Ah, the reboot. How we love to hate thee.
You know, when I was at the apex of reading comics, there was one reboot that made me stop reading them to the extent that I was. It was Amazing Spider-Man. The editorial staff at Marvel, in all their glorious wisdom, decided that the Peter Parker that we the readers knew and loved for over 200 issues wasn’t Peter at all, but a clone named Ben Reilly. And even though they said “Whoops, we take it back,” the damage was done. I was no longer a faithful reader of your friendly neighborhood Spider-Man. It was a big ol’ fail of a semi-reboot. And they had another one recently after the whole Civil War thing where Spidey revealed himself publically, but Mephisto said “Backsies!” and everything was back to a semi-status quo.
Now, the big kerfluffle and the latest character to get a reboot, is everybody’s favorite superhero born with the concept of female bondage: Wonder Woman. Well, I don’t know much about her tangled timeline, but it sounds like she is due for a reboot. Will the masses flock to the title knowing that they don’t need to know what happened before? Will they alienate all the loyal readers who have been rewarded with sticking with the title through thick and thin? Do those readers even exist anymore? (Note to self…future Superhero Cinema News blog entry comparing the music industry’s CD sales to comic book industry’s subscription sales).
I wish DC the best of luck. They’re not my comic publisher of choice (heck, I buy more Dark Horse titles now than Marvel), but I don’t wish them ill. I don’t necessarily hate thee, but I scoff at their attempt to reboot. You never know.
And here is the new costume to go with the reboot. Less skin, more black leather. May all fanboys drool:
Categories: Blog Tags: Ben Reilly, Spider-Man
Marvel establishes TV division
This story comes to us via The Onion AV Club, one of the best pop culture sites out there.
Marvel establishes TV division, hires Jeph Loeb to run it
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Marvel has been putting out good and mediocre animated stuff for many years. Is this an attempt to consolidate all of that into one division? Is this just bureaucratic news? Is there a nugget of actual information in here? I believe so as they mention “live action” shows, which is new to me. I’ve heard of the all the live action Marvel movies that they’ve done and that are on their schedule, but this is a first for TV.
I think that perhaps some of their properties would be better done as live action shows instead of movies. Perhaps Captain America and Wolverine would be better done as TV shows instead of mediocre movies (I’m looking at you Wolverine).
I’m sure the fallout/results of this news won’t be seen for a while as the gears of Hollywood grind slowly. At least the Marvel ones grind faster than DC!
Categories: Blog Tags: Onion AV Club
Tease-o-rama
May 20, 2011. Put it on your calendar.
Categories: Blog Tags:
Free Comic Book Day – Saturday, May 1 – support your local shop!
This Saturday is Free Comic Book Day. It is a day when you can walk into participating comic book stores and pick up a comic or two relating to stories/titles you know 
or take a chance on a publisher or title that you don’t know about. Expand your horizons and check out something dangerous. Something you wouldn’t otherwise read.
And just because it’s called “Free Comic Book Day” doesn’t mean that all comics are free. Last year, the first store that I went to had a buy one, get one free TPB sale. What a deal!
So, go out, grab a free comic or two and bring your kids. And, by all means, support your local comic book shop and buy some comics, t-shirts, trades, busts, etc., and let them know that you’ll be back throughout the year and not just one day out of 365. They’ll appreciate it.
Truly it is Up, Up and Away
Via Yahoo:
Superman comic sells for $1.5M, setting record
A copy of the 1938 edition of Action Comics No. 1 sold Monday for $1.5 million on the auction Web site ComicConnect.com. The issue, which features Superman’s debut and originally sold for 10 cents, is widely considered the Holy Grail of comic books.
There are about 100 copies of Action Comics No. 1 believed to be in existence, and only a handful in good condition. The issue that sold Monday was rated slightly higher than the one that sold in February; it had been tucked inside an old movie magazine for years before being discovered.
I don’t know about you, dear Superherocinema.com readers, but if I had 1.5 mil to blow on a comic book, I should probably re-evaluate my life. I love it when comic books get great press like this (nary a Holy Cow to be found in the article) and the article comments on “pent-up demand” for ultra-rare comics, which is very cool that comic collectors like this are still out there in this economy. However, that being said, if anyone wants to spend $1.5M on a book that they will secret away to a vault, I posit this for you. Shouldn’t there be a comic book wing of a museum somewhere so that books like this and the Detective Comics that recently sold for $1,075,000 can be displayed and shared with the public? Rock and Roll has a museum…science fiction has a museum (it’s in Seattle)…why not the pop culture niche and phenomenon comic books?
I’d be happy to donate all my versions of X-Men #1 to help it get started.
Categories: Blog, Reviews Tags: ComicConnect.com, Detective, Seattle, USD, auction Web site, cent
Hulk vs. Thor VS Hulk vs. Wolverine
Back in the day when I first started branching out from reading Spider-Man comics, I was drawn in by a little limited series called the Inifinity Gauntlet. I was fascinated by everyday heroes fighting against and amongst cosmic beings. The thought of Captain America making a stand against somebody like Thanos was awesome and awe-inspiring. Now that you know my cosmic leanings, you may have guessed which of the two “movies” on this disc that I preferred.
While Thor clocks in as the longer movie of the two, it is totally worth it and makes quite the smashing punch. I’m not well versed in all the relationships in the Thor corner of the Marvel-verse, but I didn’t feel at a loss as it was easy to pick up on what was happening and who was involved with who, etc. It was amazing to think about how once Bruce Banner was removed from the psyche of Hulk that he might truly have no upper limits to his strength, endurance, and mindlessness for destruction. If Hulk can (Spoiler Alert!) beat the tar out of Thor and take out pretty much everybody in Asgard, how would the writers resolve this plot! Very well and by thinking about the Hulk’s Achilles Heel, that’s how. I am a big fan of cosmic/god-like characters with great action and Hulk vs. Thor delivered.
