The Mighty Thor Scores!

Posted by Tom Mason Categories: Editorials, Movies, DC Comics, Marvel Comics,

So, is there some kind of comic book movie out this weekend or what?

Yes, that’s right. Mighty Marvel Comics has unleashed one of its least-likely-to-star-in-a-hit-movie characters into his own hit movie: Thor. Word of mouth seems strong, box office seems stronger than Vin Diesel and by Odin’s beard we’ll probably be looking at Thor II and Son Of Thor before too long.

(In Son Of Thor, Thor’s misunderstood teenaged son swings his mighty, but lesser, hammer in Manhattan around a cast of 90210/Gossip Girl lookalikes while trying to find love with that year’s Kristen Stewart.)

Can Edgar Wright’s long-awaited Ant-Man movie be far behind?

Marvel does a great job with their movies - they have a similar look and style, they churn them out with the punctuality of a European train, and they’re either profitable or wildly profitable.

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First Look: Chris Evans as Captain America

Posted by Robin Paulson Categories: Movies, Marvel Comics,

You know that when the shiny, new Spider-Man reboot reveals a first look at its costumed hero before you do, you're a little late to the party.

Finally, Marvel Entertainment released the first image of Chris Evans in complete red, white, and blue Captain America garb. While it's clearly an altered derivation from its comic book counterpart, I much prefer this modernized uniform with the obvious, borrowed pattern and design (was I the only one who couldn't contain giggles at the sight of Ryan Reynolds as Green Lantern?).

What do you think of the 2011, real life Captain America?

Read More | E! Online

Comic Book Jobs: Checking Out Craigslist

Posted by Tom Mason Categories: Editorials,

As regular readers know, I’m a lover of Craigslist and its many opportunities that sound just like employment. Here are a few recent ones:

Are you an actor who can play “normal” in a superhero world? Mild Mannered is a new live action superhero web series, and they’re casting. “Mild Mannered is a story about a group of normal people attempting to live their lives in the midst of a fantastical comic book world as best they can.”

If you’d like to pursue your acting career on the other coast, there’s a company looking for a male actor to star in a “fantasy website catering to comic book fans.” You’ll be “acting out comic book style stories while dressed in super hero/villain costumes.” But your face’ll be covered up in case you want to keep your involvement a secret. There’s no nudity, but it’s “a very active role where there will be simulated fighting/wrestling choreography” and some “implied sensuality and simulated fighting/wrestling,” during the one day six-hour shoot.

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Weekend Reading: App TV, Scott Pilgrim, Scooby-Doo and Brian Keene

Posted by Tom Mason Categories: Editorials, Interviews, Movies, Reviews, Television, Independent,

If you want to know where the future of TV and games is headed, check out this piece at Gaming Business Review by my old buddy Chris Ulm. A co-creator of Rune, co-founder of the Ultraverse (it was his idea), and now the CEO of Appy Entertainment, he thinks a lot about those kinds of things.

This’ll get you started: “The living room right now is a no-man’s land of standards and cables, universally poor and inconsistent user interfaces, huge numbers of channels, multiple boxes of hardware, hated cable companies, and multiple video game systems, each with its own proprietary hardware and expensive software.”

Scott Pilgrim: John Scalzi explains the failure of Edgar Wright’s movie in terms we can all understand: the value of nerd-love.

The Cleveland Show: Tom Spurgeon’s brother interviews voice actor Kevin Michael Richardson, the voice of Cleveland Jr. and countless other characters.

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Summer Glau Nabs Superhero Show

Posted by Robin Paulson Categories: Television,

After her short-lived gigs on Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles and Joss Whedon‘s shows Firefly and Dollhouse, Summer Glau landed another role in a sci-fi, superhero-themed series The Cape.

The pilot centers on a former cop, played by David Lyons, who dons a superhero alter ego to clear his name of criminal charges. Glau portrays “Orwell, a cute and intrepid investigative blogger who fearlessly goes after corrupt cops and costumed bad guys.” So… Dollhouse‘s Bennett meets Kick-Ass‘s Hit Girl?

Considering all three Fox shows she worked on were cut short, let’s hope that moving to NBC will fare better for the actress.

Is this the nail in the Heroes coffin? Bah, I’ll still watch it if I can catch Glau being her adorable, geeky-cute self!

Read More | The Hollywood Reporter

Marvel Turns Tim Gunn Into Superhero

Posted by Robin Paulson Categories: Interviews, Marvel Comics,

Leave it to Marvel to branch out into yet another pop culture obsession (I mean, they had me hooked with Marvel Zombies): fashion. This time, they’ve actually appointed a nontraditional, real life hero, Project Runway‘s Tim Gunn.

Ridding the world of fashion crimes in real life, Gunn lends his likeness to Marvel‘s limited series Models, Inc. in the first issue of the series, “Loaded Gunn.”

And boy is he thrilled:

“Isn’t it just utterly and totally surreal? This is one of those make-a-wish things that could never happen… There are lots of debates about how much it looks like me. I said, ‘Gentleman, this is your business. This is not what I do. I do not even want to remotely weigh in on it or micromanage it.’”

With a little help from Iron Man, Gunn comes to the rescue when a special superhero museum is attacked.

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Read More | USA Today

Here’s A Quick Guide To Start Reading Comics

Posted by Kris Madden Categories: Collecting, Editorials, Reviews, Dark Horse Comics, DC Comics, Image Comics, Marvel Comics, Wizard Entertainment,

1. Pickup A Graphic Novel

It can be hard to pick up a comic book for the first time. Many times you’re reading about a character who has a history spanning the last fifty years, which can cause difficulty in understanding the plot line and character’s motivations.

Graphic Novels are usually self-contained, meaning that in order to follow the plot and storyline, there is no prior comic book history knowledge required. All the characters, special powers, jargon, etc is all within the pages you hold in your hands.

If you like superhero stories with an edge, a great starting place is Watchmen. It was recently made into a film, so you can even get a headstart on your friends by reading the book, and surprise them with your clairvoyance.

Maybe you’re not a fan of super-heroes and want something more indie-flavored. Blankets is beautiful book about teen angst and a long distance relationship in the early 90’s grunge era. With quotes from songs by The Cure, it’s a can’t-miss.

And if you’d like something in between with superhero-like characters, an indie-edge, and a beautiful noir storyline; I’d suggest any of Frank Miller’s Sin City books. While you may have seen the movie, which is a spectacular translation of the work to film, the comics will introduce you to the format and structure of graphic novels.

Whenever someone tells me they think that comics are for kids, I usually give them a graphic novel to read. Though comics began with kids in mind, it has since changed drastically to include all age groups. While these are my favorites to give to friends and family, feel free to pick out whatever you find interesting.

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