaller end of bonafide narrow-gauge railways. However, it is very good fun, highly recommended and does not take you far off the beaten track to do.
D2 at Prater Hauptbahnhof, 27/10/19 (JW)
The Liliputbahn (see website here) – named after an island populated by miniature people in Jonathan Swift's Gulliver's Travels – is one of two 15 inch gauge railways in Wien. This was the first and was opened in 1928; the other – the Donauparkbahn – followed in 1964, built by the same company for the Wiener Internationale Gartenschau in 1964. This will be the subject of a future article.
The Liliputbahn is located within the Prater park, a matter of minutes on foot from Wien Praterstern station on the Wiener Stammstrecke; this enjoys frequent loco-hauled service on this cross-city axis. One of its intermediate stations – that at Rotunde – has an interchange with tram line 1 at its terminus of Prater Hauptallee, which at the time of my most recent visit in October 2019 still had many of its services provided by the 1970s-era SGP E2-type vehicles.
The Liliputbahn takes a 3.9 km (2.4 mile) circular route through the park, effectively a double-track railway with a balloon loop at each end. The park is very sylvan in nature and makes it a very pleasant, scenic, family-friendly activity, particularly in Autumn when the trees are turning orange.
The operating centre is Prater Hauptbahnhof and it is fair to say that although there are three other stations (Schweizerhaus, Rotunde and Stadion – the stadium in question being the Ernst Happel Stadion, Austria's national football stadium), there is not much to get off at any of the others for – although if you have a return ticket and there is more than one train in use, there is nothing stopping you breaking your journey at one of these stations and returning with a different one.
Prater Hauptbahnhof is in the middle of the Wurstelprater theme park (which is free to enter) and is effectively a 'theme park ride' as much as a railway. It is located in the shadow of the famous 1897-built Riesenrad ferris wheel, and indeed combined tickets are available.
Opposite Prater Hauptbahnhof station is the Republik Kugelmugel – actually a micronation, which declared itself independent in 1976…
A round trip generally takes 20 minutes, which means that a 30-minute frequency timetable is managed by one loco. If resources and passenger numbers dictate, the service can be increased to provide a train every 5 minutes at very busy times, but 15 or 30 minute frequencies are the norm. Generally if steam locos are going to be used, this will be in the afternoon, after 12:15. Saturdays, Sundays and Austrian public holidays are the best times to find steam out.
There are two steam locos – Da1 and Da2, both 1928-built Krauss 4-6-2s – and four diesels (D1 to D4), all built to different designs between 1957 and 1967. The diesels have been converted to run on vegetable oil which is all recycled from within the theme park. Trials with a hydrogen loco have been carried out recently, however.
europeantraction	Austria	Leave a comment November 7, 2019 November 7, 2019 2 Minutes
The Marschbahn
Due to some initial criticism that I was felt to be focusing on my favourite locos (which – if you weren't aware – are Germany's class 218 "rabbit" diesel-hydraulics), they haven't received much coverage on this website to date. However, I think it's time that that was addressed.
My all-time favourite loco, 1974-built Krauss-Maffei diesel-hydraulic 218 344, will hopefully see its 50th birthday in service on the Marschbahn, on which it has operated since 2009. It is seen here at Niebüll with 218 389 on 20/04/14 (JW)
One of Germany's most famous railways is that from Hamburg, via Itzehoe, Husum and Niebüll to the terminus of Westerland, on the North Frisian island of Sylt – the northernmost 107 miles of which, north of Itzehoe, are not electrified. This is known as the "Marschbahn". That an unelectrified destination has retained a long-distance (Intercity) service to cities such as Stuttgart and Dresden is noteworthy, but is explained by the fact that Sylt is not only a tourist destination but one favoured particularly by the rich, famous and above all influential – indeed, the village of Kampen, on Sylt, is home to Germany's most expensive residential street. In this way, Sylt is frequently compared to Montauk, which may be familiar to those of you who have enjoyed the diesel locos on the Long Island Railroad in the USA.
As I mentioned, Sylt is an island, and it is connected to mainland Germany only by a man-made causeway – the Hindenburgdamm. This causeway was completed in 1927 and only carries a railway, which was doubled in 1972 to accommodate the ever-increasing volume of traffic to and from the island. The island does have an airport (GWT), which is served by mostly seasonal flights from German cities, and also an eight-sailings-a-day ferry connection to Havneby in Denmark. Aside from that, the railway is the only method of access.
