The Mix : What are people talking about today?

Martha Thomases: Geek Humanity

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As a child, I loved the Legion of Super-Heroes. Teenagers from all over the galaxy formed a club together and saved the universe, sometimes several times an issue.

The rules for joining the Legion were a bit odd and really didn’t stand up to scrutiny. No one could have the same powers as another member, unless they were Superboy, Supergirl or Mon-El. Abilities that were not super on a hero’s planet could qualify that hero for membership, like telepathy and chameleons and magnetism. I suppose if we, as a people, were blind, someone with sight could be a member, but we wouldn’t know because there wouldn’t be comic books because, really, they are better when we can see the pictures.

Anyway, I didn’t really care about the Legion by-laws, since I would be a teenager if, by some chance, I lived 1000 years and could apply for membership. I cared about all these people, so different from one another, who still teamed up and made things better.

So that’s the lesson I’m urging us, the emissaries of Geek Culture, to learn from Where We Are Now.

Since the election results were announced last week, there have been a tremendous number of hate-crimes committed. This is in addition to the uptick in hate-crimes the year before.

These are actual crimes — vandalism, stalking, assault — not just threats and hurt feelings. This is not to say that threats and hurt feelings aren’t real things.

ComicMix pal Heidi MacDonald recently reported on the latest bout of on-line harassment directed her way. If you click on the link and read the comments (which, normally, I would urge you not to do, but this time it’s educational), you’ll see a weird combination of solidarity, rage and condescension.

What struck me most forcefully was the anger some commenters held against superhero comics with female leads, especially if those characters riffed off earlier versions. While I don’t think Donald Trump won the Electoral College because RiRi Williams is Iron Man, he did capitalize on the same rage we see in those fans.

And I don’t get it.

I mean, I understand that it’s annoying when a creative team takes one of my favorite characters in a direction I don’t like. I couldn’t stand what David and Meredith Finch did to Wonder Woman. That said, it was easy enough to skip their run on the title and re-read some of the thousands of other Wonder Woman stories that I had liked previously. I have reason to believe there are a similar number of Tony Stark Iron Man stories out there.

Also, there are lots and lots of other comics written and drawn by people who might have written or drawn a Tony Stark Iron Man story, and they might have stories about other characters that would appeal to this reader.

I have no problem when readers who don’t like RiRi Williams or the Finch version of Wonder Woman complain about the stories they don’t like. I do it all the time. However, I do have a problem when readers who don’t like the direction a series is taking make physical threats against the creators or those critics who do like the series.

Marvel, and DC, and Disney, and other corporations do not owe their customers a steady diet of the same stuff. That would be a business model that is doomed to failure. There has to be constant attempts to broaden the market or in five or six decades, all the existing customers will be dead.

As a fandom, we can’t sit around and gripe when our favorite media (comics, film, TV, music, yada yada yada) don’t spew out a steady stream of the same stuff we loved as children. We cannot expect the entertainment industry to love us as much as our parents did.

Read what you like! Explore a little and, maybe, find more to like! Liking more different things is fun! And teaming up with people different from yourself lets you discover what your own super-powers might be.

Tweeks: Supernatural Cast Interviews Part 1

The absolute highlight of Comic Con for Maddy was easily interviewing the cast of Supernatural about Season 12. As you’ll see in the video she was barely keeping it together. In part one of her SDCC roundtable interview she chats with Ruth Connell (Rowena), Jensen Ackles (Dean Winchester) and Samantha A. Smith (Mary Winchester). They were all incredible, of course.

Be on the look out for Part 2 of the interview with Misha Collins, Jared Padalecki and show runners Andrew Dabb and Robert Singer.

Dennis O’Neil Gestures Hypnotically

 

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Chortle chuckle yukyukyuk. O, boy ain’t we having fun hee-hee-hee here in Nyack ho ho ho ho and how about that last Tuesday wasn’t that darn day a rib-tickler heh heh gargle lipticon smoothie ha ha ha ha ha ha giggle snortle honk.

Enough – hee hee – merriment. Where were we? Oh yeah. I sort of vaguely suggested that I might continue last week’s discussion of Doctor Strange, who has been a Marvel Comics character since 1963 and currently is the eponymous star of a big screen movie, the box office champ for the second week in a row (and for a little extra coin you can see this champ in 3-D! And don’t tell me, mister, that life is not a party.

