The Huntress and Man-Thing

I really liked the pre-Crisis version of The Huntress due to the fact that she wasn't just an alternate-Earth version of Batgirl, she was the daughter of Batman and Catwoman.  That was a very cool lineage ripe with possibilities, and it was a shame to lose it when she was reimagined as Helena Bertinelli.  It seems as though in the New 52 that Huntress is indeed Helena Wayne again, and only adopted the Bertinelli identity.  I'm not sure if her mother is still Catwoman in the new continuity, but this is a step in the right direction.

Wonder Woman Vs. Doctor Doom

I wonder if the executives at Warner Brothers are kicking themselves right now.  They had Joss Whedon working on a Wonder Woman film project for quite a while before they ultimately scrapped it. Whedon of course went on to The Avengers and the second highest grossing movie of all time, so maybe they should have given that Wonder Woman treatment of his a closer look.  Warner Brothers has again made a Wonder Woman film a priority, and it will be interesting to see which creative direction they go with it.

Jor-El and Odin

It will be interesting to see the new take on Jor-El in next summer's Man of Steel.  With the casting of Russell Crowe in the role, you know that it is not a throwaway part and there should be at least one or two meaty scenes featuring Superman's dad.  I look forward to Anthony Hopkins is returning with the rest of the cast in Thor: The Dark World, as he was one of the highlights of the first film for me.  Let's hope he gets to stay awake for the whole film this time!

Steel Vs. Iron Man

Marvel Studios has released a picture of a new suit of armor that Iron man will don in the next film in the franchise.  It looks fine but it's basically the armor we are used to by now with a new gold paint job.  I was really hoping that we would finally get to see the classic 70's-80's widow's peak-tank top-hip discs look that I use above.  Oh well, there's nothing that says he can't get two new suits in the film... and he has certainly fared better than Steel did when it comes to comic to screen armor transition!  The poor guy didn't even get a full face mask in the Shaq film... and they took his cape away!

The Teen Titans and The Hulk

This cover was a tough one to create, but I was happy with the way it came together.  I am also happy to be able to feature Donna Troy and Wally West in their classic outfits... these two got swept to the side with the new DC reboot and have not been seen in a while.  As they both have a lot of fans, I am sure it is only a matter of time before we see the New 52 DCU versions of these characters showing up, though.  It will be interesting to see what angle DC takes with them.

Supergirl and Ms. Marvel

These are two characters that fit well together for many reasons. They are both blondes that go by the name Danvers who use use alien powers to battle crime on Earth. They are also both offshoots of a male counterpart and each has a pretty convoluted history for their respective publishers.  I imagine they would have a lot to talk about if they ever met... once they got past the obligatory fight scene, of course!

Batgirl and The Black Widow

I have been a fan of The Black Widow ever since she shared top billing with Daredevil in his title.  It is cool to see her finally getting some mainstream recognition after all of these decades, due to her appearances in Iron Man 2 and The Avengers.  I wasn't sure about the choice to include the character or the casting at first, but I have to admit that The Black Widow really held her own alongside the rest of the team.

I imagine if these two athletic redheads operated on the same Earth, they would combine their resources in a Birds of Prey-type team.

Robo Force

This cover introduces a slight new wrinkle to the blog.  From time to time, rather than a team-up, I will feature an all-new team that I think would be cool to see.  This time around, I thought it would be a kick to follow the adventures of an all-robotic team.  Despite their status as artificial life forms, these heroes have always all had interesting personalities and it would be fun to watch them interact as they unravel the mystery of mankind's disappearance.

Nightwing and Ghost Rider

Well, I recently watched Ghost Rider: Spirit of Vengeance, and Woof!  What a bizarre film that was!  The first Ghost Rider was by no means an Oscar worthy film, but it had some fun visuals and Nicolas Cage seemed to be having fun in the role.  Well, he went from having fun to just going nuts in the second entry.  I still kinda like the Ghost Rider scenes (with the more charred out look to the hero and his bike), but Cage as Blaze in is human form was so over the top with his performance that the whole film seemed like a farce.  Not to be outdone, the villains certainly had their fair share of chewing the scenery with their hammy performances as well.  It's too bad, I think there is still a cool Ghost Rider film that could be made, but it's gonna be a while before audiences will be willing to take a chance on the character again.

