The 80s are having a moment, and filmmakers are cashing in. David Sandberg’s short film Kung Fury is absolutely dripping with 80s action nostalgia, and now they have the Terminator himself on the team. Radical. According to Deadline Hollywood, Arnold Schwarzenegger joins the cast of Kung Fury 2 along with Michael Fassbender, David Hasselhoff, and David Sandberg.
Production Power for Kung Fury 2
The original short ran in Cannes’ Directors’ Fortnight three years ago. Since then it has garnered over 40 million views. The full-length film is a sequel to the short, which also featured David Hasselhoff. In addition to acting, Hasselhoff recorded original music for Kung Fury. The feature is set to film summer, 2018.
Kung Fury: The Best Cop for the Best Year Ever
Kung Fury 2 takes place in 1985 “the best year ever”. The title character is the “greatest damn cop of all time”. He and his Thundercops protect the city of Miami from the ultimate evil: Kung Fuhrer Adolf Hitler. Not enough action for you? The Thundercops aren’t your ordinary police force—they are made up of the best of the best, traveling through time to help Kung Fury keep the streets clean and safe. Kung Fury and his Thundercops must band back together after grief tears them apart, otherwise Hitler will get his hands on a mysterious and powerful weapon.
Kung Fury 2 is co-written by David Sandberg and Tyler Burton Smith. The film will be produced by Laser Unicorn and KatzSmith Productions. The film does not yet have a release date.
Harley Quinn #38 hits your local comic book store on February 21, but thanks to DC Comics, Monkeys Fighting Robots has an exclusive 5-page preview for you.
Harley Quinn #38 is written by Frank Tieri, with art by Mirka Andolfo and Eleonora Carlini, colors by Alex Sinclair, and letters by Dave Sharpe. Darwyn Cooke, Amanda Conner, and Paul Mounts worked on Cover A. Frank Cho and Sabine Rich worked on the variant cover.
Tieri is one of the few writers that have written both Deadpool and Harley Quinn. As Dan Didio points out, Harley Quinn is the Deadpool of DC Comics.
In a world of pencils and inks, Cho continues the extreme smoothness he’s famous for and the ability to convey emotion in his Harley Quinn variant.
About the issue: “ANGRY BIRD” part two! The Penguin didn’t come to Brooklyn alone this time…he’s put out an open invitation for some of Gotham City’s worst to join him in his new criminal empire, as long as they’re willing to hold off Harley Quinn! And when we say “worst,” we mean worst! Film Freak? Egghead? Condiment King?! Nateman’s Hot Dogs is gonna have a lot to say about that…
Are you reading Harley Quinn? Who would win in a fight; Deadpool or Harley? Comment below.
Season finales in many shows act as patchworks of closure for narrative threads that writers have tugged at throughout the series. And, as any TV watcher knows, you don’t need to look hard to find a season finale that features a cliffhanger ending. Star Trek: Discovery’s season one finale “Will You Take My Hand?” boldly went where many have gone before by featuring both of the aforementioned TV traditions, but because this season overall provided a semi-progressive episodic personal journey for the lead character Michael Burnham (Sonequa Martin-Green) and, by extension, all of Starfleet, the pace at which narrative elements unfolded in Discovery’s first season made me reflect on how this show is, like some of its binge-watching age contemporaries, shaping the future of how serial television is both produced and consumed.
“Will You Take My Hand?” – “END SIMULTATION”
Did a Pakled program this thing?
No, I didn’t misspell the word “simulation.” Well, I did … but I did it on purpose! I suppose that was the same defense used by the proofreader in Discovery’s graphics department just before being canned. Sure, the featured text was written backwards so the mistake was easily missed, but unless this is another loose plot element that Discovery’s writers will address next season, e.g. the ship’s computer core is infected with a virus, then someone seriously dropped the ball. Also, I know I’m not alone in thinking that it was annoying, rather than clever, to show a planet being destroyed in the previous week’s promotional trailer only to find out when the episode aired that it was just a simulation.
