#birds of prey volume 5

[professoruber]

Quick thoughts on Birds of Prey (2023-) #9 - Meridian Appreciation

Spoilers for Birds of Prey (2023-) #9

Just want to make this brief post on a specific topic of the new Birds of Prey.

While I have been fairly critical of Meridian (aka Future!Maps) and her role in Birds of Prey so far, I do want to say that I felt she seem much more Maps-like in the latest issue, and I appreciate that even if I still have some issues with her overall character.

And...

All feels much more like Maps in my opinion. At least that's my first impression. Not to say that these kinda moments didn't exist in prior issues; but I do think that personally she felt a bit off or too different at times, and overall seemed like a strange direction of Maps character. And I'm still semi-suspicious she's evil.

But I did enjoy her part in #9 quite a bit (probably helps that she's no longer working to keep people in the dark or push a hero vs hero conflict like she did in the first arc - which was kinda probably a big reason for why I wasn't a big fan).

Overall i did really enjoy this latest issue of Birds of Prey; both Meridian's role and of course the BoP themselves. Am looking forward to seeing how the search for Barbara continues.

[mysteriesgalplusdamianthings]

New Chapter!

There wasn't much we saw of Maps in this chapter. But I love the change of art design. It's so much smoother and cleaner than the previous books.

But what I noticed was that there is something strange interfering with Maps signal. I'm not sure what it is, but Maps is determined to stay and help no matter what.

Also, it's pretty ominous how she said, "That field, where the battle always is..." Maps knows what's about to happen next, clearly. And it doesn't sound like it'll end too well.

On another note, Maps isn't interfering too much outside of assisting the team in a few battles. Is this due to some law/rule of time travel? Is she not supposed to interfere extensively with history?

These are questions I need answered.

This page was definitely a highlight. Seeing Maps take on Wonder Woman wasn't something I thought we'd ever see happen.

I wish we saw more of her combat, but it seems she possesses a gun that shoots out electricity/lightning that deals damage to her enemies. There are probably other cool features about that device, but we're not likely going to see much of it here, sadly. This is why she needs her own comics series as Meridian.

Maps and Cass teaming up would be so cool! I could see them in future time lines working together. Especially since this isn't their first time teaming up.

[evilhorse]

Birds of Prey (Volume 5) #13 (Nicola Scott variant cover)

[havendance]

ooh also if you have any for helena bc the comics ive read on her are pretty old, sorry for bothering youu

That's easy, just buy No Man's Land.

Okay, but serious answer, for Helena comics you've got a few good options!

Batman/Huntress: Cry for Blood -- If you're going to buy one Huntress comic, buy this one. It is one of the top Huntress stories. It has good art. It was reprinted within the last 5 years as Birds of Prey: Huntress so you should be able to find it pretty easily. This does mean that it has a tie-in cover to the Birds of Prey movie, but that doesn't change the comics inside!

Birds of Prey (Various) -- Gail Simone's run on Birds of Prey--the one that Helena joined up with the team in--is a fan favorite meaning that it is very well collected and is having some reprints coming out soon! All of these volumes have been published within the last five years, the first volume, Birds of Prey: Murder and Mystery is getting reprinted next month in October I believe, and the second volume has a reprint scheduled for next year. It collects the start of Helena joining the team, but I would say Helena has her most prominent role in the second two volumes: Birds of Prey: Murder and Mystery and Birds of Prey: Fighters by Trade. The big caveat here is that I personally cannot stand the art in most of these. It's just way too horny. You're mileage may vary, but I'd take a look at some of the art ahead of time in case it's a deal breaker for you.

Taking that into account, the two volumes I would recommend slightly more are the two later ones: Birds of Prey: White Water and Birds of Prey: Progeny. They have a more ensemble nature to them and these later plotlines include Barbara expanding the Birds of Prey so there's less focus on Helena specifically, but they also have art by Nicola Scott who can actually draw women so that's a major factor for me lol.

Those are the two big ones but for some other options where she plays a smaller role:

Detective Comics by Mariko Tamaki -- For more modern Helena as Huntress, she plays a rather significant supporting role throughout Tamaki's run on Detective Comics. I liked Tamaki's run and thought it was fun. In terms of Helena specifically, I thought it was just okay. It didn't really seize me, but I've also read way worse stories. This does have the advantage of having both having solid art and being recent enough that it should be easy to find.

JLA (Various) -- Helena is a member of the JLA during Grant Morrison's run on the comic. JLA is very much a team comic, so she doesn't get a ton of focus, but it's a fun little corner for her character. It looks like there's some 2014 trades collecting this run as well as some new ones if you're interested.

Batman: Contagion -- Contagion is an ensemble event in which Helena plays a supporting role, but if you're interested in 90s Batfam Helena, I think this is probably a good choice. It got a (pretty hefty) trade collecting the event in 2016.

Batman: No Man's Land -- On a slightly more serious note than where I started, No Man's Land is a giant monster of an ensemble event, but also. I love it and I love Helena in it. The catch to this is that your options are a series of four trades from 2011-2012 or the more recent omnibuses. In terms of the trades, #1, #3, and #4 probably have the most Helena in them.

[donnatroyprincessofthemyscira]

ComicList: DC Comics New Releases for Wednesday, September 6, 2023

Batman #137 (Cover A Jorge Jimenez)(Batman Catwoman The Gotham War), $4.99

Batman #137 (Cover B Joe Quesada Card Stock Variant)(Batman Catwoman The Gotham War), $5.99

Batman #137 (Cover C Gabriele Dell Otto Card Stock Variant)(Batman Catwoman The Gotham War), $5.99

Batman #137 (Cover D Rose Besch Creator Card Stock Variant)(Batman Catwoman The Gotham War), $5.99

Batman #137 (Cover E Pablo Villalobos Hispanic Heritage Month Card Stock Variant)(Batman Catwoman The Gotham War), $5.99

Batman #137 (Cover F Salvador Larroca Card Stock Variant)(Batman Catwoman The Gotham War), AR

Batman #137 (Cover G Joe Quesada Connecting Black & White Card Stock Variant)(Batman Catwoman The Gotham War), AR

Batman Adventures Omnibus HC, $150.00

Batman Justice Buster Volume 1 TP, $9.99

Batman Under The Red Hood The Deluxe Edition HC, $49.99

Birds Of Prey #1 (Cover A Leonardo Romero), $3.99

Birds Of Prey #1 (Cover B Stanley Artgerm Lau Card Stock Variant), $4.99

Birds Of Prey #1 (Cover C Chris Bachalo Card Stock Variant), $4.99

Birds Of Prey #1 (Cover D Blank Card Stock Variant), $4.99

Birds Of Prey #1 (Cover E Frank Cho Triptych Gatefold Variant), $5.99

Birds Of Prey #1 (Cover F Nick Bradshaw Card Stock Variant), AR

Birds Of Prey #1 (Cover G Chris Bachalo Black & White Card Stock Variant), AR

Birds Of Prey #1 (Cover H Leonardo Romero Card Stock Variant), AR

Blue Beetle #1 (Cover A Adrian Gutierrez), $3.99

Blue Beetle #1 (Cover B David Lafuente Card Stock Variant), $4.99

Blue Beetle #1 (Cover C Keron Grant Card Stock Variant), $4.99

Blue Beetle #1 (Cover D Pablo Villalobos Hispanic Heritage Month Card Stock Variant), $4.99

Blue Beetle #1 (Cover E Blank Card Stock Variant), $4.99

Blue Beetle #1 (Cover F Emmanuel Valtierra Card Stock Variant), AR

Blue Beetle #1 (Spanish Language Version), $3.99

City Boy #4 (Of 6)(Cover A Minkyu Jung), $3.99

City Boy #4 (Of 6)(Cover B Inhyuk Lee Card Stock Variant), $4.99

City Boy #4 (Of 6)(Cover C Mike Choi Card Stock Variant), AR

DC RWBY TP, $16.99

DCeased War Of The Undead Gods HC, $29.99

Fire And Ice Welcome To Smallville #1 (Of 6)(Cover A Terry Dodson), $3.99

Fire And Ice Welcome To Smallville #1 (Of 6)(Cover B David Nakayama Card Stock Variant), $4.99

Fire And Ice Welcome To Smallville #1 (Of 6)(Cover C Jen Bartel Card Stock Variant), $4.99

Fire And Ice Welcome To Smallville #1 (Of 6)(Cover D David Nakayama Foil Variant), $6.99

Fire And Ice Welcome To Smallville #1 (Of 6)(Cover E Kevin Maguire Card Stock Variant), AR

