Nerd News; Spider-Man Sequels

NERD NEWS!

Amazing Spider-Man 2

         If you're like me, and you like what Marvel Studios has been doing, you would probably love to see them get their hands on Spider-Man, X-Men, or the Fantastic Four, and roll them into the rapidly expanding Marvel Movieverse. Looks like other people are holding on to those movie rights though, so we have to deal with it. That said, I'm becoming very intrigued with the direction the Spider-Man movies are taking. The subplot about Peter's parents made the first film seem less like a re-hash of the previous movies, and the man in the shadows who paid Dr. Connors a visit in prison and disappeared in a flash of lightning instantly had me interested. My theory is that they are building up to a Sinister Six movie and that the man in the shadows is actually Gustav Fiers, the criminal mastermind known as the Gentleman, who is known to have brought Spideys's villains together. Adding to the interest I already have is the fact that Columbia Pictures has released specific dates for installments 3 and 4,* and 2 isn't even out yet(set to come out May 2 2014). As far as 2 goes, I already like Jaimie Foxx's Electro, though I'm a little iffy about Paul Giamatti's Rhino, who admittedly would be difficult to get right, since the character is based on such a goofy concept. The shots I have seen of Giamatti show him in some sort of mech or robot suit, but it doesn't remotely resemble a rhino. Another intriguing bit of information, Dane Dehann, bad guy from Chronicle, will be playing Harry Osborn, who comes back into Peter's life after being away at boarding school since they were young. I'm interested in how this will affect Peter, and what kind of relationship the two will have. Chris Cooper has been cast as Norman Osborn I'm curious to find out more his mysterious life-threatening condition, which was hinted at in the first film.

       Altogether I am excited to see what direction they are planning to take this franchise.

       The attached image gives us a look at Spidey's new, more traditional costume, and some other production photos.

*On June 17 Columbia announced that installments 3 and 4 of the Amazing Spider-Man series would be out June 10, 2016, and May 4, 2018 respectively.

 

Comics Review Section

COMICS REVIEWS

Check out my new comics review section! I put up my first review today. Click the link to see it!

http://waynescomicsreviews.blogspot.com/2013/08/blog-post.html

Spotlight On: The Sentinels

SPOTLIGHT ON: The Sentinels

A First Look At A Sentinel From Days of Future Past

In honor of the new X Men Days of Future Past film due out next year, I decided to publish an article to catch everyone up on the Sentinels, Since they seem to be a focal point of the plot.

First Appearance 1965

Premiering in X-Men Comics in 1965, the Sentinels typically have the ability to project energy blasts from their hands or eyes, have some manner of mutant detecting device, and are around 3 stories tall. Their height is subject to variation depending on the builder. Two notable humans to utilize Sentinels are Bolivar Trask, their creator, and Henry Peter Gyrich, an anti mutant activist, and government official.

Originally created to protect the human populace from the emerging mutant minority, Sentinels have figured heavily into X-Men comics over the years. While usually portrayed as mindless robots, some notable Sentinels have emerged, among them, Bastion, a human sized Sentinel, Nimrod, a 12-15 foot tall time traveling Sentinel from the future, Master Mold, the original Sentinel, and the Oracle, a fusion of Bastion and Nimrod employed by the Church of Reverend William Stryker*.

Notable actions of the Sentinels include killing Wolverine (in an alternate timeline along with

Modern Sentinel

Bastion

many more original X-Men) and the slaughter at Genosha, Magneto's island nation, where Sentinels under the sway of Professor X's twin sister Cassandra Nova massacred 16,000,000 innocent mutants and left the island in ruins.

I'm definitely interested to see the movie interpretation of the Sentinels. Leave any comments or questions below!

Nimrod

*Outside of the movies, William Stryker killed his mutant son at birth and began a religious crusade against mutantkind. His followers became known as the Purifiers. In comics he had no connection to Wolverine.

