ComiXology Announces New Subscription Model

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May 24, 2016

ComiXology, an Amazon.com subsidiary, announced today that they are joining the ranks of Marvel and unveiled a new subscription plan called comiXology Unlimited. “We’re in a new golden age of storytelling with more incredible comics, graphic novels and manga than ever before,” said comiXology’s CEO and Co-Founder David Steinberger. “ComiXology Unlimited is fantastic portal to tons of great comics at a ridiculously great price. Get in there and start exploring.” They are giving their users the chance to freely read thousands of comics, graphic novels, and manga.

The service features books from Image Comics, Dark Horse Comics, IDW Publishing, BOOM! Studios, Dynamite Entertainment, Kodansha Comics, Oni Press, Valiant Entertainment, Archie Comics, Fantagraphics Books, Humanoids, Action Lab Entertainment, Aspen Comics, Zenescope Entertainment and more. The features include:

Unlimited reading on any device including web, mobile, and tablet
Exceptional Content that includes Eisner Award-Winning Comics
Free one-month trial

“You may have heard of Love and Rockets, Krazy Catand Ignatz, or Lumberjanes – but had no idea where to start reading or what collection to buy. Now you can simply start reading all these great titles today,” said John D. Roberts, comiXology Co-Founder. “ComiXology is changing the game again. First, we ignited digital via our Guided View reading technology. Now, with comiXology Unlimited, everyone can easily explore the expansive world of comics.”

ComiXology Unlimited debuts in the USA today and will open to other regions soon. Start your one-month free trial at https://www.comixology.com/unlimited.

Quotes are taken from a press releases provided by ComiXology.

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New International Poster For ‘Star Trek Beyond’

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Kaitlyn Booth

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May 24, 2016

The first trailer for Justin Lin’s Star Trek Beyond was not well received but it looks like the second trailer is much more promising. They have released a new international poster that is very bright. We’re seeing a lot of Sofia Boutella’s (Kingsman: The Secret Service) character Jaylah so perhaps this Trek movie will do better by its female characters than previous installments. If nothing else it’s a good looking poster.

Are you excited for Star Trek Beyond? Let us know in the comments.

Star Trek Beyond is directed by Justin Lin and stars Chris Pine, Zachary Quinto, Zoë Saldana, Karl Urban, and Simon Pegg. it comes out July 22, 2016.

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Ranking the ‘X-Men’ Films Ahead of ‘Apocalypse’

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Larry Taylor - Managing Editor

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May 24, 2016

The X-Men franchise has seen incredible highs and lows over the last 16 years, since it blazed a new trail for superhero movies in 2000. From Bryan Singer’s first two films, to Brett Ratner’s abysmal entry, to spinoffs and new casts, X-Men has always been somewhat of a stepchild when it comes to the genre. Ahead of X-Men: Apocalypse this weekend, let’s look back at the seven entries (including those Wolverine flicks. Not including Deadpool) and see how they stack up:

7. X-Men Origins: Wolverine – Following the commercial success of the original trilogy, a spinoff of the X-Men’s most compelling character, Hugh Jackman’s Wolverine, made perfect sense. Unfortunately, the movie itself made little to no sense, and was a mess of misused characters and aimless storytelling. And it’s definitely the worst portrayal of Ryan Reynolds as Deadpool we’ve had thus far…

6. X-Men: The Last Stand – Brett Ratner’s failed entry into the original trilogy sure felt like the last stand at the time. With a profound lack of awareness of his characters, Ratner’s film transfers from a weird CGI opening scene into a series of empty-headed action scenes and the very definition of more is less.

5. X-Men – The debut of the franchise still didn’t quite have its legs beneath it. Singer’s first film is morose and dreary, almost to a fault, but it nevertheless introduces us to the franchise’s most interesting characters. It was the breakout role for Hugh Jackman, perhaps the most perfect fit for a comic book character this side of Robert Downey Jr. as Tony Stark/Iron Man.

