Hercules and Mary Marvel

Shazam! has finished filming and now the movie is in the visual effects stage, so hopefully there will be enough completed to show us some footage soon.  The film promises to finally have some lighter fare in contrast to the heavy goings-on that we have seen in the DCEU thus far, so I have hope that it will mark a turning point and strike a positive chord with audiences.

Cyclops and Swamp Thing

I was very glad to hear that a new Swamp Thing series will be a part of DC's new streaming service.  If they follow the Alan Moore run on the character and the effects are up to par, it could be very cool. The previous series featuring the muck-monster, both live action and animated, did not set a very high bar - so there's nowhere to go but up!

A big thank you to David Miller for giving me the suggestion to put Swamp Thing on Krakoa, a concept full of possibility!

C-3PO Vs. Brainiac

Reviews for Solo: A Star Wars Story are coming in and while the film seems to be not nearly as divisive as The Last Jedi, nobody seems overwhelmed by it either.  Donald Glover's Lando Calrissian gets the most praise, and the rest of the film is said to be okay, even if the stakes aren't very high.  I actually don't mind that it's a smaller story set in the Star Wars universe, not everything has to have galaxy threatening events to be entertaining.  I'll wait to see what general audiences feel once it is officially released before deciding whether this is worth a trip to the theater or just a rental.

Ms. Marvel and The Huntress

I have some Avengers: Infinity War speculation here, so beware if you haven't seen it....

OK, so the post credits scene featured Nick Fury sending a distress call to Captain Marvel, using a retro-looking phone.  Earlier we saw Doctor Strange telling Tony Stark that giving up the Time Stone was the only way that they could hope to defeat Thanos.  Some leaked images have shown Captain America in his costume from the first Avengers alongside of Ant-Man, who never met him until Civil War.  It seems as though there is going to be some timeline hopping and possibly restructuring in the next movie - I wouldn't be surprised to find out Strange had tampered with the stone before turning it over.  I thought this plot device would not be used until Kang was available as a character, but that seems like where we are headed - and it opens up all kinds of fun possibilities.

X-Men and The Flash

I am looking forward to the season finale of The Flash next week.  This season, they finally got away from the big bad being yet another speedster and went with The Thinker instead, and it has been pretty solid so far.  I do hope they find a way to resurrect Elongated Man, who was taken over by the villain a few episodes back, I was really enjoying him on the show.  The series might not be perfect, but it does a much better job of bringing The Flash to life than the Ezra Miller Justice League movie version did.

Cyborg and Brother Voodoo

One frustration that I had with Cyborg in Justice League stems from his final moment in the film.  In the epilogue montage, we see him morph his robotic body into something close to the comic book version - and it looks great!  The frustration is that we only see it for all of two seconds.  If they had that design, why did they go with the "crumpled up tin foil" look for the remainder of the movie, which did not work nearly as well?  Just one of a number of maddening choices that were made for the movie.

Justice Machine and Blue Beetle

DC has acquired characters from other comic companies over the years, but none seemed to integrate as well as the heroes from Charlton comics.  Maybe it was because most of the Charlton creators also worked for DC, or because of DC's willingness to go and include the characters in their own series and as members of team books right away.  Blue Beetle in particular seemed to fir right in - he seemed like he had always been a member of the DCU. and was finally where he belonged.

The Crimson Avenger and Dick Tracy

I liked The Crimson Avenger when I was a kid, but he didn't really stand out among the other non-powered Golden Age heroes for me.  That all changed when I read his appearance in a Whatever Happened To... tale in an issue of DC Comics Presents.  In just a few pages, we were treated to the tale of his final, self-sacrificing adventure.  It made a huge impact on me, and I have always made a point to check out his appearances since then.

The Haunted Tank and The Hulk

The Marvel cinematic Hulk has been undergoing some changes.  In Thor: Ragnarok, it was revealed that he remained in Hulk form for over 2 years, and then in Avengers: Infinity War (SPOILERS past this point...……), we see the opposite playing out, with Banner in on the action and The Hulk refusing to emerge after getting smacked down by Thanos.  Are the Russo Brothers leading towards a merged Hulk in the next Avengers movie, with all the strength and intelligence of both of his sides working together?

Doc Samson Vs. Harley Quinn in: "Psychiatric Breakdown!"

DC seems determined to bring Harley Quinn back to the big screen, they just don't seem to be able to decide just how to do that.  There have been films floated for Harley and The Joker, Gotham City Sirens, Batgirl, Suicide Squad 2 and Batman - any of which could showcase  Dr. Harleen Quinzel's breed of insanity.  A Batgirl film seems to be getting the most steam these days, but DC changes their plans from week to week, so who knows where Margot Robbie will put on the face paint again?

 These two shrinks first crossed paths in STF #1216...