Here I’m going to mention that ComicMix’s resident film critic had a few reservations about the flick and I hereby bow to his acumen; oh and by-the-way he has become one of my favorite reviewers, which strikes me as a bit wonky considering that he’s considerably younger than my youngest child and I’ve known him all his life and a hefty portion of mine and aren’t authority figures supposed to be aged and wizened just like The Ancient One in the Doc Strange yarns and…

mandrake-gestures-1585218Here we are, having survived another digression, back in Doc Strange turf. Yes, the doctor. A conjurer.

His ilk are sprinkled throughout the history of comic books. Before Superman jump-started the business in 1938, a comic strip featuring Mandrake the Magician appeared daily and Sundays in the paper my parents had tossed onto the lawn every day. Mandrake was created by Lee Falk, a St. Louisan, and first appeared in 1934. I’m pretty sure that when I read or at least looked at the strip as a kid I understood Mandrake’s modus operandi: the captions told me that Mandrake “gestured hypnotically” and illusions appeared to gebollix the bad guys. It was an okay gimmick as long as you knew little or nothing about hypnosis and in 1934, who did?

A couple of years later, Lee Falk created The Phantom. The “ghost who walks” – that Phantom – but since he is not a magician, we’ll ignore him.

And speaking of magicians… As a genre, they were never awfully important in comics, certainly no rival to superheroes. Arguably, the most prominent of them was another doctor, surnamed Fate. He could be mistaken for a superhero; he looks superheroish and he’s invulnerable and strong and he can fly and do other stuff. Mostly, he uses sorcery that doesn’t seem very defined, but it doesn’t have to be at long as it’s used judiciously.

About that (those) costume(s): one of the nifty things about the doctor – Strange, not Fate – is that his clothing is definitely a costume, but one that suggests magic. And there are his powers; in a way, he’s a first cousin to Iron Man as both spend a lot of time shooting energy of some kind from their hands – very visual and so very appropriate for comics and, oh heck, we’ll admit it, also to movies. Whoever Doc Strange’s haberdasher was, hooray!

We’ll end with what you can consider another digression, a couple of lines from Lord Byron:

And if I laugh at any mortal thing

‘Tis that I may not weep.

Chortle chortle?

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

JL Dark Releases Trailer, DVD Details

all_four_3-e1479329912619-1475061BURBANK, CA (November 16, 2016) — To battle unparalleled supernatural forces, Batman must combine efforts with a new team of heroes – led by occult specialist John Constantine – in the next DC Universe Original Movie, Justice League Dark. Produced by Warner Bros. Animation and DC Entertainment, the full-length animated film arrives from Warner Bros. Home Entertainment on February 7, 2017.

Justice League: Dark will be available on Blu-ray™ Deluxe Giftset ($39.99 SRP), featuring an exclusive Constantine figurine; Blu-ray™ Combo Pack ($24.98 SRP); and DVD ($19.98 SRP). The film will be available to own on Digital HD ($19.99 HD, $14.99 SD) starting January 24, 2017.

When innocent civilians begin committing unthinkable crimes across Metropolis, Gotham City and beyond, Batman must call upon mystical counterparts to eradicate this demonic threat to the planet. Enter Justice League Dark, reluctantly led by the Hellblazer himself, John Constantine. Like Batman, Constantine is a cunning, often cynical loner who is the best at his chosen profession – but quickly realizes the sinister forces plaguing the planet will require help from other supernatural alliances. Forming a new “league” with sorceress Zatanna, otherworldly Deadman, and Jason Blood and his powerful alter ego Etrigan the Demon, this team of Dark Arts specialists must unravel the mystery of Earth’s supernatural plague and contend with the rising, powerful villainous forces behind the siege – before it’s too late for all of mankind.