Master Mold

My Top Writers: Second Installment

August 7, 2013 at 1:03am

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My Favorite Writers
•Second Installment

Jeph Loeb

Why he made it to this prestigious list:


         Loeb tends to enjoy throwing piles of established villains at a hero while simultaneously introducing a new villain, who often has a connection to the hero. He's a master of murder mystery, and great with suspenseful scenes and mind blowing plot twists. His comics tend to be less action heavy than some but the story is so solid you won't notice. If you're a fan of the Dark Knight Movies, 2 of his comics, Long Halloween and Dark Victory, we're called on for plot material.

Essential Reading:

Batman: The Long Halloween
Batman: Dark Victory
Batman: Hush
Red Hulk/Green Hulk
World War Hulks
Batman/Superman: Public Enemies

Scott Snyder

Why he made the list.

         To be fair, I admit that I have only read 3 trades by Snyder. He's on this list for one reason. Batman: The Court of Owls. I read this trade four times waiting for volume 2 to come out. It portrays Batman as an established superhero, and we get scenes of him doing detective work, using gadgets, breaking faces, interrogating thugs using a train, and even some history of Gotham and the Wayne ancestry. Snyder seems to enjoy adding elements of steampunk to his stories, and some of the antagonists are highly stylized, like the Architect from The Gates of Gotham, one of my favorite villain designs ever. Snyder uses a lot of monologuing, especially at the beginning of chapters, which doesn't bother me personally, but may annoy some people. Of all the New 52 titles I've read, Scott Snyder and Greg Capullo's Batman is my absolute favorite.

          His style of storytelling explores unknowns from the past and how it affects the present. There may be moments that you have to read a couple of times before you can wrap your head around it, but I don't mean that in a bad way. I would honestly buy anything with his name on it.

Essential Reading-

Batman Vol. 1 The Court of Owls
Batman Vol. 2 City of Owls
Batman Vol. 3 Death of the Family
Batman: The Gates of Gotham


Joss Whedon
   
Why he made the list.

       Of course, after Avengers, everyone is a Joss Whedon fan, but some of us used to watch his shows and read his comics before everyone went nuts about him. Whedon's writing can be simultaneously serious, and funny. He knows the characters he's writing and therefore writes them well. If you liked the character interactions in Avengers, you can expect the same from his comics. He's one of the most talented writers I've had the privilege to read.

Essential Reading

Astonishing X-Men Vol. 1 Gifted
Astonishing X-Men Vol. 2
Dangerous
Astonishing X-Men Vol. 3
Astonishing X-Men Vol. 4


Frank Miller
 

Why he made the list.

      So you like Batman? Send Frank Miller a thank you card. We've all seen how, for better or worse, pop culture affects comics. Did you know that in comics Magneto's helmet is just for show? It in fact doesn't protect him from Xavier's telepathy. He protects himself through innate ability. See what I mean? Well, back in the 60s, the Batman Show, with Adam West, bled into comics, leaving us with a campy, goofy Batman. Well, in the 80s, Frank Miller came up with a dark future for Batman that shaped the hero we have today. He showed us an aging, violent Batman, still haunted by his parents death and feeling that, for all his work, things haven't changed. After that, he went back in time to show us Batman's first year back in Gotham after his journey of training. Told side by side with the story of James Gordon's first year in Gotham, we get to see a gritty, realistic take on the corruption of the city, and the determination of those two men, and the lengths they're willing to go, and the lines they're willing to cross to clean up Gotham City. Its also worth mentioning that the books noted below were both used to am extent as reference material for Nolan's Dark Knight Trilogy. Many give Miller the credit for making the Dark Knight dark again. Of course I only included books I've read, but Frank Miller has been writing for a long time. Look him up to find more great titles.

       It's also worth mentioning that Miller is an artist as well. His art is often black and white, and very distinctive. I've included a sample above.

Essential Reading 

Batman: Year One
Batman: The Dark Knight Returns

The First Step Program

First Step Program

The entire purpose of starting up this page was to either communicate with other comics enthusiasts, or create new ones. If you happen to be an "adult" who thinks comics are for kids, don't. Most comics are aimed towards adults. In fact, children's comics is really more of a subgenre. So I decided to help newbs by providing a jumping on point. Fortunately the renewed Superhero Movie craze has given nerds common ground with the cool kids, so that's where I'll start. Superhero movies are often based on certain story arcs in comics, so below I'm going to connect those dots.

