Interview: Corey Fryia and Doctor Crowe

September 19, 2017

We’re in a golden age of comics right now, and in an age of geek none of us could have ever imagined, but with the good comes the bad. As our geek news sites become more corporate, they tend to focus less on comics and in some cases less on independent creators. My goal is to never shy away from giving a soapbox to those starting out, the independent, the unsung and the creators trying to carve a niche for themselves.

Today I am interviewing writer Corey Fryia about his comic book miniseries Doctor Crowe (created with artist Matt Horak) from publisher 215 Ink. Doctor Crowe is a supernatural action/adventure comic book starring Dr. Crowe, an infamous, adventuring scientist; expert on the occult and an all-around pulp hero who uses advanced technologies to battle gruesome, supernatural terrors across the globe.

Each adventure pits Dr. Crowe and his allies against an otherworldly threat that must be eliminated at all costs!

And that pretty much sealed the deal for me. Because once you say supernatural action/adventure, I’m there. Especially when you mention the words pulp and hero in the same sentence. It’s like catnip to me.

As I stated before Doctor Crowe is a mini-series. Four issues. And issue #4 is out Oct. 11th. I’ve read the first issue and really dug it and believe it’s a comic you should all be checking out.

But don’t take my word for it. Get to know Corey through this interview and the impressive images and links that will be placed throughout this article.

Marco: First off, I want to thank you for letting me interview you and for letting me read the first issue. I’m going to start us off with some introduction questions designed to let the readers get to know you.

So, tell us what made you fall in love with comics? And is Doctor Crowe your first published comic or have there been others? And if so give us a bit of history on those.

Corey: When I was young I always dreamt of becoming an artist. I would draw everything and anything under the sun, but my favorite stuff to draw became comic books, Star Wars and classic 90’s superhero cartoons like X-Men, Spider-Man, and Batman the Animated Series. The first comic book I ever read was New Mutants #87 aka the first appearance of Cable! I picked it from a stack of bargain bin comics and started redrawing what I saw on the page. My love affair with comics started there, and it’s only grown ever since.

Doctor Crowe is my first published mini-series, but I’ve had some work published in various anthologies, and I’ve worked a co-editor on four anthologies for Stache Publishing’s Out of the Blue series.

Marco: Now let’s talk crew. Because you didn’t create this comic in a vacuum. Matt Horak is the co-creator and the artist on the third story in the first issue. And you also have fantastic lettering by one of the best in the biz Taylor Esposito. There’s also additional art for stories 1 and two by Tony Gregori and Felipe Cunha and colors by Joshua Jensen, Jasen Smith, Doug Garback and Mark Dale.

How did this ragtag group of people come together? And why did you choose an anthology format for each issue of Doctor Crowe and tell us about some inspiration and how you and Matt started the journey on creating and getting this book out there.

Corey: I actually met Matt through Twitter back in 2015. I tweeted out an open call for an artist who would be willing to collaborate with me on a new idea that I had for this crazy supernatural/adventure comic (which later became Doctor Crowe), and I was extremely fortunate that Matt answered my tweet. Together we developed his look and started plotting these long-form stories that we were unfortunately never able to tell. However, we did start working together on Wretched, which is the story in Doctor Crowe #1 where Dr. Crowe tries to cure a plague-ridden town and ends up squaring off with a disease-ridden Werewolf. This story is only six pages long, but it was the first Doctor Crowe adventure ever produced.

When it came time to work on more Doctor Crowe stuff, Matt was knee deep in his work on The Covenant with Rob Liefeld for Image Comics. So I needed to get creative and that forced me to take Doctor Crowe in a different direction – a serial anthology of random short Doctor Crowe adventures, similar to what Matt and I had done with Wretched.

I know that everybody says this, but in this case, it is absolutely true — I truly couldn’t have asked for a better team to work with. Tony Gregori, Bruno Letizia, Dann Franco, Karim Whalen and Felipe Cunha each bring their own unique talent and spin to the character. Colorists like Doug Garbark, Sean Burres, and Josh Jensen truly complemented those guys’ lines in a way I didn’t think possible, and of course, Taylor Esposito is a lettering wizard. I can’t stress that enough. Taylor’s letters deserve a heaping load of credit. He’s truly amazing at what he does.

Marco: What are some of the (comic and novel) inspirations for Doctor Crowe? And who are the writers, artists and comic series that inspire you today? I see the obvious pulp inspirations but is there something people wouldn’t expect that inspired your work and the character of Doctor Crowe?

Corey: I think an obvious source of inspiration that many readers/reviewers like to point out is Hellboy, but to be honest, when it comes to the Mignolaverse Doctor Crowe draws more inspiration from Baltimore than Hellboy. Another source of comic book inspiration comes in the form of the Sixth Gun by Cullen Bunn and Brian Hurt. It’s such a fun series that blends two of my favorite things to write and consume – supernatural stories and spaghetti westerns. The Sixth Gun is actually where I got the inspiration for Nora’s fearless cowboy style character and attitude. She’s a direct homage to The Sixth Gun and my love for that series.

