A new promo video for The Martian has been released introducing us to Matt Damon’s character, Mark Watney, as well as the rest of the Ares crew member. Watney is the botanist of the crew who, after a storm leaves him stranded and presumed dead, is marooned on the Red Planet with limited resources to try and survive.
Here is the promo video from the new YouTube channel tying in with The Martian:
The humor in this promo video is very promising for those who read Andy Weir’s 2012 novel and know that Mark Watney, aside from being absolutely brilliant, is a wonderfully funny character. The humor of Watney is the perfect balance to the hard science in play.
Aside from starring the crew members Michael Pena, Jessica Chastain, Sebastian Stan, Kate Mara, and Aksel Hennie, The Martian also stars Kristen Wiig, Jeff Daniels, Chiwetel Ejiofor and Donald Glover as team members back on earth working to save Watney.
The Martian, directed by Ridley Scott hits theaters November 25.
Thursday, rumors began swirling that Jason Statham was in talks with Marvel to join Daredevil season 2 on Netflix as the villain, Bullseye. The initial news stirred up a firestorm of positive buzz and excited the Daredevil fans. But is the deal dead because of the leaked information?
The original news was leaked via The Latino Review, but the fact that the meeting between Statham and Marvel execs was let out could have unraveled the negotiation process, perhaps skewing the contract numbers too high in the wake of the overwhelming excitement.
The rumor mill has gone from the news that Statham is Bullseye to the speculation as to whether to not he exited talks. Bloody Disgusting claims the talks ended after the leaked information, and during press tours for his new comedy Spy, Statham had some unflattering comments about Marvel that may have signaled his disinterest in the project altogether:
It’s too bad that Jason Statham may have left Daredevil, because the thought of him as Bullseye, squaring off against Charlie Cox’s Matt Murdock was enough to make fans of the series salivate. Alas, it looks as if the two have parted ways, but there is always hope.
Anime Expo has announced that they will host both Hiroyuki Imaishi and Yoh Yoshinari as convention guests. Together they will present the premiere of Little Witch Academia: The Enchanted Parade, the Kickstarter funded sequel to the popular Anime Mirai short. It will premiere on July 3rd at 5:45pm and run till 7:15. Following the premiere will be a Q&A by Imaishi and Yoshinari. Following this convention exclusive showing the short will premiere in Japanese theaters October 2015
AX introduces the guests:
Graduating from Tokyo Design Academy, Yoh Yoshinari entered GAINAX as an animator and illustrator. Aside from his breathtaking illustrations, Yoshinari’s animation work is explosive while exhibiting an eccentric fluidity. As a respected figure in the Japanese animation industry and with fans all over the world, Yoshinari has taken part in many popular titles such as Neon Genesis Evangelion (1995), Valkyrie Profile (1999), FLCL (2000), Gurren Lagann (2007), Panty & Stocking with Garterbelt (2010), Kill La Kill (2013). Currently, he works as the lead animator at Studio TRIGGER.
Hiroyuki Imaishi is an acclaimed animation director/animator of Studio TRIGGER. Previously staffed at Studio GAINAX, Imaishi began as in-betweener for Neon Genesis Evangelion. After his directorial debut with DEAD LEAVES in 2004, Imaishi went on to direct the hit series Gurren Lagann;which won him an award during the 12th Animation Kobe ceremony. Founding Studio TRIGGER in 2011, Imaishi directed the studio’s first series KILL la KILL in 2013. Currently, he is a character designer on TRIGGER’s latest animation series NINJA SLAYER from Animation.
Studio Trigger the animation studio responsible for Little Witch Academia 2 and its predecessor have posted a short trailer on YouTube previewing the crowd funded short.
Nerdy facts about Little Witch Academia:
Little Witch Academia was produced by Trigger as part of the Anime Mirai 2013 project, which funds young and upcoming animators alongside other animation houses. After the wide success of Little Witch Academia, Trigger announced a sequel to the widely popular short at Anime Expo 2013. While originally suppose to be a twenty minute episode sillier in length to the first installment, Trigger went to Kickstarter asking for $150,000 to extend the runtime to 40 minutes. They met their goal within five hours. And once it completed its time promotion they had made $625,518. Masahiko Otsuka the writer of both shorts said that if the sequel performs well, they may consider making a television series or a full-length movie.
