Justice League Trailer & News Update

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There’s no more beleaguered a film coming out this year than WB’s long-suffering Justice League film.  The production on this movie has been such a complete mess it’s like something out of a soap opera.  There’s been talk of a bloated production, constant re-edits after test screenings, executive panic and that’s not even touching on stuff we know like Joss Whedon coming in to relieve Zack Snyder after the tragic loss of his daughter.  

Hell, even that particular revelation couldn’t go by without its OWN revelation as Whedon entered a very public scandal of his own in the latter half of the year.  Mark my words, there will be large volumes written about how Justice League came to be.  I say all this now because of the fact that this latest trailer feels like something different yet also quite familiar feels intrinsically tied to the recent avalanche of lurid coverage.  In short, I think Justice League is finally finding itself in the editing and post-production and I actually think it looks…pretty good.

Amy Jackson cast as Saturn Girl on Supergirl

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One of the big additions to season 2 of Supergirl was Mon-El, a similarly powerful being to Kara that crash-landed on Earth from the planet Daxam, which neighbored Krypton.  Mon-El ultimately ended up eating up a bit too much of the show’s screen time for a lot of fans but his presence since left a lingering question over Supergirl: what about the Legion of Superheroes?  The Legion of Superheroes are a group of teenage superheroes from the 31^st century that were basically the X-Men before the X-Men. 

They’re a big part of the Superman mythos and their strongest has traditionally been Mon-El.  His presence on Supergirl season 2 combined with a cameo by a Legion flight ring on both The Flash and Supergirl has made it seem like CW has plans for the Legion at some point down the line.  Now, an additional piece has fallen into place with the revelation Saturn Girl will be joining the cast of Supergirl season 3, played by Amy Jackson. 

CW Announces Crisis on Earth-X Crossover

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I don’t think we really appreciate how genuinely good the CWniverse has actually turned out to be.  For a collection of series dramas with wildly variant budgets cooked up by the network that gave us One Tree Hill and 90210, the CWniverse is a staggeringly excellent achievement that I think will be looked back on the same way we remember Adam West’s Batman or Linda Carter’s Wonder Woman.  

It’s a great collection of adaptation that really understands that it’s the characterization and drama that have made superheroes so compelling for 80 years and counting, so it’s only fitting that they would do a wedding episode. 

Yes, this year’s crossover event between The Flash, Supergirl, Legends of Tomorrow, and Arrow has been revealed as a wedding story about the marriage of Barry Allen and Iris West, the central romance on The Flash.  However, in the grand tradition of comic book weddings, this particular matrimony is to be interrupted by unwelcome visitors from the multiverse/CW Seed in the form of the Ray.  

Making his jump from animation to live action the Ray, CW’s first gay character, is set to appear in the wedding episode, hotly pursued by villain’s from Earth-X, a world where the Nazis won WW2 and Supergirl, Flash, and Green Arrow are all Nazi Supermen.  Let’s talk Crisis on Earth-X.

The Flash S4 adds Hartley Sawyer as Elongated Man

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One of the best things about CW’s stable of superhero shows is their willingness to add swaths of additional superheroes to their single hero programs.  The name of the show might be Arrow or The Flash but both series also feature a rotating cast of supporting superheroes that help the world feel larger and more engaging.  It’s an approach that took Smallville years to stumble on but now they’re doing right out of the gate, like with Martian Manhunter appearing as a supporting character for Supergirl season 1.  And they aren’t slowing down, either, with new heroes joining the shows all the time and now we’ve got another name to add to that list.  The most recently announced new hero joining the CWnivere is Ralph Dibney, the Elongated Man, who will appear in The Flash season 4 and be portrayed by Hartley Sawyer. 

Neil Sandilands cast as The Thinker in Flash S4

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After three seasons I think it’s fair to say that The Flash may have done all it can do with evil speedsters.  That’s not a slam against the show by any means- Reverse Flash was a really fun season 1 antagonists buoyed by the incomparable Tom Cavanagh, Zoom was a cool and menacing super speed Bane for S2’s Knightfall riff, and Savitar worked well as a super speed Apocalypse for S3’s X-Men riff.  

