Supergirl Set to Debut on CBS (Fall TV Preview)

Image from Entertainment Weekly

Well folks, it looks like DC Comics and Warner Brothers have finally gotten their crap together. Sort of. After years of promising fans TV and movie adaptations, we're finally getting a flood of product, most of it on TV, and most of it quite good. They're not doing it as cleanly as Marvel Comics, having already created multiple continuities rather than one shared live-action universe. But thanks largely to Greg Berlanti (the guy behind Brothers and Sisters, of all things), we have The Flash, (Green) Arrow, The Atom, Firestorm, Black Canary and now Supergirl. Given that Berlanti was behind Green Lantern, a movie I liked, but which was nearly universally panned by fandom (what did you guys want it to be anyway?), I think we're lucky someone at WB had faith in him!

As with The Flash, Supergirl has costume choices that are head-scratchers (Why the blue in the S? Why a different S from the movie Superman?). As with the 1984 movie and the original comic, Supergirl has heavy doses of borderline sexism in the story elements, at least as presented in the trailer. But it looks like it has potential. It looks like it's being given an honest attempt at putting Kara Zor-El on the screen and making it believable. And if Berlanti's previous efforts are any indication, we can probably expect further elements from the comics to show up in ways that reflect the real world and the heritage of the character. I expect for a cat named Streaky and a horse named Comet to figure in eventually, but without the eye-rolling corniness of the 50s and 60s.

I still have no idea why WB/DC have decided upon multiple media universes for these characters, and only hope that Supergirl ties in either with the other TV shows, or with the universe established in Man of Steel. With Gotham already complicating things by being its own thing, it would be silly to make Supergirl come up it's own stand-alone world (CBS and the CW are owned by the same folks, after all). Unless they're setting up a multiverse event? Then, count me in!

 

Official Trailer for Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice

I've kept my disclaimers of my big move on the page to explain why my blogging has been sporadic, because I've still not settled into a habitual blogging pattern since leaving Las Vegas. And the more I look at them, they more they look like excuses and whining! So, whether or not I've got my feet under me again, there is simply no excuse for not having posted something about the new Batman/Superman movie, with the trailer having leaked. So, here it is!
 

I've complained a lot in this space about Warner Brothers' seeming cluelessness as it regards their DC Comics properties. While Marvel manages to rock the entire world with their sprawling cinematic universe, which has managed to have an interconnected continuity over a dozen or so films and now three or four TV shows, Warner has struggled. To give credit where it's due, DC has for years done very well with animated fare. But animated fare is seen as "for kids" moreso than live action, and certainly doesn't have the impact of epic movies.

The Dark Night series was of course hugely successful, and there have been other DC properties that have been successful. There are some that I feel were unfairly maligned (I still don't understand the hate for Superman Returns or Green Lantern, which you'd think would have gotten some credit for at least trying amid a DC-character drought). And then, there were big successes like Man of Steel which still managed to critically disappoint. Finally, with Man of Steel though, we got the first hints that DC was finally going to start their own interconnected universe. Woo-hoo! We found out Batman, Superman, Wonder Woman and Aquaman would all be in the same stories, and that it would be in a sequel that would set up the Justice League of America! Awesome!

However, my feeling that Warner Brothers would screw it all up remains. There are several reasons for this (besides, you know, past precedent). Amid this fledgling universe, a few different things happened. It was decided to reboot Batman again, and then hire Ben Affleck to play him (I'm cool with this, many others had reservations, to say the least). A new version of Green Arrow was brought to TV, also rebooted, and different from the one in the long-running Smallville. Arrow was a hit, so far as they exist on the CW network, big enough to warrant spinning out its own universe. Arrow begat The Flash--an even bigger success--and the two shows are on their way to creating combined universe Justice League, as well as other spin-offs. We've also got Gotham, a show about Batman as a boy, that is unmoored by continuity to any of the other properties. And a new Supergirl show that may or may not be connected to other established continuities.

The DC TV universe is flourishing, probably by surprise.

On the horizon are a movie version of The Flash that is separate and apart from the TV version, the coming JLA movie (also separate from TV), and if all of that works well, presumably all of the other big DC characters. So, why complain? After decades of rare gems from DC properties, amid scads of crappy product (when we got any product at all), we have a wealth of options!

Well, because we comics fans are nerds. We complain endlessly about things we like as much as things we don't. But we feel justified because it just looks like they're making a mess of things.  We've got two simultaneously blooming main DC Comics universes, big screen and little screen. We've managed to live with this before, with separate continuities for Superman with each new TV show (Adventures of Superboy, Lois & Clark, Smallville), that sometimes overlapped with Superman movies on the calendar. But, will the public be able to sort out two completely different versions of The Flash at the same time? Two Supermen (assuming Supergirl on TV still is his cousin)? And yet another rebooted Green Lantern? Maybe two? We're supposed to also get Shazam! on the big screen, but will they also want him on TV? Will either of them be properly called "Captain Marvel," even though Marvel is introducing their own character with the same name?