Intercity services
Intercity services run to Westerland year-round, but some of them are seasonal – which does not mean Summer-only, but holiday periods throughout the year. These have been handled by diesel-hydraulics of the V160 family for nearly half a century. In the last few years, attempts have been made to replace them on this work with modern TRAXX class 245s, but these have been wholly unsuccessful. In short (and trying not to let my prejudices show too much!), breaking from a tradition that has served Germany well, the fleet was ordered without first trialling a prototype, and its new four-engine technology and computer control has not proven itself apt for this particular route – although 245 021 to 245 027 were delivered up there in 2015/16 with the plan drawn up in an office in a Berlin high-rise across Germany was that 1×245 can do the work of 2×218. Consequently, they have been banned from the IC services on the route except for in emergencies, and pairs of 218s will continue for the foreseeable – currently predicted up to 2024/25.
The problem with this is that immediately after the arrival of the 245s – which coincidentally occurred roughly seven years after the incumbent 30-strong fleet of 218s had been overhauled and assembled at Niebüll, and therefore when the seven-year term of their overhauls expired – numerous perfectly good 218s were sent for cannibalisation and in some cases even scrap, rather than Bremen works. This has meant that Niebüll has, for the last few years, had a severe traction shortage entirely of DB's own making. Worse than that, it has had – and continues to have – to make this up by hiring in a rolling cast of 218s from elsewhere in Germany to bolster its own fleet. Some of these are from elsewhere on DB (e.g. class 218.8 "Abschlepploks" – a dedicated fleet of ICE rescue locos, as well as passenger-sector 218s from other depots), and some are hired in at top dollar from DB's competitors.
The current native Niebüll 218 fleet is as follows: 218 307, 218 315, 218 321, 218 322, 218 341, 218 344, 218 345, 218 366, 218 369, 218 379 (although it's been months since that one last ran, to my knowledge), 218 380, 218 385, 218 389 and 218 397.
Their Intercity diagrams are as follows:-
IC2311 09:26 Westerland – Itzehoe 11:43
IC2310 14:15 Itzehoe – Westerland 16:34
IC2375/IC2374 are largely seasonal trains. In the current timetable (May-December 2019) they run on an occasional basis as push-pull sets with a single 218, usually drawn from 218 307, 218 321 and 218 322 or occasional hire-ins) to and from Hamburg Altona. The 218 works throughout in both directions. At the time of writing, there are only three days left of operation that way (12th-14th December 2019). From the December 2019 timetable change, when they run, they should run as above.
Of interest, at least one of the above turns is worked by a Hannover crew, who have signed the route specifically to keep 218s on their traction cards in order to drive the 218.8 that is stabled in that city as a rescue loco if required.
A Niebüll 218 (again drawn from 218 307, 218 321 and 218 322 or hire-ins) works the push-pull set on the IC trains to and from Fehmarn Burg, too.
Car trains
As mentioned above, there is no road access to Sylt. However, the island does have a fairly extensive road network! The ferry service is relatively sparse and links Sylt only to Denmark, and therefore the solution to road travel to and from mainland Germany is a frequent car-carrying train shuttle ("Sylt Shuttle") from Niebüll to Westerland. The car train terminal at Niebüll is directly linked to Bundesstraße 5, and is not far from Bundesautobahn 7, the 1000km-long motorway that links the German/Danish border to the German/Austrian one – so it is effectively part of the road network as much as it is a rail service. The high season timetable sees car trains up to every half an hour in each direction, and they are often full. These carry not only private cars but also coach trips, lorries, etc – they are a real lifeline to the island.
Historically, they have not conveyed accommodation for the casual "foot passenger". Occupants remain in their vehicles for the journey (you can see a video of a journey with hydraulic power on YouTube here). In the past, haulage enthusiasts have had to resort to thumbing a lift with strangers or clubbing together to hire a car. However, this changed in 2015 with the advent of the "Sylt Shuttle Plus". In effect, this was a path raid when DB's monopoly was challenged (see below) and ever since its creation, has caused the utmost controversy, which rages on even now (see news article from late 2019 here). It consists of class 628 two-car DMUs being added to car trains across the Hindenburgdamm – trains with 'D' classification in the DB journey planner – which generally then run on from Niebüll down to Bredstedt, change ends, and return to Niebüll to be added to another car train back to Westerland. Not every car train conveys a DMU, and it has been known that the DMUs can simply fail to turn up. They generally carry around fresh air, as thanks to the shunting required at both Niebüll and Westerland, they do not really provide an attractive alternative to the "normal" passenger to the standard service. In an attempt to remedy this much-maligned waste of diesel in these Greta Thunberg-inspired times, a special fare has been introduced for use solely on Sylt Shuttle Plus services, but that has not fully precluded mass cancellations of the DMUs – even if they are shown as running on the departure boards. Consider yourself forewarned, but if you can manage to pin one down, it allows you to see a very interesting operation from a closer vantage point.