Actor Matt Ryan, who set the standard for the role of Constantine on the Warner Bros. live-action television series, returns to the role in animated form alongside Jason O’Mara (Terra Nova, Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.) as Batman, Camilla Luddington (Grey’s Anatomy) as Zatanna, Nicholas Turturro (NYPD Blue) as Deadman, Ray Chase (Final Fantasy XV videogame) as Jason Blood/Etrigan, Roger R. Cross (24, Arrow) as John Stewart/Swamp Thing, Jeremy Davies (Justified) as Ritchie Simpson, Rosario Dawson (Daredevil, Sin City) as Wonder Woman, Jerry O’Connell (Stand By Me, Crossing Jordan) as Superman, Enrico Colantoni (Flashpoint, Veronica Mars) as Felix Faust, and Alfred Molina (The Da Vinci Code, Spider-Man 2) as Destiny.

Justice League Dark is directed by Jay Oliva (Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice, Batman: The Dark Knight Returns).  Story by J.M. DeMatteis and Ernie Altbacker (Green Lantern: The Animated Series) and teleplay by Ernie Altbacker.  Sam Register is Executive Producer.  Benjamin Melniker & Michael Uslan (The Dark Knight trilogy) are co-executive producers.  James Tucker (Batman Bad Blood, Batman: Return of the Caped Crusaders) is Supervising Producer.

“The chance to bring to life these amazing, complex characters–Constantine, Zatanna, Deadman and Swamp Thing – and the potential for their future adventures makes Justice League Dark a very exciting entry into the DC Universe Original Movies canon,” said Mary Ellen Thomas, Warner Bros. Home Entertainment Vice President, Family & Animation Marketing. “We are especially excited and honored to have Matt Ryan reprise his TV role as Constantine in this animated film.”

Justice League Dark Enhanced Content

jldark-box-art-3d-e1479329949742-8752983Blu-ray™ Deluxe Giftset and Blu-ray™

  • A Sneak Peek at Teen Titans: The Judas Contract: An advance look at the next DC Universe Original Movie, Teen Titans: The Judas Contract.
  • The Story of Swamp Thing (Featurette): Born out of the imagination of Len Wein and artist Bernie Wrightson, Justice League Dark’s Swamp Thing had his own solo adventures throughout the history of DC. This documentary reveals the rich history of this fan favorite.
  • Did You Know?: Constantine origin, Color of Magic, Black Orchid, and Deadman Casting (Featurette): The creators of Justice League Dark will reveal surprising behind-the-scenes tidbits about thecharacters – and the actors providing their voices – during production of the film.
  • 2016 NY Comic Con Panel (Featurette): A look inside Justice League Dark’s panel at New York Comic Con.
  • Sneak Peek at Justice League: Gods and Monsters
  • Sneak Peek at Justice League: Doom
  • From the DC Vault – Two Bonus Episodes –
  • Batman: The Brave and the Bold, “Dawn of the Dead Man!”Batman: The Brave and the Bold, “Trials of the Demon!”

DVD

A Sneak Peek at Teen Titans: The Judas Contract: An advance look at the next DC Universe Original Movie, Teen Titans: The Judas Contract.

REVIEW: Game of Thrones: The Complete Sixth Season on Blu-ray

gots6-dvd-pkg_3d-skew-6-7-e1477491983774-5697336Out today is the Blu-ray edition of Game of Thrones: The Complete Sixth Season from HBO Home Entertainment.

We previously reviewed the Digital HD version of the season here but there are new elements to consider with the box set.

The vast majority of Digital HD releases do not come with the bonus features, extra, and Easter Eggs we have come to know and love about the disc format. As a result, the Digital HD version is a nice add-on for on-the-go viewing, but the complete immersive experience, the special features add interviews, behind-the-scenes information, commentary, and deleted scenes to enhance your appreciation of the material. This season set, though, does come with some, but all, the extras found on the Blu-ray box set.

This season was a mixed bag with incredibly strong storytelling undercutting its strength by not surprising us. No one, except readers of the novel, expected Ned Stark to die or what was to happen at the Red Wedding. But here, across ten episodes, producers David Benioff and D. B. Weiss, consistently gave viewers what they wanted as they use elements from the unpublished sixth novel and continue to deviate from the core texts, creating a parallel but not identical version of events.

