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adventures-in-a-world-of-fiction · 5 years ago

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Some thoughts on Spider-man: Far from Home

In no particular order. Some significant spoilers below.

1. I love the face that the events of Infinity War/Endgame are referenced multiple times. I thought it was going to be a bit of hand-waving at the start and then ignored, but no, it kept coming up. May was running a charity for people left homeless after they came back, the kids discuss how weird it was that a guy who used to be five years younger than them was now in the same class, the teacher talking about his wife, MJ tattling on Flash when he was being served alcohol (“He’s actually sixteen, not twenty-one”). Given the comment about how they were forced to restart the school year and that it’s now summer vacation, this film presumably takes place a good nine or ten months after the events of Endgame. People have settled into a new normal, but everyone’s still feeling the impact of what happened and it’s nice that that got acknowledged.

2. The Getty Images watermark in the stock footage during the memorial video. :)

3. “You speak really good English.” “Welcome to the Netherlands.”

4. Peter and Happy’s relationship was awesome. The change from Homecoming is noticeable, but it makes so much sense. And the hug in the tulip field! Amazing.

5. That said, I really wish Happy’s speech about how Tony wasn’t perfect included the words “Remember Ultron?” Peter was fretting about how he’d screwed up in a major way and wasn’t a worthy successor, etc. Happy should have said something along the lines of, “Yeah, you screwed up, kid, but you’re a kid. Tony build a robot that tried to drop a city from orbit to wipe out humanity and he didn’t have that excuse and people still thought he was a hero. You’ll be fine.”

6. On the subject of still thinking Tony was a hero, the EDITH acronym!

7. MJ hitting the drone with the mace. I liked MJ in general in this. She’s intelligent, she acts independently, she was responsible for Peter figuring out what was really going on. She felt like a person and not just a designated love interest.

8. On the other hand, I wish Betty had gotten more character development. She and Ned were adorable together, but I didn’t really feel like I knew her at the end of the film. Ned made a comment about how they had a lot in common. Like what? Other than a propensity for cutesy nicknames and matching hats?

9. Mysterio to Peter: Never apologise for being the smartest person in the room. *Hill gives him a dirty look*

10. That little moment with Mysterio felt genuine. He seemed to actually like Peter, which gave his character some depth. I couldn’t help thinking of the parallels to Thanos and Gamora and Mysterio’s “He was a nice kid, I didn’t want to kill him,” felt more real than Thanos crying about killing Gamora. Maybe it was because the way it was framed made it clear we weren’t meant to sympathise with Mysterio.

11. Mysterio was just a good villain in general and I liked his interactions with his crew.

12. I kinda love that Mysterio’s villain origin story was basically, “Tony gave my tech a stupid name.”

13. The Iron Man zombie was seriously creepy. That thing was in shot for, what, about ten seconds? But those ten seconds were seriously disturbing, especially with the spiders crawling all over it.

14. I was a bit annoyed while watching this by Fury’s characterisation. He was very hard on Peter, pushing him to save the world when he’s just a kid, putting so much pressure on him, snapping at him, etc. Then you have things like Hill saying Fury wasn’t at all suspicious of Mysterio, despite Fury being one of the most suspicious people in existence. Then the post credits scene! Suddenly all that made sense. He wasn’t really Fury, he was a Skrull shapeshifter who was only supposed to hand over the glasses to Peter and then found himself caught up in all of this mess. He clearly didn’t have any clue what to do and was just winging it, and so putting pressure on Peter makes sense because he’s there going, “Fury didn’t tell me how to deal with this and I’ve no idea where the other Avengers are, you’re the only one I can find, please fix this for me.” He was completely out of his depth the whole time and that explains everything. It also retrospectively makes the line about Captain Marvel all the more meaningful. (I now want an AU where Peter figure out that Fury is acting out of character, thinks he’s another illusion, and then the Skrull guy is forced to come clean).

15. Mysterio’s first fight against Peter was really cool, with Mysterio messing with Peter’s head in so many ways and using their surroundings to mess with him physically.

16. Happy’s little smile when he sees Peter using Tony’s tech.

17. Happy announcing he’s in love with Spiderman’s aunt when they all think they’re going to die (made even better by the fact that only two of the people present know exactly who that is).

18. Happy: “I work with Spiderman not for him.”

19. Happy in general.

20. Flash getting so excited when he finds out that Spiderman watched his live stream.

21. Flash getting London Bridge and Tower Bridge mixed up.

22. I really want to see how Flash reacts now that he knows who Spiderman is. It’ll probably never be shown in the films because presumably there will be another large time skip between the end of this one and the next one, so I guess fanfic will have to fill the gap, but I would love to see who Flash takes the news and what he does with the information. “This is clearly an effort to discredit the greatest hero there is by comparing him to a puny wimp like Parker. It’s obviously a lie. He’s a hundred reasons why you can tell the video is faked.”

23. The constant interruptions when “Fury” was trying to talk to Peter in the hotel room.

On the whole, I very much enjoyed it. It’s not up there with Thor Ragnarok or Black Panther, but it’s a solid, enjoyable superhero movie and certainly better than Endgame. There were a couple of moments that had me cringing (the drone strike on the bus) rather than enjoying it, but overall it was good and there were a lot of great moments both in terms of humour and drama.

#Spider-man #spiderman #Spider-man: Far From Home #Spiderman: far from home #spoilers #spiderman spoilers #far from home spoilers

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bombshellsandbluebells · 5 years ago

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Thanks for answering!! I loooove Peter and John and Emori and well most characters on your list really! While we're at it, which characters are your least favorite in MCU/the100? And which characters do you think are overrated or underrated?

Hey, awesome! And no problem! I love talking about the characters I like. You can come talk to me about them anytime! Or even characters you like that I don’t pay enough attention to.

Okay, this was a GREAT question, and I basically wrote you a novel in response.

The 100 – Clarke Griffin (if that wasn’t already obvious)

I used to love Clarke Griffin, but at this point, I just get annoyed whenever she comes on my screen. Clarke was a much stronger character in s2, when the writing committed to portraying her as flawed and morally grey and kind of ruthless in a way that was necessarily but also kind of concerning.

Now it seems like they always want to remind me she’s The Most Important – she’s almost become a version of the Chosen One trope in a narrative where that really shouldn’t be a thing – and a hero and just, like, suuuper pretty (the staircase scene was ridiculous). They’ve made her The Popular, Pretty Girl trope and I hate it. They might tell me in dialogue over and over again that there are no bad guys, but even when Clarke does bad, selfish things, they refuse to commit to it. She doesn’t face consequences and the writing is too concerned with making us side with her than actually calling her out. Even this season while other characters have been listing why they’re angry with her, everything is framed in a way to make us sympathize with her.

Letting a character do flawed things but trying to sway the viewer to ignore those flaws and loudly tell me that they’re still a good person rather than showing it is the easiest way to get me to not like a character. They’ve written Clarke as incredibly selfish, arrogant, and unwilling to listen to anyone else, unwilling to truly apologize or learn from her mistakes – but they just won’t admit to it or let her grow. OR commit to an actual downward spiral arc. Either would be accepted.

Plus, she’s just boring now. Everything comes too easily for her – people she’s hurt forgive her too easily, and the nightblood is basically a superpower at this point. The writing of her is just lazy and it’s not compelling.

MCU – Steve Rogers

I also used to like Steve. Whedon’s characterization was always off (and I think AoU really contributed to the problems in his overall arc), but I liked him a lot in Cap 1 and Winter Soldier is still one of my favorite MCU movies and the best handling of his character overall.

I need to rewatch the MCU before I really dive into just what went wrong with Steve’s character, but I just never really found him as compelling a character past WS and I was mad at him more than I liked or sided with him. Even with Endgame, I was just indifferent to how his story ended.

I think he suffers from a lot of the same problems as the writing for Clarke does. Steve has flaws and that’s great – it makes him interesting and human – but even while the narrative shows you his flaws, it tries to push you to ultimately ignore them because he’s a hero and we’re supposed to side with him because they already established he’s a good man. The problem is that Steve’s flaws ultimately get shown a lot more than his heroic, moral side as the movies go on. And despite not showing us that heroic side, they keep loudly telling us over and over again that Steve still is a selfless hero who will lay down on the wire – something he actually hasn’t shown he will do (for anyone but Bucky, maybe) for several movies now. In fact, he’s the only one in Endgame who really doesn’t do “whatever it takes” or have to sacrifice ANYTHING.

What @gamorazenwhoberis says in this post really explains it better than I am right now.