Star Wars and The Justice League of America

Concluding our 4-part tale, we see that The League finally gets to meet the main players in the Rebellion.  I was the perfect age when the original Star Wars was first released - 8 years old.  I remember our parents packing all 7 of us kids plus three of our cousins into the van and going to see it while we were on vacation.  I hadn't even seen an advertisement for it so I had no idea what I was in for.  The most special effects I had seen on the big screen up to that point was Freaky Friday, so my little head just about exploded with excitement from what I was watching on screen.  in those pre-video days, it would be many years before I saw the movie again, but it was already embedded into my subconscious, I was an instant fan of the world George Lucas created.

Darth Vader Vs. The Justice League of America

Presenting another two-part adventure - well, actually, this is part three of a four-part adventure since it picks off of events that began in STF #1103 and then continued into STF #1104... so stay tuned tomorrow for the exciting conclusion!

The more I watch Justice League, the more I am disappointed by the decisions made on that film.  For a movie that cost so much money, it looks really cheap - the entire third act appears as if it takes place on a big empty soundstage, with CGI elements added in later, making it look a lot more like a video game than a movie... and who are are the League saving anyway?  As far as I can tell, there was only a single family of civilians. I kind of wish there was a shot at the end of Avengers: Infinity War with the League fading away, so we can just start over with the DCEU (OK they can keep the actors for WW and Superman maybe).

Superman and Mandrake the Magician

Given Superman's vulnerability to magic, I am surprised that he wasn't paired up with DC's mystical characters more often.  He didn't have much interaction with Doctor Fate or The Spectre, despite their Justice Society of America connection.  Zatara was also introduced in Action Comics #1, and yet I don't recall if they ever shared an adventure together... which would have been cool to see.

Green Arrow and The Beast in "Get a Grip!"

It will still probably be some time before we hear any announcements concerning the movie plans for characters that Marvel can now use due to the Disney/Fox merger, but there are so many cool possibilities.  Many people are looking forward to a new, more comics accurate version of the X-Men, myself included - but my main hope is for the movies to imitate the comics and have a hairy Hank McCoy become a full fledged Avenger himself.  He was on the team during my favorite era of that group and I would love to see that time represented.

Green Arrow and The Beast first shared an adventure together back in STF #525...

Catwoman and Power Man & Iron Fist (Part Two)

Continued from yesterday's cover, we se nothing is ever easy where The Serpent Crown is concerned...

So, it looks like DC is really about to go through with a marriage between Batman and Catwoman. A big change, to be sure, but strong writing made it work with Superman so maybe it can work here as well.  Selina Kyle always seemed like Bruce Wayne's greatest love interest and it will be interesting where things go from here.

Catwoman and Power Man & Iron Fist (Part One)

It will be interesting to see how the Netflix' Marvel shows address the events of Avengers: Infinity War.  Thus far, the connections to the larger MCU have been relatively minor - a comment here and there, or a newspaper headline in the background.  But given the major ramifications of the final moments of Infinity War, I don't see how the Netflix characters cannot have a reaction.  My guess is that they will avoid the issue by placing the next seasons of each show before the events of Thanos' attack.

This is only Part One of a Two- Part tale, so make sure you return here tomorrow for the exciting conclusion!

Dynomutt and Robotman

DC has had some fun teaming their heroes up with the stars of Hanna-Barbera, so maybe we will see something close to this one day.  I understand that the Doom Patrol will be featured on DC's upcoming streaming  channel Titans show.  I hope they do a live action Cliff Steele justice.  So far the I have seen costumes that look great (Robin, Hawk and Dove), and some that I am not impressed with (Starfire, Raven, Beast Boy), so I'll keep my fingers crossed the DP is represented well.

Martian Manhunter and Firestar

It's been a nice treat to see Carl Lumbly as the father of J'onn J'onzz on Supergirl.  His voicing of the Martian Manhunter on Justice League and Justice League Unlimited was great and it's cool to see him working with the character again.  Plus, I have been a fan of his since his own 90's superhero show, M.A.N.T.I.S.

Blue Devil and Sasquatch

I remember when Alpha Flight first came out, John Byrne was on absolute fire.  He was at the top of his game and was also on his amazing Fantastic Four run at the same time.  It was a great time to be a comics fan, getting a double dose of Byrne goodness each month.  I was always sorry that he never returned to the Alpha Flight characters later on in his career.

Thor Vs. The Flash

This is another cover that was suggested by Comics Historian and Patron of this blog, Marc Tyler Nobleman - and a pairing that frankly I was surprised that I had not gotten to yet.  By the Way, if you haven't checked out Nobleman's documentary, Batman and Bill, treat your self and do so.  It's playing on Hulu and tells the story of how Nobleman spearheaded the effort to give Bill Finger the proper credit for his role in creating Batman.  Even if you think you know the story, there is so much more to it, and it made for a very enjoyable watch.