The car trains can be powered by single 245s or pairs of 218s; although swaps onto ICs can occur occasionally at Westerland in order to take those "outstabled" at Itzehoe back to depot for maintenance, the locos on car trains generally do not work on ICs on the same day.
As I mentioned, DB's monopoly on the car trains was challenged in 2015 – with the arrival of the American firm RDC (Railroad Development Corporation). These now run a competing service using the same terminals, using Siemens "Vectron" class 247 diesels – 247 908 "Debbie" and 247 909 "Anne" – under the "AUTOZUG Sylt" brand. This generally requires both to be available for service on a given day as two sets are used simultaneously at certain times. As a result, class 251s (ex-NSB Di6s) – variously 251 002 and 251 003 – are kept on hand in order to cover for unavailability. However, these trains do not convey walk-on accommodation, so you are back to the old fashioned method of thumbing lifts or hiring vehicles if you'd like to get these in the book…
Regional Expresses
Between 2005 and 2016, RE services on the line were operated by the Nord-Ostsee-Bahn (NOB) – and, despite the fact that this displaced my beloved 218s, I have to say that they were a very good operator, using a mixture of class 251 and 223 power with Bombardier "Married Pair" stock. 2014, however, marked the beginning of a deterioration. The organisation that co-ordinates public transport in Schleswig-Holstein – now known as "NAH.SH" – decreed that a fleet of 15 brand-new Bombardier TRAXX class 245.2 locomotives (245 201–245 215) would be procured by the investment company Paribus for use specifically on the Marschbahn regional trains, regardless of operator. These entered traffic from late 2015. At about the same time, it was announced that the franchise would be returning to DB Regio as of the December 2016 timetable change, using the 245.2s and the existing stock.
Problems with the 245.2s were legion from day one. Initially, they suffered from frequent overheating issues and required fire brigade attendance worryingly often. Software problems were frequent and oil and coolant issues have been frequently reported as the cause of failures too. In October 2017, it was announced that they must again go through a rolling programme of works visits for software updates, which took many months to complete.
The 245.2s are back in service, but reliability does seem to continue to be an issue. They continue to be supplemented by "red" 245s – which at least spares some of DB's blushes by finding some gainful employment for 245 021 to 245 027 – which also have a very leisurely turn on Intercity work between Gotha and Gera, in the former East Germany.
The Marschbahn is one of my favourite railways, and one I feel very comfortable on – and not only because one of the major towns along it, Husum, is twinned with my home town of Kidderminster! – although nowadays it is a very challenging one to bash, and whether you are after lots of different numbers in the book or lots of miles behind particular locos, the moves never seem to be ideal.
In recent years, it has gained the nickname among some less charitable enthusiasts of the "Farcebahn", which is driven by the poor punctuality displayed by many trains along it. Although I clearly have my partisan loyalties, being realistic this is almost entirely nothing to do with the long in the tooth but reliable 218s, and everything to do with a needlessly over-ambitious timetable (to accommodate the largely unused SSP services), delays to long-distance services that in some cases have travelled 500 miles by the time they reach Itzehoe on a DB that is no longer a byword for punctuality, and indeed issues with the problem children 245s. Everything has a knock-on effect, though, and it is not uncommon for your plan to disappear out of the window due to missed connections.
Despite those negatives, I would wholeheartedly recommend a visit. It will be the last bastion of class 218 haulage, and although the stock is all air-conditioned with few (if any) opening windows, still allows you to enjoy them working hard at design speed.
europeantraction	Germany	Leave a comment November 5, 2019 November 5, 2019 8 Minutes
Sunday 18th August 2019 – Diesel haulage event at Stoomtrein Dendermonde-Puurs, Belgium
The fourth European Traction rare haulage event occurred on Sunday 18th August 2019 and was at the Stoomtrein Dendermonde-Puurs preserved railway in Belgium.
