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Advanced Review: Harbinger #11

The Harbinger Wars is upon us and fans have been raving! The smashing debut issue not only helped to knit more pieces of the Valiant Universe together, but it also posed an insurmountable amount of questions! Not to worry though, Joshua Dysart begins to let things unfold further in this weeks Harbinger #11 and things will never be the same again!

Mixing flashback sequences with current story lines, Dysart lets the reader peek at the history of Toyo Harada and Project Rising Securities, better known as Project Rising Spirit. We see their first real interaction together and it is a terse one to say the least! Within these sequences Dysart also let’s us see a more optimistic Toyo Harada as opposed with the opportunistic one we are more prone to. This insight creates a richer depth to the character, making the lines between hero and villain blur, leaving the reader with a moral conundrum on how to perceive his choices.

Not only does Dysart make us question our “villain”, he makes us question our heroes as well. While Peter Stancheck has been having visions of the Bleeding Monk, his Renegades have been contemplating their new found place in the world. Powerful, young and lawless, these “heroes” find themselves in a moral dilemma all their own. Do those that have been beaten down emotionally and physically now have a moral obligation to help others just because they now have the power to? Do they have the right to live above the law since they can simply choose to do so? Do they even have a choice in the matter or do their powers automatically oblige them to do what’s right? The questions posed by Dysart make these characters extremely “real” to the reader and that is what makes this book so brilliant month after month. These characters are all of us, just on a grander scale! They bicker and fight, they have fears and dream of amazing things, they are scared and powerful and they need each other even though they won’t admit it. They are as “real’ as super heroes will ever become, which in my eyes, is truly amazing!

Take the next step into the Harbinger Wars in Harbinger #11 and always remember to: Be smart, be diligent, be — Valiant!

BioShock Infinite Video Game Review

Stand Tall for the People of America!

“The Good” of BioShock Infinite

By: Lawrence Napoli

Story:

Story is one of this game’s strongest elements because it gives repetitive shooting renewed context in every chapter which motivates the player to plow ahead. As the protagonist Booker DeWitt, the player navigates the fictional city of Columbia: a floating city in the clouds that is the result of unparalleled technology not present in the real world’s recollection of the American industrial revolution circa 1912. An ex-Pinkerton (or thug that breaks up organized labor), Booker is no stranger to violence, but he is coerced to go to Columbia himself to extract a girl known as Elizabeth because his employers hold some sort of debt over Booker which he cannot repay on his own. Upon arriving at Columbia, the player is introduced to what seems like nothing short of magic although it is explained to be the result of otherworldly or rather, other-timely technology. As Booker infiltrates the city, he is forced to deal with a multitude of armed opposition, a brewing civil war and a mechanical menace known as Songbird with only his trigger finger and Elizabeth herself to aid his quest. She is somehow at the center of the entire conflict, but the facts are shrouded in deceit and few native Columbians are forthcoming. Capitalism, communism, civil rights, racism, inequality, and the good old fashioned military-industrial-complex is touched upon during Booker’s journey so get used to the sensation of heavy handed metaphors at work throughout this game.

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“Heavy”

Mechanics:

Vigors– BioShock’s most notable mechanic in the form of pairing weapons with superpowers formerly referred to as “plasmids” have returned in the form of “vigors” in Infinite. These powers function in almost the exact same capacity as established in previous games by giving the player a means of altering tactics to an ever evolving threat level based on differing numbers and abilities of the opposition. Every vigor has an alternate deployment by holding the left bumper button which engages more powerful versions that usually take the form of traps which the player can lay on any surface. Some of these powers give the player mastery over fire, water and lightning while others produce defensive or distraction effects that can be more valuable especially on higher difficulty levels where conserving health is mandatory. Vigors can also be combined to have compound effects when used in tandem. They are all very fun to use and upgradeable at the various automaton stations littered throughout Columbia.

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Thus I present the vigor known as “Shock Jockey”

Equipment– Infinite is the first BioShock game to utilize an equipment-based combat enhancer that is more in lines with contemporary action RPGs. The player can assign different clothing to four parts of the body to give bonuses to a variety of in game activity which never hamper the player in any way. The effects can work together to make new methods of play (like melee) viable in a shooter like this. If he or she wants to completely ignore them, but on higher difficulties, resources are scarce and the player must look for every advantage possible. This serves no aesthetic purpose as the FPS format prevents the player from actually seeing the character or any possible costume alterations. Clothing is well hidden in Columbia so it behooves the player to search every corner and look around every corner to reap the rewards of enhanced prowess.

Infusions– There are three vital stats to track in BioShock Infinite: health, shields, and salts. Health is self-explanatory. Shields are an ever-regenerating barrier that the player actually doesn’t begin the game with, but can absorb a variety of incoming damage from projectiles or melee based assault. Salts equate to a magic or mana meter and this determines the frequency the player can deploy vigors. The player can find infusion bottles while exploring Columbia which can upgrade any one of these vital stats, but what makes them unique is that the player can choose to upgrade any category whenever a bottle is discovered. For instance, there is no such thing as health-only infusions. It is the reason why the bottles are seen as constantly morphing between the colors that represent their respective stat: red for health, yellow for shields and blue for salts.

Guns– Weapons are easily the most unremarkable combat element to BioShock Infinite, but there’s no way to achieve victory without them. Machine guns, pistols, shotguns, rocket launchers, sniper rifles and grenade launchers represent the arsenal at the player’s disposal which can each be upgraded in the same way as vigors. Should the player find an affinity for particular weapons there’s no punishment for holding on to them for the duration. Unlike vigors, the player can only retain two guns at any point so making wise decisions in regards to weapon range will pay dividends. Keeping two heavy damage weapons might seem cool, but are slow and you might need a higher rate of fire to keep up with quicker enemies. I suggest experimentation to discover which guns work best for you, but beware that ammo vendors may not be available at every location in Columbia, so scavenging guns you have neglected to upgrade may be necessary.

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Consider the enhanced range of the sniper rifle.

Elizabeth– Once you rescue her, Elizabeth becomes yet another gameplay mechanic that adds yet another dimension to the shooting action. There are a couple of things that the player can control in regards to the girl. One is that the player can control her ability to open up “tears” in space time that bring in a multitude of set pieces that didn’t exist in the regular environment. For instance, Booker may be walking down an alley and is instantly accosted by enemy snipers. Elizabeth can be ordered to open a tear that produces a brick wall to be used as cover for Booker. Whatever gets “torn in” is predetermined by the area the player is actually in so you can’t magically summon a tank to roll over enemy opposition whenever you want. You can, however, tear in friendly gun turrets, weapons, health boxes and ledges to vertically explore the landscape.

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Looks like a “tear” in progress.

The player will also run into several locked doors in Columbia which only Elizabeth can bypass, provided the player has the right number of lock-picks to gain entry. The amount of picks varies from door to door and safe to safe, but the reward is usually a bunch of cash, new equipments and infusion bottles, so unlocking everything is the order of the day. The other element of Elizabeth that is useful, but the player cannot control is her emergency support throughout the game. Occasionally, she will find money and toss it to Booker, but only when the player acknowledges her via pressing the correct button. She will also toss the player ammo, health or salts in the middle of combat if he or she is running dangerously low, but she will not do this (no pun intended) infinitely. The rule of thumb is that you better be done killing soon after she tosses you support because your lifeline is shrinking.

Money– The currency of Columbia is the Silver Eagle and collecting these will ensure the player is outfitted with upgraded weapons, abilities and ammunition. Money is also fairly scarce on any difficulty so the player shouldn’t expect to upgrade every gun into its ultimate evolution. Resource management is the key, so frugal choices will add to the player’s longevity. Every upgrade for guns and vigors is very costly and if you do not have 100 Silver Eagles to pay when you die on the “1999” (survivor) mode, the game kicks you to the main menu as a form of “perma death.” Spend your money wisely.

Death– Booker DeWitt will die plenty of times during BioShock Infinite, regardless of difficulty level. I like how the game doesn’t exactly punish you for perishing in that every death involves losing some cash and revitalizing you with only a fraction of health while restoring health to enemies you failed to put down. Multiple deaths can become problematic during boss fights because they absorb a ton of damage and ammo is finite. Multiple deaths can be a virtual death sentence over the long haul on a “1999” run. At 100 Eagles a pop, death ain’t cheap and seeing how you scavenge no more than 10 per corpse (if they have any at all), replenishing money to pay for death becomes less realistic. Consider reloading checkpoints if this becomes an issue.

Music:

Few soundtracks for games are worth purchasing as a separate entity, but let me tell you, it is worth every penny for BioShock Infinite. The highlights include an exceedingly emotive performance by Courtney Draper (the voice of Elizabeth throughout the game) who sings an adaptation of Will the Circle Be Unbroken that takes on so many parallels when keeping the story of the game in mind. Another example of emotional, yet metaphoric music is Nico Vega’s song Beast which has been earmarked as the unofficial/official theme song of Infinite seeing how clips of the song have been attached to just about every trailer and commercial you have seen promoting this game. My favorite examples of shear, musical, genius happen to be the turn of the century covers of several 80s pop hits such as God Only Knows and Girls Just Want to Have Fun. Several of these tracks occur during standard gameplay and are worth taking a brief time out from digital homicide, to listen to the music of Columbia as it helps to immerse you into the environment that much more.

Gameplay:

Gameplay is what makes a game fun and regardless of the mechanics a game affords the player, the functionality of said mechanics and the fluidity of their execution determines good gameplay from the bad. Overall movement in BioShock Infinite is fairly satisfying. You can run, jump strafe and aim with relative ease but with a control scheme that may be a tad foreign to veterans of military FPS games.

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There’s plenty of shooting involved.

For instance, just about every shooter (regardless of perspective, developer or license) have all assigned the left bumper to allow the player to aim down the sights of whatever weapon they have equipped for more precision. This cannot be done in any BioShock game thanks to the existence of the vigor mechanic which takes exclusive control over both left bumpers on either controller for XBOX 360 or PS3. You can, however, switch to “iron sights” by depressing the right analog stick (at least for the PS3) which I didn’t find cumbersome, but shooter veterans might consider such a control scheme as a deal breaker.

The one dynamic movement element new to this franchise is the use of the skyline system that bridges the various buildings, airships and freight throughout all of Columbia. It also provides the player with a quicker means of transportation as well as an effective form of evasion during drawn out assaults. With the simple press of one button, Booker can use his “skyhook” to ride the rails to jump in and out of firefights quickly while picking of the enemy from a distance. The only drawback is that you cannot use vigors while riding the rails seeing how your other arm is busy at the moment. Navigating the skylines is actually quite easy from increasing/decreasing throttle, reversing direction, leaping off to safe spots and using the very valuable “skyline strike” that usually leads to instant kills for non-armored adversaries.

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Riding the rails.

Vigors may or may not be easy to use, depending on the player. You see, there is no way to aim as precisely with these as with guns so there may be a little trial and error involved. Trust me when I say that you can completely wiff at point blank range (thank you Shock Jockey). Their functions are also fairly different amongst them and although they all have a quick ability with a tap of the left bumper, every vigor unleashes greater power by holding the left bumper and then releasing. Unfortunately, this leaves the player vulnerable should he or she forget that they can still shoot their weapon while charging their vigor.

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The “Murder of Crows” vigor looks cool, but how useful is it really?

PART 2

Stand Tall for the Beast of America!

“The Bad” of BioShock Infinite

By: Lawrence Napoli

BioShock Infinite is not a perfect game. It has its glitches and it has its character flaws, but believe me when I tell you that this really took some nitpicking on my part to highlight what was “wrong” with this game:

1) Occasionally there will be objects in the environment that you can interact with or collect that are designated by an unmistakable shimmer. Sometimes these objects cannot be collected despite crouching Booker right on top of it as if it weren’t there at all.

2) I found that the upsurge in difficulty that occurs when dealing with a “Handyman” to be a bit unreasonable when compared to every other opposition in the game. These guys absorb a TON of damage, are faster than you and can leap tall buildings in a single bound. Of course, they also happen to attack you whenever skylines are present so don’t ignore them.

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I hate it when these guys show up!

3) The objective arrow is terrible! Ugh, I hated using that thing because when I needed course alterations quickly, it either never engaged or the angle of my perspective was not low enough to the ground to actually see it. If there was anything that the game series of Dead Space did well was their objective arrows.

4) There’s no ability to skip in game “dialogue” cut scenes. Sometimes you just want to get to killing and although you may have completed the game once before, the game won’t deny you the opportunity to sit through the drama once again, whether you like it or not.

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I’m sorry sir. Was this your rail?

5) No manually saving stinks and auto-saving to only one slot is worse. Yes, I know the manual saves (at any point) during the previous BioShock games might have seemed like a broken option, but being irresponsible with it could lead to saves that resulted in instant deaths if they were poorly timed (like in the middle of a firefight). Infinite’s solution to this problem substitutes a player-controlled safety net in favor of a glitchy AI safety net.

6) Replay value is low. With the exception of upping the difficulty for those who may need baby steps when it comes to challenges, more than two runs isn’t particularly necessary. For those who take their time exploring every inch of Columbia, perhaps only once is enough. Trophy hunting is usually a solid motivator for multiple replays on games these days, but even average gamers will find that they will acquire most of Infinite’s achievements effortlessly. Perhaps multiplayer would have helped this bad boy out?

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Is Elizabeth interesting enough to warrant another go?

7) Respawns are the bane of this game. Sometimes revivals will get you right back in the action, not two steps from where you perished. The only problem is that all the bad guys are still there and aiming at your defeated corpse which can lead to some frustrated profanity on the player’s part so consider reloading a checkpoint before wasting more time and Silver Eagles. Respawning also has a significant glitch at the most inopportune point in the game: during the final moments of BioShock Infinite’s climactic battle. This happened to me on my “1999” run as I eliminated the last enemy with an RPG only to be killed by a bullet of his own. I revived, dropped through the floor, respawned and was frozen; unable to finish my objective (which amounted to taking 50 paces straight ahead) and ultimately finish the game. I was ready to break many things and as of this article’s writing, there is still no patch for this problem. Reloading the last checkpoint won’t work because it saves Booker’s “frozen” state as well. If this happens to you, take a deep breath and reload the previous chapter point: yes, you’ll have to do it all over again, but it’s better than starting a brand new game from the very beginning.

PART 3

To “1999” Mode and Beyond!