Madman and Iron Man

I have enjoyed the recent trend in animated comic book movies where they try to match the art style from the original comics.  Mike Allred's artwork would lend itself very well to animation and I would love to see Madman or The Atomics make that transition.  Allred has an clean, crisp style and always knows just the right amount of detail to include.  Add that to his innovative panel layouts and mastery of facial expression and body language and his comics practically look animated to begin with!  Or at least like storyboards to the coolest cartoon ever...

The Rocketeer and The Escapist

I wasn't sure how I felt about other creators carrying on the adventures of The Rocketeer after Dave Stevens passed on, but I have to admit what I have seen so far looks great.  IDW's Rocketeer Adventures lined up a top tier roster of talent and reverence for Stevens' creation shows through on every page.  It's cool to see different artists' interpretations of the awesome Rocketeer costume design. The Escapist is another character that seems to attract the best in creative teams, and it's great to see the character enjoy a life beyond the novel that he was introduced in.

Iron Fist and The Phantom

I have read that Iron Fist is on the list of characters that Marvel is looking to bring to the big screen, which is a good thing.  There are a couple of angles that an Iron Fist film could take.  They could use the great Immortal Iron Fist series as a template, and concentrate on the generational aspect of the character.  That seems ready made for a film treatment and would be a fun watch.  Still, I love seeing Iron Fist with Power Man and it would be great to see them featured together.  To make it really stand out, they could set the film in the swingin' 70's, complete with afros, bell bottoms and a rockin' soundtrack. Marvel has already showed us that period piece superhero films can work with X-Men: First Class and Captain America, so why not?

Blue Devil and Daredevil

Blue Devil looks to be making a return to the DCU alongside Black Lightning, a character he has never been previously associated with (I guess they are going for a "black & blue" motif).  I am a fan of the Dan Cassidy character, and I hope they do not stray too far from what made him so fun to read about in the first place.  I am not sure about the new, even more bestial design.  He looks like he is perhaps drawn to be younger than he was before, as he has a much slighter build than he has previously had, or maybe he just needs a few good sandwiches.  The arc with Black Lightning has been described as a "buddy comedy", so at least it seems he will still be one of DC's more fun characters - something that is sorely needed in the new DCU.

Daredevil seems to be in great hands these days.  I have really been impressed by the quality of the artwork, especially the covers, since his most recent relaunch.  Hopefully that will be maintained once Marvel has their sweeping "Marvel Now" line change, which is on the horizon.

Superman Vs. Hyperion

I always thought it was cool that Marvel had a team of JLA analogues in their super-group The Squadron Supreme.  The fact that their "Superman" - Hyperion - had red hair was an added bonus.  As a redhead, I was always looking out for heroes that looked like me, and it was great to have one as a team leader.  Marvel had been doing some interesting things with Hyperion and the Squadron, but once J. Michael Straczynski left those titles, they seemed to lose their momentum and stopped appearing before too long.  Hopefully they will be back soon, I've enjoyed them in all their various incarnations over the years.

Kamandi and Devil Dinosaur

Here's another pairing that I think would be a natural.  Even though Jack Kirby created these properties for separate companies, they could easily be part of the same world.  Kamandi would be right at home in The Savage Land, and Devil Dinosaur would be a force to reckon with in the last boy on Earth's animal-dominated future.  Wherever the tale took place, it certainly would not be lacking for action!

The Green Lantern Corps Vs. Star Trek: TNG

It's cool to see that Star Trek has started getting around in their comic book incarnations.  There was a team-up with The X-Men several years back, and more recently they have been seen alongside The Legion of Super-Heroes and Doctor Who.  It would be fun to see them cross paths with the GLC.  There could be so many side pairings - Kilowog/Worf, Data/Salaak, Riker/Jordan... and who wouldn't want to read a chapter featuring Reginald Barclay and Chaselon?  This thing writes itself!

