Review: ‘Superman/Batman: Apocalypse’
While the various animated series featuring the DC Universe heroes have had a loose connectivity, the feature films from Warner Premiere have been fiercely independent with variations in look, vocal cast and attitude. That is, until now. In Superman/Batman: Apocalypse
The arc, from Jeph Loeb and the late Michael Turner, introduced Supergirl to New Earth. In [[[Public Enemies]]], President Luthor tried to blame a large kryptonite asteroid en route to Earth on Superman. After the World’s Finest team destroyed the threat and exposed Luthor’s criminal activity, all seemed safe. As the new feature opens, a voiceover recaps those events and sets up a chunk of the shattered rock splashing into Gotham Bay. As [[[Batman]]] investigates, he encounters a naked, confused teen girl who is speaking gibberish. Demonstrating super-powers, she is confused and causing havoc, requiring intervention from the Man of Steel, who comes to realize this is his cousin Kara Zor-El.
The personality differences between the Dark Knight and the Metropolis Marvel have never been better portrayed in a story, which was adapted for the film by Tab Murphy. Batman’s suspicious and cautious while Superman is delighted to find a blood relative after all these years of emotional isolation. How they react to her arrival informs their actions for the remainder of the story. Also, Murphy does a nice job of delineating a teen who has lost her parents and home, finding herself a stranger in a very strange land. She’s young and innocent, striving to find an identity and rebelling when the adults try to dictate her future without consulting her.
Tim Daly, the fan’s choice as the quintessential voice of the Man of Steel from his days portraying the title character for the landmark Superman: The Animated Series, once again supplies those All-American tones in Superman/Batman: Apocalypse. The ninth entry in the popular, ongoing series of DC Universe Animated Original PG-13 Movies arrives Tuesday from Warner Home Video.
Your first thought is, why on earth are we reviewing this book when it came out last year? The answer is – because this is a brand new edition, incorporating only some of the previous edition’s material and thoroughly revised to incorporate the known exploits of the eleventh Doctor.
Jerry Robinson: Ambassador of Comics
“We are Spartans!”
Glee]]] is frothy, delightful television that is as prone to being over-the-top as it is to be emotionally powerful. That it can successfully veer from one extreme to the other is one of the more impressive aspects of the Fox series, created by Ryan Murphy, Brad Falchuk and Ian Brennan. The show burst into the public consciousness with the clever airing of the pilot in the waning days of the 2008-2009 season and got people excited with something fresh and seemingly original (at least for prime time; no doubt Fox saw its potential after Disney’s success with [[[High School Musical]]].
The Avengers: Earth’s Mightiest Heroes!, an all-new animated series featuring the best of the best in the Marvel Universe, premieres Wednesday, October 20 (8:30 p.m., ET/PT) on Disney XD. Produced by Marvel Animation, the series stars the world’s greatest heroes — Iron Man, Thor, Captain America, The Hulk, Ant-Man/Giant Man and Wasp — who form the Avengers, a team assembled when the powers of a single hero are not enough to save the world. Thsi essentially mirrors the line up as seen in the first 15 issues of the comic, written by Stan Lee and illustrated by Jack Kirby and Don Heck.
By the beginning of its third season, CBS’s [[[The Big Bang Theory]]] had crossed over from well-reviewed sitcom for geeks to a ratings blockbuster. The characters remained oblivious to this elevation in esteem while their performers and creators didn’t let the success get to their heads. Instead, the season’s 22 episodes remained sharp and funny, delving deeper into the characters, revealing back stories, and expanding on the work place dilemmas.
, now out from Warner Home Video, the major arc of the year was Penny and Leonard’s relationship, with her making efforts to understand his working world while he tried to socially adjust to her world. And when they broke up, the repercussions are keenly felt among the others – Sheldon, Raj, and Howard. The show nicely builds up the Sheldon/Penny relationship, which hit a dramatic point halfway through the second season and the chemistry between Kaley Cuoco and Emmy-winning Jim Parsons makes their scenes sheer delights. Penny’s romantic entanglement with Leonard also altered the roommate dynamic with Sheldon, which played out nicely throughout the season.
It’s a new Age of Heroes in the Marvel Universe but as always, the clarion call for champions is answered by Earth’s Mightiest Heroes, the Avengers. With the hoopla surrounding the Marvel Studios’ announcements regarding the 2012 live-action [[[Avengers]]] movie, the timing is perfect for this book from DK Publishing.
Last week, Warner Home Video released six of their science fiction films on Blu-ray for the first time. While all were greatly appreciated by genre fans to one degree or another, it can be safely said that the most eagerly awaited one is also the best one of the set. MGM’s Forbidden Planet is clearly a class act and the loving restoration is evident in just how fabulous the movie looks in high definition.