So it makes sense that season 4 would adopt a non-super speed bad guy as the new series antagonist, though it raises some interesting questions about who that will be.  A lot of Flash’s biggest antagonists are already on the show in more relegated roles like the Top, Captain Cold, and even Gorilla Grodd.  That doesn’t leave a terribly deep bench to draw from but The Flash season 4 has dug deep into the Flash’s history and pulled out a whopper of a bad guy- The Thinker, played by Neil Sandilands. 

1st Black Lightning Trailer

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So, CW’s 5^th superhero series, Black Lightning, finally has a trailer.  If you haven’t been following this latest entry into the CW shared universe, Black Lightning seems to be intended to fill the space that Legends of Tomorrow was initially built around.  

See, back before Legends of Tomorrow morphed into its own unique thing it was conceived of as a team-up for all the various heroes that had been introduced in The Flash and Arrow, including the title characters.  It was going to be a shortened mini-series running during the off-season breaks in the winter and summer. 

Obviously, that plan changed, most likely due to CW being unable to get Grant Gustin and Stephen Amell’s schedules to click together for that much filming, and Legends of Tomorrow became the weird superhero Star Trek TOS meets Doctor Who series it is today.  

Still, superhero shows are solid business for CW and they’ve been eager to find something new to fill that slot, hence why they’re also still experimenting with animated shows online like Vixen and The Ray.  Black Lightning is slotted to be their new answer as to what will air during the mid-season breaks, the story of a retired superhero dad putting the mask back on to battle his old enemy anew and now it finally has a trailer. 

Static Thoughts - In A Mirror Darkly

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It seems these days that alternate realities and parallel universes are everywhere.  That’s actually kind of to be expected as nerdy media becomes more and more of a dominant genre.  Back in the day geek material struggled for mainstream relevance unless it stripped out as many of its big ideas as possible but these days people are making movies and shows out of Ant-Man and Dr. Strange.  As such, digging into more complicated ideas like the Multiverse, pocket universes, or altered continuity are becoming more and more widespread. 

The Flash has really embraced this idea with the Multiverse and Flashpoint, Legends of Tomorrow had its own altered universe episode, Stranger Things was built on a dimensional foundation, and Agents of SHIELD has found serious success with an altered continuity story set in a world where the bad guys won called ‘Agents of Hydra.’  As I’m eager to capitalize on this trend I thought I’d look back at hands down my favorite altered reality story, coming to us from the most hated Star Trek series of them all Star Trek: Enterprise- this is ‘In A Mirror Darkly.’

Panel Vision - History of Superhero Musicals

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Superheroes and the Musical genre have always made for somewhat strange bedfellows.  They’re both styles that emerged in popularity in the ‘60s, both depend heavily on colorful exaggerations of real life, and both are the domain of spectacle-driven popular culture more than the high art of theater or literature.  Despite those similarities and the way the verbosity and simplicity of the superhero would seem a natural fit for the world of the musical the two haven’t intersected as often as you might think. 

There’ve been some notable exceptions over the years, but the two just don’t combine nearly as often as they really ought to, given everything they have in common.  The two are set to combine once more in the upcoming Flash/Supergirl musical crossover episode, which will be the first major superhero musical in the past 5 years.  What previous musicals have there been?  What are the origins of this strange tradition?  Has it ever been done legitimately well?  All these questions and more will be answered in the history of superhero musicals. 

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.

Panel Vision - Guide to All CW Superheroes

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Edited by Robert Beach

In 2012, the world of TV superheroes changed forever. That was the year CW partnered with DC to produce a new superhero show after the success of their 10-year Smallville series. The show was called Arrow, and it wasn’t good. And yet, it persisted, and, in 2014, it spawned a spin-off show with The Flash. Then, in late 2014, everything changed with the first annual Flash/Arrow crossover. Suddenly, both shows were changed out stripped-down realism, empty cynicism, and minimal ambition. Grandiose vision, weird sci-fi exuberance, and an attempt to emulate the sprawling expanse of the Marvel Universe in the realm of TV took hold. 