After a bumpy first issue, Secret Wars #2 managed the re-deem itself with an intriguing premise and strong characterisation as the aftermath of the incursion began to reveal itself. The revelations continue in Secret Wars #3.
For those of you out of the loop, here is a quick recap. Everything died. The old multiverse; everything that ever was and ever would be died as the heroes of two worlds fought for survival. Doctor Doom, through a power play with the Beyonders, gained Godly powered and created a new Battleworld; a composite planet created from what remained of the dead universes. Doctor Strange acts as his right-hand; the Sheriff of Agamotto and through the Thor Corps, Doom’s will is enforced. There had been some level of confusion as to whether characters remember their past lives and whether the versions we saw were wholly new characters or stragglers from older universes. Thankfully this issue has done much to resolve that problem, making it clear that besides God Emperor Doom (it still sounds silly), and a select few confidants, this is all anyone present on Battleworld has ever known.
Issue 3 acts very much as a character study of our two good doctors. Strange has engaged in a unlikely alliance with Doom and it is clear that the two men have grown to respect each other over the course of their collaboration. As the universe collapsed around them at the end of Secret Wars #1, the two men came to an understanding. A final gambit to save the universe, one that came with a cost and one that forced them to play unlikely roles in a drama of their creation. Structurally, the book gives us a number of chapters which each focus on a different aspect of the lives of Doom and Strange.
It is apparent that Godhood has changed Doom. The man who was once a megalomaniac with delusions of grandeur has become a loving deity. Doom truly cares about those under his charge and does what he feels is necessary in order to maintain the delicate peace he has created. He sometimes questions whether he should have excluded himself from the new universe and operated in the background. Doom often wonders if he is the only flawed thing left in “perfect” world he has created. The readers are left with a fascinating insight into the man behind the iron mask. Its also worth noting that we get a literal look behind the mask, in what to my knowledge is the first time that Doom’s face has been revealed to the reader. The issue takes Doom to a very interesting place which is compounded by the fact that though Doom has arguably achieved Godhood before, this is the first time he used it for something positive; creation. In a sense, he is the hero of the piece as he did what two universes worth of heroes could not: save the world. His conversation with Susan Storm is perhaps the highlight of the series thus far, demonstrating that fragility of a human who is given the burden of Godhood. This is a Doom, we haven’t seen before and needless to say, I like where Hickman is taking him.
(On a side-note, it is rather bizarre that Marvel have made Doom the central character of the series given their recent hostility towards the Fantastic Four franchise. Maybe Secret Wars represents a detenté of sorts for Marvel’s prodigal son.)
In a similar vein, Strange, in collaborating with Doom, has taken an interesting turn. He comes off as a weary soul who will do anything to maintain the peace that came at such high a cost. The issue portrays Strange as quite the Machiavellian. His relationship with Doom is fascinating, revealing what appears to be true fealty as opposed to the forced subservience the reader may have assumed to be the case. Strange believes that supporting Doom was the best course of action and though he keeps certain things from his master, that belief has not faltered. When surviving heroes from the old universe confront him about his alliance with the former-dictator, Strange remains largely un-phased noting “[Doom] is very good at playing God”. This is all sure to have a long-lasting impact on his relationship with the other heroes post- Secret Wars.
Ribic’s art is still quite brilliant, and the environments have an energy to them that perfectly encapsulates the science-fantasy setting. It perfectly complements the world-building that Hickman has engaged in when designing Battleworld and the feel of its central kingdom. That being said, problems remain in the facial expression department. For whatever reason, every now and then Ribic inexplicably draws a face akin to something out of an early 3D video game. In particular, he seems to have trouble drawing the female characters that approach uncanny valley levels of discomfort. Ribic is best when he is dealing with characteristically inhuman features (pun not intended) or masked characters. While this may sound negative, I do like Ribic (his steam-punk take on Galactus still astounds me), but the off-putting facial expressions can sometimes take me out of the story and when the story is this good that can be pretty fatal. Alex Ross’ cover art remains what all artists should aspire to, would that he could paint the entire book ala Kingdom Come.