Lets start with,

THE DARK KNIGHT TRILOGY!

Nolan's films drew heavily on certain books. For instance, Batman Begins takes a lot of plot lines from BATMAN:YEAR ONE by Frank Miller as well as the duology, THE LONG HALLOWEEN and DARK VICTORY, by Jeph Loeb. Year one has Batman fighting the well established criminal element in Gotham as well as the corrupt police force, and details his early challenges as he settles into his role as Gotham City's protector. It also introduces us to his first allies, Lt. James Gordon and Harvey Dent. The Long Halloween picks up with Batman still early in his career, and tracking a serial killer called Holiday. Dark Victory ties in to the Dark Knight and shows us the growing relationship between Batman and Dent, and also shows us the transformation of Dent into the psychopath, Two-Face. The Dark Knight Rises takes some plotlines from Frank Miller's THE DARK KNIGHT RETURNS and also from the KNIGHTFALL SAGA, though I don't recommend either of these for a first time read. The Dark Knight Returns shows us a retired Batman getting back into his musty old tights to resume his war on crime, and also shows us his losing fight with younger enemies, though Bane does not make an appearance (If you're interested in this, DC released a 2 part animated movie adaptation). The Knightfall Saga is where Bane made his first appearance, and we see concepts like the prison where Bane grew up, and Bane beating the living crap out of Batman, as we saw in the movie. That said, the Knightfall saga is super long, and though it pains me to say it, just run to the library and grab the novel by Dennis O'Neil instead of the huge trade paperback.

If I get even one like on this article, I'll publish a followup. Research nerds unite!

Spotlight On: The Guardians of the Galaxy

Spotlight On:

The Guardians of the Galaxy

          When I first heard that Marvel Studios was planning a Guardians of the Galaxy movie, I almost didn't believe it.  At any rate, I became more exited for it than for any of the other projects Marvel had in the works, simply because it seemed like more like a long-shot than any of the other projects. That made me believe that they must have had something good planned. I've so far been keeping up with all the news about the movie, but the other day I realized that I know next to nothing about these characters. I hate going into a movie blind, so here's all my compiled research in the first ever amalgamation Nerd News/Spotlight On Crossover Article! Enjoy.

Chris Pratt as Peter Jason Quill/Star-Lord

Star-Lord is the leader of the Guardians. A Human/Spartoi hybrid, Quill joined NASA after his mother was killed in by his plotting great uncle. From his post on the Eve space station, Quill jumped at an opportunity presented by the Master of the Sun who accepted Quill as the Star-Lord, granted him a sentient ship and helped him come to terms with his need for vengeance on his mother's killers. He originally used his alien father's element gun, which was later destroyed in battle with the Fallen One, and after his service to the Kree(an alien race I'll be doing an article on soon) he receives a heat dampening espionage battle suit and helmet, and Kree submachine guns. This uniform has become the norm for the Guardians. After Star-Lord witnessed battle on a galactic scale during the Annihilation Wave, he decided to found the Guardians of the Galaxy, a group of cosmic heroes who try to foresee threats and prevent disasters.

 David Michael Bautista Jr. as Arthur Sampson Douglas/ Drax the Destroyer
When the Mad Titan Thanos beleives he has been seen by a family of Earthling, he kills them. The spirit of the father, Arthur Douglas, however, is captured by Thanos' father Mentor, and Kronos and put into a powerful new body, to be used as a weapon of vengeance against Thanos. Now known as Drax, he has increased strength, and durability and fights with knives.








 Zoe Saldana as Gamora, The Most Dangerous Woman in the Universe

After her species, the Zen Whoberi were wiped out by the Badoon, Gamora was left as the last of her kind. Taken in by Thanos and trained as his assassin, Gamora became the most dangerous woman in the universe. She went on to later join the Guardians. Gamora possesses enhanced strength, speed, endurance, agility, and healing, and has at times wielded a knife that could kill almost anything.

 

Michael Rooker as Yondu UdontaA Centaurian archer, with connections to the Guardians, Yondu is highly trained and has sound sensitive arrows that he can direct by whistling. He also has a spiritual connection to nature, allowing him to locate things, or people, and replenish his energy by communing with nature. 












