Filmland - 8 Kaiju That Should Join the MonsterVerse

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We’re now a couple weeks out from Kong: Skull Island, the 2^nd installment of Legendary’s proposed “Monster-Universe” of films.  For those not in the know, this is a planned shared universe of giant monsters movies that’s been in the works for a while now.  The concept originated with Legendary’s desire to reboot Godzilla for the modern blockbuster age when they came across the script for Pacific Rim.  They like some of the concepts but ultimately ended up deciding to make a Marvel-style shared universe instead.  The first installment in this was 2014’s Godzilla, directed by Garreth Edwards, which wasn’t great. 

However, Kong: Skull Island looks fresh and Godzilla: King of Monsters is showing a lot of promise, bringing in Michael Dougherty, director of Krampus and Trick r Treat, as a new director along with three classic monsters in Rodan, Mothra, and Ghidorah.  All of this is leading up to an eventual King Kong vs. Godzilla remake, though there’s plenty of room for franchise expansion beyond that.  That subject of franchise development is what I’m here to talk about today with 8 classic Toho Kaiju who should appear next in the giant monster-verse. 

Filmland - Will the DCEU adapt Under the Red Hood?

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As we enter Phase 2 of the DCEU, it’s becoming increasingly clear that WB plans to back away from the broader scope of the DC Universe and zero in on 1 particular brand: Batman.  I’m aware that there are non-Batman films on DC’s docket, certainly, like Wonder Woman, Justice League, and Aquaman but those are outliers.  Looking ahead through the end of the 2010s it’s pretty clear which subsection of the DCEU is getting a legitimate push from executives. 

To put it bluntly- currently speaking The Batman, Nightwing, and Gotham Sirens all have directors attached, The Flash and Shazam do not.  What’s more, a fairly clear narrative is starting to form through the DCEU Batman properties, a connective story told in small parts across multiple films in the vein of Marvel’s first plotline during phase 1. 

This kind of thing has been thoroughly absent from the DCEU so far, there are tidbits of it here and there but stuff like Batman showing up in Suicide Squad to get information he already has doesn’t really stack up to the shared universe building between Thor and Captain America: First Avenger to establish the tesseract.  As for the building Batman story, it’s pretty clear that DC/WB is maneuvering its pieces to set-up for a, frankly, pretty obvious story- Under The Red Hood.

Black Mask set as Villain for Gotham Sirens

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One of the more interesting films coming out of the quagmire that is the DCEU is Gotham Sirens, a spin-off to 2016’s Suicide Squad.  I never actually reviewed Suicide Squad so I’ll just say very quickly that it was a garbage movie and I didn’t like it.  I know some people enjoyed it, but honestly, I thought Batman v. Superman was the better film.  I know those are fighting words on a lot of the Internet so I’ll temper that critique by saying I, along with the rest of geek culture, really liked Margot Robbie as Harley Quinn. 

Harley Quinn’s always been a complicated character to get right, mainly because she walks along that thin problematic line between manic pixie villain and domestic abuse victim, but in more recent years she’s backed off from that point.  A lot of that has come from her newly out and proud romance with Poison Ivy, which will be the core focus of the Harley-centric spin-off Gotham Sirens.  Catwoman will also be on hand because we needed a third lead but now we’ve finally gotten an idea of who our villain is- Black Mask. 

6 Actors Who Should Play Nightwing

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By now you’ve probably seen the LEGO Batman movie, especially if the box office reports are to be believed.  It’s a monster success, a second major hit for WB’s LEGO brand, and pretty much the first major win for a Batman adaptation since Arkham City back in 2011.  We’re probably going to see a ton of takeaways from this endeavor on what’s required to make a good LEGO movie, but the more important one for superhero fans is what message this flick sends about making Batman films.  The heart of LEGO Batman is to embrace the extended Batman family and a lighter, funnier take on the hero and it seems pretty clear WB has heard received that message as they’ve already tapped the director, Chris McKay, to direct a Nightwing movie. 