Survivor tips and the final word on BioShock Infinite

By: Lawrence Napoli

Although the tips that I will go over in this segment are meant for a “1999” run, they can easily be applied to any difficulty level. With a little practice and comfort with the control scheme and timing/placement of vigors, anyone can conquer this beast.

1) If you pre-ordered this game, play all of the “Industrial Revolution” puzzle games at finkmanufacturing.com which gives the player some nice in-game bonuses. Finishing all 59 of them may seem time consuming, but it gives the player a bit more context to the overall story as well as more free goodies towards the beginning of your adventure through Columbia.

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More powerups make dealing with specialty enemies like this much easier.

2) Consider using only the carbine rifle and sniper rifle as your exclusive weapon load out. Just about every weapon gets the job done, but no two does so more efficiently than these two. It gives the player masterful medium and long distance range as well as being moderately common to find replacement ammunition amidst the ruination Booker leaves in his wake. The sniper rifle is excellent with one hit (headshot) kills from range, so take advantage of cover because not every ambush will involve 20 angry Columbians charging right at you. I completely understand switching to some other situational gun or anything else if you’re plain out of ammo, but upgrade-wise; stick with these guns.

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Pistol ammo is very common, but not particularly powerful.

3) Possession and the Devil’s Kiss vigors should be upgraded both times. “1999” mode does mean enemies deal out more damage so conventional wisdom would dictate investing in more defensive minded or distracting powers. WRONG! In this case, a good defense is a great offense and instantly turning your assailants into allies levels out the playing field quickly while you duck for cover and regenerate shields. Devil’s Kiss can deal massive damage (especially paired with the right equipment), but consider using traps as opposed to tosses. The only other vigor you should spend 1 second thinking about is Charge. Late game, this max upgraded vigor will make mincemeat out of the most difficult bosses and conserve minutes, bullets and money in the meanwhile. Its only limitation is that it doesn’t have as much of an area of effect on mobs as Devil’s Kiss.

4) Infusion strategy: Salts FIRST, Shields SECOND, Health LAST! Trust me on this one. The first few chapters of the game are certainly tricky when your health meter is so low, but if you are using your powers more frequently (thanks to a greater salt meter), you are eliminating threats almost as quickly. You shouldn’t even be thinking of absorbing ANY damage “1999” mode seeing how mishandling even one enemy can put you six feet under. Later on, there will simply be too many bullets flying around to keep track of, but max your shields completely before putting a single infusion bottle into health because they regenerate. Health does not.

5) Use skyline to your advantage during all firefights. Use the skyhook strike when possible.

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The skyhook is your friend.

6) Going for the “Scavenger Hunt” achievement isn’t as bad as it sounds. You just can’t buy any ammo, health or lock picks from the “Dollar Bill” vendor, so if you are using your vigors wisely, this shouldn’t be much of a problem. Remember to take your time exploring in between every fire fight and if need be, back track a bit to stock back up because the items you left behind will still be there.

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Avoid these during “scavenger hunt.”

7) If all that still doesn’t work (and you really like this game) consider buying the season pass. Not only does this give you a discounted price for all the eventual DLC for this game, but it gives you a MASSIVE advantage during the standard game in ANY difficulty. You are gifted with superior equipment immediately and you are gifted 5 infusion bottles to distribute as you see fit which brings you half way home to maxing out any stat you like in the first few minutes of the game.

Conclusion:

Believe the hype, BioShock Infinite is a video game worth your time. It’s got more than enough guns, action and bloody violence for FPS fanatics and it’s got enough story and drama for contextual enthusiasts. As far as AAA titles go, this installment of BioShock is worthy of its pedigree as it is worthy of being considered for best Game of the Year before the summer has even begun. And that’s the trick isn’t it? Last year was supposed to be Mass Effect 3’s incredible culmination, but a pre-Spring release coupled with fan rage over the fumbled attempt at an ending saw this title go from favorite to fecal matter in months. BioShock Infinite has one of the best endings I’ve seen in gaming so there’s no problem there, but people have short memories and there are some very heavy hitters coming this fall. I’m convinced that a steady stream of DLC will keep this game relevant because it certainly has more than enough production value and overall quality to be compared to any. So the only question remains if you’re willing to lay down for the Beast of America or stand up for the man next door?

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Would you kindly vote for BioShock Infinite for Game of the Year? Otherwise, Songbird will be pissed!

Comic Book News

Advanced Review: X #0 (Dark Horse)

Back in 1994, Dark Horse published the original X series, written by Steven Grant and drawn by fan-fave Doug Mahnke, and it instantly became one of my favorite books! Now, almost a decade later, it has returned with an even more powerful team behind it, becoming one of my favorites yet again!

Serialized from it’s three stories found originally in Dark Horse Presents #19-#21, this new take on the over the top vigilante is a blitzkrieg of action and mayhem that will excite any comic fan! Written by acclaimed crime novelist and comic book master Duane Swierczynski (Bloodshot, Punisher, Godzilla), X #0 is a dark and brutal book that looks at the underbelly of crime and the sheer horror that will befall anyone that crosses X!

The tale is one of revenge, though the reader never truly knows the full extent as to why, and it’s quite simple. If you do bad things and receive a photo of yourself in the mail with an X marked across it — X will kill you. The premise is easy, the brutality and execution of the slayings is what’s hard. But, not for the artistic talents of Eric Ngyun! His unique visual perspectives makes each panel feel like a well rehearsed dance routine. He draws the eye to every miniscule detail of the page and then slowly pulls back to reveal the visceral carnage before you. It is dark, exquisite and overtly beautiful. Not to pull any punches, this book is intense and not for young readers!

Swierczynski’s tale puts the reader “behind the scenes” and follows three ruthless thugs through the book, the pigs if you will, and we see first hand how nasty they can be. We also get to see their inner thoughts as to how they will deal with their “big bad wolf” when he comes a’ blowin‘. The book never reveals the thoughts of X nor his actions prior to his attacks, thus making the moment he appears that much more explosive. It is dynamic, vicious and expertly written — everything a “street level” book should be!

Pick up another great 90’s character brought back into the fold by Duane Swierczynski! If you want something intense and amazing, this is the book for you! Though, I have to warn you, you may become a vegetarian after reading it!

Comic Book News

Advanced Review: Sledgehammer 44 #2 (of 2)

With so much talk revolving around a certain movie that will have numerous suits of armor featured, I thought it imperative to focus on a different “iron” tale this week. One that features a single suit of armor, Hyperborean armor — the Iron Prometheus!

Mike Mignola and John Arcudi have created their own niche within the confines of tales regarding heroes donning suits of armor in order to save the day. Their tale may have similar overviews with Marvel’s blockbuster hero but that’s where the differences cease. Their tale, one rife with Nazis, gunplay and Mignola’s classic take on tales of the ethereal, transcends that of just a super hero tale. It is a story of true heroism and the internal anguish sometimes caused by it.

Rendered expertly by artist Jason Latour (Django Unchained, B.P.R.D. Hell On Earth: The Pickens County Horror), this issue follows a group of GIs that have just evaded certain death at the hands of the Nazi regime and are now trying to protect their immobile metal savior. As the action sequences berate you, it is easy to get caught up in the moment and believe that you are just reading another WWII battle book. Then, you remember Mike Mignola is a master word smith and the tale becomes something so much more than the sum of it’s parts. It becomes a sad, insightful look at what it takes to be a hero. It is not the suit nor the range of powers that can be derived from it, it is not the man that wields it but, it IS the heart and soul of that man that makes him a hero. It is also the sacrifice that is made in order to overcome fantastic odds for the betterment of the greater good that defines him. These are the aspects that will resonate with you as you complete this fantastic book about sacrifice and brotherhood.

Mignola and Arcudi have created one of the finest new heroes within the pages of this book. It is a character that I hope to find many years from now, still donning the cover of his own book, in my local shop. This book is simply sublime!

Comic Book News

Review: Shadowman #6

Justin Jordan and Patrick Zircher have worked tirelessly to create a fresh and exciting “new” Shadowman character that fans have been clamoring over. Now, with Shadowman #6, we get to actually see a true new character emerge from their collective conscience, one that has set his diabolical sights on our hero and won’t let up until death has been claimed for the victor!

The “dynamic duo” of the Valiant Universe, Jordan and Zircher, have been putting our hero through the emotional, if not physical, ringer as of late and this issue brings more of the same style of highly developed characterization to the table. Distraught and emotionally scarred by his actions, or inaction, to save a friend; Jack Boniface gets to do some soul searching throughout the issue. Although he is the title character and has some great developmental sequences, most of this particular tale revolves around the schemes of some rather nefarious characters and brings one of them to the forefront as a dire threat to Jack. We all know that a hero is only as good as his villains make him become, well, by the end of this tale Shadowman will be one the lips of comic fans everywhere!

The only detraction I have with the issue is with the choice of so many artists. Each of their skill sets are phenomenal, rendering different aspects of the story to give each section its own individuality and scope but, at times it was a little distracting. You get accustomed to a certain flow while following the story the artist unfolds before you and with three different artists, it instead became jarring to transition between the story changes.

Still, Shadowman is a rare gem of concentrated high level writing and artistry that never fails to excite and entrance each and every month! I am proud to say that I was a fan of the original series and now, with Jordan and Zircher breathing new life into the character — I’m an even bigger fan!

Comic Book News

Review: Harbinger Wars #1

The spring’s biggest crossover has finally been released and Valiant does nothing more than completely blow you away!

The writers of the fantastic series of books, Harbinger and Bloodshot, have converged to bring you a tale of the past, present and future of the Valiant Universe. This is an in depth look at all the little secrets that have been kept from prying eyes for so long, the revelation of what Toyo Harada and Project Rising Spirit have been creating long before Peter Stancheck even knew he had powers! These revelations will lead to an uneasy alliance between Peter Stancheck’s Renegades and the assassin Bloodshot’s prepubescent gang of human weapons. Though the world of Valiant will soon become a scarier, more dangerous place, there will be a definitive winner in all the chaos — the readers!

Told as a part flashback part present story, Dysart and Swierczynski’s tale perfectly combines the current storylines of both the Harbinger and Bloodshot books while imbuing it with a completely new tale revolving around a captive group of psiots at the mercy of Project Rising Spirit. It is this fresh tale expertly rendered by fan favorite, Clayton Crain (X-Force), that is the most intriguing and carries the weight of the overall story. Through the eyes of these “new” characters, the reader can connect with the pain and degradation they endure and we can empathize with, not only them, but ALL the characters being hunted without even having to read the primary books to do so. It is this attention to not alienate the curious reader, whom may or may not know the outlining parts of this epic story, that makes it the perfect stepping stone for anyone while not disengaging from the loyal fans that wouldn’t want a “rehash” comic in their hands. A truly fantastic effort by some of the most talented creators in the industry!

It is easy to get enveloped into this magnificent world created by so many talented individuals, but I’m warning you, once you step into the Valiant Universe –you’ll never want to leave!

Comic Book News Marvel

Thanos Rising #1 Review

I had high hopes for this one, but sadly the re-launch of Marvel Cosmic continues to under-whelm and disappoint.

That being said, origin stories are difficult and Jason Aaron has chosen a particularly difficult origin story – that of Thanos the Mad Titan – a character literally filled with contradictions. He seems to be trying to make the character more accessible to the typical non-cosmic-fan comic book reader – and like Loeb’s re-launch of Nova and Bendis’ re-launch of Guardians of the Galaxy – the story and character suffer due to that effort.

Thanos was born to Mentor and Sui-San – Eternals of Titan; Thanos carries the Deviant gene and his appearance is more akin to that of Deviants than that of Eternals. He has never exhibited the Deviant ability to shape-shift. As an adult, Thanos has historically been portrayed as a tactical, scientific, and mystical genius who has boosted his natural powers as an Eternal with bionic implants and sorcery. Thanos has historically been portrayed as having what can best be described as a “death fetish” – being literally in love with the Marvel “abstract character,” Death, and going to extraordinary lengths to please her by sacrificing enormous numbers of lives to her. However, Death has nearly always been a bitch – rejecting almost all of Thanos’ advances.

Why wouldn’t he just kill himself to be with Death you ask? Well – he has occasionally – and in my opinion best been portrayed as wanting to die but unable to die due to his Eternal heritage or, most recently as portrayed in The Thanos Imperative, being the chosen Avatar of Death. His driving force in this portrayal is inability to completely fulfill his death fetish by killing himself to physically be with death, so doing the next best thing and killing others to please Death in the hope that in pleasing her his love for her will eventually cease to be unrequited. If I don’t think about it too much, I can buy that as a motivation – and both Giffen and DnA wrote some fantastic Thanos stories with Thanos being portrayed as a “Magnificent Bastard” with just such underlying dark motivations.

In contrast, Aaron has chosen to portray Thanos as born to a rejecting mother who wants to kill him and is driven insane in being prevented from doing so, and to an absent and neglectful father. Thanos as a child is shown to be bookish, nerdy, and socially awkward. Refreshingly, he is not bullied by the other Eternal children – but is instead shown acceptance and kindness despite his appearance and social awkwardness. Thanos is initially kind to animals and becomes nauseated when dissecting one in school. Then, at the behest of a character that is just suddenly dropped into the story (and who is apparently Death), he is involved in a terrible accident where several of his friends – including the girl he has a crush on – die and are eaten by animals. Thanos survives and is wracked by survivor guilt which Death capitalizes upon, misdirects to rage, and then focuses on the unfortunate animals which ate Thanos’ friends. Thanos then cruelly knife-kills all the animals while Death stands in admiration of his cruelty.

Wow. I can see how this psychological pseudo-drama will appeal to the non-cosmic-fan who has little knowledge of Thanos other than his occasional tussle with The Avengers. As a cosmic fan, I’m a bit perturbed by all the inconsistencies with continuity – both with Thanos in particular and with the Titanian Eternals in general.

In Aaron’s interpretation, Thanos is basically a nerd turned into a typical sociopath by bad parenting and the direct manipulation of the abstract character, Death. At this point, Thanos is neither a compelling nor a sympathetic character. He’s just an enormous bore who is being manipulated. That makes it hard for me to see how he becomes a threat to the universe.

The art and coloring are certainly respectable, but lack the crispness and definition that are the only saving graces of Marvel’s other two “pseudo-cosmic” titles.

