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Comic Review: The Crazies series 1-4
It's about to get a little... crazy.
The recent release of the new zombie horror flick The Crazies has spawned a series of side-story comics based on the universe created by the hit film. Published by American Original and Top Cow Comics, each issue offers a unique story from the point of view of one of the secondary characters featured in the film. Each comic is named after one of the connecting waterways that provide Ogden Marsh’s water supply as well as deliver the toxin “Trixie” that changes the citizens into The Crazies.
Issue one, called “Hopman Bog” is penciled by Jon Buran with a cover by Jeffrey Apokes and written by Ivan Brandon. It provides a brief description of how the toxin enters the area of Ogden Marsh and begins affecting the residents. It primarily focuses on the pig farmer Rory, but also introduces the hunters Nathan, Jesse and Red who also show up later in the series. It’s a good introduction to the series but doesn’t dive very deep into the Crazies universe or show how Rory’s story ends.
Issue two is written by Brian Reed and drawn by Hugo Petrus with a cover by Tom Feister. It’s called “Dwyer Creek” and follows Bill Farnum, a cow farmer living in Ogden Marsh. He gets the toxin from one of his cows and his slow descent into madness is truly frightening. What he does to his family in the end is unimaginable and it makes this issue a must read above the others in this series. Read and witness it, but be warned, it’s borderline sickening.
Issue three, called “Black Pond” is written by Marc Andreyko and drawn by Vincent Spencer with a cover by Frazier Irving. It focuses entirely on Charlie Finly, the town’s mortician, as he begins to inspect the increasing number of bodies that show up due to the toxin. He slips on a stitch and pierces his finger with the needle and becomes infected. I felt that the art and story in this issue was the worst in the series. I didn’t like the thick lined drawings and there was a lot less detail in the characters present. The story felt like a copy of the themes present in issue two, but with less bite.
The last issue, “Ogden Marsh,” is written by Joshua Hale Fialkov and drawn by Rahsan Ekedal with the cover drawn by Ben Templesmith. It follows the same hunters from issue one, Nathan, Jesse and Red, as they unleash the fury on the horde of infected in Ogden Marsh. The hunters begin to attack more than the infected and begin to collect the dead as trophies. There’s a nice twist in the end that really makes this one of the better issues. The issue also features a heavier amount of action throughout which is a welcome departure from the rest of the series.
Overall
The Crazies comic series is a great addition to the film. Each of the minor characters shown here really flesh out further details of the how the toxin affects the citizens in the film. As a separate entity, the comics are good, but as a supplement to the movie, they’re great.
ComicsOnline gives The Crazies comic series one-four 4 out of 5 bites from a pig.
Keep it here at ComicsOnline.com for more comic reviews and everything geek pop culture.
CC 2010:Students Of The Unusual and Visionary Comics
WWE's Jerry "The King" Lawler and a fan
I talk to quite a few of the small presses at Comic Con, and the majority has nothing new or interesting to hook me with. Most seem to have very little in the long range plan department, tell me how to buy their stuff on line, or are simply rehashes of someone else’s good idea. So I ran across an interesting small press booth while wandering aimlessly around the floor. This booth was shared by two publishers, Students of the Unusual and Visionary Comics.
Students of the Unusual(http://www.studentsoftheunusual.com/) were handing out a free, single sheet comic by comic veteran Allen Bellman, and promoting the comic Students of the Unusual, TV show Adventure Chefs (http://www.adventure-chefs.com/) and novel The Investigator: Tramp Stamp. I picked up the first issue of Students of the Unknown and was pleasantly surprised by the diversity of the stories in another horror anthology. The stories are written by Terry Cronin and illustrated by a variety of artists. The stories range in length from two pages to eight pages, and cover a variety of subjects. The nice thing is that these stories appeal to a broader audience than those with a mature content. There’s even an ongoing story named Recalcitrant Jones and the Deadbeats, about a young man that sells his soul for a great back-up band, made up of Elvis, Janis, Keith, and of course Jimi. This is a well rounded anthology with a variety of themes and art, and even though it is written for the masses it is a good fun read. Students of the Unusual may be for most people and it definitely for me.
ComicsOnline.com gives Students of the Unusual 4 ½ Learners of the Odd out of 5.
Visionary Comics(http://www.visionarycomics.com/) was promoting their comic about the wrestling industry, Headlocked. To help promote this WWE’s Jerry”The King” Lawler and TNA’s “Fallen Angel” Christopher Daniels were on hand. Comic Con exclusive issue #1 of Headlocked has an introduction by Christopher Daniels and The King illustrated the cover. In this ongoing tale a young man, Mike Hartmann has decided to drop out of school to become a professional wrestler, much to the chagrin of his friends and family. This book doesn’t glamorize the industry, but instead tells a brutal, realistic tale of breaking into the world of the professional wrestler. Being a wrestling fan myself, I’ve seen the documentaries and heard the stories, and this tale rings with more truth than expected.
I spoke briefly to Jerry Lawler about the book and he told me that there are a great many wrestlers that are serious comic book fans. The names of Rob Van Dam, Jeff Hardy, Raven, Gregory “Hurricane” Helms, Christopher Daniels, Edge, and The King himself came up as being comic book fans. This story gives the wrestling community a chance to be a part of the comic book community they love. This comic is a must for the professional wrestling fan, and while it may not appeal to everyone, it appeals to me.
ComicsOnline.com gives Headlocked 4 piledrivers out of 5.
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CC09 - Daily Podcasts - Preview Night!
Check out the first of our daily Comic Con 2009 podcasts at:
http://www.comicsonline.com/podcast.rss
Please note that iTunes may lag behind for about 24 hours, so for the latest you can always subscribe right from the source at the above link!
CC09 - Kevin Eastman Panel
It was upsetting to learn that the show that I thought of as my own in my formative years started as a joke. 25 years ago, Kevin Eastman co-created the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles as a mockery of the ridiculous, over-the-top TV shows and comics of the day. Now a 47 year old father, he discussed the creation and legacy of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, as well as his current projects at his panel at this year’s San Diego Comic-Con (which he has faithfully attended since 1986).