For those who don’t know, Nightwing was the identity adopted by an adult version of the first Robin, Dick Grayson, after he stopped being Batman’s sidekick and branched out on his own.  Given that this movie’s now entered DC’s sites I figured it’d be fun to have a look at all the interesting and compelling actors who could and should play Dick Grayson before they announce some mediocre white guy none of us have heard of. 

Matt Reeves Will Direct The Batman

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It’s worth noting that I’ve always been pessimistic about the DCEU.  A lot of that does come from what I actually want in a superhero film- I’ve been “over” DC’s style of superhero film since Captain America: The First Avenger and the long slog from Dark Knight Rises to Suicide Squad have only confirmed how much their approach doesn’t work.  Beyond that, I think a lot of folks tend to ascribe DC a measure of inevitability that I’d say is unearned.  Sure, we’re probably going to be getting more crappy movies, but projects like Shazam or The Flash currently feel about as likely as Green Lantern 2 did back in 2011. 

So, when The Batman, the Ben Affleck-fronted Batman film that DC thinks will be the NEW blockbuster to get its universe on track after the last three failed to do that, showed signs of fraying I assumed failure and abandonment was on the horizon, especially given that the Bat Brand has proved less infallible lately.  But, it seems I was wrong as after much hemming and hawing Matt Reeves will be directing The Batman. 

Panel Vision - Great Ten

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As the 21^st century prepares to exit its adolescence and enter its quarter-life crisis period, the idea that this will be the Chinese century seems more and more assured.  Chinese tastes and interests have grown into a major box office force for American blockbusters, Chinese industrialism drives a lot of the global economy, they’re the only people with the billions to dictate commands to the likes of Apple or Google, and recently they’ve established themselves at the forefront of the Green Energy push. 

This means that everybody has to adjust, hence why we see a larger Chinese presence in US blockbusters like Transformers 4 or Iron Man 3.  Comics are usually slow to adapt to these kinds of trends save for one exception at DC comics, who got on board the China train as early as 2006- 2 years before their coming out party to the world stage that was the Beijing Olympics.  They did it with a new prestige team of superheroes meant to embody various aspects of Chinese culture known as the Great Ten.

Static Thoughts - 7 Cameos to Expect in Star Trek Discovery

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Currently, we don’t know much about the upcoming Star Trek Discovery.  There’s been a lot of outdated information thrown around in the wake of Bryan Fuller’s departure from the project.  Combine that with the show’s string of delays and the show’s early positive buzz has given way to a low background hum.  However, I’m still hopeful the series will turn out good, and there is at least one thing we know about it- the time period of its setting.  The one consistent piece of news about Star Trek Discovery so far has been that the show will be another prequel to the original Star Trek series. 

A lot of folks have taken this news hard given the last time this was tried it gave us Star Trek: Enterprise, but I actually enjoy Enterprise, so I’m willing to look on the bright side, in particular, all the doors this time period opens up.  Specifically speaking the show will be set after the events of Enterprise but prior to Star Trek, the original series.  Given that I’m a massive Trekcionado, I’ve come up with 7 things from across the Star Trek franchise we can expect to cameo in Star Trek Discovery. 

Filmland - 8 Heroes Who Deserve the LEGO Treatment

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So, it’s now safe to assume that the LEGO Batman movie is a bona fide smash hit.  The animated spin-off to 2014’s breakout LEGO Movie has taken the world by storm with its brilliant, bighting, and irreverent parody of the brooding dark knight detective.  Coupled with a superb voice work from the rest of the cast and a script that gives us a shockingly fresh take on Batman by emphasizing the Bat Family as his strongest component, LEGO Batman has woken the world up to a whole new kind of superhero blockbuster.  

Given that Marvel is still the only name in the game producing quality superhero content I welcome our new world of animated, LEGO, superheroes, especially for beleaguered DC Comics who have yet to make a good live action superhero film during the 2010s.  Given that success and the innumerable mishandled or unattemptable superhero properties clogging up the pop cultural drain, I’ve come up with my list of 8 superhero franchises that deserve the LEGO treatment. 