It’s difficult enough to suspend disbelief when, say, Sasha from The Walking Dead is talking to a gigantic cockroach who claims to be a Klingon. Do viewers have to also put up with spelling errors from what’s supposed to be a 23rd-century computer display. Or, maybe the intense light coming from everywhere is bothering my eyes … I’m from the Mirror Universe, after all. *rolls eyes*
“Will You Take My Hand?” – Michael, Impulse Your Shuttle Ashore
Like I said earlier, Burnham’s personal journey, from cold-blooded mutineer to hot-blooded mutineer, over the course of Discovery’s first season made the whole thing seem worthwhile. The distinction I’m making here might not seem like much, but it made all the difference in context.
At the beginning of the show, Commander Burnham mutinies, causes the initiation of open hostilities in the Klingon–Federation War, loses her commission, and is sentenced to life in prison. At the end of season one, Burnham threatens mutiny, averts a war crime, and earns back her commission.
“Will You Take My Hand?” – A Mutiny By Any Name…
Some might argue that one mutiny is as bad as another, but the important thing when committing mutiny is to do it for the right reason, like if your captain is about to commit a war crime sanctioned by the admiralty of the military/exploratory force you’re a part of.
A mutiny for the wrong reason, like blind adherence to the advice of your apparently racist father figure, is another thing altogether. That Burnham learned, at the least, that it’s important to pick the right battles provided evidence of some level of moral progress on her part. Where her actions in “The Vulcan Hello” made Burnham out as Sarek’s unquestioning accomplice, her actions in “Will You Take My Hand?” showed her as a somewhat principled person.
Although I still take issue with Admiral Cornwell’s amazingly bad command choices, that the main characters of Discovery are standing up to the hostile admiralty reminds me of the very creepy “Conspiracy,” the penultimate episode of The Next Generation’s first season.
“Will You Take My Hand?” – Puppet Masters
For those watching Discovery from a post-colonial point of view, it’s easy to see parallels between Michael’s assisting L’Rell to reunite the Klingon houses and real-world global powers setting up puppet states. That L’Rell isn’t constrained by a treaty or agreement of any kind with Starfleet to rule according to their instruction makes Michael’s actions less obviously oppressive. But because the reunification of the Klingon houses serves Starfleet’s ends, L’Rell’s installation as leader left a bad taste in my mouth. That said, others, Kirk and Sisko for sure, do much worse during their Starfleet careers.
“Will You Take My Hand?” – The Emperor’s New Clothes
It was fun to see Michelle Yeoh tap into her dark side, and I’m glad, for the sake of the show, that the deposed emperor from another universe is still running around. I hope she reappears some day … maybe she’s the one who’s really responsible for the destruction of the Klingon moon Praxis …
“Will You Take My Hand?” – Thoughts
This was a fun episode that had a few questionable elements, like the decision to include a closeup on an apparently double-membered Klingon urinating. I guess the directorial idea here was to highlight the seediness of the beam-in site by showing a local urinating against a wall, but the close-up on the double urine stream was a tad excessive, pandering to the d*ck-and-fart joke crowd rather than to our best selves. That said, it did remind me a bit of Kirk’s “knee” kick while imprisoned at Rura Penthe in Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country.
I thought Tilly’s experimentation with none other than Star Trek’s toddler-alien himself Clint Howard was a great exchange. In fact, Howard’s appearance in “Will You Take My Hand?” makes him the only actor to appear on every iteration of Star Trek.
I think Mary Wiseman is doing a great job developing her role as Cadet Tilly, though I know some disagree. For my part, I think that Tilly must be a difficult character to play well, especially on a relatively grim show like Discovery.
I was surprised that Tyler will no longer be following Burnham around. I had thought that he was being set up to act as Starfleet’s resident Klingon expert, but I’m glad this isn’t the case since having an expert on Klingon culture in the ranks of Starfleet in the year 2256 would interfere with plot points set up in episodes of Star Trek, so well done creative team!