Fire And Ice Welcome To Smallville #1 (Of 6)(Cover F Amanda Conner Card Stock Variant), AR

Gotham City Year One HC, $29.99

Joker One Operation Joker Volume 1 TP, $9.99

Joker The Man Who Stopped Laughing #10 (Cover A Carmine Di Giandomenico), $5.99

Joker The Man Who Stopped Laughing #10 (Cover B Francesco Mattina), $5.99

Joker The Man Who Stopped Laughing #10 (Cover C Riccardo Federici), $5.99

Joker The Man Who Stopped Laughing #10 (Cover D Francesco Francavilla), AR

Justice Society Of America #6 (Of 12)(Cover A Mikel Janin), $3.99

Justice Society Of America #6 (Of 12)(Cover B Yanick Paquette Card Stock Variant), $4.99

Justice Society Of America #6 (Of 12)(Cover C Edwin Galmon Card Stock Variant), AR

Justice Society Of America #6 (Of 12)(Cover D Pablo Villalobos Hispanic Heritage Month Card Stock Variant), AR

Nightwing Fear State TP, $17.99

Peacemaker Tries Hard #5 (Of 6)(Cover A Kris Anka), $4.99

Peacemaker Tries Hard #5 (Of 6)(Cover B Daniel Warren Johnson Variant), $4.99

Peacemaker Tries Hard #5 (Of 6)(Cover C Kris Anka Movie Poster Variant), $4.99

Peacemaker Tries Hard #5 (Of 6)(Cover D Rahzzah), AR

Poison Ivy #14 (Cover A Jessica Fong), $3.99

Poison Ivy #14 (Cover B David Nakayama Card Stock Variant), $4.99

Poison Ivy #14 (Cover C Otto Schmidt Card Stock Variant), $4.99

Poison Ivy #14 (Cover D Rose Besch Creator Card Stock Variant), $4.99

Poison Ivy #14 (Cover E Jessica Fong Bioluminescent Ultraviolet Reactive And Glow-In-The-Dark Variant), $5.99

Poison Ivy #14 (Cover F Serg Acuna Card Stock Variant), AR

Poison Ivy #14 (Cover G David Nakayama Card Stock Variant), AR

Shazam #3 (Cover A Dan Mora), $3.99

Shazam #3 (Cover B Chris Samnee Card Stock Variant), $4.99

Shazam #3 (Cover C John Timms Card Stock Variant), $4.99

Shazam #3 (Cover D Pablo Villalobos Hispanic Heritage Month Card Stock Variant), $4.99

Shazam #3 (Cover E Carla Cohen Card Stock Variant), AR

Shazam #3 (Cover F Edwin Galmon Card Stock Variant), AR

Steelworks #4 (Of 6)(Cover A Eddy Barrows), $3.99

Steelworks #4 (Of 6)(Cover B Sanford Greene Card Stock Variant), $4.99

Steelworks #4 (Of 6)(Cover C Rafael Sarmento Card Stock Variant), AR

Superman ’78 Batman ’89 Box Set, $49.99

Superman Kal-El Returns TP, $16.99

Superman Vs. Meshi Volume 1 TP, $9.99

[zahri-melitor]

Comics read update (ordinary edition):

Just finished Volume 9 of Saga. Ooof. I was already partially spoiled, but still…ooof. (Also I was definitely not fully spoiled, so if you’re going in thinking you know everything that is about to happen…you’re probably wrong). It does work as a ending point for the comic, but I’m also glad there’s more, because I need to see Hazel to grow up to check she’s okay, you know? (Also this series is such a demonstration of ‘it takes a village to raise a child’ because there is a very good reason for why Hazel needs that many adults looking out for her)

Up to Volume 5 of my Monstress read. This is a lot slower and I tend to linger on it a lot longer. Kippa remains my little darling and so committed to remaining good in the face of terrible things. Maika and Zinn are finally developing a far more symbiotic relationship. And I’m still hanging out for Maika to discover who Tuya really is and what she’s up to.

Glad I’m done with the Ray 1994, but I quite enjoyed it. Part of me now wants to do another YJ98 reread now that I know and appreciate Ray Terrill, and to laugh at the difference between Future Ray Terrill and Future Bart Allen in comparison to their Young Justice era counterparts.

Just starting 1998 in my Superboy and Impulse reads (#48 and #32 respectively) so I am edging closer to both of them joining Young Justice. Impulse really is as good as everyone says it is, while Superboy is a lot better than people make it out to be – it’s just that Impulse foregrounds the issues with the complex relationships characters have in the title, while Superboy lets you marinate in the problems and bring your own opinion to the situation, rather than directing you. (Impulse is a comic about characters finding family and the ups and downs of being part of a family. Superboy is, as I’ve said before, a comic about exploitation and generational cycles of abuse)

Still futzing about getting ready to read Zero Year in my New 52 read – I think I have one more arc of Birds of Prey to go first?

I’m being bullied into reading Checkmate 2006 (tbf this is not a particularly hard sell)

[greatunironic]

title: the other hand knocking (5/8) summary: Since he was eighteen, Steven Harrington knew he would not marry: there were many factors, but chief among them were that he had, he knew, given up his chance for true happiness when he had allowed his mother to persuade him from accepting Edward Munson’s proposal. Or: a Regency AU.

excerpt: Comparatively, though, this was quite a volume of words; for of Lieutenant Jeff Faughn, Heather had only said that they had talked poetry together, and that he had a pleasant voice while reading aloud.

This was all said with a certain shiftiness to her countenance that Steve recalled from Robin when she used to speak of Chrissy, before she had screwed her courage to the sticking point (as his cousin would say, and Robin too, his favorite women all so well read) and asked to court her.

And when the first letter came from Edinburgh, while the Alvarez’s were still in residence at the Holloway house — well. It gave him pause quite considerably. For all he might lack in studiousness, Steve had always been adept at reading people, at gleaning what was not said through their actions and their body language and indeed the gaps in what they said; and he could tell at once that his cousin was hiding something from him.

He tried not to pry, but he did worry ever so. Her well-being was his responsibility until Aunt Janet and Uncle Thomas returned in several weeks’ time, and he truly did not know what state their daughter’s heart would be in when they did. He’d thought — still thought, though hope, with its dread wings, beat like a great bird of prey in his chest, an albatross just as the rock on his bedside table even now, still — that she had her eye on Captain Munson; but she had not been to call upon him at all, nor he upon her, since she returned unless it was in the company of their new friends, or if Steve himself took them up to Lane Hall for afternoon tea or dinner.

[longhands-the-second]

Trimax vol. 3 notes

UGH UGH UGH

This cover is so sexy. The colors make my brain go brrr

I read and typed this the night before, oops. I needed something to make me less bored and sad and by god I got it. (<- has so much homework he doesn’t even want to look at it)

1- Based on what i’ve seen of future installments there’s a trend in the particular kind of body horror nightow likes to draw huh

The color of blood? Literally blood? I wasn’t sure if he was actually crying blood in the previous volume or not or if the tears were just darker bc art shit. I think his vibes are like that of a bird of prey. If that’s what we’re getting at here? (At least this version of him is. Stampede is a different beast. Somehow both cuttlefish and like, crow? I’m still yelling about the stampede finale-)

Does having high bullshit tolerance make you less human somehow…? What’s the logic here?

Is wolfwood saying that to him directly? Fucked up if so. He does NOT need more piled on him right now

2- im just flashing back to 98 wolfwood saying he’s never fired a gun before-

Does gray have the same sort of top that Vash had? The almost-tubing on the sides? Or is that just a favorite design thing?

That was pretty much all just fight scene huh.

3- EW EW EW

god, it’s only just now hitting that these are the faces of people he knew. People he cared about. Christ.

:( i want to get off of mr bones wild ride

I’m not like. Gagging or anything i just hate it.

The thing about Vash being quiet angry is that it’s almost got this elegance to it. Like his mind has left his body and he’s just running on his experience and skill now. He’s pissed and he’s dissociating. I feel like the whole room gets icy when he’s like that, even if you’re outside in the suns.

NO OH NO GOD-

FUCK I KNEW THAT WAS GONNA HAPPEN AND I STILL WASNT READY

4- does. Does he know him???

Oh hell.

He set off the sprinklers???

WET HAIR VASH

5- brad is much more of a character than i was expecting.

God i can just hear wolfwood in that moment

Well. Yikes.