In short, starting with AoU (the root of so many characterization issues in the MCU), the writing starts telling us that Steve’s a selfless hero and a shining example of a good man while only really showing us his flawed behavior. It’s hard to keep buying that Steve is the “lay down on the wire” type when he doesn’t do anything to prove it. I also really struggle to side with him in later movies because I find him, in the wise words of Rhodey, “dangerously arrogant.” Steve’s intentions are always good, but he never believes he can be wrong, and that’s a problem. And again, that could be a really interesting character flaw if portrayed as a flaw – but I think too often the narrative ultimately expects us to side with him because…I don’t know, he’s Captain America, you know?

It’s not necessarily Steve’s fault, because I think he IS meant to be portrayed as an ultimately heroic man who wants to help people but still has realistic human flaws – it’s the writing’s fault, because they way they end up framing it makes it look like Steve is all talk when it comes to heroic sacrifices but, unlike his fellow Avengers, unwilling to sacrifice or compromise.

Also, I’ll be honest - I relate so much with Tony and project so much onto him that a lot of his actions in Civil War felt like a personal betrayal and I had a hard time liking him again after that movie. I still like him just fine in the first few films and I actually did enjoy a lot of scenes in Endgame, but a lot of his actions bother me and never feel like they’re actually addressed in a way that calls him out and the writing of him REALLY bothers. And when I’m not mad it him in later movies, I’m mostly indifferent. I do love him in other universes though.

Underrated

1. JAMES RHODEY RHODES DOES NOT GET ENOUGH APPRECIATION!!! He’s fantastic and I love him and I really wish he was given a bit more room to shine in IW/Endgame, even though I get they’re juggling too many characters. They just handled him SO WELL in Civil War that I wanted to see more writing that showed how much conviction and sense of duty he had. Also the brief moment where he talked about being paralyzed and how they have to “work with what they’ve got” was so good, I wanted so much more of it.

2. Maria Hill! The writing has really wronged her. I didn’t like her writing in Age of Ultron at all (she’s not a secretary, Whedon), and she’s been such an afterthought in the MCU since then. I’m so excited to see her come back in FFH, because I think there’s still so much cool stuff they could do with her. I’d actually love them to write her with a bit more 616 characterization, because in comics she’s kind of both The Worst and The Best all at once. She’s just MEAN. But she also helps run a massive intelligence agency with an iron fist and has a strong sense of duty and right and wrong and she’s more than a little terrifying. She’s just great. I’m glad to see her back. I love that she’s still been doing her part to help protect the world even with SHIELD gone.

3. NEBULA!!! She has such a good arc and she was wonderful in Endgame and this whole fandom sleeps on her and it’s unacceptable.

Overrated

1. Wanda Maximoff. :/ I really, really WANT to like MCU Wanda, and Elizabeth Olson does an amazing job with what she’s given, but her character bothers me a lot. I like the concept of her arc going from villain to hero. She’s really similar to Nebula in that way – her turn to villainy was born from trauma, but over time she learned to repurpose that trauma into a way to help other people.

The problem is that….it just kind of doesn’t work for me. Part of it is that she also suffers from the Clarke Griffin Problem – aka, she’s flawed and she makes mistakes and the dialogue tells me this, but she either avoids consequences or she fails to apologize for them. In theory, I like her arc about mistakes and atonement and doing better (which is exactly why I love Tony and Natasha and Nebula), but the writing of it doesn’t work for me. And her relationship with Vision is just so boring it’s hard to be invested. I think they did such a disservice to her by killing off her most interesting relationship, even though I know it was for legal reasons. (I do like her relationship with Clint, though.)

2. Carol Danvers. :( Again, I WANT to like her so badly. I love comics Carol so much. I bought a Captain Marvel shirt for the premiere. I have a Captain Marvel coffee mug. I’ve been looking forward to her movie for YEARS.

But I just find MCU Carol incredibly bland. There isn’t much depth to her even after her own solo movie, and I think Captain Marvel did a terrible job of developing her – especially in comparison to how well other MCU heroes have been developed in their own solo films. She has a lot of surface-level qualities that are fun – like being headstrong and snarky and a badass (I AM delighted that there’s no question she is the strongest hero) – but there just isn’t much emotional depth to flesh her out. I still feel like all I really know about her are basic facts and not anything about what she believes in or feels, and I feel like I was more emotionally connected with Maria in one scene than I ever was with Carol. I’m really hoping her next movie fixes that problem for me because I want to love her.

Thanks for asking!! I’m not kidding. You can always come yell at me about fictional characters. :)

#ask #anticlarkegriffin #anti clarke griffin #antisteverogers #anti steve rogers

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alismodworld · 5 years ago

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(MAJOR SPOILERS AHEAD FOR SPIDERMAN FAR FROM HOME)

So I finally got to watch Spiderman Far from Home today. Last time I went to the theater was for Inside Out when I was 13 so it was nice to finally go back.

A bit of a tangent but why on earth would you bring a child between the ages of 0-3 to a theater?? There was a family behind us and throughout the first act of the film there was constant screaming and crying and loud outbursts. If you are someone who does this I hope your life goes just as well as how you made it for everyone else in the theater.

Anyway, as for the movie, IT WAS PHENOMENAL!! I don't know if anyone else has said it yet but, in my opinion Far from Home is way better than Homecoming.

The story basically follows that after Tony's death Peter ends up going on a class trip and is later recruited by Nick Fury to help Mysterio (or Beck) with fight the Elementals and destroy them before perrel ensues on the world. During all of this Peter struggles with the death of Tony Stark and is overwhelmed with carrying on the mantle of Iron Man. There's also a slight side plot of Peter planning to tell MJ his feelings for her but it's not really major where it inconvinces the plot. Beck ends up being a major villain after Peter gives E.D.I.T.H, an AI found in a pair of glasses Tony used to wear that controls all his hardware and systems, to him. Believe me, I love good well written villains and Beck is one of them, but one a villain does the hero absolutely dirty I can't love them. It's the same with Thanos, he is a well written character and his story is interesting but what he did in Infinity War and Endgame makes me despise him, I'm sorry!

Act 2 is where things really kick off. After MJ follows Peter and grabs a device from the fight, which was a projector, she finds out he's Spiderman and there is slight banter after this that I really loved and laughed at. Peter later finds Beck and there was this whole scene of Beck manipulating, guilt tripping and taunting Peter using his projectors which ended making Peter reveal his friends knew about Beck being a fraud and getting him hit by a train which shattered my heart.

After his recovery and Happy picking him up he finally grieves over Tony, which Happy motivates him to do things his way, which that whole scene nearly made me cry. Seeing Peter work like Tony did warmed my heart and I was so happy that Happy got such good character development. He's a real good replacement for Irondad.

The whole fight scene afterwards was stunning! The visuals were astounding and I liked that they made Peter cough and grunt during the fight as it showed he still hadnt fully recovered from his train injury. Peter learnt how fight Beck better and ultimately defeated him which made me excited and rooting for him. My mom was also cheering with me. Though I don't think he actually killed Beck as the bullet bounced back into him after he fired it, but his death was satisfying. MJ and Peter finally get together which I LOVED!! They're my new otp sorry not sorry! Everyone goes home and MJ and Peter go webslinging which was super cute.

The Character Development was absolutely perfect. I loved the writing for everyone including Peter, MJ, Flash, Happy, Nick, Beck, Ned and many others. The only character I didn't think had the best writing was Peter's rival (dont remember his name). He just seemed to be a dickish character who came of more as a little kid trying to get what he wants. But other than that great development.

The mid credit sequence had me screaming!! The return of J. Jonah Jameson and the entrance of The Daily Bulgle into the MCU along with not only Beck framing Spiderman for his death but also revealing his identity to the world. This sealed the deal for my hatred for Beck! (But he still such a good villian). I still feel sorry for Peter (my heart cracked during the scene) but I can't wait to see how this is executed in Spiderman 3.

As for the end credits scene, shocking and funny but nothing as major as the mid credits scene. I honestly think it could be foreshadowing Captain Marvel 2? I don't know..

Overall, a fantastic movie!! I loved every bit of it and a big step up from Homecoming. I give it a 9/10. If you have the time go watch this movie!! You won't regret it.

#spiderman far from home #review and thoughts #spiderman far from home spoilers #spoilers #spoiler warning

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wilmakins · 2 years ago

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Ah, I love it when this post starts doing the rounds again...

Firstly, the WHOLE point of this post is that 'the writers give Tony shitty villains who hate him for no reason'. Just for once, I am saying nothing here about whether Tony is a good or a bad person - I am merely mocking Marvel for the crappy motivation they gave his enemies. A fact you readily agree with. So, it seems you have seen my joke and thought to comment 'yeah, well, the point you made was totally accurate - but what about this whole other point that no one mentioned?'

And, well, since you've mentioned it-

There doesn't seem a lot of point in going through why all of the examples you've given here are untrue or unfair - because I actually AGREE with the overall point that Tony has made some mistakes and done some bad things. I think you've picked weird arguments to illustrate that point, but I'll skip over that and accept the point in general . Yes, Tony has fucked up at times.