The Flash and The Avengers

I have heard bits and pieces about a planned Flash film for years, but Warner Brothers seems a bit hesitant to dive completely forward with one, especially with the underwhelming reception to their attempt with Green Lantern.  I still think that there's a great movie to be made and the character certainly has a built in recognition factor from his live action and animated TV appearances.  A movie would definitely have to provide some new ways of portraying super speed, more than just fast motion cameras and "bullet time" effects that we've seen hundreds of times by now.  The success of The Avengers means that we are by no means past the superhero movie fad, so I am sure it is only a matter of time before we see a Flash flick finally filming one of these days.

Black Lightning Vs. Power Man

Well, it looks as though Black Lightning is set to make his debut in the newly revamped DCU.  Apparently he and Blue Devil will be teamed together in a buddy action/comedy type tale in the pages of DC Universe Presents.  His new costume doesn't look all that different from the one he had been sporting for the past few years, but he does look a bit younger.  I still prefer his classic look (especially the slightly updated version that Cully Hamner illustrated in Black Lightning: Year One), but Brett Booths new design looks cool.  Hopefully the stories will be allow Jefferson Pierce to shine.

Marvel seems to be gearing up to some universe redefining of its own following the Avengers vs X-Men event.  From what I have seen, it is mainly to make the comics closer to the movie properties.  Luke Cage hasn't shown up in the films yet, so it's unclear what the new status quo will mean for him.  Hopefully he will have a proper costume again.

Batgirl and Captain America

I first took notice of Marcos Martin's art in Batgirl: Year One, and was incredibly impressed by his unique style.  Martin is a master at composition and body language which gives his work an exciting, fluid look.  His covers are amazing as well, he created some true classics in his recent Daredevil run.  My favorite character to see Martin on is Spider-man, though.  He really captures Spidey's signature style of movement and his character designs hearken back to the classic Steve Ditko issues.  Any comic featuring Martin art is definitely  worth checking out.

The Shining Knight and The Black Knight

Characters like The Black Knight and The Shining Knight are cool to me in that they can exist comfortably in multiple genres.  I have enjoyed reading period pieces detailing their solo exploits as well as when they appeared alongside other heroes with The Seven Soldiers of Victory, The All-Star Squadron or The Avengers.  Plus, they both have winged horses, which have seemed cool to me since my first viewing of Ray Harryhausen's work in Clash of the Titans.

Robin and The Punisher

Christopher Nolan is pretty good about keeping the complete details to his films under wraps until they open in theaters, and so there are still a lot of questions about The Dark Knight Rises.  The big one for me is exactly what type of role does Joseph Gordon-Levitt's character play?  I have seen assumptions that he will take over for a dead or weakened Bruce Wayne as either Robin or a new Batman, but I just don't know if that makes sense.  He's too old for Robin and I doubt Nolan will end his trilogy by replacing the main character.  I would like to see a new version of Robin when the Batman franchise inevitably rebooted, because the character wasn't really done justice in the Schumaker films in which he appeared.

I think the Punisher should probably enjoy a rest from films for a while.  It's weird - he seems like one of the easier characters to adapt, but each one of the three Punisher films has been a disappointment.  Maybe a cable TV series would be a better way to go.

This cover marks the end of the smaller-sized covers on this blog.  Beginning tomorrow, the covers will all be in the larger size that has been featured a handful of times.

Red Tornado Vs. The West Coast Avengers

When West Coast Avengers was originally published, I liked it better than the mainstream Avengers title, mainly due to the roster of characters that it featured.  It allowed Hawkeye a chance to finally shine as a leader, which I liked, and also gave heroes like Tigra and Mockingbird some nice development.  I remember seeing Red Tornado as a member of Primal Force (a team coming out of DC's Zero Hour event) and hoping he would get more attention than he did as a JLA member, but he was an emotionless shell for most of the series.  Fortunately, Red Tornado got a nice storyline when he joned the JLA in the Brad Meltzer run of Justice League of America.  I'm still waiting to see where he shows up in DC newly revamped line.