Comics and Movies

[Runwildboys]

Gotta question any satisfactory cursory recap. Do a recap of any part of his life in Smallville? It should include a summary of the Kents and/or experiences in his hometown.

He is not human. That begs an additional recap of where he comes from. That's Krypton. Likewise, relevant details of his Kryptonian heritage and why he survived while practically everyone else did not must be retold as well.

Flashbacks? I must admit wanting to see how a director would insert them in a movie. Not because I do not believe it cannot be done well. They could look fantastic but I remember how Zack Snyder's flashbacks in Man of Steel were received. There was some negative criticism for his usage of flashbacks (along with other stuff) but I have always thought they were done well and did not distract from the overall film. I guess my curiosity would compare how flashbacks would be presented in a new movie against Snyder's and wait-and-read what moviegoers thought of them.

To be clear, I'm not thinking about devoting a quarter of the movie to origins. Just a quick 5 or 10 minutes that doesn't even necessarily need to contain much, if any dialogue. Maybe even film it in sepia, just to show it as a memory.

 

[DallasEast]

To be clear, I'm not thinking about devoting a quarter of the movie to origins. Just a quick 5 or 10 minutes that doesn't even necessarily need to contain much, if any dialogue. Maybe even film it in sepia, just to show it as a memory.

Ten minutes max? And basically presented as an abstract? I don't know. That does not seem nearly long enough if it is deemed necessary to educate a portion of the audience who are clueless about the character. And I am still not convinced any moviegoer needs a backstory of an 83 year-old character entrenched in pop culture around the world. Now my insane brain is doing a recap in sepia...

Lara smiles at newborn Kal-El. Jor-El smiles back then looks sad. He grabs Kal-El. Lara cries. Their home rocks violently. Jor-El loads him into the rocket. Blast-off. Lara and Jor-El hold each other. Krypton explodes like the Death Star. Jonathan is riding on his tractor. Swerves to avoid the crashing rocket. Grabs Kal-El. Hands him to Martha. They smile at him. Clark is in elementary school. Clark is in high school. Clark runs freakishly fast. Clark stops a tree from crushing Jonathan and his chainsaw. Clark's feet leave the ground. He flaps his arms and legs like he's drowning. Martha and Jonathan look on in horror. Jonathan pulls a tarp off the rocket hidden in the barn. Clark's eyes grow huge.

...and the camera pans back from Superman's left eye like he remembered the whole thing just then.

Five minutes is doable.

 

[joseephuss]

I think it would be relatively easy to create a companion animated short to provide any background information for a superhero comic movie. Release it on HBOMax or Disney+ or whichever platform is connected to the movie character. Just a simple 15 minute cartoon that highlights some of the pertinent information.

 

[Stash]

I think it would be relatively easy to create a companion animated short to provide any background information for a superhero comic movie. Release it on HBOMax or Disney+ or whichever platform is connected to the movie character. Just a simple 15 minute cartoon that highlights some of the pertinent information.

I agree. Disney/Marvel does it with a Legends series on Disney +. It gives a brief background of the character with some live action clips from the films. It’s clearly some background for the more casual fan.

 

[nobody]

What are you looking for in an " ideal" Aquaman casting ? Is it a certain appearance look,..or acting performance ?

I can get casting idea, because still to this very day,.. i still shake my head with George Clooney, Val Kilmer and of course Ben Affleck casted as Bruce Waynes .

I think probably it's because I never saw the "newer" and "edgier" Aquaman comics, so I grew up with a different one than what the movie showed. Given what @DallasEast said, it was a more fitting cast than I realized.

 

[Roadtrip635]

I've been enjoying the new season of that wacky Doom Patrol, got a kick out of Madame Rouge's new codename........

 

[DallasEast]

I think probably it's because I never saw the "newer" and "edgier" Aquaman comics, so I grew up with a different one than what the movie showed. Given what @DallasEast said, it was a more fitting cast than I realized.

