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September 29th 2008 20:20
I didn’t want to do it. My seven-year old son made me do it. I watched Marvel’s latest direct to video animated film, The Next Avengers, only to see if it was suitable for my son to watch. I wasn’t optimistic, since the premise involved the outright annihilation of my beloved Avengers in the first minute of the film. I was likewise pessimistic about the chances of me enjoying the film, since the principle characters are a group of precocious prepubescent children.
I’m man enough to admit when I’m wrong. It was pretty good. Better than any of the Marvel Animated DVDs since the first Ultimate Avengers. Regular readers know that I am partial to Hawkeye, and there was a nice homage to ol’ Hawk in an exchange between an aged Tony Stark and Hawkeye’s young son.
The whole movie appealed to the fanboy in me, with frequent oblique references to such comic lore as Betty Ross, Storm, Clint Barton, Jacosta, and more. It felt like one long Easter Egg hunt. There was also a wonderful red herring that distracted part of my brain for most of the film until it was organically resolved within the film.
Maybe it was the magic of lowered expectations, but I really enjoyed the Next Avengers enough to make me forget about the awful animated Iron Man & to get me really excited about the next two installments in the Marvel Animated line: Hulk vs. Wolverine and Hulk vs. Thor.
September 29th 2008 20:20
I didn’t want to do it. My seven-year old son made me do it. I watched Marvel’s latest direct to video animated film, The Next Avengers, only to see if it was suitable for my son to watch. I wasn’t optimistic, since the premise involved the outright annihilation of my beloved Avengers in the first minute of the film. I was likewise pessimistic about the chances of me enjoying the film, since the principle characters are a group of precocious prepubescent children.
I’m man enough to admit when I’m wrong. It was pretty good. Better than any of the Marvel Animated DVDs since the first Ultimate Avengers. Regular readers know that I am partial to Hawkeye, and there was a nice homage to ol’ Hawk in an exchange between an aged Tony Stark and Hawkeye’s young son.
The whole movie appealed to the fanboy in me, with frequent oblique references to such comic lore as Betty Ross, Storm, Clint Barton, Jacosta, and more. It felt like one long Easter Egg hunt. There was also a wonderful red herring that distracted part of my brain for most of the film until it was organically resolved within the film.
Maybe it was the magic of lowered expectations, but I really enjoyed the Next Avengers enough to make me forget about the awful animated Iron Man & to get me really excited about the next two installments in the Marvel Animated line: Hulk vs. Wolverine and Hulk vs. Thor.
September 17th 2008 16:33
Ignoring, for the moment, the publishing delays, The End League just keeps getting better and better. It is hard to believe how much has happened in just four issues. Thor was missing, then lobotomized, then insane, then momentarily sane, then re-insane, & then dead. And he only appeared in one issue (plus one panel).
Astonishman is dead, but life goes on. Goddess killed Thor? Soldier American is… Is he? I don’t know. The beauty of this book is that anything can happen. The second issue proved that no one is safe.
Black didn’t appear in this issue. Considering that he stands in for Batman, one of the most iconic heroes in all of comicdom, he’s hardly been seen so far, but I suspect he’ll take center stage soon. The same could be said for Aracna-kid, who is the Spider-Man of the End League, but hasn’t done much so far.
I wish this book would come out once a month. I’m loving the premise, the writing, and the art. The End League is easily my favorite independent book. If you’re not reading this book, you may still be able to pick up the three back issues and get on board. It’s definitely worth the read.
An astute reader recently asked if the Skrulls are really so bad. Is the burning, cuss-inducing hatred that the heroes obviously feel for the Skrull legitimate? The heroes of the Marvel Universe seem quite unconcerned about killing a Skrull, even one who is defenseless and confused. But have the Skrulls done anything worse than dozens of other superbaddies
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In all the talk about the awesomeness of The Dark Knight, there are a few things that have been overlooked. So, instead of posting another glowing review of the latest bat-film, I'm dropping a few observations that have been overlooked by many. WARNING: this review contains some SPOILERS.
In the opening minutes of the film, we get a cameo appearance by The Scarecrow. Very cool. It was nice to see a sense of continuity and a real feeling for the film's bat-universe
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Each is the top archer in his respective comic book universe. Each has a long history and cool trick arrows, but which is the better character?
Green Arrow
Origin: Green Arrow – Oliver Queen was a wealthy young man who fell overboard on a cruise and found himself alone on an island, ala Robinson Crusoe. In order to survive, he develops his archery skills, eventually encountering a band of pirates, defeating them, and returning to civilization as a superhero
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I cannot remember a year with so many comic-related films gracing the big screen. While the results so far are a mixed bag, we’ve already seen Iron Man, The Incredible Hulk, Wanted, Hancock, Hellboy II, and The Dark Knight. Every comic fan must have found something to like in there. And although the summer movie season is starting to wind down, we’ve got Clone Wars next month, Punisher: War Zone in September, and Watchmen coming next March. Clone Wars has the benefit of lower expectations, War Zone has to be better than either of the previous film adaptations, and Watchmen is drawing from some of the best source material ever to appear in a comic.
Coming soon to a theater near you
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The Chicago Tribune is hosting a tournament to determine the best superhero ever & the Comic Geek Nation needs to speak out. The field has already been narrowed from 32 down to the elite 8. Superman and Wonder Woman are going head to head, with Superman holding an early lead. This is as it should be. The Spider-Man vs. Green Lantern matchup should swing (get it?, ‘swing’?) Spider-Man’s way.
The other two matchups have given me pause. The space-faring Silver Surfer is up against Buffy the Vampire Slayer. Yes, Buffy has fought her way into the top 8 superheroes of all time by beating… brace yourselves… Thor and Batman! Handily
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I was ready to love this movie. It was touted as a bridge between Batman Begins and The Dark Knight. Animated shorts bridging the gap between movies worked wonderfully for The Matrix, The Chronicles of Riddick, and Star Wars, so why not Batman? Three reasons: execution, execution, execution
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Comment by Ron Rowe
on Secret Invasion #5 - What have we learned?
The Comic Geek