Jon Snow (Kit Harrington)’s fate was the most discussed cliffhanger since “Who Shot JR?” He survived and went on to abandon his post at The Wall in order to reunite the north now that it’s clear the Night King is coming closer. This led to episode nine’s incredibly satisfying but unsurprising “Battle of the Bastards” as Ramsay Bolton (Iwan Theon) gets his comeuppance. Long-lost Uncle Benjen Stark (Joseph Mawle) turns up long enough to help Bran (Hempstead Wright). Cersei (Lena Headey) exacts her revenge and the one real surprise this season was an unintended consequence. Little in the way of surprises here.

The 1.78:1 ratio is retained and overall, the high definition transfer is sharp as details pop and you don’t get lost in the many shadows. The discs come with Dolby Atmos with a Dolby TrueHD 7.1 core so they sound terrific.

The special features, listed below per disc, provides you with some important information regarding the thinking that went into the rise of the women, the resurrection of Jon Snow, and charting a path further from Martin’s novels.

Disc One

  • In Episode Guides
  • Audio Commentaries:
    • Episode 1with Director Jeremy Podeswa, Director of Photography Greg Middleton and Daniel Portman (Podrick Payne)
    • Episode 2with Writer Dave Hill, Michael McElhatton (Roose Bolton), Iwan Rheon (Ramsay Bolton), Liam Cunningham (Davos Seaworth) and Ben Crompton (Dolorous Edd)
    • Episode 3with Director Daniel Sackheim, Production Designer Deborah Riley, and Dean-Charles Chapman (Tommen Baratheon)

Disc Two

  • In Episode Guides
  • Audio Commentaries:
    • Episode 4with Nathalie Emmanuel (Missandei, Iain Glen (Jorah Mormont), and Jacob Anderson (Grey Worm)
    • Episode 5with Gemma Whelan (Yara Greyjoy), Pilou Asbaek (Euron Greyjoy), Ellie Kendrick (Meera Reed) and Kristian Nairn (Hodor)
    • Episode 5with Prosthetics Supervisor Barrie Gower, Camera Operators Chris Plevin and Ben Wilson and Executive Producer Bernadette Caulfield)
  • Recreating the Dothraki World(20:15) documents the efforts to revive elements that hadn’t been seen since season one.

Disc Three

  • In Episode Guides
  • Audio Commentaries:
    • Episode 6with Director Jack Bender, Director of Photography Jonathan Freeman, John Bradley (Samwell Tarly) and Hannah Murray (Gilly)
    • Episode 7with Producer/Writer Bryan Cogman, Ian McShane (Septon Ray), and Natalie Dormer (Margaery Tyrell)
    • Episode 8with Director Mark Mylod, Essie Davis (Lady Crane) and Nikolaj Coster-Waldau (Jaime Lannister)

Disc Four

  • In Episode Guides
  • Audio Commentaries:
    • Episode 9with Director Miguel Sapochnik, Sophie Turner (Sansa Stark), and Kit Harington (Jon Snow)
    • Episode 9with Director of Photography Fabian Wagner, Visual Effects Producer Steve Kullback, and Visual Effects Supervisor Joe Bauer
    • Episode 10with Executive Producers/Writers David Benioff and D.B. Weiss, Lena Headey (Cersei Lannister), and Peter Dinklage (Tyrion Lannister)
    • Episode 10with Special Effects Supervisor Sam Conway, Camera Operator Sean Savage and Producer Chris Newman
  • The Battle of the Bastards(1080p; 30:01) is a detailed look at one of the largest set pieces in the series’
  • 18 Hours at the Paint Hall(1080p; 28:17) is a “you are there” featurette showing what a day on set can be like.
  • Histories and Lore
    • The Old Way(4:25)
    • The Kingsmoot(3:45)
    • The Summer Sea(4:05)
    • War of the Ninepenny Kings(2:49)
    • The Great Tourney at Harrenhal(6:07)
    • Robert’s Rebellion(1080p; 6:07)
    • Vaes Dothrak(3:56)
    • The Dothraki(4:43)
    • Northern Allegiances to House Stark(4:56)
    • Children of the Forest vs. The First Men(4:43)
    • Brotherhood Without Banners(3:56)
    • Oldtown(5:35)
    • House Dayne(4:11)
    • The Little Birds(3:12)
    • Knights of the Vale(5:35)
    • House Tarly(4:35)
    • Riverrun(3:35)
    • Great Sept of Baelor(4:23)
    • Deleted Scenes(11:08)

Mike Gold: Comic Books’ Pot Luck

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One of the overlooked outcomes of last week’s election is the growth of the marijuana legalization movement. Buying, possessing and using the stuff is going to be legal for adults in Massachusetts, Nevada, California and Maine – as it is now in Colorado, Alaska, Washington State, Washington D.C., and Oregon. Over 20 percent of Americans reside in states where such use by adults is legal. In over half of these United States, weed is kosher for medicinal use.

reefer-madness-piano-scene-1682795First Fun Fact: A few years ago, the Heeb Magazine website informed us that, properly handled, cannabis is indeed kosher. That should popularize the Passover herb plate.

