First Look at Chris Evans as Captain America

CBR has given us the first look at Entertainment Weekly's upcoming issue. It features a set visit to 'Captain America: The First Avenger', and an interview with Chris Evans, the man picked to wear the uniform.

Have to say that the costume looks pretty awesome, even though we haven't seen the helmet/mask yet, and the shield looks fantastic as well. My fears of Chris Evans as the Captain after playing the Human Torch in the awful 'Fantastic Four' movies are starting to disappear, as he definately looks different in this role. More noble than idiotic, sorry Johnny Storm.

'Captain America: The First Avenger' is slated for a july 18, 2011 release.

Deadpool Mania

Just a quick post to mention that since my internet is capped so I won't be making any entries until Monday when it's back to normal. It's annoying but it's prudent.

Anywho, just wanted to mention my love for Deadpool, a fantastic character. A crazy, fourth wall-breaking mercenary i'll be reviewing the first issue of DeadpoolMAX when things are back to normal.

So until then, apologies and see you soon.

Stuff I Want: The Venture Bros. Figures

I'm only a recent inductee to the world of 'The Venture Brothers', but this Adult Swim series is now one of my favourite TV shows. The show 's premise goes something along the lines of what Johnny Quest's life would be like as an adult. This idea gives us Dr. Thaddeus "Rusty" Venture, the 40-something, self-hating, self-medicating super scientist. The son of famous scientist/adventurer Dr. Jonas Venture, Rusty is a huge failure in comparison, and along with his two sons Hank and Dean and their trusty bodyguard Brock Samson, tries to do whatever he can to make a buck, get laid and survive his hectic lifestyle.

Now while the show presents the Venture family with many problems, The Monarch is their main antagonist. A man obsessed with the sweet sting of the butterfly, the Monarch leads his troop of deadly (sort of) henchmen in consecutive attempts in killing Dr. Venture. The henchmen are a vitel part of his operation, and even though battlions of them are constantly being slaughtered by Brock Samson, Henchmen 21 and 24 always seem to make it out okay.

Now that i've given you the plot over view, let's take a look at what inspired me to do it:

Rusty Venture and Brock Samson

The Monarch and Dean Venture

Henchmen 21 and 24

Yeah, Venture Bros. figures, and they're the coolest thing possibly ever. Already i'm scrabbling for money so I can get the Monarch and the Henchmen (my favourites of the series). These figures are made and distributed by Bif Bang Pow! who also hold the license to LOST, Dexter and Eastbound & Down merchandise, so definately check out their website here.

You might have noticed that Hank Venture is missing from the family, but don't be afraid, Bif Bang Pow! recently debuted the prototypes for their next figures including Hank Venture, their mystic neighbour Dr. Orpheus, the Monarch's better half Dr. Girlfriend and Guild of Calamitous Intent member Phantom Limb. I'm looking forward to the Dr. Girlfriend figure to complete the Monarch set, and Dr. Orpheus, because he's hilarious.

I never realised there were so many doctors in the series before...

BRAND NEW: First look at 'Hellboy: The Sleeping and the Dead' #2

Hellboy: The Sleeping and the Dead #2

Writer: Mike Mignola
Artist: Scott Hampton
Colorist: Dave Stewart
Cover: Mike Mignola
On sale: 02/02/2011
Price: $3.50

Hellboy is trapped in a dark basement littered with bones and small coffins, and the only way out is through the floating creature of death! For the first time, Mike Mignola teams up with artist Scott Hampton (Batman, The Books of Magic) for this gothic tale.

Looking Foward: What I Want from DC and Dark Horse for November. 2010

Batman Inc. #1

Bruce Wayne is back from his trek through time and realises that two Batmen are better than one. So with Dick Grayson and Damian Wayne handling the villains of Gotham City along as Batman and Robin, Bruce Wayne is free to go from country to country, all over the world, inspiring others to become their own nation's "Batman".

Written by Grant Morrison with art by Yanick Panaquette, this book has already created a lot of buzz, and with lots of guest stars sure to be popping up, I can't wait to start reading. And I have to say I hope he pays a visit to the Dark Ranger, the Australian "Batman", because i'm sure he could really use some help from the original.


Batwoman #0

Batwoman first appeared again sometime
during '52' and became more heavily
featured in 'Detective Comics' after the
disappearance of Bruce Wayne during the
events of 'Final Crisis', and the short run
she was featured in became highly popular
with both fans and critics.

