Remembering Darwyn Cooke: His 5 Greatest Comics

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May 14, 2016

Darwyn Cooke’s passing to cancer hit the comic book industry hard as he was one of the greats who truly understood the joy and wonder of comic books, particularly with superheroes. His talents expanded further than just being a comic book artist, he was also a great writer, director, and animator. While the Eisner award-winning artist is gone his work lives on and thankfully most of it is fantastic.

Cooke has done everything comic related from adapting novels, to creating his own mini series, to full ongoing series. It’s hard to go through his bibliography and pick a favorite, as it seems like he was breaking new ground with every comic he drew/wrote. The five comics featured below are definitely considered to be some of his best work that has resonated with audiences the most.

5. Spider-Man’s Tangled Web #11: Open All Night

Darwyn Cooke’s brief stint with Spider-Man is a very funny, comedic look at the character. This issue shows Peter Parker in a bizarre Valentine’s Day Situation. Peter gets knocked around by the Vulture on Valentine’s day, when he scheduled two dates with two different women. It’s a simple premise that doesn’t have a lot of Spider-Man’s traditional action, but it’s how Cooke handles Spidey’s large cast of characters is what makes the book so much fun. Each of them has great reactions to Valentine’s day, and the dialogue between everybody is natural, yet witty. Also, it features J. Jonah Jameson drinking coffee with a laxative in it… that alone should be worth the price of the issue.

4. Catwoman: Selina’s Big Score

Darwyn Cooke worked with Ed Brubaker on a Catwoman series, and Cooke wrote a four issue arc to kick off the run. What makes this storyline, and subsequently the entire Catwoman book work so well, is that each story is treated like a great heist flick. They all have great stakes, memorable characters, and there’s a wonderful Noir feeling to the story. Plus Catwoman may be written perfectly in this series. She’s witty, funny, and seductive in the way only Catwoman can be. Plus she’s taking on the famous Batman mobsters, the Falcone family.

3. Richard Stark’s Parker: The Hunter

Adapting a novel to a comic book must be one of the most difficult tasks for any writer/artist. But Darwyn Cooke seems to do it with ease as he draws the infamous career criminal Parker to life in this adaptation. The comic is drawn in that typical 60s style Cooke was so fond of, and obviously here it works even more considering the story is set in the 60s. But, this adaptation is so direct and specific that it feels like it was written by the original writer Richard Stark. In fact some people consider the graphic novel better than the original book, because the art captures the mood Stark was portraying in his series of novels.

2. The Spirit

Back in 2006, Will Eisner’s famous creation, The Spirit, got a series to himself written and drawn by Darwyn Cooke. It only lasted twelve issues, but the twelve issues are perfectly reminiscent of Eisner’s great hero. The new stories are a great introduction to the character for anyone who doesn’t know anything about him, but they’re also unique enough to stand on their own two feet. And there are issues that do feel like they were crafted by the legendary Will Eisner himself. It’s a shame the series got canceled, because there were some great stories in it. Including a crossover with the Dark Knight. And yeah it’s as awesome as it sounds.

1. DC: The New Frontier

DC’s “elseworld” concept has created a lot of great stories (most of them involve Batman), but of all of them this is one of the best. Written and drawn by Darwyn Cooke, it shows the DC Universe in a transitional period. Set in the 50s, we see Superheroes become affected by a changing world. As the Cold War sets in and the fear of a red flag taking over the U.S. Superheroes are becoming more feared. Many of them, including Superman himself feel that they aren’t needed anymore. But, they push on, and discover that they are needed more than ever. What really makes this book work is that we also see wildly different characters experience some very unique problems. The book is treated seriously, but still has a sense of joy and optimism, and it is hands down Darwyn Cooke’s best work.

So, there it is, the five best stories by Darwyn Cooke. Let us know in the comments below what your favorite story or artwork by him was. The comic world will miss him dearly, and hopefully his work will live on forever.

Rest in peace Darwyn. Go find that new frontier.

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Comic Book Writer-Artist Darwyn Cooke Dies

By

Jonathan Bruce

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May 14, 2016

Darwyn Cooke, the author of ‘DC: The New Frontier’, has passed away at the age of 53 after a battle with cancer.

The Canadian comic book writer-artist died Saturday, May 14, after reports emerged he was receiving palliative treatments for his illness.