It is becoming something of an annual tradition that I organise a low-key diesel haulage event in Belgium on the weekend of the "Festival" event at the Chemin de fer du Bocq. This was the third; 2017 saw us visit Stoomtrein Maldegem-Eeklo for 7408, 8040 and 9131 and 2018 the private depot of the PFT/TSP at St Ghislain for 6106, 7005, 7358, 8320, 8428 and CFL 806. These events are useful in encouraging more people to visit the Bocq – as they provide an even more attractive weekend with even more potential "lines in the book" for haulage enthusiasts that helps seal the deal to get them to Belgium for the weekend – and they also raise significant sums of money for our hosts. From those two events alone, over €4,000 was donated.
9109 and 9105 (photo: Ryan Tranmer)
August 2019's add-on European Traction event went through several iterations, which included a possible visit to Kinkempois depot for some GM and shunter haulage over short distances, but this was placed on ice when a visit to the SDP railway came on the cards. Available for our use were 9105 and 9109 – the former being due to leave the railway at the end of the month for an uncertain future (and required for haulage by most), and the latter a new arrival that I believe was required by everybody.
I negotiated with the railway that the locos would work as a pair, in tandem, top-and-tail with the booked steam loco on the first round trip; 11:45 from Baasrode-Noord to Oppuurs and 12:40 return. The initial plan was for the 91s to power the return leg from Oppuurs to Sint-Amands, at which point the steam loco would run round to work back to Baasrode-Noord – but in the event, late running meant that the 91s worked through.
The standard fare of €12 applied. 77 (mainly British) enthusiasts travelled as a result of my "fix", which meant that €924 reached the farebox that the SDP would not otherwise have seen; I trust that this more than covered the extra outlay they incurred in hosting us and accommodating our wishes. When extra refreshment sales are included, I can confidently state that not only did we bring more than €1,000 into the railway, but our total that we have raised for Belgian preservation over three events now exceeds €5,000. I am very proud of that, and very grateful that you all continue to support my endeavours; I am always painfully aware that it takes a lot of trust to be placed in me to pitch up at some quiet foreign backwater at silly o'clock on a Sunday morning simply because I have promised you that something will happen!
9105 and 9109 (photo: Howard Lewsey)
I am not anticipating a "Bocq Sunday" event in 2020, mainly as I will be on my honeymoon as I am marrying my fiancee a week or so before the "Festival"! However, I would very much encourage you to support the PFT/TSP in their aims in 2020; I am led to believe that there will be at least one VERY interesting development…
Those of you who attended this event will doubtless have noticed two things: 1) that there were other locos there that we did not use, due to weight restrictions on the line, that hopefully will be lifted very soon; and 2) that I wasn't there! (I was volunteering on a footplate experience turn on 40106 at the Severn Valley Railway). Consequently, for both of those reasons, I anticipate that a return to the SDP will be on the cards at some point. Obviously, this would be far too late for 9105, so I stand by my conviction that this event was the right thing to pursue this year, even if I will almost certainly now never ride behind it myself. I also wish to reinstate the Kinkempois idea. If not shackled to the Bocq event, my current thinking is that I will create a whole weekend Benelux itinerary myself, with at least two different rare haulage events, for a different point in the year that hopefully will be attractive to you. Leave that one with me, but I will give as much advance notice as I can.
Aside from that, based on the types of event that I have successfully delivered so far, what would you like to see? I am obviously not going to swoop into the market with a multi-day main line railtour, but I think I am making something of a niche for myself in a currently untapped area, and I'm more than happy to continue in this vein for as long as you are prepared to support that.
europeantraction	Belgium	Leave a comment November 4, 2019 3 Minutes
FUC Class E190 – Udine to Villach
The Ferrovie Udine-Cividale (the unfortunately-abbreviated FUC) have a fleet of two Siemens Eurosprinter electric locos, which have a daily passenger diagram between Italy and Austria.
E190 301 and E190 302 are the two machines concerned; both "class 1216s" obtained by FUC in 2011 largely for the "Mi-Co-Tra" ("Miglioramento dei Collegamenti Transfrontalieri" project, the EU-funded upgraded operation on the cross-border artery from Trieste, through Udine to Villach.
Two round trips between Udine and Villach have been provided daily since Summer 2012 as part of a joint operation between FUC and ÖBB, powered by one of the E190s. Only one of the locos is planned to be used in passenger service each day. Other trains on the cross-border route are formed of Railjets with very similar ÖBB class 1216s.