Now DC is giving the people what they want with a Batwoman on-going series, and this issue #0 serves as
a precursor to it. With J.H. Williams returning to write the series along with W. Haden Blackman. Williams will also shoulder art duties for the first arc of the series, with Amy Reeder taking over for the second. After winning praise from both critics and the Gay and Lesbian community
for featuring a gay character in such a well
known title, this series is sure to be popular, and i'm certainly looking forward to seeing some of Williams' fantastic art again.

Hellboy: Double Feature of Evil #1

Hellboy returns with another one-shot before 'The Fury' starts up, hopefully sometime next year. This story features two tales from Hellboy's earlier days with the B.P.R.D., including a run in with zombies and another with mummies.

Written by Mike Mignola and featuring art from Richard Corben, this one-shot looks great to me, not only because i'm sure it'll have some great art an writing, it has mummies! When was the last time you read/saw something with mummies as the monster? Exactly. It's been a while.

After this we're getting 'Hellboy: The Sleeping and the Dead' in January, but hopefully this will hold fans over until then.

Nine Simple Reasons to Read (And Love) 'Hellboy'

Mike Mignola's 'Hellboy' has been a favourite of mine for a while now, and it pains me to admit it wasn't the comics that got me in, but Guillermo del Toro's 'Hellboy' films. Not that there's anything wrong with the movies of course, it just seems to be that there's a negative stigma of starting with the film adaptation of something before reading the original source material. But this post isn't about the movies, it's about the comics and the ten reasons why you should be reading them. So let's get into it.

No. 1: The Story

'Hellboy' has so many elements that make it a great comic book, but the story is the one that ties everything else together. The fact that a demon is helping to save human beings from monsters is enough to get anyone interested, but it is the complexity of the main character's story that draws the reader in and keeps them interested.

No. 2: The Characters

Every character in the book has their own fleshed-out lives, battles and demons, each of them is one person trying to hold back the storm. Abe Sapien, Kate Corrigan and Liz Sherman are the most prominent of Hellboy's friends in 'Hellboy', but in 'B.P.R.D.' we are also given the expanded characterisations of Johann Kraus, Roger the Homunculus, Ben Daimio, Trevor Bruttenholm and Lobster Johnson. Of course these are just the good guys, but the bad guys are just as developed and determined, although we'll tackle them later.

No. 3: The Art

A great comic needs two things: a good story and art that matches the tone of the narrative; 'Hellboy' has both. Mike Mignola has provided the art for the majority of the run, but has recently relinquished art duties to Richard Corben and Fegredo, and while both artists have different styles, they both provide the creepy tone that the series is made for. While not as tone heavy as Mignola's work, Fegredo brings the same sense of artistry to the comics. Corben's style is completely differentfrom both of the previous artists, but brings a sweaty and uncomfortable feel to the story, perfectly suited to 'Hellboy'.

No. 4: The Mythology

The amount of well known mythology used in 'Hellboy' is amazing, and getting the chance to remember some of the old stories from my childhood is great. Things like pagan gods, myths, the King Arthur story and Baba Yaga are all deeply intertwined with the story of 'Hellboy' and give it a sense of realism in our lives and our world.

No. 5: The Bad Guys

The good guys have Hellboy and the B.P.R.D., the bad guys have the Nazis, gods, monsters, witches, the Ogdru Jahad and pig monsters. Basically the deck is stacked against us, but the good guys keep fighting anyway.The variety of villains Mignola gives to us is astounding, with the real life Nazis and many other mystical forces each providing a different facet to the 'Hellboy' universe.

No. 6: The Fights

Not much to say about this part except that the fights are great. Whether it's Hellboy against an army of Nazis, an ancient fish monster or a group of giants, our hero always finds a way to fighting his way out of any situation. And when he isn't using a pistol or a sword, it's his massive, stone right hand that paves the way for a beating.In Hellboy's own words, "BOOM!".

No. 7: The Monsters

With a demon as the main character, and his best friend looking like a half-eel/half-man-fish, it's not surprising that the book is filled to the brim with a diverse range of monsters. Nazi gorillas, golems, giants, fairies, frog-monsters, witches and men that can't die, 'Hellboy' features a huge cast of different creatures. While most are enemies, some are allies for our hero, and each one has it's own unique design and it's own creepy features.

No. 8: The Places

While Hellboy himself works for the United States-based Bureau for Paranormal Research and Defense, he manages to globe trot quite a bit. From the mundane expanses of the Earth in Ireland, Germany, and England, to the African savannah, mysterious islands and the bottom of the sea. The story takes our main character all over (and under) the world.

No. 9: Hellboy

This one may be cheating a bit, but i'll count it anyway. Hellboy, the cigar-smoking, monster-fighting, beer-drinking demon from hell, sent to destroy the world and choosing to save it instead. He is the reason you should be reading this comic book. If he just went around punching bad guys the book would get old quickly (so it's good this only happens half of the time), the character is flawed and fallible. He doesn't save everyone and he doesn't know all the answers, and that's why we can relate to him.