Secret Wars #3 is a fantastic issue with the central conflict slowly building in the background. It does what many an event has failed to do (DC’s Convergence, I’m looking at you), it focuses on characterisation and how the event impacts those who experience it. It gives us reasons to care for characters you might not have ever seen yourself caring for. Most series would have rushed to give us the “war”, but Secret Wars has instead opted to give us reasons to give a damn. The “bad guys” may have begun to consolidate their position, but their actions in the preceding issues have been motivated by survival, not malice. It is a series that lives in the grey areas of morality. Doom may have originally sought out the Beyonders for selfish reasons, but his use of their powers is seemingly selfless. So what do our characters do? Do they seek to overthrow Doom; the man who saved reality? Do they destroy the balance that has been created? We are approaching the tipping point. I, for one, can’t wait to see where the rest of the series goes and where it leaves the Marvel Universe.
The trailer for Bridge of Spies, the long awaited teaming between Tom Hanks and Steven Spielberg, is finally here. Hanks and Spielberg have collaborated on a number of projects over the years, but rarely are they in their traditional roles as actor/director.
Check out the Bridge of Spies trailer here:
Here is the official synopsis for Bridge of Spies:
“A dramatic thriller set against the backdrop of a series of historic events, “Bridge of Spies” tells the story of James Donovan (Hanks), a Brooklyn lawyer who finds himself thrust into the center of the Cold War when the CIA sends him on the near-impossible task to negotiate the release of a captured American U-2 pilot. Screenwriters Matt Charman and Ethan Coen & Joel Coen have woven this remarkable experience in Donovan’s life into a story inspired by true events that captures the essence of a man who risked everything and vividly brings his personal journey to life.”
It looks like Spielberg and Hanks have devoted a lot to Bridge of Spies, from their personal passion for the subject matter, to their willingness to truly make the film an epic thriller. A nice little addition to the proceedings is the mention of screenwriters Joel and Ethan Coen, along with Matt Charman.
Bridge of Spies opens October 16. Expect it to be a big player in Awards season.
Antonio Fargas, best known as “Huggy Bear” took some time to talk with Matthew Sardo about his acting career that spans 50 plus years and his current gig as brand ambassador for NBC’s COZI TV.
Antonio Fargas, best known as “Huggy Bear” from Starsky & Hutch, has signed on as the first brand ambassador for NBC’s COZI TV.
In this role, he’ll star in exclusive musical promos for the network, which airs iconic series including Starsky & Hutch as well as Magnum, P.I., Charlie’s Angels, The Bionic Woman, Six Million Dollar Man and Lone Ranger, plus classic movies.
Fargas kicked off his relationship with COZI TV on Monday, with the premiere of the first of three network identity spots featuring Fargas and his swing band, The New Jump Blues. The musical promos feature soundtracks created exclusively for COZI TV. The other two promos will premiere later in the year.
In his new role as brand ambassador, Fargas will also host other projects for the network.
“We are thrilled to have Antonio be part of the COZI TV family,” said Diane Petzke, director of programming and promotion. “Antonio’s career embodies our programming philosophy and the warm, inviting and laid-back attitude of our network.”
After Starsky & Hutch ended its run in 1979, Fargas continued his stage, film and television career with roles in such movies as Foxy Brown, Don’t be a Menace… and Car Wash and appearances on shows including All My Children, House of Lies, Miami Vice, Lie to Me and Everybody Hates Chris
COZI TV launched on Jan. 1, 2013, on the multicast channels of the NBC Owned Television Stations and is now available in about 80 million homes nationally.
ANTONIO FARGAS BIO
Antonio Juan Fargas was born on August 14, 1946, in New York City, to a Puerto Rican father and a Trinidadian mother. He and his ten siblings grew up in a housing project on Manhattan’s Lower West Side. Fargas’s father was a garbage man who later worked in public relations, and his mother, Fargas told Boston Herald reporter Paul Sullivan, “was a great domestic engineer…. There was always bread on the table, not in abundance, but we always had what we needed.”
When Fargas was a sophomore in high school in 1961, he noticed a story in New York’s Amsterdam News saying that auditions were being held for an independent film called Cool World. He got the part. Around the same time, Fargas was a member of a youth group called Harlem Youth Opportunities Limited that offered theater programs to aspiring actors. After receiving instruction from actor Robert Hooks in Hooks’ apartment, which wasn’t far from that of Fargas’s family, he got a part in an off-Broadway stage production called The Toilet in 1963.
