Tagged: Spider-Man

Marvel Studios Touts Year’s Successes

  • News
  • September 11, 2008

Marvel Studios Chairman David Maisel told investors at Merrill Lynch that their debut this year was” arguably the most successful" in modern history. He touted facts and figures for the smash success of Iron Man and coupled it with the so-so performance of Incredible Hulk to show their dominance.  While claiming Iron Man is the 21st top grossing film in domestic history, adjusted for inflation, it’s actually 113th.

According to The Hollywood Reporter, he has compared their 2010 Thor film as akin to The Lord of the Rings.  At present, no director or cast has been attached.

Maisel also indicated the films will continue to seed characters and threads from film-to-film comparing it with the Star Wars films as opposed to the organic manner in which Stan Lee populated the Marvel Universe. The cameos were "a taste of what’s to follow."

While announcing nothing new, he reiterated the planned 2010 releases for Iron Man 2 and Thor and the 2011 releases of The First Avenger: Captain America and The Avengers.  He made no mention of the other films rounding out the 10 films Paramount agreed to co-finance including Ant Man. 

Nor did he make mention of Sony’s competing 2011 release, Spider-Man 4, or 20th-Century Fox’s Marvel properties including next year’s X-Men Origins: Wolverine.

"And with our track record, we can normally keep those release dates pretty clean," Maisel noted. He also indicated the advance scheduling allows them to line up premiere licensing and merchandising partners.  He pointed to the forthcoming theme parks in Dubai and South Korea as partnerships aiming the studio and its characters for global domination well into the 21st century.

Also yesterday, actress Eva Mendes pooh-poohed the notion of a Ghost Rider sequel, telling MTV, "No, I think Ghost Rider had its moment. I don’t know about a sequel, but I don’t think it needs one. I was so proud of it. It was fun…but I think it’s done…but look, hey, if it’s Nicolas Cage again – I’ll do anything with him."

Hoffman as Penguin is news to Hoffman

  • News
  • September 9, 2008

The problem with smash hit films is that everyone immediately begins speculating about the sequel.  After all, Hollywood is driven by success and “tent pole” films are necessary for business.  Its one reason, studios stake out release dates years in advance, sometimes before there’s even a script (see Spider-Man 4).

Since the box office records shattered with The Dark Knight, everyone has been running around guessing who might be in the running for the third film from Christopher Nolan. Actors have let it be known they’re interested whether appropriate or not to the part.  The merest hint news sends news around the Internet in a nanosecond.

As a result, retractions, clarifications or denunciations follow just a tad slower.

No sooner did the dust settle from the Cher-as-Catwoman nonsense, MTV began reporting that Michael Caine received Warner Bros. confirmation that the next movie in the series will offer up Johnny Depp as The Riddler and Philip Seymour Hoffman as the Penguin.

Of course, Nolan insists he hasn’t thought once about the next film, preferring to concentrate on a non-Bat feature as a palette cleanser before returning to Gotham City.

Hoffman, who would be terrific in just about any part short of Catwoman, told The Stone Report that ”Some friend of mine told me he read that [rumor]", Hoffman reported from the Toronto Film Festival. "First I heard of it. I don’t think so.

"I grew up a comic book fan, so I love that stuff. I love going to that stuff. I think what they’re doing with that whole Batman story is really true to what that whole Batman thing has always been. It’s one of the darkest origins of a super-hero, to get all nerdy and geeky on you. That character sees his parents gunned down as a young child. I remember when I was a kid reading that story, so seeing it now come to life as the dark tale that it really is as an intense, really dark, very visceral, adult tale that they’re doing now, all the great work people are doing on it, of course I wouldn’t say, ‘Well, no, no no.’ But I don’t know the reality of it, so I wouldn’t say ‘yes’ to you."

Marvel isn’t immune from this nonsense either as they had to quickly stomp out the word that Will Smith was being cast as Steve Rogers in the Captain America movie.  Previously, rumor had it Cap would be played by Matthew McConnaughy.

 

Superman Timeline

  • News
  • September 4, 2008

As most of us know, this year marked Superman’s 70th anniversary. And as if that weren’t enough to engender conversation about the Man of Steel, Brad Meltzer’s new novel Book of Lies  has prompted quite a bit of discussion concerning Martin Siegel, who died during an armed robbery and whose son Jerome "Jerry" Siegel subsequently wrote the story of a bullet-proof alien who was invulnerable to all frailties.

So with all this talk going around about Superman’s beginnings, we here at ComicMix thought it was time to put together a small Superman time line. Please note, this time line is focused solely on Supermans’ adventures in the comics and not with his stories in other media.

1933 – Jerry Siegel and Joe Shuster publish their story “Reign of the Super-Man." In the story, the title character is a bald homeless man named Bill Dunn who gains telepathic powers from a mad scientist’s experiment and intends to take over Earth. After this, Siegel writes up a new version of Superman who is secreatly named Clark Kent and is, in fact, an alien named Kal-L, son of Jor-L and last survivor of the dead planet Krypton. Shuster does artwork for the comic strip and they begin to submit it. The story is rejected by 17 different publishers over the next five years.