All-in-all, unless this title saves itself in upcoming issues, it stands as yet another example of the decline in Marvel Cosmic from its most recent height late in the last decade.

Movie News

The “DOC’s” Top Of The Pile for 4/3/2013

The Top of the Pile

By: Chris “DOC” Bushley

This is a “quick pick” look at the Top 5 comics that EVERYONE should be reading this week! Whether it’s rife with characterization, filled with emotional strife, has a bevy of high octane battle sequences or is just a plain ol’ great read — these books belong at the “Top Of The Pile!” (In no particular order!)

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1. Harbinger Wars #1 (Valiant): For the past few months, everything in the Bloodshot and Harbinger books has been leading up to this! Fan fave, Clayton Crain (X-Force) has graced Valiant fans with some interior art work for this massive crossover but that’s just icing on the cake! This tale will see Bloodshot and his group of psiot children merge with Peter Stancheck’s “Renegades” in order to take down the Valiant Universe’s biggest threat — Toyo Harada. But, Harada hasn’t come alone. He has called upon his own team of psiots to destroy all those who oppose him with only one winner becoming triumphant — the reader!

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2. Polarity #1 (Boom Studios): From the mind of Max Bemis, frontman for the band SAY ANYTHING, comes this engrossing tale of Timothy Woods trying to deal with his bipolar disorder. That may seem hard enough but when his medication runs low, Timothy finds that it didn’t just keep his mind in check, it also repressed his super powers! A trip-tastic look into the world of sex, drugs and super powers that will blow your mind! Plus, each issue comes with a free download of an original song from Max Bemis!

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3. Swamp Thing #19 (DC): Scott Snyder may have decided to leave this amazing book in order to pursue the Man of Steel, but that doesn’t mean all is lost. In fact, Charles Soule does an amazing job ushering in a new perspective to Swamp Thing and brings some heavy hitting “guest stars” to make Alec Holland’s world miserable. First up is the Scarecrow in all his twisted demeanor, the second?…Superman! I guess Snyder didn’t have to leave in order to write Supes after all!

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4. Abe Sapien:Dark and Terrible #1(of 3) (Dark Horse): Mike Mignola and Scott Allie put there heads together for Abe’s first “in continuity” solo mission. Abe has been sidelined for quite sometime, you know, since his death and all! But, nothing can keep this B.P.R.D. agent down for long, especially since his physical transformation. Can Abe still be trusted to uphold the best interests of mankind in the coming wake of destruction? Considering one of his own already tried to kill him once, I’m betting no!

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5. Earth 2 #11 (DC): James Robinson’s vision for new takes on the classic JSA characters continues to excite readers every month! This week is know different with not only the introduction of Dr. Fate to the New 52 Universe, but Mister Miracle and Big Barda as well! Robinson knows how to tell fantastic stories that will leave you with a sense of wonderment!

Movie News Reviews

Movie Review: G.I. Joe: Retaliation (2013)

“Joe Schmo”

A Film Review of G.I. Joe: Retaliation

By: Lawrence Napoli

THIS is what a 9 month release delay, rewrites, reshoots and reformatting gets anyone remotely interested in action films, let alone what Hasbro has allowed in a complete and utter mortification of one of the best IPs of the 1980s? Push comes to shove, GI Joe: Retaliation was strictly made for 10 year old boys and although I’m no fan of the money-grabbing, demographic gravity well that is the PG-13 rating, there are plenty that deliver more than what these Joes are hauling. The addition of “The Rock,” Dwayne Johnson and the subtraction of Marlon Wayans does make an immediate impact on the quality of this picture, but by no means is this a vast improvement. Then you throw in Bruce Willis for a grand total of about 10 minutes of screen time and I’m left wondering whether director Jon M. Chu used the time off (thanks to the incredibly embarrassing suspended release of this film) wisely. Turns out that cleaning house from The Rise of Cobra, minus Byung-hun Lee’s Storm Shadow, Ray Park’s Snake Eyes, Channing Tatum’s Duke and Jonathan Pryce’s “US President,” doesn’t leave the audience with a superior experience in Retaliation. Plot gaps a plenty, continuity be damned and utter absurdity abound in this film. Now you know and knowing is half the battle.

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Hopefully we aren’t shooting down our careers.

Immediately what detracts from this cinematic adventure is the atrocious dialogue amongst every character at all times. If any of you are familiar with TBS’s (not so “very funny”) sitcom Men at Work, you’ll notice an eerily similar sensation of awkward, bromantic and twenty-something wanna-be, yuppie talk that is in no way appropriate for the likes of GI Joe and Cobra in any capacity. I certainly don’t remember the original GI Joe cartoon sounding so juvenile. The worst examples happen to be every Channing Tatum scene, and The Rock shares as much of the blame here thanks to some of the most eye-rolling delivery we haven’t seen since his days as Rocky Maivia. The purpose of these scenes was clearly meant to build up the camaraderie between Duke and Roadblock, but they come off like college dorm mates constantly trying to haggle each other like teenie boppers. Then the plot takes a serious turn and the dialogue’s tone jumps to “killing” and “revenge” in a manner that is way above (or below) the frat house culture. Consistency in dialogue is what builds character and this is a failure throughout this movie. The screenwriting team of Rhett Reese and Paul Wernick would have been better off low-jacking the dialogue from Act of Valor rather than Clueless.

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Cue the dorm room antics.

I will, however, give the story credit for taking what amounts to a garden variety, Cobra plot for world domination and giving it a neat twist on manipulating the globe’s nuclear weapons. Combined with a very dark inciting incident, the story seems to have a solid skeleton if one ignores most of what was established from the first film. This is where my praise ends. Characters established in the first film aren’t acknowledged in any way in Retaliation. How did Storm Shadow survive The Rise of Cobra? That’s swept under the rug. When did Flint transition from a Joe instructor to a rookie with parkour skills? All of this is the result of fanboys kicking back one afternoon and tossing around a bunch of “what if’s” in regards to GI Joe mythos and throwing it all in the script. This may be the preferred method of screenwriting for adaptation efforts that ultimately don’t give a damn, but I would prefer a bit of focus — of which Retaliation has little. Too many subplots combined with the introduction of several new characters having little (if any) relevance to the origin film makes for a very manic experience. At this point, the script has less to do with story and more to do with marketing Hasbro’s merchandise. The only thing that keeps you in your seat is waiting for the next explosion.

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I kinda like your new mask that’s like your old mask.

As for those explosions, they aren’t exactly what I would refer to as “cutting edge.” They are all standard fare with nothing uniquely negative or positive to report. Vehicular combat is somewhat satisfying during the tank-like battle towards the end of the film, but jets in the sky and boats in the water are strictly CG transitions that deliver zero punch. Firefights that feature the Joe team as a unit utilize a lot of hand held camera work with quick cuts that make conscious efforts to obscure close-ups and sell the featured actors better. The problem is that it makes appreciating these well choreographed sequences a bit of a chore, thus negating its entertainment value. One on one fights are easily the best action elements to GI Joe: Retaliation. The instant any rumor surrounding a GI Joe adaptation hit the internet, every fanboy went nuts over the possibilities of a Snake Eyes vs. Storm Shadow scenario. Their rematch in this film is very nice, but their original showdown in The Rise of Cobra was better. I suppose if Darth Maul can make a comeback from what seems like the exact same fate, so too can Storm Shadow. Roadblock’s fisticuffs obviously feature more brawn over ballet, but they simply do not compare to ninja stars being shot out of the air by an uzi. Perhaps director Jon M. Chu should have ignored everything else and strictly made a GI Joe Ninja force movie because the mountainside repelling scenes featuring Snake Eyes and Jinx were very satisfying. I just wish I hadn’t already been spoiled on this sequence thanks to the teaser trailers I’ve been seeing for more than half a year.

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Ninjas; not nonjas!

I’d like to take a moment to single out the poor casting in GI Joe: Retaliation. I must give two thumbs way, WAY down for Ronna Kress, the casting of director of Retaliation. It’s not that she selected the wrong actors for this type of film, but that they were misused and underused for the roles they were chosen to play. There’s no question that The Rock is an action star worthy of this license, but he’s about as much of a gourmet cooking, black man from Mississippi as I am. To put it plainly: Rock’s line delivery is not ethnic enough to sell the role of Roadlblock. Bruce Willis practically invented the contemporary action blockbuster and even at his advanced age, can still make valuable contributions to any film production. Having him play the “original Joe,” General Joe Colton, would have been a great idea had they actually made that character important to the story with some legitimate screen time. I’d really like to know who’s bar mitzvah did the Rza agree to personally perform at to get his name on this cast list. Having created The Man with the Iron Fists does not make him uniquely qualified to play the role of the Blind Master, yet there he is and he looks absolutely foolish in the role. Note how these examples are the biggest names attached to this production. When your casting strategy revolves around simply adding “names” with no intention of taking advantage of what each actor actually brings to the table, this proves that the production staff doesn’t care to some extent. That, my friends, is bush league, corporate mass production of cinema at its worst.

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I present to you: the blind master.

The performances in Retaliation are so unremarkable that only three are worth mentioning. Adrianne Palicki’s performance as Lady Jaye is solid, and it’s always a tricky situation playing a role that is ear marked for sex appeal without coming off as absurdly overcompensating just like Rachel Nichols’ performance as Scarlett in The Rise of Cobra. Adrianne is still channeling girl power to a large extent, but does so sympathetically by behaving as an equal member of the unit. Byung-hun Lee is the only actor who provides intensity and intimidation for this film in his role as Storm Shadow. Certainly, his physicality is on display showcasing a variety of martial artistry with his shirt conveniently ripped off in several instances. However, it is his presence and demeanor that makes his character not one to be trifled with to the point that he comes off as a white version of Darth Vader sans force choking abilities. Channing Tatum found a way to turn his snicker-inducing performance as Duke in the first film into an all night laugher in Retaliation. What can I say? The movie makes a point of designating Duke as the field commander of the Joes after having X number of year’s experience, but Tatum has the command presence of whoever hosts the MTV Movie Awards. Duke is awkward and completely incapable of shouting a battle cry that isn’t instantly ridiculed by his unit. I don’t know what Tatum was thinking by portraying Duke in this manner, but I would expect “not a lot” being the right answer.

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Lady Jaye > Scarlett

So this film franchise has been green lit for a third installment. Hurray for Hollywood, but this movie is barely worth a Red Box rental. Right now, the superior alternative for an action fix is Olympus Has Fallen. When compared to GI Joe: Retaliation, I think about the difference between a little boy and a grown man: one has a pair while the other is waiting for them to drop. Yet again, another licensed adaptation leans far too heavily on its own mythos and popularity rather than making an undeniable effort to be its own entity. GI Joe: Retaliation is the poster child for going through the motions and proving that adherence to formulaic filmmaking is on the mind of every no name/novice filmmaker because they haven’t the intestinal fortitude to be assertive with their own ideas (assuming they have them) when dealing with brand names like Hasbro. I wouldn’t qualify this as a family film, but if you have young boys, this might be worth a trek to the cinema. But if you have any appreciation for GI Joe from the comic books or the F.H.E. animated series you will feel like someone just took one of your favorite fictions from childhood and urinated on it. You know, just like what Michael Bay did to Transformers and will probably do to “Teenage Mutant” Ninja Turtles.

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Storm Shadow may be convinced to handle Michael Bay’s nonsense.

(Side note: I find it hilarious how Channing Tatum has an Olympus Has Fallen clone film coming out later this summer where he must go on a solo mission to rescue President Jaime Fox)

Comic Book News Marvel

Review: Guardians of the Galaxy #1 (Bendis & McNiven)

McNiven’s art and Ponsor’s colors are nothing short of magnificent. You’d be hard-pressed to find better “photo-realistic” style art and eye-pleasing coloring in any comic book on the shelves today. That being said, if I had to criticize anything – it would be that Star-Lord has been rendered a bit too much the “twenty-something pretty boy” rather than the older, more seasoned and hardened look of times past. I actually prefer the older, seasoned, hardened look and feel to the character. I know this entire series is essentially a prequel to the 2014 movie – so the characters are being rendered to look somewhat like their movie counterparts, but it’s hard for me to take this version of Star-Lord as seriously as previous versions as he looks like he should be modeling for GQ rather than leading a guerilla task force protecting Earth from incursions from the great empires controlling the local group of galaxies.

Let me pause to take some Pepto-Bismol before I talk about Bendis’ writing, story direction, and characterization.

There – that’s better. Thanks.

First off: What the hell is Iron Man doing in this book? I mean, I get it that he’s the “gateway” character to lure Avengers fans into actually breaking out of their rut and trying Bendis’ “Cosmic Avengers” – but his shoehorning into the book and storyline feels completely un-natural and un-necessary. He might as well be wearing a tee-shirt with “Gateway Character” written on it. I can tolerate and enjoy Robert Downey Jr.’s interpretation of the character in the movies, but I haven’t cared for the comic book version of Tony Stark since Civil War. I’d go as far as to say that Stark’s behavior during Civil War disqualifies him for any leadership position – much less a high-stakes one such as defending Earth from incursions. Plus, the “duck out of water” angle doesn’t really apply to Stark as he’s had many space adventures over his career. Finally, he just doesn’t mesh well with the Guardians. I’m sure in upcoming issues we’ll be treated to predictable clichés such as him putting the moves on Gamora. Maybe we’ll get lucky and she’ll kill him.

Next, what is it with the daddy issues? Why does every cosmic character have to be driven by daddy issues? Lack of creativity or originality perhaps? Besides – the daddy issues aren’t even consistent with Star-Lord continuity. Jason and Peter settled their differences back in the 1970’s storylines and even went adventuring together. How is it that Peter has been regressed in age/mentality by at least 10 years Marvel time and is back to having daddy issues? Seriously, I much prefer the grizzled smart-ass tactical genius from Annihilation and GotG Volume II to Bendis’ watering down of the character in the name of mass market appeal.

Also, the gateway character himself – Stark – points out that there’s numerous Avengers teams defending Earth. I’d add that there’s S.W.O.R.D., SHIELD, X-Men, and numerous other heroes, teams, and organizations available to defend Earth. Why exactly are the Guardians needing to park in low Earth orbit? Isn’t S.W.O.R.D already there? Isn’t Earth well-protected enough? Wouldn’t the Guardians be better placed back on Knowhere with access to the entire universe instantly at their fingertips? Shouldn’t the title be changed to “Guardians of the Earth?” This Earth-centric focus is once again nauseatingly aimed at mass market appeal arising from Marvel Editorial’s long-held belief that cosmic hasn’t historically sold in high numbers because there’s no market for stories set in space far away from Earth. Yeah – I remember back in the 70’s when some said the same thing about Star Wars. Funny that the GotG movie is already being compared to Star Wars.