And I could explain all the reasons I still like the character in spite of his previous mistakes, and why I don't think he's any worse than any other MCU hero, and why I think his good qualities still count for something - but I suspect no good would come of it. I don't see a point in taking issue with your 'Tony Stark is the worst' point, because clearly you just don't like him, and that's fine. We all value different qualities, and have different red lines - and different people we gel with. I take no issue with people who don't like Tony-

But what I have to take issue with - what I really have to call out here - is the suggestion that 'no one in the MCU' points this out, that his flaws are not acknowledged by the narrative, and that Tony himself never atones for his mistakes-

Sorry, what?

...This guy?

youtube

The whole plot of Iron Man 1 is 'Being an Arms Dealer is Bad and Tony Feels Bad For It.' Tony mentions the harm he has caused several times, as do other characters. He makes very clear that he's only interested in becoming Iron Man because there is blood on his hands.

Iron Man 2 ends with Tony being told that he's a reckless narcissist who failed the Avengers entry criteria.

Age of Ultron frames him as having sole responsibility for Ultron (in spite of the fact that Bruce helped make Ultron and Wanda and Pietro knowingly aided Ultron in his plans) and he gets throttled for it, yelled at for it several times, and then spends the next ten years saying shit like 'Ultron, my fault'.

They basically frame Tony as the bad guy in Captain America 3 - which, as YOU rightly point out, is Tony trying to take responsibility for his past mistakes, BECAUSE he feels so guilty for them... this guy who never has to take responsibility for mistakes he never feels guilty for...? And this is an example to the writers favouring him and vindicating him at every turn, is it? Encouraging half the audience to literally side against him in their big summer blockbuster?

Like, if you want to say 'Tony is an awful person who's mistakes are unforgivable and who's atonement hasn't been nearly sufficient' fair enough - I disagree with you, but it's a point of opinion on which people may therefore vary.

But to try and suggest that you alone have noticed Tony's failings, and that the MCU has chosen to fawn over Tony instead of dealing with those failings - in a franchise whose *ONLY* plot line for over a decade, even in other people's movies, was 'Tony comes face to face with a mistake he made while everyone calls him an asshole' - is just provably untrue.

#Youtube

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leighlikescartoons · 7 years ago

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Marvel’s Spider-Man Episodes 6-8 (Review)

It's the Saaaaaandmaaaaan. Looks like Adam Sandler decided to... no wrong Sandman. I was a little surprised when they went with the same approach for Flint that they did with Rhino. Unwillingly being transformed into the big bad monsters they are. Ol' Sandcastle's voice has turned to wind as he struggles to form basic words, words that any civilian of a Marvel show should know. "Saaaaaave Me." Once he turns back to Marco his voice comes back and sounds spot on. I like the look. He actually looks like he's made of sand, as opposed to something thicker, like Oatmeal. Honestly, the way Characters are drawn is super pleasing in this show, but it just misses the mark with certain designs. His human form hits all the boxes I need. Striped green shirt and brown pants. Like Steve from Blue's Clues except big and muscular.

The episode is heavy on Venom action, which makes sense since the next episode (Episode 7) is called "Symbiotic Relationship". What I don't get is, just two episodes ago Max Modell was working on the Symbiote and seemed extremely invested in it. But now he's passed it on to four of his students? Why was there no mention of this? I'm not one to get mad and stomp my feet about continuity, but that's a preeetty big change.

This episode is much better than "Party Animals". We start out with a fun scene where Peter isn't the biggest loser in the frame. He's out geeked by Miles and Anya who refuse to enjoy the pier to work on their science project. Then, after Sandy Cheeks makes his debut, Gwen swoops in to save the day! Or she would have if Spidey didn't steal her thunder. Plus Harry works on more Goblin tech. It'll be interesting if he actually turns out to be the Green Goblin in this incarnation as opposed to Norman. I'm so glad they went with the not a villain angle with Sandman though. The end to his story arc in Spectacular warmed my cold animated heart. Flint Marco deserves to be a hero. (Please don't message me about all the horrible things he's done in the comics. Let me have this)

I do actually have two gripes about this episode. First, Hammerhead's voice stinks. Second, Aunt May's insurance didn't cover Sandstorms. Are you kidding? Oh man, what insurance in Marvel's Manhattan doesn't cover super related accidents? Maybe her package just doesn't cover it.

Symbiotic relationship! Looks like criminals are using the web-head's mask to hide their faces. I think it's a fun thing to do instead of just drawing them with standard issue ski masks. I would have liked it better if each wore a different hero's mask though. Extra points if one was Iron Man, as he pops in next episode "Stark Expo". That would have extra extra cool if A) the previews didn't so readily spoil it and B) it weren't playing back to back to back with Symbiotic Relationship and Sandman.

So we get a good look at Spidey's new power-up using his Symbiote, the design of which I love by the way. It looks... as you'd expect the Venom suit to look. The only gripe I have is he still has shoe bottoms. Does the Symbiote form shoe bottoms? Or does it just not cover his feet all the way? Is the Symbiote called Venom when it's still attatched to Spiderman, or is that an identity it takes on afterwards?

But then the next morning, Oh no! Spidey's cornered! They have guns! What ever will he do to get out of this jam against three identical looking extras?Norman is getting more and more shady. Hiring villains, associating with Allistair(sp?) known bully, and going as low as breaking into Horizon High to steal their expiriment. Lucky for Gwen and crew, Peter already lost it. Take that Osborne!

I would have liked if the entire Symbiote being attatched to Spidey was contained in this one episode, giving him a power boost for one or two and then letting Peter figure out it's bad for him. Oh well.

At the end of the episode Norman swears Spider-man will one day be his. Do you think there will be a romantic story line between them? That's probably what he meant.

Stark Expo! Looks like Tony is making his big appearance. After their relationship from the movie (No Spoilers) is anyone really surprised? He shows up and Spidey is a huge fan! But I'm not, his voice is a little... dorky. I mean he's an inventor, but he's also supposed to be a playboy millionaire with a presence. Batman doesn't sound like a dork... sometimes Batman sounds like a dork, but Bruce Wayne never does! And Tony doesn't put on a voice when he's suited up. Not to mention, his suit looks kinda bulky. Overall, I don't have a good first impression of him. Hopefully the inevitable scene where they team up changes my mind!

I'll be honest, I don't know who the villain is here. Maybe they're from Iron Man, but they could just as easily be from Spider-Man. He seems to be the physical embodiment of a computer virus. He shorts out Spidey's shooters and posseses Tony's new suit. Mark 52.

Speaking of Villains, Norman hints at Green Goblin's upcoming appearance. Just give me the crazy green villain I want! Goblin has the best personality AND the best color scheme. Don't mess this up!

So it looks like Max is back to working on the Symbiote instead of Gwen and co. for some reason. He's looking into developing it into something to advance prostetics though, so I'll let it slide. The inconsistency is trumped by the good intentions. Then in walks Tony! Honestly his voice sounds like a duck. Maybe the actor went in for a Duck Tales (which premiers next Saturday by the way) audition and got the spot as Iron Man instead. Not a bad upgrade.

Doc Ock is wearing... a military outfit? I mean, not standard issue or anything, but what you might've thought was standard issue as a kid. He looks very soldier like. Anyways, he's brought a familiar set of arms to Stark Expo and gets infected. Even if he's trying to be a good guy, he's simply fated to be bad. How unfortunate. But it does give Harry and Miles a chance to show off some heroic tendancies. Now the only one who hasn't is Anya, who I recently found out is the Alter Ego of Spider-Girl. How fun! I'd love if the Sinister Six had to take on Spider-Man, Spider-Girl, Spider-Gwen, and... er... Also Spider-Man.

They didn't get to show off their expiriments though! Ghost, the villain's name is Ghost, destroyed the Expo before they could. It's a shame, while Flash clearly had the best, and deserved the prize, I would have loved to see some of the other cool tech. Speaking of Flash, it seems like Eddie Brock may not show up, Flash taking his place.

At the end it seems Ock is getting set up to turn into his villainous counterpart. With mentions of connecting his arms to the spine and we all know how that ends. Not to mention Norman swooping in. I worry for that little round geek. I'm also not sure if he's a Professor, like they said in Episode 2, or a student. Maybe he's both?

All in all, on a scale of 1 to Spectacular I'd give this trio of episodes the scene from Street Sharks when Bends is such a trusting friend that he accepted the fact that his 4 friends had turned into shark monsters with a simple "No, It's me, Bobby." and then let 4 massive SHARKS into his car. What a guy.

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renaramblesaboutcomics · 7 years ago

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Wednesday Roundup 4.10.2017

This week ended up being a relatively light reading week for yours truly, but that doesn’t lessen the quality of my enjoyment whatsoever. In fact, I had enough love to share that I wanted to go over all of the available Marvel Legacy Primers for this week as well, even if they’re just short blurbs!

