Tagged: Green Lantern

The Weekly Haul: Reviews for March 6, 2008

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  • March 6, 2008

Welcome to the inaugural Weekly Haul, a collection of reviews of this week’s comic book issues brought to you by none other than ComicMix. It was a big week for floppies, with four new series worth giving a read and several old standbys seeing new developments. Without further ado, let’s get to the reviews.

atom-8126234Book of the Week: The All-New Atom #21 — Anyone wondering whether this title would keep being a must-read after Gail Simone stepped aside as writer and Rick Remender took the reins can go ahead and relax. The All-New Atom is better than ever in this issue, which takes the classic archetypal conflict of man vs. himself and gives it one heck of a twist.

While trying to figure out if Ray Palmer’s experiments were responsible for Ivy Town’s craziness, the new Atom, Ryan, shrinks down to explore a sample of his own blood (sounds weird, but it makes sense). Remender makes that effort alone a pulse-pounder, but then Ryan finds some terrible infestation in his blood and all hell breaks loose.

While still a bit text heavy, the series remains just as zany as under Simone’s watch and is a bit more focused. Good stuff all the way around.

Runners Up:

Logan #1 — Brian K. Vaughan and Eduardo Risso taking on the most famous mutant is pretty well guaranteed to be a quality read. And while this issue is far from mind-blowing, it’s a far superior story of Wolverine getting his memory back than anything we’ve seen in Wolverine: Origins. The downside is Marvel once again arbitrarily slapping a $3.99 price tag on a book for no good reason.

Northlanders #4 — This is the classic "from bad to worse" part of the story, but Brian Wood pulls it off well. The best quality of this vikings series is how Wood gives depth to his characters and doesn’t let any of them fall too far into stereotypical roles of heroes and villains. Life is complicated, especially for blood-hungry Scandinavians.

Omega the Unknown #6 — For the most touching tribute yet to the recently deceased Steve Gerber, this issue merits a purchase. It’s also another darn fine bit of comics by Jonathan Lethem and Farel Dalrymple. After all the action of the past few issues, this one serves as a bit of set up to the coming battle with the robots before culminating with a well done metatextual flourish.

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Primary Sources, by Dennis O’Neil

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  • March 4, 2008

bill_everett-8634197In days of yore – my yore anyway – I briefly wondered if my particular literary backwater, the writing of comic books, would be properly remembered. It seemed to me that young snots such as myself were getting attention – interviews and the like – and the guys who were around at the beginning, the guys who virtually created the form, were pretty much ignored, although many of them were still alive and frisky.

I needn’t have worried and I didn’t, which is good because, even more than most worry, this variety would have been a waste of time.

I do wish there had been more interviews with…oh, to cite the first name that pops into the shopworn old psyche, Bill Everett. And I don’t remember ever reading a Q and A with Carl Burgos: if none exists, too bad. Even Bill Finger doesn’t seem to have left many historical footprints, and some of what we know about him comes from people like me, whose memories are emphatically not to be trusted.

Having said all that: comics are undoubtedly the most documented medium/art form in history. They came to their early maturity just in time to benefit from the explosion of media and distribution, and the belated realization that every art form was pop culture once, and none are prima facie inferior. And guys like Gerry Jones know how to use the information sources available and have the patience and literary skill to put the pieces together.

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The Super-Hero Car, by Dennis O’Neil

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  • February 26, 2008

When we last looked in on our intrepid, tv-watching old guy – that’d be me – he was waiting to treat himself to the premiere of Knight Rider, a remake of an old series.

 
Okay, I watched it.
 
I can’t really compare it to the original, which aired at a time in my life when television had a very low priority. The episode I do remember seeing annoyed me, just a bit, I think, because he talking car seemed to be as much a – brace for a pun – deus ex machina as…oh, say, the shafts in Green Arrow’s quiver or the items in Batman’s tiny utility belt compartments; whatever the hero needs, that’s what’s there. But, as noted, I was never a real Knight Rider watcher.
 
Having made that confession: the show I saw last Sunday didn’t seem to be awfully innovative. The one blatant updating was that one of the good guys was a gay, black woman, a character who probably would not have appeared on network television during the original Knight Rider’s heyday.
 