In terms of characterization, I’m wondering why in the world Peter is suddenly so concerned with Earth to the exclusion of the rest of the local group of galaxies. The same question could be asked of Drax, Rocket, Groot, and Gamora. What’s their stake in this? Is it just loyalty to Peter? If so, that’s sure a major change in characterization from Volume II. Also – where’s the rest of the team from Knowhere? Intuitively – it seems they’d be better choices to round out the team than Stark.

In the final analysis – my whole problem with Volume III is that at best it’s “GotG Light.” That is – it has some of the same characters only softened, re-characterized as less mature, and apparently motivated for vastly different reasons than those presented in Volume II. Whereas Volume II was soaring space-based para-military science-fiction, Volume III is mediocre Earth-centric clichéd super-hero-ish fantasy. Volume III’s Bendis-ification makes it pale in comparison to Volume II. With Gaiman taking over in a few issues – maybe it can be salvaged. Let’s hope so.

Discuss This Review In The Cosmic Book News Marvel Cosmic Forums

Comic Book News

The “DOC’s” Top Of The Pile for 3/27/2013

The Top of the Pile

By: Chris “DOC” Bushley

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1. Uncanny Avengers #5 (Marvel): If you have EVER been a fan of the X-Men or Avengers — this is the book for you! Rick Remender is a master of bringing such intricate details from past storylines into current and future tales, that it should almost be illegal! Familiar characters from his Uncanny X-Force run emerge, babies are born, the line-up expands, major Avengers villains return and Havok yells, “Avengers Assemble!” What else do you need in a comic? NOTHING!

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2. Teen Titans #18 (DC): Something isn’t quite right with Tim Drake after the events of “Death of the Family.” Now, after Robin’s death, it is even more apparent that there are some dark secrets tugging at Tim, ones that will put him on a path with the Suicide Squad! Great character build-up and the return of Superboy (at least for now!) help this one land on the Top of the Pile!

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3. B.P.R.D.:Vampire #1(of 3) (Dark Horse): Directly following the events of the critically acclaimed mini-series, B.P.R.D.:1947, Mike Mignola brings a tale of revenge and blood back to the stands this week. But, he didn’t come alone! Fan favorites, Gabriel Ba’ and Fabio Moon return as well to tell the tale of Agent Anders and his loss of humanity at the hands of vampires! Great stuff!

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4. Red Team #2 (Dynamite): Garth Ennis’ tale of a quartet of police officers that cross the line in order to ensure another bad guy doesn’t “slip through the cracks of Justice,” continues this week and it’s a doozy! This book has perfect characterization and will make you question all you ever thought of what’s right and what’s wrong. This is a fantastic morality play and is well worth the $3.50!

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5. Uncanny X-Force #3 (Marvel): Yes, it’s another “Uncanny” title, but they are just so good! Stan Humphries does X-Men history stories almost as well as Rick Remender and it’s astounding! We get a short origin of Psylocke, some triple Fantomex action and we finally get to see Bishop unleash his inner beast! Now that I wrote it, that does sound a little strange on paper but, believe me, it’s even stranger when you read it! A very cool story that leaves you wanting the next thirty days to fly by!

Movie News Reviews

Movie Review: Olympus Has Fallen (2013)

The Gods Would be Proud

A Film Review of Olympus Has Fallen

By: Lawrence Napoli

The first thing I thought about when the end credits began to roll on Olympus Has Fallen is whether Hollywood just supplied North Korea with its unofficial, “official” national film. As crazy as Kim Jong II was, I can’t imagine his narcissistic mind ever evolving a plot as extraordinary as Olympus despite his well documented obsession with Hollywood films. Thanks to North Korea’s most recent threats to the US, we can clearly see that the apple hasn’t fallen too far from the tree in Kim Jong Un. Seriously, one must question another’s sanity when said person invites Dennis Rodman over for anything that doesn’t involve Fifty Shades of Depravity. As foolish as North Korea has been depicted in the media, they remain a real threat to global stability and Hollywood is certainly not taking them lightly.

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There’s only one thing you do to bad guys doing bad things.

Most recently North Korea was the designated bad guy in the Red Dawn remake as well as occasional appearances as the boogeyman in the likes of Die Another Day (2002) and Stealth (2005). What Olympus represents beyond a “Yay America – it’s US vs. them” sentiment, is a quintessential North Korean wet dream involving the desecration and destruction of Western civilization. As entertaining and thought provoking as this film is, I wonder if the intrigue is worth taunting the enemy or worse, giving them the inspiration for a real-world, armed incursion. By producing such outlandish scenarios, perhaps Hollywood is contributing to society by having whatever American think-tank that’s in charge of national security consider such what-if’s to prevent them from ever becoming viable. It’s a dangerous world out there where espionage, cyber warfare and terrorism are the accepted forms of contemporary war because large scale military operations can be trumped by nukes. And then we all die. Olympus Has Fallen is a film that gives the audience a brief glimpse to all of the above in the form of a very succinct action film that is quick, smart, blunt and graphic.

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Why are all the best American heroes depicted in film and TV from England, Scotland or Ireland?

Shall we ask the cast of AMC’s The Walking Dead?

Olympus Has Fallen is a brand new Hollywood IP not adapted from anything. This film looks, sounds and feels like a breath of familiarly fresh air. What makes this story even more unique is the fact that it was written by the team of Creighton Rothenberger and Katrin Benedikt; neither of whom have a single credit to their name in La La Land other than Rothenberger’s reception of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences Nicholl Fellowship in Screenwriting for the Korean War film, The Chosin back in 2002. Obviously, the subject material hasn’t deviated too much in Olympus: it’s still war and Korea’s involvement is essential. Certainly, global forces are at odds amidst this film’s back drop, but what makes the story work is the audience’s identification with secret service agent Mike Banning, the protagonist. This movie has plenty of action and exposition to get to, so character development must be dealt with efficiently. Thankfully, Olympus is equal to the task in that Banning is established as a charismatic professional with a personal stake in the President’s family with a tragedy to redeem himself for. This all happens in the first 10 minutes. Action films can sometimes get too caught up with establishing the setting and mood of the film without introducing their main characters outside of the inevitable turmoil. In this regard, Olympus takes a noticeable cue from Die Hard (1988). We know what Banning is all about, we like him and then the action takes over.

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The whole world is blowing up around me!

Olympus Has Fallen features a treasure trove of action: Airplanes pelting each other with bullets and missiles? Check. Rampant destruction of buildings? Check. Michael Bay explosions? Check. Small arms gunplay? Check. Large arms gunplay? Discount double check. The one aspect of the action as a whole that will easily be overlooked is the fact that despite the plot’s focus on nukes and fleets and planes and various other weapons of mass destruction, it’s the CQC (Close Quarters Combat) incorporating pistols, knives and fists that really saves the day. Stunt coordinators Lin Oeding, Ketih Woulard and fight choreographer J.J. Perry really outdid themselves in making the violence as intense as possible despite the interior confines of the White House and its various secret passages. Not that Gerard Butler needs any help looking more BA than he already does, but the whole stunt team helped the man kick some serious ass and it really shines through onscreen.

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The body count begins to rise here.

Antoine Fuqua has proven that he knows a thing or two about how to shoot an action flick, having directed films like Training Day (2001), Tears of the Sun (2003) and Shooter (2007). Everything from the effects, to pyro, to the action, to the set design and performance comes together quite nicely and that reflects the leadership of a seasoned veteran. One interesting directing choice that I would like to make note of was how Fuqua made dedicated efforts to highlight women as part of the evil invading Korean team that assaults the White House. I simply cannot recall women having been so active participants in these kinds of action films outside of being targets or victims. These ladies kill plenty of civilians and security during their assault and in turn are equally disposed of by the hero, Mike Banning. I like maintaining the professionalism of that character by not having him pause for an instant to consider killing an armed assailant just because she’s a woman. However, I would have liked to see women being featured on the good guy side of the US military as actively as the villains. No one will be referencing Olympus Has Fallen for its progressive depiction of women any time soon, but in a film where adrenaline and testosterone are swelling like Dick Cheney’s ego, it’s nice to not see women as ONLY sexual objects.

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The roof, the roof, the roof is on … oh whatever. Bad joke.

The cast of Olympus Has Fallen is certainly more accomplished than that of a standard action film. Although Angela Bassett, Morgan Freeman, Melissa Leo, Radha Mitchell, Ashley Judd, Dylan McDermott and Aaron Eckhart all produce fine performances, the combined acumen of these actors is somewhat lost in the firestorm that is the constant action throughout this film. Just about every supporting member of the cast has one dialogue moment with leading man Gerard Butler, but it simply is not enough for anyone else to truly shine. Action films are about the hero against the big bad and in this case, Rick Yune seems to have fully embraced being the consummate villainous character actor in his role as the nefarious Kang. Yune, never having been an overly emotive actor, plays to his stoic strengths in Olympus. The fact that he is in fine physical condition makes him a comparable match for Butler and the controlled manner in which Yune portrays spite and hate has certainly been done before, but playing the antagonist as a raving lunatic would have simply been the wrong choice all together.

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I’m a sick puppy.

This is Gerard Butler’s film and not just because he’s the lead, but also because his production company co-financed this project and afforded him a nice, shiny producing credit. Whatever “producing” responsibilities he may or may not have actually had does not interfere with the man’s ability to throw some beat-downs, pop some caps and look pretty damn cool doing it. Given the appropriate frame and physicality, anyone can do this job, but Butler’s eclectic filmography as well as his performance in Olympus show that real acting can exist even in meathead roles. Yes, yes, he plays a secret service agent and I’m sure there are higher degrees of aptitude required for those kinds of positions, but his role still boils down to him killing every one of the bad guys and this does not permit his character to elevate to anything beyond Rambo. Still, in the moments he is afforded to dialogue with the president’s son Connor (played by Finley Jacobsen) allow him to convey humanity to the audience which infuses his character with sympathy. Gerard Butler is every bit the action star as every icon that came before him and although he does not reinvent the wheel with his efforts in Olympus, they are not in vain and he gets the job done.

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So, remind me again. Why are we even here?

Olympus Has Fallen will probably be one of the best, straight up, action films of this year. All of tThe Avengers: Phase 2 films will have the benefits of CG wizardry to make the likes of Hemsworth and Downey Jr. fly around to do their thing. The next Fast and Furious film will have animated car stunts and vehicle gimmicks. Star Trek: Into Darkness will be all green screen and wire work. What this film has over all of those other hybrid action films is combat: hand-to-hand and gunplay. Both of which are executed cleanly and impactful with plenty of blood and headshots to go around. It’s true that there are several action film conventions at work here, but with so many years removed from the original Die Hard,; it’s nice to see a film make an honest effort to really go for capturing that kind of lightning in a bottle again. Hopefully, Zeus won’t be mad.

Comic Book News

Review: Superior Spider-Man #6

Jester and Screwball make their hilarious, yet diabolical, debut this issue. Too bad Superior Spider-Man doesn’t throw out one-liners like the old Peter Parker, he prefers to throw his fists! Plus, Humberto Ramos is back in the saddle on art chores — Spidey has never looked better!

After the shocking events of the last issue I was surprised that this one should not really mention what had happened. True, there is a scene where a group of individuals discuss what should be done (Mr. Slott says NO SPOILERS — so I listen!) but it was such a fundamental break from the “norm” that I thought it would dominate the nature of this issue. Alas, Dan Slott has other plans in store for us and it’s quite a doozy if you ask me!

We are given two new “villains” in this issue, internet sensations that publicly humiliate high profile “marks” in order to boost their hits and make some cash on the side. To Dan Slott’s credit, they are quite enjoyable and bring some of that old tongue in cheek, pun laden fun back to the book since it has been removed with the introduction of Doc Ock living in Peter Parker’s body. Not to say that these characters will become fan favorites in any way but they are fun to read and hard to watch later as the book unfolds.

I am truly enjoying the contrast Slott is making between the Doc Ock persona and the old Peter Parker one. Fans are upset that,”This isn’t their Peter Parker, he would never do these things,” and that is exactly right! This book, in my opinion, works because it ISN”T Peter Parker doing these things, it is a villain that has lived with years of emotional and physical scars and now he has the means to dole out justice as he sees fit. There are no qualms about what he does, as much as he is a genius, his actions are mostly derived from instinct and reaction which makes him very dangerous. The character, however, is also creating things Peter Parker would have never dreamed of, making his dual live as human and hero much more manageable than it ever was prior. It is the culmination of these smart, believable choices that Slott has made that makes this book such a great read.

So, swing on down to your local shop and snag a copy of the most controversial book Marvel is putting out today! I won’t even mention the other one, it’s not worth your time!

Comic Book News

Review: Harbinger #10

Peter Stancheck and his rag tag band of psiots have been compromised, beaten and imprisoned by Project Rising Spirit, but everything will be alright as long as you have Faith!

A blitzkrieg of action awaits you in this weeks Harbinger #10, the precursor to Harbinger Wars (on sale 4/3) that is going to set the Valiant Universe ablaze in it’s first crossover! The battle lines have been drawn and Peter’s crew are up against insurmountable odds, it will take everything they have in order to survive the battle and one of them will rise to the challenge in order to save them all!

Joshua Dysart is a master of melding characterization heavy stories with a bevy of action sequences in order to make one of the best comics every month! It is superbly done, rich in the development of not just the main character -Peter Stancheck- but every character brought into the book. From Flamingo, Faith, Torque, Kris Hathaway and even the pathetically manipulated Mr.Tull, Dysart breathes life into every nuance of them making the entire read a true glimpse into their destructive world. He weaves in fragility into the very essence of these powerful creations, giving them a subtlety and believability rarely seen in comics today. They are massive and weak, beautiful yet scarred, outgoing and cripplingly shy, influential and covertly influenced and broken yet godlike.

These characters resonate with readers because we can empathize with them, we are them on a base level and we want them to dominate their world. That’s exactly what this issue is about. Overcoming those things that have been holding you down, breaking free of the restraints both literally and metaphorically in order to truly live. Plus, it is such a thrill ride of bombastic action that you can’t help but get amped up for what’s next!