Well, those are my reasons for reading 'Hellboy', and i'll admit that it wasn't easy to pick them out. The whole mystic of 'Hellboy' blends together so well that it's hard to determine which piece is the best or better than the others. For me, it's easily the story, with each new installment either moving the story forward or giving us an insight into Hellboy himself and what drives him to be the guy that always there in the eleventh hour to save the planet. Mike Mignola has said he's got 15 more years of 'Hellboy' left to write, I say bring it on.

EXTRA: 'The Beasts of Burden/Hellboy' one-shot is out this Wednesday 27th October, and i'll be reviewing it as soon as possible in my effort to beat everyone else to doing it.

Everything's Coming up Green and Gold

December is set to be a good month for me. Not Christmas, not working hard on various projects, not seeing my friends and family; no, December has two Iron Fist comics coming out.

Browsing December solicitations for Marvel last night I saw something that made me grin as an Iron Fist fan (note the colour scheme of the blog). Deadpool Team-Up #886 will feature the Merc with a Mouth teaming up with everyone's favourite kung-fu superhero, and Heroes for Hire #1 sees the business originally set up by Powerman and Iron Fist way back when, back and better than ever. Official solicitations:


DEADPOOL TEAM-UP #886
Written by SHANE McCARTHY
Penciled by NICK DRAGOTTA
Cover by HUMBERTO RAMOS
If it's crazy Kung Fu action you love then you've hit the jackpot! Deadpool and the Immortal Iron Fist grudgingly team up to put a stop to an ancient and villainous warlord. Iron Fist wants him captured, Deadpool wants him dead. Can the two work it out in time or will Deadpool have to take down Iron Fist as well just to secure his payday? Villainous villains, crazy Kung Fu and more yellow slippers than you can shake a stick at. This one's got it all!
32 PGS./Parental Advisory …$2.99



HEROES FOR HIRE #1
Written by DAN ABNETT & ANDY LANNING
Penciled by BRAD WALKER
Cover by DOUG BRAITHWAITE
Variant Cover by BRAD WALKER
Variant Cover by HARVEY TOLIBAO
In the aftermath of Shadowland, Marvel’s greatest street heroes – Punisher, Moon Knight, Shroud, Elektra, Paladin, Silver Sable, Ghost Rider, Iron Fist, Falcon, Misty Knight and more – leap into one all-new series! Who has brought these dangerous loners into one fighting force? How is this network different from all other teams? Who is their first target, and what mysteries wait for them? Discover the answers and enter the action on Marvel’s mean streets, courtesy of fan-favorite writers Dan Abnett & Andly Lanning (THE THANOS IMPERATIVE, PUNISHER: YEAR ONE) and artist Brad Walker (GUARDIANS OF THE GALAXY)!
40 PGS./Rated T+ …$3.99

All in all it's going to be a good month for me, not even mentioning the Green Lantern: Larfleeze Christmas Special one-shot and the second issue of Batman Inc., both of which i'm sure will be huge sellers. So until the time they come out and I can actually review them, i'll just sit back and prepare myself for a good December.

When Funny TV Goes Wrong

Just a quick post today because i'm settling part-time job stuff, but starting next week i'm going to try and beef up the blog to 2 posts a day (maybe more if extra interesting stuff appears).

When the new seasons of hit comedies Modern Family and Community premiered something like a month ago, I was disappointed to find that the openers didn't really live up to the standard of their previous seasons. Now of course I could have romanticised the shows with multiple viewings, but the high standards both shows set just didn't seem to be present.

Don't worry Jeff, they might not be bothering you much longer...

Now that Modern Family has (hopefully) gotten back into the swing of things with yesterday's hilarious episode 'Unplugged' (Cameron's last ditch attempt at pre-school membership being the highlight), my fears for the series have been conquered. But Community is still rambling along, with one mediocre episode after the other. The problems? Taking it outside of the college, altering the characters too much and trying too hard to be "meta". The show is based around the idea of a group of misfits brought together by going to this awful "school", tackling problems as a group and overcoming their own personal issues. So don't take you characters out of the college, and don't have them facing situations alone, especially one's that appear completely unrelated to their lifestyle, personality and situation (see Jeff's struggle with his own mortality in 'The Psychology of Letting Go'). Oh, and don't make Senor Chang a student, he was great as the insane Asian, Spanish teacher, not a fellow student desperate to join the study group.