4. The Wolverine – After the first Wolverine spinoff, it seemed the branch to the franchise may have died before it could even begin. However, the second installment was superior in just about every way. Taking Logan to Japan, a staple in his 80s comic adventures, and benefiting from lowered expectations, James Mangold’s film succeeded in giving our hero something worth fighting for.

3. X-Men: First Class – Matthew Vaughn’s reset was certainly a breath of fresh air for the characters, taking us back to the tumultuous 60s where the characters began. The Cold War setting was fully realized and richly textured, and casting Michael Fassbender as Magneto was a definite coup.

2. X2: X-Men United – By the time the second Singer film came around, the director was more confident, the budget was bigger, and the actors more comfortable in their roles. The sociological implications of these mutants on earth took center stage, which was a key element in the comics and what made them so indelible for fans, and the inclusion of Nightcrawler was pretty sweet to boot.

1. X-Men: Days of Future Past – Clunky title aside, this most recent entry saw the return of Singer to the franchise, and completely understood the misfit elements of these characters. On top of that, the 70s setting and the time travel all worked in perfect harmony, creating an expansive and complicated morality play amid some terrific action set pieces.

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A Second ‘Finding Dory’ Trailer is Here

By

Larry Taylor - Managing Editor

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May 24, 2016

Right when this Finding Dory trailer begins, you hear the sound of Bill Hader’s voice, and you know everything is going to be okay.

Finding Dory, Pixar’s first “long gap” sequel (Nemo came out 13 years ago!) puts the focus squarely on Marlin’s sidekick from the original film, voiced by Ellen Degeneres. This story picks up a mere six months after the original, and after becoming homesick, Dory decides to try and find where she came from.

Here’s the trailer:

I’m game for anything in this world, especially since my two-year old son has recently begun to get into these Pixar films and is currently consuming Finding Nemo like only a two-year old can do: a thousand times in a row.

Aside from Hader and Degeneres, Albert Brooks returns as Marlin, with newcomers Idris Elba, Kate McKinnon, Dominic West, Ed O’Neill, and Diane Keaton headlining a seemingly endless cast of recognizable voices. Andrew Stanton directs, as well as returns to voice Crush the turtle. Far out!

Finding Dory hits theaters June 17.

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John Carpenter & Blumhouse Announce New ‘Halloween’ Film

By

EJ Moreno

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May 24, 2016

‘Halloween’ Gets New Reboot Treatment But With John Carpenter This Time!

The classic 1978 horror film ‘Halloween‘ has already seen many sequels and even a remake; a supposed sequel/reboot has been long rumored. Now, it’s been confirmed that we will be seeing Michael Myers again.

Jason Blum from the Blumhouse production company announced that the beloved horror franchise will possibly hit theaters by next Halloween. Many fans are groaning at another horror remake. It’s understandable but people can breathe easy as John Carpenter, Malek Akkad, and Miramax are all coming back for this project.

The hype is real as the iconic franchise creator has promised big things. John Carpenter said: “38 years after the original ‘Halloween‘ I’m going to help to try to make the 10th sequel the scariest of them all”.

While this announcement brings much joy, there are also many questions to be addressed. Will Carpenter and company try to retell the tale of Laurie Strode or will this be in continuity with the original films? Is it possible we will get a Jamie Lee Curtis cameo? What will Michael’s mask look like?

Let me know how you feel in the comments below about the return of John Carpenter to the ‘Halloween‘ franchise! Are you horror hounds excited to see Michael Myers one more time?

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Netflix And Disney Are Getting Serious

By

Mat Douglas

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May 23, 2016

In a blog post from Ted Sarandos, Chief Content Officer at Neflix, the streaming service made a big announcement regarding content and their deal with Disney.

Marvel Studios will be exclusive to Netflix in September

Beginning in September, Netflix will be the exclusive home for all Marvel Studios, Lucasfilm, Disney, and Pixar films. That is big news and a serious counter to Hulu’s current content deal with EPIX and Amazon Prime’s deal with HBO and new deal with the BBC and cuts those two providers out of a large chunk of cinematic and television content.