“Will You Take My Hand?” – A Familiar Ship
To many viewers, the biggest news in the final episode of Discovery’s first season was the appearance of a familiar ship and captain. Responding to a distress call from a Starfleet vessel on their way to Vulcan to pick up their new captain, acting Captain Saru and company, with Ambassador Sarek in attendance, drop out of warp to find Starfleet’s flagship, the U.S.S Enterprise NCC 1701 requesting assistance.
The big chair is not yet occupied by its most famous captain, Jim Kirk, though. It currently supports the somewhat reluctant hero, but hero nonetheless, Captain Christopher Pike, the man whom audiences would have seen calling the shots in Star Trek’s original pilot episode “The Cage” if it had aired in 1965. However, because “The Cage” was rejected by NBC, the first episode that viewers saw was Star Trek’s retooled pilot, which featured the dashing James T. Kirk as the Enterprise’s captain, “Where No Man Has Gone Before.”
The first time viewers learned of Captain Pike was in Star Trek’s “The Menagerie Part I,” in which Spock commits mutiny so he can bring Captain Pike back to Talos IV. “The Cage” was eventually released in its entirety on VHS in 1986, about a year before Star Trek: The Next Generation aired.
Discovery Easter egg hunters unfamiliar with Star Trek’s original pilot episode or “The Menagerie” may have seen Pike’s name included on the list of most decorated Starfleet officers featured in “Choose Your Pain.”
“Will You Take My Hand?” – The Number One Question
More than I’m looking forward to finding out who will take over the Discovery’s captaincy, I’m looking forward to finding out how writers intend to work characters from Discovery onto the pre-Kirk Enterprise and vice versa. A big rumour before Discovery aired was that the show would concern the career of Captain Pike’s first officer, only ever called “Number One” and originally played by Majel Barrett in “The Cage.”
It seems doubtful that the show would take such a left turn after being so concerned with Cmdr. Burnham up to this point, but I hope that, at the very least, viewers get to see the nameless first officer in an episode or two.
“Will You Take My Hand?” – The Changing Face of Serial Television
Finally, like I said earlier, Discovery strikes me as the kind of show that benefits from being binge-watched. An episode or two watched individually might not impress, but the stunning visuals combined with familiar properties and the odd enjoyable episode makes for satisfying binge-watching, I’m sure.
Watching each episode as it aired left me nervous about the future of the show and how producers would turn what I was seeing into something resembling what I think of as Star Trek.
But rather than worry about losing the interest of viewers like me who are watching week to week, the powers that be seem more interested in producing episodes that can be scarfed down by greedy TV binge-ers. The introduction of the Enterprise in “Will You Take My Hand?” is a great example of this.
Rather than trying to hook viewers by making Captain Pike and his ship an important part of the first season, the creative team held off until the season finale to introduce both. A viewer watching week to week might have already gotten frustrated at Discovery’s infrequent references to familiar Star Trek properties, but the binge-watcher is raring to go, having watched all 15 episodes in one day as if Discovery’s first season were some kind of sub-par epic movie.
I’m not sure if this apparent change in format is a good or bad thing for viewers. As a rule, I don’t mind waiting as long as the payoff is good. So far, Discovery’s writers have kept me hanging on, but I hope that as the second season airs, we Trekkies will get to see a bit more of the Star Trek we know and love.
Lurking in the shadows of what we’ll call Off-Hollywood, you know, like Off-Broadway, is film director Tyler MacIntyre who is two great genre movies into his career. Tyler MacIntyre is the director behind two recent horror-comedies, Patchwork and TragedyGirls. The former is available on Netflix while the latter is available on BluRay. Monkeys Fighting Robots caught up with Tyler to talk about making movies, horror-comedy, and Back to the Future.
“Once Apple made things like iMovie, and
everything shifted digital it all became easier.”