So without further ado let’s jump into it.

Marvel’s America, Marvel’s Black Panther, Marvel’s Incredible Hulk, Marvel’s Invincible Iron Man, Marvel’s Jean Grey, Marvel’s Monsters Unleashed, Dark Horse’s Usagi Yojimbo, Lion Forge’s Voltron Legendary Defender, Viz’s Yona of the Dawn

Marvel’s America - Marvel Legacy Primer Pages (2017-present) Robbie Thompson, David Lopez

As interested as I am in America, I haven’t had the opportunity to really follow her outside of the Young Avengers run she is in. So I think, oddly enough, for me this is one of the most necessary “Primers” of any of the ones I’ve read so far, and the information was very good to have. It really helped to frame her history, her relationship with her mothers, and her confidence in herself in a new light that is really appreciated. And the art from David Lopez is as beautiful as any of his issues on All-New Wolverine.

Marvel’s Black Panther - Marvel Legacy Primer Pages (2016-present) Robbie Thompson, Wilfredo Torres

There’s honestly not going to be that much more to say on most of these Primer pages. They’re fun, quick run throughs of relevant histories of the characters and teams that they showcase and depending on your interest and engagement may influence whether or not you want to hop in on the next storyline that they’re promoting.

I do like the sense of unity and legacy that is built into the Black Panther title already, having it be a responsibility tied to kingship that T’Challa knows and the all-important bond it has between him and the memory of his father.

It really puts a spin on the importance of Legacy that this event seems intent on hammering home.

Marvel’s Captain Marvel - Marvel Legacy Primer Pages (2016-present) Robbie Thompson, Brent Schoonover

Carol Danvers is one of those characters I desperately want to lie on every feasible surface level, but whose books have never quite got me on board and whose guest appearances always leave me a bit more confused about her than I had been before her said appearance. And yet there was still not a whole lot added here. I appreciate it, and young Carol is adorable, but there was nothing here that didn’t make me feel like... well, like she’s Hal Jordan. And ‘m not a fan of Hal Jordan.

Marvel’s Incredible Hulk - Marvel Legacy Primer Pages (2017-present) Robbie Thompson, Joe Bennett

Everything I have read so far with Amadeus Cho, both in Totally Awesome Hulk and in his guest appearances or team-ups in Moon Girl and Devil Dinosaur to Champions has really connected to me on a level that Bruce Banner hadn’t exactly managed over the years. So it was nice to see a little blurb that went over their mutual histories and explored what was there.

It almost makes people forget that Marvel unnecessarily killed Bruce Banner for... no reason. Almost. Not quite. Though he might be alive by now. I am obviously not current.

Marvel’s Invincible Iron Man - Marvel Legacy Primer Pages (2016-present) Robbie Thompson, Valerio Schiti

Gah, reading this overview of Tony and Riri’s history really reminded me how much I really loved reading Invincible Iron Man when it first came out and just how much I positively adored Riri’s character and her banter with Tony. You know. Before they completely undid the relationship within the first storyline and then Bendis went all Bendis on us and it became obvious that Tony was coming back sooner than later and then Secret Empire destroyed the world... somewhat literally.

I’d love to read a Riri-centric book in better circumstances. Or at least once the next trade is out. We’ll see.

Marvel’s Jean Grey - Marvel Legacy Primer Pages (2017-present) Robbie Thompson, Mark Bagley

I was actually just recently talking to my good friend @shobogan about how much more interested I would be in Young Jean Grey if only Marvel had the guts to either give us a romantic relationship with her and Laura (or her, Laura, and Scott OT3 hullo) or have Older Jean Grey return to mentor her younger self and others at the school since she’s the only X-Man kept dead for this long who was considered a Top Tier X-Man. And since we’re finally getting the latter, it seems, now I have to look at what we know of Young Jean and consider my feelings all over again. And this primer gave me the opportunity to do just that!

While I’m not following Jean’s book at the moment, I’m obviously a pretty big X-fan so I have a general sense of where all the moving pieces are at the moment. And I have to say, with Older Jean returning it’s going to be a pretty awesome time for comparing and contrasting their characters and relationships. After all, this younger Jean is far, far less experienced than her counterpart, but has a peripheral knowledge of her own fate, and as much as she tries to not be defined by it, it’s been defining her in the opposite direction in a sense. And more than that, she’s a Jean who sees the Phoenix Force not as an asset or a tool, but sees it as an honest to god enemy, which I’m not sure how that will work. And I’m even more interested in Jean’s return now because of the possibilities of their interactions with the Force together.

Guess we’ll wait and see!

Marvel’s Monsters Unleashed - Marvel Legacy Primer Pages (2017-present) Robbie Thompson, David Baldeón

I have actually been planning for a little while now to pick up the trade of Monsters Unleashed because I had fun with the miniseries earlier this year and I have been craving more Elsa Bloodstone (as well as the entirety of the Nextwave crew) and this seems like one of the more interesting powers to come from the Inhuman collision.

.... Actually it’s completely stolen from the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles comic and later adapted TV episode dedicated to Jack Kirby who had the power of creativity to draw and create anything he drew and also had a a penchant for creating monsters and different worlds and so on. So I mean. There’s that unavoidable fact. But Kei’s cute so I’d be willing to overlook it for the sake of seeing what Marvel plans on doing with this very wild and unruly power.

Dark Horse’s Usagi Yojimbo (1984-present) #162 Stan Sakai, Tom Luth

The conclusion of Usagi and Inspector Ishida’s investigation about the doctors’ murders has come and the hilarity of Kitsune and Kiyoko bumbling along with them and incidentally becoming crucial to the entire investigation does not lose its edge either.

Story: The conclusion of this particular caper is interesting mostly in how the framing by coincidence is not ultimately a linchpin to the story, having been solved almost immediately in the story’s first issue. The inventiveness of Sakai’s work, overall, is simple subterfuge which continues to make each new adventure feel unique and uncertain. In this instance, it would be in the assistance that Kitsune and Kiyoko end up providing by revealing the true murderer almost by accident.

That being said, as simple as individual stories are for Usagi Yojimbo, the complexity really rests in the margins for long time fans, and that shows most clearly in the way a quiet buildup of several arcs seem to flow together for coming to a head. Perhaps the most famous and arguably best all around example of this would be in “Grasscutter” and how years of storytelling and slow vignettes linking together culminated in one of the greatest comic storylines of all time. We seem to be getting something similar in the backgrounds of more recent adventures with this guild of assassins which Usagi has unknowingly crossed the path of and caused ire to several times at this point.

I’m excited to see where that story is taking us, and likewise interested in how little details, like Kiyoko successfully pickpocketing Inspector Ishida, will pay off down the road.

Lion Forge’s Voltron Legendary Defender Vol. 2 (2017) #1 Tim Hendrick, Mitch Iverson, Jung Gwan Yoo, Ji-in Choi

Egghhhhh. Are you ever really rooting for something against your own common sense and get bit in the butt regardless? I feel like that happens to me on an inconceivably high average and almost all of it can be blamed on the fact that for some reason I am still expecting comics to play fairly with me. If anything my standards should be lower by now. But, well, let’s see if I’m being a bit too harsh on Lion Forge’s second effort in making a Voltron comic.

Story: I would argue that one of the reasons that I had unreasonably high expectations for this comic is in part because the first comic produced by Lion Forge had actuallymanaged to not only be a fairly solid effort as a comic but managed to capture the spirit of the current Dreamworks Netflix series in a wa that was welcoming to fans new and old, and importantly of all ages. So I was hoping for more of the same with this comic project.

In more or less words... I did not exactly receive that. Where there was a solid read of the characterizations in the last comic, this issue showed a severely flattened to the point of parody version of the paladins, especially poor Hunk here who had the already obnoxious and unnecessary fat jokes and food jokes from the series amped up to the point of being his only characteristic in this comic. To the point that at one point he doesn’t even form a full sentence, just grabs a pie successfully from a training maze and says “Hunk win”. Which... I guess is somewhat better faring than the other paladins who didn’t even have dialogue that really fit them. Save for Pidge who was likewise flattened to “the smart one.”

The storyline itself of a new planet where Voltron is needed but the species they end up helping... they actually fail initially, I won’t lie, is a pretty solid premise for Voltron overall, and would be something I’d love to see the show tackle similarly, but the fairly generic wolf-furry aliens didn’t receive a whole lot of depth in this first issue.

Depth trended on being the biggest problem for this issue overall. There wasn’t an examination of the characters and their interactions, how they treated each other and how they tackled problems differently. The sort of things you’d want from an ensemble cast like Voltron. Which is surprising since again the first series by Lion Forge managed all that and was written on a much younger reading level at the same time. Each issue tackled exactly those very things -- individual characters, how they functioned in the group, and how they tackled obstacles differently to find a solution together. I would expect the same here but it didn’t seem to be on the menu.

