CBF Quick Picks #133 : Thor – God of Thunder #4
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It was a matter of inches for the top pick this week.
Star Wars #1 from Brian Wood finally unveiled itself to the masses. Even amongst the concerns of Dark Horse’s holding of the Star Wars comic license, Wood still managed to get a great book out. And you’d think we’ve seen it all with this series set in the original trilogy’s timeline, but Wood somehow makes it all seem fresh.
When it comes down to it though, Jason Aaron and Esad Ribic can do no wrong with Thor: God of Thunder #4. It’s beyond words how exciting this book has become as it explores one nasty villain making an impact on Thor’s entire lifeline. It speaks to Aaron’s diversity in writing and Ribic’s Conan-esque drawings that grabs the reader from the get-go. I look forward to how they’re going to wrap this up and future arcs.
SDCC 2012 : Marvel Movie Plans Revealed
Marvel’s Avengers movie only made about a gazillion dollars, so there was skepticism as to whether or not sequels to their popular characters and introducing new ones was going to fly with the SDCC audience at yesterday’s movie panel.
Nah, just screwing with you. Marvel announced five different movies in the works for the next 2-3 years. 3 of them were pretty much a given with the core Avengers getting sequels, but doesn’t take the excitement away:
We know Iron Man 3 is next on the Marvel list, scheduled to come out May 3rd, 2013. Shane Black is directing and Ben Kingsley looks like he’s set to take the role of Iron Man’s biggest villain, Mandarin.
November 8th of next year will see Thor : The Dark World. The majority of the cast returns under the direction of Alan Taylor this time, who a few of you may know as the guy behind HBO’s Game of Thrones. Sounds like a good fit to me.
The sequel was not surprising, but the subtitle was. Reportedly producing the biggest positive reaction from the crowd, it looks like we’re getting one of the best Ed Brubaker arcs adapted to the big screen. Joe and Anthony Russo, directors of Arrested Development and Community, are directing the movie, scheduled to come out April 4, 2014. Interesting choice for a release date.
And then there was the confirmation we were waiting to hear about after the rumors went out a few weeks ago. Guardians of the Galaxy will be the 2014 movie to watch for, giving Marvel plenty of time to build the name up for audiences not familiar with the cosmic team. The team is set to be Star-Lord, Drax, Gamora, Rocket Raccoon, and Groot. Here’s some concept art to salivate over:
And then lastly, Edgar Wright (of Scott Pilgrim fame) ran a test clip of Ant-Man to the panel, which reportedly received positive approval. Still no word on casting and given what we’ve learned of the movies coming out so far, we’re probably still way too early to get anything notable of this flick for a while.
Just looking at this lineup (along with the inevitable Avengers sequel most likely hitting 2015), it’s clearly showing that Marvel is hitting its stride with movie adaptations compared to what DC has had to offer (minus the upcoming Dark Knight Rises).
CBF 33 : Comic Book Mid-Year Report Card
Break out those red markers – it’s report card time!
This week, Jon Stump makes his triumphant return to the show, as we discuss the year so far in comic books and comic book movies. We hit all of the good (the Captain America movie), the ugly (the Green Lantern movie), and the debatable (War of the Green Lanterns) in this show. We also get in some talk about the upcoming DC re-launch in September that’s going to make things all nice and shiny in the DCU.
What do you think of the year so far in comics? Has it been good or has it been “just there”?
Music provided by 2 Sided Story – Time
CBF Quick Picks #69 : Free Comic Book Day Edition
On the first Saturday of every May, the comic book industry unites with free comic books to promote new storylines and to educate new generations of readers on the medium. There was a lot to appreciate this year including Captain America/Thor : The Mighty Fighting Avengers, Mouse Guard, Baltimore, and Silver Scorpion. The last one really surprised me and is a great example of not only great ideas in comics, but of how young minds across different cultures can come together and tell a great story on equality and inclusion.
You can go visit Liquid Comics or the Open Hands Initiative to download your free digital copy.
CBF Quick Picks #68 : Uncanny X-Force #9
Music from Red Book Comics – Do You See?
After the comic dump the last week of April gave us, I was glad to have a small week to further enjoy the latest stash for the first week of May. Two caught my eye and neither were DC books.
Uncanny X-Force #9 gives us a one-shot before we dive into the Dark Angel saga next month, but it doesn’t take away from how good it is. Rick Remender once again shows off his familiarity with the X-characters, this time giving Magneto and Wolverine the spotlight. You’d think you’ve seen all the Wolverine stories you could want and yet another one gets pulled out of the hat and impresses us. Not much dialogue going, but it harkens back to an old Ultimate X-Men issue that has a similar vibe if anybody knows what I’m talking about.
We also get part 2 of Fear Itself, as Marvel’s event shows more of what the Serpent’s actions have unleashed in the form of popular characters grabbing some of the hammers that turn them into the Worthy. I was expecting a lot more in terms of who Serpent is and what’s his game plan, but I guess I can forgive for now given that it is a 7-part series.
CBF Quick Picks #64 : Fear Itself and Brightest Day
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Music from The Volume Brothers – Comic Book Heroes
This was the week of events, as Marvel launched its big event while DC took one more step to ending its own.
Fear Itself #1 launches with Matt Fraction and Stuart Immonen at the helm this time. Marvel puts its spin on current events and introduces us to the God of Fear that will apparently have a key role in stirring up the fear that is striking humanity. Plus, Thor has daddy issues and is taken back, along with the rest of the Asgardians, to their homeland, leaving the remaining heroes to contend with something they don’t fully understand yet. Intriguing approach so far with some comparisons to Civil War, but I’ll give it a shot.
Brightest Day #23 finally gives us the revelation of Earth’s protector. I won’t lie to you – it totally came out of left field after embarking on different journeys with the resurrected characters, but if you give it some time to process, it actually makes sense in the grand scheme of things.
And while these event books took most of the spotlight, there was another book that got some good internet buzz this week. Nonplayer #1 was written and drawn by a very talented video game art designer in Nate Simpson. It takes us into a MMORPG world that a girl named Dana is drawing up to escape the reality she’s in. Think Ghost in the Shell and Lord of the Rings and you have an intriguing premise. I don’t know where we’re going with the story yet, but the art is just gorgeous (and just what you’d expect from a video game artist). Keep an eye on this one.
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