It all began for Tyler as a child, “I started making movies when I was pretty you. I was in middle school. It started off because my dad was a professor and so I had access to a VHS camera. I started playing around with that.” More chances to make videos arose “I started using it [the camera] for school projects and stuff like that. Made video presentations.”
Tyler’s desire to make movies only grew stronger “As I got older, I got more serious about it.” Technology changed the game too “Once Apple made things like iMovie, and everything shifted digital it all became easier.”
The young filmmaker, armed with a computer and camera would “… get an idea, go out and shoot a movie. Edit it. Show it to people. And that’s where you really start to learn, seeing people’s reactions.” During his college years, Tyler “… continued to make short films.”
All that leads to a wow moment for anyone
who knows anything about film.
Even with a passion for film, Tyler admits “I went to college for Psychology, but I ended up taking a lot of film classes.”
After grad school in Canada, filmmaking became the focus of Tyler’s life. “I ended going to the American Film Institute down in Los Angeles. That was where it really transitioned more to a professional endeavor. I learned much more about the industry.”
All that leads to a wow moment for anyone who knows anything about film. “I ended up working for Roger Corman …” At this point, I did audibly wow, “… yeah, I was kinda of the last lucky people get started under him. I edited a movie called The Racer.”
“Once you kind of check off certain boxes with a genre,
you can kind of do whatever you want.”
Tyler’s life in filmmaking continued “… doing more editing, cutting DVD features, television movies.” All the while, Tyler says, “I was writing my own scripts and continuing to make short films.”
All this experience brought Tyler into genre filmmaking which he loves “Once you kind of check off certain boxes with a genre, you can kind of do whatever you want.” During this time, Tyler made a “Frankenstein story” called Patchwork. The original short was only two minutes, but a feature was soon born “Chris I wrote that we were able to get the money together. Shot it in twelve days in Los Angeles with a bunch of our friends.”
Patchwork played festivals all over the world and “It directly lead us making TragedyGirls.” Tyler, along with Chris Lee, was brought in to do a rewrite of TragedyGirls. “We were able to make it our own. I got the opportunity to direct it. And it premiered at South by Southwest.”
“I’m a much better feature filmmaker than I am a short filmmaker.
“We have a very specific approach to genre. We tend to do a pretty hard subversion of certain tropes. They wanted that kind of vibe. The original [Tragedy Girls script] was more of a traditional slasher movie with a who-done-it vibe.”
With two feature films under his belt, what did Tyler learn from one movie to the next “I definitely took the lessons I learned from a logistical point of view. Even though I was under a different kind of pressure with TragedyGirls, I was able to manage it because of Patchwork.” And one thing is clear to Tyler now “I’m a much better feature filmmaker than I am a short filmmaker. Features allow for more course correction during the process.”
Tyler hasn’t considered working on a streaming project, say for Netflix, but Patchwork is on Netflix and Tyler says “It has been really good for us. It has a lot of eyeballs. I think Netflix is kind of the equivalent of Blockbuster Video.”
“… structure can set you free.”
Director Steven Soderberg’s next movie Unsane is shot on an iPhone 7. Indie darling Tangerine was shot on an iPhone 5s. So, what does Tyler think about this new trend towards shooting on smartphones? “I’ve heard about that. That’s pretty interesting. He’s always been forward thinking. He’s always trying out different things. It’s very exciting to me. It lets people get into making film and create.”
The topic of creating films turns the conversation on the rules of movie making, Tyler believes “… structure can set you free. Once you have some rules, you can play a game, and that’s what makes it fun.” For Tyler, without understanding rules “It’s a lot harder to get motivated.”
So, what’s next for Tyler? “We’re currently working on Nightlight … partnered with Sony … it’s about this monster-obsessed eight-year-old kid who witnesses a murder across the street and has to defend his home against invaders.”
As a fun, final question, we posed Tyler this question: If you could’ve made one movie, what would it be? “Back to the Future.”
Get your peepers on Patchwork via Netflix or Tragedy Girls on BluRay ASAP. You’ll laugh, you’ll cringe, and you’ll most definitely want to see what Tyler MacIntyre does in his next film.