Justice League DC — Justice League in action

Cooke’s family posted a statement on his blog: “We regret to inform you that Darwyn lost his battle with cancer early this morning at 1:30 AM ET. We read all of your messages of support to him throughout the day yesterday. He was filled with your love and surrounded by friends and family at his home in Florida. Donations can be made to the Canadian Cancer Society and Hero Initiative. Please continue to respect our privacy as we go through this very difficult time. A longer statement will come later today.”

Cooke is best known for ‘DC: The New Frontier’, a 2004 Eisner Award-winning series depicting DC characters from the Golden and Silver Ages of Comic Books. The book was adapted into the 2008 film ‘Justice League: The New Frontier’. He also worked on ‘Batman: Gotham Knights’, ‘Before Watchmen: Minutemen‘, ‘Before Watchmen: Silk Spectre‘, the Catwoman’ solo series, ‘Detective Comics’, and ‘Superman Confidential’. In 2006, Cooke collaborated with Jeph Loeb on the crossover miniseries Batman/The Spirit. He also wrote issues of Marvel Comics’ ‘Spider-Man’s Tangled Web’, ‘X-Force’, and ‘Wolverine/Doop’.

Cooke’s family concluded the announcement by including a John F. Kennedy quote from ‘The New Frontier”s last pages: “Then we shall not be weary. Then we shall prevail.”

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Review: ‘Jojo’s Bizarre Adventure’: Season 4: Episode 7

By

Anthony Wendel

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May 13, 2016

Toshikazu Hazamada (Show off)

This episode was full of surprises. In the first few seconds alone there is a grotesque scene of violence. It’s not shown in detail but the implied imagery is enough to make it not for the faint of heart.

Kobayashi returns and gets a new purpose in the series. Considering it felt like he was just going to be the generic “Stand of the Week” character who would only show up once and never been seen again, it’s actually refreshing to see the creator decided to keep him around. He now serves as the information man who hears rumors on the street and will report them back to Josuke and his crew to help them in the future. It’s a lot better way of the characters getting leads then random bits of information reported from the Speedwagon foundation or more of Joseph Joestar’s psychic photos.

From there, an actual “Stand of the week” is introduced in the form of Toshikazu Hazamada’s Show Off (which is actually shown onscreen as being Surface, but again they had to change the name because they didn’t want to deal with copyright from the American band of the same name) which has the power to mimic and control its opponents. It’s here where the episode kicks into gear as Josuke and Koichi must work together to be able to put a stop to Hazamada. The pair really display some great teamwork and Koichi shows great use of his Stand despite only getting it in the previous episode.

It’s an episode which serves to help showcase more of Koichi’s powers and how he and Josuke will work together in the future. Still, it’s very entertaining and between the fact the next episode is a “Part 1” and Red Hot Chili Pepper returns to watch the heroes from a distance and contemplate how he will work to eliminate them, it’s obvious this show has no intention of slowing down anytime soon.

Jojo’s Bizarre Adventure: Diamond is Unbreakable is streaming on Crunchyroll.

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Steppenwolf As ‘Justice League’ Villain? Count Me In!

By

EJ Moreno

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May 13, 2016

This Creature Might Be The Villain For 2017’s ‘Justice League’.

Admittedly, this article may be a love letter to DC and the Extended Universe they’re creating but dammit, it excites me. The latest bit of news to come from the movie rumor mill is that 2017’s ‘Justice League‘ film will feature Steppenwolf as the villain and not Darkseid as everyone suspected.

The Internet was filled with their usual disgust. It was mostly complaints about the rumored villain being too minor for such a big film. While I would have loved to see someone like Brainiac or even the big bad Darkseid in the film, this seems like the creators are thinking about a long-term story. The Steppenwolf character could be the perfect way to ween the public into the chaos that is all things Apokolips.

Let me catch you up with the story before the film version gets a chance. Apokolips is the home of major DC villains like Steppenwolf and Darkseid. It’s a hellish planet where you’re basically raised a violent psycho monster. Darkseid rules the planet with an iron-fist and has no problem with military-style invasions of weaker planets. His uncle and high-ranking officer Steppenwolf is another savage Apokoliptian.

Now the online rumors suggest that 30,000 years ago, there was a battle on Earth where Steppenwolf was defeated by Earth’s heroes but left three “mother boxes“.

Basically, mother boxes are like small doors to Apokolips.

DC Extended Universe has already shown one mother box in ‘Batman v. Superman’ when Wonder Woman sees footage of one taking over the body of a young man named Victor Stone. I believe that Aquaman has a mother box in his possession as rumors have stated that Atlanteans fought against Steppenwolf 30,000 years ago.