As far as fellow creators that inspire me today (and I’m sure I’ll forget somebody!) Jeff Lemire is a huge influence. I adore his storytelling. Chris Samnee is another big one. That guy can do no wrong. And allow me to throw an indie creator into the mix as well – Fabian Rangel Jr. Fabian creators some of the most fun stories out there. I’ve read everything the guy has ever written, and they’re all enjoyable. He truly doesn’t get enough credit in our community. Plus he’s just a super nice dude!

Marco: Being an independent creator in this business and the struggles and triumphs that come with that what is it that you like best about the industry and what is there that you think we could improve on? Or that we’re not doing enough of.

Corey: This is a tough one. I will say one of the things that I enjoy best is collaborating with people all over the world. I’ve been fortunate enough to work with talented folks in Brazil, Australia, and Italy as well as all over the United States. Without the Internet, none of that would be possible as an indie creator with little to no budget! The same goes for readers from all over the globe. It’s incredibly cool when a reader from Germany or Ireland tweets you about how they picked up your book at their local comic shop and tells you how much they enjoy it. That’s always a pleasant surprise, and I can’t explain the feeling of accomplishment that comes with it. It’s truly crazy to think how far of a reach a small press book like Doctor Crowe can actually get. I never really thought that was at all possible.

The industry isn’t perfect. Especially when you’re an indie creator who’s trying to get your work out there, and you’re vying for some of the same readers as the top dogs. However, I will say that if I could change something in this industry, it would be publishers and editors becoming a bit more accessible. As an indie creator, it’s extremely difficult to get your work seen by and taken seriously by these folks (or at least that’s what it feels like.) And I’m not just saying this for my benefit, but the industry could benefit from giving some of the new blood more of a chance. For example: look at what Donny Cates is doing right now.

Suddenly the industry is embracing him with open arms after God County became such a big hit. He has a Marvel deal, and he’s going to be writing Doctor Strange. The crazy thing though is that Donny has ALWAYS been this talented. He’s even worked with Marvel in the past. I just think it’s silly that it took a hit Image book before people started to recognize the guy’s talent. In my honest opinion, guys like Donny should have been given a real chance a long time ago. So if the industry could make strides to improve that sort of nonsense than I truly believe both publishers and readers would benefit in the long run. Publishers can create new star creators by giving them a chance rather waiting for those creators to create their names for themselves.

Marco: And now we come to the end. But before we wrap this up I want to give you a moment to PIMP YOUR STUFF! That’s right Corey this your time to shine. Tell the readers with all the passion you have why they should check out your work and where they can purchase it and where they can follow you on social media.

Corey: Doctor Crowe #3 is coming to a comic shop near you on September 27th. Doctor Crowe #4, the final issue in the mini-series, is currently available for pre-order and the diamond code is AUG172085. So please preorder #4! It’s available Oct. 11th. I’d also like to exclusively reveal that I’m working on a Doctor Crowe crossover with a fellow indie creator and indie property that I’ll hopefully be able to talk more about in the near future, but it’s going to be a TON of fun. I promise you that!

And that’s the end of that. I want to thank Corey for letting me interview him, and I hope you all enjoyed reading it. Don’t forget to check out Doctor Crowe #3 on Sept. 27th. Also, don’t forget to stay up to date with all of Corey’s work by following him on Twitter and the Doctor Crowe Facebook page.

Monkeys Fighting Robots Youtube

Matthew Vaughn’s Superman Movie Would Be “Colorful” and “Feel-Good”

Aric Sweeny

September 18, 2017

Recently, Matthew Vaughn revealed that him and Warner Bros. have been in talks regarding the sequel to 2013’s Man of Steel. Collider spoke to Vaughn about the film again, and got the director to talk a bit about what his potential take on a Man of Steel 2 would look like.

“Weirdly if I did do Superman—and I made the mistake of telling someone yesterday I have spoken about it and then wallop (laughs). I think my main take would be, it’s really boring but make a Superman film. I just don’t feel a proper Superman—I think Donner did it to perfection for that time. Just doing the modern—I wanna do a modern version of the Donner [version]. Go back to the source material… For me Superman is color, feel-good, heroic. He’s a beacon of light in darkness. And that’s what I think Superman should be.”

If Vaughn ends up directing the film, it definitely sounds like he’ll be bringing the style that DC extended universe skeptics want. The main criticism with Zack Snyder’s take on Superman is the lack of positivity and hope; is Vaughn going to bring the hope, lightheartedness, and traditional Superman to the big screen?

Who do you think should direct Man of Steel 2? Comment below, let us know.

Monkeys Fighting Robots Youtube

The Nice and Accurate Photos from the ‘Good Omens’ Set

Michael Fromm

September 18, 2017

Some images have made their way online, courtesy of Neil Gaiman and team on the set of the upcoming Amazon series, Good Omens. Here is your first real look at David Tennant as the demon Crowley and Michael Sheen as the angel Aziraphale.

They are amazing. This is them in the opening scenes, 11 years ago, in St James's Park. David and Michael, demon & angel. #GoodOmens pic.twitter.com/ceK4XYY881

— Neil Gaiman (@neilhimself) September 18, 2017

And, of course, the great Neil Gaiman was on set to see his apocalyptic masterpiece come to life.