Venom is set to take over the Marvel Universe in March to celebrate the character’s 30th anniversary, and Marvel plans to highlight 20 key moments in the symbiote’s history with 20 variant covers.
One of the covers is by Iron Fist artist Mike Perkins, a homage to Incredible Hulk vs. Venom #1 from 1994, written by Peter David, with art and cover by Jim Craig.
We talked with Perkins to get beyond the gloss and the cardstock to get into the head of the artist.
MFR: What was the inspiration for your cover?
PERKINS:I was actually asked to illustrate a direct homage to a previous Hulk issue – that’s inspiring enough, right?! I’m always excited when I can fit a cover into my schedule. It’s a nice breather. A change, being as good as a rest.
MFR: The Venom suit has taken many forms over the past 30 years, why did you choose the early 90s version?
PERKINS:That’s the one on the original cover. I think there’s a whole bunch of Venom variant covers planned across the line of Marvel comics for that month so there’ll be different iterations of the character showcased. Besides, how could you refuse that really extended jawline?
MFR: Back in the day, what was your first impression of Venom?
PERKINS:I thought it was an interesting concept – the black costume coming to life…having a mind of its own…taking on another host. I must confess to being surprised myself as to its longevity! I guess it really DID take on a life of its own! Visually it’s stunning and can lead to great creativity in the hands of the artist – there’s definitely an allure to that.
MFR: Why do you think Venom has remained so popular?
PERKINS:I think the changes and developments of the character have kept him distinct and interesting. He’s not a one-note villain…and can even be somewhat of a hero if being controlled by a heroic host.
What do you think of the Venom Variants, do you have a favorite? Comment below.
Here is a list of all 20 Venom Variants:
1. ALL-NEW WOLVERINE #33 by DUSTIN WEAVER
2. AMAZING SPIDER-MAN #798 by TERRY and RACHEL DODSON
3. AVENGERS #687 by JAMAL CAMPBELL
4. BLACK PANTHER #172 by GREG HORN
5. CAPTAIN AMERICA #700 by KALMAN ANDRASOFSZKY
6. DAREDEVIL #601 by RAMON PEREZ
7. DOCTOR STRANGE #388 by CHRIS STEVENS
8. INFINITY COUNTDOWN #2 by RON LIM
9. INVINCIBLE IRON MAN #599 by AKCHO
10. MARVEL 2-IN-ONE #5 by DAVE JOHNSON
11. MIGHTY THOR #706 by MARK BAGLEY
12. NEW MUTANTS #2 by BENGAL
13. OLD MAN LOGAN #38 by GREG SMALLWOOD
14. PETER PARKER: THE SPECTACULAR SPIDER-MAN #303 by ROB LIEFELD
15. THANOS #18 by MIKE PERKINS
16. VENOM #164 by JOHN TYLER CHRISTOPHER
17. WEAPON H #2 by MIKE MAYHEW
18. X-MEN: BLUE #25 by FRANCESCO FRANCAVILLA
19. X-MEN: GOLD #25 by TODD NAUCK
20. X-MEN: RED #3 by INHYUK LEE
Mike Perkins is an illustrator for Marvel Comics having worked on Captain America, Thor, and The X-Men. After wrapping up the 31 issues adaptation of Stephen King’s The Stand he transitioned into illustrating Astonishing X-Men and has now re-launched Deathlok, Carnage and Iron Fist. He has been nominated numerous times for Eisner and Harvey Awards and, as well as winning the Eagle Award, counts being on the New York Times Bestseller list and being exhibited in Munich, London, and Paris amongst his career achievements. Check out his website mikeperkinsart.com
Marvel Studios waited till the third film to give you the best version of Thor, and since the first screening, we’ve all been waiting for the outtakes reel. Thor: Ragnarok hits the home theater Digitally in HD and 4K Ultra HD™, and Movies Anywhere, on Feb. 20 and on 4K Ultra HD™, Blu-ray™, DVD and On-Demand on March 6. Check out the bonus features below:
Blu-ray:
Director’s Introduction
Deleted/Extended Scenes – Deleted Scenes: The Sorcerer Supreme, Skurge Finds Heimdall & Hulk Chases Thor Through Sakaar and Extended Scenes: Thor Meets the Grandmaster, Stupid Avenger vs. Tiny Avenger & Grandmaster and Topaz
Gag Reel – Watch a collection of goofs, gaffes and pratfalls starring the cast
Exclusive Short/Team Darryl – Fresh off being unseated as the ruler of Sakaar, the Grandmaster makes his way to Earth to start a new life. It’s been over a year since Thor left Australia and Darryl has been struggling to pay his rent. Now Darryl needs a new roommate to help make the monthly payments. Unfortunately for Darryl, the Grandmaster was the only one who answered Darryl’s “Roommate Needed” ad, and with no viable options, the Grandmaster moves in.