Comic Book News

Review: X-O Manowar #11

Planet Death is upon us and everything you thought you knew is completely wrong!

Cary Nord tantalizes readers with an artistic dance, melding the beauty of life and the utter chaos of death to form an intrinsic tale of the Vine’s origin. Stunningly rendered flash back sequences draw you in as Robert Venditti’s tale takes you back to the very moment the Vine was ‘born,” giving this overtly destructive and manipulative species a more humble begriming than ever thought possible.

Venditti actually creates sympathy for these creatures, ones so vile that deception practically drips from their spider-like maws. It is this same sympathy that drives the tale and makes you ponder the plight of our hero Aric. For once, we are privy to different ideas from those of our protagonist, ideas that not only explain how the Vine became who they currently are but why they hold some things so dear. In addition, we are not only given the origin of the Vine but that of the X-O armor itself as well!

This is a morality tale of the finest caliber! Do we become monsters do to the unspeakable deeds that are done to us, which in turn we do to others to show how powerful we are over them? Or, do we learn from what has happened before and overcome them, becoming something far better do to the circumstances thrust upon us? By tales end, Aric will have to ask himself those very questions, for his whole world is about to be turned upside down!

Undeniably one of the best cosmic stories being created today! Vendetti and Nord have created something that makes other books pale in comparison!

Comic Book News Marvel

Review: Nova #2 (Loeb & McGuinness)

Once again, McGuinness and Gracia deliver a feast for the eyes with magnificent art and coloring.

Once again, Loeb tries to set the record for cramming as many teen superhero clichés as possible into a single comic book.

It literally took me five minutes to read this book in the store, and I can honestly say that the only thing that kept me from being utterly bored by it was my outrage at Loeb’s rape and strangulation of the concepts that made Nova Volume IV and Guardians of the Galaxy Volume II great.

Let’s start with characterization – specifically Gamora and Rocket. Instead of the sexy, dangerous, impulsive sociopath, Gamora has been reduced to a “Princess Leia” role uncharacteristically urging restraint while muttering something about NINO being “Our last best hope.” Pardon me while I roll my eyes at this hackneyed and – in this case – totally stupid story device. Two of the greatest warriors in the local group pinning all their hopes on a 15-year-old kid Yeah – that’s plausible – if you’re the nine-year-old boy at whom this book is presumably aimed.

Instead of the smart-ass cool tactician, Rocket is reduced to a hot-headed, impulsive, insensitive jerk who starts firing his weapon at a scared, startled child. Pardon me while I sadly shake my head in disgust.

Is this the Gamora and Rocket we knew and grew to admire in Guardians of the Galaxy Volume II? I think not. Total mischaracterizations of both by a writer who clearly doesn’t care about what the fans really want from Marvel Cosmic? I think so.

And haven’t we seen this “I know what I saw, so why won’t anybody believe me” type scene many times before in other comic books and in movies and cartoons aimed at the pre-pubescent crowd? What about the “testing out the powers” scene? Or the flying through the town signpost scene? Or the “throwing away of the helmet and having it boomerang back” scene? Or the maudlin daddy issues scene? Like I said – cliché after cliché.

At least issue #1 had the Black-Ops scenes to save it from being totally boring. No such luck with this issue. Between the clichés, the morphing of Gamora/Rocket into generic supporting character roles, and the total un-likeability of the main character; this issue was a real snooze fest. Literally nothing of real interest happened.

I’m also finding that I’m growing to dislike the manga costume (I refuse to call it a uniform) more and more every time I see it. The adults in the Black-Ops Cohort could pull it off – but it looks totally ridiculous on a 15-year-old kid.

In the last review I said I could at least respect Wacker’s honesty in telling the Rider Nova fans to take a hike if they didn’t like Loeb’s hack-job on the Nova concepts. I take that back now. After spending so much time denigrating and disrespecting the Rider Nova fans on various forums, Wacker now reverses himself in the letters page of this book and tries to glad-hand the Rider Nova fans. His about-face seems less than genuine to me, and I found it to be the most egregious insult yet – as if a “shout-out” is going to change anything.

Too many brave trees gave their lives needlessly for this book. If not for the art it would be a total waste of paper. If you must satisfy your curiosity, just thumb through this book in the shop and put it back on the shelf. It isn’t worth your time and money.

Discuss This Nova #2 Review In The Cosmic Book News Forums

Comic Book News

The “DOC’s” Top Of The Pile for 3/20/2013

The Top of the Pile

By: Chris “DOC” Bushley

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1. Harbinger #10(Valiant): The Harbinger Wars storyline begins within the pages of this very book! Our heroes are beaten and overwhelmed but all you need is Faith to get you through the toughest of times. This series is one of the most compelling, action packed and emotional stories on the shelves today so, why isn’t it on your pull list? Well, if you don’t know — what are you waiting for!

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2. G.I. Joe: Special Missions #1(IDW): This used to be one of my favorite series back when I was a little DOC and now, thanks to IDW and -the legend himself- Chuck Dixon, it can be a favorite again! Centering on select groups of the “All American Heroes”, this series gets fans reconnected to the Joes and can focus on their individual talents. So, grab some gumbo and a Yo Joe Cola and get ready for some nostalgia!

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3. Superior Spider-Man #6(Marvel): The most controversial series on the stands today, Dan Slott continues to push the envelope with his hero/villain tale. This issue introduces two jokester villains, Jester and Screwball, that get a kick out of mocking heroes. Too bad good ol’ Doc Ock/Spidey isn’t a fan of a joke at his expense! Plus, this issue sees the return of fan favorite Humberto Ramos on artistic chores!

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4. Constantine #1(DC): Okay, this isn’t the Hellblazer book from Vertigo that we all knew and loved, but it is the New 52 version of everyone’s favorite con man — John Constantine! What makes this series even better is the fact that it is being written by fan favorite scribe Jeff Lemire! Known for dark and completely engrossing tales, Lemire(Green Arrow, Sweet Tooth, Animal Man, Justice League Dark) is sure to get those heart rates pounding with a tale of black magic, demons and more than a little sleight of hand! Plus, no Keanu Reeves, folks!

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5. All New X-Men #9(Marvel): Bendis may be missing the mark with his jaunt into the cosmic realm but this series revolving around the original X-Men traveling to the future to set things right, is pitch perfect! The juxtaposition between the past and the future, young and old, hero and villain is done with astounding ease and reminds us what great comics are supposed to look like. Mystique and Sabertooth try to sway the naive young Scott Summers to take down his future (current) self in an issue that reminds me of the good ol’ Chris Claremont days!

Movie News Reviews

Movie Review: Oz the Great and Powerful

There’s No Place Like the Original Home

A Film Review of Oz the Great and Powerful

By: Lawrence Napoli

If you have been to the movies recently, chances are you have seen the trailer for this film during the 40 minute prelude to the feature you bought tickets for. If you’ve been surfing the internet during the same period, chances are you’ve seen an advertisement for this film. If you watch TV, you have seen a commercial for this film. Basically, you must be living under a rock to not know anything about Oz the Great and Powerful, how it’s some kind of prequel to the original journey through Oz and that it’s starring “Mr. Renaissance Man,” himself: James Franco in the title role. Yes, this film has been greatly anticipated since 2012 and has so many things going for its success such as its connection to past greatness, its PG rating, screenings in 3D DLP and IMAX 3D projection, and the fact it happens to be a fantasy fairy tale that isn’t falling in line with the trendy (and played out) “dark” and “edgy” interpretations such as Alice in Wonderland, Red Riding Hood and Snow White and the Huntsman. Yes, all of this sounds really good on paper, but I could not shake the feeling that this film was trying way too hard to sell itself and that doesn’t seem to make sense based on its aforementioned “advantages.”

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You cannot deny the power of my media blitz!

Screenwriters Mitchell Kapner and David Lindsay-Abaire were clearly going for a very different take on an iconic adventure while making as many nostalgic connections to the original as possible. This brings me to a couple of complications, the first of which is that the reader must understand that this film is meant to be a prequel to L. Frank Baum’s original book: The Wonderful Wizard of Oz and NOT the MGM film of 1939 starring Judy Garland. Sure, the audience gets a graphic indicating this during the title sequence, but no one will be thinking about that connection when so many familiar images, costumes and circumstances are carbon copied and enhanced from the 1939 classic. As the story unfolds, the audience will notice a greater disconnect from 1939 thanks to a plot layered with lots of detail and conflict to explain the political climate of the Land of Oz. Therein lies the second complication to the script. Oz, the character, is set up in an eerily similar manner as Dorothy to discover some personal truth. Oz struggles over a desire to be a “great” (successful) man rather than good (moral) man, and had this film been made 15-20 years ago, this element of the story would drive the entire production forward. Unfortunately, this part of the script takes a back seat to a relatively complex series of subplots that explains why witches, soldiers, tinkers, munchkins and flying monkeys are at each other’s throats; oh my!

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Everyone, Everyone! I really AM that great!

Wasn’t this film supposed to be for kids? Contemporary live adaptations of fairy tales have clearly been marketed for older audiences that prefer more intrigue to their simple morality tales of yesterday. Oz the Great and Powerful is no exception in this regard. By infusing a redemption story with all of this extra conflict, the writers have effectively nullified the personal journey of Oz, which creates a rift between the audience and the protagonist who already has the distinct disadvantage of being presented as a scumbag in Kansas. There are moments where the film really wants to get into some very interesting and untred territory (i.e. the relationships among the witches), but then distracts us by returning to Oz’s less appealing journey. I can understand what the writers were trying to do, but their unfocused attempts prove (yet again) that a script wanting to do everything while sacrificing nothing delivers a confusing and incomplete experience. I’d rather have intelligence and intrigue read into a simple story by an audience that learns at the same rate as our main characters. Oz gives the audience full access behind the curtain from the very beginning thanks to what seems like a never ending string of exposition. Do I need to mention how this couldn’t have less to do with the land, character, mythos and original film of “The Wizard of Oz?”

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What’s really going on in moments like this?

None of this criticism applies to how well children will appreciate this film as the manic nature of the story lends itself to the short attention spans of youngsters. The lynchpin for the kiddies happens to be the very exquisite special and visual effects at work in Oz. Colors are always bright and vibrant on the screen (even in Oz’s “darker” settings). The CG characters such as Finley and China Girl are as adorable as they are vapid. The costumes are as unique as they were in 1939. The sets and set pieces are very detailed up close and at range. Heck, even the 3D effect on an IMAX screen isn’t a complete and utter waste of time as it is for any other film not named Avatar. Basically, pure production value will capture your children’s minds, goofy slapstick will enthrall them and the effects will amaze them. There may not be a lot of “lesson learning” at work, but concerned parents worried about the “scariness” of the witches or the perceived violence in Oz can rest easy. Every moment where this film could take a Tim Burton turn to the morbid or a Robert Rodriguez turn to the violent, Sam Raimi consciously holds back so as to keep the overall tenor of this film light. Oz will probably be the best family movie of the year and its strategic release at the beginning of March maximizes its allure of a new, blockbuster while getting a secondary adrenaline shot to its sales by the end of the month thanks to Easter. Well played Disney, well played.

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Oz looks magical and sometimes looks are enough.

Every cast member in Oz looks really, really good so kudos to makeup department head, Vivian Baker, and the intimidating size of her makeup team that contains almost as many crew as credited cast. Looks, however, don’t necessarily yield substantive performances, and I’ve got to start right at the top with Jimmy Franco. I think he’s a fine actor and his recent work in 127 Hours and Rise of the Planet of the Apes is evidence of that, but sometimes I feel his performances are a tad lax, a bit smarmy and somewhat mailed-in. This is the exact impression I got from his performance in Oz. It’s not an easy proposition playing a charming rogue in a PG feature where spectacle, CG and cartoon characters upstage you at every turn. A fully engaged and talented actor can power through this to make a memorable performance, but what Mr. Franco leaves the audience with is a collection of half-baked smiles and clueless faces. Chemistry with his CG travelling companions is nonexistent as he constantly talks down to them and ends just about every line of dialogue with an “are you kidding me?” expression on his face. Chemistry between him and all of the witches is hollow as he never fully commits positive energy to the good ones while never getting personal enough to despise the bad ones. Franco, perhaps, indulges his character’s personality a bit too well because Oz radiates mightier-than-thou arrogance in every scene that somehow reminded me of his co-hosting duties with Anne Hathaway during the Oscars a couple years back.

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It doesn’t get much more dangerous than this; which happens to be quite tame.

Rachael Weisz plays an effective villain in Evanora for this type of film which is determined to curtail the depiction of violence as much as possible. Weisz has certainly played much more vicious roles and while Evanora is clearly evil, her inability to cut loose hampers this character as well as her performance to the point that it comes off as quite flat and predictable. Mila Kunis’s Theodora has the widest range of emotions to cover which makes sense seeing how her character makes a considerable transformation. Eventually Kunis takes full advantage of an atrocious cackle inspired by her interpretation of Meg Griffin at the age of 80, but I was much more interested in her character when she was neutral in the entire conflict. Kunis has an uncanny ability to sell friendliness, but tends to make me smirk when she gets angry. She came the closest out of all the witches to shatter Franco’s demeanor of disinterested malaise. Michelle Williams provides genuine warmth in her performance as Glinda. Out of every human performance in Oz, hers is easily the most charismatic thanks to her sincere dialogue, soft voice and intimate gazes. Her contributions are most welcome in a production that lacks some uncompromising heart.

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Glinda actually is quite lovely.

Oz the Great and Powerfulis an ideal family film in that it is entertaining enough for everyone. Kids will have fun and they will be safe. Unfortunately, a Jack of all trades can never be a master of any, and the fact that this film pales in comparison to its masterful lineage is disappointing to me because of my love of The Wizard of Oz of 1939. I thought that it was an inspired notion to have a protagonist reconcile the difference between goodness and greatness because it is so common for those concepts to be considered directly connected. I just wished that this film actually cared about exploring that idea. On top of everything, I found almost no redeeming value in the character of Oz. Sure, he’s the main character, but he generates no sympathy. By the end of the film, he clearly becomes the hero and makes the right choice, but he was shamed into this choice rather than rising to meet it. I suppose a con artist will always be a con artist, so I suggest to you all to not be disappointed by the shallowness of Oz’s cool surface. What you see is all that you will get.