Second Fun Fact: If not for weed, we might not have our direct sales comic book distribution system. Back in the mid-60s, we started seeing retail outlets called “head shops” pop up all over this great nation. These places were sort of like today’s vape stores but they sold snarky buttons, black light posters, incense, underground newspapers (thank you)… but, mostly, they sold supplies for cleaning, rolling and smoking marijuana cigarettes.

In addition to perpetuating the art of speed piano playing, these stores also became the initial outlets for underground comix.

r-crumb-7638456Publishers such as Rip-Off Press, Last Gasp, and Kitchen Sink brought us to the worlds of R. Crumb, Skip Williamson, Jack Jackson, Trina Robbins, the unmistakable S. Clay Wilson, and many, many others. They breathed new life into a dormant American medium and influenced a generation of new artists.

These comix were sold directly to head shops on a non-returnable basis. Several years later, Phil Seuling brought this concept of direct sales marketing to the burgeoning mass of comic book stores which, previously, existed largely to sell back issues. Seeing as how comic books were essentially unprofitable in the waning days of newsstand distribution, by providing the model for direct distribution underground comix and the head shops that sold them saved the American comic book industry.

denis-kitchen-1205336Personally, I blame underground comix publisher turned agent, comic book and graphic novel impresario Denis Kitchen. This is because I am a trained political writer and I believe in punching up. My old friend Denis has a great deal of “up.”

So, really, the roots of contemporary comic book publishing were watered by illegally purchased marijuana… which is now increasingly legal in much of this country.

We can only hope that this new trend will have a similar impact upon comics sales. This, and of course damn near anything else.

Third Fun Fact: Next year’s San Diego convention should be real interesting. Damn, I might even go back there!

REVIEW: Citizen Kane

citizenkanebluThe American Dream, a term coined in 1931, essentially says that for any citizen, the possibilities for success are limitless if you work hard. That ethic was reinforced last week and today as Warner Home Entertainment releases a 75th Anniversary edition of Citizen Kane.

Orson Welles was a wunderkind, harnessing his many talents for the radio, scaring the beejezus out of the country with his adaptation of H.G. Wells’ War of the Worlds. With his ensemble, dubbed the Mercury Players, he was a powerhouse entertaining so it was no wonder he was enticed west to try his hand at film.

At 25, he cowrote, produced, directed, and starred in the story that was inspired by publishing magnate William Randolph Hearst, tracing the humble beginnings and rise then spectacular fall of a great man. It was a riveting portrait of a man in search of happiness, seeking pleasure in fame, fortune, and feminine companionship, failing time and again. He parlayed his fame into a run for governor, speaking truth to power, challenging the political machine of the day – sound familiar? – until the machine bit back and the dream faded. This is one of the first mass media productions to explore how the medium can be used to manipulate public opinion.

As a filmmaker, Welles attempted things that few other directors seemed interested in. He played with story structure, starting with Kane’s death, using a news reel to relay the vital facts, before a reporter investigated further, attempting to understand his final word, “rosebud”. We meet the great and small people who encountered Kane and their flashbacks tell the real story.

Visually, Welles was the first to combine a variety of techniques already in use by German directors — deep focus cinematography, shots of the ceilings, chiaroscuro lighting, and temporal jump-cuts – into an American production. He claims he did this through ignorance of the rules, much as Kane wrote his own rules along the way. Welles also brought his radio know-how to the screen, so overlapping dialogue and sound effects deepened the film experience.