Marvel Studios: The First Ten Years – The Evolution of Heroes – Marvel’s universe is vast and transcends both time and space. We’ll examine the Cinematic Universe as a whole and revisit each of our heroes’ current location and their place in the current MCU timeline, as it all leads up to the one culminating event: “Avengers: Infinity War.”
Getting in Touch with Your Inner Thor – “Thor: Ragnarok” director Taika Waititi has brought his unique sensibility and sense of humor to the film in a great many ways, but it is the evolution of Thor’s own sense of humor, which stands out the most in the new film. This piece explores the impact Chris Hemsworth has made on the development of his widely-loved character and celebrates the mighty cast and crew who reveal the fun and hard work that went into assembling Thor’s eccentric counterparts.
Unstoppable Women: Hela & Valkyrie – This piece explores the strong female characters in “Thor: Ragnarok,” their importance in the MCU, their incredible casting, and their epic comic origins.
Finding Korg – A tongue-in-cheek interview with Taika on casting Korg. He describes the difficult search for just the right evolution of the character design, and the nuances of this instantly classic character in the MCU. This conversation will also delve into all the extraordinary visual effects that brought Korg, Sakaar and the worlds of “Thor: Ragnarok” to life.
Sakaar: On the Edge of the Known and Unknown – Sakaar is the collection point for all lost and unloved things. This documentary will answer all known and unknown questions while also exploring the hard work and creativity that went into creating the look and feel of Sakaar. From design inspired by Jack Kirby’s classic artwork to the dedication of the visual development team to the awe-inspiring physical and digital production, you will see this distant world come alive.
Journey into Mystery – A deep dive story piece with the writers, director and producer Kevin Feige about the inspirations for “Thor: Ragnarok” within the comics. Most notably, the contest of champions limited series where the Grandmaster pitted our favorite heroes against one another as he does in the film. This piece also further explores Thor’s comic book origins and classic arcs through interviews with some of the most important comic creators, such as Walt Simonson and Jack Kirby.
8bit Scenes – Final Bridge Battle + Sakaar Spaceship Battle. Dive into these climactic sequences presented in retro video-game format.
Directors Commentary
Digital Exclusives:
Evolution of Thor and Hulk’s Bromance – We’ll examine this Super Hero friendship, which has spanned through several Marvel films. From their original Helicarrier fight match to the now iconic Hulk punch from Avengers 1, see how Marvel’s most powerful Super Heroes become the most extraordinary Super Hero buddies.
Additional Deleted Scenes – Travel to Asgard & Race To The Wormhole
Where do you rank Thor: Ragnarok among the greatest comic book films of all-time? Comment below.
Game of Thrones is one of the most popular TV shows on the planet right now. In fact, it’s possibly the most popular show, and fans simply can’t get enough of the hit American fantasy drama due to the many memorable scenes. The show has been running now for close to 7 years, and in that time, there have been seven seasons produced. They’re currently filming the last ever series, and it’s set to be the biggest one yet.