HAHAHSJSJJS milly jumpscare

6- what the fuck that piano is so cool

Seeing vash with both arms feels illegal somehow

Or no, does it have some kind of cover on it? Or is that what it looks like below those gloves?

He is SOOOO not okay right now

Woah damn is that what luida looks like here?

Im sure he’s just beyond relieved to see people lived.

Oh wow. Im… proud of him for admitting it? Something like that? God he looks so tired

“Woah vash you’re fucking ancient aren’t you???”

7- he is a solid 70% leg. Good for him.

He looks so normal it’s very strange.

True immortality???? Maybe that’s why knives is baby smooth every time we’ve seen him. (Ick.) (there’s some part of me that wants so badly to like knives on the grounds that I understand where he’s coming from but he’s literally the fucking worst.)

There goes his arm. Again. Why is it always that one?

He genuinely reads like a different person with his hair down. Maybe that’s just me.

Did. Did nightow give mike mignola a copy of trigun. Better yet did he read it? We’re asking the real questions here.

(I made a poll for Vash’s vibes and the results are mostly exactly what I expected? Will post my findings. Manga Vash has the most variety so far.)

((Will I be able to do anything cool for Vash’s birthday? Who knows. Crossing my fingers I can hold it together that long, I am SO done with my summer classes and I wanna go home.))

(((I have had the worst stampede brainrot recently. It’s the purple color scheme and the flowers and the everything at the end. It fuckin EATS. I want to hold him gently.)))

[paullovescomics]

Free Comic Book Day 2024

I thought it might be fun to write a little something about each of the comics I got yesterday at FCBD. So here we go. Part 1 of 5.

The Worlds of James Tynion IV - This includes samples from three different series written by James Tynion IV: Something Is Killing the Children, Memetic, and The Woods. These are all creator-owned series published through Boom! Studios. The only one of these I'd read before is Something Is Killing the Children. The pages here are, IIRC, the opening pages of volume one. The other samples also feel like openings. They are all intriguing. Each scene has a really good hook. They are all horror series. I'd say this is a good FCBD issue, as it definitely works as a promotional comic. You really want to see what happens next in each of these series.

Dying Inside - Mixed emotions here, because the story is about a girl who is trying to kill herself. It's not done distastefully, it's just inherently troublesome. I don't want to dwell on it. It's not a series that I want to read, but this opening chapter does end on a cliffhanger, so it does its job as a "first taste". Do not read if you are having problems with self harm or suicidal thoughts (the warning on the inside front cover says essentially the same).

Hellboy - As far as I can remember, I've never read a Hellboy story that I didn't like, and happily, that tradition continues here. It's 1983, and Hellboy is investigating a potentially supernatural death in Romania. In the process, he encounters a monster who can see into his past, showing us the readers glimpses of previous Hellboy stories. This is a cool way of showcasing the character's catalog, and it's a satisfying short story. Well done. The second story in this issue is a Stranger Things tie-in featuring Argyle, that dude from the most recent season who delivers pizzas. It's neat bit of backstory for him, and the art is nice. Good stuff.

Absolute Power - This one is billed as "the prelude to the epic event!" and that's accurate. It introduces the latest scheme by Amanda Waller, Supervillain. She has teamed up with Failsafe, who is apparently something like those robot duplicates that Superboy used to keep around to protect Smallville when he was away, but it's Batman this time, and it's super serious. Or, you know, as serious as a Batman robot duplicate can be. Waller is in charge of some new, super-powerful government program, and she's taken over the Hall of Justice (renaming it the Hall of Order). Okay, I love the DC characters, so I'm always interested in what's going on with them, and my comic-nerd brain can't help but be a little intrigued by wondering where the latest twists and turns are going, but I probably won't pick this up. The supervillain version of Amanda Waller feels like a lessening of the character. She felt more complex in the old Suicide Squad when she wasn't super. I know she doesn't have actual superpowers, but she's super like Batman or Lex Luthor are super: they have super resources, super smarts, super skills, super plans, etc. etc. Anyway. The art is great, and the write-ups about DC's recent events (Lazurus Planet, Beast World…) made me want to read those. Apparently Waller had a thread running through those that led up to Absolute Power, so good job with the longterm storytelling seeds. (Yes, I'm way behind with the superhero universes. The only current one I've been reading is Birds of Prey, which I love. I'm a mood reader, and the mood goes where the mood wants to go.)

[pyroreadscomics]

I have read over 200 Catwoman comics

That's not a boast btw, that's an explanation as to why I'm like this.

For context, and I don't think I've mentioned it here on Tumblr but: I'm endeavoring to read every Catwoman comic ever, or at least, every single issue of her solo appearances. I didn't start out planning this, this started out as fanfic research for Tim and Jason fic where Selina was going to show up in a supporting role. And I ended up reading one story and that alone got hooked. Within a month I'd acquired multiple blorbos of the highest order and now I must read everything. (So my opinions can be the most informed and correct) And as of this week, I've caught up with the current run of Catwoman (and Catwoman: Knight Terrors for good measure) and with that I've completely read Catwoman Volumes 1, 3, 4, and 5 along with a bunch of spin-off limited series and one-shots like Future State, Future's End, Defiant, Lonely City, etc etc. And now it's looking like my last big undertaking is going to be reading Volume 2 (aka the Jim Balent 90s series) and after that it's just going to be cleaning up the last few spin off solos and then... either I'm going to need to start obsessing over a new character, or actually try to read everything (and start combing through detective comics and Batman stories Selina and/or Co. appears in). Also, if anyone is wondering about that 200 number, it's only counting comic issues where "Catwoman" is in the title of the series (not story or issue). So it's not counting stuff like Selina's assorted appearances in Batman, Birds of Prey, JLA i think? (The New 52 was wild enough that I'm willing to believe that happened). And it's also not even Gotham City Sirens which i have read and yeah that title might as well be "The Harley Quinn, Poison Ivy, and Catwoman Team Up" but... I'm not counting it because i don't want to open the door to counting up every issue of Batman I've read and seeing how many of those she's made appearances in. Though, counting Batman and Sirens and the like, it's probably pushing but yet past three hundred.

[comicsart3]

The Huntress has had a number of incarnations, including that of a villainess in the Golden Age and as Helena Wayne, daughter of Bruce and Selina Kyle following DC’s Crisis of the Infinite Earths in the 1980s, but my favourite version is The Huntress who appeared in Birds of Prey from 2003, working with Black Canary and the wheelchair bound Barbara Gordon / Oracle (the former Batgirl). This Huntress’ real name is Helena Rosa Bertinelli, daughter of a mafia kingpin who swears vengeance after her family are wiped out in a hit. Huntress, despite her mission of revenge, eventually finds herself working on the side of good, despite Batman mistrusting her due to her unpredictability and tendency to extreme violence when taking bad guys down. Here an enraged and betrayed Huntress has captured The Penguin, who has recently stabbed her friend Lady Blackhawk, and is only persuaded not to kill him by an insistent Barbara, who promises that the expanded Birds of Prey will bring him down legally.

The fiery Huntress remains close to her edge much of the time, which combined with her skill in martial arts, her athleticism and intimidating appearance, makes her a wonderfully dominant, and highly ambivalent, super heroine.

This panel is from Birds of Prey, Volume 2, #5. Story is by Gail Simone and art by Ed Benes and Adriana Melo. It was published in November 2010.

[fantastic-nonsense]

#....til catwoman has her own comics #putting those on the to read list (@url-is-url)

yes, Selina has (more or less) had her own solo comic since the 90s, and has been a major part of several other runs!

If you'd like some recs, you can check out Catwoman: A Celebration of 75 Years and Batman Arkham: Catwoman (which both basically function as 'greatest hits' compilations) or check out the following comics:

Batman: Prey (Batman: Legends of the Dark Knight #11-15)

"Sorrow Street" (found in Showcase '93 #1-5)

Catwoman: Her Sister’s Keeper

Catwoman: When in Rome (This miniseries runs largely parallel to the events in The Long Halloween/Dark Victory)

Birds of Prey: Manhunt

Catwoman: Selina’s Big Score by Darwyn Cooke is a fun hiest romp all around. 10/10, would recommend. Takes place JUST before the start of Selina’s ongoing solo

Catwoman (2002-2008) by Ed Brubaker and Darwyn Cooke (collected entirely in the Catwoman of East End omnibus)

Batman: Hush (which co-stars Selina and focuses on her relationship with Bruce quite a bit) chronologically slots in a little after her 2002 solo run starts

Heart of Hush (2008), the ‘sequel’ to the Hush arc, chronologically happens after Selina’s solo ends but before Bruce dies in Final Crisis

Gotham City Sirens: Catwoman, Harley Quinn, and Poison Ivy team-up. Batman Reborn-era (2009-2011, Dick’s Batman)

And in the post-Flashpoint universe:

Catwoman by Genevieve Valentine (Volumes 6 and 7 of her New 52 solo series). Basically the lone bright spot for Selina as a character between 2011 and 2016. 