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The eventual sequels may involve more of this character.

Comic Book News Star Wars

The “DOC’s” Top Of The Pile for 3/13/2013

The Top Of The Pile

By: Chris “DOC” Bushley

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1. Sledge-Hammer 44 #1(of 2) (Dark Horse): Straight from the pages of Lobster Johnson: Iron Prometheus, comes the tale of Mike Mignola’s version of an “iron man!” What could U.S. troops in the middle of a warzone, surrounded by Nazis, use more than a little help from above? How about a bomb that encases the ultimate fighting machine?! This quirky Mignola tale melds WWII drama and sci-fi zaniness into the perfect story that will leave you begging for more!

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2. Batgirl #18 (DC): Even though the cover suggests that the issue will focus on the loss of Damian Wayne, this story barely touches on it but is a stunning tale just the same! Ray Fawkes creates a fantastic and eerily creepy tale of Batgirl’s sadistic brother, James Gordon Jr., playing mind games and hunting for prey as his sister deals with a bruised body and a broken heart. It is rich in character development and a true page turner that just might keep you up at night.

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3. The Walking Dead #108 (Image/Skybound): Robert Kirkman has been giving fans heart attacks with the last few issues — feigning the death of Carl will do that to a reader! This latest installment will give an insiders look at a bevy of characters thoughts on their new situation and expands on the ever growing world of TWD! I won’t give too much away but I will say, “Ezekiel has a tiger!” Nuff’ said!

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4. Star Wars #3 (Dark Horse): Brian Wood has created a fantastic series that feels more cannon than ANY of the prequel movies ever did! Focusing on the strength and determination of everyone’s favorite Princess, this series is a testament to Leia’s true leadership of the Rebellion and that she should NEVER be considered just a damsel in distress! All the original cast is there, no need for discussions or contracts in the world of comics, and this will bring you back to the wonderment of childhood and the amazing movies that shaped our lives from an early age.

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5. Avengers Arena #6 (Marvel): Okay, don’t let the cover throw ya, this book has some of the best characterization and dramatic scenes of any comics on the shelves today! Dennis Hopeless and Kev Walker have taken an over done concept and truly made it into something smart and original. Part Lord of the Flies part Hunger Games, this book is harrowing from front to back and it is something every good comic fan should check out more than once! Plus, this one has ANOTHER major death, who would have thought that, right?

Comic Book News

Review: The Walking Dead #108

The fate of Carl has, at least so far, been determined and all has turned right with the world again. Or so you think!

Robert Kirkman does what he does best in issue #108 of The Walking Dead. He has slowly built a story that is multi-faceted and wholly engaging! In this issue we begin to see an array of future possibilities, not only for Rick and Carl, but the entire cast of the book. Extremely character driven, Kirkman takes his time delving into the inner most thoughts of the group and some of it’s villains’.

There are some great moments in this issue, beginning with a few pages of Carl and Michonne building a rapport that fans of the AMC television series will surely appreciate! But, it is not just this fierce duo that takes the spotlight. A bevy of characters try to work through some emotional turmoil, creating an issue that truly immerses the reader into the inner workings of these characters. It is robust with dialogue, seasoned with all the gory action we have come to love and doused with a shocking revelation that, may or may not, bring the end to a brand new beginning.

Along with the surprises, Kirkman has also introduced not only some new characters, but essentially a whole other “world” in this issue. I do not want to spoil anything regarding this intriguing place but I will say, “Hail to the King!” It is somewhat amusing at first but once you have entered this “other realm”, your penchant for laughter will abruptly stop and you will be as enthralled and intrigued as you were the first time you read an issue of TWD!

It is a glorious time to be a fan of The Walking Dead and this issue goes to show that the possibilities for it’s continued growth are endless!

Comic Book News

Review: Shadowman #5

After saving the world and returning from the Deadside, Jack Boniface deserves a little time to relax and be himself again. Unfortunately, the Universe doesn’t rest and neither will Jack!

Justin Jordan and Patrick Zircher continue their quest to make one of the most exceptional books on the market! Shadowman is not only the culmination of two fantastic talents on one incredible story, it is the mingling of genres, horror and super hero, into a stunning read every month.

Jordan and Zircher take a step back from the all out action this month in order to delve deeper into the mythos of the Shadowman and the role that Jack must play as the new heir. For long time fans of the original series, it will be a delightful stroll down memory lane as glimpses of the past are merge with interesting new ideas converging into something truly original. For newer fans, this is the perfect issue to get acquainted with he rich history involved with Shadowman, a key issue into the future of the series. Old enemies take the spotlight while new, more violent characters make their own mark in the book. Valiant fans can also rejoice at the return of a character not seen in twenty years, albeit a wholly new version of it — Dr.Mirage!

As fascinating as Jordan and Zircher’s tale of discovery and loss is, the excitement level is turned up to eleven as some of the best artistic talent in comics bring their styles to the book! Lee Garbett, Stefano Guadiano and, my personal favorite, Roberto De La Torre descend upon this issue with their artistic fervor! Using their skills to differentiate the tale between the past, present and the story of Master Darque’s quest in Deadside, these superstars, along with Patrick Zircher, make this issue a masterpiece for the eyes! It is a delight for the senses, a rare treat that ascends the book to new levels! A fantastic tale laced with perfection!

Shadowman continues to excite, bewilder and intrigue readers with every issue, don’t you think you should become a fan too?!

Be bold, be daring, be — Valiant!

Comic Book News Marvel

Review: Age of Ultron #1

Bendis has finally released the tale of the Age of Ultron that was teased way back in 2009, but is it worth the hype that Marvel is giving it? In my eyes, no!

It is a tale that comics fans have seen time and time again, our heroes battered and broken on the run from some horrific enemy that has taken over the world. What once was the shinning example of staunch heroism has become a rag tag group of revolutionaries knocking on the door to oblivion. With little hope, they band themselves together to fight the despot and maybe one day, change the course of the future by standing up and fighting in the name of humanity.

Sound familiar? Yeah, I thought so.

The biggest difference to Bendis’ story is that it does not take place in some dystopian future. It is plainly stated on the first page that his tale is taking place in New York City, today! Which raises the question, “How did we get here?” The tale gives no clues to that, we find ourselves in the middle of a decimated New York with aged heroes fighting drug dealers and washed up villains like the Owl and Hammerhead. To be honest, this tale only follows Hawkeye on his quest to retrieve a fallen hero and his brutality with his weapons is all that makes it interesting.

There is little substance to make the reader interested in the hows and whys of the tale, not that we are given any, and it seems like a rehash of a tale we all have read a thousand times before. There is no heart to make us feel vested in our heroes, no emotional tug that pulls you along and certainly no “wow” factor for you to want to purchase the off shoot books that will be released enmasse in conjunction to the core book!

The only interesting factor to the book is the declaration on the first page. New York City — Today. What does that mean? The characters in the tale are older, more beaten, some have different costumes and have clearly been living in these conditions for years! So, I pose the question, “Does this tale actually take place in the Marvel 616 Universe?” Or, could this story actually take place in another one, another planet that is close in comparison to it but different? Hickman’s Avengers series’ has been posing the idea of multiple universes and planets colliding, so could Bendis’ story actually be an alternate version of Marvel 616? What about the Ultimate Universe? It’s will cease to exist soon and the rumors are that some characters will be coming to the 616, could this be their “ultimate” end? Who knows for now but it could be any of those options, especially since it is the only Marvel book without the Marvel NOW! moniker on it’s cover!

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All in all, this book fails to excite and intrigue the reader, posing no true reason to want to purchase the rest of the series. Bendis should have left his Avengers stories alone after he left the books, at least those felt original.

Comic Book News Marvel

Review: Superior Spider-Man #5

When Dan Slott first started his arc of replacing Peter Parker with the consciousness of Doc Ock, fans were enraged! I, for one, welcomed the change but thought Slott didn’t push the envelope enough. Instead it seemed like a watered down tale that amped up Doc Ock’s annoying persona more than anything!

Today, with the release of Superior Spider-Man #5, my hunger for a stronger tale has been satiated, though fans will be even more enraged than they were before!

The tale itself, Massacre going on a murder spree in downtown Manhattan just to glorify/defamate product placement, seems a little forced and contrived. Slott does however create interesting moments as he continues to build upon the genius that Doc Ock brings into the world of Peter Parker and Spider-Man. Using advanced technologies and what may appear as laziness, but in all actuality is a heightened sense of time management, this “superior” Spider-Man may actually live up to the moniker. Slott has this “new” character conceptualizing things the “old” Peter Parker never would have and it is quite intriguing seeing things through different eyes.

Although Slott creates a solid tale, it is the ending that is going to change how both fans and the entire Marvel U. see Spider-Man from now on! Slott pushes the boundaries of what the persona of Spider-Man would and would not do. “With great power comes great responsibility” is the corner stone of the Spidey mythos, but what if doing the responsible thing sometimes leads to more hurt and death? Are the lives of the innocent worth more than the life of a single murderer? Or, in this case, is the life of a murderer worth trying to save just because he finally shows some form of emotion after being caught?

It is a tough road that Slott has positioned his character on. One that will see ramifications throughout the rest of the series and throughout the Marvel Universe. It is a tale that I am completely intrigued for, one that has actually made me truly interested in following this character till the bitter end.

Well done Dan Slott, you have turned a cynic into a fan!

Comic Book News

The “DOC’s” Top Of The Pile for 3/6/2013

The Top Of The Pile

By: Chris “DOC” Bushley

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1. Hellboy: In Hell #4 (Dark Horse): Mike Mignola’s triumphant return to art chores on his creator owned character, Hellboy, has sent fans into a frenzy for this book! Mix in a deep, dark look at the history of where Hellboy truly came from and you have one of the best looking and powerfully story driven books on the racks today.

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2. Green Arrow #18 (DC): Jeff Lemire’s second issue of the floundering series, Green Arrow, has turned the book and it’s fan base on it’s head! Taking away everything Oliver Queen ever had as a crutch in his life, has made the character one that fans can now empathize with and root for. Lemire has pulled away all the pomp and flashiness that muddled this series and has created a book that is streamlined, gut-wrenching and completely enthralling! Become a fan all over again — today!

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3. Animal Man #18 (DC): Jeff Lemire hits the Top of the Pile for the second time this week with a harrowing tale that will change Buddy Baker’s world forever! After surviving a horrible possible future, Buddy gets a second chance to set the world right. Too bad not everyone will be able to see this new, brighter future! Jae Lee’s fantastic cover DOES NOT lie, folks! This one’s a doozy!

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4. Shadowman #5 (Valiant): Justin Jordan has put his new Shadowman character through the ringer in the first four issues! Well, now it’s time to learn more about the past and just what a Shadowman is. New characters [ like the return of Dr. Mirage after twenty years!] and ancient, deadly foes are introduced as well, creating the perfect amount of drama and intrigue. A fantastic read and the perfect jumping on point for any reader wishing that their comics were laced with perfection!

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5. Superior Spider-Man #5 (Marvel): Dan Slott has finally done what I have been hoping for since this book debuted — he pushed the character over the edge! Yes, this “new” Peter Parker might think he is superior but he just did the one thing the old Peter would never do and things will never be the same again! Let the roulette wheel of fun begin and let’s see how drastic Slott will change the status of Spider-Man in the Marvel U.! This one goes out with a BANG!

Movie News Reviews

Movie Review: Silver Linings Playbook (2012)

Crazy Good

A Film Review of Silver Linings Playbook

By: Lawrence Napoli

This film was released in theaters December 25^th of last year, and we are currently a week removed from the Academy Awards where Jennifer Lawrence officially, beyond any shadow of a doubt, was established as a serious, marquee actress who may be young and attractive, but has legitimate acting chops. Ms. Lawrence is the reigning best actress in a leading role for her part in Silver Linings Playbook, but I was surprised to see that this film still had multiple show times at the Regal Cinemas down the street. Films that come away with multiple Oscars do tend to get an extended run at theaters so in the post holiday months of lesser interesting releases, the timing was right to see the evidence. Spoiler alert: Little Miss Hunger Games deserved her Oscar gold as the film is a dialog driven drama that doesn’t have a lot of action or effects to produce entertainment through spectacle. This is an actor’s film and Ms. Lawrence joins a robust cast that brings a multitude of raw emotions to the forefront that is very entertaining, thoughtful and worthy of your hard earned dollars.

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Are you talkin’ to me?

David O. Russell is the writer/director of this film that deals with the difficulty of lesser mental disorders, and by “lesser” I mean anything that isn’t schizophrenia, multiple personality or Charles Manson-bag-of-cats-crazy. I’m talking about bi polar disorder, depression, post traumatic stress and diagnosed conditions of that ilk that don’t require the individual to be institutionalized to be treated. The approach Russell takes to the tenor of this story is much lighter than One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest, but is no less difficult to handle, especially from those affected by the collateral damage of a suffering individual. In fact, the story begins in a fairly heavy-handed manner to the point where I wondered how the humorous trailers that promoted this film would be integrated at all. Until it was and the balance between gravity and levity is maintained throughout which keeps the pacing up without feeling like it’s a dead sprint to the finish line thanks to moments of reflection.

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Taking a time out to teach white people rhythm.

I found it interesting how Russell related the struggles of Pat (Bradley Cooper) and his family to the city of Philadelphia and its love/hate relationship to its various sports franchises. Individuals and the connection they feel with “their team” could very easily be described as a subtle psychosis that may lead to bad behavior and this leads to some very fun comic moments in the film which explores the ritual of the fan and its relation to team success. The connection between the people of Philadelphia and its teams is undeniable and that history of disappointment and despair is a significant correlation with Pat’s personal struggle which introduces a familiarity to the audience and an easy opportunity to feel sympathy for everyone. Regardless of someone’s race, profession, position and mental stability, sports can bring people equilibrium in Philadelphia, but not necessarily passivity. As with Pat, the animosity and potential explosiveness always remains, but finding a means to deal with those emotions via positive outlook, exercise and positive relationships is the order of the day and carries a hopeful message throughout the entire story.

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I am not a crazy football fan!