On the other hand, we have a more down-to-Earth “Hulk” story. I put Hulk in quotation marks because this story seems to focus more on Wolverine and his encounter with the Weapon X project with the Hulk thrown into the mix to stir up the pot. Now I love seeing Lady Deathstrike torn apart as much as the next guy, but I can’t be the only one who found the one scene with her and Hulk screaming at each other pretty funny, right? I appreciated seeing Deadpool getting his ass handed to him…even though he’s funny, it’s good to see him get a good pounding every now and then.
Overall, I like seeing the Hulk in vs. Wolverine, although it definitely felt like he was an ingredient and not the main course as he was in vs. Thor. I give the Thor segment 4 stars out of 5 and the Wolverine one 3 stars. May the Hulk continue to smash for many years to come.
Categories: Blog, Reviews Tags: Bruce Banner, Captain, Spider-Man
The planet’s not called Hulk, but the movie title is…called Planet Hulk
I grew up loving Spider-Man. (A weird way to start a review of Planet Hulk, but go with me here). I started with issue 248 way back in the day and my mom purchased it for me at a local drug store. She said to go over to the spinny rack and pick one out. Sweet! My 8-year old eyes perused the racks and I had narrowed it down to the one with a bad guy looming over Spider-Man and one with a big green monster on the cover. I chose the webhead because the other one frightened me too much. Yikes!
I don’t have that same fear of the Hulk now that I did then, however, so I was able to really enjoy Planet Hulk. And this one was a great movie. It had an emotional core with the Hulk and Caiera and great fighting scenes in the gladiator-style arena. You can’t beat the ones in the beginning where the Hulk is just trying to get out and doesn’t play well with others, but when he joins the fight, it’s over pretty quick! Hulk does indeed smash.
One of the scenes that has stayed with me weeks after I have watched the movie and is the most heart-wrenching is when Caiera attempts to save a little girl from the second invasion of the spore-things. Truly sad and gives this film weight and makes it not merely a superhero movie, but a film with depth that will have you rooting for the Hulk and enjoying the beauty that is this movie.
Categories: Blog, Reviews Tags: Hulk, Spider-Man
Lego superheroes on Flickr – why didn’t they have these when I was a kid?
I found this via SciFi Wire and they are too cool. However, I think that the box of random Legos that I have at home are at least 4 generations before the came up with non-square and non-rectangle Legos. Has Lego technology really changed that much since the 80s when I thought it was too cool that I got a set of Legos that became an airplane when I went through the 30 steps? Yes, yes they have. Now you can put together the Batmobile in 15 and have Doc Ock’s arms twist in all directions as he chases after Aunt May. True love!
Categories: Blog, Reviews Tags: Lego technology, Legos
Green Lantern in 3-D…sweet. I’d wear those glasses again.
Saw this on Sci-Fi Wire. I guess 3-D is the new “talkie?” It’s going to be cropping up everywhere. I’m not sure if Green Lantern is popular enough and this extra feature will bring in more people, but it certainly will help the bottom line of this movie and superhero movies in general. A good thing.
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If you always wanted to see Green Lantern on the big screen in 3-D instead of that boring old 2-D (’cause we all know how yawn-inducing that would be), you’re in luck, and you can thank Avatar for that, according to The Hollywood Reporter.
Warner Brothers has decided to add an extra dimension to DC’s superhero, apparently inspired by all the big bucks Fox pulled in with the James Cameron blockbuster. The studio had already announced plans to convert both Clash of the Titans and Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, Part One to 3-D releases.
Warners also announced that Zach Snyder’s action fantasy Punch, set to hit theaters on March 25, 2011, will also make the leap from 2-D to 3-D.
Green Lantern, starring Ryan Reynolds, is set to premiere on June 17, 2011.
Categories: Blog, Reviews Tags: 3-D, Clash of the Titans, Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, Ryan Reynolds, The Hollywood Reporter
[Knock, knock, knock] Stan Lee? [Knock, knock, knock] Stan Lee? [Knock, knock, knock] Stan Lee?
I would consider myself a bit of a late bloomer when it comes to The Big Bang Theory. I caught reruns between seasons two and three and was endeared by the characters, enjoyed the sitcom, punchline timing, and was curious how they could get away with physics humor in prime time. But I was most enthralled with the trips to the local comic book store…especially on new comic book day (which we all know is Tuesday). This last episode of TBBT was a love letter to all fans of Marvel comics, of which I most heartily count myself.
No episode of a TV show or movie starring a Marvel character or featuring a comic book plot is complete without the mandatory Stan Lee cameo. Whether it’s Stan Lee pulling a kid to safety in Spider-Man or being a playboy in Iron Man, he pops ala Steven King.
This episode’s A-plot centered on Stan Lee’s visit to the comic book store. I enjoyed their excitement and the scene where they were flipping through their collections to decide what they would have him sign. Leonard had a tough choice between the first appearance of Dr. Doom or Thor (he definitely should have chosen Thor) for Stan Lee to autograph. But a Batman comic?? That would have been awesome.
This series does a good job of not patronizing nerds/geeks, but making comedy where we are in our element and know the references without being too obscure. Raj’s jokes about Marvel characters’ alliteration names is very true. Poor JJJ. I enjoyed every minute they were in the comic book store as it is a place ripe for good-natured humor and one that all us comic book fans know well.
For the denouement, my wife called it. She didn’t even know who Stan Lee was, but knew that Sheldon would have a signed restraining order that he would frame. Brilliant! She definitely deserves a No-Prize.
-Jonathan
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