Catwoman by Joelle Jones and then Ram V (tl;dr Catwoman 2018 from #1-38). You can stop when you hit Issue #39, the start of Tini Howard’s run.

You should also check out the excellent Black Label/Elseworlds miniseries Catwoman: Lonely City!

oh my god all this time I believed that what fanon!Jason stans really wanted to read was Helena Bertinelli's books (because of all the relationships and interpersonal dynamics they keep stealing from her to project onto Jason) but what they actually should be reading are Catwoman books

Selina's the one who killed Black Mask and dismantled his operation after War Games. She's the one explicitly protecting the East End (aka Crime Alley) and going out of her way to protect the women and children of Gotham's underworld. She was the one doing mafia kingpin shit in the New 52 while Jason was off messing around in space with Dick's friends. She was the one protecting the Alleytown kids and trying to root out crime by "taking control" of it.

like Selina literally took over a crime family and united the criminal underworld in the New 52 while Jason was off fighting the All-Caste and Crux with Roy and Kory, I can't believe I didn't make the connection sooner

[phantom-le6]

Ramble of the month June 2024: Phase 6/Re-Boot phase 1 of the Batman Begins-Led DCEU

At last, my monthly rambles have brought us to the last instalment for my alternate DCEU, based on the idea that Batman Begins could hypothetically have been the start of a better DCEU than the one we had via Man of Steel.  It’s the last instalment simply because the film slate projects a bit into the future, so it’s hard to fan-cast too far ahead of real-world Hollywood.  With my hypothetical MCU starting in the 1990’s, and me having a little more knowledge on Marvel lore than on DC, that one will carry on for a while longer, but for now, let’s focus on this hypothetical DCEU.

Now I ended the last phase, which was shorter than most, on a Flashpoint film for the express purpose of rebooting my alternate DCEU.  This is because DC has been rebooting its comics periodically ever since 1985 when the company created the Crisis on Infinite Earths epic.  The whole point of this was to take an incredibly long run of “canon” that went all the way back to 1939 when Superman began the whole DC Universe, and which had since expanded into a complex multiversal web.  After Infinite Earths, DC has periodically rebooted its comics to prevent fans having to wrestle with massive volumes of backstory, not to mention avoiding the need to retire key heroes despite the fact that they created the concept of the side-kick and over time developed it into a way of addressing the need for heroes to ultimately pass mantles along.

By the same token, no film or TV run can go forever due to actors aging, as well as the fact that many TV and film audiences are not always willing to keep up with too long a run of continuity in these mediums.  Luckily, because DC has precedent to reboot in its source material, rebooting an inter-connected film universe off the back of something like Flashpoint can work very well.  Before we get into what I’ve put into my own reboot idea, let’s consider what I put together for my alternate DCEU up to this point;

Phase 1:

2005: Batman Begins

2006: Man of Steel

2007: Wonder Woman

2008: The Dark Knight, Green Lantern

2009: The Flash, Man of Steel 2

2010: Aquaman, Justice League

Phase 2:

2011: Wonder Woman 2, Green Lantern 2, Green Arrow

2012: Hawkman, Batman/Superman, Aquaman 2

2013: John Constantine, The Flash 2, Suicide Squad

2014: Justice League 2, Green Arrow 2, Batman: The Long Crusade

Phase 3:

2015: Shazam, Man of Steel 3, The Atom

2016: Wonder Woman 3, Batgirl, Teen Titans

2017: Green Lantern/Green Arrow, Shazam vs Black Adam, Suicide Squad 2

2018: Justice League: Darkseid Rising, Aquaman 3, Doom Patrol

Phase 4:

2019: Superman: Doomsday, New Gods, Teen Titans: The Judas Contract

2020: Suicide Squad: Arkham, Knightfall, Green Arrow 3

2021: Reign of the Supermen, Green Lantern: Twilight, Knightsend

2022: Justice League: Armageddon, Teen Titans 3, Justice Society

Phase 5:

2023: Justice League: World’s Finest, Nightwing, The Killing Joke

2024: Supergirl, Birds of Prey, Flashpoint

These phases each had a given purpose of sorts.  Phase 1 established the DCEU and the Justice League, phase 2 provided expansion and then destabilised the Justice League by adapting the JLA: Tower of Babel story arc.  Phase 3 dealt with some of the fallout from that while also paving the way to phase 4, which was largely an homage to the death and rebirth incidents of 90’s DC lore, not to mention the betrayal of Hal Jordan.  Phase 5 then began with the redemption of Hal in a final sacrifice, followed by a series of one-off films in the run-up to Flashpoint.  In the wake of Flashpoint, we get to jump in on a new continuity, but one that can take new and different approaches because the previous universe already covered a lot of origin arcs.  As such, here is phase 6, or reboot phase 1 in summary, followed by the details on each film.

Phase 6/Reboot Phase 1:

2025: Superman: Man of Tomorrow, Green Lantern/Flash: The Brave and The Bold, The Batman

2026: Black Adam, Martian Manhunter, Zatanna

2027: Supergirl/Power Girl: Multiversal Roadtrip, Justice League: Year One, The Many Lives of Wonder Woman

2028: Outsiders, Superman vs The Elite, Justice League Dark

Superman: Man of Tomorrow (2025) Directed by The Russo Brothers

Superman/Kal-El/Clark Kent = Henry Cavill

Lois Lane = Amy Adams

Martha Kent = Julianne Moore

Jonathan Kent = Tim Robbins

Dr Emil Hamilton = Mark Ruffalo

Perry White = Forest Whittaker

Jimmy Olsen = Caleb McLaughlin

Cat Grant = Katie Cassidy

Steve Lombard = Evan Peters

Capt. Maggie Sawyer = Mena Suvari

Insp. Turpin = Dylan Moran

Lex Luthor = Mark Strong

Mercy Graves = Katie Leung

Jor-El = Hugh Jackman

Lara Lor-Van = Alyssa Milano

Kara Zor-El/Supergirl = Angourie Rice

Brainiac = Andrew Garfield

Lobo = Jason Mamoa

Following the Flashpoint reboot, Superman provides our initial voyage into the new DC continuity, and having used Brandon Routh as Superman for the duration of the last five phases, I’m putting in Henry Cavill as a Superman who has been active for at least a few years, but is only just starting to run across other heroes.  Moreover, while this Superman knows he is an alien, his ship takes such damage on his arrival to Earth that it’s not until the arrival of his cousin Supergirl that he learns anything about Krypton.  In turn, the alien bounty hunter Lobo arrives on Earth to try and capture the Kryptonians ahead of the arrival of the alien cyborg Brainiac.

For direction, I’m using the Russo brothers again, having previously picked them to handle the last two Justice League films.  In terms of other casting, this is a combination of a little real DCEU and rumoured DCU casting mixed in with my own ideas.  I’ve also taken the liberty of picking up the odd Arrowverse alumni across some of these fan-casts, such as taking Katie Cassidy from the role of Laurel Lance to one as Cat Grant for this film.

Green Lantern/Flash: The Brave and the Bold (2025) Directed by Rian Johnson

Flash/Barry Allen = Lucas Till

Green Lantern/Hal Jordan = Zac Efron

Jessica Cruz = Maia Reficco

Sinestro = Zachary Quinto

Kilowog = Winston Duke

Tomar Re = Paul Bettany

Salaak = Benedict Cumberbatch

Ganthet = Colin Firth

Sayd = Olivia Coleman

Manhunter Leader = John Cena

Iris West = Keke Palmer

Captain Cold/Leonard Snart = Sebastian Stan

Heatwave/Mick Rory = Dan Stevens

Captain Boomerang/Digger Harkness = Liam Hemsworth

Mirror Master/Evan McCulloch = Richard Madden

Vath Sarn = Tom Hopper

Isamot Kol = George Young

This film, directed by Rian Johnson (of Star Wars and Knives Out fame), focuses on Sinestro betraying the Green Lantern Corps, but doing so in a different way to what we’ve seen before.  In this case, to deflect investigation of his experiments in harnessing fear energy, Sinestro sets up trainee GL Jessica Cruz for the murder of two fellow rookies.  Suspecting the truth, Hal Jordan defies the Corps and retreats to Earth with Jessica to enlist the aid of the Flash, AKA forensic scientist Barry Allen, in proving Jessica’s innocence.  Matters are complicated by the Flash having to deal with the Rogues, not to mention the Guardians being tricked by Sinestro into unleashing the Manhunters.