Panel Vision - JLApe: Gorilla Warfare

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It is a truth universally acknowledged that apes on comics sell comics.  This is a fundamental cornerstone of comics going all the way back to the ‘50s.  It first emerged under one of the colossal giants of the medium Julius Schwartz, the man who served as editor of DC Comics during its Silver age through the ‘50s and ‘60s.  Schwartz claimed to have data showing a bump in sales of comics when a gorilla was featured on the cover, data that was so convincing it actually shaped all of DC’s output for a time.  

There were legitimately strict rules and limits on the whole idea of putting apes on comics, treating the phenomena as a finite resource to be carefully exploited to avoid oversaturation of the ape-based marketplace.  Given that those 2 decades have defined the shape of comics to this very day, apes on comics remains a popular tradition to this day.  With The Flash finally bringing Gorilla City to the small screen I figured now would be a perfect time to dive into the great legacy of apes on comics in possibly their finest moment: JLApe.

Filmland - Halloween: Resurrection

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As I write this, the entertainment news circuit is momentarily preoccupied with two major discussions: the announcement of a new Halloween remake film and the performance of Busta Rhymes at this year’s Grammies.  Clearly, there will never be a better time to discuss the bizarre curiosity that is 2002’s Halloween: Resurrection.  For the uninformed, Resurrection was the final Halloween film made before Rob Zombie’s remakes, and it is incredibly, stupidly, bizarre.  It’s a mixed up and ill-informed attempt to prolong a franchise that never had that much gas in the tank well beyond its mileage. 

Yes, 1 year after the ignominious Jason X more or less killed the Slasher genre Halloween Resurrection moved in to make extra sure that the genre was dead.  How dead on arrival was this film?  Well, the story is about a reality TV show being filmed at the old Myers house when Michael sets upon the various contestants, and their only hope is the show’s two producers: Tyra Banks and Busta Rhymes. 

Iron Fist Trailer 2 Breakdown

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One of the interesting things about Marvel’s lead up to Defenders is that each of the lead-up series has focused on a street level social issue that their hero is dealing with.  In Daredevil season 1 the story was about gentrification, Jessica Jones was all about rape culture, Luke Cage touched on race relations within the black community, and Daredevil season 2 was about…ninjas.  That last one, the one that breaks the chain and remains the weakest of Marvel’s Netflix offerings, despite Punisher’s excellent presence, seems to be the one most influential on the upcoming Iron Fist TV show.  

In a way that match up is pretty much perfect.  Daredevil Season 2 is a lot like Iron Man 2 in that it only happened because nobody expected Daredevil season 1 to be such a big hit, so the rush was on to get more of him out there as we pushed towards Defenders.  In that rush, the season ended up without much depth or passion outside Punisher because it was only really produced out of obligation, which is exactly the case with Iron Fist.  All the way from inception up to this latest trailer the message of Iron Fist has been “we’re making it, but don’t think we really care,” and this trailer shouts that loud and clear.

Logan News Update

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With about a month left till the premiere of Logan AKA Wolverine 3, now is probably a good time to look over everything we’ve learned about the latest entry in the X-Men franchise.  I’ve made no secret of the fact I don’t really care for Fox’s X-Men film series.  

I was never as into the X-Men and X-Men United as much as others in my age bracket, and I flat out hated Days of Future Past, and while Deadpool and First Class were good, they feel like exceptions rather than rules. 

However, all of my hesitation has gone right out the damn window in the lead up to Logan, which promises the most dark, grounded, and patently human entry in the entire X-Men film canon, possibly the whole canon overall if we're honest.  

It looks like a small, dirty, complicated R-rated flick that’s drawing the best elements from across the franchise’s history to create something entirely new and exciting while also paving the way for future possibilities. 

Panel Vision - Guide to the X-Men Multiverse

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One of the interesting things about the X-Men franchise at this moment in time is how much it’s ended up eschewing the shared universe format promoted by Marvel.  Instead, X-Men has adopted a sort of multi-continuity approach, in a manner that’s only growing more extreme.  Both Deadpool and the upcoming Logan take place in no other continuity than their own and, so far, it seems the TV show Legion is a unique continuity all its own as well.  