1938 – Superman/Clark Kent is finally introduced in Action Comics #1. Although Siegel has plotted out the name of Superman’s parents and planet, none of these are actually named in this issue’s origin story. Superman is said to have great strength, resistance to conventional injury, and is able to leap 1/8th of a mile.

1939 – In Superman #1, the planet Krypton is finally named in the comics. It is also mentioned that Clark Kent was raised by a kindly, elderly couple. His adopted mother is named “Mary Kent” and it’s said that she and her husband died soon before Clark moved to Metropolis.

1940 – In Action Comics #23, Clark’s newspaper The Daily Star is officially renamed as The Daily Planet and Superman has his first fight with “Luthor, the mad scientist.”

1941 – Superman #10 features our hero actually defying gravity for the first time by hovering in the air. Previous to this, it was always stated in the comics that he could only leap over great distances. Superman #11 confirms that Superman can now fly, just like in the cartoons and radio shows.

1942 – Superman #17 reveals that the Man of Tomorrow has a hidden base known as the Secret Citadel, located inside a mountain range nearby Metropolis.

1945 – The character of Superboy (an adolescent version of Superman) and his hometown of Smallville are introduced in More Fun Comics #101. Initially, this is treated as a separate continuity from the mainstream Superman stories.

1948 – Superman #53 names Clark’s adopted parents as “John and Mary Kent.”

1949 – Kryptonite makes its first comic book appearance in comics in Superman #61 (originally, it was only used in the radio plays). In this story, Kryponite is colored red but in all subsequent stories it is colored green (other forms of Kryptonite with different colors will appear later on). In this same story, Superman finally learns the name and history of his home planet Krypton, even though readers have known such facts for years already. (more…)

Want to be in Spider-Man 4?

  • News
  • August 28, 2008

The charity, Stand Up to Cancer, is working with Sony Pictures to raise money by auctioning off a Spider-Man 4 package of gooides at eBay. 

The highest bidder will not only visit to the set of Spider-Man 4 for one shooting day; but will also have a one-hour meet and greet with the cast; a walk-on/extra role; a trip to the New York premiere in 2011; designer outfits to wear to the premiere for both winner and guest; and a chance to show off the outfits as they walk down the premiere’s red carpet.

Of course, all this is for a good cause despite the fact that Spider-Man 4 is merely a concept today without script, director, cast or actual shooting schedule.

Bidding is already at $5000 as of this morning and the auction ends September 5th at 7:00 pm US-PDT.

ComicMix Radio: Nancy Drew Meets Indiana Jones

 That’s how creator James Watson describes his damsel in distress heroine, Paula Peril, who is already making her way from the indy comic series to live action films, as you can see here

We cover the origins of Ms Peril, plus:

  • Spider-Man sells out in less than 24 hours
  • Virgin heads west
  • ABC welcomes Nathan Fillion and more, but when?

Enjoy the Paula Peril trailer, then Press the Button for more!
 

And remember, you can always subscribe to ComicMix Radio podcasts via badgeitunes61x15dark-1371062 or RSS!

 

Given You A Number, by John Ostrander

  • News
  • August 28, 2008

It’s a good thing for this column that I listen to NPR. I don’t know if I’d have the number of column topics that I’ve had without it. This time I was listening to a debate between a former college/university president and the head of Mothers Against Drunk Driving. The topic was whether the drinking age should be lowered to 18. I like to think I would have been more Pro on the topic back when I was 18 myself, but the fact was in those days I was so square I was cubed.

Both sides had pretty fair arguments, but the one that struck home most for me was this: a young man or woman can sign up for the Armed Forces, be taught to kill, be put in situations where they can be killed, and are expected to exercise quick and accurate decisions between friend and foe, even when the foe dresses like everyone else. Yet, those same young people cannot be expected to responsibly decide how much to drink. They can die for their country but they can’t have a beer because they’re too young.

Is it just me or does anyone else think this is pretty screwed up thinking?

Both eighteen and twenty-one are “magic numbers.” Are we really “adult” by either one of those birthdays? Some folks are, some aren’t. Some never are. If you’re one of those whose criterion for voting for a particular candidate is whether or not you would want to have a beer with them, then you’re not old enough to vote. I don’t care how many birthdays you’ve had; you’re not old enough. (more…)

Marvel Lets Japan Recreate Its Heroes

  • News
  • August 25, 2008







circle-01-3037080Marvel Comics announced a deal with Japan’s Madhouse that will have their core super-heroes reimagined for Japanese audiences.  Originally designed as animated fare, the long-range plans call for the Marvel Japanese Universe to be found on mobile devices and comic books.

Essentially, the heroes will experience new origins taking into account Japanese culture and society.  Their problems, foibles ands villains will all reflect the country of origin, using “something that is part of the fabric of society” according to Jungo Maruta, the president and chief executive of Madhouse. He told the New York Times, “Marvel gives creators freedom to fly.”