Comic geeks can rationalize and "fan wank" anything away, if they like it. They'll complain about it all even if they like it. But you need a broader audience, and if you start out by confusing them? It just seems like a bad idea. And why exhaust ideas or risk repeating yourself with competing versions of the same characters? I just really don't get it. I'd like to see someone at Warner Brothers take the reins like Marvel has done, and make a cohesive whole out of all of it, even if it's a "multiple universes" connection. That would be the most "DC" thing they could even do!

 

If FOX "News" Covered the Marvel Universe

This is my favorite thing ever. Well, it's my favorite thing I've found on the internet for a very long time. And while it's great, I'm really not sure they went far enough! Enjoy.

 

[Excerpt]

What If… Fox News Covered The Marvel Universe
 
FOX NEWS ALERT: “Intelligence sources tell Fox News that President Obama would not allow Captain America to respond to a recent HYDRA attack on a SHIELD base. White House spokesman Jay Carney claims that Cap was 75 million light years away preventing Thanos from getting the Infinity Gauntlet, but our next guest questions whether this so-called ‘Infinity War’ actually happened.”

Read more at: The Daily Banter

Sneak Peek of The Flash

"My" Flash, from the 60s, vs. The Flash on CW.
Honestly, I'm a little worried.

As a comic book fan since I could pick one up, I've written many times about my frustration that DC Comics (my favorite) has lagged so far behind Marvel Comics in getting their characters to the big or small screen. I honestly can't figure out how DC, which is owned by Warner Brothers, has such a hard time with such iconic characters in its stable. Superman had to be rebooted because of a lackluster installment (though honestly, I liked Superman Returns), they got no love for Green Lantern (I liked that one too), and the less said about Catwoman, the better.

But on TV, DC has had a bit more luck. Smallville ran for 10 years. Arrow has been getting rave reviews, but I've been leery of getting attached. Now that it's spinning off The Flash, though, I'm taking notice. The Scarlet Speedster is one of my very favorite characters. At one time I had an unbroken string of Flash comics, from the mid-70s to its cancellation in the 80s. But I'm worried that WB is going to muck it up.

Marvel has managed to have three simultaneous movie universes going at once (though they'd love to have them all under one roof, I'm sure). There is some attempt made within them at some internal consistency, especially in the Marvel Studios movies, with Iron Man, The Avengers, Thor, Captain America, Guardians of the Galaxy, Ant Man, The Incredible Hulk and even with their TV shows like Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. and the upcoming Daredevil. DC, on the other hand, has usually had stand-alone movie and TV universes. Lois & Clark was its own thing, the original Superman movies are their own thing (with Supergirl), the original Batman movie series stands alone, and the Dark Knight Batman movies are a self-contained trilogy. Smallville seemed to be going somewhere with a Justice League, but when it ended, so did that universe.

DC seems to be going somewhere, tying things together. Man of Steel will have a spinoff that includes a new Ben Affleck Batman and Wonder Woman. But will it tie to Arrow and The Flash? Will the new Gotham have anything to do with any of them? Does Warner have somebody helming these different projects, to try and create synchronicity? If not, why not?

The Flash is Likely Coming to Television (Again)

Grant Gustin, cast to play The Flash, image from Huffington Post.

I'm not sure I can figure out what DC Comics is up to. As a long-time fan, I've watched with jealousy while Marvel Comics fans have reaped most of the rewards, with their ultra-successful string of superhero movies. After failures (Daredevil, Electra, The Punisher), middling successes (The Fantastic Four, Ghost Rider), and mid-sized hits (The X-Men series), and blockbusters (Spider-Man, two series) Marvel's own production house has had the Midas touch with everything from Iron Man through The Avengers, and on to even more sequels.

Meanwhile, DC fans had to be happy with various versions of Superman on the small screen (Superboy, Lois & Clark, Smallville) and big screen to varying degrees of success, and two successful Batman movie series. Most everything else has been a flop or at least didn't land in the public I liked Green Lantern and Superman Returns, I would seem to be in the distinct minority. Even Man of Steel, which made 2/3 of a billion dollars, was seen my many as a "disappointment," leaving many DC fans in the doldrums. Recently, that's changed with Arrow, oddly another DC Universe similar to, but different from Smallville, this time centered around the Green Arrow character. Like Smallville, Arrow is showcasing other DC heroes. But this time, one of them is getting a spinoff.

Last time The Flash came to TV (1990), he was John Wesley-Shipp.

consciousness as a "DC Comics" success story. Even though

I've been a Flash fan as long as I've been a comics fan. He was always my favorite, probably because of his wacky "rogues gallery," and the fantastical, bizarre situations he'd find himself in. Even as a kid, I'd seek out back-issues, as far back as I could afford. When a customer on my paper route volunteered that she'd sell me her son's old 60s Flash comics, it was like winning the lottery for me. So, a TV adaptation of my favorite hero is quite exciting. It's been done before, of course, in 1990, in a fun but quirky one-season run (pun intended). But I'm hoping that they do it right, and manage to work the Arrow/Flash universe into the Man of Steel/Batman universe. Otherwise, a future Justice League could be very confusing for consumers. Though I'm sure there are a few Smallville fans who are a bit confused by the new Arrow universe anyway.