The movie was a success, and one of the few to enjoy 100% fresh at Rotten Tomatoes. It has withstood the test of time, staying atop AFI’s Greatest Films of All Time list. The virtuoso production, which gave us actors such as Joseph Cotton and Agnes Moorehead, endures because of its themes and rock solid production. It forces you to watch, to pay attention, and understand one of the most complex figures introduced during Hollywood’s Golden Age.

It remains watchable and entertaining, such is its power. Warner has remastered the film, previously released in DVD and Blu-ray, in 4K resolution, making for the 1080p 1.33:1image even sharper image on Blu-ray players. The audio is DTS-HD Master Audio is superb.

The 70th Anniversary box set remains the best package overall with the bonus material included but this Blu-ray still comes with many previously released features such as separate commentaries from Roger Ebert and Peter Bogdonavich, Turner Archive Project interviews with actress Ruth Warwick and film editor Robert Wise, Opening: World Premiere of Citizen Kane, and “The Production,” a 15-minute onscreen slideshow with contextual commentary from Ebert.

If you have never seen this, now is the time. Its lessons and entertainment value cannot be overstated.

Mark Hamill’s Pop Culture Quest Debuts Today

pcq-296The force will be strong on devices across the nation today as Mark Hamill’s Pop Culture Quest comes to Comic–Con HQ. Mark Hamill has been collecting comic books, original artwork, toys and other mementos since the early 1970s and now he gets to share his passion and enthusiasm for collecting in his new web series.

“I’ve been a collector all my life,” said Hamill. “This show is a natural outgrowth of that passion. Now I have an opportunity to collect other people’s collections! I can’t wait to see what’s out there and share it with the world. Collectibles are a living history of who and what we are, so we just might learn something…but there’s no doubt we’re going to have fun!”

This series kicks off at the DC Comics headquarters with the legendary Jim Lee, as the co-publisher and Mark trade favors and end up with their very own pieces of pop culture history. Join Mark throughout the season as Mark Hamill’s Pop Culture Quest uncovers comic book memorabilia, film props, Godzilla, pinball machines and beyond with special guests including monster amasser Scott Zilllner, famous collector Bob Burns and many more!

Hamill will once again team with his friend and Star Wars: Episode VI – Return of the Jedi producer Howard Kazanjian.  Kazanjian was Executive Producer on Raiders of the Lost Ark and served as VP at Lucasfilm during the dramatic expansion of the company in the 1980s. Producer Darren Moorman, whose film Same Kind of Different as Me will be released next year, and longtime collector and vintage show promoter Scott Kinney will round out the producing team as Executive Producers on the series.

San Diego Comic-Con is only once a year, but Comic-Con HQ is year-round! The new subscription video – on – demand destination is available at Comic-ConHQ.com via web browsers, iOS/Android devices, Roku, AppleTV and Amazon Channels, with more to come.

To celebrate, the first episode is available to fans worldwide via DC Comics. In the pilot episode, “Joker’s Favor,” Mark Hamill heads to DC Comics Headquarters, home to one of the greatest collections of comic book memorabilia and one of the most celebrated artists in the world, Jim Lee. Join them as they share their stories of pop culture collecting and trade favors to end up with their very own pieces of pop culture history.

Mark Hamill’s Pop Culture Quest: Episode 1 – Joker’s Favor

With Mark Hamill as your guide, explore the most exclusive pop culture collections in the world! Join Mark on his weekly quest to track down the rumored rocket-firing Boba Fett, the original Time Machine, the last surviving armature model used to animate the original 1933 King Kong, the 1992 Batmobile, and so much more! Mark travels inside pop culture’s vaults to uncover why we are so fascinated with collecting and what our passions say about us

Tune in next week on Comic-Con HQ as Mark’s affinity for Godzilla and giant robots leads him to collector Scott Zillner, whose passion transcended his home – filled with thousands of monsters and robots – and led to the creation of Power Morphicon!

Box Office Democracy: Arrival

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I went in to the theater knowing less about what Arrival was and what it was about than any movie in recent memory. I had skimmed the first few sentences of the Wikipedia page but only knew the absolute broadest strokes. I was beyond pleasantly surprised; I can’t recall being so enthralled by a movie that was so far off my radar since Drive. Arrival is the best kind of science fiction that provides us with some fantastic things and concepts, but what it really tells is a mundane story through a fresh lens fantastically well.