The one weakness of this film happens to be the concept of character. The primary reason for this is that virtually every character is exposed for having some semblance of psychosis to them regardless of their perceived stability. Again, this leads to some funny moments, but also lumps everyone in the same boat which has an androgynous effect on the cast. For instance, the primary relationship between Bradley Cooper’s Pat and Jennifer Lawrence’s Tiffany is the engine for the whole movie, but they are both victims of stressful circumstance left volatile as a result of relationships ended under extreme duress. Sure, this leads the audience to identify this as an ironic “match made in heaven,” but also gives us a relationship between two characters that are too similar. Yes, every character deals with their feelings in different ways, but everyone releases their negative energy with violent outbursts. Perhaps it takes “crazy” to know “crazy,” but I would have liked a bit more separation.

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If I scream louder than you does that make me a better actor?

This, however, does not take anything away from the exceptional performance by the entire cast. Every acting category for Oscar gold is represented by an actor from this film. Chris Tucker, back from a 5 year hiatus from Hollywood since Rush Hour 3, lends a novel contribution to a fairly white-washed cast. He doesn’t come close to approaching his comic genius of Friday or Rush Hour, but shades of his deliver are felt whenever he pops up on screen and they always inspire a smile. Jackie Weaver plays Dolores, the mother of the family who is clearly at her wit’s end when it comes to holding her family together and while her performance is very admirable, could easily be summarized by varying displays of “deer in the headlights.” Her performance is heartfelt, but debatable when it comes to her Oscar nomination. Most of you will remember John Ortiz from Fast & Furious, but his role as Ronnie is easily the most hysterical because he opens up to “crazy” Pat whenever he appears and he reveals himself to be a bit crazier as he shifts from successful family man to stress-induced-life-crushing-his-soul-man seamlessly. Anupam Kher brings some stability as Pat’s psychologist Cliff Patel, but his transition from respectable doctor to raucous Philadelphia Eagle fan is amazing. And I cannot forget Robert De Niro as the father, Pat Sr. whose Oscar nominated performance in a supporting role was a perfect balance of drama and comedy and has a very touching moment when he attempts to connect with his son when the frustration of his ailment reaches its peak.

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These are not throw-away moments.

Bradley Cooper may not have won for best actor, but he is more than deserving of his nomination the effort he put forth in Silver Linings Playbook. His second collaboration with Robert De Niro required Cooper to run the entire gambit of human emotion, but he is required to be loud, obnoxious and aggressive for most of the movie. However, it is when his character makes a connection with his love interest, where Cooper’s ability to pull back and relay subtle moments of humility and self reflection where his true skill is on display. I did not particularly care for his Oscar clip showing one of his aggressive rants as evidence of his proficiency, but it gave the Academy Awards, as a show, a nice change of pace. Bradley Cooper is a fine leading man who will be considered for future dramatic roles, but I feel he needs a specific role to inspire a great performance similar to what Ray did for Jaime Fox’s career. Cooper may become a “great” actor one day, but he’s not quite there yet and there’s a difference between great actors and great performances.

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Crazy, sexy, chemistry.

Jennifer Lawrence; ‘nuff said. What else can be said of this young actress who seems to be doing it all right in her career thus far? Despite her excellent performance in this film, I still maintain her nomination for Winter’s Bone as a complete and utter fluke, but what she gives in Silver Linings Playbook is the furthest from. Again, her character is mirrored by Bradley Cooper’s in many ways, but there is something to her particular gaze on screen. It is difficult to describe, but I feel her character’s eyes like daggers, but she balances this piercing effect with inept frustration and defeated depression. Yes, she still looks and seems far too young for Bradley Cooper in this film (especially at the end in her Dancing With the Stars outfit), but this sentiment is negotiable. What sold her performance as Oscar worthy was not the collective of scenes she shared with Cooper, but her extended scene of contention with Robert De Niro and she does not back down for a single moment. Lawrence matches De Niro’s aggression and feeds off the energy they share in the moment. Any other 20-something actress would have probably been intimidated into a lesser performance.

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She’s the real deal.

Silver Linings Playbook is many things as a film. It is a good drama. It features fine performances. It has some thoughtful social commentary. It is a great “date night” movie. But it is also breaks the mold when it comes to prototypical film demographics. Having seen this film in the theaters two nights ago, I was stunned to see the seats filled at 80% capacity. I was also impressed by the makeup of the crowd as well. Certainly there was a healthy compliment of middle agers and seniors, but there was an equally significant showing of younger/teen women in the audience and that is 100% attributed to Jennifer Lawrence. As she progresses in her career, I predict she will have this similar kind of barrier breaking effect that will draw more men to her romantic comedies and more women to her action films (X-Men: First Class/Hunger Games). This is perhaps the greatest value in attaching Jennifer Lawrence to your cast. Silver Linings Playbook is truly worth checking out. You will be entertained and you will be impressed.

Comic Book News Marvel

Review: Guardians of the Galaxy 0.1 (Bendis & McNiven)

McNiven and Ponsor deliver a visual treat in

Comic Book News

The “DOC’s” Top Of The Pile for 2/27/2013

The Top Of The Pile

By: Chris “DOC” Bushley

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1. Teen Titans #17 (DC): In the aftermath of “The Death of the Family” storyline, these young heroes try to see the silver lining of everyday life. Unfortunately, the “Bat” family may not be the only one that is left broken. Things become more difficult as something is amiss with the Titans, plus, we see the return of the New 52 version of Raven — straight from the pages of Phantom Stranger! Great art and a solid read

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3. The Answer #2 (Dark Horse): This quirky, smart and original story will leave you asking more questions with every passing page! It is a book that doesn’t fall into the trappings of the “superhero” genre but expands upon it exponentially through fantastic ideas and whirlwind action. Just when you think you know what lies before you, you are spun into another direction entirely. If you are looking for something that is overtly fun and intriguing — The Answer is your answer!

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4. Uncanny Avengers #4 (Marvel): Rick Remender knows how to write on hell of an engaging story. From hostile social climates and intense political views, all the way down to classic fisticuffs that rock the page — this book is THE pinnacle of “superhero” books. Remender has such a deep knowledge of X-Men history that literally, every issue has some sort of nostalgic nuance to it. But Avenger fans need not fear, there are plenty of Cap shield wielding, Thor hammering and Scarlett Witch chaos magic to make you all happy! This is the best Avengers book on the shelves and you have Rick Remender to thank for it!

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5. Batman Incorporated #8 (DC): Yes, this issue is the death of Robin issue that everyone has been talking about! It deserves a place on your pull list, not only for the death of a great character but because of the general story as well. Full of “little” moments between the “Bat” characters, this issue builds up the emotional dial to eleven before the grand finale! Morrison may be wrapping things up for poor Damian Wayne, but he won’t let him go down without a fight! Cheers to one of the best characters created in the past decade, we’re gonna miss ya!

Comic Book News

Advanced Review: Batman Incorporated #8

Spoilers Ahoy!

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The cover was leaked and now everyone is talking about the harrowing details about this week’s Batman Incorporated #8! Even Al Roker from the Today Show led a segment regarding the death of Robin in the issue, by the way, Mr. Roker seems very well versed in the world of comics — color me impressed!

So, it is no secret about the death of another Robin, but how is the book overall? Let me tell you, Grant Morrison delivers a grand exodus for the most complex Robin ever created!

A hero is defined by his actions. Damian Wayne may have started out as just another would be assassin aimed at Batman but his growth as a character saw him become a fan-favorite and one of the most intriguing heroes to read. In issue #8 of Grant Morrison’s epic book about Wayne Enterprises and the legacy of Batman becoming a global conglomerate, we see for the very last time why Robin has acquired so many fans. It is a testament to how well constructed this character was, a true hero despite his villainous beginnings.

An extremely tense action drama unfolds before you as almost every Robin that ever was, stands against a barrage of Talia’s henchmen trying to take over Wayne Enterprises. It is a quickly paced tale that will ensnare you from the opening salvo and grab you by the heartstrings as the inevitable begins to unfold. Morrison layers in moments of emotional gold as he focuses in on the kinship of Damian and Nightwing, making the finale that much more devastating and personal to the reader.

Morrison’s send off of such a fantastic character is nothing less than pitch perfect. It is exactly the way one would perceive a character such as Damian to end, valiant in the face of danger but with a twinge of fear and regret as well. This is a book that will resonate with a lot of fans, regardless of all the hype it has been given — it truly is fantastic!

As the book begins, Damian asks a question, “What would you do without me, Grayson?” In return, I ask Grant Morrison this, “What will WE do without him, too?” Goodnight, Robin — you’ve earned your rest.

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Movie News Reviews

2013 Oscars: Results, Opinions & Fallout

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Oscar Fallout 2013

What the hell just happened?

By: Lawrence Napoli

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What can I say? Oscar night is a magical night. It’s my Super Bowl night and I was really anticipating the results of this evening because the films up for contention were much more interesting from top to bottom than last year. I was also intrigued to see how Seth MacFarlane would host such a gala event and his selection makes a lot of sense, right? He’s been celebrated for being the ring master behind Family Guy that has delivered countless laughs that poke fun at anything and everything, but particularly, the “ridiculousness” of American pop culture. In a way, his selection is quite ironic because The Academy Awards represent a hallmark in Americana that he wouldn’t mind completely ripping into for its elitism, shallowness, and plasticized prima facie. However, this stage represents an opportunity for his irreverent comedy to keep this show fresh and significant to the movie patrons of the future. Considering the extra attention this evening is receiving for the political films that are the frontrunners this evening, I fully expect a Brian Griffin moment from Seth where he makes an observation that is neither too hilarious, nor too poignant and everyone pauses for consideration. That being said, Seth will either soar with the eagles or crash and burn and melt and leave a really bad smell afterwards. How did it turn out? Read on Cosmic Book News faithful, read on.

[Red carpet observation: What was the deal with all the white girls getting the memo regarding the requirement to show up with equally white dresses? Noteworthy exceptions to this were Jennifer Anniston, Catherine Zeta Jones and Nicole Kidman.]

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Opening Ceremony

I really appreciated Seth’s rip on The Artist right off the bat. It also didn’t take long for Seth to get a few “ooo” moments for the jokes he made: Chris Brown/Rhianna. And then Captain Kirk appears? Ok so, it led into Seth’s first musical number (pre-recorded, but pretty funny about all the women we saw the boobs of), but the little dance number between Channing Tatum and Charlize Theron was unexpected, but completely adorable. Then Daniel Radcliffe, Joseph Gordon-Levitt and Seth perform a short rendition of “High Hopes.” Obviously Harry Potter has Broadway skills, but who knew Robin could sing, too? This led to a skit of MacFarlane hitting on Sally Field in a “Flying Nun” costume. Meh.

Octavia Spencer presents Best Supporting Actor – Christoph Waltz for Django Unchained

Big surprise #1. I really was not expecting this and I’m pretty sure no one else did either, but I guess someone has to continue feeding the Taratino machine that sweet sustenance of credibility. Shame on me, I didn’t see Django Unchained yet, but I’ve heard nothing but mixed reviews concerning it. That’s not a knock on Christoph Waltz who is deserving of such recognition based on the excellence he displayed in Inglorious Basterds. Still, this may be a sign to come that Lincoln the pre-show favorite to win it all, might be snubbed all together.

Paul Rudd and Melissa McCarthy present Best Animated Short Film – Paperman (John Kahrs).

What is it with comedians being earmarked for animated presentations? What is it with them totally flubbing what they have to say in the process? Rudd and McCarthy should have just played it straight because Paperman was one of the best animated shorts I’ve ever seen because it was quite touching in its simplicity and inspiring in its fantasy.

Best Animated Feature Film – Brave

What a surprise. Disney Pixar takes the category made for Disney Pixar films. Yawn. Moving on.

The Avengers Assemble! And they present Best Cinematography – Life of Pi (Claudio Miranda)

Please do take a box office bow, gentlemen. But where are the mighty Thor and the seductive Black Widow? Excellent live chemistry was displayed by the group in attendance led by Tony Stark himself. I just wished they could have been given more time to do their thing. Guess I’ll just have to wait for The Avengers 2. Good for Life of Pi, but the cinematography had better look great when the whole film is practically CGI.

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**They also present Best Visual Effects – Life of Pi (Bill Westenhofer and co.)**

I’m sure glad they brought The Avengers on the stage to be completely ignored by The Academy. I get the distinct impression that something very weird is happening and that weirdness could be Life of Pi winning a heck of a lot more than it was projected. Cue the orchestra for its first awkward play-off for a long running acceptance speech. The Jaws theme completely drowned out Westenhofer just in time for the camera to cut to Nicole Kidman who frowned in disapproval for the classless move. Still, everyone should have a go to “wrap up” comment to avoid being cut off.

**Jennifer Aniston and Channing Tatum present Best Costume Design – Anna Karenina (Jacqueline Durran)**

Jen welcomes Chan to the waxed actors club. Didn’t really need to know that one, but I’m glad a period piece won this award because they’re made to do exactly that.

**Best Makeup and Hairstyling – Les Misérables (Lisa Westcot and Julie Dartnell)**

Production value was big, big, business for Les Miz. Costumes in that film were very well done and I expect Oscar gold in production design for this film as well.

Halle Berry presents the 50^th Anniversary of James Bond

A nice little video montage of Bond’s greatest moments on film was nice, but nothing a freshman in college couldn’t compile on Final Cut Pro. But then Shirley Bassey comes out of the floor to sing the Goldfinger theme quite masterfully; so much so that her rendition surpasses the original in every, single way. You go girl! Standing O: deserved! Hopefully we get more of this with Adele waiting in the wings to do the Skyfall theme.

**Kerry Washington and Jaime Fox present Best Live Action Short Film – Curfew (Shawn Christensen).**

I understand the need to thank The Academy for supporting the more obscure categories such as this, but it would be better if The Academy showed some real love to this category by making some comprehensive programs for those interested to actually see these little nuggets of gold.

**Best Documentary Short – Inocente (Sean and Andrea Fine).**

So, the subject of this documentary was homeless last week and so shame on Hollywood for not getting artists like her seen and heard? How about shame on humanity for allowing atrocity like hunger and homelessness to exist anywhere! Look, I’m happy they won, but let’s have some solutions before pointing fingers.

**Ben Affleck thanks Seth for the constant ribbing and presents Best Documentary Feature – Searching for Sugar Man (Malik Bendjelloul and Simon Chin).**

I’m glad that the one documentary that didn’t cover absolutely depressing material won, but I really hate the Jaws theme being used (AGAIN) to play people off their speeches. It’s starting to get annoying.