The first characters to undergo transformation will be Iron Man and Wolverine in thirty-minute anime intended for Japanese television in 2010. “Although they say, ‘I want Japanese anime,’ it’s not what they actually want. They want a hybrid between Japanese and Western animation,” Alex Yeh, the chief operating officer of the studio, told the Times.

“Marvel has continuously looked to push the boundaries with the Marvel Universe and seek new mediums for our characters. Madhouse is helping us expand the Marvel brand with a truly global vision tailored to themes and artistic styles popular in Japan, creating a uniquely localized and cross-cultural adaptation of the Marvel Universe,” said Simon Philips, President, International & Worldwide Head of Animation, Wireless & Gaming for Marvel Entertainment in a release.

Marvel previously attempted this concept with an India-inspired Spider-Man which was a commercial and critical flop from Gotham Entertainment Group in 2004.

Madhouse was founded in 1972 and is seen as a creative powerhouse in Asia, perhaps best known for its Vampire Hunter D.

 

Framing The Question, by John Ostrander

  • News
  • August 21, 2008

There’s a lot of buzz on the Internet this last week stemming from new Image partner Robert Kirkman’s video-taped manifesto calling for … well, I’m not exactly certain what he called for. A subsequent article/interview on Newsarama said it was “a call to arms for fellow creators to focus solely on their original stories, instead of the licensed work from the big two comic book companies, Marvel and DC.” Although he is also quoted later in the article as saying, “I want everyone to understand, I’m not saying no one should aspire to write for Marvel and DC characters … I’m just saying that it shouldn’t be the pinnacle of a comic book career.”

The article adds: “While Kirkman sees contemporary creators who try to do both creator owned works, and books for the big two, he believes they’re hurting their opportunity to succeed with their original stories.” It then quotes Kirkman further: “You can’t put your feet on both sides of the fence you have to take that plunge … if I’m doing Invincible and I’m also writing Spider-Man, and I’m giving fans a choice to try my unknown book, or Spider-Man who they know, they’re going to choose Spider-Man.”

OR … maybe some of those fans try Invincible because they really like what the writer is doing on Spider-Man. The savvy ones follow the talent – whether it’s the writer or the artist. The majority, however, are reading Spider-Man because it’s Spider-Man and it doesn’t matter if a hundred monkeys are typing it – unless the monkeys do something really dumb with it like use a Mephisto ex machina to get rid of a pesky marriage or bring out a clone or something. Stoopid monkey!

The point is … more readers get exposed to the writer as a result of his work on Spider-Man. A fair question to ask is – did the sales go up on Kirkman’s own creator owned books after he started writing the webby wallcrawler at Marvel? If not, then he had no benefit from doing it. If they have gone up, however, then at least part of the reason will be his stint at Marvel.           

As I understand it, Kirkman wants to re-energize/save the comics’ industry. If all the established talent left DC and Marvel, he thinks the two companies would have to “re-focus the majority of their titles to the teen audience.” The established creators would then work on creator owned books, revitalizing the industry. (more…)

Origin of Magneto in New Marvel Knights Series

  • News
  • August 20, 2008

I really enjoyed previous Marvel Knights projects Spider-Man: Reign and Silver Surfer: Requiem, as the pairing of writers, artists and subject matter of each miniseries seemed to really catch lightning in a bottle. I’m not sure that these series fit in with past titles falling under the "Marvel Knights" banner, but I know that they felt like a fresh look at both characters — and that’s saying a lot, given the saturation of Spider-Man and Silver Surfer stories the past few years.

I mention all of this because I can’t help but look forward to next month’s debut of X-Men: Magneto Testament #1, which pairs writer Greg Pak (World War Hulk) with artist Carmine Di Giandomenico, whose work I really enjoyed in Daredevil: Battlin’ Jack Murdock. The five-issue series promises to take a look at the early life of Magneto, and I’m itching to see if the MK crew can capture the same vibe of Reign and Requiem in this one.

Pak told Marvel.com, "Like so many classic Marvel characters, [Magneto] has to grapple with the typical problems of any scrawny outsider: family problems, schoolyard bullies, and first crushes…But every little conflict takes on a terrifying, new dimension as the scope and inexorable advance of the Nazi menace becomes clearer."

The first issue hits shelves September 10, and I’ve posted the Marko Djurdjevic cover to #1 here, with larger versions of the cover and pages posted after the jump. (more…)

Etch-A-Sketch Comic Art

  • News
  • August 19, 2008

Earlier this year I discovered the blog of the Etch-A-Sketchist. An artist whose medium is incredibly complex and heartbreakingly temporary: the Etch-A-Sketch. The child’s toy that is simple to learn but next to impossible to master. The Etch-A-Sketchist’s topics are heavily pop-culture influenced but breathtaking in their detail.

When I first discovered his site, I wrote him and asked if he ever did any comic book based images. He wrote back that he only had done a black costume Spider-Man, but I should check back at the end of the summer after all the superhero movies were released.

I made a note on my calendar program and, sure enough, there are lots to see now. I’ve posted a few after the jump.

Enjoy…. but don’t shake your screen.

(more…)

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