These trains generally convey a bike van in their short formations, and indeed cyclists out to pursue their hobby in the middle of the Alps account for a significant chunk of the trains' clientele. On Saturdays, Sundays and public holidays, these services are extended through to Trieste, an Adriatic port city.
The diagram for these workings is as follows (Sat, Sun and public holiday variations in brackets):-
Train 1820, 07:14 Udine (05:45 Trieste) – Villach 08:54
Train 1821 09:45 Villach – Udine 11:30 (Trieste 12:59)
Train 1822 17:22 Udine (15:50 Trieste) – Villach 19:07
The timetable document can be found on the FUC website here.
These services form something of a local stopping service through Villach's suburbs, so can be covered entirely in Austria with very little time outlay should you just be interested in getting the loco "in the book".
europeantraction	Austria, Italy	Leave a comment November 4, 2019 November 4, 2019 1 Minute
Various dates in 2020: The Reblaus Express
May 2020 will see the return of the popular Summer loco-hauled nostalgic train on the branch from Retz to Drosendorf, in the far north of Austria near to the border with the Czech Republic.
The "Reblaus Express", as it is known, makes three round trips from Retz to Drosendorf (24.75 miles each way, and quite steeply-graded in places) each Saturday, Sunday and public holiday between 1st May 2020 and 1st November 2020. I have not yet seen a timetable for 2020, but previous years have seen departures from Retz at 09:25, 13:25 and 16:25 and returns from Drosendorf at 11:55, 14:55 and 17:55.
The Reblaus Express actually begins on Saturday 21st March 2020 and runs until the end of April with a diesel railcar. However, after that, loco-haulage will be the order of the day.
Usual loco haulage is an ex-ÖBB class 2143 diesel-hydraulic, and 2143 070 had virtually sole charge of the Reblaus Express in both 2018 and 2019. On one occasion where this loco was not available, an ÖBB class 2070 deputised, whereas sister machine 2143 056 took charge for a very short period during August 2019.
The above is a link to a video uploaded to YouTube by user Andreas Suck of 2143 070.
A single ticket costs €14 and a return (which acts as a day rover) is €19. Children under 6 are free and adults over 62 qualify for a concessionary rate. There is no UK rail staff travel privilege fare and Interrails etc are not valid. More detail can be found in a PDF here.
Retz lies just 3 miles from the Czech border, and is on the route from Wien to Znojmo, which sees an (electric) loco-hauled service to a roughly two-hour frequency. Wien to Retz is about an 80 minute journey.
Combining it with other haulage opportunities
This is not the only regular nostalgic train that operates in Austria in the Summer. The "Nostalgieexpress Leiser Berge" (to be the subject of a separate article in the near future) operates also with ex-ÖBB class 2143 power and makes a round trip from Wien Praterstern to Ernstbrunn, usually every Saturday between May and October.
You can have both locos on the same day, either as a (fairly long) day trip from Wien if you so wish, or as an interesting way to get from Wien to the Czech Republic. In previous years, it has been possible to catch the "Nostalgieexpress Leiser Berge" from Wien Praterstern to Korneuburg, going forward after a bit of a wait on an electric loco-hauled regional express to Retz, from where the "Reblaus-Express" can be taken to Drosendorf and back at 13:25, arriving back at Retz at 16:05 – sadly too late to get back to Korneuburg have a second run with the Ernstbrunn train back into the capital, but it did connect nicely onto a regional train across the border into the Czech Republic.
Combining it with a family holiday
Clearly the shuttle nature of the operation lends itself quite nicely to permitting a day trip to one of the stations along the line; heading up on the first round trip, having a few hours there away from the trains and then returning on the Reblaus Express later.
The most obvious destination for this would be the end of the line at Drosendorf itself, a historic town and the only one in Austria with a fully-preserved city wall. As the town's website itself states: "Drosendorf has all the ingredients you need to dream; a lot of nature and a bit of town, a castle and a river, sunny meadows and shady avenues, blooming gardens and wooded rocks. But also inns with beautiful terraces, solid accommodations and many ideas for the future".
However, the train also makes stops at various other points along the way, many of which have merits of their own – check out this official PDF (in German) for some detail on this.
europeantraction	Austria	Leave a comment November 3, 2019 November 11, 2019 3 Minutes
The Wiener Stammstrecke
Most European capital cities are good for loco haulage between a number of urban stations in close proximity to each other, and the Austrian capital of Wien (Vienna) is no exception.