[Excerpt]

'The Flash': Grant Gustin Cast As Barry Allen For 'Arrow' And Potential Spin-Off

"Glee's" Grant Gustin has been cast as Barry Allen (AKA The Flash) on "Arrow," The CW announced Friday. He'll appear in episodes 208, 209 and 220 of "Arrow" Season 2, and if the character is well-received, headline the proposed Flash spinoff. . .

Read more at: Huffington Post

Movie Review: Man of Steel

Compare and contrast to the photo below. Yeah, this is
an new Superman. Image from Forbes.com.

As a DC comics fan to nearly my infancy, I've been starved for representation in the movie adaptation realm. Yes, Batman has been amply represented, but he was never one of my faves, which has left me very little over the years. So, seven years ago when Superman Returns finally came out, I was ecstatic. I'd take him any way I could get him, and how I got him wasn't too bad. Brandon Routh looked the part, and was a decent actor. Kevin Spacey out-hackmaned Gene Hackman. And it kept the vibe of the classic Richard Donner/Christopher Reeve era.

It wasn't the best movie ever, but was far from the worst one, even if you confine yourself to the comic book world. Contemporaneous reviews back me up on this too, Superman Returns was generally well received. But the film was saddled with a lot of baggage, especially the two decades of development and expenditure leading up to it. And when it wasn't a mega-worldwide blockbuster with stellar reviews, it was recast as a flop, a failure. No.  Superman IV: The Quest for Peace was a flop and a failure. But I protest too much. I'm aware that I am in the minority in my appreciation of the 2006 film. And this many years later, I accept that 2013 was not too soon for a reboot.

C'mon, everybody, was it really so bad?
Image from Fanpop.com

Boy howdy did we get a reboot. Spurred, no doubt, by Marvel Comics' stunning string of successes (just ignore Daredevil, Electra, Ghost Rider, The Punisher, The Punisher again, etc.), not to mention legal matters from the heirs of Superman's creators, DC and Warner Brothers got it together at last. Man of Steel is finally here, and is its own kind of Superman. And unless sales deflate on a scale never seen before, it's already on track to be one of the most successful superhero films in history. For once, the hype, the marketing, and the buildup paid off. It's a freakin' great movie.

With over $200 million spent to make it, I guess it should be really good, but look at the recent Star Trek sequel. Its budget wasn't quite that big, and did respectable business, but has been belittled and berated all over the internets as an under-performer, and a disappointment (again, not to me, I dug it). Today's blockbusters are judged as much for how much money they haul in, as they are for actually being good entertainment.

But I'm off on a tangent here. We're talking about Man of Steel, so named to align with Batman's Dark Knight trilogy. The movie is star-studded, with huge names (Russell Crowe, Diane Lane, Kevin Costner, Laurence Fishburne), and lauded TV stars (Richard Schiff, Christopher Meloni). It starts by creating a whole new planet Krypton, with a re-imagined origin story. It ably combines the elements from Krypton in Superman: The Movie, the John Byrne era Superman comics and the classic silver/golden-age Superman comics.  The reasons behind Krypton's eventual destruction resonate with earthly concerns of today, and the villains consigned to the Phantom Zone (as in Superman I & II) have much more back-story and motivation.

Every adaptation monkeys with the "S" shield, none get it right.
This is one of the better ones, though.

Clark Kent's arrival on earth and growing up years are wisely mostly confined to flashbacks, in nice little nugget-sized factoids, woven adeptly into the story. Since almost everyone already knows about Clark Kent, Ma & Pa Kent, and the rest from Smallville, other TV shows, movies and seventy-five years of comic books, a more through story is unnecessary. Thank you, movie gods! The back-story leading up to the meat of Man of Steel does a good job of showing us how he got here, how he grew up, and where we are now, without belaboring any of it. And it manages to shed all of the Donner/Reeve years while doing so. With beefy, very different looking Henry Cavill playing Clark/Superman, it really does feel brand new. Even the costume (which is updated quite a bit) is given a reason for existing that is far and away better than any previous adapation. The Movie tried, with Marlon Brando's S tunic, but this movie got it right.

Given all of the fan mockups of Jusstice League posters
online, there are high hopes in fandom
land that Man of Steel begets lots of DCU movies.
Image from YoungJusticer.tumblr.com

Once Man of Steel gets going, it really gets going. Previous Superman movies are going to look like high school stage productions in retrospect, after this one. It really looks like super beings pummeling the stuffing out of each other. There's a little to complain about here, if you--like me--have a little difficulty following fast-paced battles in movies. It wasn't like Lord of the Rings, where there are hundreds of participants (I couldn't deal with it, sorry), so I managed. But there is a lot of whiz-bang here. Not to mention a lot of destruction. You thought The Avengers knew how to destroy a city? Well Smallville got a lot smaller, and Metropolis is going to be rebuilding for years.