Hopefully all of this will be addressed and fixed as the comic progresses, but as for now I’m apprehensively putting this series on my three issue trial run.

Art: The art was not a great improvement on the previous comic but it also wasn’t bad in the least. In fact I think the art popped very well, adjusting colors and textures about as well as you��d expect from a television show adaptation for kids. I do wish that the face models for the paladins would keep more consistent and overall there was a rushed feeling to the comic that seemed fairly unnecessary considering it’s the first issue.

Viz’s Yona of the Dawn (2009-present) Vol. 8 Mizuho Kusanagi

You know, I keep hearing over and over again from friends and trusted sources that Yona of the Dawn is a series that will continuously subvert my every expectation and make me continue guessing and yet every volume I really do manage to be caught off guard by something which the story chooses to do which is shockingly poignant and new even to its fairy tale epic adventure structure.

Story: So the Yellow Dragon joining the group was hilariously and purposefully anti-climactic but what we got as a result of that choice is the new direction for the series that ties directly into Yona’s own self-realization. She doesn’t simply want to rule and she doesn’t simply want to conquer. What she wants is to know her people and to save them from the crises that were overlooked by her father before her and by Su-Won now. She wants to take up arms to protect the entire country not just with the power of the loyal followers she has gained but with her own hands. She is something that neither of the kings -- her father or her cousin -- could have ever dreamed of being.

And then my expectations were really taken for a loop by us then in turn following Su-Won as he travels to the Earth Tribe and earns the respect and allegiance of the chieftan general there through a series of manipulations, tactical conceits, and ultimately quiet and subtle intimidation mostly by the fleeting moments in which he dropped his ditzy and well-meaning act to show his true intentions. But as fascinating as it was and as surprising as it was, for me at least, that this complete shift of POV for a few chapters actually managed to keep me on board when I’m not one to often fully appreciate the “villain’s side of things”, probably the most interesting part of any and all of this is actually how much tension is underlying Su-Won’s leadership. HIs appeal to the Fire and Earth Tribes is less in the leadership that he promotes and more in this current of possible warmongering that appeases the more warlike fractions of Kohka.

It’s all fascinating and offers a sense of danger in Yona’s new quest to help the people of fher country feel a new sense of danger, knowing that our group is ultimately pretty unprepared for helping parts of the country which would not be as receptive to their quest or the offer of Yona’s leadership.

That being said... the final chapter driving home Yona’s relationship with Hak and everyone’s strange obsession with protecting Yona but rejecting her attempts to grow her own strength and independence. Lik eI guess we’re just all going to overlook the way she killed the slave trader mob boss in teh previous volume. But beyond all of that, my real concern is just... I cannot stand the way Hak’s character is portrayed in his “over protectiveness” of Yona. It’s far from romantic to me to continuously have a character obsess over someone to the point of “jokingly” considering locking them away for the world to see.

It’s not the best issue of the series by far, but it has some great moments, especially for Yona.

Art: I actually do think that the further we’ve come in this comic, the more consistent and confident the at has gotten. There are still lots of soft tones and all the markings of a usual shoujo, but the real stand out this time around is that we’re beginning to see more and more the variation in ethnicities in the people of the country, which is honestly relieving even if for now the Earth Tribe, which drives that point home, consists mostly of Su-Won’s supporters and may carry with them some more unfortunate stereotypes being fed that I might not be aware of as a non-native to Japan.

So far as single issues this week are concerned there’s really no competition for Usagi Yojimbo in a regular week but especially not in a fairly light week. Yona is still a fantastic book and if there were other trades to compare it to I’d probably lavish on it more, but since we’re on singles I have to give this one to the unending quality that is Stan Sakai’s anthromorphic feudal epic.

And, once more, I am in a bit of a financial crunch for a multitude of reasons, not the least of which being the medical bills I’m paying for my dog, Eve, who experienced a catastrophic dog fight and underwent surgery recently. On top of that, I have exactly a month and a half to pack up everything I own and move halfway across the country again which is not helping those financial crunches I mentioned before either.

As such, I really would appreciate if you enjoy my content or are interested in helping me out, please check out either my Patreon or PayPal. Every bit helps and I couldn’t thank you enough for enjoying and supporting my content.

You could also support me by going to my main blog, @renaroo, where I’ll soon be listing prices and more for art and writing commissions.

RenaRoo Ko-Fi

RenaRoo Patreon

RenaRoo PayPal

#Rena Roundups #Wednesday Spoilers #SPOILERS #Usagi Yojimbo (1984 )#America (2017 )#Black Panther (2016 )#Captain Marvel (2016 )#Incredible Hulk (2017 )#Invincible Iron Man (2016 )#Jean Grey (2017 )#Monsters Unleashed (2017 )#Voltron Legendary Defender Vol. 2 #Yona of the Dawn (2009 )

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eddycurrents · 6 years ago

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For the week of 24 September 2018

Quick Bits:

Amazing Spider-Man #6 kicks off a new arc with art from Humberto Ramos, Victor Olazaba, and Edgar Delgado (along with a special sequence from Steve Lieber and Rachelle Rosenberg), with Nick Spencer playing up Peter’s problems with his super-villainous roommate and thereby the humour. Really quite like the art for the flashbacks.

| Published by Marvel

Beasts of Burden: Wise Dogs & Eldritch Men #2 takes a bit of a breather as the dogs try to figure out what’s going on. I love the measured pace that Evan Dorkin and Benjamin Dewey are taking to telling this story. For one you get to bask in Dewey’s beautiful art, but at the same time it’s building a bit of ominous tension. Events are still occurring, but we’re still being left in the dark as to what exactly is going on. It’s a nice mystery.

| Published by Dark Horse

Beyonders #2 is more bizarre conspiracy theory and pseudoarchaeology fun from Paul Jenkins, Wesley St. Claire, and Marshall Dillon. It’s rather entertaining to see these disparate bits of history and quasi-history come together and be twisted into this new and strange kind of adventure.

| Published by AfterShock

Bone Parish #3 sees the proverbial excrement hit the fan as the pressure gets turned up on the Winters family. The tension, action, and drama are being cranked up on high by Cullen Bunn, Jonas Scharf, Alex Guimarães, and Ed Dukeshire. Also, the art from Scharf and Guimarães is getting even more elaborate, especially in its depictions of the trips the Ash users are taking.

| Published by BOOM! Studios

Cold Spots #2 is even better than the first issue, and the first issue was stunning. The story is still light on explanation and heavy on creepy atmosphere, but when the art looks like this, I’m willing to just bask in it. I love what Mark Torres is doing here with the art. He has a style that feels like a blend of early Matt Wagner, Ted McKeever, and Phil Hester and it is perfect for this kind of eerie horror. Torres and Cullen Bunn are creating something very compelling here.

| Published by Image

Cyber Force #6 begins branching out more, more explicitly building up the team, rather than just focusing on the individual origins amongst eventual team members. It’s a welcome shift in this reimagined timeline, as Bryan Hill & Matt Hawkins begin to develop the world past Cyberdata.

| Published by Image / Top Cow

Die!Die!Die! #3 may have had its physical print run pulped this week due to a printing error with the cover, but it still came out digitally. It’s more over-the-top violence and action as Robert Kirkman and Scott Gimple still seem to be trying to channel Garth Ennis’ style of action/satire. You reach a saturation point after a while, so it’s thankful that they’re developing the characters fairly well and coalescing a larger kind of plot. Also the great artwork from Chris Burnham and Nathan Fairbairn helps considerably.

| Published by Image / Skybound

Domino Annual #1 has a very loose framing sequence from Leah Williams, Michael Shelfer, and Jesus Aburtov, but it’s mostly a collection of four short stories, presenting Domino at different time periods and in different situations with different people. The only common bit is that they’re all really well done. There’s a story from Gail Simone, Victor Ibáñez, and Jay David Ramos continuing the fun from the regular series, spotlighting how Domino’s Posse came together. A reflective piece on Cable by Fabian Nicieza, Juan Gedeon, and Aburtov. A gonzo action bit trying to cheer up Colossus after he was jilted at the altar by Dennis Hopeless, Leonard Kirk, and Aburtov. And finally, a humorous, but heartfelt, showcase of some of the unlovable but loved obscure and sometimes hideous “freak” X-Men from Williams, Natacha Bustos, and Aburtov.

| Published by Marvel

Edge of Spider-Geddon #4 may be the weirdest one of these yet, featuring a world where the natures of Spider-Man and the Green Goblin have been inverted, and the world has seemingly been subjugated by Oscorp. Aaron Kuder, Will Robson, Craig Yeung, Andres Mossa, and Cory Petit give us an interesting endgame here for this world, but in doing so also potentially set up the catalyst for the entire Spider-Geddon event.