We may have also already seen Steppenwolf. A deleted scene from ‘Batman v. Superman’ on Youtube released by Warner Bros. shows Lex Luthor talking with a creature who is showing him three boxes. Let’s not forget that cryptic dream sequence in the film where we saw Darkseid’s infamous Omega symbol.

All of this is deeply rooted in comic source material but attempts to create a fresh cinematic take on the story. I remember seeing a plot similar to this in a DC Animation movie called ‘Justice League‘: War’ but this stretches that story over what could be a few films. While many think the team at DC is rushing to catch up to the Marvel Cinematic Universe, I believe they are taking a natural course. They are only trying to catch up with themselves as the DC Universe has never been explored to this degree before. Once we establish how big things at DC can get then the filmmakers can deliver baddies like Vandel Savage, Brainiac, and Darkseid.

What do you think about this rumor that Steppenwolf will be the first person to challenge the Justice League? Let me know in the comments below if this raises or lowers your excitement for the 2017 film!

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MacLean’s Pale Ale from Maclean’s Ales: A Well-balanced Review

By

Michael Bedford

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May 13, 2016

MacLean’s Pale Ale – The Brewery

MacLean’s Ales is one of those breweries with a history that’s hard to believe. According to the MacLean’s Ales website, the founder Charles MacLean learned how to brew when he ran out of money and had to work at a pub while on a motorcycle trip in the British countryside (cool!). Learning more than just how to sling suds, MacLean developed an interest in brewing at the pub, and when he returned home he started brewing his own beer, an homage to his time in Britain. I’m glad that Mr. MacLean decided to come back and open his brewery so close to me. Grey County proud, MacLean’s Ales are a welcome part of Ontario’s craft brewing scene.

MacLean’s Pale Ale – First Sip

MacLean’s Pale Ale has a rusty amber colour. Its frothy head forms on top quickly as I pour the beer into my glass. I smell apple sauce when I take my first sip, then notice a taste of strawberries that gives way to a caramel maltiness. The smooth malt transforms into a strong aftertaste that reminds me of black tea. Because of its high carbonation level, MacLean’s Pale Ale has a lasting mouthfeel that coats my palate.

MacLean’s Pale Ale – Last Sip

MacLean’s Pale Ale packs a 5.2% ABV punch so, beyond the obvious warning of only drinking a couple of these in one sitting, I suggest accompanying this beer with some snacks. This brew’s almost tart aftertaste pairs well with other strong flavours especially Mexican or Thai food, but dark chocolate, strong cheeses, or your favourite flavour of chips can be great too. You’ll find that MacLean’s Pale Ale’s flavour changes perceptibly as it warms, allowing its full-bodied British pub heritage to come out.

MacLean’s Pale Ale – Other Comments

Although this exceptional brew features a strong aftertaste brought on largely by the flavour of the hops, I wouldn’t describe this beer as hop-forward: it’s well balanced and subtle, not pushing too much of any one of its well-defined flavours.

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Michael B. Jordan Joins ‘Black Panther’

By

Jonathan Bruce

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May 13, 2016

Creed — Michael B. Jordan is playing another Marvel hero, and it’s not the Human Torch this time.

Rising star Michael B. Jordan is doing another comic book film, but it’s not ‘Fantastic Four 2‘!

According to The Hollywood Reporter, the actor has signed on to star in ‘Black Panther’. This film will be Jordan’s third collaboration with director Ryan Coogler, whom he previously worked with on 2013’s Fruitvale Station and last year’s surprise hit Creed. It also marks the second time he has played a Marvel Comics character; the first being Johnny Storm (aka the Human Torch) in 2015’s ‘Fantastic Four’ reboot. While it was not connected to the Marvel Cinematic Universe, the movie received critical reviews and poor box office.

Although Jordan’s role hasn’t been officially named, it is reported that he will be playing a villain in the film. He will join ‘Captain America: Civil War’ co-star Chadwick Boseman, who’s playing Black Panther/T’Challa of Wakanda. Academy Award-winning actress Lupita N’yongo has also been in talks to appear in the movie. Andy Serkis is expected to reprise his role of Ulysses Klaue, whom he already played in Avengers: Age of Ultron.

‘Black Panther’ is set to begin filming in early 2017. The film has been scheduled for a February 2nd, 2018 release.