Here is a link showing some comic book storylines highlighting the character's change from the 1970's to the present:

https://screenrant.com/aquaman-best-storylnes-dc-comics/

I am not familiar with the more recent stuff but Thicker than Water (1986) and The Triton Saga (1998) are both good reads. It is pretty obvious how DC were aligning their character more with Marvel's Namor the Submariner. Flashpoint (2011) inspired Justice League: The Flashpoint Paradox (it's on HBO Max) animated movie a few years after. It is a multiverse type story where Aquaman is flat out ruthless, like literally cold blooded.

It has taken a long time but DC has done a moderately good job reversing the joke of a character they created way back when. Aquaman needs far more visibility in the future to erase that past nonsense though.

 

[Runwildboys]

Here is a link showing some comic book storylines highlighting the character's change from the 1970's to the present:

https://screenrant.com/aquaman-best-storylnes-dc-comics/

I am not familiar with the more recent stuff but Thicker than Water (1986) and The Triton Saga (1998) are both good reads. It is pretty obvious how DC were aligning their character more with Marvel's Namor the Submariner. Flashpoint (2011) inspired Justice League: The Flashpoint Paradox (it's on HBO Max) animated movie a few years after. It is a multiverse type story where Aquaman is flat out ruthless, like literally cold blooded.

It has taken a long time but DC has done a moderately good job reversing the joke of a character they created way back when. Aquaman needs far more visibility in the future to erase that past nonsense though.

 

[DallasEast]

Yeah! Raj did not help him AT all!

 

[DallasEast]

 

[DallasEast]

12 Best Actors to Replace Henry Cavill as Superman
By Richard Nebens | The Direct
December 18, 2022

With Henry Cavill's time as the DC Universe's Superman seemingly coming to an end, the question now turns to who will play Clark Kent in the franchise's new era.

Even after making a thrilling cameo in the mid-credits scene of 2022's Black Adam, Henry Cavill was dealt an incredibly tough hand as the DCU goes through major changes. Following a meeting with DC Studios co-CEOs James Gunn and Peter Safran, Cavill was told that he would not be playing Superman moving forward, disappointing the actor and fans alike, as Warner Bros. looks to start fresh for DC.

Cavill sent out a heartfelt message expressing his gratitude for the opportunity, offering a feeling of hope as "an earlier part of Superman's life" gets told on screen. But now, the question moves to who exactly will play the Man of Steel as Cavill passes the proverbial cape to a young actor.

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Jacob Elordi (age 25)

David Corenswet (age 29)

Diego Calva (age 30)

Eli Goree (age 28)

Ross Butler (age 32)

Fionn Whitehead (age 25)

Adam DiMarco (age 32)

Dacre Montgomery (age 28)

Taron Egerton (age 33)

Glen Powell (age 34)

Austin Butler (age 31)

Chase Stokes (age 30)

I am interested in any comments @cowboyec may have about the article's Austin Butler suggestion.

 

[cowboyec]

he...austin butler...was a GREAT Elvis.
i think he'll get some golden statues to prove it.
he'd make a helluva superman.

 

[DallasEast]

Umbrella Academy's Final Season Order Shows Netflix Is Learning
By Joshua M. Patton | CBR
December 19, 2022

The Umbrella Academy is a unique series on Netflix, as it is both a licensed franchise and it's not connected to Marvel or DC. There are several explanations for Netflix renewing the show for a final, shortened season, but hopefully it's because the streamer is learning.

Already Umbrella Academy is a standout in pop culture because it is a very unconventional superhero story. In a world full of cape-and-tights adventures, the Hargreeves children found a fresh approach to both emotional character study and world-ending comic book spectacle. Comic creators Gabriel Bá and, legitimate rock star, Gerard Way are also executive producers on the series. The cast is full of stars like Mary J. Blige, Colm Feore and Elliot Page. All these things separate Umbrella Academy from Netflix shows like Warrior Nun or First Kill, a queer-centric vampire drama. All these series, however, are Netflix originals and thus reflect the network. Series cut off before they can finish their story are a tougher sell to audiences than complete works. Whether Umbrella Academy qualified as a blockbuster at the streamer or not, Netflix can't lose by giving the audience even a few episodes to tie up the series' story.