So: don't mess with the format too much, sure, tweak it a bit to flesh out some storylines BUT MAKE SURE THEY'RE GOOD ONES. If they aren't, you're going to lose viewers, and that's never a good thing for a TV show in tenuous syndication.

Well, this turned into a rant about Community rather quickly, so i'll wrap up by saying: I realised I have an amazing opportunity to review comics before anyone else due to Australia being in the future. Stay tuned for more.

Hellboy Mania: The Storm and The Fury

Hellboy fans have been treated very well in the past few years, with 'Hellboy: The Wild Hunt' setting up the final stage of Hellboy's battle against the Queen of Blood, further addressed in 'Hellboy: The Storm' and 'Hellboy: The Fury'. With King Arthur's fabled sword Excalibur now in Hellboy's hands, the stage is set for the final battle with Nimue and her army of trolls, giants, goblins and anything else mythic and slightly evil.

I'm reletively new to the Hellboy comic universe, but I have loved the movies for years, and I was worried that by seeing them first my opinion of the comics would be a negative one. Not surprisingly I loved them just even more than the film adaptations, with the mythology of the Hellboy universe very easy to understand and delve into, without sacrificing depth and convolution.

Unfortunately, 'The Fury' isn't going to come out for a while, with Mike Mignola and Duncan Fegredo taking a break and simultaneously maximising the desire of rabid fans. But all hope is not lost, with two one-shots and a limited series slated for release in the next few months. The 'Hellboy/Beasts of Burden' one-shot teams up Hellboy with the team of paranormal detective animals to solve a mystery plauging their home twon of Burden Hill. With art by Jill Thompson and a script by Mike Mignola and Evan Dorkin, this one-shot looks like it'll be a good story and a lot of fun. In November we're being treated to 'Hellboy: Double Feature of Evil', a one-shot featuring two stories by Mike Mignola and art by Richard Corben. A one-shot comic featuring Hellboy, zombies and mummies sounds like a winner in my book, and with Corben returning his unique art to a Hellboy story i'm really looking forward to this one.

Finally in January 2011, the two-part miniseries 'The Sleeping and the Dead' hits the stands. Mike Mignola tells a classic vampire horror tale, as Hellboy meets a man with intimate knowledge of the coming vampire apocolypse. Whether this ties into an element of the Queen of Bloods war on all that is good and pure is yet to be seen, but the comic still promises to be another hit with fans. Scott Hampton teams up with Mignola for the first time, and even though I haven't seen any of his previous work, i'm confident Dark Horse has picked another artist that'll really gel with the Hellboy universe.

Well until we're given a solid release date for 'The Fury', these are the Hellboy comics we can expect to see in the near future. Needless to say the B.P.R.D. comic series is still going strong alongside Hellboy, and it has just as many releases scheduled in the next 6 months. I stll haven't begun reading it yet, but only because i'm waiting for my B.P.R.D. Omnibus (hurry up February, stupid time). So, until next time, hope this post has been informative and if you're interested, i'll be returning soon with reasons why the Hellboy one of the best comics out there at the moment. But you don't really need my reasons at all, just get out there and read them!

The Perils of Having Cash to Burn

Yesterday my dear grandmother gave me fifty Australian dollars for no reason, and of course my mind went into overdrive trying to think of something to buy. But the possibilities were mind bottling to say the least.

My immediate thought was comic books (of course), but even then, too many options made themselves available. The 'Hellboy/Beasts of Burden' one-shot comic comes out on the 27th of October, and that would also leave me plenty of money to buy Mike Mignola's 'Amazing Screw-On Head and Other Curious Objects' hardcover. But then I could pre-order the Green Lantern Omnibus Vol. 1, a title coming out in November collecting the first appearances of Hal Jordan as the Green Lantern. This book is going to go gangbusters next year with the Green Lantern movie coming out, so pre-ordering now would be a good idea. I could also pay off the debt for my B.P.R.D. Omnibus, but where's the fun in that?

And then I come home from the dentist today and notice that the next installment in the 'Professor Layton' Nintendo DS games is coming out tomorrow, which would be good at holding off brain-rot over the next five months of my holiday. But then I could put it away and save it for Pokemon White when it comes out next year, but there's no way I could hold onto it for that long.

All in all this isn't going to be an easy choice, and I think i'll be holding onto the money for a lot longer then I would like to, but it's nice to have some cash in my pocket. Even if it does burn like hellfire.