Me, with @terry_and_rob. They cannot start shooting Good Omens as we have stolen their clapperboard.

A post shared by Neil Gaiman (@neilhimself) on Sep 18, 2017 at 12:46am PDT

“People have fallen in love with an angel and a demon in a book by Terry Pratchett and me,” Gaiman said, regarding the start of production. “They have been excited and nervous to see how they would appear on screen – and I was probably the most nervous and excited of all. This is a first look. Michael Sheen is the best and finest of bookseller angels, David Tennant the coolest and most delightful of demons. Together they are one hell of a double act (or do I mean one made in Heaven?)”

Described as equal parts humor and horror, fantasy and drama, Good Omens takes place in 2018 when the Apocalypse is near and Final Judgment is set to descend upon humanity. The armies of Good and Evil are amassing, Atlantis is rising, and tempers are flaring. Everything appears to be going according to Divine Plan — except a somewhat fussy angel and a fast-living demon are not looking forward to the coming war, and someone seems to have misplaced the Antichrist.

Joining Tennant and Sheen are Jack Whitehall as Witchfinder Newt Pulsifer, Michael McKean as sergeant of The Witchfinder Army Mr. Shadwell, Miranda Richardson as Madame Tracy, a psychic medium, Adria Arjona as Anathema Device, descendant of Agnes Nutter, Ned Dennehy and Ariyon Bakare as Hastur and Ligur, Dukes of Hell, and Nina Sosanya as Sister Mary Loquacious.

Good Omens is scheduled to premiere sometime in 2019 on Amazon.

What do you think of the Good Omens leads in character? Let us know in the comments.

Monkeys Fighting Robots Youtube

Will Evil Morty Return in the ‘Rick and Morty’ Season Finale?

Michael Fromm

September 18, 2017

We waited a year and a half for the third season of Rick and Morty. And, just like that, the season finale is upon us. For most, this season has been the smartest, most complex, and darkest of the series thus far, which made it well worth the wait.

With just two episodes left this season, let’s take a minute to hypothesize about the finale – The Rickchurian Mortydate, which IMDB briefly describes – “Rick goes on a confrontation with the President.”

What in the infinite timelines could that possibly mean? First, let’s take a look at the title itself.

It’s clearly a play on The Manchurian Candidate, the 1962 Cold War thriller about the brainwashing of the son of a prominent political family, who becomes an unaware assassin in an international communist conspiracy.

Many titles to episodes of Rick and Morty have been a play on titles of films, tv series, and novels. While they may not be direct parodies of the titles Rick and Morty are playing off of, it may give us some clues as to what to expect in the episode.

The Rickshank Rickdemption, for example, a play on The Shawshank Redemption, is all about Rick’s escape from the Galactic Federation prison planet.

A Rickle in Time, a play on A Wrinkle in Time, shows Rick, Morty, and Summer accidentally splitting their reality into dozens of timelines, and having to put everything back in place.

And so on, and so forth.

So, if The Manchurian Candidate is all about a corrupt political leader, how could that possibly play into the plot of The Rickchurian Mortydate?

President Evil Morty.

For the uninitiated, in the recent episode, The Ricklantis Mixup, we see a number of story-lines involving Ricks and Mortys from alternate realities living in the Citadel of Ricks. One story is that of a Morty who is running for President of the Citadel against various Ricks. Through powerful speeches, and an assassination attempt, this Morty is elected the winner. The big twist – it’s Evil Morty who is running the Citadel now.

For the really uninitiated (seriously, go back and watch the series from the beginning), Evil Morty made his first appearance in season one episode, Close Rick-Counters of the Rick Kind, as an eyepatch-sporting Morty. In the episode, he was part of an Evil Rick and Morty team that was going around assassinating Ricks from other dimensions. At the end of the episode, the Rick SWAT team is about to arrest Evil Rick, only to discover that he was actually being remote controlled by someone else. The big reveal is that it was the Morty with an eyepatch – an evil Morty.

Evil Morty clearly has some massive, interdimensional chaotic plan up his sleeve, and is now in the best position to execute it. But what exactly are his plans with all the Ricks and all the Mortys from all the realities? More specifically, what is his deal with Rick from Earth C-137 (our Rick)?

“A cocky Morty can lead to some real problems,” Rick says to Morty in Close Rick-Counters of the Rick Kind. “It can be a real bad thing for everybody.”

What exactly happened to Evil Morty to make him so, well, evil?

One of the biggest theories circling the interwebs is that Evil Morty is actually the original Morty from of Earth C-137 (gasp)!

Could Rick be confronting his original Morty, and to what cost? How will the Morty we know and love come to terms with the fact that he might not be his Rick’s original Morty. Could this be the official breaking point for Morty — which in turn will make him go evil.

Is it all a fixed, circular timeline?

Is anybody else freaking out right now?

We have a couple of weeks to ponder it all. In the meantime, enjoy the penultimate episode of the season, The ABC’s of Beth.

