ROBERT GREENBERGER talks Civil War
It must come as quite a shock to you. We’re talking about a profound cultural shift for the betterment of mankind, People want this, Richard. They need the superhumans of the world to be responsible, properly trained, qualified…and ultimately held accountable. That’s what the initiative is all about. We’re trying to move out of the dark ages of masked vigilantes into a brighter future where tragedies like Stamford can’t ever happen again.
World War Hulk began last week and we saw the jade-jawed giant arrive on Earth with a pretty big mad on. With less than twenty-four hours to evacuate Manhattan, Doctor Strange and his, er, estranged Avengers offer to help Iron Man clear the populace. Shellhead magnanimously offers amnesty for their help.
Welcome to the new status quo in the Marvel Universe. The dust continues to settle from the brawl that was Civil War and with all of Earth confronted by a new menace, now’s not a bad time to assess the new political landscape.
After the Mutant Registration Act, unveiled in Uncanny X-Men #181 and passed into law, required all mutants in America to be registered. Those not complying faced criminal charges. Once that was passed, a parallel super-hero or super-power act was an obvious follow up and came up during the Acts of Vengeance crossover. Fantastic Four #335 began the first serious examination of such an act. Reed Richards addressed a congressional subcommittee saying such an act was unnecessary. His odd argument that such a law wouldn’t be followed by the villains anyway struck an odd chord.
While American legislators dithered over it, the Superpowers Registration Act became Canadian law in Alpha Flight #120.
Years went by without much activity on either front with the Mutant law not being vigorously enforced and the super-human law a mere idea.
Then came the House of M. (more…)
Frank Miller will be adapting the Raymond Chandler’s Philip Marlowe in the film version of Trouble Is My Business, starring Sin City‘s own Clive Owen.
Marc Foster, director of Finding Neverland and Monster’s Ball, is set to direct the next James Bond movie. Monster’s Ball earned Halle Barry an Oscar, so maybe we’ll get to see Daniel Craig smooched onstage as well.
The most recent flap in the blogosphere, probably since wiped out by the twin blog-fodder hurricanes of Wizard World Philly and Heroes Con, concerns some ill-considered remarks made by the magician wife of one of DC’s current star writers. Can you tell which of the following statements she made?
There were lots and lots of Asian companies trying to be the next Sanrio (there was also Sanrio, for that matter). I was especially pleased to discover Aska Studio, a Taiwanese company with lots of properties. The best, IMO, was the Mouchoir Club, about a box of tissues and a roll of toilet paper that have adventures. As the handout says, "They bring hapapiness to people; heal them of broken heart. Moreover, at the same time, they found the meaning of life." I’d buy a pillowcase that could do that for me.
James Marsters will be guest-starring in an episode of the R-rated Doctor Who spin-off, Torchwood.