| Published by Marvel

Extermination #3 doesn’t get us any closer to understanding what’s going on with Ahab or young Cable, though in the latter’s case there seem to be hints that he’s gathering the time tossed original five X-Men to “repair” them and send them back, but that’s a guess. At the mid-point, I would have expected more crunch to the story, but that doesn’t seem to be the case here. Great art from Pepe Larraz and Marte Gracia, though.

| Published by Marvel

Faith: Dreamside #1 resumes Jody Houser’s excellent and humorous take on Faith, picking up on threads from the last series, joined this time by MJ Kim, Jordie Bellaire, and Dave Sharpe. You don’t need to have read any of the previous material (though I do recommend reading it anyway) as this does a good job of getting you up to speed of the relevant details for the story at hand.

| Published by Valiant

Fearscape #1 is a magnificent beast. Ryan O’Sullivan’s narration for the overblown, pretentious author Henry Henry is so incredibly perfect and enthralling. I know this aspiring writer, I may very well have been this aspiring writer at times. Damn good voice here. Overall, love the premise of a storyteller having to save the world, and the art is just gorgeous. Andrea Mutti and Vladimir Popov make this beautiful, especially as the art shifts to a more soft focus as the story wanders off into the Fearscape. Imagination, form, style, and structure are all at play here and it’s just wonderful.

| Published by Vault

Friendo #1 is the other debut from Vault this week, going in for a kind of contemporary sci-fi with Friendo™ glasses offering up a digital assistant tailored to you, like a more personable Siri seen through Google Glass. It’s an interesting concept, brought forward in a humorous fashion, but I get the impression that Alex Paknadel and Martin Simmonds are going for more sociopolitical commentary here. Beautiful art from Simmonds and Dee Cunniffe.

| Published by Vault

Harbinger Wars 2: Aftermath #1 is a decent epilogue to the event from Matt Kindt, Adam Pollina, Diego Rodriguez, and Dave Sharpe. Basically it checks in on all of Valiant’s heavy hitters as they put the pieces back together following the event, establishing Livewire as the world’s number one target. Very nice art from Pollina and Rodriguez.

| Published by Valiant

Hillbilly: Red-Eyed Witchery From Beyond #2 continues to be entertaining, violent, and humorous as Rondel finds himself in more precarious predicaments trying to solve what haunts the land. I really like the art from Simone Di Meo and Brennan Wagner. Di Meo’s style here reminds me a lot of James Harren’s on the first volume of Rumble and it just works incredibly well for this kind of action/horror.

| Published by Albatross Funnybooks

Infinity Wars: Iron Hammer #1 is the second of these Infinity Warps mini-series to start up and it’s really rather good. As an origin story for the Iron Hammer, you really don’t have to be reading the rest of the Infinity Wars story here, so it works well as its own thing. The mash-up here is obviously Thor and Iron Man, with Al Ewing, Ramon Rosanas, Jason Keith, and Cory Petit telling a story that expertly grafts a variation on Tony Stark’s origin into the mythological trappings of Marvel’s version of Norse Mythology.

| Published by Marvel

Jessica Jones #3 concludes the arc with Dia and Elsa Bloodstone in the first part and then has a rather runny comedy of errors in the second part set around getting ready for Danielle’s birthday party. This is great stuff. Kelly Thompson, Mattia De Iulis, Marcio Takara, Rachelle Rosenberg, and Cory Petit are doing wonderful things with this series.

| Published by Marvel

Man-Eaters #1 reunites the Mockingbird team of Chelsea Cain, Kate Niemczyk, Rachelle Rosenberg, and Joe Caramagna, along with Lia Miternique, Stella Greenvoss, and Katie Lane, to kick off this new series about menstruating women who turn into man-eating big cats. It’s...an odd premise to say the least. There are certainly layers of subtext in the story that I still need to unpack, but on a surface level this is an interesting mix of police procedural, horror, and humour. If you think Cat People, you’re probably along the right line of thought. What it does do extremely effectively, however, is utilize comics as a medium. How the pages are lain out, the differing types of content, basically just how the story is told is impressive. This is something that can only be told as a comic and it’s just a wonderful use of the medium.

| Published by Image

Mighty Morphin Power Rangers #31 is not quite a fresh start, spinning out of the events of the “Shattered Grid” story-arc, but at the same time it is the start of a new Power Rangers team and creative team in Marguerite Bennett, Simone Di Meo, Alessandro Cappuccio, Walter Baiamonte, Francesco Segala, and Ed Dukeshire. Confusion, chaos, and uncertainty definitely seem to be the goals of the story, so it’s not necessarily a bad thing if you’re coming in blind. It’s also interesting to see Di Meo’s style here, somewhat different from what he’s doing with Hillbilly. Still dark, and scratchy, but I’d probably compare this more to Sean Gordon Murphy, as it’s a bit more streamlined, better suited to the brighter colours of the Rangers’ world.

| Published by BOOM! Studios

Old Man Logan #48 begins the final arc for the series before it goes out in a blaze as Dead Man Logan. Great art here from Ibraim Roberson and Carlos Lopez.

| Published by Marvel

Paradise Court #3 is interesting in that we’ve reached a bit of misdirection in the story, although kind of obvious misdirection since the exposed serial killer doesn’t look a thing like the other killer we’ve seen, which raises some interesting questions about the full nature of this gated community. Also, some really nice work this issue from colourist Leonardo Paciarotti. The change of flushness of the red in Amy’s face while she’s recounting her encounter is a really nice touch.

| Published by Zenescope

Peter Parker: The Spectacular Spider-Man #310 brings Chip Zdarsky’s run on the title to a close, with this single issue tale of what random people on the streets of New York City think of the threat or menace, illustrated by Zdarsky himself. It’s damn good. And a fitting end to what has been ultimately a very entertaining run.

| Published by Marvel

Regression #11 returns from the trade break with a new arc and a drastically changed status quo. Cullen Bunn has been great at setting up this insidious quality to the cult claiming Adrian for their own and that evil, disturbing nature comes to the forefront this issue.

| Published by Image

Rick and Morty vs. Dungeons & Dragons #2 continues the fun of the first issue as the family goes off to a holodeck simulation of a campaign, only to spotlight that Rick’s idea of facerolling a munchkin dungeon crawl isn’t their idea of fun. Patrick Rothfuss, Jim Zub, Troy Little, Leonardo Ito, and Robbie Robbins are delivering just the perfect crossover here.

| Published by IDW & Oni Press

Star Trek vs. Transformers #1 is the start of a limited series crossing over the Transformers with the animated series Star Trek characters, including M’Ress and Arex. The animated series was always a bit ridiculous, but fun and weird, so it fits well with incorporating the Transformers cartoon (though there do seem to be additions). Absolutely love the artwork from Philip Murphy and Priscilla Tramontano, who perfectly capture the style of the cartoons.

| Published by IDW

Stranger Things #1 begins a four issue limited series from Jody Houser, Stefano Martino, Keith Champagne, Lauren Affe, and Nate Piekos following Will Byers’ perspective during the first season of the Netflix series. It’s great. Jody Houser uses the boys D&D playing to frame out Will’s actions, lending some interesting survival tactics, as well as opening up an opportunity for Martino, Champagne, and Affe to utilize different styles for the variety of narrative frames. Also, Martino’s likenesses are rather well done.

| Published by Dark Horse

Transformers: Lost Light #24 is the second-to-last issue of this series as IDW’s Hasbroverse winds down to its conclusion. It’s really starting to feel final, with the crew’s epic battle against the Functionalists. James Roberts pens one of the most heartfelt and stirring speeches for Hot Rod this issue.

| Published by IDW

Vampirella/Dejah Thoris #1 sets this series off to a good start in a relatively straightforward manner. Vampirella is searching for a cure for the problems on Drakulon and it brings her to Mars. Erik Burnham, Ediano Silva, Dinei Ribeiro, and Troy Peteri do good set up work here.

| Published by Dynamite

Witchblade #8 drops a bit of exposition on us, filling us in on how Johnny is alive and a bit on the shadowy organization and its operatives trying to kill Alex and take the Witchblade. Still loving this series and the depth that Caitlin Kittredge, Roberta Ingranata, Bryan Valenza, and Troy Peteri are giving to it. It’s starting to develop some of the more traditional hard-tinged horror/superheroics, but still feels like a fresh and reinvigorated take on the Witchblade concept.

| Published by Image / Top Cow

X-Men Blue #36 concludes the series and with it Cullen Bunn’s tenure with the X-characters, running from Magneto through to now. He ties up a few missing plot threads and allows the characters to say a few goodbyes, nicely illustrated by Marcus To and Matt Milla.