What do you think Evil Morty’s ultimate plan is for Rick (and the multiverse) in the season finale? Share your thoughts in the comments.

Monkeys Fighting Robots Youtube

Here’s Alicia Vikander in The First ‘Tomb Raider’ Teaser, Trailer Tomorrow

Larry Taylor - Managing Editor

September 18, 2017

The marketing machine for the new Tomb Raider, starring Alicia Vikander, is ramping up. We now have a poster, a teaser to the trailer, and news that the trailer will be here tomorrow.

This glimpse at the trailer from the film’s official twitter page is… something.

The #TombRaider movie trailer drops tomorrow, in theaters March 2018. @tombraidermovie pic.twitter.com/EQBknf9Cla

— Tomb Raider (@tombraider) September 18, 2017

Yeah, that looks a little raw right now. The effects don’t look polished and the aesthetic is just a little weird. It looks like the video game in some spots, so there’s that.

Here is the poster to go along with this teaser teaser, which I thought was a Wonder Woman poster at first sight…

Her legend begins. #TombRaider, in theaters March 2018. pic.twitter.com/tsChGaHEb6

— Tomb Raider (@tombraider) September 18, 2017

Alicia Vikander is still a mystery. Is she a great young actress? After her Oscar win for The Danish Girl, Vikander has been in a staggering eight movies, and I challenge you to name a good one. She looks the part as Lara Croft, sure, but was this a good move for her?

Who knows. Tomb Raider cold turn out to be a brilliant adventure film and the beginning of a solid franchise. Director Roar Uthaug has some work to do cleaning up the rough edges.

Tomb Raider also stars Walton Goggins – which might just make the whole thing worth your time – Hannah John Kamen, Dominic West (okay, this is getting more interesting), and Daniel Wu. It opens March 16 next year.

Monkeys Fighting Robots Youtube

‘Castle of Cagliostro’ Is The Greatest/Worst Thing Ever

Anthony Wendel

Why is Castle of Cagliostro at the same time the greatest and worst thing ever? This review should begin with a clarification. The Castle of Cagliostro is incredible. It is the one anime over the years I have dedicated myself to buying no matter what form I find it in. At this point if I were to find a VHS or LaserDisc copy I would still buy them to add to my library.

So how can such a movie which is so entertaining have any downside? Time to do a little investigation.

Writing

For those who don’t know the Castle of Cagliostro was Director Hayao miyazaki’s first film. Before he went on to make all his other infamous films, Miyazaki started by doing a simple movie based on the anime and manga series, Lupin the 3rd. The result was one of the best Lupin stories ever. Toning down his usual horndog nature and making him into more of a Robin Hood figure Lupin sets out to discover the mystery behind the Goat Bills and ends up having to rescue a princess from a far-off castle who is about to be wed to an evil Madman.

What comes from this adventure is one of the most entertaining films ever made. The viewer doesn’t even have to be a fan of the Lupin the 3rd to enjoy this film (more on this later). The simply story of investigating after a robbery goes wrong reveals a deeper mystery and a lot of fun along the way.

Animation

This film is filled with breathtaking visuals. The imagery has aged well and still is as beautiful and full of detail as it was when it first came out. This is one of those movies you can watch again and again and still discover something you didn’t catch before. Whether it’s the way the water ripples on a pond or the use of color to illustrate the peaceful countryside. It’s the kind of intense attention to detail which would help Miyazaki to make his mark with Studio Ghibli.

Music

The film opens with a great song called “Fire Treasure.” It’s a melancholy song which sets up for the journey the characters are about to go on. From there the background songs help to change the tone as needed to make scenes feel tense at the right moment, energized during others, and enjoyable throughout the entire experience.

Conclusion

Unfortunately the fact is this movie is just too good. Too many fans prefer this version of Lupin as A gentleman thief over being a lecherous pervert just out to make a quick score. It has resulted in many preferring this version of the character more than the original. Series creator Monkey Punch has gone on record saying he is not a fan of this series of this movie because it’s not the Lupin the 3rd he envisioned. Maybe there are some episodes or movies which attempt to capture the same magic of this film but unfortunately they don’t succeed. Still, this shouldn’t deter anyone from enjoying the Castle of Cagliostro. Though this is the only time we see Lupin the 3rd in this light, it’s the kind of standout adventure which everyone needs to experience at least once in their lifetime as it leaves a lasting performance.

Castle of Cagliostro was presented in theaters by Fathom Events. An Encore Presentation will be shown on September 19th.

Monkeys Fighting Robots Youtube

‘Rick And Morty’ Season 3 Episode 8 Recap and Review: Morty’s Mind Blowers

Michael Fromm

September 18, 2017

The latest episode, Morty’s Mind Blowers, is a somewhat simpler concept than what we’ve seen this season thus far. But, as per usual, even a “simpler” episode of Rick and Morty is pure genius.

It’s difficult to top last week’s episode of Rick and Morty, The Ricklantis Mix-up, which truly showed off the complexity of the series’ multiverse, and of possible dark things to come.

So, here’s a rundown of what happened in the latest episode.