Eastman pleased the crowed by focusing the majority of the panel on what he’s best known for, the Ninja Turtles. This is despite the fact that he was referencing the characters that inspired so much of the audience’s apparel as the “dumbest thing we could think of”. All of his joking aside, it was inspiring to see him so proud of the characters he created long ago that have gone through so many transformations through just about every form of media. He is now busy with numerous new projects, including owning and publishing Heavy Metal Magazine.
Eastman is the Executive Producer of Heavy Metal’s new animated feature, War of the Worlds: Goliath. The movie is a steampunk-inspired story about a crew of soldiers fighting against an alien threat. Completely independent and set for a DVD-only release, the majority of the movie’s production was done in Malaysia. Kevin Eastman barely touched on, to the dismay of fans, the new official Heavy Metal movie, a follow up to Heavy Metal 2000 and the 1981 classic, Heavy Metal.
For an interview with Kevin Eastman, check out ComicsOnline Podcast Season 9 Episode 11.
CC09 - Waiting for the Con to Open
Chelsea Drew and Alexee don the ComicsOnline Comic Con 2009 colors and await the start of Preview night.
ComicsOnline has a TON of great coverage in store for you including:
-Interviews with the creators and stars of a vast array of comics, TV, and movies.
-Exclusive info on LOST
-Daily interview roundup Podcasts
-and Matt is Moderating the Spectacular Spider-Man Panel!
Keep checking back here for all the latest from Comic Con 2009!
CC09: Photos from Thursday
Here are some photos from the convention.
From the movie Kick-Ass, Christopher Mintz-Plasse and Clark Duke.
click read more for more photo's from Thursday.
Kristen Bell and Freddie Highmore talked about their involvement with the movie Astro Boy.
Antje Traue and Ben Foster talked about the movie Pandorum.
James Cameron, and Sigourney Weaver talked about James Cameron's Avatar.
Some shots of the exhibit hall from the Terrace level of the convention center.
The line for Hall H.
And a couple more booth babes.
CC09: Preview night photos
To begin, a few of the Booth Babes that were there.
A few of the costumes.
And some of the exhibits in the Exhibit hall.
More photos from the Con will be coming soon.
Comic Con 2009: The Middleman Interviews
Fans at Comic-Con were treated to something very special today: The FULL cast reunion of The Middleman TV Series for a once in a lifetime readthrough of the unaired series finale "The Middleman – The Doomsday Armageddon Apocalypse ". Following the readthrough ComicsOnline got to speak with Natalie Morales (Wendy Watson), Matt Keeslar (The Middleman), and director Javier Grillo-Marxuach to talk about some of the remaining unanswered questions.
The following video contains spoilers for The Middleman and the remaining 13th episode. Enjoy!
Comic News: Mecha-Nation (Exclusive Interview with Greg Guler)
Mecha-Nation follows five young high school students who find that they have amazing new abilities and can transform into a new robotic fighing force for good. This team consists of Kevin (Stealth), Susie (Fahrenheit), Zahra (Charge), Ray (Tank) and Marcus (Blast).
This brand new series is distributed by Ape Entertainment and is a collaboration between Victor Cook, Greg Weisman and Greg Guler.
We had a chance to speak with Greg Guler about the project:
CO: What has been your main influence or inspiration for this series?
GG: Well, I think like Vic Cook and Greg Weisman, I was highly influenced by the superhero groups that I read about in the comics for years. Comics such as the Justice League and others really had a great impact about how group dynamics and diverse characters could create compelling stories with creative and edgy graphic appeal. I was greatly influenced as an artist by artists like Will Eisner, Neal Adams and Jack Kirby and I would have to say that all of these great artists came into the development of Mecha-Nation. I think the combination of the cartoony and dramatic styles of Eisner and Kirby really had a lot to do with the ultimate look of Mecha-Nation. Vic and I agreed that we wanted the look to be something that would easily be used in a number of medias with a simple and graphic look. I always thought the tone of the thing was a bit like X-Files, with it's dark tone and intricate story line, and I wanted a style that could be one thing on the surface but could easily turn darker if necessary.
CO: Everyone had a group that they associated closely with while in high-school. Which of these characters do you think you associate with?
GG: I guess it would have to be Marcus, the comic book geek. I can't really associate much with the new kid, the cheerleader, the goth or the rocker. Sadly, I wasn't as smart as Marcus is, but I was, and still am interested in comics, science fiction and movies. It was my big ambition to draw comics professionally, which I eventually did for a number of companies.
CO: What has been your biggest challenge with developing these characters?
GG: The biggest challenge on a new project is to do your best to make it unique and as original as you can. You want to give the audience something that it has never seen before-something fresh and exciting, with a style all it's own. As far as the look of Mecha-Nation goes, Vic and I tried to to do something that was innovative yet with a sense of the familiar so that the audience could get on board with the stories we wanted to tell. We tried to keep the characters simple, but stylized, making then easier to animate and draw but giving them a bold graphic look. It's always a challenge not to be a me-too product and we thought that a unique look would help with that. As development went on I came up with little bits of design that supported the concept of the project. One of the main plot points in Mecha-Nation is that out main characters are slowly being transformed against their will into unfeeling robots and so I used the idea that they should have an indication of circuits on their bodies when they have transformed into their "metaled out" forms. The idea that as they continue to transform the circuitry would become more pronounced until they have been completely changed into robots, a bit like a disease effecting them. Stealth being able to open like a Swiss Army knife was also an idea that I used to graphically show the audience the kind of being he was turning into and how dangerous he could truly be.. Each of the characters have these kind of elements to telegraph what may lead down the road for them, and that it might not be pretty. Each character needed their niche, and we wanted to insure their individuality in how they looked as well as how they how they are written. Greg Weisman really brought a lot to the table with the "freaks and geeks" concept which really helped in my thinking about these concepts. The biggest challenge for the comic version was to create designs for what we call the "First Wavers", who are an earlier generation of Mecha-sapiens than our kids...Time, which always seen to be an issue in projects like these, was short and it was important to make the look of these new characters connect with out kids and still be unique. In a very short period of time I designed these "First wavers", as well as almost all of the new incidental characters for the comic book version of Mecha-Nation.