The route that this article focuses on is the Stammstrecke, the trunk line that stretches largely beneath the city's feet on a north-south axis. It covers 10 stations in just over 8 miles – from north to south, these are Wien Floridsdorf, Wien Handelskai, Wien Traisengasse, Wien Praterstern, Wien Mitte, Wien Rennweg, Wien Quartier Belvedere, Wien Hbf, Wien Matzleinsdorfer Platz and Wien Meidling.
Although I've spent quite a lot of time on this route, I don't appear to have any photos worthy of sharing! – a mixture of being on "fast" leaps and most stations being dingy underground affairs. Here is 1144 243 at Wels, then – a loco I last saw working through Wien in October 2019 – 12 years prior to that, on 31/08/07 (JW)
The route is used both by the S-Bahn – which uses class 4746 "Cityjet" EMUs – and also by longer-distance regional services, which as a general (but not infallible) rule of thumb are formed of push-pull sets powered by electric locomotives. Wien Mitte is also served by the City Airport Train (CAT), and the private operator Westbahn also features with a number of through trains to Salzburg (all EMUs) – although the latter will temporary withdraw from the route at the December 2019 timetable change while it goes through a fleet renewal. In general, with the exception of the CAT at Rennweg, all trains stop at all stations through which they pass.
The locos concerned are all electrics: class 1016 and 1116 "Tauri" and class 1144 "Howling Gales" – roughly 30 different machines in a day, the split of which is generally in the region of 10 : 20. As these machines are equally at home on long-distance workings and are generally drawn from common pools, this gives a good opportunity to get them in on "scratch leaps". Obviously, this is not the only route in Wien, and plenty more locos can be hoovered up in and out of the 'upstairs' platforms at Wien Hbf, as well as out of Wien Westbahnhof and Wien Franz Josefs Bf too.
Diagrams can be found in the files section of the European Rail Gen gen group. As ever, please note the etiquette that if you benefit from the gen, please pay the favour back by posting your sightings back to the group.
Other railway-related things to see and do
Just a short work from Praterstern station, in the Prater park, is the Liliputbahn 15 inch gauge railway which is well worth half an hour of your time.
Ex-ÖBB shunter 2060 009 is plinthed at Stammersdorf, a 13-minute tram ride from Wien Floridsdorf station.
Ticketing and Practicals
Obviously, as bonafide mainline passenger trains, Interrail rovers and FIP are valid on the ÖBB services.
However, there is also local rover ticket which covers the loco haulage through Wien's central core. The local transport organisation Wiener Linien offer 24 hour, 48 hour, 72 hour, weekly and monthly rovers which offer good value and cover all public transport in the Wien city area (boundaries listed here); at €8.00 for 24 hours, this clearly makes it much better value than 'blowing up' a full day's rover for some local travel.
25th April 1988 – ME 1535 and the Sorø accident
It's true that an inordinate amount of the historical articles on this site are related to railway accidents. However, often these are some of the most noteworthy events to occur to a class during their careers.
It looks hopeful that the Danish Henschel-built, GM-engined diesel-electric class ME might just about clock up its 40th year in front-line service before withdrawal in favour of new Siemens Vectron electrics. Although the class has not been defined by involvement in accidents – so far, not one machine has been withdrawn as a result of a collision – they have been involved in their fair share.
Probably the most significant of these occurred at Sorø on Monday 25th April 1988, when a Fredericia to København IC train hauled by ME 1535 derailed at speed (link to a 28-minute documentary, in Danish, here). 8 people died.
ME 1535 pauses at København H, 20/03/17 (JW)
Due to engineering work at Sorø, the train was diverted 'bang road', but took the crossover at an estimated 100 km/h instead of the prescribed 40 km/h. Due to its low centre of gravity, the loco remained upright, but destruction reigned further down the train. The driver was convicted of gross negligence.
This accident is largely credited with forcing through the development of automatic train control on Danish railways, although this did not happen quickly.
Just something to have a think about the next time you catch up with ME 1535 in Denmark!
europeantraction	Denmark	Leave a comment November 2, 2019 November 2, 2019 1 Minute
City Airport Train – Vienna airport to the city
The City Airport Train (CAT) is a loco-hauled, non-stop express passenger service which acts as a city transfer from Wien airport (VIE).