For this film, a lot of the cast involves MCU alumni mixed in with a few others, but ultimately the core of the film is the friendship between Hal and Barry, played by Zac Efron and Lucas Till respectively, while also digging into the character of Jessica Cruz, who in this film run is Hal’s sector partner (bearing in mind the pre-Flashpoint continuity already included Guy Gardner, John Stewart and Kyle Rayner, so including Jessica next instead of going back to these characters would be a logical progression).

The Batman (2025) Directed by Andy Serkis

Bruce Wayne/Batman = Brett Dalton

Alfred Pennyworth = Ken Branagh

Lucius Fox = Denzel Washington

James "Jim" Gordon = Robert Downey Jr.

Selina Kyle/Catwoman = Emma Stone

Det. Harvey Bullock = Jeffrey Dean Morgan

Det. Renee Montoya = Selena Gomez

Dr Victor Fries/Mr Freeze = Tom Hiddleston

Nora Freeze = Scarlett Johansson

Ferris Boyle = Leonardo DiCaprio

I have avoided the recent film entitled “The Batman” due to the fact I cannot stand Robert Pattinson, or Robert Prat-inson as I call him, and for reasons beyond just the mere involvement in the vampire-ruining Twilight franchise.  As such, while I’m happy to swipe the title of the film into my own DCU, the cast had to undergo some change, along with plot, characters, etc.  Long story short, this film takes the basic plot of the Batman animated series episode “Heart of Ice” and expands it into a feature-length film, in part by adding in members of the GCPD and Catwoman.  Direction-wise, I opted to take Andy Serkis from the role of Alfred and make him the director, leaving Ken Branagh to play Alfred opposite Brett Dalton, who MCU fans will best know as Agent Grant Ward from the Agents of SHIELD TV series.

For other roles, I’ve gone for a mix of actors, including the likes of Robert Downey Jr, Denzel Washington, Emma Stone, Tom Hiddleston and Scarlett Johansson.  Now as a rule, I am not a fan of Leonardo DiCaprio and would not include him in most fancasts.  However, having caught bits of The Wolf of Wall Street while channel flicking, I can’t help thinking that he would do well playing the uncaring CEO that is targeted by Hiddleston’s version of Victor Fries for vengeance.

Black Adam (2026) Directed by Jaume Collet-Serra

Black Adam/Teth-Adam = Sammy Sheik

Jay Garrick/Flash = Jake Gyllenhaal

Diana/Wonder Woman = Jessica Szohr

Steve Trevor = Chris Evans

Carter Hall/Hawkman = Stephen Amell

Kendra Saunders/Hawkgirl = Serinda Swan

Wildcat/Ted Grant = David Harbour

Doctor Mid-Nite/Charles McNider = Ioan Gruffudd

Black Canary/Dinah Drake = Sara Paxton

Vandal Savage = Gerard Butler

Per Degaton = Mads Mikkelsen

Baroness Paula Von Gunther = Emma Bading

Dr Psycho/Edgar Cizko = August Diehl

Captain Nazi/Albrech Kreiger = Til Schweiger

How to improve Black Adam as a solo film is simple; less Dwayne Johnson, a bit more Justice Society and better villains, albeit with the same director and a better script.  To this end, our Black Adam film shows the title character being released in World War 2-era Khandaq to repel the Nazis, and in so doing he becomes an ally of the Justice Society against a group of Nazi super-villains.  The idea is do an homage to the golden age of comics and to Indiana Jones films using the JSA and Black Adam.  For casting, Vandal Savage remains the one role not re-cast from the pre-Flashpoint continuity, and I opted to seek an Egyptian actor for the lead role.  If Black Adam is meant to come from a middle eastern/north-east African nation, it would make sense to pick someone from that region to play the role and not an American who can only ever play himself.

Martian Manhunter (2026) Directed by Sam Raimi

J'onn J'onzz/John Jones/Martian Manhunter = David Oyelowo

Dr Saul Erdel = John Billingsley

Melissa Erdel = Emily Osment

Amanda Waller = Aisha Tyler

Deadshot/Floyd Lawton = Luke Evans

Captain Boomerang/Digger Harkness = Liam Hemsworth

Harley Quinn = Lily-Rose Depp

Bronze Tiger/Ben Turner = Daniel Kaluuya

Killer Croc/Waylon Jones = Aldis Hodge

Aubrey Sparks/Scorch = Debby Ryan

Bette San Souce/Plastique = Melissa Roxburgh

Green Arrow/Oliver Queen = Boyd Holbrook

Dinah Lance/Black Canary = Emily Wickersham

Arthur Curry/Aquaman = William Moseley

Despite Martian Manhunter being a mainstay member of the Justice League, he doesn’t get much if any attention on a solo basis, so I thought it would be cool to do a version of his origin story in this rebooted DCEU.  For director, I chose to go with Sam Raimi of Spider-Man and Doctor Strange MoM fame, while selecting David Oyelowo as J’onn J’onzz.  In this film, the scientist who accidentally teleports J’onn across time and space from ancient Mars to present-day Earth is working for Project Cadmus.  When he sneaks the confused and traumatised J’onn away to save him, they become the targets of a major manhunt conducted by Amanda Waller and the Suicide Squad.  Luckily, aid is to be found as J’onn quickly learns about Earth and humanity while on the run.  Along with the GL/Flash film, this is a major set-up moment for the later Justice League film.

Zatanna (2026) Directed by Peyton Reed

Zatanna Zatara = Laura Marano

Giovanni "John" Zatara = Pierfrancesco Favino

John Constantine = Will Poulter

Carter Hall II/Hawkman = Robbie Amell

Shiera Hall/Hawkgirl = Italia Ricci

Felix Faust = David Tennant

Neron = Jude Law

Ra's Al Ghul = T.J. Ramini

In the pre-Flashpoint continuity of this DCEU, I gave Constantine a solo film with Zatanna featured as his love interest and equal in magic heroism.  This film gives Zatanna the spotlight, effectively reversing the roles.  In this case, a few years after the death of her father Zatara at the hands of Felix Faust, Zatanna is roped into mystic heroism again when reincarnated superheroes Hawkman and Hawkgirl are also targeted by Faust.  This leads Zatanna on a quest to find out why and stop Faust, along the way reuniting with Constantine and also having to deal with the long-lived Ra’s Al Ghul and the demon Neron.  Direction comes from Peyton Reed of Ant-Man fame, and former Disney Channel actress Laura Marano is my pick to play the lead role opposite Will Poulter as Constantine.  We also get different actors for the present-day Hawkman and Hawkgirl to fully exploit the reincarnation concept, plus David Tennant and Jude Law in the most major villain roles to really do them justice.

Supergirl/Power Girl: Multiversal Roadtrip (2027) Directed by Reese Witherspoon & Elizabeth Banks

Kara Zor-El/Supergirl = Angourie Rice

Kara Zor-L/Power Girl = Melissa Benoist

Superman/Kal-El/Clark Kent = Henry Cavill

Kent Nelson/Doctor Fate = Hugh Laurie

Michael Holt/Mr Terrific = Donald Glover

Owlman/Thomas Wayne Jr. = Dave Franco

Ultraman/Clark Kent = Jamie Dornan

Superwoman/Lois Lane = Gina Carrano

Power Ring/Jordan Harrolds = Alexander Draymon

Johnny Quick = Tom Felton

Manhawk = Ed Skrein

Earth-2 Flash/Jay Garrick = Hayden Christensen

Earth-2 GL/Alan Scott = Chris Pine

Earth-2 Wildcat/Ted Grant = Karl Urban

Earth-2 Black Canary/Dinah Drake = Amanda Seyfreid

Earth-2 Hourman/Rex Tyler = Scott Eastwood

Earth-2 Dr Fate/Khalid Nassour = Rami Malek

Earth-30 Superman = Dmitry Chepovetsky

Earth-30 Lex Luthor = Stanley Tucci

Earth-30 Lois Lane = Courtney Cox

Earth-30 Wonder Woman = Gal Gadot

Earth-30 Batman = Sergei Polunin

Earth-11 Superwoman/Clara Kent = Liv Tyler

Earth-11 Batwoman/Becky Wayne = Mandy Moore

Earth-11 Wonder Man/Dion = Daniel Bruhl

Earth-11 Green Lantern/Jane Stewart = Lupita Nyong'o

Earth-11 Flash/Betty Allen = Kirsten Dunst

Earth-11 Aquawoman/Anna Curry = Laura Haddock

Earth-11 Green Arrow/Olivia Queen = Brooklyn Decker

One of the more interesting ideas that seems to have done the rounds in DC lore is the notion that within a multiversal model, Supergirl and Power Girl are the same person, each from a different universe and with Power Girl as an older iteration of the character.  In turn, we also have things like Elseworlds titles that also get folded into the multiversal concept, as well as the whole “evil heroes” alternate reality represented by the Crime Syndicate of Amerika.  Now imagine combining all those concepts into one film, and you get the essence of this film.  In it, Supergirl runs into Power Girl, who hails from Earth-2 within the new DCEU multiverse, and who is trying to keep ahead of Earth-3 rulers the Crime Syndicate, who are trying to steal something from Power Girl in order to unleash a campaign of multiversal conquest.