CO: What has been your personal highlight on this project?
GG: Although Greg, Vic and I have worked together over the years on various animation projects, this is the first we have done together that was an original idea. It's a lot of fun to brain storm on a project like this where you feel you can throw out any idea and have it considered. That kind of freedom really can lead to great things from a creative stand point. Thats not to say we don't give each other a bit of grief if the idea is really bad, but even a bad idea can be worked around to a really great one. It's fun to be involved from the ground up in developing an entire project- from early concepts to published work, and it's satisfying to have something turn out the way you personally envision it and to have other people appreciate it. I'm really looking forward to the comic book series coming out published by Ape Entertainment and what people will think of Mecha-Nation.
Mecha-Nation will be available in stores in July.
Stay tuned to ComicsOnline for more news on Mecha-Nation!
Comic Review: Blood Factory
The Blood Factory
While cruising the dealers’ floor at Comic Con, I came across several exhibits of interest. I want to review what was probably the most unusual booth I saw at the convention – The Blood Factory. The first thing you notice is the prop where a person gets in this table with their upper bodies visible, their lower bodies hidden behind a fleshless, dismembered lower body. This was a popular stop and always had a line of patrons waiting to imitate a victim. But there is more to The Blood Factory then a fun effect and pretty lab assistants.
The Blood Factory is a dual media project spearheaded by Danny DeVito. On the Internet front, The Blood Factory (http://www.thebloodfactory.com/) is a series of short horror films directed by Danny DeVito and written by John Albo. Several minutes in length, these are in-your-face scares. There’s no build up, no character development and no frills. And that’s what makes these shorts scary, the fact that you don’t expect the horror to start so soon. And the subject matter is disturbing; delusions, fanaticism, incest, and cannibalism to name a few.
The other medium is a comic book, also called The Blood Factory, that illustrates the short movies in beautifully painted panel form. The artist, Nicholas Bonamy, has hand-painted both volumes and a third is in the works as I write this. I enjoyed these comics and to me are similar to the old 50’s EC horror anthologies. Disturbing, yet reminiscent of the classic horror comic.
I found the whole concept extremely well done, and the mix of two mediums works well to complement each other. I questioned Danny Devito’s involvement with the project; after all, he’s a comedian isn’t he? But Nicholas pointed out that he was also involved in some dark projects, such as Throw Mama from the Train, War of the Roses, and, in my opinion, a pretty good Penguin. The Blood Factory is a unique project that is loaded with talent and potential in their short bursts of horror. The Blood Factory will not be for everyone, but it’s for me.
ComicsOnline.com gives The Blood Factory 4 mixed media projects out of 5.
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Comics News: New Teaser Trailer for BKgtH Available!
Check out the new comic trailer for Bad Kids go to Hell! Whether you're already a fan of the series or looking for a more badass version of The Breakfast Club, you won't be disappointed!
For more information, head on over to the official website.
Keep comin' back to ComicsOnline for more comics news and everything geek pop culture!
DC
Comic Review: Justice League of America #41
Justice League of America 41
Penciled by Mark Bagley and Written by James Robinson
I have to say that Justice League of America has been such a disappointment to me for a year or more. They started this series out with so much power and promise. Brad Meltzer wrote an incredibly too short run on this book and Dwayne McDuffie tried to keep it going, but it just wasn't the same. Len Wein's story involving Amos Fortune and Roulette was really a snooze.
To be fair, some of this might be attributed to the availability (or lack thereof) the "big shots". Batman is "dead", Superman is stationed on New Krypton and The Flash is - well - complicated right now, since DC is rebirthing him and I doubt they want to commit him to the team until that's complete. Also, Green Lantern is fighting the Blackest Night throughout almost every book in the DC comics line.
That left us with Vixen, Dr. Light, Zatana, Plastic Man, Firestorm and whoever DC decided they could borrow from the Milestone books to fill the gaps.
Blackest Night seems to have done enough to take Zatana, Plastic Man and Firestorm out of the picture.
(Sarcastically) Thank goodness James Robinson has been writing another Justice League book with it's own team of heroes committed to Justice.
Now, let me pause to tell you I loved James Robinson's The Golden Age Starman and I have even enjoyed his Justice League story with its diverse line up.
Issue 41 seems to want to reunite the Robinson offshoot team with the remaining members while also recruiting the current stand-ins for Batman and Superman, aka Mon-el, Dick Grayson and a few adult titans for good measure.
Does this seem a bit wacky? Dr. Light, Congorilla, a Starman, Green Lantern Hal, Green Arrow Ollie, Starfire, Cyborg, Batman, Donna Troy and Mon-el.
Well, the entire issue is a recruitment issue.
I like Mark Bagley's art but I just don't feel it fits Justice League.
Overall, I feel the entire issue was blah. Decent art, introduction story with a few too many whiny characters and not enough to compell me.
The book needed Gleek the Monkey. I'm kidding, I think.
ComicsOnline gives Justice League of America #41 2 out of 5 Blue Guffawing Monkeys in yellow and purple spandex.
Comics News: Andrea Romano discusses directing all-star voices behind Justice League-Crisis on Two Earths
To save our world and all those like it, Superman, Batman and their caped colleagues must go toe-to-toe with their evil mirror images in Justice League: Crisis on Two Earths, an all-new DC Universe Animated Original PG-13 Movie coming February 23, 2010 from Warner Premiere, DC Comics and Warner Bros. Animation. Check out an interview with director Andrea Romano!
The stars come out for Andrea Romano.
You need a voice echoing the All-American trust of Superman? Romano gets Mark Harmon for his maiden voyage in animation. You’re seeking a subtly evil performance as the intelligent-bordering-on-insane Owlman? James Woods is willing to do it from a little booth in Rhode Island.
Whatever the role, no matter the production, actors push aside their Oscars, Emmys and Tonys to step behind the microphone and “play” with Romano.