If I had any other complaint about the movie, it would be one abrupt transition in the film. The bad guys are really making a mess, and things look bad. Supes is getting his clock cleaned. Then, all of the sudden, the good guys have a plan, and put it into action. There felt like there was a scene missing there. But at 2-1/2 hours long, they must have needed to speed things along. Ultimately, I left the theater feeling that it was the best Superman movie ever made. It topped Star Trek: Into Darkness (which I loved), comparatively speaking. And it made me excited at the prospect of more in the series, more in the DC Universe, and a hope for a Justice League movie!

This is a Superman I want to see again, whether he's called Man of Steel, Last Son of Krypton, Man of Tomorrow or just plain Superman. Oh, and as minor character Carrie Farris (awfully close to a Green Lantern character name) says at the end, "he's kinda hot." Perhaps the understatement of the year.

My grade is: A - Highly Recommended

"Star Wars" LucasFilm Bought By Disney

You know what? I see LucasFilm being bought by Disney as a good thing. Yes, as a liberal, I'm often disturbed by mergers and acquisitions. The board game of Monopoly often seems quaint in a world where the news media is essentially owned by about five people. But in this case, I think it's good.

Image from source.

Let me explain. I'm a comic book/horror/sci-fi fan from my zygote days. I'm a DC Comics, Universal horror, Starlog, Fangoria, Dr. Demento geek from the late 70s-80s-90s-00s-10s. Warner Bros. got Mad Magazine and DC Comics a long, long time ago. And though they've had successes, they've been a bit weak lately. But when Disney acquired Marvel Comics, I think they pretty much ruled the geekiverse. Not that Marvel didn't already have a leg up, but the contrast of successes on the Marvel side to the DC side doesn't even compare.

Now, when we get to Star Wars, we have another rivalry. I'm a Star Trek guy. I loved Star Wars 1, 2 and 3 (retroactively IV, V and VI), but Trek was always where it was at for me. And you know why? Because the Trek universe had Star Trek, Star Trek The Animated Series, Star Trek: The Next Generation, Star Trek: Deep Space Nine, Star Trek Voyager, Star Trek Enterprise, and eleven feature films. Star Wars had three movies, three inferior prequel movies, and a whole lot of fan wanking.

But Disney can probably fix that. Hey, they turned a really lame theme ride into a juggernaut called Pirates of the Caribbean. And they got The Muppets too, and turned that into another hit movie. I think you could do worse than to be acquired by Disney.

[Excerpt]

‘Star Wars’ + Disney = Mashup Gold

Disney’s $4 billion purchase of Lucasfilm and planned release for Star Wars Episode 7 has sent the Internet into hyperdrive.. . .

Read more at: Mashable

Movies I Can't Wait to See: Man of Steel

Henry Cavill looks good, no doubt. But I'm hoping
the costume is an early prototype. Image from
JustJared.

DC Comics has just released The Dark Knight Rises, apparently the last Batman movie we're likely to get for a long time. The movie--despite the tragic opening night fiasco in Aurora,Colorado--is likely to do very, very well. Maybe not The Avengers well, but close. And that's a darn sight better than most of DC Comics' movie adaptations compared to Marvel's.

And for life-long DC fans like me, who actually dug Green Lantern and yes, Superman Returns, it's about time. But, if you think it's weird that I liked those movies, I've also been underwhelmed by Christopher Nolan's modern day Batman series. The second one with the late Heath Ledger as the Joker? Meh. I know everyone liked it, but to me, it was just oversold or something. But then, I wasn't much of a fan of the Tim Burton/Joel Schumacher Batman series either. Well, I liked the Val Kilmer one.

So, while I don't think it was necessary to reboot Superman only six years after the last one, I am nonetheless excited about Man of Steel. Supes has always been one of my favorites, and it would be sweet if DC finally hit on a non-Batman hero, one that everyone likes, not just me. The overdone "S" shield in this promo is a little troublesome. I am a graphic artist as an adult, and that thing is just too much. But I'll be there. Maybe not on opening night though. . .

For The Man of Steel, I Have High Hopes, Low Expectations

DC Comics characters, from Collider.com

I am a long-time DC Comics fan. As a child of the 70s, my earliest comics are from about 1974, the days of the 80-Page Spectaculars. While I had a few Marvel Spider-Man comics, I was a DC boy, all the way. As such, I was treated to some pretty good Hollywood adaptations in my youth. We had the Batman TV show. We had the Wonder Woman TV show. And we had Super-Friends, Batman and Robin, Superman, Aquaman and by the late 70s, Superman: The Movie.