Early in his career, Fargas was known primarily as a stage actor. He made the first of what would become a lifetime’s worth of trips to England in 1965 to appear in the play The Amen Corner, and he won positive reviews back in New York two years later when he appeared as Scipio in the original Broadway production of The Great White Hope, a play about the life of boxer Jack Johnson. Just 20 years old, Fargas convincingly played the part of a 90-year-old witch doctor. Fargas also made notable appearances in a 1968 New York Shakespeare Festival production of Romeo and Juliet and in the 1969 play Ceremonies in Dark Old Men.
Dividing his time between New York and Los Angeles, Fargas began to break into movies. He had parts in some of the popular black-oriented films of the early 1970s, like Shaft (1971), Cleopatra Jones (1973), and Foxy Brown (1974). In 1974 he also played Quickfellow in Conrack, a film made from author Pat Conroy’s autobiographical novel about his experiences teaching in an African-American community on one of South Carolina’s coastal islands. Fargas also garnered roles in episodes of such hit television series as The Bill Cosby Show, Police Story, Kojak, and Sanford and Son.
Fargas had appeared in the 1972 film Across 110th Street, directed by Barry Shear, and when Shear was signed to direct the pilot episode of the ABC network’s Starsky and Hutch in 1975, he cast Fargas in the role of Huggy Bear. The role wasn’t initially intended to be an ongoing part of the show, but producers noticed the chemistry that quickly evolved among Fargas and stars David Soul and Paul Michael Glaser. Fargas ended up remaining with the cast through the entire run of Starsky and Hutch, which left primetime airwaves in 1979 but lived on for years in syndication.
Huggy Bear was a bar owner and streetwise police informant who directed tips to police officers Starsky and Hutch. Dressed to the nines in a leather trench coat that was widely imitated during the run of the series, he was often surrounded by beautiful women; his status as a pimp was suggested but never directly stated. Huggy Bear was charismatic, fashionable, a bit lovable, and unfailingly entertaining. Such traits anticipated the rise of rap music’s “gangsta” variant, and thus it was no surprise that Fargas was later cast in films such as the Wayans Brothers’ I’m Gonna Git You Sucka (1988), even if he took some criticism from activists of the 1970s for perpetuating stereotypes of blacks in the entertainment industry. Fargas was matter-of-fact about his role, telling Mark Grossi of the Providence Journal that “I was a character actor and it was a typical role for a black actor at the time. It was good for me because it helped my career.” The role of Huggy Bear was played by rapper Snoop Dogg in a 2004 film based on the series.
The end of Starsky and Hutch barely slowed Fargas’s career. He returned to the stage for a time in the 1980s, explaining to the Providence Journal that “I hadn’t been on stage for a long time. Your acting muscles atrophy when you don’t use them.” He had the lead role in a 1985 play called Toussaint, Angel Warrior of Haiti, which traced the life of the 19th-century Haitian independence leader Toussaint L’Ouverture. That year he also appeared in a New York Shakespeare Festival production of Shakespeare’s Measure for Measure, and in 1986 he had a role in a Philadelphia production of The Amen Corner, the play that had taken him to England as a teenager.
Fargas continued to act in films, and in the 1990s he kept up a steady schedule of television guest star appearances in such series as The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air, Martin, Living Single, and The Steve Harvey Show. Married and divorced twice, he moved in with his partner, real estate executive Sandi Reed, in the late 1980s, raising her two children and Fargas’s two from a previous marriage. One son, Justin Fargas, became a football star with the Oakland Raiders of the National Football League. The early 1990s offered real challenges for Fargas. He conquered alcohol and tobacco addictions. The 1994 earthquake centered north of Los Angeles trapped him and his wife in different parts of their Northridge, California, home, with each thinking the other had been killed, but Fargas broke down a door and they were reunited.
Traveling to England as often as four times a year, Fargas had the chance to test his survival skills once again in 2002 as a member of the cast of the British reality television show I’m a Celebrity, Get Me Out of Here! He also toured in a stage version of the film The Blues Brothers that had been rewritten to include a Huggy Bear role, and he teamed with David Soul in a serious play called The Dead Monkey. His theatrical career rolled on in the U.S. as well as he starred in 2003 in a St. Louis production of the acclaimed The Gospel at Colonus, an African-American adaptation of a drama by ancient Greek author Sophocles. And Huggy Bear remained a household name after three decades.