While Superman, Doctor Fate and Mr Terrific try to delay the CSA, the two super-women begin a trip across the multiverse to try and figure out how to stop their pursuers.  The three universes visited, in no particular order, consist of Earth-2 (Power Girl’s native reality and home to a present-day Justice Society and 1950’s future aesthetic), Earth-30 (based on Superman: Red Son) and Earth-11 (where women are the dominant gender on Earth, resulting in a gender-flipped Justice League).  For direction, I picked Reese Witherspoon and Elizabeth Banks as I think if you’re going to do films with strong female leads, you should begin with the directors.  Having cast Angourie Rice as Supergirl, I thought it would also be interesting to take Melissa Benoist, AKA Supergirl of the Arrowverse, and put her in the Power Girl role.  Gal Gadot also makes an appearance as Earth-30 Wonder Woman in an homage to the real DCEU, bearing in mind that my pre-Flashpoint Wonder Woman was Kate Beckinsale and the post-Flashpoint WW is Jessica Szohr.

Justice League: Year One (2027) Directed by The Russo Brothers

Flash/Barry Allen = Lucas Till

Green Lantern/Hal Jordan = Zac Efron

J'onn J'onzz/John Jones/Martian Manhunter = David Oyelowo

Arthur Curry/Aquaman = William Moseley

Dinah Lance/Black Canary = Emily Wickersham

Snapper Carr = Zachary Gordon

Green Arrow/Oliver Queen = Boyd Holbrook

Mari McCabe/Vixen = Zazie Beetz

Maxwell Lord = Ryan Gosling

Vandal Savage = Gerard Butler

Solomon Grundy = Kevin Nash

Bruce Gordon/Eclipso = Willem Dafoe

Rose Canton/Thorn = Bella Thorne

Matt Hagen/Clayface = Ben Affleck

Vicki Vale = Kristen Stewart

Jack Ryder = Brenton Thwaites

The Brain = Lambert Wilson

Monsieur Mallah = Omar Sy

Laura De Mille/Madame Rouge = Marion Cotilard

Dr Niles Caulder/The Chief = Matt Damon

Clifford Steele/Robot Man = Taylor Kitsch

Larry Trainor/Negative Man = Miles Teller

Rita Farr/Elasti-Girl = Katrina Law

Xotar = Jim Parsons

Superman/Kal-El/Clark Kent = Henry Cavill

Lois Lane = Amy Adams

Bruce Wayne/Batman = Brett Dalton

Buddy Baker/Animal Man = Ben Hardy

Capt. Nathanial Adams/Captain Atom = Jake McDorman

Dr Ray Palmer/Atom = Johnny Galecki

Prof. Martin Stein = Jerry O'Connell

Jason Rusch/Firestorm = Isaac Ryan Brown

Booster Gold/Michael Jon Carter = Ross Lynch

Fire/Beatriz Bonilla da Costa = Barbie Ferreira

Ice/Tora Olafsdotter = Thea Sofie Loch Naess

Black Adam/Teth-Adam = Sammy Sheik

Diana/Wonder Woman = Jessica Szohr

Carter Hall II/Hawkman = Robbie Amell

Shiera Hall/Hawkgirl = Italia Ricci

Much like reboots, DC also has a history of putting out mini-series under the Year One sub-title, each of which serves as a definitive origin arc for the hero or team being show-cased for the new continuity.  Case-in-point, following the Zero Hero limited series in 1995, which together with Green Lantern: Emerald Twilight and Justice League: The Final Night covered the whole fall and final sacrifice of Hal Jordan, a number of Year One titles came out, including JLA: Year One in 1998.  I bought the run in its graphic novel form a while back, and it’s very much the basis for this film.  Much like the Year One run, the film focuses on a founding membership that is composed of Green Lantern, Flash, Martian Manhunter, Black Canary and Aquaman, but that also encounters a variety of other heroes as they deal with establishing themselves as a team.

As a result, the plot is focused less on a single adversary bringing the team together and more on how this group of heroes develops into a team, going from a collection of solo acts into a team that can inspire other heroes during a final climax.  In order to get in all or most of what was in the mini-series, the film will be quite long, and again it’s the Russo Brothers bringing it to life.  We also get a fair share of supporting characters and showcasing of new heroes that other films could later call back to, though some are relatively minor in appearance and as such could be easy recasts if needed.

The Many Lives of Wonder Woman (2027) Directed by Patty Jenkins

Diana/Wonder Woman = Jessica Szohr

Steve Trevor = Chris Evans

Jay Garrick/Flash = Jake Gyllenhaal

Carter Hall/Hawkman = Stephen Amell

Kendra Saunders/Hawkgirl = Serinda Swan

Wildcat/Ted Grant = David Harbour

Doctor Mid-Nite/Charles McNider = Ioan Gruffudd

Black Canary/Dinah Drake = Sara Paxton

Kung = John Cho

Dr Isabel Maru/Dr Poison = Laura Berlin

Etta Candy = Anna Popplewell

Colonel Phillip Darnell = Tobey Maguire

Rick Tyler/Hourman = Aaron Taylor-Johnson

Jessie Chambers/Liberty Belle = Samara Weaving

Jade Nguyen/Cheshire = Jamie Chung

Richard Dragon = Simu Liu

Nyssa Al Ghul = Brenda Song

Lady Shiva = Kelly Hu

Hellhound = Steven Yeun

King Faraday = Chris Pratt

Rama Khan = Alexander Siddig

Francisco "Cisco" Ramone/Vibe = Carlos Valdes

Red Tornado/John Smith = Teddy Sears

Jeanne-Mari Jiwe/Vixen II = Lashana Lynch

Blue Beetle/Ted Kord = Eddie Redmayne

Dr Julia Kapatelis = Maria Menounos

Vanessa Kapatelis = Mika Abdalla

Barbara Ann Minerva/Cheetah = Daisy Ridley

Black Adam/Teth-Adam = Sammy Sheik

Where Justice League: Year One covers the first year of the Justice League working together, this film shows how Wonder Woman goes from the Justice Society member we saw in the Black Adam film to her cameo in JL:YO.  The film basically consists of a series of shorter stories, giving us vignettes of Wonder Woman’s life during different periods of time.  More specifically;

-1950’s – The JSA aids US forces in Korea, but becomes increasingly disillusioned about why they’re fighting, especially after government liaison Steve Trevor is killed in action by Kung and Dr Poison, and McCarthyism tries to force the Society into becoming their pawns.  Wonder Woman quits the Society and abandons living in the US over this, and the rest of the Society disbands soon after.

-Late 1960’s – Diana is living in London, England and is pursuing a secret same-sex relationship with Etta Candy when she is approached by Colonel Darnell about a mission in Vietnam.  Diana and Etta join the mission along with US Government superhero couple Hourman and Liberty Belle against agents of the League of Assassins.  During the mission, Diana and Etta find contentment in a local village, and in the aftermath settle there to defend it.

-Early 1990’s – Diana is now living with a dying Etta in Japan when she is approached by Agent King Faraday to lead a group of superheroes to the Middle East as part of the Gulf War.  The mission is against Jarhanpur, an ally of Iraq in the war and led by the mystic Rama Khan.  While the mission ultimately succeeds, the death of a team-mate and being unable to return to Japan before Etta passes angers Diana, and she warns Faraday that she will no longer answer the calls of the supposed “good guys”, as they have lost sight of what “good” is.

