Happy Halloween 2013!

Have a safe one everyone!

Oh yeah...THIS is coming out -

Will I ever get tired of seeing the Marvel Studios logo?

No, I will not.

But I do miss the "Studios" part...

Anyways, it looks like the film takes a path different from the comics: In the books, an alternate-future Kitty Pryde comes to Earth-616 and helps the X-Men change things for the better. Looking at this trailer, it seems the alternate future's already happened based on all the X-Films thus far. Xavier and Magneto send Logan into the past to make things better, and at one point Xavier meets his older self...probably through Logan's eyes.

This is an interesting idea, but hardly unexpected. It's understood that X3 wasn't the greatest, and X-Men: First Class kind-of played around with the original mutant line-up. So in order to make sense of it all and move the franchise forward (cause let's face it - Fox ain't letting go) this seems the best way to go.

HOWEVER...

I'm getting tired of all this mutants fighting amongst themselves stuff. If Fox is committed, they should commit...and give us the Shi'ar or the Brood. Give us Sentinels.. You want to show mutants vs. mutants? Give us the Hellfire Club, and one-on-one/group battles. Give us Wolverine vs. Cyclops, or New Mutants vs. Hellions. No more of this "grown-ups versus teens just learning about their powers after killing off CIA agents", or "us against the world" crap.

Because who didn't like Wolverine fighting Mystique in X-Men, or fighting Lady Deathstrike in X:2?

Just sayin'...

Robin III Part 58: Detective Comics #649 (Early-September, 1992)

Tim helps foil Cluemaster’s plans and makes a friend…sort of.

I have this issue.

It’s the eleventh hour (actually twenty minutes of) and Tim listens as Stephanie reveals what she knows of her father’s plan to rob the mall. He goes with Bruce to the scene of the crime and takes out several of Cluemaster’s goons before he’s left behind as the villain starts his getaway. Tim gets pinned down by another bad guy with a knife, but is rescued by some of Gotham’s finest. 

Notes of Interest:

1) We learn that Tim is younger than Stephanie.

2) Tim discovers Bruce’s fascination with the more clever of his rogues’ gallery.

3) It seems Tim’s costume has a break-away cape…which comes in handy.

WTF? Moment: Okay – this marks the second time Tim is saved by Gotham PD. (The first time being in Robin II #2.) Not that there’s anything wrong with the cops helping out, but there’s no reason for Tim to need help here. His suit is made of Kevlar…KEVLAR! Granted - it’s not 100% bulletproof, but it’s certainly strong enough to stop a knife…isn’t it?

WTF? Moment #2: You can already feel the kind of a love-hate chemistry developing between Tim and Stephanie.

Monday Movie Roundup...10/28/2013

Not much to talk about for the weekend...

Magneto Michael Fassbender's latest film landed in fourth place making about $8 million.
This probably would have cracked the top three if any of the trailers included the plot.

Hit Girl Chloe Grace Moretz' Carrie remake is #6 for the weekend, bringing in an additional
estimated $5.9 million and breaking the $29 million mark.
12 Years a Slave, Prisoners, Rush, Runner Runner and Don Jon all stayed in the top 20...

 ...while Machette Kills...sorry

 ...while Machete Kills is at #21.
So close Trejo...so close...

First Impressions - AoS: 'Girl in the Flower Dress'

This is by no means a deeply intense dissection of the episode.

That will happen over the summer after my purchase of the Blu-ray.

I've put my quick comments and notes after seeing the episode only once after the jump.

You've been warned...

What's this?...WHAT'S THIS!?!

HOW COOL IS THIS?

This...is the individually packaged Indiana Jones Blu-rays!

On sale in December...

the day before my Birthday!!!

(ahem)...hey Hon?

Oh...Honey!...

Hows abouts a two-fer?

Hey DC Comics...

...THIS is why Marvel rocks!

WTF? Fridays...Part Two...10/25/2013

This is some straight-up BULLS#!T right here...

Retcons are tricksy at best.

Some are good:

Others are just crap:

Iron Man (2013) #17 is the latter.