And that talking car? Pretty nifty, I have to admit – similar to the original, but a bit improved. For example, it changed colors at the twiddle of a dashboard thingy, which brings us to the aforementioned Batman.
 

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ComicMix at Toy Fair: DC Showroom Tour

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  • February 20, 2008

Here at ComicMix, we’ve already shown you Mattel’s "Infinite Heroes" and other DC Universe products, but there were even more comics-inspired collectibles on display just a block away at DC’s showroom in New York City’s "Toy District".

From upcoming lines of Minimates, action figures inspired by classic stories and box sets to statues, busts and "trophy room" replicas, there was, well… a lot to absorb. Heck, they even had Superman’s Cape.

After the jump, check out our complete photo tour of DC’s showroom, including several characters receiving their first action-figure treatment in comics history!

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Nighty Knight Rider, by Dennis O’Neil

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  • February 19, 2008

Once again, the other day, I found myself wishing I’d spent less of my youth with, as folks might have said back then, my nose buried in some silly book and more time in the company of hammers, saws, wrenches. You know. Manly stuff. Tools. The reason was, something in the bathtub wasn’t working and we had to call the plumber, who is one of the nicest guys I know and might be the best plumber in Rockland County New York, and we had a chat while the water was running to accomplish something arcane and, well, plumberish. If I hadn’t wasted my youth, maybe I could tell you what.

 
Anyway: because he knows what I did and sometimes still do to earn money, we discussed movies and television. He’s of the opinion that nobody in the media has any new ideas.
 
I didn’t argue, and I won’t. With a few reservations, and looking at the evidence, I agree, kind of.
 
Of course, one could assert that there are no new ideas, an assertion borne out by the fact that treatise after treatise has demonstrated that there are only seven plots, or five, or eleven – some very finite number, in any case. But even given that near = truism, there doesn’t seem to be a lot that’s genuinely fresh around these days.
 
For instance: As I type this, I’m about two hours away from experiencing the latest incarnation of Knight Rider. Twenty-plus years ago, this saga of a young man and his talking car launched the career of David Hasselhoff, who later became world-famous as the tanned and buff father figure to a lot of equally tanned and buff, but younger, lifeguards. This is the latest of a seemingly endless catalogue of old films and TV shows revamped for the Twenty First Century. Some I’ve liked; the remake of the old Glenn Ford western, 3:10 to Yuma, was, by any reasonable criterion, a good movie. Others…well…
 

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Geoff Johns on Seeding the Stories of ‘Sinestro Corps War’

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  • February 16, 2008

In this interview with Publishers Weekly, Geoff Johns reflects on DC’s under-the-radar yet phenomenally successful crossover event The Sinestro Corps War, which unfolded in the pages of Green Lantern, Green Lantern Corps and various other series and tie-ins.

According to Johns, who served as the primary architect for the event, the desire to keep the story centralized among a small number of titles was key to its popularity among readers.

Johns also explains how he approached many of the Sinestro Corps‘ main characters, and touches on the advantages of being able to seed stories that he knows he’ll be around to tell a year down the road.

"I’m trying to pioneer a way of letting people know that there’s a big story here," Johns said. "I know every single broad project and story line I’m working on at DC through 2010. I like plotting far ahead, because I can let things sit in my brain and grow and change, and I can have little things pay off. There’s actually a mention of ‘The Blackest Night’ in Green Lantern #6 [from mid-2006]. It’s much more satisfying for me to work that way."

The first collected, hardcover volume of The Sinestro Corps War is currently available, with the next volume available in June.

 

‘Justice League of America’ Film Delayed, No Superman or Batman?

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  • February 15, 2008

As we reported earlier, Paramount announced they are pushing back the release of the latest installment of the Star Trek franchise until Summer 2009. Now, from the pushed-back department comes a report via MovieHole.net that the oft-discussed and delayed Justice League of America feature has had its potential start date pushed from sometime this year to mid-2010.