This led to a third TV show of Legends of Tomorrow and a crossover with NBC’s Constantine. Finally, the little experiment CW started gave birth to its crown jewel: Supergirl, a hit family adventure series that has become THE version of the Superman mythos for a generation. Given that all 5 shows of the CW universe (CWniverse, CW-verse) are on a break (or canceled in Constantine’s case), I’ve taken it upon myself to make this semi-chronological guide to all 37 superheroes of the CWniverse. Yes, pull up a chair. 

Panel Vision - 8 Speedsters to Expect on The Flash

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One thing that’s become apparent after 3 ½ seasons of CW’s The Flash is that the show probably isn’t going to stop introducing speedsters anytime soon.  That’s a little disappointing but also fairly understandable.  Super speed special FX are actually relatively easy to realize nowadays, and the fact they have to make them anyway means making additional ones for the bad guys that much easier.  

At the same time, The Flash has also managed to avoid the trap of just making evil versions of its hero, with villains like Reverse Flash and Savitar working as unique entities while fellow heroes like Jay Garrick and Kid Flash working as real standouts.  Given that speedster obsession along with the new frontiers the show’s opened up with time travel to the future and accessing the Multiverse, I’ve compiled a list of 8 speedsters we could expect to see next on The Flash. 

Film Land - The Future of the DCEU

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Let’s talk about the DC Entertainment Universe or DCEU as it’s known for short.  The last time I ventured into these uncharted waters I emerged with a general sense of optimism that the people being entrusted with DC projects were all good choices who could lead to a good future.  However, in the time since then, 2016 has thoroughly drained away any and all optimism I might’ve had so if you’re expecting a kind summation of how the DCEU might correct itself in days to come you’ve arrived at the wrong article. 

No, we’re going to be looking at the DCEU as it is and was it’s been promised, and that means accepting that forward is not where we’re going, and the future most certainly isn’t bright.  In fact, I’d dare hazard the guess that barring some kind of surprise mega-hit, like Avengers/Dark Knight level hit, I don’t think the DCEU will be following us all into the 2020s- here’s why. 

Panel Vision - Invasion!

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The week I’m writing this marks a significant milestone for the shared television universe of DC Comics.  The CWniverse, as I call it, started out in 2012 with the show Arrow, a Green Arrow adaptation that leaned way too heavily on Batman for its identity.  

However, when they introduced Flash as a spin-off series in 2014 things started to improve, even if the first half of Flash season 1 was pretty weak.  The real turning point, for this entire endeavor, was the 2014 Flash/Arrow crossover, a blockbuster event that finally managed to inject light, fun, and weirdness into the CWniverse. 

It also brought in some serious ratings as ever since then crossovers and multi-hero universes.  All of that now culminates in an epic 4-night crossover between Supergirl, The Flash, Arrow, and Legends of Tomorrow adapting the 1989 event comic Invasion.  In honor of the occasion, I’m looking back on the original Invasion! Comics, which is nice because they’re also one of my favorite event comics of all time. 

Panel Vision - 6 Questions About Fox's Black Lightning

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As the superhero genre continues its absolute dominance of the media landscape of the 21^st century, we’re finally starting to get more diversity in the genre.  Obviously there’s always been some diversity in our offerings so far, Marvel, in particular, has made an effort to give all of their heroes a black best friend (War Machine in Iron Man, Heimdall in Thor, Falcon in Captain America) and DC’s Suicide Squad featured a shockingly diverse cast of supporting characters, but now we’re starting to see diversity in the headliners as well.  

Wonder Woman is finally getting her own movie, Aquaman in Polynesia, Black Panther, and Captain Marvel are both headed for the big screen, and Black Lightning will be getting his own TV show on Fox.  Black Lightning’s show is a pretty major achievement, going hand-in-hand with Luke Cage on Netflix as the first black superhero shows since Blade.  Given that, and the revelation that it will be a Berlanti produced show airing on Fox, I’ve got six major questions about the Black Lightning show.