Thank God I stopped reading (new) comics years ago, 'cause this story would have pushed me right over the edge.

Tony Stark has always been gifted. No question.

But his talents were his own. That's what made him so cool.

He's not a mutant like Forge, and he's not an altered human like Spider-Man.

He's gifted, and since the '60's has been proof that regular humans have the potential for greatness.

W...T...F...MARVEL?

This would be like DC saying Batman had nano-technology surgically implanted as a kid which helps him deal with pain.

Which I can TOTALLY SEE THEM DOING!!!

For shame Marvel...(sigh)...shame...

WTF? Fridays...10/25/2013

Okay Marvel - you threw me for a loop once.

And despite my inability to access the JARVIS stuff on the Blu-ray,

(my player is nowhere near our computer, and it's not an Apple)

I've scoured the thing for any info about the Mandarin-joke.

(Granted, I haven't played the commentary yet...I'm busy!)

There's no extra about Kingsley, no special wink-thing, 

...nothing...

until now.

It seems the good Sir has completed a "super-secret Marvel project" - AS MANDARIN!!!

W...T...F...MARVEL STUDIOS?

I'm all for the post-credit things and the One-Shots, 

but why oh why wasn't this put on the damn disc?

Can't you put two One-Shots with the same movie?

Is this even going to be a One-Shot?

The post-credit for Thor 2?

or is this (dare I say it)

an upcoming episode of AoS?

Whatever the case may be, I'm really mad at Marvel for keeping this Mandarin thing from us.

'Cause it still stings...really!

Robin III Part 57: Detective Comics #648 (Late-August, 1992)

Tim makes an impact on a girl, who winds up making one right back.

I have this issue.

Labor Day Weekend approaches and someone’s taken the time to paint clues all over Gotham. Tim and Bruce figure out Arthur Brown has become Cluemaster again, and is planning a big score. They track Brown to his apartment, but let the Gotham PD go in to make the bust (which backfires and sets off a bomb). As they do, Tim notices movement a few rooftops away. Thinking they’re part of Cluemaster’s gang, Bruce lets Tim go after him.

He takes the costumed perp down and discovers that he is a she…then gets clocked in the face with a brick.

Later, Tim’s back at the Cave going over the spray-painted clues when Bruce arrives to put the final piece together and identify the intended target: the grand-opening of Castle-Land Park Mall in Evanstown, where there’s going to be a charity telethon ending on Labor Day Sunday.

After a little research, Tim tracks down the girl he fought: Stephanie Brown - Cluemaster’s daughter. Tim tells her that Arthur Brown might not have died in the explosion and learns that if he is still alive, the robbery’s still on.

Tim brings her to meet Batman, and together the three of them decide their next move.    

Notes of Interest:

1) It seems Tim needs to work on his “rooftop pursuit technique” a little more.

2) Isn’t that a nice shot when Tim sees Stephanie’s face for the first time? Priceless.

3) Oh yeah, this is the first time Tim meets Stephanie Brown, who calls herself The Spoiler.

WTF? Moment: I’m not sure if this is true for every copy, but mine has a misprint. The page where Tim talks with Alfred in the Cave about Cluemaster having a visitor while at Blackgate comes after the page where Tim finds Stephanie’s house. It took me a second to catch the mistake though…I mean Tim’s a great detective, but he still needs a lead before he can act on it.

Random Thoughts: Captain America 2

So...this poster came out:

and I'm waiting impatiently for the first official trailer to come out Thursday.

I guess the film will have scenes in both time frames...Cap's past during WWII and the post-Avengers present. Not sure how I feel about that, but anything with Toby Jones and Dominic Cooper is a win. But, looking through IMDb, there's no sign of Dum Dum...and I'm sad now. 

This pic also got me wondering - we're all talking about how AoS needs more Marvel cameos, but no one's talking about the possibility of May, Ward or Fitz-Simmons showing up in the films. 

At this point, anything's possible...and I love it!

In Marvel Studios I Trust

Robin III Part 56: Detective Comics #647 (Early-August, 1992)

Tim literally helps Batman solve a puzzle.