Apparently, according to the report, one of the major reasons for the push was the availability of cast who, as actors often do, have taken as much work as they can and are booked up for the year. Although, as we reported earlier, Common seems to be onboard and ready to rock as Green Lantern.

Casting wasn’t the only factor, though, as it appears the studio also realized the film just wasn’t ready to roll given its current condition — which is probably more the "real" reason.

In related news, a report out of Blockbuster would seem to call into question the presence of Superman or Batman in the eagerly anticipated superteam film.

A casting agency has apparently released the following plot description for Justice League of America:

“Feb 28, Sydney, Australia: The film is about Green Lantern, Green Arrow and others of the Justice League of America, an organisation made up of the world’s greatest superheroes. They must deal with the expulsion of Batman and the death of Superman at the hands of the monstrous Doomsday”.

 

 

 

 

Lost In ‘Lost’, by Dennis O’Neil

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  • February 15, 2008
[EDITOR’S NOTE: Denny’s column normally runs on Tuesdays, which is great because Denny e-mails it to me on Sundays. For some reason – and for the second or third time – his various e-mail accounts don’t seem to like my various e-mail accounts. We think we’ve straightened it out. Go figure. If computers were cars, we’d all be riding horses.

 

And now, Mr. O’Neil… -MG]

 

While I was sort of half-watching the two Lost specials our pals at ABC television were treating us to recently, I recalled the hot new trend of a couple of years ago. Serialized stories. Nothing resolved until late in the season. They came and they went, those shows, though there are a few survivors, of which my favorite, and apparently the favorite of millions of my fellow citizens (including you?) is the aforementioned Lost.
 
The purpose of the specials, which ran on consecutive evenings, was ostensibly to remind the Faithful of what’s been happening to those funsters on the island, and to clue in the non-Faithful, like me, people who just watch the thing for an hour’s easy amusement, as to what the hell the continuity is. (Another reason for the specials might have been the writer’s strike, now settled; clip shows like these eat up airtime at little cost and need no new material. Or am I being cynical?)
 

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ComicMix History Lesson: Steve Ditko’s Revenge

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  • February 12, 2008

The cover Mike Raub used to illustrate his ComicMix Radio piece earlier today reminded me of another cover of somewhat similar design … and quiet controversy. So it’s time for another ComicMix History Lesson!

Once upon a time DC Comics had this idea of resurrecting their Showcase try-out series, but they made a couple significant changes. Instead of doing three-issue try-out runs, they did a series of one-shots. And, unlike Showcase‘s The Flash, Lois Lane, Green Lantern, The Atom (et al) runs, by and large these one-shots sucked.

They named the series 1st Issue Special because the phrase "1st issue" sold comics to collectors, and then they numbered each issue sequentially, proving their desire to sell comics in Canada outweighed their faith in collectors (don’t ask – or, better still, if you want to know, ask and I’ll respond in comments).

One of the better issues resurrected Steve Ditko’s Beware The Creeper, dropping the "Beware" part. Editorial director Carmine Infantino rejected Steve’s cover concept and drew up one of his own. Evidently, Steve didn’t care for it, but that was how the gig worked. So he drew it as designed: Firefly battling The Creeper in the sky, with a down-shot point-of-view.

As you can see, both characters are pummeling each other as they are falling to the ground. In the background is a street scene, with tiny little cars. And across from one of those tiny little cars, there’s a tiny little fire hydrant. And next to the fire hydrant, there’s a tiny little dog. And next to the tiny little dog who is next to the tiny little fire hydrant, there’s a tiny little puddle.

That last part reflects what Ditko thought of Infantino’s cover design.

Common Cast as Green Lantern in ‘Justice League’ Film

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  • February 11, 2008

Hip-hop musician Common recently confirmed to MTV that he will be playing the role of Green Lantern John Stewart in the upcoming "Justice League" film.

"It’s a blessing really, to know that I could potentially be this superhero,” he enthused. “Justice League itself is an honor, and Green Lantern is an incredible character to play. It’s a blessing to be associated with it.”

As previously reported, "Justice League" production was initially delayed by the WGA strike, but now could begin again this year. The film is tentaively scheduled for a 2010 release, but nothing is certain at this point.

 

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