| Published by Marvel

X-O Manowar #19 begins a new arc picking up the pieces in the wake of Harbinger Wars 2. It’s good. Very good. Matt Kindt gives us a perspective for Capshaw that was kind of missing from the event, as to why she continues with GATE and the government after how insane some of their actions seem to have been (valid points about uncontrollable psiots notwithstanding), resulting in a very strong start to this arc. The art from Juan José Ryp and Andrew Dalhouse is also stunning, especially when showing a different visual perspective as to how Capshaw sees her situation.

| Published by Valiant

Other Highlights: Betty & Veronica: Vixens #10, Black Panther #4, Gasolina #12, High Heaven #1, Invader Zim #35, Jim Henson’s Labyrinth: The Coronation #7, The Long Con #3, Marvel Two-in-One #10, Mickey Spillane’s Mike Hammer #4, Modern Fantasy #4, Moon Knight #199, Old Man Hawkeye #9, The Punisher #2, The Realm #9, Red Sonja #21, Redneck #15, Rick & Morty #42, The Sentry #4, Spider-Geddon #0, Spider-Man vs. Deadpool #39, StarCraft: Scavengers #3, Star Wars Adventures #14, Star Wars: Doctor Aphra #24, Star Wars: Poe Dameron #31, The Thrilling Adventure Hour #3, Venom: First Host #5, Wayward #29, The Wicked + The Divine: 1373, Xena: Warrior Princess #8, X-Men Red #8

Recommended Collections: Astonisher - Volume 2, The Crow: Memento Mori, Cyberforce: Awakening - Volume 1, Darkhold: Pages from the Book of Sins Complete, Dejah Thoris: Gardens of Mars, Encounter - Volume 1, Exiles - Volume 1: Test of Time, Hulk: World War Hulk II, Infidel, Klaus: New Adventures of Santa Claus, Lucas Stand - Volume 2: Inner Demons, Medieval Spawn & Witchblade- Volume 1, Port of Earth - Volume 2, Red Sonja - Volume 3: Hell or Hyrkania, Saga - Volume 9, Songs for the Dead, Usagi Yojimbo/TMNT Complete Collection, Wasted Space, X-O Manowar - Volume 5: Barbarians, You Are Deadpool

d. emerson eddy does not represent the Lollipop Guild.

#This Week in Comics

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craigmoore-blog · 7 years ago

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THE UNDERLINING FAILURE OF WARNER BROS AND THEIR DC FILM UNIVERSE

Poisonous work environments, an incompetent studio, well-meaning directors, rushed scripts, a rebellious mustache, and the Wonder Woman who nearly saved them all.

Just under five years ago, following the finale to Christopher Nolan’s Dark Knight trilogy, Warner Bros. released their Superman reboot, Man Of Steel. Directed by Zack Snyder with Nolan serving as Executive Producer, Henry Cavill’s modern version of the Big Blue Boy Scout was met with a polarised reception; many praised Snyder’s visual style and the blockbuster action, along with the attempts made to fit Clark Kent in to the paranoid, “all seeing and all knowing” internet age, as well Michael Shannon’s take on Krypton’s genocidal General Zod. Just as many people, however, found these attempts to be dour, plodding and far too clinical - completely missing the warmth and heart that made Christopher Reeves’ Superman so special in the 70s. (For the record, going forward, you should know I am firmly amongst the former, despite not being a big fan of it when it came out. It has grown on me immensely.)

Despite the mixed reviews, the film was a modest success at the box office, earning almost $700 million (a big jump from Superman Returns’ $390million in 2006) and was considered by many fans to be a reasonably strong start from which to build upon. And while the box-office returns would be more than acceptable for a first film in almost any franchise (Batman Begins, Nolan’s first Batman film, made about half that), Warner Bros. viewed it as a lacklustre start to their rebooted franchise, and sought ways to improve upon the film’s “modest” success. Man Of Steel 2 seemed like an exciting prospect for many.

Before we get too far down the rabbit hole, lets take a small step back to 2008. Marvel Studios, under the guidance of their President Kevin Feige, have just released Iron Man, directed by Jon Favreau and starring Robert Downey Jnr. as the title character - a billionaire weapons manufacturer and technology developer named Tony Stark who is captured by a terrorist organisation in Afghanistan. With a piece of shrapnel about to enter his heart and kill him, Stark designs and assembles a weaponised suit of magnetised armour which allows him to escape. Upon returning home, Stark abandons his industrialised ways to make a difference as the superhero Iron Man. The film received rave reviews, with Downey Jnr. being lauded for his performance as the CGI-enhanced Shellhead, and it went on to gross over $500 million worldwide.

As the first film in what has popularly become known as Phase One of the Marvel Cinematic Universe, Iron Man laid the groundwork for what was to evolve over the next ten years for Marvel Studios. Biannually, Feige and his studio released one film after another, beginning with solo adventures and origin stories like Iron Man, Iron Man 2 Captain America: The First Avenger, Thor, and The Incredible Hulk, alluding to a greater universe without directly hinging each story on other character’s involvement. After four years and five films, Marvel Studios brought together their band of heroes for their first team-up adventure - the Joss Whedon helmed The Avengers. A box office smash, The Avengers pulled in nearly $1.5billion at the global box office and received strong reviews, with critics praising the seamless and organic culmination of the characters previous trajectories into the same story.

Following on from the success of The Avengers, Marvel then expanded their cinematic universe by bringing in new characters and continuing to evolve their existing ones - Phase Two included Guardians Of The Galaxy and Ant-Man, alongside Iron Man 3, Thor: The Dark World, and Captain America: The Winter Soldier which led themselves into Avengers: Age Of Ultron, again directed by Joss Whedon. This is the template that Marvel have followed right up until the very moment that you read this article. Feige runs a tight ship; giving directors just enough room to create something for themselves, while maintaining the overarching goal that the series will be heading towards next.

What is the relevance of all that to DC, you ask? Well, we jump forward to the Summer of 2014, where Warner Bros decided to amp up their plans for their DC properties following Man Of Steel using the Marvel model. At the San Diego Comic-Con, Zack Snyder took to the stage to announce that he would be directing the follow-up to his Superman film. There was further rapture among the attendees as it was announced that Warner Bros. were using the film to launch their DC Extended Universe and that the sequel was to be Batman v Superman: Dawn Of Justice; Batman and Superman were to share a cinema screen for the first time in history, with Ben Affleck playing the The Dark Knight opposite Henry Cavill. The film would also mark the first big-screen appearance of Wonder Woman, played by Gal Gadot.

On top of that, David Ayer, the scriptwriter/director behind films such as Training Day, Harsh Times, End Of Watch and Fury, was given the job of bringing Suicide Squad to the big screen for the first time. A rather left-field project considering the universe’s infancy; Suicide Squad focuses on a rogue gallery of villains (mainly from the Batman universe) who are forced together to complete a near-impossible mission for the Government. The film had an ensemble cast which included Will Smith, Margot Robbie, Viola Davis, Jai Courtney, and Jared Leto as the new version of The Joker, Batman’s arch-nemesis.

Sounds great right? Well, unfortunately we all know how it turned out. In a desperate bid to achieve Marvel level incomes in a much shorter space of time, Warner Bros. essentially coerced Snyder into packing Batman v Superman with nods, Easter Eggs and groundwork for their planned Justice League film (which would end up being released in November 2017) as well as teasing The Flash, Aquaman, Cyborg and many subplots lifted from various comic book arcs. As a result of this constant studio meddling, the film became a bloated behemoth of absolutely mind-blowing proportions. It’s first rough cut was nearly four hours long. At this point, Warner Bros. realised that the film could not be any longer than two and a half hours - this was to ensure a maximum number of screenings could be held on any given day during its theatrical run; more tickets, more money.

Snyder originally intended to tell a modern Superman story - where Kal-El would slowly and progressively accept his destiny as the Man Of Steel in a world that doesn’t trust heroes anymore, and sees him as a potentially dangerous illegal alien (cough). All very ambitious and interesting, despite the often heavy handed religious metaphors that he uses to frame the character through. However, the compromises forced upon him by a naturally money-driven but irrationally thinking studio resulted in his arc for Cavill’s version of the character being condensed, diluted and sucked of any and all impact - despite his best efforts to provide Superman with the strong sense of morality and righteousness that the character was known for.

When Batman v Superman was released in March 2016, it was greeted with strongly negative reviews, and its record-breaking opening weekend ($400million+) quickly tapered off and it finished its run with a $873 million - earning a profit but falling short of the studio’s $1billion+ expectations. Taking into account the film’s massive budget, rumoured to be just south of $400million, this final tally was a massive blow for both the studio and for Snyder, who suffered the wrath of online critics and keyboard-happy but overall very disgruntled fans. An extended “Ultimate” Cut was released on home video, which added nearly 30 minutes of footage - but while this certainly improved the film overall by reinstating vital subplots and was much better received by fans, it didn’t remove the bad taste left behind by the version that was released in theatres.