All the while, Marvel fans had a half-way decent Spider-Man cartoon, some really lame Marvel Super-Heroes cheapo cartoons, a supremely lame Amazing Spider-Man live-action show (and Spidey on The Electric Company) and the dour The Incredible Hulk. Eventually, the Hulk series degenerated into a movie-of-the-week pseudo series, with desperate attempts for spinoffs of Daredevil, Thor and others. DC was winning the pop culture battle.

Sort of. The Flash was a short-lived DC prime time effort. Batman won acclaim at the box office under Tim Burton, until Joel Schumacher killed it with bat-nipples. Cat Woman died at the theater, and Spider-Man kicked ass. The Fantastic Four gained dollars for Marvel with two films, though it was critically drubbed. The X-Men had a three-movie (or five, whatever) series that was mixed, but somewhat successful. There was Ghost Rider and Watchmen and Constantine and many others. But outside of the latter day Dark Knight (Batman) movies, Marvel Comics is winning the pop culture battle decisively. That's a huge caveat, since DK movies are the critical holy grail of movies. I--curiously enough (a lonely fan of Superman Returns) found those flicks to be rather meh. Whatevs.

70s Spider-Man, from Zaki's Corner

So, now we have a brand-new, rebooted Marvel Amazing Spider-Man, just a couple of years outside of the original trilogy. And we have a brand new, rebooted Man of Steel, Superman movie, six years after the previous reboot/continuation of Superman: The Movie and Superman II (and ignoring Superman III and IV: The Quest for Peace). Brandon Routh, the star of the previous movie, was the very essence of Clark Kent and Superman. He was a doppelganger of Christopher Reeve, and a good actor. It was not his fault that there were several false starts, and tons of money spent in the interim between IV and Returns.

But, the idiots in Hollywood decided that the 2006 movie was at fault (and I'm in the minority of viewers who believes otherwise). So, it's reboot  time. Which isn't surprising when you consider that DC Comics reboots itself every six or seven years these days. They went along with one continuity from 1938 to 1984 or so (with an invisible transition in the 1950s-60s), and rebooted it in 1986. Then, they couldn't stop doing that, and made it a regular event. So, we've got to get used to rebooting, and rebooting and rebooting. It will be so with every popular franchise of every kind of character from now until the end of pop culture.

So, I'll hope for the best of Man of Steel, while expecting the worst. Henry Cavill is the new Clark, and he's British (just as the American born, but English-raised Andrew Garfield, the new Amazing Spider-Man is). He looks nothing like Christopher Reeve nor Routh, though he's plenty handsome.  There's something odd about both Spider-Man's and Superman's new costumes. The previous movies' versions were exemplary, the best combination of real-world and classic design possible. The new ones look derivitive and somehow dirty.  Not digging it, guys. I'm willing to change my mind if warranted. But I'm not optimistic.

Image from source, LA Times

[Excerpt]

‘Man of Steel’: Zack Snyder says film has ‘date with destiny’ 

When the Warner Bros. film “Man of Steel” opens one year from today it will be flying in formation with history, which is  a source of considerable excitement for director Zack Snyder.
“The thing that’s really special and hasn’t really been acknowledged is that ‘Man of Steel’ comes out on the 75th anniversary of ‘Action Comics’ No. 1,” the filmmaker said just before a stage appearance at the recent Hero Complex Film Festival.  ”That’s the very first appearance of Superman. I haven’t seen people talk about that yet. . .”

Read more at: Los Angeles Times

Blast from the Past: Live Action Superheros!

All right, I've had kind of a full weekend, so I'm resorting to a rerun from a year and a half ago. Chances are, you haven't seen it, so it's new to you. . .right? And it's kind of apropos since we're in a political season again. Thanks!

ORIGINAL POST (from October 18, 2010):

This week, I almost did a "classic political ads" theme for Blast from the Past. But, geeze, I'm a little tired of political ads, aren't you? I mean here in Nevada, we're being absolutely bombarded with them.  I already early voted, enough!  We know, Harry Reid is evil according to Sharron Angle, and vice-versa. Anyway, I was stuck for a theme.  Last week, I did Saturday morning cartoons. So this time, how about live-action superheroes? They were always a favorite of mine, but you may have forgotten a couple of these. . .








1. Automan - How's this one for obscure? Obviously inspired by Tron, this one didn't last too long, probably because the pretty girl didn't have much to do. But with Desi Arnaz, Jr. and Chuck Wagner, I didn't even notice there was a girl. Ahem.
2. The Amazing Spider-Man - This 70s version of Spider-Man was low-budget, and you just can't do much with Spidey on a low-budget. The leotard just looked ridiculous. The webs were worse.
3. Wonder Woman - The classic Lynda Carter show's first season had a very comic-book flavored intro, obviously inspired by Batman. They kept tweaking it, and disco-fying it when they moved the series into the 70s from the 40s. This is my favorite version.
4. Batman - No live-action TV superhero retrospective would be complete without this one.
5. The Incredible Hulk - This show ran for most of its existence sandwiched between Wonder Woman and The Dukes of Hazzard. It was better than either, though maybe not as fun.
6. The Greatest American Hero - This theme worked for describing the hapless hero's cluelessness, and also as a love song for a guy who doesn't feel worthy. Loved the show too.
7. The Flash - I really liked this show. Too bad it only got a season. There's a movie in the works, though!
8. Shazam! - They couldn't call the show Captain Marvel due to legal reasons, and they changed Cap's back-story too much, but I never missed an episode! It was basically a ham-fisted "lesson of the week" after school special kind of show, with a superhero. If they ever do a Shazam! movie--and do it right--it will be awesome.