CW Announces Black Lightning Show

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Edited by Robert Beach 
You have to wonder how many superheroes there are to adapt. I mean, I love the genre, and I flatter myself by saying I have a vast and encyclopedic knowledge of both Marvel and DC heroes. At some point, there just aren’t going to be the characters to keep these movie and TV universes going. More than that, the more times the folks behind these adaptations try and repeat their success, the less likely they are to manage it. I mean, WB has been trying to recapture the success of Dark Knight for 8 years, and they haven’t managed it once. Now, over at CW (aka the only good DC production outlet currently working), they’ve recently announced they're launching their 5^th superhero show, starring DC’s first solo black hero Black Lightning. 

4 DC Films That Could Join Aquaman & Flash in 2018

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Edited by Robert Beach

We’re three movies deep into what’s being called the DC Entertainment Universe. So far none of those entries have managed above “passable,” but they’ve all scored profit, so we’re going to be getting more of these films regardless. However, there might be some hope left for the DCEU as we blaze forward to the end of the decade. Most of the problems with the entries so far come from the meddling of the studio and directors who hold the material in general contempt. And yet, upcoming movies like Flash, Aquaman, and Wonder Woman seem to be helmed by people with real energy for the material. 

There’s still some ambiguity awaiting us, and that’s where I’m going to focus today, specifically on what’s happening with one of DC’s unclaimed movie slots. We know that DC will be releasing a film on October 5, 2018, after Aquaman but before Shazam, but we have no idea what that movie is. Thankfully, DC has a ton of projects in the works that could fit that slot. With that in mind, here are four DC movies we might see in 2018. 

Is Deathstroke coming to Justice League & Batman?

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Earlier today Ben Affleck posted a cryptic video on his twitter that seems more or less like a major DCEU confirmation.  The video was a brief clip of the DC Comics super villain and deadly mercenary Deathstroke slowly walking inside some kind of carrier jet and eyeing the camera menacingly.  Many, myself unfortunately included, have taken this to mean that Deathstroke will be included as a villain in 2017’s Justice League movie, the project Affleck is currently involved with. 

What’s more, given that Affleck will also be directing DC’s upcoming Batman solo feature there’s the strong chance Deathstroke will be going head-to-head with the dark knight in his next stand alone film.  While all of this is still steeped in speculation and rumor it’s certainly gotten people talking and raised a number of major questions about what this could mean for the still uncertain DCEU. 

Static Thoughts - Is Metamorpho, The Element Man, Coming to The Flash Season 3?

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Edited by Robert Beach

In case you didn’t know, this fall’s new season of The Flash will take place in an alternate timeline from the show’s normal status quo. That probably sounds daunting and complicated if you’re not already a fan of the series, but it is pretty novel and streamlined for a large-scale superhero show that’s become the fulcrum of an expanding superhero universe on TV. The basic idea is that this new present was created when the hero, The Flash, went back in time and saved his mother from getting killed by a super villain. 

That change altered history. Now Flash must deal with the consequences. It’s a neat concept that affords the creators free will to imagine an altered reality similar to the show’s status quo with some key tweaks to play around with. For instance, this new reality will feature the premiere of series regular Wally West as Kid Flash. I speculate that the change will bring another major superhero revelation: the premiere of Metamorpho. 

5 O'Clock Shuffle - August 22

This week on the 5 O'Clock Shuffle I look at the major Spider-Man, Flash, and Arrow casting news, Amazon's new Tick TV show, what won at the box office, the major TV coming your way, and of course the comic book forecast 

Static Thoughts - Is CW Planning the Death of Superman?

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Edited By Robert Beach

There’s no denying that Supergirl season 1 is the biggest success story for the Superman brand since Smallville. It’s a knockout show that captivated audiences and embodied the spirit of the Superman mythos in a way we haven’t seen in live action since 1978’s Superman. The show embraces pure heroism and the fantasy of being able to make the world a better place, a pair of ideals both in tragically short supply these days (and lacking from the DC movie adaptation of Superman). I need to preface all of that because I’m about to suggest a very un-Supergirl thing about what we might expect from the upcoming season 2. It’s my suspicion that Supergirl is planning to kill off newly introduced Superman Tyler Hoechlin in the season 2 mid-season finale.