Operated jointly by ÖBB and the airport authority, it has run since 2003 between Flughafen Wien station and Wien Mitte. The 12-mile journey is booked to take 16 minutes. CAT services run every 30 minutes, 06:09-23:39 from the airport and 05:37-23:07 from Mitte.
CAT logo on the bodyside of 1016 014, 31/10/19 (JW)
The CAT is worked in push-pull formation by a (semi-) dedicated fleet of ÖBB class 1016 "Taurus" electric locos painted in the green and grey CAT livery: 1016 014, 1016 016 and 1016 036. Very occasionally, red locos can deputise, and equally rarely, the green ones can escape onto other work.
There are two diagrams per day, worked in such a way that all the xx:09s from Flughafen and xx:37s from Mitte are worked by one set, and the xx:39s from Flughafen and xx:07s from Mitte by the other.
The 1016s have been a more recent deployment on the CAT. Initially, the service kicked off with three 1014s (1014 005, 1014 007 and 1014 008), later replaced by two 1116s (1116 141 and 1116 142). However, sensibly, the dual-voltage 1116s were swapped for the pure 15kV ac 1016s in 2012.
1016 014 at Flughafen Wien, 31/10/19 (JW)
From reports I read online, some haulage enthusiasts do not always use the CAT. Let's start with the potential reasons why not: maybe the restricted scope of different machines that tend to appear on them, maybe because neither rover tickets or FIP are accepted on them (specific tickets need to be purchased – see below), maybe because it drops you in the city centre and not at the main station – although Wien Mitte is on the Wiener Stammstrecke which itself is a hotbed of intensive loco-hauled activity! – or maybe because there is a cheaper loco-hauled alternative in the Railjet services which do directly serve Wien Hbf. These are all valid; not everyone's travel itineraries are the same.
However, I would certainly highly recommend the CAT to you above the alternatives, and there are a number of (very) good reasons for this. Very usefully, they guarantee that if you miss your outward flight from VIE due to a delay of more than 30 minutes on the CAT, they will reimburse you the cost of a new plane ticket; that kind of 'insurance' when using public transport to an out-of-city airport is potentially worth its weight in gold (although even the airline staff use the CAT, such is its reliability).
Free left-luggage lockers at Wien Mitte are also provided, as well as the ability to check hold luggage in there too (for Austrian Airlines, Lufthansa, Eurowings, SWISS and Brussels Airlines only) – these are then conveyed in a special compartment in the lower deck of the Steuerwagen. Also, my fiancee – who I can safely say does not like trains quite as much as I do – liked it, which is a very important point to consider if on a 'normal' holiday! The trains are a premium product, essentially an all-first-class offering, with leather seats, power points, WiFi, information screens, free magazines and a lot of luggage space. We found it worked well as an introduction to the city, giving us some time and resources to familiarise ourselves with the capital on the short journey into its heart.
CAT Dosto interior, 31/10/19 (JW)
A single ticket on the CAT, purchased at the station costs €12 single or €21 return (valid for six months). However, if you purchase your ticket online, you make a small saving: €11 single or €19 return. Children aged 14 and under travel free.
It is obviously best used for its intended purpose as an airport transfer service, but you could if you so chose certainly pitch up at Mitte, buy a return, have one loco out to the airport, wait there for 45 minutes, and come back with the other – total time for the round trip being 1 hour 18 minutes. The trains pass through Wien Rennweg and the 'main' part of Wien Mitte station, so it should be no problem for you to see which individual locos are in use whilst spending some time travelling up and down the Wiener Stammstrecke.
Saturday 28th March 2020: A railtour with a loco from the GDR Governmental Train
Saturday 28th March 2020 will see a railtour operated by the Lausitzer Dampflokclub from Cottbus, via Dresden into the Czech Republic, with the destination of Luzna (home of the Czech railway museum). This is advised as being intended to be hauled by class 228 diesel-hydraulic loco 228 552 (back carrying its pre-reunification number of 118 552) and steam loco 03 2155; the exact split has not been advised yet but a similar tour last year kicked off with the 228 which then provided insurance/rear-end assistance to the Pacific for the main chunk of the tour.
Notably, this loco, as V180 052, along with sisters 048 and 050 were built for the Deutsche Reichsbahn as the dedicated fleet for the GDR governmental train.
This tour has not yet been opened for bookings, but keep an eye on the operator's website for more details.