Happy Monday everybody!

Apropos of Nothing: Rob Liefeld's Top 40 Worst Drawings

If you haven't noticed by the tone and nature of my recent posts, I'm finding the "all Egypt, all the time" news cycle a bit out of my wheel house. I'm sorry. I know that it's important. I know people are dying, and brave people are. . .doing. . .stuff. I'm trying to get interested. I'm trying to understand and appreciate it, but zzzzzzzzz-z-z-z-z-z-z!!!!  I'm sorry, I dozed off again. It just doesn't have the pop, nor the sizzle.

Anatomically gifted. . .
or cursed? From Progressive Boink

I know, I'm part of the problem. But since I can't find news items that raise my interest, I've been trolling the internets for frivolity. And hoo-boy did I find some. As I've said a bee-jillion times here, I'm a comics fan from way back, but more of a DC than a Marvel fan. So, I had no idea who Rob Liefeld really was, other than a vague recognition of his name. Somehow (probably after my last post on the new Superman movie), I stumbled upon this hysterical post.

Liefeld is apparently a prolific and very successful creator from comics' past and present. He's a writer and an artist, a legend to some. And he's drawn some spectacularly bad artwork. Maybe some good stuff too, I'll give him the benefit of the doubt. But the writer of this excerpted piece below just cracks me up. I'd never want to be critiqued by someone of such wicked wit. But it's a blast to read!

[Excerpt]

The 40 Worst Rob Liefeld Drawings



. . .And then, there's Rob Liefeld. You know how people draw comics? Rob doesn't do that. He had his own Levi's commercial directed by Spike Lee in the 90s. He had best-selling comic books. He was a revolutionary and helped co-found Image Comics when all the hot artists ditched their classic gigs (like Spider-Man, the X-Men, and, uh, Guardians of the Galaxy) for creator-owned projects. But he doesn't "draw" comics. Oh God, no.



Just... ugh, just let me show you. . .

Read more at: Progressive Boink

Mini DVD Review: X-Men Origins: Wolverine

I finally got around to watching Wolverine, and I've got to say, I'm not sure why it was regarded as something of a failure. I guess like Fantastic Four and its sequel, X-Men III: The Last Stand, Watchmen, Superman Returns and so many other superhero films, the outcry is coming from die-hard comic book fans. The producers "didn't get it right," and so, the movie gets a big FAIL from them.

I'm a super-hero fan from way, way back. But I'm relatively easy to please. All of the above movies mentioned, and many others have pleased me just fine. I understand that the transition from comic books to the silver screen involves changing them to some degree. Having grown up on DC Comics, with their multi-verse concept, "Elseworlds" and "imaginary stories," I understand that each incarnation of any particular character will involve many variations and differences.

That's not to say that all of the changes are good, or that every super-hero movie is great. The Michael Keaton/Val Kilmer/George Clooney Batman series is vastly overrated in my opinion (as is the current Christian Bale one, but for different reasons). Superman III and Supergirl were disappointing (but not without their fun parts), and the less said about Superman IV: The Quest for Peace the better.

But I thought that Wolverine was plenty enjoyable for me. It didn't hurt that we got to see Hugh Jackman in the altogether, and any appearance by a wisecracking Ryan Reynolds is always welcome. I was never a Marvel Comics fan, so I only had a vague familiarity with the many characters introduced in the film. This probably helped, since I had no fan "bible" to go by. The movie manages to give Wolverine a full back-story--only hinted at in X-Men--while neatly tying it into the parent series' storyline.

The movie didn't feel as big or bombastic as Iron Man (one of the best super-hero movies ever made) or Spider-Man, but it didn't feel like it needed to be.  I guess this one needs to be entered into with lowered expectations. Accept it for what it is: the movie version of some of your favorite comic book characters. Leave your fanboy nit pickery at the door, and enjoy.

Recommended.

The Problem With Superhero Movies

All images from
SuperHeroMovies.net

I've spent a good portion of my evening reading about upcoming superhero movies. As I often do, I sort of got lost in the topic, having no idea how much time I was spending. But through all of that reading, I was also doing a lot of thinking. There are tons of great characters out there (and I'm just talking about the DC and Marvel characters I'm most familiar with). They've had in some cases over seventy years of story ideas. Yet somehow, many characters languish for years in development hell, and others come to the screen as major disappointments.