This is actually fairly common for the X-Men comics as the X-Men are major players in the realm of altered timelines and parallel universes.  So far only a couple have filtered into the movies but, given everything we’ve seen, I wouldn’t at all be surprised if things like Mojoworld or Age of X were on the horizon for the X-franchise.  So, if you don’t know what either of those things are here’s your guide to the X-Men multiverse. 

8 Things to Expect from Doctor Strange 2

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So, Doctor Strange has now gone from “just another good Marvel movie” to “bona fide smash hit that’s bigger than Man of Steel.”  Given that success, one can only assume that a sequel announcement is around the corner, especially with some of Marvel’s bigger guns like Thor and Iron Man on the fence about returning for more films in the 2020s.  Given that Dr. Strange 2 has now moved from stretch goal to likely scenario it’s time to start throwing out some guesses on what could be next for the sorcerer supreme. 

All we know for sure, however, is that his next adventure will take place in the wake of Avengers: Infinity War and the finale of their Thanos/Infinity Gauntlet saga.  Given that, the relatively limited scope of Dr. Strange’s own mythos as a hero, and the various changes that would have to come along with Marvel’s Phase 4, I’ve compiled a list of 8 possibilities to expect from Dr. Strange 2.

Filmland - Return of the Texas Chainsaw Massacre

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For those not clued into the world of video games, Resident Evil has just released its 7^th installment under the title Biohazard.  This year’s latest installment in the zombie video game series comes with one foot in the world of cinema, however, as it’s been released around the same time as the latest Resident Evil film The Final Chapter.  Now, I’m not here to go on and on about the complete failure of adaptation that is the Resident Evil films, mainly because, much like the games, following the plot of Resident Evil is a convoluted and deeply unrewarding exercise. 

However, RE7, as it’s known, also draws from the world of film.  It’s a slow descent into horror based around a monstrous backwoods cannibal family in the American wilderness, a premise drawn heavily from the horror classic Texas Chainsaw Massacre.  As such, I thought this would be the perfect chance to dive into the strangest entry in the Texas Chainsaw Massacre franchise to see how the southern fried horror flick and Resident Evil’s corporate zombapocalypse stylings have a bigger point of overlap than you’d think. 

Panel Vision - Legion Quest

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Let’s talk about Legion.  Before he got his own TV show as the first ever live action X-Men show to reach full series, he was a comic book character.  Legion, real name David, is the son of Charles Xavier.  His mutant power is the ability to absorb other people’s psyches into himself and gaining their powers when he gives their mind lease.  

This basically makes him crazy, as he’s got a whole head full of absorbed personalities all vying for control of his body.   Though he first premiered in 1985 in an issue of X-Force, he didn’t really come into his own in the X-Men mythos till a decade later, in a story entitled Legion Quest. 

That’s what I’m looking at today, the story that put Legion on the X-map, for better and worse.  It’s a curious beast, a crossover from 3 of the major X-men comics of the time that set off one the biggest crossover events in Marvel history.  In fact, the only way the series has ever been collected is in relation to the event it spawned, Age of Apocalypse, which I reviewed last year.  

That gives it a direct link to one of the biggest blunders in Marvel history, the comic series that helped bring about Marvel’s bankruptcy in 1996 and believe me it shows- there is no better single example of bad 1990s comics than Legion Quest. 

Cover Story - Top 15 Legion Covers

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Next week marks a pretty major occasion, despite the downplaying, it’s had so far; the first time a live-action X-Men show will be attempted.  There have been vague attempts before such as a couple of TV movies in the ‘90s and a quasi-X-Men show in the 2000s called Mutant X, but that’s about it.  Next week’s Legion will be the first full series adapted from the Marvel comics we’ve yet seen, revolving around the mentally unstable son of Charles Xavier, David Haller AKA Legion. 

David’s been around since the mid-'80s ad played a prominent role in the lead up to the 1995 mega-event Age of Apocalypse, which I covered last year.  However, in the early 2010s, as part of the Marvel NOW branding initiative, David got his own comic for the first time under the title X-Men Legacy.  We’ll see if I end up reviewing it somewhere down the line, but for now, I plan to indulge my clinical need for topicality by diving head first into the top 15 Legion comic book covers.