This got (and is getting) some amount of stick, mostly unwarranted in my opinion. The go-to comparison was the SNL spoof Black Widow trailer from a few weeks ago but Supergirl and Black Widow are pretty (vastly) different. This looks much closer to The Flash which manages to be fun and funny, dramatic without brooding darkness, and just downright entertaining. If Supergirl can manage that I’ll be a happy bunny. We could do with more superheroes who smile.
Category: Comics
Gwen Stacey takes over the Marvel Universe in June. Gwen as Thor, The Avengers, The X-Men (pictured), Wolverine, Magneto… awesome :)
(For anyone who’s not sure who Gwen Stacey is or why she’s cosplaying the entire Marvel Universe, Gwen Stacey was Emma Stone’s character in the latest Spider-Man film, she’s headlined her own Spider-Gwen series (which is ace) set in an AU where she, not Peter, is bitten by the spider).
Talking of Marvel, if you enjoy the films and want to explore the comics (seriously, I recommend it, instead of waiting years for a new movie you can just cram amazing stories at your leisure) this is a pretty neat guide that picks out the comics that best match the movie experience.
Spoilers I guess
My buddy Sam saw it at the weekend and texted me after to say it was a 7.5/10 and seeing it last night I agree. It’s a good film, it’s got plenty of action, great effects, some nice touches, but it’s probably bottom of the heap for Phase 2 for me (Guardians is at the top, in case there was any doubt).
Likes:
- Loved that Hawkeye got some character development
- Loved Natasha/Bruce
- Liked that we were dropped straight into the action, no need to have some great reassembly (i.e. these guys have done this more than once since we last saw them, maybe odd that there’s no reference to Iron Man’s ‘retirement’ in IM3 but, we all knew he’d be back so, meh, whatever).
- Cool to see Rhodey…
- …even cooler to see Falcon (man, I love that guy!).
Things I didn’t like so much…
- Ultron did not need lips and teeth. I was really aware I was watching a 9ft CGI robot (who’da thunk!?), but seriously, when I watch APES I feel like I’m watching something real, with Ultron I didn’t. Far preferred his cobbled together, burnt out look at the party scene. And I really think without lips and teeth (maybe just a more rudimentary jaw?) my disbelief could’ve been suspended. I get it’s useful to help him convey emotion but WALL-E did that and all he had were eyes.
- It wasn’t as fun as The Avengers, it didn’t quite have the same charm, but I think a healthy dose of that is that Tom Hiddleston is just outstanding as Loki (not that I wanted Loki here again, just that he elevates anything he touches). And CGI criticisms of Ultron aside I think I could’ve liked him (I think Spader did pretty well) but he didn’t really feel like much of a threat? Or maybe just felt a bit relegated. Not sure, it just didn’t quite sit right.
- I’ve read Joss Whedon saying that the great thing about the Avengers is these guys shouldn’t be in the same room, they shouldn’t be a team, and the conflict makes that all interesting, but at the same time I don’t want every Avengers film to be about them bickering until they all team up to fight the big bad.
- It tried to fit a lot in, both story and set-piece. We went from “this could contain the key to artificial intelligence” to “we’ve created artificial intelligence” really quickly.
Overall I enjoyed it.
Also where I did feel this was cramming a lot in, and as a result feeling a bit rushed, I don’t have this worry about Infinity War. IW has been built up across the series, we’ve seen Thanos more than once now, we’ve seen the gems, he’s been pulling the strings behind so much of what we’ve seen and now he’ll come to the fore. Plus we’ll have two movies to enjoy it across (and as long as we get a crapload of Natasha, Hulk, and Falcon, I’m a happy boy).
PS: In related news I really hope someone gets me the new Thor TPB for my birthday
What I’m reading at the minute:
East of West
A futuristic sci-fi Western. Death has abandoned his apocalyptic duties to track down his love, aided by Crow and Wolf, the other three Horsemen have been reincarnated as murderous children, and the great nations are trying to avert/bring about the Apocalypse complete with all manner of political manipulation, backstabbing and out-and-out war.
The character design is outstanding, the art is beautiful.
The Magician King
I read The Magicians last year and it was ace. I’d heard it described as ‘Harry Potter for grown-ups’ but that does it a disservice, sure there’s a school for magic and the (far greater) overtures to Narnia but it’s a great book full stop whether you get the Narnia/Fillory parallels or not. The Magician King is raring to go once I’ve finished…
Raising Steam
I’m enjoying it but I’m not gripped. When I was younger I’d start a Discworld novel and not sleep till I’d finished but I’m getting through this one. I struggled with Unseen Academicals too if I’m honest but Snuff I lapped right up, I guess Watch/Witches are my thing.
Saga
This is Star Wars-esque in scope. An intergalactic war, a forbidden love, bounty hunters, a ghost babysitter, magic, the coolest cat in science fiction. I’ve read Vols 1-3 and have 4 waiting for a Saturday morning in bed.
Plus a couple of new ones I haven’t read yet:
The First Fifteen Lives of Harry August
It was cheap on Amazon and it’s supposed to be good I think?
Harry August is on his deathbed. Again.
No matter what he does or the decisions he makes, when death comes, Harry always returns to where he began, a child with all the knowledge of a life he has already lived a dozen times before. Nothing ever changes.
Until now.
As Harry nears the end of his eleventh life, a little girl appears at his bedside. ‘I nearly missed you, Doctor August,’ she says. ‘I need to send a message.’
This is the story of what Harry does next, and what he did before, and how he tries to save a past he cannot change and a future he cannot allow.
Reminds me a little bit of Unsound Variations the GRRM short story.
Jupiter’s Legacy
I remember reading about this after I saw Frank Quitely on “What Do Artist’s Do All Day?” on iPlayer, if was £5 on Amazon:
The story, which is influenced by Star Wars, King Kong, Roman mythology and origin stories from the Golden Age of Comics, is written as Millar’s treatise on superheroes’ connection to the American ideal. The story explores the generational conflict between a group of aging superheroes who used the powers they gained in 1932 for the betterment of mankind, and their children, who are daunted by the prospect of living up to their parents’ legacy.
Might have a read of him tonight.
Talking of cheap on Amazon, you can get the first three series of Korra for £5, £7 and £7 respectively. Bargain!
Superman, but not as you know him.
Slightly disappointed Sun God didn’t make the cut, I guess he only featured in a few issues of New Avengers but the Illuminati/J.U.S.T.I.C.E. battle is pretty epic.