Justice League: Crisis on Two Earths is the seventh entry in the ongoing series of DC Universe animated original PG-13 movies, and each has featured all-star casts with Romano at the reigns. From Neil Patrick Harris, Brooke Shields and Alfred Molina to Virginia Madsen, Nathan Fillion and Kyra Sedgwick (to name but a few), Romano’s casts are packed with the faces normally reserved for lead roles in feature films and primetime television series.
In addition to Harmon (NCIS) as Superman and Woods (Mississippi Burning) as Owlman, Justice League: Crisis on Two Earths features the voices of Chris Noth (Law & Order, Sex and the City) as Lex Luthor, William Baldwin (Dirty Sexy Money) as Batman, Gina Torres (Firefly/Serenity) as Superwoman and Bruce Davison (X-Men) as President Wilson.
Romano has been one of the driving forces in animation voiceovers for more than a quarter century, amassing a list of credits that range from dramatic (Batman: The Animated Series) to silly (Animaniacs) to hip (The Boondocks) and timeless (Smurfs). The six-time Emmy Award winner (and 20-time nominee) has not only set the standard by which industry veterans measure the art, but she has become a household name to animation fans across the globe, regularly drawing standing ovations and endless applause during her annual Con appearances.
Warner Home Video will distribute the full-length animated Justice League: Crisis on Two Earthson February 23 as a Special Edition 2-disc version on DVD and Blu-Ray™ Hi-Def, as well as single disc DVD, and On Demand and Download.
Romano found time in her busier-than-you’d-ever-believe schedule to discuss the cast of Justice League: Crisis on Two Earths. The questions are simple, but the answers are pure Andrea Romano. Take a read …
Andrea Romano and William Baldwin.
QUESTION:
James Woods has quite the resume, including plenty of animation experience. How is it that you had not worked with him until now?
ANDREA ROMANO:
I’ve been a huge fan of James Woods and wanted to work with him for years. We actually had a Justice League production about five years ago that we had him booked for, and then the plug got pulled on the project. I’ve been waiting for something else for him ever since – and then Owlman came along, a perfect role for him.
We had to record him long distance, and his performance was very, very subtle – so much so that I was worried that it wasn’t going to play when it came back with animation. But it was perfect. It was subtle and nuanced and scary without being broad in any way, and it was wonderful to see such a subtle performance work in a big action piece. I can’t wait to meet him in person.
QUESTION:
On the flipside, the star of one of primetime’s top rated series – Mark Harmon of NCIS – had never previously done animation. How did he do?
ANDREA ROMANO:
I fell in love with Mark Harmon. I have admired his work for many years, but he had not done this kind of work before, and so you always run the risk of several different situations occurring when you bring in someone who is new to animation. But Mark Harmon completely put himself in my hands, and totally let me show him how this work is done. I certainly didn’t have to teach him acting, but he was completely agreeable to trying options, had ideas of his own, and had complete trust in my process. So it was a terrific experience for both of us. I think he’s a wonderful Superman. Although he’s older in years than how we typically portray Superman, his voice with the model was right on.
Superman, Lex Luthor and Batman
QUESTION:
Gina Torres is another Joss Whedon alum making an appearance in the Timmverse. What made her right for Superwoman?
ANDREA ROMANO:
I’ve had the great pleasure of working with Gina over the years, and she is as beautiful to work with as she is visually. What makes this particular performance so great is that she plays a truly evil character and, if you didn’t know her personally, you’d think that was what she was like in real-life. She wore this role like a glove.
We recorded Gina separately from James Woods, and their characters are love interests. Without the benefit of being in the same room, let alone the same coast, Gina brought an energy that matched his perfectly. She’s such an instinctual actress. And especially for Superwoman, Gina really put herself into the role. She is sexy. She doesn’t have to play sexy – she IS sexy.
One of the interesting things about Gina’s performance is that when she first recorded, she had a cold and it manifested itself as kind of deeper and textured. But when she came in for ADR, she was perfectly healthy, and much more pure and clear – so we had to make a little bit of an adjustment to make sure she didn’t sound too sweet.
QUESTION:
Did William Baldwin have any trouble mastering Batman?
ANDREA ROMANO:
I thought he did great – I love the texture of his voice. The performance is spot-on. The only issue was that William hasn’t done a lot of voiceover work in this genre. We do a lot of impact sounds that come with this kind of an action piece, and being the method actor he is, he insisted on actually striking his own body physically when he had to do “umphs” and “ohs” and impacts. By the time he was done, he must’ve been bruised. We were a little worried for him. When we brought him back in for ADR, we asked him to please not hit himself, and we showed him how to do those grunts and ughs In this film, Batman wasn’t a big role, but it’s an important role, and I think William really filled it well. Someday I’m going to get all the Baldwins in the same room.
Owlman and Superwoman
QUESTION:
Chris Noth is another animation novice. Did he enjoy his time as a “good” Lex Luthor?
ANDREA ROMANO:
Chris Noth thought he was going to be playing the evil Lex, and I think he was disappointed he didn’t get to play a villain. Still, he came through and gave a really good performance. What was funny was that at the end of the entire recording process, Chris was our absolute last session of ADR – on a late Friday afternoon. To celebrate, they brought in a tray of Cosmos, and our own Susan Chieco had a very “Sex in the City” moment of walking a Cosmo in to Chris Noth. He cheered up considerably at that point.
QUESTION:
How did you end up promoting Bruce Davison to President?
ANDREA ROMANO:
I met Bruce at a wedding about 20 years ago and have admired his acting for so long anyway. It was another one of those perfect matches of voice and character. We had this nice role of the President that needed some gravitas to it and, at the same time, this particular President was a bit of a coward. Bruce was able to give us both of those aspects in just the right doses.
QUESTION:
In your opinion, what will win the Academy Award for Best Animated Film?