Part of the problem is that comic book fans are notoriously fickle. You couldn't find a group of people--outside of Star Trek or Star Wars fans--who are harder to please. They don't like the director, they don't like the script, they don't like the actors chosen to play their favorite heroes, villains and the lot. Mostly, they'll complain that the final product is too different--or paradoxically too much like--the source material.

Another part of the problem is that if they're too faithful, they might just look silly. As good as the first two Superman movies were, Christopher Reeve's tights did look goofy. The Spider-Man movies of the last ten years and Superman Returns (highly underrated, in my lonely opinion) proved that they can make a fairly faithful costume that doesn't look ridiculous. And in the upcoming Green Lantern movie--which looks like it could either be great or crappy--they wisely ditched the elbow-length white gloves.

One of the biggest problems with bringing our heroes to the big screen seems to be Hollywood meddling. You would think with so much source material, coming up with a gem would be an easy proposition. But a look at some of the stuff that didn't make it shows that Hollywood doesn't know what it's doing a lot of the time. If you've ever seen pictures of the Tim Burton take on Superman (staring Nicholas Cage as Supes!), you know what I'm talking about.  Even when they get it right, the sequels always spin out of control. 

The original Superman series got progressively more silly, and lower-budget, to the point of embarrassment. The 80s-90s Batman franchise added too many characters, and changed actors too often. X-Men just. . .lost something.  Spider-Man fell to the same "too many characters" trope, and The Punisher could never figure out how to replicate the comic, amongst many other problems.  Only Iron Man and The Fantastic Four seemed to be consistent with tone and style, though I'm again in the minority of opinion on that one, and FF is rumored to be on a reboot schedule as well.

And when they don't fall apart, they reboot. This makes sense, as with Batman Begins, starting up a dormant property in a new era. But only a few years passed between The Hulk and the reboot, The Incredible Hulk. Spider-Man is being rebooted with only a couple of years since the last installment. Superman: Man of Steel is on its way, as a reboot only six years after the last one.

All of this is taking place in a market already saturated with bombastic, CGI-laden "blockbuster" films (now in 3D!). How many times can we watch the "first" installment of a new or rebooted series, with half the picture taken up by an origin story? How many times can an audience be expect to "reboot" their brains to keep a now changed storyline straight? Especially when they're trying to tie the Marvel stories and the DC stories into respective "universes" so that they can make "group" movies like The Avengers and The Justice League of America?

Honestly, as much as I want to see my favorite heroes (Wonder Woman, The Metal Men, Plastic Man, Firestorm, The Flash, Shazam!, JLA, etc.) come to life at the movies, I have a funny feeling that all of this is going to collapse under its own weight. Maybe if Joss Whedon's The Avengers, along with Captain America, Thor and Green Lantern all manage to be both good movies, and successful, that feeling will go away. But given the recent history of failed or stillborn attempts, I don't have a good feeling about the genre in general.

Now, if you are interested in finding a place where all of the future superhero movies can be read about in one place, I've got a link for you. A lot of them are subject to change or cancellation of course, and several of them sound like they can't possibly happen with the given details (could The Flash, JLA and Wonder Woman really all come out on the same day?), and some will make you groan. I mean, they're really going to call a Captain Marvel movie Billy Batson and the Legend of Shazam!? Why not, Shazam! The World's Mightiest Mortal, or With One Magic Word. . .SHAZAM!?  Anyway, the site is called Superhero Movie News. Don't get lost there, like I did.

Captain America Movie: Costume Revealed

I'll see it because I'm a comic book fan (though not a Marvel comics fan), and a Chris Evans fan. And since I have no emotional attachment to Captain America's iconic costume, I don't mind that this one looks different. But will fans?

Source (with more shots and commentary): Bam! Kapow!

Frivolity Break: Iron Baby!

I'm not much for cute baby videos, but this one is better than most!

Movies I Can't Wait to See: The First Avenger: Captain America

Classic superhero? Check. Tied in to other superhero movies like Iron Man? Check. Leading up to a big superhero teamup movie, The Avengers? Check. Chris Evans? Check! (and droool.) I may be a DC Comics fan, but I'm so up for this one.

Source: Bam! Kapow!

Movies I Can't Wait to See: Iron Man 2

I may be mainly a DC Comics fan, but Marvel's Iron Man was one of the best super hero movies ever filmed. And yeah, I'm including The Dark Knight. I hope part 2 can live up to the hype. Please, please, please. . .

DC Comics Fans Rejoice: The Flash is a Go!

Image from source, Bam!Kapow!

Many times in this space, I have lamented the fact that while Marvel Comics is going gangbusters in the movies, my favorite DC Comics stars languish in development hell. Good news! Not only is The Green Lantern well underway, The Flash is chugging along too! Now, if Shazam! and Wonder Woman could only move along. Oh, and while I'm very dubious of a Superman reboot, I'm comforted that Marvel is rebooting Spider-Man, which sounds like a train wreck to me.