And yes, there are spoilers, so come back after you’ve watched the episode. Okay?

AND AWAY WE GO!

This episode is a version of Interdimensional Cable taken to a new level. In Morty’s Mind Blowers, the show opens with Rick and Morty in a staircase maze, like something out of Labyrinth or an M.C. Escher painting. The two are being chased by an all-too-familiar looking gothic personification of dreams, Morty stares into the eyes of the Truth Tortoise, giving him the knowledge of, well, everything.

Quick cut back to the Smith residents, and Morty cannot take knowing everything anymore. He begs Rick to erase the memories from his mind.

Rick, naturally, takes him to a laboratory which is the archive of all of their experiences that Morty asked him to remove from his life. Rick, naturally, decides to show these to him instead of a nice afternoon of Interdimensional Cable.

The first memory, which Rick proudly calls “Moonspiracy,” is when Morty sees a man on the moon while looking through a telescope. No one in his family believes that he saw a threatening “regular man” up there. Turns out the man is Morty’s new guidance counselor with unknown motives. Morty believes he is up to something, and tells Principal Vagina (no relation). The principal confronts Mr. Lunas, eventually punching him in the face and firing him, believing that moon man is code for pedophile. Morty finds out that Mr. Lunas killed himself, which Morty regrets.

The next memory has Rick and Morty trapped in a massive prison with a massive alien who collects living specimens. Morty claims he is willing to do just about anything to escape. Rick abides, and sends a signal to scientists listening for extraterrestrial activity. They are ecstatic to receive Rick’s message, with specific directions and coordinates. When the scientists arrive, Rick convinces them that he and Morty are ethereal beings, taking human form, and are in need of their transport ship. He thanks them for finding them and saving them, offering their clothes as gratitude. Rick and Morty hop in the scientists’ ship and teleport away, switching places with them in the cell.

The next memory is entitled, “the whole enchilada.” An alien overlord drops by while Rick and Morty are grocery shopping, wanting Rick to kill him so he can go to his heaven, but not before some lunch. After Rick leaves for just a moment, Morty and the alien discuss the afterlife, and the possibility of there might not being one. The alien is baffled by this, never considering the fact that his beliefs might just be run-of-the-mill blind faith. The overlord now does not want to die, fleeing the restaurant in a panic, only to get hit by a car and taken to a horrible hell. At least there is something after death, right??

Poop Aids_Copy. Beth is forced into a Sophie’s choice scenario, but chooses Summer without giving much thought. Thankfully, Rick portals in to save everyone.

Next Morty is possessed by some kind of demonic worm, which slowly and excruciatingly takes its time to be purged from him.

NEXT, Rick and Morty on a serene planet, but need to find shelter before nightfall, fearing they will freeze to death. Rick has no choice but to slice open their beloved Tauntaun-type beast, only to discover it was the wrong planet.

An escape from a gun fight on a spaceship leads to a grammatical discussion, which Morty, surprisingly to both, wins. Rick won’t have any of that, and erases Morty’s memory of the conversation.

But then, the episode takes a turn. The two fight over Rick taking advantage of the mind eraser, and both get blasted by the gun, forgetting their entire identities. Rick, the genius that he is, is able to decipher that the vials that fill the room contain memories, and use one on Morty to help them figure out who they really are.

More mind blowers are shown, including:

Morty entranced by standing on Rick’s truly leveled floor.

A simple flick of the wrong light switch causes Rick and Morty to go to some stasis chamber on another planet, where Morty accidentally turned off the life support.

Morty uses a Dr. Dolittle device, where he can understand what the animals on his street are saying. The squirrels figure out Morty’s secret, causing them to seek and destroy the one who can understand them. Rick is able to temporarily paralyze the squirrels, verbally chastising Morty for causing the squirrel incursion. They are forced to move to another reality.

Morty keeps injecting himself with these painful memories that he initially wanted to forget, which makes him a tad suicidal. Rick, also unhappy, joins in on the now group suicide.

And BIG TWIST, this has already happened before, a few times, as Summer pointed out. She has the instructions to how to given them back their proper memories, and forgetting the entire mind blowers scenario ever happened.

Never take Summer for granted.

Final thoughts:

While not as complex and thought-provoking as the previous episode, Morty’s Mind Blowers is a fun trip down (forgotten) memory lane. It takes the Interdimensional Cable format and doesn’t spoil it the third time around. Instead, it makes for a fresh, clever, and utterly hilarious episode of Rick and Morty.

What did you think of Morty’s Mind Blowers? Share your thoughts in the comments!

Monkeys Fighting Robots Youtube

The Golden Age Sandman Is Coming To The Arrowverse

Manuel Gomez

September 16, 2017

As the fall TV season is almost upon us news on all of our favorite upcoming shows has begun to trickle out. Marc Guggenheim, executive producer on the CW’s Arrowverse (Arrow, The Flash, Legends of Tomorrow and Supergirl), has always been a fan of teasing fans and he recently did again with the below Tweet.