Superior #1 Review

Writer - Mark Millar
Pencils - Leinil Yu

The love affair with Mark Millar has been on for a long time now, and for good reason, with the limited series 'Civil War' for Marvel breaking sales records and changing the Marvel Universe completely. Then we got 'Kick-Ass', a great series about being a superhero in real life. It was raw and had an in-your-face style from the first issue, and it's not surprising the film adaptation was a huge hit as well (even if it deviated from the more poetic narrative of the original material). Then we were given 'Nemesis', a series based around the question "what if Batman had decided to be a villain instead of a hero?". With blood, guts and swearing left, right and centre, Millar went further into the hack/slash story, and while drowning in violence for violence's sake, it still worked.Now 'Superior' is on the table, and if pre-order numbers are anything to go by it's going to be another best selling series for the Scottish author; but is it any good? The short answer is yes, with a little niggling factor at the back of your brain asking "why though?".

'Superior' revolves around the life of Simon Pooni (an unfortunate name for the fictional character and the real dude he's named after, courtesy of an eBay auction for charity), a young American kid with Multiple Sclerosis. Simon's life sucks, he gets picked on, he only has one friend and he went from basketball superstar to severly handicapped in the space of about a year. The comic opens in the cinema, as Simon and his best/only friend Chris take in Superior 5, introducing the hero of the book. From here we get to see how crap Simon's life is: bullies, disablity and what he was before. But as Simon goes to sleep the story changes. Think space monkey, magic wish, Superior. Yeah, that'll do it.

The story of 'Superior' really hasn't moved along yet, with the characters being introduced and the situation set up. The idea of a space monkey is interesting to say the least, but i'm not sure about the "magic wish" part. While this book seemed to be a more "family-friendly" title, the characters indulge in a bit of profanity which is understandble (don't we all?), but it was a bit jarring to see it when I thought this would try and break away from the reality of 'Kick-Ass' and 'Nemesis' and go into the realm of whimsy.

All I can really say about Yu's artwork is that it is spot on, with every character easily definable and the back drops of city streets looking amazing.

All in all the issue was interesting, but the only reason I'd want to keep buying it is to see and learn more about space monkey. I'm really not interested in Superior as a hero. Sorry Mark Millar.

TV Review - Supernatural, Season 6, Episode 4, "Weekend at Bobby's"

'Supernatural' returned not with a bang but a whimper, with Dean happy with his new home life and Sam back for no reason. Of course that last part would be what drives the narrative this season but we haven't really gotten around to it yet.

Thankfully though, "Weekend at Bobby's" signals a return to form for the series, and it doesn't even have the Winchester brothers in it that much. The episode focuses on Bobby Singer (Jim Beaver), the man with all the answers, showing what he goes about doing when the Winchesters aren't around. He even gets a catchphrase, 'balls'. Of course.

"Weekend at Bobby's" deals with Bobby trying to get his soul back from the crossroads demon Crowley (Mark Sheppard), the fallout of shoving Lucifer back into his cage at the conclusion of season 5, after he welches on their deal. But with the return of Rufus (Steven Williams) and his new neighbour trying to get his attention (in the biblical sense), this episode finds the balance of comedy, action and drama that the series is known for.

While the episode might not be a favourite with fans looking for some Sam/Dean perve time, Bobby's home life is genuinely interesting, with just as many demon attacks and comedic moments (and the brothers help to provide some monster action). It turns out he is the backbone of many different hunting operations and doesn't just sit around waiting to help the Winchesters out. This episode was great, as Beaver easily has the acting chops to carry it himself, with the other characters involved really elevating the story upwards.

It was nice to see the series regain the high quality it's known for again, and I can only hope the next installment "Live Free or TwiHard" keeps on keepin' on so the sixth season doesn't feel like a tacked on waste of time compared to the fantastic five season run it had in it's pocket. This episode didn't really do much for the overall narrative of the season, but it was nice to depart from the regular formula to have some fun with everybody's favourite secondary character.

Keep and Eye out for: Bobby and Crowley's impressions of each other. Inspired stuff. And Crowley insulting Sam. Basically everything involving Crowley.

Back in Business, sort of...

Well technically I finished all my classes for university last friday, but since I've got my history exam on Monday, I'm still working.

Just quickly updating that i'll be back in full swing next Tuesday, most likely blogging about the recently concluded 'Hellboy: The Storm' mini-series, and hopefully getting into some more up to date titles and hardcovers.

'Batman: The Return of Bruce Wayne' issue #5 was released this week and by all accounts it's fantastic, which I think we all deserve thatnks to the lengthy wait and awful Jeanty artwork of issue #4. A review of the stellar mini-series' fifth installment can be found here, all thanks to CBR.com

So, to wrap up, we're going to be seeing a lot of stuff about Hellboy, Batman, Invincible, The Walking Dead, Y: The Last Man, EX Machina, movies, tv shows and maybe even a little Pokemon Black and White. So stick with me, it's going to be a bumpy ride.