Read more

 

[DallasEast]

Avatar: The Way of Water is not a one-weekend wonder
By Ananya Bhattacharya | Yahoo News
December 19, 2022

After a 13-year wait, James Cameron’s second Avatar movie finally hit the screens on Dec. 16.

In its opening weekend, Avatar: The Way of Water amassed $435 million at the global box office, making it the second-biggest opening of 2022, after Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness, which clocked $442 million in box office earnings.

The sci-fi epic film, which needs to make at least $2 billion to break even, isn’t relying on a flying start à la Marvel’s superhero movies. Typically, director James Cameron’s movies hold on to solid audience turnout for weeks–many of them repeat viewers. Ask him when people should take a bathroom break during the 192 minutes-long movie, and he confidently says: “Any time they want. They can see the scene they missed when they come to see it again.”

The real success of the Disney-produced film won’t reveal itself on the first weekend—in Cameron’s own words, “Titanic didn’t work that way. Avatar didn’t work that way”—but closer to the third weekend. Coupling the holiday season with rave reviews on social media eclipsing critics’ more lukewarm takes, the future looks promising for the film.

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[DallasEast]

Charlie Cox defends ‘She-Hulk’ for its ‘silly and goofy’ approach to Daredevil
By Scott Campbell | We Got This Covered
December 19, 2022

<snip>

One thing everyone can agree on is that it was wonderful to see the lawyer-turned-vigilante back on our screens, with Cox addressing the backlash to the lighter approach in an interview with Digital Spy, where he simply refused to acknowledge accusations that She-Hulk had attempted to ruin the Devil of Hell’s Kitchen.

“There are things that you do when you’re playing a superhero. There are scenes that you read, and you go, ‘The fans are going to love this. This is knock-out’. And then there’s stuff like the walk of shame, where you’re like, ‘I don’t know. This could go two ways.

This could be something that the fans really enjoy, and it could be something that feels like it goes against the nature of what they love about the character and the tone of the piece. The good thing about doing it on something like She-Hulk is, it’s not Daredevil’s show. It was my job as the actor to come onto another person’s show and embrace the tone, whilst staying as true to the character as I possibly could.”

“It tonally felt very different from everything I’ve done as that character, but that was also really exciting and new and different and in keeping with the character. If you read the comics, there are a series of Daredevil comics where the tone is much lighter, and he is much more kind of silly and goofy than perhaps we’ve done much of previously with this character. You can’t please all the people all the time. If She-Hulk’s not your thing, then don’t watch it. Watch something else.”
​

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[Runwildboys]

Umbrella Academy's Final Season Order Shows Netflix Is Learning
By Joshua M. Patton | CBR
December 19, 2022

The Umbrella Academy is a unique series on Netflix, as it is both a licensed franchise and it's not connected to Marvel or DC. There are several explanations for Netflix renewing the show for a final, shortened season, but hopefully it's because the streamer is learning.

Already Umbrella Academy is a standout in pop culture because it is a very unconventional superhero story. In a world full of cape-and-tights adventures, the Hargreeves children found a fresh approach to both emotional character study and world-ending comic book spectacle. Comic creators Gabriel Bá and, legitimate rock star, Gerard Way are also executive producers on the series. The cast is full of stars like Mary J. Blige, Colm Feore and Elliot Page. All these things separate Umbrella Academy from Netflix shows like Warrior Nun or First Kill, a queer-centric vampire drama. All these series, however, are Netflix originals and thus reflect the network. Series cut off before they can finish their story are a tougher sell to audiences than complete works. Whether Umbrella Academy qualified as a blockbuster at the streamer or not, Netflix can't lose by giving the audience even a few episodes to tie up the series' story.

Read more

I thought they tied up Umbrella Academy in the last episode of the season. I honestly don't see where else they can go, considering what happened to everyone.