[Excerpt]

Flash Movie Gets Director

IESB has learned exclusively that WB is lining up a director for another high profile DC character; Greg Berlanti is the leading contender to helm "The Flash". The name should ring a bell or two, Berlanti wrote "Green Lantern" with one my favorites Marc Guggenheim and was once attached to direct the film before WB settled on Martin Campbell. From what IESB is hearing WB is very high on Berlanti from his prep on "Green Lantern" and would love him to run with "The Flash". If you remember, two weeks to this day, IESB reported that we would be hearing some news on "The Flash". Here we are delivering on that promise. . .

Read more at: Bam! Kapow!

Does Spider-Man Really Need a Reboot?

Image from source, Bam! Kapow!

What the heck is so difficult about making superhero movies? There are countless stories told over spans of forty to seventy years in some cases, and still the movie studios seem clueless. For every good superhero movie, there are several bad ones. For every strong first movie, there are strings of bad sequels. For every one that gets to the screen, there are countless discarded treatments, and more cancelled concepts.

Marvel Comics--much to this DC Comics fan's chagrin--seemed to be on a roll. They had critical and/or popular success with X-Men, Spider-Man, Fantastic Four and Iron Man. Some were middling or failures, like The Hulk, Daredevil, Ghost Rider, Electra, Wolverine, and the many versions of The Punisher. But when it comes to bringing product to the screen, Marvel has been riding high.

DC hasn't fared as well. They've struck popular and critical gold with Batman lately (particularly with The Dark Knight), but not much else. They utterly failed with Catwoman. Didn't do so well with Constantine. I guess Watchmen did all right, but I didn't much care for it. But this isn't exactly their top-shelf stuff, excepting Batman. Where are the long promised Shazam!, The Metal Men, Wonder Woman, Superman vs. Batman, Justice League of America, Plastic Man and The Flash?

Superman Returns came out in 2006, continuing the basic storyline of Superman: The Movie and Superman II. I loved it, but am in the minority. The lukewarm response has parked the franchise in purgatory, with rumors of a "reboot." A reboot takes the same or similar characters, and starts over, with a different cast, different continuity and usually different people behind the scenes. It can re-energize a franchise (see Batman) or can make little difference (The Incredible Hulk). And it runs the risk of alienating fans of the previous franchise. The time to reboot Superman would have been before the last movie, if they were going to do it.

Now comes word of a Spider-Man reboot. Why? This franchise has all come out in the last 10 years. The cast is still in an age range that works. The third movie underwhelmed, but for reasons that had nothing to do with the creative team (other than the writer). The problem with Spider-Man 3 is the same one that plagued the Michael Keaton/Val Kilmer/George Clooney Batman series: just too damned much. Too many characters, particularly, villains thrown into one big movie blender. Rather than a reboot, a simple paring back would have sufficed.

The strange thing about rebooting Spider-Man is that there has been a recent attempt to tie together these Marvel movies into the same universe with little cameos at the end. Doesn't making a whole new version kind of screw that up? For some interesting reading, Google around (or Wikipedia around) for some behind the scenes stuff about the making of some of these movies. Here's one to get you started, for the Superman series. It's stunning how many talented people can have so many stupid ideas. How hard can it really be to make a good superhero movie?

[Excerpt]

Spider-Man Movies Get The Reboot

Peter Parker is going back to high school when the next Spider-Man hits theaters in the summer of 2012. Columbia Pictures and Marvel Studios announced today they are moving forward with a film based on a script by James Vanderbilt that focuses on a teenager grappling with both contemporary human problems and amazing super-human crises. . .

Read more at: Bam! Kapow!

Good News for DC Comics Fans

We DC Comics fans have sat by for years, depressed that the Marvel Comics brand has had much more success in movie adaptations. I personally loved Superman Returns (though I'm in the decided minority), and didn't much care for The Dark Knight (again, minority). But no one would dispute the fact that Marvel has had more commercial and critical success with their X-Men, Fantastic Four, Spider-Man and other spin-offs.

DC has the best known properties in the comics world, but their TV and movie adaptations have been rather lackluster by comparison to Marvel. Not only that, the DC characters that have fans itching for big screen treatments keep getting scuttled or postponed. Shazam! The Flash. Green Lantern. The Justice League of America. Wonder Woman. Firestorm. The Metal Men. We keep getting tantalizing promises, and nothing seems to come of them. That may be about to change.

[Excerpt]

Warner Bros. Creates DC Entertainment!

Warner Bros. Entertainment Inc. (WBEI) has created DC Entertainment Inc., a new company founded to fully realize the power and value of the DC Comics brand and characters across all media and platforms, to be run by Diane Nelson, it was announced today by Barry Meyer, Chairman & CEO, and Alan Horn, President & COO, Warner Bros. . .

Read more at: Bam! Kapow!