Another Arrowverse Crossover tease. The Legends hour of the crossover officially begins prep today. pic.twitter.com/ymSV1jQtde

— Marc Guggenheim (@mguggenheim) September 15, 2017

That sure as hell looks like the mask worn by Wesley Dodds aka The Golden Age Sandman! Not to be confused with Neil Gaiman’s Sandman, Dodds was a more traditional pulp hero (ala The Shadow) who fought crime in a gas mask and used a sleeping gas shooting gun, his knowledge of chemistry and keen detective skills to battle gangsters and supervillains alike. He was also a member of the Justice Society Of America (who have already been featured in the Arrowverse). The character did have his own DC/Vertigo title, Sandman Mystery Theater, in the 90s. The 70-issue mature reader’s book, written by Matt Wagner and Steven T. Seagle, with art by Guy Davis, John Watkiss and more was told in a stylized film noir fashion and set in the 1930s.

What do you guys think of this exciting reveal? Is Dodds a good choice for the show(s)? And what other classic DC characters would you like to see join the Arrowverse? Comment and discuss below!

Monkeys Fighting Robots Youtube

The Best and Worst Films of The Summer of 2017

Roman Colombo

September 16, 2017

Time for some hardcore subjective list-making! This summer wasn’t exactly the best summer movie season in recent years, but there were still some damn good films. From the big superhero movies to the offbeat indie darlings, and those random Oscar movies that debuted ahead of the traditional award season, moviegoers could still find something worth watching. But for every good film, there’s a movie that makes us question if Hollywood is doomed to crash into blazing hellfire before we banish it to Limbo. Now, the best and the worst of this strange 2017 summer….

Close Calls

Planet Of The Apes — Why No Cookie, Roman?

Almost made the top 10:

War for the Planet of the Apes
Girls Trip

Barely spared from the bottom 10

Batman and Harley Quinn
Despicable Me 3

10. ‘Gunslingers and Bombmakers’

WORST – The Dark Tower

Apparently, this was based on the classic Stephen King novel, but any resemblance to the fan favorite series is hard to find, besides being called The Dark Tower. The audience for this movie about a gunslinger fighting a being “worse than the devil” seemed to be preteen boys. The movie was a mess of exposition and boring action, and a waste of good casting. This is one series we already need a reboot for. Thankfully, It gave us the Stephen King movie we deserved. (King Arthur movie 1 of 3)

BEST – Logan Lucky

In 2013, Soderbergh retired from directing, tired of the movie business. Thankfully, he returned for Logan Lucky, which is almost a farce on his own heist films, the Ocean’s trilogy. Ocean’s Eleven was sleek and polished. The characters all had style and wit. The masterminds in Logan Lucky are far removed from the tailored suits and wit that Danny Ocean and his crew exhibited. Instead, we get a misfit crew of mostly idiots who are more likely to blow themselves up than steal a million dollars—or even ten dollars. But the way Soderbergh tells this story makes it not just smarter than Ocean’s Eleven, but more emotional too. In Ocean’s Eleven, we want Danny Ocean to get away with the heist because he’s cool. In Logan Lucky, we cheer for Jimmy Logan (Channing Tatum) because we feel for him. Also, Joe Bang (Daniel Craig) is amazing.

9. ‘Bots and Blondes’

Worst – Transformers: The Last Knight

All things considered, this was one of the better entries in the Transformers franchise. And it was still a barely developed mess with mostly boring action. The first Transformers set up most of these characters, and it was fun. But Michael Bay doesn’t seem to understand that sequels can’t just be bigger, they need to delve deeper. Everything in Transformers 2-5 feels like deleted scenes that could have been in the first movie and not miss a cue. (King Arthur movie 2 of 3)

BEST – Atomic Blonde

Charlize Theron is the most badass woman in Hollywood. Between this and Mad Max: Fury Road, she’s earned that title. Atomic Blonde had the action style of John Wick with the neo-Noir of The Dark Knight and the Punk Rock vibes of Trainspotting all rolled into one brilliant experience. And with the small budget and decent success, we’ll hopefully get more movies with the Blonde.

8. ‘Enemies and Egos’

WORST – The Hitman’s Bodyguard

The most disappointing aspect of this movie isn’t that it was just a generic action comedy, it’s that the marketing was brilliant and then it turned out to be a generic action comedy. How did they have Samuel L. Jackson and Ryan Reynolds in an action comedy and they were both remarkably bland. Selma Hayek was the only one who seemed to care about making the movie what the marketing promised it to be, but she’s not in it enough to steal the movie and make it better.

BEST – Guardians of the Galaxy Vol 2

While Vol 1 surprised us with how good it was, Vol 2 is better. Vol 2 does exactly what Michael Bay couldn’t figure out how to do in four Transformers sequels—develops the characters WHILE giving us a fun show. Every character gets more depth here, and James Gunn doesn’t sacrifice poop jokes, cool music, or brilliant action to do it. It improves on the original AND has Kurt Russel as Ego. This is how you make a sequel.

