CBF End of Year Podcast
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Mike and I recently wrapped up the decade with our 2-part Wizard Decade Edition podcasts (latest one is here if you want to check it out), but I figured to also provide one focused particularly on 2009 as well. A lot went on this year alone, which explains why this was probably the longest podcast I’ve ever done solo. Some highlights on the podcast:
- DC was the big publisher this year in my eyes with Grant Morrison and Geoff Johns leading the charge on the major story arcs.
- Vertigo continues to innovate with their new Unwritten and Daytripper series
- Marvel’s Dark Reign storyline dominates the year, but hear why I believe it lost its focus as the year went on.
- Image and Dark Horse continue to put out quality work in spite of the domination by the big two publishers
- 2010 will see more excellent books and a more focused direction on both DC and Marvel’s sides.
- I lay down challenges as to supporting independents and why comics should never be considered as just “spandex” books
A happy and safe New Year’s to all and we’ll see you on the other side of 2010!
CBF Podcast 12: The Decade in Review Part One
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Using Tim’s quick pick from a few weeks ago, we round out the year and the decade with a look at Wizard’s Decade in Review. So what did you think about the last 10 years of comics?
Enjoy part one!
CBF Podcast 11: Blackest Night 4, 5 and Ronnie James Dio
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So we finally get our act together and talk some more about our favorite current topic, Blackest Night. Since we missed so much over the last few weeks, here is our take on issues number 4 and 5.
Have you been reading? (if not, don’t listen to this yet because we drop spoilers like hot potatoes. Mmmm, potatoes.)
Let’s talk about this. What do you think about the story so far? Where do you think it’s going? Geoff Johns has completely drawn me in and I plan to follow Green Lantern from here.
Superman: Earth One and Batman : Earth One Announced
It’s pretty typical to have a comics company launch a new continuity for its flagship franchises every few years. Some hit off great (Ultimate Spider-Man), some fall flat and collect dust (All-Star Batman & Robin).
Geoff Johns recently announced on his Twitter account the next big project he had set for DC in 2010 and it looks like AICN and the DC Blog followed suit in reporting his announcement as well as announcing the other big project. Two big re-boots in the Batman and Superman franchises are are coming our way and will be coming out in an ongoing graphic novel format. Where the writers take this continuity remains to be seen.
This might help a lot for those not able to go through the last few years of DC lore to catch up on their characters. DC did it to a degree with the All-Star franchise of a couple of years ago, but Grant Morrison’s Superman project was all you got that was superb about it. Let’s not even get into what happened with Frank Miller’s Batman All-Star take – just search the forums and you’ll see why people are down on it.
What are your thoughts? Is this needed even with the writing talent behind it in Johns and Straczynski?
CBF Podcast 9: Blackest Night 2
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Tim and I are back from technical difficulties that plagued us the previous two weeks, and we are all about Blackest Night this podcast. There are spoilers everywhere so you are warned.
We review Blackest Night 2, Green Lantern 44, Blackest Night Superman 1, Blackest Night Batman 1, and a little Tales of the Corps 1.
Zombie Sharks, true believers. Zombie Sharks.
What’s your take on Blackest night so far? Where do you think it’s going?
Enjoy!
Disney buys Marvel for 4 billion – My Thoughts
So this has been quite an interesting start to the week, wouldn’t you say so? In case folks are still coming out of weekend hibernation, Disney is finalizing their acquisition of Marvel Entertainment for a whopping 4 billion dollars. Two articles I found that go into more detail are here from IGN and here from iFanboy.
This is obviously now the biggest story to hit us comic nerds in quite some time, especially when you consider the attention DC’s been getting lately with the Blackest Night books and Batman 3 movie rumors. I’ve been following all sorts of Twitter accounts today and measuring their reactions to the news and for the most part, the future of Marvel’s work is uncertain and yet very promising. I can agree with that assessment because Disney has been smart in keeping their acquisitions in the state they were beforehand. Take Pixar for example – they were acquired in 2006 and it’s safe to say Pixar is still scoring hits each summer and with the same witty creativity too.
Here’s an excerpt from The Feed, G4’s news department, as to what I’m talking about (full article here):
“In 2006, Disney purchased Pixar animation. There was fear at the time that Pixar movies would henceforth feature pop-culture-wiseguy sidekicks in the vein of Disney animation movies, and that Pixar films would creep toward the Disney formula and eventually all be stories of self-empowered princesses. But if you look at what Pixar has produced since then (Wall-E, Up), that’s almost the opposite of what’s happened. If anything, Pixar has been allowed to be more creative, adult and less “Disney” over the years.
Disney has a long history of buying “edgier” companies that dates back to the early 90s, when it bought Miramax, leading to fears among fanboys and film-geeks that Miramax’s cutting-edge content would be censored and watered down. It didn’t happen, and I don’t think it’s going to happen here.”