[Best MacFarlane joke of the night so far: “The cast of Prometheus tells us, what the hell was going on there?”]

**Jennifer Garner and Jessica Chastain present Best Foreign Language Film – Amour (Austria).**

Yay Austria, but then Seth MacFarlane thanks the orchestra and there’s a moment where everyone thought he was joking about it as they played behind his presentation. One word: awkward.

Catherine Zeta Jones performs All That Jazz

If her singing was, in fact, live singing, then color me impressed. If she was just lip syncing it, oh well, everyone’s doing it and I’m less impressed. Still, she had to record it at some point.

Jennifer Hudson sings a number from Dream Girls

This number certainly sounded live because we could all hear her breaths as she swung the mic dramatically away from her mouth. Jennifer’s a professional singer and she won an Academy Award for acting as a singer in this movie, so it better be live because it certainly kicked all sorts of ass.

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**The cast of Les Misérables performs together.**

I really enjoyed the staging of this musical number which incorporated everyone’s entrance (and I mean EVERYONE) as they rallied around One Day More. Yeah, yeah, Russell Crowe still did his thing, but they sounded great as a collective. Screw you Adam Lambert. If you thought they were so terrible, get all your friends together and make your own musical adaptation.

**Mark Walhberg and Ted present Best Sound Mixing – Les Misérables (Andy Nelson and co.).**

I guess Ted had to do all the comic heavy lifting because Marky Mark was having none of it. It makes all the sense in the world that a film requiring the balance between sound, dialogue, sound effects and background music would win this award. No other film had such a heavy sound mixing burden.

**Best Sound Editing – WTF? (No BS, but a tie?) Zero Dark Thirty and Skyfall.**

I can’t remember a tie for an Oscar in recent memory and it only ever happened twice before: once in 1932 for the best actor and a second time in 1968 for best actress. And now it’s a third . . . for best sound editing?

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Christopher Plummer presents Best Supporting Actress – Anne Hathaway

Sitting next to her Les Miz costar, Hugh Jackman, Anne makes a nice gesture acknowledging every other nominee as well as the Wolverine himself. She got so much hype for winning this award, but it was hype well deserved because it was an amazing performance.

**Sandra Bullock presents Best Film Editing – Argo (William Goldenberg)**

It took a while for Argo to make any kind of splash but here it is. And speaking of firsts, people winning their first awards seems to be the theme of the evening. This doesn’t look good for the likes of Daniel Day Lewis.

Adele performs Skyfall

So we all know this song will win the Oscar later on in the evening right? I’d just like to make note of the fact that Adele sings so well in that voice when she’s as British as the day is long. Regardless, it was another inspired performance by a “true” singer which is actually better than the recorded version for the film.

**Daniel Radcliffe and Kristen Stewart present Best Production Design – Lincoln (Rick Carter and Jim Erikson).**

Another Oscar frontrunner picks up its first award and although this film did not involve any fantastic settings or highly stylize set pieces, the effectiveness of the production design was no less impactful. By the way, if Stewart injured herself some way, why is she determined to hobble around like the walking dead (pun intended)? Her constant grimacing was kind of annoying, so let’s get her some assistance and I don’t just mean from the Actor’s Studio.

George Clooney presents In Memoriam

The obvious somber moment of the evening plays out like normal, but then opens up to Barbara Streisand singing Memories as only she can. All that can be said is that she gave us all a beautiful and heartfelt performance. Streisand is the epitome of dignity and class.

**Some of the cast of Chicago present Best Musical Score – Life of Pi (Mychael Danna).**

Chalk up another for the Ang Lee’s production, but it is unfortunate that no one on his cast or crew can pronounce his name correctly. Pi is seems unstoppable at this point.

Best Original Song – Adele’s Skyfall

Good for Adele, but once again, no surprise here. Anyone else signing this song, however, doesn’t bring the attention required to take home the victory.

**Charlize Theron and Dustin Hoffman present Best Adapted Screenplay – Argo (Chris Terrio).**

Argo’s writer makes the first political statement of the evening giving a nod to nonviolent means of solving international problems. Perhaps that message will get across to the US government, but it is not this day.

**Best Original Screenplay – Django Unchained (Quentin Tarantino).**

Nice leather tie Q. It was an interesting move to thank the power of his characters for his writing. Although I will say that this year’s films were certainly better overall than last year’s, but I’m not necessarily thinking that this year was, in fact, the year for the writers. Battleship and John Carter still happened this past year. What about them?

**Michael Douglas and Jane Fonda present Best Director – Ang Lee (Life of Pi).**

Yes! More redemption for the terrible Hulk. With so many awards going Pi’s way, this really wasn’t a surprise. Thanking Taiwan is interesting in that it’s dangerously close to thanking our good buddies in China who are having a blast hacking our databases for industrial espionage, crushing our economy with slave labor and probably prepping for WW III. How much money do you think Lee’s production paid his two crews in India and Taiwan?

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**Jean Dujardin presents Best Actress – Jennifer Lawrence (Silver Linings Playbook).**

Holy *ucking sh*t! Don’t get me wrong, I love Jennifer, but wow. She had the hype, she had The Hunger Games and she has the whole of Hollywood eating out of the palm of her hand. She is talented, she is capable, but she better not screw up the good fortune she’s found early on in her career. Many actors have long careers with zero recognition and honorary Oscars do not count. Christopher Plummer taught me that. Good for you Jennifer, but you still have two more Hunger Games to muddle through.

Meryl Streep presents Best Actor – Daniel Day Lewis.

About damn time! The most deserving winner for the most perfect category: this man became Abraham Lincoln. No one else can claim this level of immersion. Daniel offered up the best acceptance speech of the evening with a good dose of comedy. Cheers Daniel! Keep making and taking incredible roles.

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**Jack Nicholson presents Michele Obama who both present Best Picture – Argo (Ben Affleck and co.).**

Ben’s co-producers took a specific time out to thank and re-thank Ben Affleck for his directing contributions to the film as a final “stick it” to The Academy. Argo is deserving of this victory because of the story. Please refer to my review concerning the historical accuracy of the actual event, but I don’t care if it was or wasn’t. I want to be entertained and if the story is compelling enough, I will do research to find the “real” real story.

The Host?

Let’s make this quick. Seth did not sink or swim. He did not exactly impress, but he did a respectable job. All of his jokes simply took jabs at anyone in attendance and I was expecting some evolution of that strategy during the show. It wasn’t terrible, but it got boring at times. He did not succumb to the temptation of breaking into Family Guy voices at all. That’s saying something, I guess.

The Big Loser

Zero Dark Thirty. This movie should have gone home with absolutely nothing because sharing a tie for best sound editing, of all categories, seems like a door prize. James Bond took home more Oscars than Kathryn Bigelow’s production this year.

The Big Winner

This was a little more difficult to arbitrarily designate, but it has to be Argo. Certainly Life of Pi won a lot and for a while, it looked like it could go all the way. But, the controversy of Argo as a production makes for a better story, right? If it were nominated for more categories, it probably would have taken home more gold. I’m just glad Affleck didn’t bust into his kegger acceptance speech from Good Will Hunting. He came close, but pulled it back.

The Wrap Up

There were some twists and turns, some surprises and “no duh’s,” but overall I think this was a successful Academy Awards. It’s still too long and there’s no way to address this issue without seriously thinking about cutting categories that get live presentations during the show or perhaps losing the musical performances. I’d prefer the former because the performances really do add quality entertainment value. At the same time, I really hate the orchestra playing people off with Jaws. How about adding an “enhanced experience” for people to follow at home on their computers, tablets or smart phones to experience some of the trimmed fat in future shows?

Did your favorites win? Does The Academy have a clue? Do you just want Jennifer Lawrence’s phone number? Hollywood can still make amazing films when it wants to, so hopefully we can see better films at the theatres and when that happens, I hope to see you at the movies.

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Comic Book News

Review: Justice League Of America #1

There is something amiss in the DCU. The Justice League, a team that has been put on a pedestal by the general public, has been falling out of favor with the U.S. government. Mostly resulting from the ramifications of the attack by Atlantis, the Justice League now finds itself with a target on it’s back, one that has been put there by the same people that helped to back them in the first place. Now, another team has been put into play, and this one has been hand picked to take the Justice League down!

Blockbuster scribe Geoff Johns and fan-favorite artist David Finch have come together to give us a tale of deep intrigue, covert operations and betrayal that will both excite and captivate readers. Though the general outline of the story has been done many times before -government covert ops set up a team of super powered individuals to take down other super powered individuals – it is the structure and scope of the tale that will entice readers to dive into the series wholeheartedly. Through flashback sequences mingled with aspects happening in the present, Johns builds a powerful story of a manipulative Amanda Waller that will not take no for an answer as she builds her ultimate team to become the poster child of the U.S.. government.

The tale is steeped in collusion, bringing some fan-favorite characters back into the DCU in completely new ways and bringing them to the forefront, whether they like it or not. Personally, it was a pleasure just to see Star Girl and Hawkman in the same book once again, and although they have become foreign to me in their New 52 incarnations, they are as exciting to me now as they were the first time I read them in James Robinson and David Goyer’s JSA #1 in 1999! But the character to watch will be Vibe — I know, I can’t believe I said it either! With a completely new origin, Vibe has the potential to become a truly fantastic character and one that will far surpass it’s previous incarnation.

Although Johns weaves a fantastic first issue of beguilement, it is David Finch’s artistic duties that catapults this book further than it would have reached with a lesser talent. His work on Avengers was great but this is truly something special! Darker and using slightly different techniques to diversify the core characters, Finch has given his all for this book. He has gone from a well rounded penciler to an outstanding artist that will tantalize the eyes.

As “set-up” issues go, it is outstanding and will envelop you into Johns’ vision of the new JLA! His opening salvo into a darker era is intense and exceptional while his choices for the team and the reasoning behind them are fantastic, if not somewhat diabolical. I can’t wait for everyone to see who is chosen to take out whom, it will definitely light up the message boards! So, choose your individual state flag cover and get to reading!

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PART 2

PART 3

Oscar Fallout 2013

Opening Ceremony

Octavia Spencer presents Best Supporting Actor – Christoph Waltz for Django Unchained

Paul Rudd and Melissa McCarthy present Best Animated Short Film – Paperman (John Kahrs).

Best Animated Feature Film – Brave

The Avengers Assemble! And they present Best Cinematography – Life of Pi (Claudio Miranda)

They also present Best Visual Effects – Life of Pi (Bill Westenhofer and co.)

Jennifer Aniston and Channing Tatum present Best Costume Design – Anna Karenina (Jacqueline Durran)

Best Makeup and Hairstyling – Les Misérables (Lisa Westcot and Julie Dartnell)

Halle Berry presents the 50th Anniversary of James Bond

Kerry Washington and Jaime Fox present Best Live Action Short Film – Curfew (Shawn Christensen).

Best Documentary Short – Inocente (Sean and Andrea Fine).

Ben Affleck thanks Seth for the constant ribbing and presents Best Documentary Feature – Searching for Sugar Man (Malik Bendjelloul and Simon Chin).

Jennifer Garner and Jessica Chastain present Best Foreign Language Film – Amour (Austria).

Catherine Zeta Jones performs All That Jazz

Jennifer Hudson sings a number from Dream Girls

The cast of Les Misérables performs together.

Mark Walhberg and Ted present Best Sound Mixing – Les Misérables (Andy Nelson and co.).

Best Sound Editing – WTF? (No BS, but a tie?) Zero Dark Thirty and Skyfall.

Christopher Plummer presents Best Supporting Actress – Anne Hathaway

Sandra Bullock presents Best Film Editing – Argo (William Goldenberg)

Adele performs Skyfall

Daniel Radcliffe and Kristen Stewart present Best Production Design – Lincoln (Rick Carter and Jim Erikson).

George Clooney presents In Memoriam

Some of the cast of Chicago present Best Musical Score – Life of Pi (Mychael Danna).

Best Original Song – Adele’s Skyfall

Charlize Theron and Dustin Hoffman present Best Adapted Screenplay – Argo (Chris Terrio).

Best Original Screenplay – Django Unchained (Quentin Tarantino).

Michael Douglas and Jane Fonda present Best Director – Ang Lee (Life of Pi).

Jean Dujardin presents Best Actress – Jennifer Lawrence (Silver Linings Playbook).

Meryl Streep presents Best Actor – Daniel Day Lewis.

Jack Nicholson presents Michele Obama who both present Best Picture – Argo (Ben Affleck and co.).

The Host?

The Big Loser

The Big Winner

The Wrap Up

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**They also present Best Visual Effects – Life of Pi (Bill Westenhofer and co.)**

**Jennifer Aniston and Channing Tatum present Best Costume Design – Anna Karenina (Jacqueline Durran)**

**Best Makeup and Hairstyling – Les Misérables (Lisa Westcot and Julie Dartnell)**

Halle Berry presents the 50^th Anniversary of James Bond

**Kerry Washington and Jaime Fox present Best Live Action Short Film – Curfew (Shawn Christensen).**

**Best Documentary Short – Inocente (Sean and Andrea Fine).**

**Ben Affleck thanks Seth for the constant ribbing and presents Best Documentary Feature – Searching for Sugar Man (Malik Bendjelloul and Simon Chin).**

**Jennifer Garner and Jessica Chastain present Best Foreign Language Film – Amour (Austria).**

**The cast of Les Misérables performs together.**

**Mark Walhberg and Ted present Best Sound Mixing – Les Misérables (Andy Nelson and co.).**

**Best Sound Editing – WTF? (No BS, but a tie?) Zero Dark Thirty and Skyfall.**

**Sandra Bullock presents Best Film Editing – Argo (William Goldenberg)**

**Daniel Radcliffe and Kristen Stewart present Best Production Design – Lincoln (Rick Carter and Jim Erikson).**

**Some of the cast of Chicago present Best Musical Score – Life of Pi (Mychael Danna).**

**Charlize Theron and Dustin Hoffman present Best Adapted Screenplay – Argo (Chris Terrio).**

**Best Original Screenplay – Django Unchained (Quentin Tarantino).**

**Michael Douglas and Jane Fonda present Best Director – Ang Lee (Life of Pi).**

**Jean Dujardin presents Best Actress – Jennifer Lawrence (Silver Linings Playbook).**

**Jack Nicholson presents Michele Obama who both present Best Picture – Argo (Ben Affleck and co.).**