7. ‘Carribeans and Comas’

WORST – Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Men Tell No Tales

Why. Why do they keep trying? Why was Jack Sparrow even in this movie, or hell, the last two movies, when he’s not even the main character anymore. Seriously, watch this and On Stranger Tides—Jack Sparrow is completely inconsequential to the plot. He’s just there. And he’s not doing the movie any favors. It’s like “Oh cool, Captain Barbosa is back! Oh damn it, why is Johnny Depp here?!” Barbosa, again, is the only part of the movie worth a damn. In one moment he saves it from being in the bottom 5 of the year. But it’s a spoiler, so if you do watch it, at least you’ll have that moment.

BEST – The Big Sick

This year’s quirky indie dramedy! It’s an incredible true story, and explores the dynamic culture differences between Pakistan and America in a way that doesn’t just educate American audiences, but makes them empathize as well. There won’t be a movie with this much heart coming out this year, and if there is, that might be too much. And Ray Romano isn’t insufferable in it! Who knew he had it in him.

6. ‘Goldie Hawns and Gold Records’

WORST – Snatched

Amy Schumer & Goldie Hawn get snatched — Over there is where your career used to be.

Poor Goldie Hawn. She was clearly having a fun time filming this, but the movie was just not that funny. Wait. Let’s back up. Joan Cusack owned this movie. A spinoff with her and Wanda Sykes would be great. But Amy Schumer just did not hold her own with Hawn, Sykes, and Cusak. Maybe a better director would have helped. The story could have worked.

BEST – Baby Driver

The opening scene of this movie alone would put Baby Driver in anyone’s Top Summer list (we’ll have to see about year). The mix of music and action is handled brilliantly, and Edgar Wright’s style is unmistakable. There might be a little style over substance, and it gets slightly formulaic towards the end, but 90% of the film is wonderfully original. And we’ll have “Bellbottoms” stuck in our heads for the rest of the year.

5. ‘Outer Space and Inner Spider’

WORST – Valerian and the City of a Thousand Planets

Imagine your celebrity crush said they wanted to go home with you. They give you a special look, whisper something sexy in your ear. You’re ready for the best experience of your life and eagerly get into bed with them. They lean in to kiss you and then straight up punch you in the genitals and laugh at you. That’s what watching Valerian feels like. It had all the signs of being a brilliant movie, but just punched us in the genitals instead.

BEST – Spider-Man: Homecoming

We finally got the Sider-Man movie we deserved. Tom Holland is the best Spider-Man, hands down. Michael Keaton delivered one of the best Marvel Villains in the entire cinematic universe. And Marvel didn’t insult us with explaining how Peter Parker became Spider-Man…again. And, much like we got better development for Tony Stark in Captain America: Civil War, we got the same here. Tony is becoming a more rounded character as a supporting role in Phase 3 than the three Iron Man and two Avengers movies in Phases 1 and 2.

4. ‘Mission Failure and Mission Accomplished’

WORST – The Mummy

Imagine if the Brendan Fraser Mummy had a child with Mission Impossible 2. If you picture an abomination that needs to be killed with fire, you have essentially seen The Mummy. Universal thought this would start a new shared Universe of monsters. Russell Crowe shows up as the dumbest version of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde we’ve ever seen, and it makes about as much sense as this movie existing in the first place. It’s almost like Tom Cruise so desperately wishes he was Iron Man that he took whatever shared universe was left.

BEST – Dunkirk

While Dunkirk might not be Christopher Nolan’s best film, his experimentation with time narratives created one of the most intense war movies since Saving Private Ryan. It’s a very British film, which for Americans means we can’t wait for subtitles. But there’s not much dialogue anyway, focusing more on the rescue than on needless speeches. We get to know each character by how they react rather than long monologues. Of all the movies on this list, this film will be studied the most.

3. ‘Immigrants and Natives’

WORST – Beatriz At Dinner

Lithgow just realized he’s in a “serious” movie.

Everyone has that friend who thinks they are much cleverer than they are, but the entire time you’re listening to them, you’re just like “sure, dude. Okay.” Beatriz At Dinner thinks it’s a smart commentary on wealthy conservatives oppressing working-class immigrants, but it’s not. It’s more like someone found an SNL skit and tried to make a serious movie out of it, and just to give it an extra Indie drama punch, gave it an ambiguous ending. But it’s not smart. There’s no nuance or subtlety, and the politics are about as complicated as a high school Freshman first learning about society.

BEST – Wind River

Taylor Sheridan Wind River — I’ll take that nomination now

The person who deserves the most credit here is Taylor Sheridan, the writer/director. Sheridan also wrote Sicario and Hell or High Water. This time he directs too, and he makes a near-perfect murder mystery. His Native American reservation drama strikes a chord with every scene. It’s a painful movie, and it’s impossible not to feel invested from the opening scene to the very end.

2. ‘Arthur and Affleck’

WORST – King Arthur: Legend of the Sword

Dark Tower had a descendant of King Arthur. In Transformers: The Last Knight, the heroes needed to find Arthur’s sword or something? Who cares? But we also got an actual King Arthur movie…and it sucked. It sucked hard. It’s like Michael Bay directed Lord of the Rings, but since it’s worse than a Michael Bay movie on the Wost-of part of this list, maybe that’s not fair. Guy Ritchie thought he could direct King Arthur the way Matthew Vaughn directed Layer Cake. It didn’t work. At all. But it wasn’t the worst movie of the year. Not even by a longshot.