Arrival has the kind of plot that sounds boring in summary— a linguistics professor is called to translate the language of a visiting alien— but ends up working well. The movie got me thinking about linguistics and the intricacies of language more than I have since I decided not to take an introductory level class in the subject back in college. There’s an inherent tension involved in any alien encounter, and something about the way the score does string hits that kind of sound like the way the aliens talk gives even the safest moments a hint of looming doom. There’s this overlay of global tension, that other countries might attack their local aliens and that this will spark a war for some reason, but none of that ever feels terribly compelling. I care about the characters they’re making me care about; I don’t care about vague threats that never make much sense.

There’s a turn in the story— I don’t want to call it a twist; there’s a massive shift in perspective in the third act. I usually don’t care about spoilers but I won’t give this away because I appreciated that I came in to Arrival with very little idea what the movie was about. The third act is brilliant, it’s clever, it’s suitably science-fiction-y, and it puts the whole film in to sharper focus. (This might be getting too close to what it is but I’ll never pass up a chance to give Zack Snyder grief: Arrival makes Watchmen look terrible.)

There aren’t enough good things to say about Amy Adams and the job she does here. She nails the big moments like being afraid of the aliens the first time she meets them and the big moments of grief and sadness, but the bigger moments seem easy. The small moments are what set the whole film apart. There’s a moment where she struggles with her hazmat suit the first time she has it on, the weight and the cumbersome nature seem to be smothering her and it communicates how awkward and massive that moment must have felt in a way that slack-jawed awe never would. There’s this need to lace so many touching moments with a sense of bittersweet inevitability in retrospect and it’s there, and it’s heartbreaking, and it’s beautiful. Forest Whitaker is excellent and Jeremy Renner does some of the best work I’ve ever seen from him, but Amy Adams is special in this film.

Arrival is an incredible science fiction film. Easily the best entry in the genre since Ex Machina although they’re nothing alike so there’s very little basis for comparison. With six weeks of allegedly top notch movies still to come, Arrival is comfortably on top of my list for best film of the year. It’s a haunting film that commands attention when on the screen, but more importantly infests your thoughts for days after.

Win a Copy of Game of Thrones: The Complete Sixth Season

  • News
  • November 15, 2016

gots6-dvd-pkg_3d-skew-6-7-e1477491983774-8897134You won’t be returning to Westeros for new adventures until summer 2017 but our friends at HBO are offering up a copy of the forthcoming Game of Thrones: The Complete Sixth Season. In order to win the prize, you need to tell us which of the many lands or Houses you would most want to live in and why.

Entries must be posted no later than 11:59 p.m. November 20. The contest is open to United States and Canadian readers only. The decision of ComicMix‘s judges will be final.

Digital HD Download

  • Bran’s Journey – A nine-minute feature delving into the shocking and revelatory journey Bran Stark took in Season 6.
  • The Dothraki World – Behind-the-Scenes featurette bringing viewers up to speed on the Dothraki culture, not seen since Season 1.
  • Inside Game of Thrones: Prosthetics – Behind-the-Scenes featurette detailing what goes into the show’s prosthetics creation.
  • The Game Revealed – Five-part series covering the creation of Season 6’s most epic set pieces and scenes.

Blu-ray™ with Digital Copy – includes all DVD features plus:

  • In-Episode Guide – Dig deeper into the show with thisin-feature resource that provides background information about on-screen characters, locations, and relevant histories.
  • Histories and Lore – Learn about the mythology of Westeros and Essos as told from the varying perspectives of the characters themselves in 18 history pieces.
  • The Old Way: narrated by Euron Greyjoy (Pilou Asbæk)
  • The Kingsmoot: narrated by Euron Greyjoy (Pilou Asbæk)
  • The Sunset Sea: narrated by Euron Greyjoy (Pilou Asbæk)
  • War of the Ninepenny Kings: narrated by Brother Ray (Ian McShane)
  • The Great Tourney at Harrenhal: narrated by Meera Reed (Ellie Kendrick)
  • Robert’s Rebellion: narrated by Jaime Lannister (Nikolaj Coster-Waldau)
  • Vaes Dothrak: narrated by Jorah Mormont (Iain Glen)
  • The Dothraki: narrated by Jorah Mormont (Iain Glen)
  • Northern Allegiances to House Stark: narrated by Sansa Stark (Sophie Turner)
  • Children of the Forest vs. the First Men: narrated by the Three-Eyed Raven (Max von Sydow)
  • Brotherhood Without Banners: narrated by Thoros of Myr (Paul Kaye)
  • Oldtown: narrated by Grand Maester Pycelle (Julian Glover) and Qyburn (Anton Lesser)
  • House Dayne: narrated by Young Ned Stark (Robert Aramayo)
  • The Little Birds: narrated by Lord Varys (Conleth Hill)
  • Knights of the Vale: narrated by Petyr ‘Littlefinger’ Baelish (Aidan Gillen)
  • House Tarly: narrated by Randyll Tarly (James Faulkner)
  • Riverrun: narrated by Brynden ‘the Blackfish’ Tully (Clive Russell)
  • Great Sept of Baelor: narrated by the High Sparrow (Jonathan Pryce)