Argentine band Babasónicos released a song in their 1998 B-sides album Vórtice Marxista called Antonio Fargas. The song’s chorus repeats the phrase “Antonio Fargas is Huggy Bear”, in Spanish, and is meant to be homage to Antonio.
If you’ve been keeping up with what’s happening in the world of comic books right now, you’ll know that there are two large scale events occurring across both major comic book publishers: DC and Marvel. These events — DC’s “Convergence” and Marvel’s “Secret Wars” — are set to reshape their respective universes. The question is: for better or worse?
DC Comics
DC rebranded/relaunched themselves in September 2011 under the “New 52” moniker. In essence, DC cancelled all existing titles, including Action Comics and Detective Comics, which had retained their original numbering since the 1930s with all new first issues. Here we are June 2015, less than four years later, and DC is ending the New 52 brand (but maintaining the New 52 continuity) in favor of starting 24 new series beginning at issue one.
Marvel Comics
Marvel relaunched themselves with Marvel NOW! in October 2012 with several new #1 issues. It was recently announced that Marvel will once again be rebranding themselves at the conclusion of Secret Wars with an “all-new, all-different” Marvel Universe line of comics, which will include #1 issues for about 60 titles. This less than only three years after their last rebranding.
What Happened?
More of my knowledge lies in Marvel comics, so I’ll use them as an example.
It’s no secret that the comic book industry — or the publishing industry for that matter — is struggling. How do you keep readers interested in a comic book series/universe that has become convoluted and ongoing for 75 years? Simple, start over from #1.
If you look at the past 10 years or so of Marvel, you’ll see that they’ve been struggling to generate interest in their books unless it’s something controversial and out of character, such as Peter Parker making a deal with the devil to save Aunt May in exchange for the history of his marriage with Mary Jane (what?) in One More Day. If you’re wondering why the soul of Spider-Man is less valuable than the history of his marriage then I’m right there with you. But I’ll tell you why this happened. It developed out of the need to retcon Spider-Man’s identity after he revealed himself to the world in Marvel: Civil War.
Indeed, if you look at a lot of major events in Marvel, the majority of them have all been ways to try and fix SNAFUs the comic book giant had created for itself. Civil War left Tony Stark in a major position of power and in order to undo that, Marvel released Secret Invasion, which then made Norman Osborn and Marvel’s villains major players in the continuity, which once again needed another event to restore order.
In fact, if you look at Marvel’s cross-over events since 2010, you’ll see there have been a whopping 28 events in only 5 years, whereas 2000-2010 only had a still substantial 18 (source). Go back further and you’ll see the 90s had roughly 20, the 80s had 11, and the 70s had 6. Does anybody else see what’s wrong here? Because apparently Marvel Editor-in-Chief Axel Alonso doesn’t.
The Problem
It’s pretty clear Marvel is screwing the pooch on their side. They’re looking to consolidate what’s left (and popular) from their franchises and other universes using Secret Wars as a means to do it, which I admit is clever. But here’s the catch. You lose what made those characters from those universes so special. Now we’ll be seeing a Marvel Universe where both Spider-Gwen and Miles Morales have to compete with Peter Parker. What made Spider-Gwen and Miles Morales unique was that they were heroes in their own right, in their own worlds. Now they get Parker’s sloppy seconds, because if Superior Spider-Man proved anything, it’s that there is only one Spider-Man and that’s Peter Parker. This town ain’t big enough for the three of them.
Then there’s the issue of diversifying comics. Simply gender/race swapping heroes does not equal diversity. It’s like affirmative action gone bad. Comic book publishers are criticized for not having a diverse roster, which is understandable, so now they just swap out a popular hero for a minority whether or not it really makes any logical sense. Look, Thor is a woman now, see? Diversity! Hey, Bobby Drake is gay! We’re doing good right? Wrong.
Why not create superheroes who happen to be a minority rather than making them a token minority and forcing them into roles and backgrounds meant for someone else? Black Panther is a minority and a badass superhero created in the 1960s, yet he hasn’t had his own solo series since something like 2012?
And why are these heroes still idealized? I’ve struggled my whole life with my weight, as do millions of other people, why is the only fat guy in the Marvel Universe a villain called The Blob? Wolverine is one of the only popular heroes I can think of who wasn’t idealized: he was a short, hairy little man — except now that Hugh Jackman is synonymous with Wolverine, the comic character has slowly taken on more of Jackman’s traits — tall and good looking. If you want to diversify comics then make Bruce Wayne 5’10” instead of 6’2″ and stop drawing him so damn good looking with muscles like a bodybuilder. Same thing with female characters. Stop making them look like models with unrealistically proportioned anatomy. What difference does it make if a character is black, white, gay, straight, male, female when they’re still portrayed with the physical features of a model or movie star?