Groot
The Monarch of Planet X, Groot is a highly intelligent plant based life form. He is very durable, and even if destroyed, can regrow himself from a single sprout. He can also absorb other trees as sustenance or command them to attack. Although Groot only ever utters the words "I am Groot", Maximus the Mad claims that his tone and inflection varies and that he is actually saying a wide range of different things. Rocket Raccoon seems to be able to understand him. Although Groot may appear brutish, he has been educated by the best tutors of his race, and has a working understanding of quasi-dimensional super-positional engineering. He will be voiced by Mark "Vin Diesel" Sinclair.









Rocket Raccoon 
Rocket comes from an asylum planet for the mentally challenged called Halfworld, where animals were slowly evolved to bipedal form to help care for the patients. He is a gifted tactician and expert marksman. He usually wields two laser pistols, and has an affinity for heavy weaponry, he may also suffer from excessive-compulsive disorder. He has all the abilities of a normal earth raccoon, but on an                                                                                                                   enhanced level.

Spotlight On: The Mandarin

Spotlight on: The Mandarin
         After Iron Man 3's decidedly loose interpretation of the Mandarin, a lot of people are left with the wrong idea about exactly who he is. So I decided to post an article about Iron Man's long time arch villain, and hopefully clear up some confusion. 

        Mandarin is highly intelligent, charismatic, well connected, and a ruthless tactician. He has become an expert inventor, and has created devices such as a teleporter, force field generator, and mental transference headband. Through years of research, he has also become the foremost expert in Makluan technology, which is otherwise inexplicable by normal Earth science.

         The main source of Mandarin's power comes from 10 rings he obtained from an alien starship from the planet Maklu IV. The rings were the ship's power source and each of the rings has a different effect, which I'll go into later. Also, for longtime Marvel fans, the ship Mandarin scavenged the rings from is the very same one that brought Fin Fang Foom, another Makluan, to earth.

          In addition to the power he obtains from the ten rings of power, he is also a superhumanly skilled martial artist. He has control over his body's energy flow, or chi, which gives him superhuman powers, even without the rings. Through this control he has demonstrated the ability channel energy through objects, such as a chain, rip up chunks of concrete, move with extreme speed, dodge bullets, punch or kick with enough force to shatter bones and even damage Iron Man's armor, and to survive for years on end with no food, drink, or sleep in a meditative state.

With his rings however, he has even more powers. His ring's powers are as follows;

                                                        LEFT HAND:

Fin Fang Foom, A Makluan

Pinky: Ice Blast. Freezes the air in its path and can lower an object’s temperature to almost absolute zero.

Ring Finger: Mento-Intensifier. Magnifies the Mandarin’s psychic energy enabling him to mentally control a person. Only effective at short range.

Middle Finger: Electro-Blast. Emits quantities of electrical energy determined by the wearer (Mandarin). Upper limit of output is unknown.

Index Finger: Flame Blast. Emits infrared radiation and can cause air to incandesce by igniting its molecules. Maximum out is unknown.

Thumb: White Light. Emits many different types of energy from the electro-magnetic spectrum. Frequently used as intense visible light and laser beams.

RIGHT HAND:

Pinky: Black Light. Creates area of “absolute blackness” where all light is absorbed. It is believed that this ring accesses the “Darkforce” used by people such as Darkstar and the Shroud.

Ring Finger: Disintegration Beam

: Destroys bonds between atoms and molecules causing an object’s cohesion to fall apart. Needs 20 minutes recharge time between uses.

Middle Finger: Vortex Beam. Causes air to swirl about in a vortex at high speed. Can levitate objects, propel wearer (Mandarin) in flight and be used as a weapon.

Index Finger: Impact Beam. Projects concussive force of approximately 350 lbs. of TNT. Can also cause intense sonic vibrations and create magnetic waves.

Thumb: Matter Rearranger. Can rearrange atoms and/or molecules of substances or speed up/slow down their movements to result in various effects. Cannot actually transmute elements.