With Game of Thrones being so popular with viewers, it’s expanded its horizons further than the TV screens and made impacts in other areas too. There’s been merchandise, but one area where Game of Thrones has really enjoyed success is the games industry. People have read about the characters and the plot-lines, they have seen them on television, but games allow audiences to actually experience Game of Thrones with a bit more of a hands-on approach.
First of all, there have been board games and these have been very well received. They allow players to take control of the houses of Westeros, playing with the original characters. There’s also been an updated version to the official board game that takes past events into consideration giving players an even more authentic experience.
As you’d expect there have been quite a few video and mobile games released too, with each one of them proving huge hits with fans and neutral gamers alike. The latest Game of Thrones game to hit the market is Game of Thrones: Conquest and this was released to both iOS and Android-based smartphones and tablets. There are also two games, Game of Thrones: Seven Kingdoms and Game of Thrones: Season Two, still yet to be released, with the latter likely to be available across all platforms.
Another area of gaming where Game of Thrones has enjoyed a lot of success is in the online casino world. Industry leaders Microgaming are behind the extremely popular Game of Thrones slot game that has 243 different ways for players to win. The game is played across five reels, with three rows and it sees players travel across both Westeros and Essos. There are some superb bonus features too which take the excitement levels up another notch, especially as there’s always a good chance that a player could walk away after winning big.
Another great aspect about Game of Thrones games is that during the break between it airing on TV after you’ve binged watched it again and again, you can still enjoy GOT in a more authentic way. Also, with the upcoming season being the very last one ever made, people will still want more Game of Thrones. The games allow that to be a reality.
We could even see further games released even after the TV show itself stops airing, with further titles hitting PC, console, mobile and online casinos. It would help the Game of Thrones name live on, and that would certainly please both GOT fans and gamers alike going forward.
Not really, but that is what the villain of this arc thinks. Vanessa Kapatelis was a young girl who ended up crippled after getting into a crossfire between Wonder Woman and a villain. As she recovered, Diana visited her every day until a surgery involving Nanites popped up. Vanessa was soon able to walk again, but Wonder Woman stopped visiting. Feeling betrayed, Vanessa used the Nanites from her surgery to become the villainess, Silver Swan. Diana goes in with her brother, Jason, to confront the former friend, but they all end up in a stalemate, falling from the sky wounded. Will Wonder Woman and Jason defeat this ghost from the past?
**Some Spoilers Below**
Story:
After their fall, Diana and Jason pick themselves up and get to work trying to figure out where Silver Swan went. They are able to piece together that she would first go to the hospital where she was treated. Wonder Woman is informed by the staff that the Silver Swan had to use her Nanite-ridden blood to purge all files on her origin. With no other leads, the children of Zeus head home only to find the villain waiting there for their final battle.
If you can’t tell by the shortness of the paragraph above, the main plot of the story wraps up quickly and unceremoniously. Most of the issue feels more like a set-up for future storylines than a conclusion to this one. We get scenes of Darkseid’s forces fighting Steve Trevor, the return of Dr. Psycho, and Jason getting kidnapped by a dark force. This wouldn’t be so bad if they weren’t jammed in at random.
If they were all at the end of the issue, it would be a nice haunting sign of things to come. Instead, two parts are forced into the middle of the Silver Swan fights. The battle against Darkseid doesn’t even get a conclusion! It has a two-page spread, then it’s never mentioned again. If one of these plots were removed, there would have been more time to have an emotionally impactful finale. This issue could have had all of this if it was stacked properly. Since it’s not, the issue is just a mess.
Art:
The art is still the selling point of this story arc. Emanuela Lupacchino and Carmen Carnero work together on the pencils and it looks amazing. Every page pulls you into this eye-catching world and doesn’t let you go. This is also in part of Romulo Fajardo jr.’s colors, that has the characters look colorful yet realistic. The team created art that could be breathtakingly beautiful and horrifyingly dark in the matter of a single page. It has such range and skill behind it, it’s a shame that it wasn’t paired with a better story.