Mike and I are hoping to find some time tonight to do an impromptu podcast on the news. Keep checking the site and the CBF Twitter feed as we hear more info throughout the week.
CBF Podcast 7: Finally, Blackest Night
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Blackest Night number 1 is out, so this is alll Blackest Night talk. ‘Nuff said. Enjoy!
Superman/Batman: Public Enemies
Bruce Timm is a legend amongst DC animated lore. As a producer, he’s already brought us animated hits in Batman, Superman, Batman Beyond, Justice League, Justice League Unlimited, Superman: Doomsday, Wonder Woman, and the soon-to-be-released Green Lantern flick.
Now he brings Superman/Batman: Public Enemies to the fray. It’s based off a popular Jeph Loeb arc from the Batman/Superman series where Lex Luthor runs the country and Superman and Batman are wanted criminals.
Somebody pinch me…
Thanks to Newsarama for the post.
Anatomy of the Comic Book: The Dark Knight Returns
Re-boots seems to be all the craze nowadays in movies. Batman was brought back to audiences four years ago and showed what the character and his universe was really made of (Heath Ledger would have something to do with that in the sequel). I also recently saw Star Trek, which refreshed a franchise in dire need of new direction and yet still honored the spirit of the franchise.
It’s only fitting then that I start off my blog series about relevant comic books with a re-boot that brought the Batman of the comic books out of the campy terrain:
- Dark Knight Returns
Before this book hit the stands, Batman was all about Adam West and the Bat-Tusi in the 60’s. The campy nature of the show became a hit, but at the same time, it made the character one not to be taken too seriously in the books. Rotating writers in the 70’s and early 80’s made efforts to bring the character back to his dark roots, but it was 1986 that saw Frank Miller put Batman back on top of the food chain.
Comic book enthusiasts know Miller well from bringing a similar darker edge back to Daredevil and Wolverine around the same time frame. His independent work on Sin City and 300 would become feature films as well. This dark, edgy style was the kind of boost Batman needed and would help remind us who he is and why he is the way he is.
Dark Knight Returns gives us a 55-year-old Bruce Wayne long retired from the crime-fighting business, but seeing his city still crumbling under the might of old and new villains. Not one able to enjoy retirement for too long, he dons the cowl once more and revamps his tactics to take on this new, violent society. The book is renowned for helping to bring more adult-oriented storytelling to the books and put characters in new lights (a female Robin, a government puppet in Superman, Joker just an unfunny psycho, etc.). It also (like Watchmen) spoke of a society in the Cold War going to actual war and what its characters’ values spoke of those events.
I also take personal satisfaction in the last issue when Batman must confront a Superman that has to bring him in. Say what you want about all the help he needed; the sight of Batman kicking the Man of Steel to the floor is a sight that won’t leave me.
What’s interesting about this book is that it speaks volumes as to what Mike and I spoke about in our last podcast regarding Neil Gaiman’s ‘Whatever Happened to the Caped Crusader?‘. Batman is a character that is relentless in his quest to put fear into the criminal element. The only way he can ever see himself out of the game is if he was dead. No amount of golf or emptying the family wine coolers would bring satisfaction. It’s a sad story to see, but it brings the kind of depth to a character that can be difficult to replicate at times.
This darker edge has resulted in many superb stories from The Killing Joke to Knightfall. It transferred over into the animated and movie realms and the rest is history. Read Dark Knight Returns and tell us what you think.
Comic Book Fury 4: Blackest Night Preview
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Tim and I tease a little bit about X-Men Origins: Wolverine
We discuss Free Comic Book Day, when I picked up Blackest Night Zero. It’s a fantastic primer for what’s happening in the Lantern Corps and the coming Blackest Night story arch which we think will be THE story of the summer. Tim gives us a little history on the Anti Monitor, because he’s very important to the Blackest Night story. See if your local comic shop still has some copies of it.
Everything begins this July with Green Lantern 43 and Blackest Night 1.
And you must get this T Shirt right now:
Black Lantern
We finish up the Neil Gaiman Batman story. It was an odd ending and we don’t get where this fits into the rest of the Batman stories, especially with what happened in Final Crisis. One of the problems with getting a guest writer like Neil Gaiman is you expect a lot, maybe too much. Plus, his style is very different than what Batman readers are used to. It’s still a good story, but we’ll wait to see what happens before we place
Tim reviews the latest Green Lantern, how mixing blue and green is pretty dang powerful, and his battle against the Orange Lantern. I might be done with Ghost Rider already. It’s a little too campy for me right now. I will check out Jason Aaron’s other book Wolverine Weapon X though.
Tim has found a great comic, which unfortunately has been pulled from production, called Manhunter. Think Law & Order with super villains and a lawyer that turns vigilante when the system breaks down, but not like DareDevil.
We end the show with a little talk about Fables, which we’ll really get into in a few weeks.