         If you're like me, you went into Iron Man 3 knowing Mandarin was a big Iron Man villain, but never having read anything about him. After seeing the movie's interpretation of the character, however, I became curious, and started digging. Most of my references come from Iron Man: Director of S.H.I.E.L.D #0 Trade Paperback
Iron Man: Director of S.H.I.E.L.D: Haunted.  Both can be purchased from Amazon for a reasonable price, and they are both well worth it. Hope you enjoy the benefits of my obsession with research, and there will be many more Spotlight On articles in the future. I will take requests.

My Top Artists 1.1

My Top Artists

First Installment

A Companion Article to My Top Writers

Tim Sale

                    Why he made the list-

The unconventional nature of his art makes it interesting, and reminds ms of older styles of drawing. No one I've seen has been able to craft a better presence for characters on the page. When Batman interrogates a thug, he seems to be crouching over them in a style very reminiscent of Dracula. His Hulk also exerts a powerful presence on the page. Sale makes the list because his jagged, uneven art is so out of the ordinary, but still very familiar. It may take you a while to warm up to him, but his art is unlike any other, and definitely has its place in comics.

Essential Reading-

Batman: The Long Halloween

Batman: Dark Victory

Hulk: Gray

Spider-Man: Blue

Daredevil: Yellow

Ed McGuinness

Why he made the list-

I grew up watching over-the-top anime shows like Dragonball Z, and loved the whole muscled out way they looked when they powered up. I always remember frail Master Roshi powering up and turning into a huge beast of pure muscle. If you know what I mean when I say "over nine thousand", go check out something by McGuinness. He draws any and everyone on steroids, and while it may look a little out of place on his cameo of Batman Beyond, it looks amazing on the Hulk, Cable, Solomon Grundy, and several other characters. He also knows how to draw a great fight scene, and a great knockout shot. I could keep going but I won't. For more, check out the titles below.

Essential Reading

Batman/Superman: Public Enemies

Red Hulk/Green Hulk

World War Hulks

John Romita Jr.

Why he made the list-

Son of renowned artist John Romita Sr, JRJR has made a name for himself at Marvel Comics with a uniquely retro art style. My first exposure to Romita Jr was in Amazing Spider-Man by J. Michael Strazcynski, and admittedly, I wasn't big on his style at first. It grows on you though, and now, theres really no one I'd rater see drawing Hulk. His style lends itself to battle damage, so expect some awesome shots of heroes and villains looking really beat up.

Essential Reading-

Amazing Spider-Man Vol. 1

Incredible Hulk: Past Perfect

World War Hulk

Avengers

Mike Mignola

Why he made the list-

Not a huge mainstream writer, Mignola has done a lot of work on Hellboy for Dark Horse Comics. That being said, Mignola made my list for two main reasons. Remember the awesome red eyed, deep voiced Mr. Freeze from Batman The Animated Series? Well, Mike Mignola designed that look. This made him part of a very significant step in Batman history, because before Mr. Freeze was rebooted in the animated series, he was actually dead in the comics. After his tragic rebooted origin story, however, he became very popular and was even brought back to life in mainstream


comics.

My second reason for adding him to the list is for his work on DC Comics first official Elseworlds title, Batman: Gotham By Gaslight. If you like his art, check out his cover art by googling Mike Mignola Covers.

Essential Reading-

Gotham By Gaslight

Its not really reading but if you're

not familiar with Batman the

Animated Series, do yourself

a favor and go check it out.

Ivan Reis

Why he made the list-

Reis has drawn a lot of great stories side by side with writer Geoff Johns and his art has become one of the mainstays of DC comics. He definitely has a distinctive style, but without all of his characters looking the same. He's great at drawing dynamic poses, and huge battle scenes, and he's good at conveying subtle emotion in his characters. He's very diverse and his style lends itself to a variety of different characters. Also, I'd like to point out that as much as I love flashy costume redesigns, I also like how some artists respect the old look of costumes. Reis is one of these artists, and he does a great job at it.