-Late 2020’s – Diana now lives in Washington DC and works with Dr Julia Kapatelis, who together with Julia’s daughter Vanessa keeps the secret of Diana once being Wonder Woman.  However, when Diana sees her one-time ally Black Adam helping the superhero response to the alien invasion, she re-dons her Wonder Woman guise and tackles Cheetah, a super-criminal who has escaped prison as a result of the invasion.

The focus of the film is to show the hope in humanity that is the essence of Wonder Woman, as although she keeps trying to withdraw from the world she came to during the 1940’s, Diana believes enough in humanity to come back and fight for that world.  Again, Patty Jenkins who directed the real DCEU Wonder Woman films is directing, and we add quite a few characters in on top of the roles reprised from the Black Adam film.

Outsiders (2028) Directed by Ryan Coogler

Bruce Wayne/Batman = Brett Dalton

Brion Markov/Geo-Force = David Kross

Jefferson Pierce/Black Lightning = Tosin Cole

Rex Mason/Metamorpho = Alden Ehrenreich

Tatsu Yamashiro/Katana = Sophie Oda

Emily Briggs/Looker = Madeline Brewer

Baron Bedlam = Matthias Schweighöfer

Dr Helga Jace = Marika Domińczyk

General Karnz = Thomas Kretschmann

Count Vertigo/Werner Zytle = Max Riemelt

Anatoli Knyazev/KGBeast = Ilia Volok

James "Jim" Gordon = Robert Downey Jr.

While the Outsiders aren’t a group that I’m hugely familiar with, having used them as just supporting/guest characters in the Batman/Superman film of our pre-Flashpoint films, I thought they should get another of the post-Flashpoint spotlight films.  In this film, Batman works with Geo-Force to form the Outsiders when rogue elements of the latter’s country threaten a coup that could cause a major international crisis.  In this case, I’ve picked Ryan Coogler of Black Panther fame to direct because of how well he seems to do getting people to build up fictionalised nations, and for a lot of the castings, I’m looking more at getting people of the right regional origins to play key roles to aid in that world-building.  As a result, the film is less star-studded than most by mainstream Hollywood definitions, but better the right names than big names in some cases.

Superman vs The Elite (2028) Directed by Jon Watts

Superman/Kal-El/Clark Kent = Henry Cavill

Lois Lane = Amy Adams

Manchester Black = Matt Smith

Nathan Jones/Coldcast = Michael B. Jordan

"Pamela"/Menagerie = Ana De Armas

Rampotatek/The Hat = Ken' ichi Matsuyama

Vera Black = Emma Watson

Perry White = Forest Whittaker

Jimmy Olsen = Caleb McLaughlin

Cat Grant = Katie Cassidy

Steve Lombard = Evan Peters

Capt. Maggie Sawyer = Mena Suvari

Insp. Turpin = Dylan Moran

Martha Kent = Julianne Moore

Jonathan Kent = Tim Robbins

Senator Baxter = Will Smith

Terrence Baxter = Jaden Smith

Joseph Martin/Atomic Skull = Joseph Baena

While Superman solo comics have never been something I’ve really delved into a DC superhero fan, one that I did enjoy as part of a Justice League graphic novel was “What’s So Funny About Truth, Justice and the American Way?”  The story, which DC and WB later adapted into an animated film entitled Superman vs The Elite, involves Superman meeting a group of metahumans called The Elite who operate as anti-heroes, killing their opponents rather than focusing on saving lives, etc.  The group ultimately comes to blows with Superman in a way that establishes why Superman’s morality not only remains relevant, but is actually preferable to the kind of lethal force anti-heroes use.  The story was the ultimate retort to the rise of the anti-hero in comics during the 1980’s and 1990’s, and based on comments made by Zach Snyder, I’m guessing he never read it or saw the film version.

Given all of this, I thought my alternate DCEU should include a film adaptation of this story for live-action cinema audiences.  I picked Jon Watts to direct this one based on his work on the MCU Spider-Man films, specifically No Way Home which dealt in part with the idea of divided perspectives on key events, as well as choosing to help people versus solving the problem quickly.  Much of the cast is retained from our Man of Tomorrow film, with the Elite, Senator Baxter, his son and Atomic Skull all being the new characters, and of course influenced by the animated adaptation from DC/WB home animation.  This, in turn, is why the Smiths are in the film; it gives us a chance to see art imitate life slightly by having a real-world father and son play a fictional father and son.

Justice League Dark (2028) Directed by Kenneth Branagh

Diana/Wonder Woman = Jessica Szohr

Bruce Wayne/Batman = Brett Dalton

John Constantine = Will Poulter

Zatanna Zatara = Laura Marano

Boston Brand/Deadman = Mark Whalberg

Jason Blood/Etrigan = Aneurin Barnard/Idris Elba

Alec Holland/Swamp Thing = Adam Joseph Copeland

Circe = Hayley Atwell

Dr Psycho II/Edgar Cizko III = Patrick Schwarzenegger

Felix Faust = David Tennant

Klarion = Beau Hart

Jason Woodrue/Floronic Man = Martin Starr

Papa Midnite = John Boyega

Flash/Barry Allen = Lucas Till

Green Lantern/Hal Jordan = Zac Efron

J'onn J'onzz/John Jones/Martian Manhunter = David Oyelowo

Arthur Curry/Aquaman = William Moseley

Dinah Lance/Black Canary = Emily Wickersham

Green Arrow/Oliver Queen = Boyd Holbrook

Mari McCabe/Vixen = Zazie Beetz

Snapper Carr = Zachary Gordon

The Justice League Dark is a spin-off/sub-team of the Justice League dealing in mystical and supernatural threats that the main team lacks the powers or expertise to deal with, and this film allows us to put them into a live-action film-verse.  The idea here is that the main League is incapacitated by a group of supernatural villains, led by long-time Wonder Woman adversary Circe.  Needing a team but lacking the means to find everyone she needs due to her long time out of superhero work, Diana recruits Gotham’s dark knight detective to aid her in assembling the Justice League Dark.  Direction of this film is something I’d grant to Ken Branagh based on his work on Thor and A Haunting in Venice.

As you can see, these last few films get us as far as 2028, so basically four years from now, and that’s why this alternate DCEU goes as far as it does.  If it was to go further, though, where might I consider taking it?  That’s something I’m not entirely sure of, but I think there are some plotlines I’d want to adapt into films that haven’t yet been covered, such as Death in the Family for the Batman line of films, the Sinestro War to Blackest Night/Brightest Day arc from Green Lantern lore, and maybe a run of Hawkman/Hawkgirl films instead of just the one-shot I gave them in the pre-Flashpoint phases.  I’d probably also like to do more multiversal stuff to maybe build up to an eventual second reboot or final conclusion based on the Crisis on Infinite Earths story arc.  I know DC and WB are currently doing this for home animation in terms of real film releases, but they’re not doing well keeping the same format available for each film’s release when it comes to disc-based copies.

In any event, that’s it for this alternate film universe, but still about three phases of 90’s-based MCU to go, and I may consider fan-casting another film franchise, or even a TV one, to keep things alternated.  Anyway, until my next monthly ramble, ta-ta for now.

[music-despite-everything]

Happy birthday, Adrienne Rich!

Adrienne Cecile Rich, born May 16, 1929, in Baltimore, Maryland, and died March 27, 2012, in Santa Cruz, California, was an American poet, essayist, and feminist. She was called "one of the most widely read and influential poets of the second half of the 20th century", and was credited with bringing "the oppression of women and lesbians to the forefront of poetic discourse." Rich criticized rigid forms of feminist identities and valorized what she coined the "lesbian continuum," which is a female continuum of solidarity and creativity that impacts and fills women's lives.

Her first collection of poetry, A Change of World, was selected by renowned poet W. H. Auden for the Yale Series of Younger Poets Award. Auden went on to write the introduction to the published volume. She famously declined the National Medal of Arts, protesting the vote by House Speaker Newt Gingrich to end funding for the National Endowment for the Arts.

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Snapshots of a Daughter-in-Law, 1963

1

You, once a belle in Shreveport, with henna-colored hair, skin like a peach bud, still have your dresses copied from that time, and play a Chopin prelude called by Cortot: "Delicious recollections float like perfume through the memory." Your mind now, moldering like wedding-cake, heavy with useless experience, rich with suspicion, rumor, fantasy, crumbling to pieces under the knife-edge of mere fact. In the prime of your life. Nervy, glowering, your daughter wipes the teaspoons, grows another way. 2 Banging the coffee-pot into the sink she hears the angels chiding, and looks out past the raked gardens to the sloppy sky. Only a week since They said: Have no patience. The next time it was: Be insatiable. Then: Save yourself; others you cannot save. Sometimes she's let the tap stream scald her arm, a match burn to her thumbnail, or held her hand above the kettle's snout right in the woolly steam. They are probably angels, since nothing hurts her anymore, except each morning's grit blowing into her eyes.