Also announced, the acquisition of some popular franchises. Jurassic Park, Jurassic Park: The Lost World, and Jurassic Park 3 will debut in June. Following in July will be Back To The Future 1-3, and Lethal Weapon 1-4.

Back To The Future on Netflix — Back To The Future is making it’s way to Netflix this summer

Netflix has also set the bar when it comes to original content. Original movies from Christopher Guest (Best In Show, A Mighty Wind) and Brad Pitt (Fight Club, Se7en, Fury) will be premiering later this year. On the Marvel side of things, Luke Cage (September), Iron Fist, the second season of Jessica Jones, The Defenders, and The Punisher will be forthcoming in the next 12-16 months.

That is a whole lot of couch time and snacks, so get outside now, look at the sun, because come July, it’s Netflix time

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A Sneak Peek into the DC Rebirth Event

By

Seth Frederiksen

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May 23, 2016

Warning: There will be definitive spoilers for DC Rebirth being discussed in this article.

As the time nears for the release of the first issue of DC Rebirth, a few images from the mini-series have been released from several comic book news sites on two major plot points.

First: A confirmation that Wally West will be making a return after a long absence.

Second: The Watchmen Universe will become a part of the DC Multiverse in some capacity.

Though the details are sparse and theories are rampant, the possibilities on what will come from Geoff John’s last major story line is intriguing to say the least. Given that his history with the DC universe to see the latter development actually has me eager to buy the issue.

There are a few things I’d love to see occur during the story if and when the DC pantheon meet their Watchmen counterparts.

First, I’d want to see Batman standing at where Rorschach was standing where he was killed and take a moment to reflect. Both for someone who was dedicated to hunting criminals like himself and refused to compromise his morals, and as someone who represented what Batman might have become if he had gone too far.

Second, I want to see Batman, Superman and Wonder Woman beat Ozymandias to within an inch of his life. One reason being Ozymandias would be shocked to have his skills be out matched by those still in their prime, and not those taking up the cause after letting their skills rust away. Another reason is to see the DC trinity doing what Owlman, Silk Specter and Dr. Manhattan should have done after Ozymandias’s terrorist actions.

Thirdly, I want Superman to face the three remaining “heroes” of Watchmen and call them out for who they are. He doesn’t shout at them, he doesn’t go into a frenzy, he just says he’s disappointed that they failed the people they were supposed to help.

I do see why the ending of the Watchmen was the way it was. It showed that victories are not without cost. Sometimes letting evil happen will lead to good, as terrible as that sounds. And, in many cases, heroes have to be villains to protect their charges. And the ending to Watchmen did help to ensure its place in making comic books a respected form of literature. I’d just like to see some get their just desert.

With that said, these aren’t required for the story to be enjoyable. And personally I think this will be a story of the ages, but it would be great to see them take place in DC Rebirth.

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‘Independence Day: Resurgence’ Is The Right Kind Of Sequel

By

Mat Douglas

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May 23, 2016

Reboots, remakes, sequels, and franchises. These have become an ever-present part of the cinematic landscape today. Some get it right, some get it wrong, and some come along and knock it right out of the park. Independence Day: Resurgence, the upcoming sequel to 1996’s mega-hit Independence Day might just be that singular sequel that is just as good as the original.

Sequels are intended to carry a story forward, raise the stakes, or continue a franchise. Roland Emmerich has had the idea of multiple Independence Day films since shortly after the original was released. As early as 1998, Emmerich had talked about a world that had repelled an alien invasion, and used that technology to further its own growth and defense. It’s taken 20 years, but Emmerich’s idea is about to be realized.

“The War Of 1996”, as it is referred to, united humanity. Putting forth a bit of an idealistic post-invasion world, long standing animosity between various countries looks to have been set aside as a new global and space defense entity have been tasked with global defense. David Levinson (Jeff Goldblum) is the Director of the Earth Space Defense and makes the discovery which leads to a whole new invasion. A companion website details some of the events leading into this movie, such as development of global defense technology, high-tech jet fighters, and even a moon base.