ANDREA ROMANO:
“Up” was my favorite movie of the year. Think about it: I’m a voice director, and I was captivated by the first 10 minutes of the film – which has no voice, and yet it’s some of the best storytelling I’ve ever seen in a live-action or animated film. You really run through the gamut of emotions. I also thought the kid was charming, and Ed Asner was so wonderful. Plus, who doesn’t like looking at a huge collection of balloons, and a house that can fly?
For more information, images and updates, please visit the film’s official website at www.JUSTICELEAGUECRISIS.com.
Pre-Order Justice League: Crisis on Two Earths on Blu-ray or DVD at Amazon.com now
Keep it here at ComicsOnline.com for more Comics news and everything geek pop culture.
Comics News: Heroclix The Brave and The Bold Expansion and Blackest Night Starter Set
The Brave and The Bold Expansion and Blackest Night Starter Set
by Wizkids/NECA
You may recall there was a time on comicsonline when the site was consumed by Heroclix information. That was 3-4 years ago. The game kind of disappered for a bit and now it's back. Hammer of Thor was the first release through NECA based in New Jersey who bought the product license from Topps.
Hammer of Thor featured the inclusion of The Runaways (Chase, Molly, Nico, Gert & Lace and Karolina) The Agents of Atlas (Marvel Boy, Jimmy Woo, Gorilla Man, M-11, Namora and Venus) Some Thunderbolts (Mac Gargan Venom, Songbird, Moonstone, and Penance) many Guardians of the Galaxy (Starlord, Rocket Raccoon, and Moondragon) and, as you might expect, a whole lot of Asgardians. The newest Captain America is a beast.
DC will get it's turn on April 14th with the Release of The Brave and The Bold. The set will include a lot of Duo Figures which matches the Brave and Bold concept of teaming up characters. It will be intoducing a new game mechanic (aptly called Alter Ego) which will allow a figure to start off as Clark Kent or Bruce Wayne and, at a critical moment, transform into Superman or Batman, respectively.
If you played the game in the past, this may sound a bit like the starter click on many Hulks, Hawk and Dove and others, but it's not. It's an entirely different figure that looks like the Alter Ego, such as Reporter Clark Kent. When the transformation occurs, an entirely different figure representing Superman would then be placed on the board. The specifics of how it's performed and what limitations exists is not yet clear.
Previews have begun over the past few weeks and the figures are looking pretty good.
So far confirmed are:
Clark Kent Alter Ego Figure
Superman Alter Ego Figure
Inertia
Kid Zoom
Hawkman & Atom Duo
Martian Manhunter
Black Adam & Shazam Duo
The Flashes (Barry and Wally) Duo with one of the craziest coolest special powers ever!!! No exaggeration here. INSANE!
Braniac
Green Lantern and Flash (Hal and Barry) Duo
Posion Ivy & Harley Quinn Duo
The Buy it By the Brick Figure is Batman and Catwoman Duo Figure
Rumored:
Bruce Wayne Alter Ego
Batman Alter Ego
Batman & Green Arrow Duo
Braniac & Lex Luthor Duo
If my understanding of how the Duo ability will work with The Flashes is correct, the sixth click will allow this figure to move 32 squares and use Flurry 4 times doing 2 damage on each attack with Probability Control. To put this in perspective, most maps are 24 squares long.
That INSANE special power I mentioned is another power still and it's a suicide click with a huge benefit for the right situation.
It's called INTO THE SPEED FORCE. You give the Flashes a power action remove all objects and up to 300 points worth of other figures and then place the removed objects anywhere you want and the 300 points worth of figures where you want them.
So you know all those Snipers in Stealth and turtlers that you've fought over the years? On his last click, the Flashes can turn the tide of the battle so that the hidden figures are suddenly surrounded in close combat by your team. Their hiddering terrain token now placed right next to your super strength chargers; the brute who has been closing the distance on you is suddenly back in his starting area away from your forces until you can remove his support and then take him down. The Flashes immediately take 1 click of unavoidable damage that kills them and thus costs you 225 points, but in a big game, this may be a price worth paying.
If played right it's an amazing power, but will be very tough to coordinate just right.
Less than one month later on May 12th, a Blackest Night Starter will be released.
The set is the first to use a new "super high-tech digital resolution" sculpting technology. I have to say these figures look awesome. I hope the retail product will look nearly as good as the previews.
The set will represent the deputized lanterns who were unveiled in Blackest Night #6 (Spoiler Alert):
Red Lantern Mera
Orange Lantern Lex Luthor
Yellow Lantern Scarecrow
Green Lantern Hal Jordan ( I think this should have been Ganthet but whatever)
Blue Lantern Barry Allen Flash
Violet Lantern Wonder Woman
Indigo Lantern Atom Ray Palmer
All in all both sets look good.
Game On!!!
Comics News: Warner Home Video gives a new glimpse of "Justice League: Crisis on Two Earths"
To save our world and all those like it, Superman, Batman and their caped colleagues must go toe-to-toe with their evil mirror images in Justice League: Crisis on Two Earths, an all-new DC Universe Animated Original PG-13 Movie coming February 23, 2010 from Warner Premiere, DC Comics and Warner Bros. Animation. Check out a brand new clip from this much anticipated release.
Justice League: Crisis on Two Earths is an original story from
award-winning animation/comics writer Dwayne McDuffie (Justice League)
rooted in DC Comics’ popular canon of “Crisis” stories depicting
parallel worlds with uniquely similar super heroes and villains. Bruce
Timm (Superman Doomsday, Green Lantern) is executive producer. Lauren Montgomery (Wonder Woman, Green Lantern) and Sam Liu (Superman/Batman: Public Enemies) are co-directors.
The movie features an all-star voice cast led by Mark Harmon (NCIS) as
Superman, James Woods (Ghosts of Mississippi) as Owlman, Chris Noth (Sex and the City, Law & Order) as Lex Luthor, William Baldwin (Dirty Sexy Money) as Batman, Gina Torres (Serenity, Firefly) as Superwoman and Bruce Davison (X-Men) as the President.
Warner Home Video will distribute the full-length animated Justice
League: Crisis on Two Earths on February 23 as a Special Edition
2-disc version on DVD and Blu-Ray™ Hi-Def, as well as single disc DVD,
and On Demand and Download.