BEST – A Ghost Story

So far, A Ghost Story is the most beautiful film of the year. It’s atmospheric, haunting, and lovely. Rooney Mara manages to make a scene where she’s eating pie feel like you’re having your heart ripped out. And Casey Affleck does his best acting under a bed sheet. It’s certainly going to be one of the best indie movies of the year. And to think, this is from the same director that brought us Pete’s Dragon. That’s range.

1. ‘Writer refuses to link these movies together’

WORST – Baywatch

The Rock Baywatch — I don’t know how to save this movie, guys

Very rarely is a movie so irredeemable that it’s hard to know where to begin to explain just how bad it is. Sure, not a single joke lands. Obviously, the plot is stupid. The acting is horrendous. Dwayne Johnson, who always looks like he’s just thrilled to be in a movie, looks like he’s getting a fistulotomy on his dick. And then there’s the weird fact that the only villains who die are the minority ones. Yeah, that’s not problematic at all, is it? And we live in a world where 21 Jump Street worked so well that they did it twice. Baywatch had no excuse to be this bad, but it was. It might be the worst film of the decade.

BEST – Wonder Woman

This shouldn’t be a surprise. Wonder Woman finally got her big screen debut, and it was everything we could have asked for and more. Gal Gadot brought Princess Diana to life with fury and grace. Wonder Woman is a game changer for the superhero movie industry but in a way that should be an embarrassment to both Marvel and DC. It proved a female superhero could make money. Really? They were willing to take risks on Green Lantern (which bombed) and Guardians of the Galaxy (which did not bomb, but still) and an R-rated Deadpool before making a movie of one of the greatest female icons ever. And it was a damn good movie. Wonder Woman rekindled fans’ faith in the DCU. Hopefully, she will anchor many future films.

What is your favorite film from the summer of 2017? Comment below.

Monkeys Fighting Robots Youtube

Ghosts of Box Office Past: Suspense, Thrills, Oscar Nods And The Rock Is A Daddy

Ruben Diaz

September 16, 2017

One-hundred-plus years of filmmaking provides a long, rich, and deep history to look back on. Retro reviews and analysis of old films are practically necessary full-time specialties. Month after month, films release, vying to make as much money and attention as possible. Some rise, some fall, but regardless of financial success, it’s never a sign of a lasting effect. A great example is the little-mentioned 2012 film released just eight years ago. 2012 made nearly 800 million dollars and effectively vanished off the face of the earth.

So, where does that leave past box office champs? Let’s take a look back ten, twenty, and thirty years ago at the biggest movies released in September.

1Fatal Attraction

Thirty years ago the movie landscape was radically different. Adults were the primary group to hit the cineplex and the movies reflected that. Fatal Attraction is a perfect example. The thriller featured Michael Douglas as Dan Gallagher, a married Manhattan lawyer who has a weekend fling with Alex Forrest played by Glenn Close. Though the two agree it’s just a fling, Alex cannot let it end and continues to pursue Dan.

As our own Larry Taylor puts it, Fatal Attraction gave birth to the “Yuppie Thriller.” Fatal Attraction was a rare mix of commercial and critical success, even receiving Oscar nominations among other awards and accolades.

2LA Confidential

It’s 1953, and the L.A. police force is brutal and corrupt. Along comes Sergeant Edmund “Ed” Exley who is seeking to live up to the legacy of his law enforcement father and plays by the rules. The other cops don’t like the new guy. Ed doesn’t help himself by taking a case regarding corrupt police officers. However, Ed doesn’t care; he wants to be a great cop. LA Confidential features a richly layered story with an old school feel and a lot of twists and turns that keep the momentum going.

Looking back on LA Confidential, the cast alone is something out of this world. Kevin Spacey, Guy Pearce, Russel Crowe, Danny DeVito, Kim Basinger and James Cromwell. A lot of acting power met with a tightly-written film directed with noir deft by Curtis Hanson. LA Confidential is a film that isn’t talked about often but exists in a very timeless state that works just as well today as then.

3The Game Plan

Umm, yeah, The Rock is a star quarterback who finds out he has a daughter. The Rock is always charming, and the film was a commercial success in regards to the return on investment. Otherwise, it’s hard to even remember this movie at all. It likely plays on some random channel here and there on a Saturday afternoon when no one is watching.

4In September 2017 we predict …

Normally we post this monthly piece during the first few days of the month. Unfortunately, delays and a massive hurricane pushed it back to today. So, our prediction is less that and more of pointing out the obvious. The new version of Stephen King’s IT made more than 100 million dollars in its opening weekend. The only thing that could even remotely contest It at this point is, well, nothing. Kingsman: The Golden Circle will make great money and Mother! Seems on pace to be an influential film. However, IT had the nostalgia backing, absolutely perfect trailers, and a box office opening that doesn’t usually happen this time of year.

1...805806807...1,689 Page 806 of 1,689