3 A thinking woman sleeps with monsters. The beak that grips her, she becomes. And Nature, that sprung-lidded, still commodious steamer-trunk of tempora and mores gets stuffed with it all: the mildewed orange-flowers, the female pills, the terrible breasts of Boadicea beneath flat foxes' heads and orchids. Two handsome women, gripped in argument, each proud, acute, subtle, I hear scream across the cut glass and majolica like Furies cornered from their prey: The argument ad feminam, all the old knives that have rusted in my back, I drive in yours, ma semblable, ma soeur! 4 Knowing themselves too well in one another: their gifts no pure fruition, but a thorn, the prick filed sharp against a hint of scorn... Reading while waiting for the iron to heat, writing, My Life had stood--a Loaded Gun-- in that Amherst pantry while the jellies boil and scum, or, more often, iron-eyed and beaked and purposed as a bird, dusting everything on the whatnot every day of life.

5 Dulce ridens, dulce loquens, she shaves her legs until they gleam like petrified mammoth-tusk. 6 When to her lute Corinna sings neither words nor music are her own; only the long hair dipping over her cheek, only the song of silk against her knees and these adjusted in reflections of an eye. Poised, trembling and unsatisfied, before an unlocked door, that cage of cages, tell us, you bird, you tragical machine-- is this fertillisante douleur? Pinned down by love, for you the only natural action, are you edged more keen to prise the secrets of the vault? has Nature shown her household books to you, daughter-in-law, that her sons never saw?

7 "To have in this uncertain world some stay which cannot be undermined, is of the utmost consequence." Thus wrote a woman, partly brave and partly good, who fought with what she partly understood. Few men about her would or could do more, hence she was labeled harpy, shrew and whore. 8 "You all die at fifteen," said Diderot, and turn part legend, part convention. Still, eyes inaccurately dream behind closed windows blankening with steam. Deliciously, all that we might have been, all that we were--fire, tears, wit, taste, martyred ambition-- stirs like the memory of refused adultery the drained and flagging bosom of our middle years. 9 Not that it is done well, but that it is done at all? Yes, think of the odds! or shrug them off forever. This luxury of the precocious child, Time's precious chronic invalid,-- would we, darlings, resign it if we could? Our blight has been our sinecure: mere talent was enough for us-- glitter in fragments and rough drafts. Sigh no more, ladies. Time is male and in his cups drinks to the fair. Bemused by gallantry, we hear our mediocrities over-praised, indolence read as abnegation, slattern thought styled intuition, every lapse forgiven, our crime only to cast too bold a shadow or smash the mold straight off. For that, solitary confinement, tear gas, attrition shelling. Few applicants for that honor. 10 Well, she's long about her coming, who must be more merciless to herself than history. Her mind full to the wind, I see her plunge breasted and glancing through the currents, taking the light upon her at least as beautiful as any boy or helicopter, poised, still coming, her fine blades making the air wince but her cargo no promise then: delivered palpable ours.

[aquariuminfobureau]

Northern pike

I sometimes get asked, about keeping pike in an aquarium. The only species of true pike, I have experience with, is the northern pike of Eurasia, Esox lucius. This is a huge predator, growing to around 150 centimeters or 5 feet long, and realistically requires a pond environment, when it reaches full size. And it would need to be a large pond at that, at least four times the length of the pike, by two and a half times its length.

Northern pike inhabit vegetated lakes, slow moving creeks, and the backwaters of rivers. Their primary prey is fish, but amphibians and freshwater lobsters are also important food animals, depending on locality. Other animals on their menu, include swimming birds, water snakes, and small mammals. That said, aggression by pike is purely for food, and non-prey are not harassed by these otherwise gentle giants.

Larger pike do eat smaller pike, so care should be taken when cohabiting them together. As pikes can take prey up to even 1/2 their own length, suitable tankmates must be selected with care. However, the jaws of pike do not have an exceptional vertical gape, meaning large, deep bodied fishes over a 1/3 of a pikes total length, are not seen as prey.

Data from wild E. lucius, indicate they have a wide pH tolerance, ranging from 5 to 9. However the fish flourishes best at a close to neutral pH. The temperture for happy, healthy pike should be at least 10 degrees centigrade, and never allowed to rise, as high as 20 degrees. Their tank or pond should be well vegetated, with a talk, grassy plant such as Valisneria, or artificial plants.

Although pike can obviously withstand much cooler temperatures in the wild, this is purely seasonal, and such temperatures are unsuitable, for year round care. These are a true coldwater fish, and do not appreciate warm waters. On the other hand the adaptability of pike to water parameters is such, that some pike populations are found in brackish waters, with a specific gravity up to 1.008. It appears that pike must be exposed to these conditions as fry, to be tolerant of them as adult fish.

Feeding E. lucius on aquarium fare can be tricky. Many will only consume live fishes, but on fish farms, they are raised to consume protein-rich pellets. Therefore the notion that pike must be fed live fishes, is patently untrue. These fish do not need to eat often, because their lurking demeanor evolved to save energy. However, the tank filtration will need to be powerful, because of the volume of waste E. lucius are able to produce.

[amberduan-ual]

Interim Crit Project B (4/5/23)

My concept art project idea pretty much started from one character design which I then developed a world around.

I've always loved birds, especially birds of prey like eagles, hawks, falcons, owls, etc so I wanted to design a character that was based on one. I took an image of a harpy eagle and incorporated characteristics of the bird with medieval fantasy armor. I wanted the armor to have pieces and flourishes resembling feathers, and the knight to have a cape like a feathered tail. The gauntlets are sharp to imitate the talons of an eagle and the overall silhouette is pointed. I kept shape language in mind and wanted the character to have a triangle shape to emphasize her dangerous nature as a warrior.

I think I ended up choosing a fantasy inspired genre because I've been reading a lot of fantasy books in the past few months. I used to be a really avid reader through elementary and middle school, and my favorite genre back then was anything to do with dragons and talking animals. One of my favorite franchises ever is How to Train Your Dragon, both the book series and movie trilogy. I fell off reading books when I started high school because the internet was much more accessible by then, but for 2023 I decided to get back into it!

So far my 2023 Goodreads challenge has had a pretty considerable ratio of fantasy books, specifically the Locked Tomb series starting from Gideon the Ninth. The Locked Tomb is a bit of a mix of fantasy and sci-fi, but knight cavaliers and necromancer sorcerers are pretty central to the story, which definitely led to the knight decision.

From the character design, I started thinking about what kind of world this knight could inhabit and why would her armor be so heavily inspired by birds. The two main influences that I combined to create the world this character design by Airi Pan and the Great Eagles from Lord of the Rings.

I love the idea of taking any animal and having it become a knight's trusty mount, and the Great Eagles already set precedent for large birds that can be ridden, so I decided to create a world based on the concept of eagle knights.

I started gathering references for the influences that I want to go into the world, from fantasy medieval knights to birds of prey, to treehouses and bird nests. I took notes on areas that could be fleshed out for worldbuilding purposes, thinking about different classes of knights and their different bird mounts.

Next, I also created a reference board of visual development art. I wanted to have a lot of different types of concept art to reference and prompt me to think of different aspects of worldbuilding. Two manga titles that really inspire me are Witch Hat Atelier by Kamome Shirahama and Dungeon Meshi by Ryoko Kui. Both are manga series written and illustrated by women, and are set in incredibly lush fantasy worlds.

I was inspired to start reading Witch Hat Atelier after hearing that it has great representation of disability and darker skinned characters, which is really rare for both the fantasy genre and Japanese manga. The character designs in Witch Hat Atelier are gorgeous and fantastically diverse, yet cohesive in a way that I really appreciate.

I picked up Dungeon Meshi after watching this amazing breakdown video on character design in the series. Ryoko includes extras in some of the volumes which demonstrate her great attention to detail in character design. Her character portrait lineups show diversity in their facial features and physical makeup, and she also makes sure that even when her characters have swapped costumes, they're still distinguishable from each other. There's a large range in body shape and size in the cast, even for women, whom Ryoko isn't afraid to design outside of the typical beauty ideals.

Besides character art though, I also have environment designs and creature designs in my reference board. I think it's important to have sheets that describe the detail of specific environmental details in a technical way, but also more rendered paintings that establish the mood and atmosphere of a world.