For more information, images and updates, please visit the film’s official website at www.JUSTICELEAGUECRISIS.com.
Pre-Order Justice League: Crisis on Two Earths on Blu-ray or DVD at Amazon.com now
Keep it here at ComicsOnline.com for more Comics news and everything geek pop culture.
Comics News: Warner Home Video offers new clip from "Justice League: Crisis on Two Earths"
To save our world and all those like it, Superman, Batman and their caped colleagues must go toe-to-toe with their evil mirror images in Justice League: Crisis on Two Earths, an all-new DC Universe Animated Original PG-13 Movie coming February 23, 2010 from Warner Premiere, DC Comics and Warner Bros. Animation. Check out a brand new clip from this much anticipated release.
The scene basically sets up the film's primary conflict with Lex Luthor (voiced by Chris Noth) explaining the plight of his Earth, and attempting to recruit the Justice League to join the battle against the Crime Syndicate.
Justice League: Crisis on Two Earths is an original story from award-winning animation/comics writer Dwayne McDuffie (Justice League) rooted in DC Comics’ popular canon of “Crisis” stories depicting parallel worlds with uniquely similar super heroes and villains. Bruce Timm (Superman Doomsday, Green Lantern) is executive producer. Lauren Montgomery (Wonder Woman, Green Lantern) and Sam Liu (Superman/Batman: Public Enemies) are co-directors.
The full-length animated film will be distributed by Warner Home Video
as a Special Edition 2-disc version on DVD and Blu-Ray™ Hi-Def , as
well as single disc DVD, On Demand and Download.
For more information, images and updates, please visit the film’s official website at www.JUSTICELEAGUECRISIS.com.
Pre-Order Justice League: Crisis on Two Earths on Blu-ray or DVD at Amazon.com now
Keep it here at ComicsOnline.com for more Comics news and everything geek pop culture.
Comics News: Warner Home Video releases first official film clip from "Justice League: Crisis on Two Earths"
To save our world and all those like it, Superman, Batman and their caped colleagues must go toe-to-toe with their evil mirror images in Justice League: Crisis on Two Earths, an all-new DC Universe Animated Original PG-13 Movie coming February 23, 2010 from Warner Premiere, DC Comics and Warner Bros. Animation. Check out the first video clip from this much anticpated release!
Justice League: Crisis on Two Earths is an original story from
award-winning animation/comics writer Dwayne McDuffie (Justice League)
rooted in DC Comics’ popular canon of “Crisis” stories depicting
parallel worlds with uniquely similar super heroes and villains. Bruce
Timm (Superman Doomsday, Green Lantern) is executive producer. Lauren
Montgomery (Wonder Woman, Green Lantern) and Sam Liu (Superman/Batman: Public Enemies) are co-directors.
In Justice League: Crisis on Two Earths, a “good” Lex Luthor arrives
from an alternate universe to recruit the Justice League to help save
his Earth from the Crime Syndicate, a gang of villainous characters
with virtually identical super powers to the Justice League. What
ensues is the ultimate battle of good versus evil in a war that
threatens both planets and, through a diabolical plan launched by
Owlman, puts the balance of all existence in peril.
The movie features an all-star voice cast led by Mark Harmon (NCIS) as
Superman, James Woods (Ghosts of Mississippi) as Owlman, Chris Noth
(Sex and the City, Law & Order) as Lex Luthor, William Baldwin (Dirty
Sexy Money) as Batman, Gina Torres (Serenity, Firefly) as Super Woman
and Bruce Davison (X-Men) as the President.
Pre-Order Justice League: Crisis on Two Earths on Blu-ray or DVD at Amazon.com now
Keep it here at ComicsOnline.com for more Comics news and everything geek pop culture.
Comics News: Warner Home Video releases first official images from DC Showcase animated short "The Spectre"
Warner Bros. is including a new Spectre animated short in the upcoming Blu-ray and DVD animated feature Justice League: Crisis on Two Earths. Check out some of the first official images of this included animated short.
From the creative forces behind the DC Universe animated original
PG-13 movies, DC Showcase puts the spotlight on favorite characters
from throughout the annals of DC Comics in fascinating, short-form
tales sure to entertain longtime and new fans alike.
The Spectre focuses on a detective story with an ethereal twist,
featuring the otherworldly character originally introduced by DC
Comics in 1940. The short is written by Steve Niles (30 Days of Night)
and directed by Joaquim Dos Santos (G.I Joe: Resolute). The voice cast
is led by Gary Cole (Entourage) as the title character and Alyssa
Milano (Charmed) as Aimee Brenner.
The Spectre will be distributed February 23 by Warner Home Video as
part of the Justice League: Crisis on Two Earths Blu-ray/DVD.
DC Showcase is a co-production from Warner Premiere, Warner Bros.
Animation, Warner Home Video and DC Comics. Bruce Timm is Executive
Producer. Future DC Showcase titles include Jonah Hex (written by Joe
Lansdale).
Pre-Order Justice League: Crisis on Two Earths Now from Amazon.com
Keep visiting ComicsOnline.com for more movie news and everything geek pop culture.
Convention News: Tonner Announces The C2E2 Comic Con Exclusive
Hurley, New York - March 16, 2010 - Tonner Doll Company has announced the C2E2 (Chicago Comic & Entertainment Expo) Huntress™ Deluxe as the exclusive figure.
Huntress™ Deluxe, is 17 inches tall, will sell for $150.00, and limited to 200 pieces (Certificate of authenticity, hand signed by Robert Tonner included). Tonner will be located at booth 425, and while you're there check out the other DC Stars™ as well as the Harry Potter™, Twilight™ collectable Tonner Character Figures™.
Visit Tonner at http://www.tonnerdoll.com/
Graphic Novel Review: Hatter M, Volume 2
Hatter M, Volume 2: Mad With Wonder, as the title suggests, is the 2nd part of Frank Beddor’s story of Hatter Madigan, royal bodyguard of the missing Princess Alyss, the only hope for his beloved Wonderland. Hatter, separated from his princess during their escape through the Pool of Tears, has been searching all of Europe for Alyss, chasing down leads, following the Glow, and encountering a full cast of exotic and often demented characters along the way.