Suicide Squad didn’t fare much better in the end, either. In order to meet the August 2016 release date, David Ayer was given less than six weeks to write the script for the film before it needed to start filming. Upon the reveal of the first teaser at the San Diego Comic-Con in 2015, many fans reacted negatively to its dour, dark tone. Following the release of a much more brisk and light trailer (complete with “Bohemian Rhapsody” by Queen thumping away on the soundtrack) in January of the following year, the studio decided to go back and “add some jokes” along with more action to the film through re-shoots. It was after these re-shoots that the film’s marketing campaign began to pick up speed, with a number of pulpy trailers making a conscious effort to emphasise how much fun Suicide Squad was going to be following the criticisms of over-seriousness towards Batman v Superman in March. The re-jigging and re-adjustments did not end there, however.

Warner Bros., worried that Ayer’s cut of the film would not meet the expectations they had set, had the film taken away from him in secret. All shot material was handed over to Trailer Park, the same company who had been responsible for editing together the well-received trailers for the film. Ayer, meanwhile, turned in his version. Warner Bros. took both versions and amalgamated the two. The result? The visually incoherent, music video style film that was released in theatres and ended up receiving the same brutal reviews that Snyder’s film had. Suicide Squad did however make significant bank for the studio - it brought in $745million against a $200million budget. Ayer would go on to publically claim that it was still his film, and that the released cut was true to “his vision”, despite evidence to the contrary and claims from various sources (including Jared Leto) that there was enough footage excised “to make another movie”. The film also had an Extended Cut on home release, but it wasn’t nearly as impactful as the Ultimate Cut for Snyder’s superhero smackdown.

In case you hadn’t noticed, there’s a pattern emerging here. And if you genuinely hadn’t noticed, then just wait til we start talking about Justice League.

The one slam-dunk that Warner Bros. have had so far came in 2017. No, it wasn’t Justice League. It was Wonder Woman. Gal Gadot’s version of Diana of Themyscira made such a strong impact in Batman v Superman that she deservedly received her own solo film - an origin story set during the First World War. Directed by Patty Jenkins, the film became the highest grossing female-directed film of all time (as well as the highest grossing Superhero origin story) with a take home of over $800million worldwide. The film was also acclaimed by critics; praise was afforded to Gadot’s performance as the title character and the chemistry between her and Chris Pine, the story, score and Jenkins’ direction. Jenkins had to fight for a number of sequences to be included, including the now famous “No Man’s Land” scene which features Diana taking on a horde of German soldiers who have besieged a French town. Warner Bros. immediately greenlit a sequel (to be directed by Jenkins) and pushed Gadot front and centre for marketing materials on Justice League - where she essentially took over the team leader position usually occupied by either Batman or Superman. Wonder Woman became the DCU’s bright spark of hope.

Zack Snyder immediately began work on Justice League, the DC Film Universe equivalent to The Avengers, after he had finished work on Batman v Superman. The ensemble team-up film began shooting in London in the Spring of 2016. The relationship between Warner Bros. and Snyder could be described as shaky at best by this stage, and the negative press following the release of Batman v Superman going into the start of shooting for Justice League was constantly hanging over the heads of all involved. Snyder (along with his wife, Deborah), as a producer, was the official creative driving force behind the universe up til that point. Unofficially, as you will have gathered from the above, there was no singular driving force. However, prior to the release of Suicide Squad, Geoff Johns was drafted in by Warner Bros. under the title of Chief Creative Officer of DC Films. Johns is a well known comic-book scribe and has penned works for a variety of DC characters, including The Flash, Aquaman and Superman. A lot of creative control was wrestled away from the Snyders, despite filming on Justice League not yet being complete. A continuing trend of requests and alterations were made by the studio. Despite this, filming for Justice League wrapped in October 2016, after a six-month shoot. Re-shoots were planned for early 2017, with Avengers director/writer Joss Whedon coming on-board to assist Snyder with “adding more jokes” to what was described as a film that was tonally continuing the motifs established in Man Of Steel and Batman v Superman.

Approaching what we thought was the middle of a long period of post-production work, Snyder announced he was stepping away from the project to be with his family - as his daughter had recently committed suicide. The decision was presented as an mutual one, with Warner Bros. insisting that Whedon remain on the film to finish Snyder’s “vision”. Whedon then proceeded to re-shoot approximately 30-35% of the film, change the ending and remove several subplots and key scenes that had been already shot. Henry Cavill had to re-shoot 90% of his scenes as Superman, a fact very-obviously revealed by the awful digital removal of his (rather wonderful) mustache that he was contractually obligated to grow and keep for Mission Impossible: Fallout.

The real kicker here is that not all of this is accurate; it’s merely the official version. In the months following Batman v Superman’s release, Warner Bros. executives were eager to remove Snyder from Justice League. Their Head Of Production at the time was Greg Silverman, who refused to fire Snyder. Silverman was later removed by Warner Bros. CEO Kevin Tsujihara. In January 2017, Snyder was fired from Justice League - with Silverman gone, Snyder was finished; he never even got to finalise a cut of the film he had been planning for nearly two years. Obviously fearing more negative publicity towards the film, Snyder’s removal was kept under wraps until the death of Snyder’s daughter became public knowledge, and at that point Warner Bros. choose to reveal that he had stepped down to be with his family. Make from that what you will.

In November 2017, like Batman v Superman and Suicide Squad before it, Justice League was released to miserable reviews. Critics and audiences pulled the film apart - citing its uneven tone, short running time and poor pacing, a boring and underdeveloped villain, and subpar visual effects. While a number of people considered Whedon’s more joke-focused dialogue to be an improvement, many found it completely out of place with the visual look and feel of the film, as well as being completely out of character (referring to Batman). Despite the amount of tinkering done to the original version of the film (which also had an hour cut from the runtime as well as the other structural changes), Snyder’s name remained on the credits as director. Whedon received a screenwriting credit. Factoring in the re-shoots on top of its extensive and expensive principal photography, the film apparently cost Warner Bros. nearly $300million before accounting for marketing costs, making it one of the most expensive films of all time. So expensive was it, that it would have had to generate over $700million just to break even thanks to distribution revenue shares.

Justice League made $656million worldwide.

Meanwhile, Black Panther - a character first introduced to the Marvel Cinematic Universe in 2016′s Captain America: Civil War but who I think it’s fair to say was not very well known compared to say, Batman or Superman - is on track for his solo film to open to $170million in its opening weekend alone. Avengers: Infinity War is looking like it’s going to be one of the biggest films of all-time, both physically (with over 90 speaking main cast members) and financially (it’s likely to cross the $2billion mark by the time it’s all dried up).

What will Warner Bros. learn from this? Probably nothing. What should they learn from this? Well, it seems that the studio executives watched the Marvel Cinematic Universe develop with one eye watching the spreadsheets, but with no idea on how you get the numbers on those sheets to spike they way they did. Instead of organically building on the foundation laid by Snyder with Man Of Steel (a film that admittedly is not perfect but is still very solid), a rush job was enacted in order to join the Billion Dollar club as quickly as possible - a feat they have yet to accomplish despite having films that have such iconic characters in them. Unfortunately, the damage seems to be done. Ben Affleck seems to be on his way out as the Caped Crusader due to having multiple scripts for his proposed solo film rejected along with his deteriorating relationship with the studio - a massive blow considering how strong he was in the role in the face of frustratingly under-developed material given to him. The only DC films currently guaranteed are Aquaman, Shazam, and Wonder Woman 2, while both The Batman and Man Of Steel 2 look to be going nowhere. Quite incredible, really.

The overall consensus at the moment is that while these films will continue to be loosely connected in some way or another, going forward they will ultimately be standalone projects. Warner Bros. seem to be signalling that they will instead focus on hiring higher-end filmmakers and making good films again. However, the allure of the ensemble superhero film will always be there as long as connected movie universes continue to be popular, and the flipside to working with higher-end filmmakers on standalone projects is that they will always want more control - just like Christopher Nolan did on The Dark Knight trilogy, which were successful thanks to the fact that there was little interference. It’s telling that the two highest rated DC Universe films, Man Of Steel and Wonder Woman, were the ones least meddled in. For the moment, though, the DC Universe seems to be stalled over very high ground. Marvel fans should count themselves lucky that they have Kevin Feige.

It’s a massive shame that instead of sitting here typing about how great this universe is, I’m wondering when the final nail is going to be put into its coffin. What a waste. Many people online will be quite happy to lay the blame at Zack Snyder’s feet, but considering what his original plans for the development of the universe were compared to what we got, I find it hard to not acknowledge that there is a serious problem at the top of the food chain concerning how these films, and the people behind them, have been handled and treated. One thing is for sure - these films and “their vision” will likely continue to divide critics and audiences alike for some time. It’s not an S, in our boardroom it means $.

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