I have this issue.

Tim helps Bruce put an end to a hostage situation before meeting up at GPD headquarters to look over a message mailed to Gordon – a puzzle piece attached to a note saying “Catch me if you can!”

Taking the message back to the Cave, they eliminate some suspects…and confront Arthur Brown, also known as Cluemaster – the only suspect currently in Gotham. He tells the duo that he’s been clean since getting out of prison and as far as Brown is concerned, “Cluemaster” is dead.

Over two weeks later, Tim and Bruce meet back up with Gordon who just got the sixth piece of the puzzle, which is clearly a photograph of a castle. Tim tells them that there’s still six pieces missing, which means the final piece is would be coming on Labor Day Sunday. Tim also lets them know of two possible targets: a monkey castle at the zoo in Coventry and Castle Electronics HQ in Victoria Place.

Before leaving Gordon’s office, Tim learns that the Mayoral Candidate Krol’s campaign is making Gordon look bad, so solving this puzzle quickly would be a big help. 

Notes of Interest:

1) This is the first time Tim meets Cluemaster.

2) Tim mentioning that he knew “where Joker is” was a nice nod to the Robin II mini-series.

WTF? Moment: Time sure flies. Gordon gets the first puzzle piece, and in less than eight pages has six. At three days per piece, that’s fifteen days. Fifteen days in eight pages?

About this Ultron casting...

At first, I was skeptical about James Spader playing the part.

I mean, the guy who played Richards in Mannequin?

But then I started watching this...

…and with every episode I’m thinking “Yeah, that could work!”

Monday Movie Roundup...10/21/2013

 Not sure what to talk about this week...

Hit Girl Carrie was the top moneymaker of the new releases, making over half of it's $30 million budget back.

This is good news for Chloe Moretz (I still can't believe that her most profitable film to date is Dark Shadows).

But why remake a classic? Didn't Glee do a thing on this a few weeks ago?

I can't complain too much though, because anything that can get young people to read Stephen King is a win.

Escape Plan made about $9.8 million. A respectable amount...

...but if you told me back in the '80's that Robert Downey Jr. would be in a film that made more in the States than Rocky, Rocky II, The Terminator and Terminator 2: Judgement Day... 

...combined...

I'd have told you that you were out of your mind. 

And finally,

Sherlock Benedict Cumberbatch's newest film (actually one of his newest - he's also in

12 Years a Slave with Magneto Michael Fassbender and Rhino Paul Giamatti)

made just over $3.3 million worldwide...for now.

I'm convinced this number will go up significantly in the weeks to come.

On a side note...

...hard to believe it'll be about six months since Iron Man 3 came out. 

Feels like a year doesn't it?

Well, here's something to consider:

after that, it will only be about five months until April.

First Impressions - AoS: 'Eye Spy'

This is by no means a deeply intense dissection of the episode.

That will happen over the summer after my purchase of the Blu-ray.

I've put my quick comments and notes after seeing the episode only once after the jump.

You've been warned...

Robin III Part 55: Batman #483 (August, 1992)

Tim’s homework gets interrupted by a couple of serial killers.

I have this issue.

We find Tim in his room working on Social Studies when Bruce calls to see if he’s available to help. Tim readily agrees, and is in the Batmobile when police reports that bankrobbers Crash and Burn have taken a public bus.

The bus crashes into Gotham ChemCorp, where they set a bomb and taunt Gotham’s Finest to come after them.

Tim grabs the bomb, and after getting hit with some type of napalm explosive, the dynamic duo trap Crash and Burn on a catwalk…with Burn holding another explosive. Tim witnesses Bruce disarm her, but it goes off when it hits the floor and ignites both criminals.

Tim uses his cape to put out the flames on her, and with Bruce takes them into custody.

Notes of Interest:

Despite being a filler issue, we learn a couple things:

1) As smart as Tim is, he still doesn’t like homework, especially Social Studies.

2) It seems that Tim’s cape is flame resistant, which makes sense.