This second installment features a change in the creative team, with Sami Makkonen taking over Ben Templesmith’s role as illustrator. In keeping with my typical behavior of not reading comics cover to cover, I first cracked open this handsome hardbound graphic novel and, after soaking in the menacing (and familiar…I had previously read the Looking Glass Wars novel) figure on the cover bristling with both blades and potential violence, I skipped around through the length, sampling the art and style of the frames. I immediately remarked on the similarities to Templesmith’s art. Following that I delved into the story, skipping over the introduction. Later to my chagrin I discovered, upon reading said introduction, the matter of the change in artists. Suddenly all was clear. Amazing what one can learn after taking the time to read info provided by the author.
On the art itself, is infinitely appropriate for the subject story: dark and moody. In the words of the Doors, “people are strange, when you’re a stranger”. Hatter Madigan is certainly a stranger in Victorian England and post-colonial America, and the denizens he encounters are most certainly strange. Characters are often rather ugly, even mal-proportioned, but this merely heightens the sense of bizarre “like” yet “not like” the protagonist must feel as he moves through his encounters. Makkonen’s use of a muted color palate and stark surroundings keep the reader’s attention fixed on the most important features, the characters.
The narrative, while subtle, is easy enough to follow, and keeps pace with the frame sequence of the art, speeding up in moments of action as needed and slowly appreciably to lay down storyboard.
Mad With Wonder transitions almost seamlessly from novel to graphic novel, making me aware I need to pick up a copy of Volume 1 of Hatter M. Beddor’s prose blends with Makkonen’s art to tell a compelling tale of the relentless bodyguard’s search for his princess.
ComicsOnline gives Hatter M, Volume 2: Mad With Wonder 5 out of 5 whirling blades of Wonderland forged steel.
Interview: Mecha-Nation Exclusive with Greg Weisman
Mecha-Nation follows five young high school students who find that they have amazing new abilities and can transform into a new robotic fighing force for good. This team consists of Kevin (Stealth), Susie (Fahrenheit), Zahra (Charge), Ray (Tank) and Marcus (Blast).
This brand new series is distributed by Ape Entertainment and is a collaboration between Victor Cook, Greg Weisman and Greg Guler.
We had a chance to speak with Greg Weisman about the project:
CO: Can you give me your take on how this project came to be?
GW: Vic Cook created this idea. He brought in Greg Guler to design the characters, and the two of them brought me aboard to help with the writing and development. We've worked together ever since, and are thrilled that Ape is finally giving the world a look at our Mecha-Nation.
CO: What has been your main influence or inspiration for this project?
GW: Probably the tv series Freaks & Geeks, with a bit of The Breakfast Club thrown in as well. I'm sure there are other influences floating around my brain, but that was the main idea. To play the horrors of high school in a super-hero context.
CO: Vic explained that each of the main characters are from different High School social clicks. Do you relate to any of the characters specifically?
GW: I was always a big geek like Marcus. But I think we can all relate to Kevin's predicament of being the New Kid and feeling like you just don't fit in anywhere.
CO: What has been your biggest challenge with developing these new characters?
GW: I think we needed to make sure -- because the development process covered so many years -- that none of our characters became dated.
CO: What has been your personal highlight with Mecha-Nation?
GW: Finally getting to do it!
Check out our interview with Vic Cook by clicking here.
Stay tuned to ComicsOnline for more Mecha-Nation coverage!
Interview: Mecha-Nation Exclusive with Victor Cook
Join the Mecha-Nation!
Ape Entertainment presents a new comic series about a team of young robotic heroes.
When a group of Mecha-Sapien villains called "The First Wave" attack the innocent students at Glass Lake High School, there is only one team that can stop them...but they haven't quite figured out a group name yet. Mecha-Nation follows five young high school students who find that they have amazing new abilities and can transform into a new robotic fighing force for good. This team consists of Kevin (Stealth), Susie (Fahrenheit), Zahra (Charge), Ray (Tank) and Marcus (Blast).
This brand new series is a collaboration between Victor Cook (Spectacular Spider-Man's Supervising Producer/Supervising Director), Greg Weisman (Spectacular Spider-Man's Supervising Producer/Story Editor/Writer) and Greg Guler (Phineas and Ferb Character Designer). This series also features cover art from Sean "Cheeks" Galloway (Spectacular Spider-Man's Lead Character Designer) and interior art from Antonio Campo.
I had a chance to talk with Victor Cook about this project:
CO: Can you give me some background on how this project came to be?
VC: Mecha-Nation started out as an animated series pitch. Greg Guler, Greg Weisman and I put together a series pitch which included a bible, a season's worth of story ideas, full color character designs and action poses and a DVD pitch reel with music, voice over and mini-action sequence.
I came up with the concept a while ago, I was remembering that as a rebellious teen I used to think adults were mindless drones, a bunch of robots working slavishly to pay the bills. Then I thought, what if that really LITERALLY happened, that we when we reach adulthood we actually became mindless robots. What would we be in those years in between between being born human and being mechanized as an adult? Not a Robot or Android. Not a Cyborg, but something new entirely: a Mecha-Sapien (the perfect blending of man and machine, intertwined). This stage would be the teen years, still human enough to have free will, robotic enough to have fantastic powers. While it would be very cool to have amazing abilities, there would be dread realizing your humanity would be lost when you grow up. Stopping the transformation from fully completing and retaining your humanity would be fought for. When I decided to pitch it as an animated series, I asked colleagues Greg Guler and Greg Weisman to develop it with me. Greg Weisman insisted the series heroes not start as friends. Between Guler's strong designs and Weisman's masterful storytelling, we built a world with an evil plan taking place, a world being turned into a Mecha-Nation. A couple summers ago, we decided to show our animated series pitch to some investors to help us launch this as a animated web series. During that process, APE publisher David Hedgecock suggested to us putting Mecha-Nation out as a limited comic book series first. We partnered with APE and so far, we are thrilled with the results. The first issue looks great, Antonio Campo is illustrating the book and has captured the look and feel of our animation pitch. Written by Greg Weisman, expect plenty of backstory, relationships, mystery and action. Each issue will have two covers to choose from, Sean Galloway and Greg Guler are doing the covers.