A new extended trailer released today giving broad strokes of things to come. A crashed ship somewhere in Africa, a scene with former President Thomas Whitmore (Bill Pullman) and wholesale destruction.

Returning cast from the original Independence Day along with Goldblum and Bill Pullman are Vivica A. Fox, Judd Hirsch, and Brent Spiner. Newcomers Liam Hemsworth, Maika Monroe, and William Fichtner round out a robust cast, which is what you usually need for a big event film.

Independence Day: Resurgence releases June 25th

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Animated Garfield Movie Now Officially In the Works

By

Will Ashton

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May 23, 2016

Well, it looks like everyone’s Mondays just got a little bit sweeter. Or, perhaps, you just got another reason to hate them even more. Alcon Entertainment, the studio working on the upcoming Blade Runner sequel, are going to take some of their extra cheese and put it into some fresh lasagna. They’re gearing up to make an animated new Garfield movie, THR reports (via We Got This Covered).

Details are mostly limited about the moment regarding the forthcoming Jim Davis adaptation, other than the fact that Davis is on board this time around as an executive producer. Hopefully, this means this animated version will stay closer to the source material, opposed to the less-than-favorable 2004 live-action adaptation and its even more unfortunate sequel, A Tail of Two Kitties.

This is the first step in Alcon’s plan to produce a strip-turned-brand profit off making popular comics into CG franchises. I suppose they’ll need to step up to the competition a little, though, and I’m not talking about against Nermal. With The Angry Birds Movie turning in a financial profit over the weekend, no licensed brand is off bounds for family entertainment these next few years — perhaps to the begrudging disappointment of parents everywhere. I mean, did you hear they’re making a Tetris and Fruit Ninja movie? What kind of craziness is that?!

Speaking of Angry Birds, John Cohen — a producer on that film and the Despicable Me features — brought this new property project to the studio with Steven P. Wegner. And they’ll produce alongside Broderick Johnson and Andrew Kosove, with Amuse’s Bridget McMeel executive producing beside Davis.

There’s no director, writers or voice actors involved at the moment, but don’t count on Bill Murray making a comeback to the titular role. He only came onto the last one due to misreading the script (allegedly) and contractual obligation the second time around. Fool Murray once, shame on you. Fool him twice, shame on him. Fool him a third time? I don’t think so, buddy. They’ll have to get someone else to play the lazy cat this time around.

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Christopher Nolan’s ‘Dunkirk’: Set Photos, Synopsis, Excitement.

By

Larry Taylor - Managing Editor

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May 23, 2016

It’s official, Christopher Nolan is going through with this whole Dunkirk thing. We have set photos and now an official synopsis to prove it! And while we are extremely early in the process, pretty much as early as we could possibly be, these first set photos look pretty cool.

Here are the set photos, courtesy of Pierre Volot:

#dunkirk #Christophernolan #dunkerque pic.twitter.com/xIu9b1DSXw

— pierre volot (@pierrevolot) May 20, 2016

#dunkirk #dunkerque #Christophernolan pic.twitter.com/eTXT0UuwRt

— pierre volot (@pierrevolot) May 18, 2016

#dunkirk #Nolan #TomHardy #HarryInDunkirk #HarryStyles pic.twitter.com/BxY1Q2lHlq

— pierre volot (@pierrevolot) May 22, 2016

As for the synopsis, it’s about as you’d expect:

“Dunkirk” opens as hundreds of thousands of British and Allied troops are surrounded by enemy forces. Trapped on the beach with their backs to the sea they face an impossible situation as the enemy closes in.”

Dunkirk stars Mark Rylance, Tom Hardy, Kenneth Branagh, Cillian Murphy, and Harry Styles. Yes, Harry Styles, and he probably doesn’t “star” per se, but it’s worth noting he’s in the mix.

It’s nice to see Nolan moving away from superheroes and sci-fi for his next massive epic. Not that there’s anything wrong with any of those, but seeing a shift into some new territory is always a god thing for any filmmaker of his ilk.

Dunkirk will hit theaters July 21, 2017.

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