Conclusion:
It’s sad to see a story with such a great opening fall so hard. While it’s beautiful to look at, most of the emotional connection of the book has faded away. Any of the pages that hinted at future stories could have easily been removed to make room for the emotional connection this story so desperately needed. The only positive I can really point out is the fantastic art, but even that isn’t enough to save the issue. This storyline flew so high at the start, but sadly swan dived before the climax even began.
Port Of Earth #4 came out this week from Image/Top Cow. The series is still figuring itself out, but providing top-notch sci-fi conversation and concepts along the way.
***SPOILERS LIE AHEAD***
The horrific side of Earth’s deal with the Consortium is explored. There have been incidents in the past where aliens have found themselves on the outside of the port, and the results were gruesome. The government takes a particularly shady approach when the shit hits the fan. These interview clips have slowly and effectively shed more light on why the people of Earth are largely against the port.
We find out later that the ESA may actually be expanding the operation and adding a second port. The ESA is losing the public’s trust and grasp on the deteriorating situation with the Consortium. Writer Zack Kaplan plays at government leaks and shady dealings well. Today’s political landscape surely plays a role in why the story is so easy to get behind.
It seems like we’re trending towards the government losing control of its people as the situation continues to get worse. Perhaps what Kaplan will really give us is a fantasy world where the people are able to hold their leaders accountable. There are a couple of different directions this story could go in and they’re all intriguing.
Our two main characters are still rather bland. Everything about this world in concept and exploration has been stellar. The only thing missing is compelling characters at the center. When Rice loses his love interest, Emily, there’s little emotion felt in the pages and therefore the reader as well.
If Kaplan and company can inject some life into the cast, this series could reach a whole new level. The plot, this world being built, and the politics are laid out so well and full of detail. The only thing holding Port Of Earth back from being truly great is this lack of character.
The underwater sequence is a bit rough on the art side. It’s tough to tell what’s going on, or that we’re underwater in the first place outside of a few air bubbles. Port Of Earth utilizes a lot of gray and white in it’s art style. It gives the book an interesting visual appeal but doesn’t do it any favors underwater apparently.
Andrea Mutti and Vladimir Popov are a fine art team, even with this issue’s script limiting them to only a few locations. The more aliens and landscapes we get to see, the better. The page of horror scenes was fantastic.
There’s still plenty to explore and discover with the series, Port Of Earth is clearly still just scratching the surface. It may not be perfect, but there’s plenty to grab onto.
Just as Tony Stark (aka Iron Man) began a now 10-year reign of superhero movies in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, the billionaire hero will now be the first with his very own augmented reality toy, thanks to Hasbro.
It is still fairly new, but augmented reality will make huge strides in 2018, especially in the toy and gaming industries.
With that, Hasbro has unveiled its brand new Hero Vision Iron Man AR Experience. The toy comes with a helmet, accessories and is compatible with most smartphones. The kicker, it will only set you back $50, compared to Lenovo’s Star Wars AR Experience, which retails for $200.
This essentially puts kids (and most adults) into the driver seat as Tony Stark and launches you into superhero status. The process is quite simple as your phone slides into the headset and opens up a world of translucent images as it uses the camera to visualize the room. With an accessory that fits to your hand, you are given the ability to see your hand as one of Iron Man’s gauntlets, which is used to fight back against foes and collect ‘Infinity Gems’. Each gem will have special abilities that will allow you to mix and match your preferred levels and experiences.
There only exists one game mode at the moment. No news yet as to whether there will be updates to introduce new levels or characters, but you are tasked with protecting three towers against Thanos’ legion. The baddies come in waves, so the fighting is consistent, but it is definitely one of attrition. Your stint is up if the towers collapse.
Will Hasbro release other heroes in a possible ongoing series of ‘Hero Vision’ masks? How the Iron Man version sells will determine whether we see it, but we’d love to see a Black Panther or Spider-Man versions (hint-hint).