 

[DallasEast]

Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania director promises an epic: 'I don't want to be the palate cleanser anymore'
By Clark Collis | Entertainment Weekly
December 16, 2022

Peyton Reed, director of Ant-Man and Ant-Man and the Wasp, is aware that there are those who think the adventures of Paul Rudd's tiny superhero don't have the dramatic weight of some other superhero tales. It is an opinion he hopes to change with his trilogy-ending Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania (out Feb. 17), which kicks off Phase 5 of the Marvel Cinematic Universe.

"People felt like, Oh, these are fun little palate cleansers after a gigantic Avengers movie," says Reed, 58. "For this third one, I said, 'I don't want to be the palate cleanser anymore. I want to be the big Avengers movie.'"

Did the filmmaker kick in Marvel supremo Kevin Feige's door when he made this announcement?

"I did," he deadpans. "I metaphorically kicked in Kevin Feige's door."

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[DallasEast]

Smallville's Michael Rosenbaum Is Open to Playing the DCU's Lex Luthor
By Lee Freitag | CBR
December 19, 2022

Smallville star Michael Rosenbaum has revealed that he would be open to reprising the role of Lex Luthor in a future DC Universe film.

The actor recently responded to a fan on Twitter who asked if he would be willing to shave his head again to return as Lex Luthor for James Gunn's revamped DCU. "for james i’d do anything," Rosenbaum replied, ending his tweet with a smiley face. The actor, who is friends with Gunn in real life, previously portrayed the Superman nemesis through the first seven seasons of Smallville. He left the show after that but returned for the two-hour series finale.

While Rosenbaum played Lex in Smallville, the character was previously portrayed by Jesse Eisenberg in the shared universe formerly known as the DC Extended Universe. Eisenberg first appeared as Lex Luthor in 2016's Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice, with the character depicted as an eccentric young businessman and CEO of LexCorp who is obsessed with defeating Henry Cavill's Superman. Following the 2016 film, the actor reprised the role for a brief cameo in a post-credits scene for 2017's Justice League, which showed Luthor attempting to form a supervillain team of his own to combat the Justice League. With Cavill now out as Superman, it is unlikely Eisenberg will be brought back for Gunn's new DCU -- despite having previously expressed interest in returning for future projects as Luthor -- leaving the door open for Rosenbaum's return.

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[DallasEast]

James Gunn Reacts To Being Called ‘Cold’ Over Henry Cavill’s Departure As Superman
By Corey Chichizola | Cinema Blend
December 19, 2022

Since its inception, the DC Extended Universe has been full of behind the scenes twists, constantly putting the fandom on their toes in the process. After a series of shake-ups, James Gunn and Peter Safran became co-CEOs, and are working to make the shared universe a cohesive story across movies, TV, and video games. And Gunn recently reacted to being called “cold” over Henry Cavill’s departure as Superman.

The DCEU broke the internet when it was revealed that Henry Cavill would no longer be returning to the role of Superman, despite his recent cameo in Black Adam. This was disappointing to his many fans, but it sounds like there’s already a new plan for how the shared universe will tell the Man of Steel’s story. And James Gunn recently reacted online when a fan claimed that Cavill's departure was “cold” and “CEO worthy.” His response tweet reads as follows:

"I'm anything but cold about it. I sat down in person with Henry yesterday and we had a very open and honest and respectful discussion. We've communicated since and he and I are all good. And I said what I needed to say yesterday, not sure what else you'd like me to say."
​

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[DallasEast]

10 DC Comics Characters Stronger Than The Hulk
By Connor Shelton | Screen Rant
December 19, 2022

Despite claims the Hulk's claims that he's "the strongest there is," numerous comics have shown the character bested in combat by opponents. He might boast dense skin, unlimited rage, and an impressive healing factor, but the Hulk is no match for characters such as Zeus.

Given that the Hulk is not the strongest being in the Marvel universe, it stands that he could theoretically be beaten by several DC characters. Not all of them can match the Hulk's baseline physical strength and endurance, but what they lack in physicality, DC's most powerful characters make up for with various abilities such as super speed, telekinesis, and matter manipulation.

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Superman
Imperiex
Wonder Woman
Captain Atom
Anti-Monitor
Martian Manhunter
Gog
The Spectre
Trigon
Ion (Sodam Yat)