The Solution
I think it’s pretty damn obvious that these cross-over events are reshaping the landscape and doing so much damage that there’s the necessity to reboot. I mean, 28 events in 5 years? Marvel and DC are like Frankenstein’s monster at this point, just stitched together abominations that can’t even stand of their own two feet for more than a decade.
How do you expect readers to keep up with what’s going on when you have so many events that are constantly throwing things for a loop? It doesn’t matter if you start over at issue #1 if you plan on having multiple cross-over events in a single year. By the time year two roles around Spider-Man will be retconned as his own grandpa!
The term “wipe the slate clean” has been thrown around a lot when it comes to these rebrandings. But is the slate really wiped clean? Because it’s not. It’s like erasing an old chalk board with a bad eraser, it just smears and makes things more messy, but you keep trying to write something new on it anyways.
Here’s an idea Marvel and DC — how about you really wipe the slate clean. How about if you’re wanting to rejuvenate your ailing books and expand your audience, you actually do a full reboot? You know, start from Batman or Superman’s origins and work your way up? Create fully planned and cohesive story arcs that make logical sense. Hell, they don’t even have to be original, just tell the same stories over again with updated artwork and dialogue or a different take/spin on them à la the Hollywood films. There’s already a proven example of this that works, it’s called Ultimate Marvel.
Your readers can see you’re making this shit up as you go along. Why do you think Game of Thrones is so popular? Because it was planned out. Why do you think Marvel’s Cinematic Universe is so popular? Because it’s planned out. Do you see what I’m saying here?
You have fierce competition from outside sources and other forms of media. There seems to be no forethought or clear direction where you’re taking your companies. Things like female Thor, Spider-Gwen, and soft-rebooting your universe — may make you a quick buck now — but you’re doing irreparable damage to your brand.
There’s a reason why your companies were able to survive for so long despite being on the brink of death many times. You had a brand and characters that people loved, with stories that captivated audiences. They were so iconic in fact, that despite your books not selling, Hollywood bought the rights to the property and has made billions. But once that well dries up, what next? What happens when the comic book movie bubble bursts, which it inevitably will — in fact, we may already be seeing the decline with Spider-Man on its third reboot and Avengers: Age of Ultron not doing as well as the first film — then what? Will there still be a Marvel or DC comics 20 years from now when moviegoers are tired of superheroes? Because seriously, things are looking like a bad soap opera, even more so in the past 5 years than they ever have. Maybe the editors are just caught up too deep in what they’re doing that they can’t take a step back and see the forest from the trees.
But from where I’m standing now, it’s looking rather bleak. Change is a good thing, but it can’t come about it broad, ham-fisted strokes. To quote Fry from Futurama, “but that’s not why people watch TV. Clever things make people feel stupid, and unexpected things make them feel scared.”
So start getting your act together guys and prepare for what lies ahead. Focus on what made you what you are today: good, interesting, and original stories featuring larger than life characters that people look up to.
Marvel has reached out to Jason Statham to play Bullseye in season two of Marvel’s Daredevil Netflix series, according Latino Review’s sources.
Latino Review’s spies spotted him meeting with Marvel personnel earlier this week while taking a break from the press tour for Spy.
Other rumored villains set to appear in the second season of Daredevil are Mr Fear, Mysterio, and Elektra. Filming is scheduled to start at the end of June or early July.
Some time ago, there was a Chase bank commercial featuring nondescript cosplayers attending a comic book convention. In it a guy in a superhero costume walks out of the bathroom with toilet paper stuck to the bottom of his flashy boot. Another masked man quietly points this out to the fellow cosplayer and the day is saved. The announcer then comes on and talks about how Chase banking (or a bank card or something) is everywhere you are and can save the day while the cosplayers in the commercial buys a bunch of stuff with a Chase bank card. The first time I saw this commercial I said good-bye to the nerd fortress we had all built over the years because comic book fans were no longer a niche market; comic book readers are now a major demographic.