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Trailer: Michael Fassbender, Alicia Vikander in ‘The Light Between Oceans’

By

Larry Taylor - Managing Editor

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May 13, 2016

Derek Cianfrance has quickly made a career out of moroseness and tragedy. Both Blue Valentine and The Place Beyond the Pines were deeply emotional melodramas, and The Light Between Oceans looks to hit many of those familiar beats.

Here is the trailer:

The synopsis is fairly straightforward: A lighthouse keeper (Michael Fassbender) and his wife (Alicia Vikander) find a baby in a rowboat and raise the child as their own after suffering their own loss. Rachel Weisz looks to be playing the child’s biological mother, and familial strife definitely ensues.

The Light Between Oceans is certainly aiming for Oscar gold with the September release date. Cianfrance is a true talent in my opinion. Blue Valentine was a slog of heavy emotions, but a fascinating examination into a crumbling marriage. The Place Beyond the Pines is great, despite its bloated narrative; I’ll die on that hill.

Vikander has to be the busiest actress in Hollywood these days. The Oscar winner is also in this summer’s Jason Bourne, she’s just been tapped to reboot Lara Croft in Tomb Raider, and she has three more films in some form of production.

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‘Agent Carter’ And ‘Most Wanted’ Are Casualties Of A ‘Civil War’

By

Kaitlyn Booth

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May 13, 2016

Yesterday it was announced that ABC would not renew Marvel’s Agent Carter for a third season and they decided to pass on the Marvel’s Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. spinoff called Marvel’s Most Wanted. For those of us that have been paying attention, the writing for both of these series has been on the wall for months now. Agent Carter did not have very good numbers in its second season and Most Wanted has been losing steam from day one. ABC and Marvel seem to be keeping Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. around just so it can reach syndication and I assume it won’t last much longer than this. All of this is from a company that has made genre defining movies and Netflix series, so why is it struggling on television so much?

Two days ago The Hollywood Reporter posted an interview with Captain America: Civil War directors Anthony and Joe Russo. They talked about how bosses Kevin Feige and Ike Perlmutter clashed heads until Feige decided to report to Disney boss Alan Horn directly. “As THR reported, Feige’s frustrations with the notoriously frugal Perlmutter came to a head during the filming of Captain America: Civil War in 2015,” quoted the article. There have been rumors about Perlmutter for years. He seems to be under the impression that Marvel is the same company it was when it went bankrupt in 1996. It seems that Marvel has knee jerk reactions to many things because of their previous bankruptcy.

Ever since Feige and Perlmutter parted ways the rumor mill has not been positive. The Inhumans movie suddenly stalled and then was taken off of the schedule all together. Marvel television and Marvel movies have largely been unable to directly interact with each other. While this might work for Daredevil or Jessica Jones they make up for it by having self contained stories. Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. is trying to do that this season but it still feels weighty. Agent Carter had a strong first season but it was barely renewed the first time and the second suffered from a ‘sophomore slump’ that it wasn’t able to recover from.

Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. is probably the most inconsistent thing Marvel has made thus far. There hasn’t been a season that has been consistently good and the series has a bad habit of meandering. There weren’t a lot of people calling for a spinoff, but Marvel hastily wrote off two of the better characters in the series, Bobbi Morse (Adrianne Palicki) and Lance Hunter (Nick Blood), without waiting for a confirmation from ABC. To be fair Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. got the rug pulled out from under it three fourths of the way through its first season with the dismantling of S.H.I.E.L.D. The show has been trying to rebrand itself since by taking on the Inhumans as the show continues struggling to define itself.

The Marvel Cinematic Universe seems to be doing well since the split, and without Perlmutter penny pinching they could offer actors raises, bring on new and interesting talent and generally become “much healthier, happier” says Joe, paving the way for “really compelling choices.” Marvel television has had what is arguably the first failure that Marvel has had since it started this grand experiment back in 2008. Agent Carter spent most of May 12th treading on twitter as people mourn the loss of yet another amazing woman on the small screen. The divide between Marvel TV at ABC and the company seems to be getting worse. The Marvel Cinematic Universe won’t even acknowledge that Agent Phil Coulson is alive or that a version of S.H.I.E.L.D. exists. The Marvel universe is trying, to almost comical levels, to keep the TV and movie universes separate. Daredevil and Jessica Jones make up for it in quality but unfortunately Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.is only ‘pretty good’ at best.