DVD:

  • The Battle of the Bastards: An In-Depth Look – Behind-the-scenes piece examining the production challenges of creating this epic event, including explorations of VFX, stunts, and interviews with key cast and crew.
  • Recreating the Dothraki World –Behind-the-scenes piece looking at the creation of Vaes Dothrak and its importance to Dany’s evolution.
  • 18 Hours at the Paint Hall –Follow all three shooting units as they converge in this behind-the-scenes snapshot of a day in the life of the largest show on television
  • Audio Commentaries – The most commentaries ever recorded for Game of Thrones, featuring:
  • Episode 601: Director Jeremy Podeswa, Director of Photography Greg Middleton, and Daniel Portman (Podrick Payne)
  • Episode 602: Writer Dave Hill, Michael McElhatton (Roose Bolton), Iwan Rheon (Ramsay Bolton), Liam Cunningham (Davos Seaworth), and Ben Crompton (Dolorous Edd)
  • Episode 603: Director Daniel Sackheim, Production Designer Deborah Riley, and Dean-Charles Chapman (Tommen Baratheon)
  • Episode 604: Nathalie Emmanuel (Missandei), Iain Glen (Jorah Mormont),  and Jacob Anderson (Grey Worm)
  • Episode 605 (2 commentaries): Gemma Whelan (Yara Greyjoy), Pilou Asbæk (Euron Greyjoy), Ellie Kendrick (Meera Reed), and Kristian Nairn (Hodor); Prosthetics Supervisor Barrie Gower, Camera Operators Chris Plevin and Ben Wilson, and Executive Producer Bernadette Caulfield
  • Episode 606: Director Jack Bender, Director of Photography Jonathan Freeman, John Bradley (Samwell Tarly), and Hannah Murray (Gilly)
  • Episode 607: Producer/Writer Bryan Cogman, Ian McShane (Septon Ray), and Natalie Dormer (Margaery Tyrell)
  • Episode 608:Director Mark Mylod, Essie Davis (Lady Crane), and Nikolaj Coster-Waldau (Jaime Lannister)
  • Episode 609 (2 commentaries): Director Miguel Sapochnik, Sophie Turner (Sansa Stark), and Kit Harington (Jon Snow); Director of Photography Fabian Wagner, Visual Effects Producer Steve Kullback, and Visual Effects Supervisor Joe Bauer
  • Episode 610 (2 commentaries): Executive Producers/Writers David Benioff & D.B. Weiss, Lena Headey (Cersei Lannister), and Peter Dinklage (Tyrion Lannister); Special Effects Supervisor Sam Conway, Camera Operator Sean Savage, and Producer Chris Newman
  • Deleted Scenes –Four deleted scenes.

The most-watched series in HBO history and a worldwide TV phenomenon, Game of Thrones returns with another power season. This year, after the shocking developments at the end of Season 5 – including Jon Snow’s bloody fate at the hands of Castle Black mutineers, Daenerys’ near-demise at the fighting pits of Meereen, and Cersei’s public humiliation in the streets of King’s Landing – survivors from all parts of Westeros and Essos regroup to press forward, inexorably, towards their uncertain individual fates. Familiar faces will forge new alliances to bolster their strategic chances at survival, while new characters will emerge to challenge the balance of power in the east, west, north and south.

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