Below is a link to a photo showing 052 along with 048 over the inner-German border in Bebra in May 1970, hooking off from that train which was conveying GDR Prime Minister Willi Stoph to Kassel to a landmark meeting with West German Chancellor Willy Brandt, an event that held the world's attention in the midst of the Cold War. This loco will have doubtless carried out many more equally prestigious jobs in its time.
europeantraction	Uncategorized	Leave a comment September 16, 2019 1 Minute
18th August 2019 – Diesel haulage event at Stoomtrein Dendermonde-Puurs
Just a quick update that I have reached agreement that ex-SNCB diesel locos 9105 and 9109 will feature (powering) on the morning normal public service train at Stoomtrein Dendermonde-Puurs on Sunday 18th August 2019, along with the steam loco. The format will be:-
Steam loco – 11:45 Baasrode-Noord to Oppuurs
9105 & 9109 – 12:40 Oppuurs to Sint-Amands (distance of approx 4 km)
Steam loco – 13:10 Sint-Amands to Baasrode-Noord (arr 13:30)
This will be available at the standard fare of €12. My friends at the railway have arranged for a suitable selection of Belgian beers and refreshments to be on sale, and I hope you avail yourselves of this!
The use of the steam loco in each direction is due to the understandable steam-orientated nature of the railway and their need to cater for their core clientele too. We are lucky that they are able to accommodate us and our needs at all, and this is after a lot of discussion!
This should be considered as a last chance for 9105 as it is planned for it to leave the railway at the end of August. 9109 as far as I know is required by 'everybody'. There are other diesel locos on site which are currently too heavy to operate passenger trains on the railway, but this situation will hopefully be resolved soon and we will be welcome to return when this is the case – but of course 9105 at least will be long gone by then.
This has been arranged to coincide with the "Festival" at the Chemin de Fer du Bocq, also in Belgium, the idea being that enthusiasts can visit that on the Saturday and this on the Sunday morning before travelling home or onwards.
Access to Baasrode-Noord is by public bus, route 245:-
10:40 dep Dendermonde station, perron 4 > 10:53 arr Baasrode-Noord (destination Brussel)
10:07 dep Brussel Noord station perron 1 / 11:05 dep Buggenhout station > 11:11 arr Baasrode-Noord (destination Dendermonde)
Return times:-
13:37 dep Baasrode-Noord > 13:49 arr Dendermonde station (destination Dendermonde)
14:53 dep Baasrode-Noord > 14:59 arr Buggenhout station (destination Brussel)
This obviously isn't ideal, but there is also a 13:30 no.252 bus from Sint Amands station directly to Dendermonde station (arrive 13:52) that will be much more comfortable for you and still allow you to get the winners in.
As this is the normal public service train you do not need to book or pay for anything in advance – but PLEASE email me if you are planning to attend, as I need to supply the railway with expected numbers so they can tailor the train formation accordingly (and I will also tee up De Lijn, the bus operator, for how many people they can expect).
Many thanks for your support and interest.
europeantraction	Belgium	Leave a comment July 31, 2019 August 5, 2019 2 Minutes


text:
NBC Celebrates Independence Day with Macy's Fourth of July Fireworks Spectacular
By J T. Ramsay | Jul 03, 2014
NBC celebrates the nation's birthday with all-star performances by Ariana Grande, Hunter Hayes, Miranda Lambert and Lionel Richie on the live broadcast of the "Macy's 4th of July Fireworks® Spectacular."
Hosted by "America's Got Talent's" Nick Cannon, the show will air Friday, July 4 (8-10 p.m. ET/PT) with an encore presentation at 10 p.m. highlighting the second hour of the special.
The Brooklyn Bridge will serve as a dramatic stage for dazzling pyrotechnics as the 38th annual "Macy's 4th of July Fireworks® Spectacular" returns to the East River. Set to deliver the nation's largest display of patriotic firepower and ready to dazzle more than 3 million spectators and millions on television, the Macy's Fireworks will be launched from barges positioned on the lower East River.
Since 1976 Macy's Fireworks have grown in scale and artistry as they burst to life over many of New York City's waterways and neighborhoods. Incorporating landmarks and milestones is a Macy's Fireworks signature. Macy's last showcased the Brooklyn Bridge in its fireworks spectacle in 1995. This year's creative presentation of the bridge's renowned architecture will reach new heights of imagination during the 25-minute display.