Agent Carter and Most Wanted are two of the first casualties of the ongoing tensions within Marvel when it comes to the movie and television universes. While we don’t know what is in the future for Marvel television on the small screen (aside from the Cloak and Dagger series they are making at Freeform), unless the people in charge realize they don’t have to act like the Marvel that filed for bankruptcy in 1996 I don’t see it changing.

While the Civil War between Iron Man and Captain America might be over, it seems the one within Marvel itself rages on and I sadly expect there will be more casualties along the way.

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New Red-Band Trailer for ‘The Neon Demon’: This Is Going to Be Insane

By

Larry Taylor - Managing Editor

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May 13, 2016

Here is the new red-band trailer for Nicolas Winding Refn’s The Neon Demon, what seems to be a Bret Easton Ellis-type exploration into the depraved seediness of high fashion. Only it has that definite Refn dreamlike intensity. And it looks absolutely insane:

Here is the vague synopsis:

When aspiring model Jesse moves to Los Angeles, her youth and vitality are devoured by a group of beauty-obsessed women who will take any means necessary to get what she has.

This isn’t going to tell you anything about the film, which is sure to be a Lynchian dive into psychosexual madness. Elle Fanning, Christina Hendricks, and Keanu Reeves star, though Reeves’ presence in the film is staying purposefully quiet. Blink and you’ll miss him here.

The Neon Demon looks like more of what Refn was experimenting with in Only God Forgives, a film I didn’t particularly care for but might need to revisit. This one hits theaters June 24.

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Simon Kinberg Discusses ‘Fantastic Four’ And Possible ‘X-Men’ Crossover

By

Jonathan Bruce

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May 13, 2016

Photo Credit: Courtesy Twentieth Century Fox

Simon Kinberg is one of the guiding figures of the ‘X-Men’ movie franchise at 20th Century Fox. He also wrote the screenplay for ‘Mr. and Mrs. Smith’ and produced ‘The Martian’, the latter earning him an Academy Award nomination for Best Picture. He also serves as a producer on the ‘Star Wars Rebels’ television series.

While promoting the upcoming ‘X-Men Apocalypse’, Kinberg sat down with Flickering Myth’s Oli Davis to discuss his current projects. He also talks about the 2015 ‘Fantastic Four’ reboot, which proved to be a box office flop.

‘I actually think part of the problem on the last ‘Fantastic Four” is that we tried to make it maybe a little bit more like an ‘X-Men’ movie, make it a little bit darker, when, in fact, I think the ‘Fantastic Four’ comic traditionally is a lighter, brighter, more hopeful book that’s interested in very different things to other comics,” Kinberg says. “So the challenge this time is to get it right tonally and to find what is special about the ‘Fantastic Four’ as a story.”

Despite the last film’s disappointing reception, Kinberg is keen on reviving the ‘Fantastic Four’ franchise. “We’re working really hard on figuring that out,” he says. “Nothing would make me happier than the world embracing a ‘Fantastic Four‘ movie.”

On the subject of crossovers, Kinberg admits Fox never had the idea of having the X-Men characters interact with Marvel’s First Family. “There wasn’t a conversation back then about it,” he recalls. “I think Marvel as a studio was just starting out, and this notion of crossing over and telling larger stories that are like a larger tapestry taking place over different movies hadn’t really come into its fruition yet. So none of us were thinking in those terms, and Marvel blazed a way for us. We should’ve been thinking in those terms because that’s obviously the way the comics have always done it, but we weren’t.”

Spider-Man Baxter Building — The Thing mourns what could have been with crossovers

He is quick to praise Marvel Studios and Disney for their interconnected universe. “I just think it’s a radical way to make movies. And I think that usually movie studios are – let’s just say – they’re a little short-sighted. They’re not long-term thinkers. They just want to bang out one movie at a time. And then Marvel showed up and changed the way we all look at movies.”

Kinberg is interested in well as bringing back cast members Jamie Bell, Michael B. Jordan, Kate Mara and Miles Teller. “The ‘Fantastic Four’ comic is as enduring and as powerful as the X-Men comic,” he says. “It’s an older generation comic, but it’s been really important – and it’s one that I loved growing up – and I continue to love. The characters are great characters. And I think the actors we have in that franchise are amazing actors. If you look at Michael B. Jordan, he is, like, the most in-demand actor right now. And Miles Teller, and Jamie, and Katie are great actors. So I think there’s an opportunity to tell it, and tell it correctly.”

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