CO: Did your work on Spectacular Spider-Man influence the style of this book?
VC: No. We had the character design style and overall storyline developed years before Spectacular Spider-Man. But Spidey did influence us asking Sean Galloway to draw covers for us. We enjoyed working with Sean on Spidey and wanted see his "Cheeks-ified" take on our characters for the covers.
CO: Can you give a brief overview of the characters?
VC: They are high school students: The New Kid, The Geek, The Rocker, The Art Chick, The Cheerleader. Being from different social clicks they normally wouldn't give each other the time of day, but they have in common being Mecha-Sapiens. Stealth, Blast, Tank, Charge, Fahrenheit. Each designed with a robotic function, specializing in a certain power. They have to band together to find out how to stop humanity from becoming a Mecha-Nation. But they still wont sit with each other during lunch period.
CO: What do you think has been your personal highlight of this series?
VC: There are many highlights. It's a lot of fun to create a bunch of super-beings from scratch. Collaborating with long time friends and colleagues Greg Guler and Greg Weisman. Expanding our team with David Hedgecock, Antonio Campo and seeing the whole crew at APE share our passion for Mecha-Nation. Of course, a big highlight is seeing our idea come to life in comic book form.
The first issue of Mecha-Nation will arrive at your local comic shop on April 28, 2010.
Stay tuned to ComicsOnline for more information and exclusive interviews with the team from MECHA-NATION!
Marvel
Comic Review: Ultimate Enemy #1
Ultimate Enemy 1
Pencils by Rafael Sandoval Written by Brian Michael Bendis
BMB just can't stop writing huge ensemble cast crossover epic stories. If only he could do so consistently well.
I really loved Ultimate Spiderman and I really loved his work on Daredevil. These were groundbreaking, redefining runs on books that sucked you in and made you want to stick with the books. I have enjoyed most of his run on New Avengers, and kind of thought of that as his clinic book that he should use to improve upon ensemble cast narrative and characterization. Sometimes, Wolverine doesn't seem like himself and sometimes Spidey whipping his mask off with only slight arm twisting goes in the face of everything that had been done over on the main Amazing Spiderman book.
Ultimate Enemy was a bit empty for me. Art is fine and consistent with what's been going on in Ultimate Spiderman with floppy hair Pete and his flop house of super friends.
The story mostly follows Ultimate Spiderwoman, a female clone of Peter. The story doesn't really do much to entice you into anything deeper. I was disappointed - for a book that supposedly wants to get you in the door for not only this series, but two additional ones ("Ultimate Mystery" and "Ultimate Doom"), I just didn't feel the appeal. It lacked that "grab me by the brain and hook me" quality.
What I did like, however, was seeing something BMB spoke about years ago in a Wizard Magazine article. He said the Ultimate Universe was gearing toward the exploration of a conspiracy within the Marvel Universe where we find ourselves looking at a universe of characters who we have long thought of as the products of accidents and incidents who were, in most cases, planned all along. Behind the scenes of all of this would be the military and the corporations of the Ultimate Marvel universe - companies like Stark, Stane, Roxxon, Rand, Hammer and more all vying to create super soldiers and weapons.
This storyline was visible in early Ultimates and Ultimate Spiderman stories. The Oz formula (Green Goblim serum), which created Ultimate Goblin - and to some degree, Spiderman - and inadvertently played a part in Ultimate Doctor Octopus who had been committing sabatoge or spying for long time Stark competitor Justin Hammer who seemingly created Ultimate Sandman. We know Roxxon went on to become involved with Ultimate Beetle, Ultimate Shocker and more.
Considering the narrative of Jessica Drew (Pete's female clone), this seemed to be the direction the book would go.
The art's good - the story is a bit slow for me, but I'll give it another issue to develop.
You'll notice I haven't had that much to say about the story or dialogue. It's because there really wasn't much story to talk about. If this were a homework assignment, I'd probably have to grade it as incomplete. Story opens, disaster occurs, we see various characters caught up in the event but nothing really happens, except that we see two characters have an awkward moment; one of those characters appears to be undergoing some physical change - oh, and someone inpersonated an old man and violates copyrights to mission impossible. Call Ethan Hunt immediately. Oh and hey, Great-Faceless-Energy-Spewing-Figure wants to confront Nick Fury. Next!!! That was the entire story, not counting the formless mess that is the threat throughout most of the issue. Leave threatening, shapeless, monstrous creations to JJ Abrams on cursed islands, please.
Comics Online gives Ultimate Enemy #1 2 out of 5 Ultimate Stars .
Top Five +1 (06.30.10)
The ComicsOnline Top Five +1 Returns! Our Top Five comics weekly post was a fan favorite when we started the site almost ten years ago, and now it's back again! Here are this weeks picks:
|
Kevin |
Elliott |
Terrence |
| Batman Beyond #1 |
Predators #4 |
Batman Beyond #1 |
| Green Lantern #55 | Superman War of the Supermen Double Feature #2 | Flash #3 |
| Invincible #73 | Dragon Age #2 | Secret Avengers #2 |
| Astonishing X-Men #34 | Marvel Zombies 5 #4 | Green Lantern #55 |
| Secret Avengers #2 | Dante's Inferno | Justice League of America #46 |
| + Secret Warriors TPB vol 2: God of Fear, God of War |
+ Sherlock Holmes HC Vol 2 |
+ Eaglemoss DC SuperHeroes: Black Canary Lead Figure |
Every week, a member or celebrity guest will get invited to be our special guest, and submit their own Top Five plus one non-comic for the world to see. This week it's YOU! send us your picks!
Want to be our guest next week? Just message us here! Want to let YOUR Top Five picks for this week be known? Just comment this story!
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