Essential Reading-

Green Lantern: Secret Origin

Green Lantern: Rage of the Red

Lanterns

Blackest Night
Aquaman Vol. 1 The Trench

(Various artists worked on the following, among them was Reis)

Brightest Day
Green Lantern Sinestro Corps War

Nerd News Report

Nerd News

New Thor: The Dark World trailer shows Thor battling what appears to be a Kronan. Long time fans will recognize the Kronans from Thor's first appearance in Tales to Astonish. They reappeared more recently in Planet Hulk and World War Hulk. I like how they seem to be digging up older concepts to put in this new movie, and leaning more heavily on the actual Norse mythology, bringing in the Dark Elves. Also, take a look in the background when they show Loki in the Asgardian prison, and you'll notice someone in the other cell wearing a horned helmet. The first person I thought of was Kurse, also known as Algrim the Strong, another Dark Elf, and already confirmed for as a secondary antagonist to Malekith the Dark Elf.  In addition, we know that the characters from the first movie will be back, and the trailers thus far have hinted at a partnership between Thor and his imprisoned half-brother Loki. Thor indicates that Loki may be the only person with knowledge about the returning threat of the Dark Elves. Catch Thor: The Dark World in theaters November 8, 2013.

Kurse

First appearance of Thor and Kronans

Malekith the Accursed

My Top Writers 1.1

 My Top Writers 

First Installment

          The idea here is to help budding fans wade through the garbage and find the really good comics. I've been at this for years, and did it the hard way, so I've amassed knowledge about writers and artists, and developed the amazing ability to judge a book by its cover. Hope this helps, and be sure to check out the companion article about top artists.

Who is this guy? Grant Morrison is a personal favorite, but be warned, his high concept writing is not for the casual fan. You either get him or you don't, and I happen to get him. He's also from Scotland, which is cool.

Grant Morrison

Why is he on the list? Grant Morrison has done great things in Batman, Justice League, Action Comics, and many more, and he's great if you're a research nerd.

What's a good run to read from him? 

New 52's Action Comics, vol. 1-3

Batman and Son

Batman and Robin Reborn

All Star Superman

Final Crisis (If you have time)

Justice League

JLA: Earth 2

JLA One Million.

New X-Men

Joseph Michael Straczynski

Who is this guy? Joseph Michael Straczynski, an american born writer and producer. Pairs well with Thor, or Cabernet.

Why did he make the list when Scott Lobdell didn't? He's done amazing things, like actually getting me to pick up a Thor comic, and read an Indy Comic. Pretty impressive considering I'm a hard sell on both counts.

What's  a good run to read from him? 

Amazing Spider-Man(Especially Vol. 1)

Thor Vol 1-3

Superman: Earth One

Rising Stars (This From Top Cow Comics, Cow standing for Creator Owned Works)

Mark Millar

Who is this guy? And why does he look like Gene Wilder(see below)

Well fans, this is Mark Millar, and he's just amazing. I don't, however, know why he looks so much like Gene Wilder, of Young Frankenstein. Suffice to say they are both talented in their own ways. He also won the Stan Lee Award, which can only be something awesome.

What? Who? Where? Yes, indeed. His work on a single miniseries cemented his spot on my tops list. Two words. Red. Son.

So what did he do? 

Superman: Red Son

Marvel Civil War

Gene Wilder (Unrelated)

Ultimate Fantastic Four

Ultimate X-Men

Mostly Superman Red Son Though

Who is he? Another personal favorite, this is the guy who got me started reading Green Lantern Comics. Thanks Geoff. He's Chief Creative Officer over at DC Comics, and co-owns a comics store so he's a fanboy too. He also did some work on Smallville. His best feat of absolute creative power though was writing an amazing Aquaman story for the New 52, that got me started reading Aquaman Comics.

Geoff Johns

Why'd he make the list? He wrote all the Lantern Color Spectrum comics, and made me believe in Aquaman. Also did a great Justice League Reboot for New 52.

Suggestions? 

Justice League Origin

Superman: Last Son

Aquaman: The Trench

Blackest Night

Green Lantern: Rebirth

Green Lantern: Practically any of them

This is all I have time for right now, but I wanted to go ahead and get this published. Expect a second part to this, and the companion article on artists real soon. Earth Nineteen, out.