This shift comes as no surprise. Look around your homes, fellow nerds. Look upon your geek empires of light sabers, busts of comic book characters, action figures, variant covers, rare comic books that are appraised and sealed away forever, and the long boxes that hold your years and years of weekly comic book hauls. If you tallied up how much you have spent on that over the years, you would understand what corporate America sees in us: profit. We are no longer viewed as Al McWhiggin or Comic Book Guy; we are seen as adults with disposable income with specific interests. This capitalist revelation is also compounded with the wild success of the Marvel Movie Universe, a franchise that is not only getting long-time comic book fans into IMAX 3D movies for $15 per person, but it is also bringing in a new audience. The new audience won’t stop at the films, they want the comics too. A new audience means that comic books need to be accessible to new readers while maintaining the old readers that got them to this remarkable financial success.
All of this financial success and the acquisition of a new audience means that change is inevitable. You can’t fork over fistfulls of money to the films and then wonder why your comic books are changing. I’m not happy about the changes that are rumored, believe me. This rumor that’s floating around that Bruce Banner will be Iron-Man when the dust from Secret Wars settles isn’t sitting well with me, but there is nothing set in stone. There is absolutely no reason to throw my hands up, scoff, and declare that Marvel has lost its mind because nothing has happened.
Marvel is expanding the universe to draw in new readers and to keep it from having a white, 1960s feel. Sam Wilson as Captain America, a cancer-stricken Jane Foster as Thor, a gay Bobby Drake, and Miles Morales as Spider-Man are all amazing ways the Marvel Universe is expanding to include everyone and construct a universe with a diversity that expands beyond alternate worlds. The universal praise I’ve always heard about the Ultimate Universe is that they were able to experiment with the characters and have them do more interesting things. Why can’t that be canon? Why can’t that be the 616? Why can’t the main universe’s characters be the interesting characters?
The Monkeys vs Robots first podcast touches on the problematic way that reboots have no guidelines or rules, so anyone can make up anything they want on a whim. It’s right: Reboots are generally awful because the publisher can hit the reset button at anytime like a little brother who just lost his last life in Super Mario 3. However, though Marvel has done this in the past (because at this point we all see Jean Grey as a way to reboot a story in case it isn’t popular), Marvel isn’t DC. DC will reboot anything at any time, throw the word “Crisis” on it, and change their universe because they do not know what to do with their characters. This is also why their reboots and their movies are not as successful as Marvel’s; DC still hasn’t figured out how to make their flagship character, Superman, work – what do we expect? DC represents reboots at their absolute worst; Marvel, generally, isn’t too terribly awful when it comes to reboots.
Every threat of a reboot comes with the same outcry and the same groaning. The New 52 was wonky because nothing lead into it. Nothing lead up to the New 52, we just knew it was going to happen. Marvel, however, is putting their top architect, Jonathan Hickman, in charge of this to ensure that this reboot isn’t a complete disaster. Hickman is being backed up by heavy-hitters like Jason Aaron, Brian Michael Bendis, Cullen Bunn, and more who are helping pave the way to a new world. If our world has to change, why not wait and see what these visionaries have to offer?
Reed Richards has been telling us for months that “Everything Dies.” This is the death of the Marvel Universe as we knew it, but it is the birth of a new world we can forge with new comic book fans. Let’s just settle down, have some fun, and see what happens.
Earlier today, Marvel released a teaser image for what we can expect from their line of books following their big summer event; Secret Wars.
In the last hour, another image has emerged which ostensibly acts as a second preview of their post-Secret Wars line. The image is particularly noteworthy for what appears to be X-23 taking on the mantle of Wolverine and introducing Old Man Logan to the main Marvel Universe. It heavily features both the Inhumans and Guardians of the Galaxy along with an awesome re-design of Doctor Strange. Other characters featured include Spectrum,Karnak and Citizen V.
The revelations regarding Wolverine’s status post-Secret Wars would seem to line up with statements issued by Marvel Editor-in-Chief; Axel Alonso earlier today:
“Wolverine will be back sort of — a new Wolverine — and I think that is also going to be seismic when people see who it is….I think it’s going to create a lot of excitement about the character and then force people to look at Wolverine through new eyes, so to speak.”
What do you think? Should X-23 takeover as Wolverine? What else about this image caught your eye? Tell us in the comments below.
note: this article was originally posted as speculation, but has since been confirmed by two other sources.