3) We also learn that he and his father have moved into their new home…

WTF? Moment: …already? Didn’t the just look at the place two issues ago? I know Jack Drake has money, but it would take a lot to move in so quickly. Granted, we don’t know exactly how much time has gone by since Batman #481, but still…

WTF? Moment #2: Does Tim always put on his suit after school?

WTF? Fridays...10/18/2013

Well, it's that time of year again, where calendars start popping up in every store imaginable.

All well and good, but let me get this straight - 

There's a moustache day calendar that has 365 different moustaches in it...

...but not a single day calendar from either Marvel or DC comics, so I could have 365 comic images for 2014?

W...T...F...?

A word about memes...

First of all, it's pronounced "meeeeem", as in rhymes-with-theme, and not like a French-Canadian grandmother...which is how I've been saying it.

Secondly, I think I've found one. It started simply enough,

I've been seeing a lot of these "Keep Calm and..." signs at work.

"Keep Calm and Drink Coffee"

"Keep Calm and Take a Nap"

"Keep Calm and See a Movie"

 and thought it was a little nuts.

Then I stumbled upon this:

and I thought "Cool!"

Turns out, there's a lot of these...

and I was hooked.

I know that minimalism in art is a thing, but I admire anything, picture or saying, that takes a popular character and boils it down to the simplest form while still summing that character up.

My only complaint is the use of symbols at the top, but since there's usually a British Crown there, I'll let it go.

Here's the latest one I found, made by Neil Kristian on Deviantart, who made some of the others above:

See, If I was at all creative, I would have made one with a slightly different line...

"Keep Calm and Raise an Army"

And there's so much potential there too:

"Keep Calm and Wield the Power Cosmic"

"Keep Calm and Wreck Things"

"Keep Calm and Visit Limbo"

"Keep Calm and Open the Bifrost"

Anyways, I finally understand what meme's are..and how addictive they can become.

HOLY S.H.I.E.L.D.!!!

It seems they're doing it again...

...by giving Hayley Atwell's Agent Carter her own series.

I'm on the fence about this.

The Good: Agent Carter kicked ass. She was headed in the right direction, and by having another Marvel series that's set before AoS could fill in a LOT of blanks, like:

* What happened to the Howlin' Commandos?

* Does Montgomery Falsworth become the first Union Jack?

* How does Fury fit in?

* Was there a Freedom Five? 

* Was there an Invaders?

The Bad: Having another Marvel series that's set before AoS could pigeonhole the entirety of S.H.I.E.L.D.'s existence...by limiting both series. But this could be avoided so long as the creative teams of both series communicate with each other. Joss is only one man, and he can't be everywhere at once.

* Plus, while I liked CSI, CSI:Miami and CSI:NY, they were too similar. If Marvel can keep the timeline straight...and no funny episodes where Coulson meets Dum Dum Dugan...we'll be just fine.

Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.: The Absorbing Man Episode

Another villain enters the fold...

Why this character: I'm gonna assume all of Loki's scenes in Thor: The Dark World take place off-Midgard, but he'll plant a seed in Thor's mind...or Jane's...that he's had more time on his hands before the Chitauri invasion than we thought. Because remember - he kinda/sorta had influence on Dr. Selvig at the end of Thor, but didn't come to Earth until Avengers. This story would fill in some of those blanks.

The plot: Loki had some time on his hands while S.H.I.E.L.D. was getting Selvig set up. What to do? Observe some of the evil that men do of course! Ryker's Island would have been dull to him, but then he comes across the prison chain gangs used in other parts of the country. Convicted criminals sent out to work in the open spaces with freedom just out of reach? Loki would love that! Especially when adding a little somethin'-somethin' to the prison water would open the door for chaos. Carl Creel gets some of that water...and after learning to control his slowly developing ability to absorb the properties of the rocks he's been smashin', breaks out (with his trusty ball and chain - which shares his abilities).

Notes:

* This would bring Loki back into the picture, and Coulson would take it personally.

* After Jackson's cameo as Fury, you can't tell me Hiddleston wouldn't jump at the chance.

* Not only that, but we would learn in later episodes that other convicts took the same tainted water...