Hellboy Vs. Eclipso

 

I was interested to read that Ron Perlman say that, despite now being in his 70's, he is willing to do one more movie to finish out his Hellboy trilogy if the studios want to make it and if Guillermo Del Toro is ready to direct.  I'm guessing this would ignore the ill-received reboot from a few years ago.  I know I'd be interested, but I'm not holding my breath waiting for Universal Pictures or whoever has the rights today to greenlight the project. I'd definitely want Liz to return as well, but Selma Blair has her own medical issues these days, I don't know how much acting she still does.  Still, I'd love to be pleasantly surprised, I like the first two Hellboy movies quite a bit.

Starman and Moondragon / Plastic Man Vs. Juggernaut

 

I heard rumors that Moondragon would be joining the cast of Guardians of the Galaxy, Vol. 3 a while back, but nothing in the way of a casting announcement for the role has been made.  I hope the character is still part of the mix.  Not only is she interesting in her own right, but as the daughter of Drax the Destroyer, her presence would certainly add to the story potential.

Space Ghost Vs. Sinestro

 

I'm still hoping to see something new done with Space Ghost on the big or small screen.  Space Ghost: Coats to Coast was fun, but I am ready for a more serious depiction of the space faring adventurer.  DC's excellent Future Quest miniseries a few years back was a perfect template for a shared Hanna-Barbera cinematic universe.  I'd love to see some step taken to translate that to the movies or perhaps some new animated shows.  These characters are too cool to be left on the shelf.

Jocasta and Red Tornado

 

Red Tornado has faced off against Ultron a couple of times before on the bog (Once with his team Robo Force in STF #202, and later with Robotman in STF #783), but it looks like the evil android finally got the upper hand - let's hope that Jocasta can sort things out. Jocasta and Reddy previously met in STF #3142...

I was happy to use a Red Tornado image from the incredibly talented Matt Haley.  I was fortunate enough to be able to pick up an original illustration by him several years back (originally used for a Wizard Magazine Article, I believe):

Captain America and Deadman

 

I think this would make for an interesting tale. Sure, Boston Brand has the acrobatic chops to be able to fight off a few bad guys while in Cap's form - but Steve Rogers is much more than just his Super Soldier Serum.  It would be fun to see regular guy Deadman put in a position where he has to give an inspirational speech or command a battalion of soldiers.

Tin, Tintin and Rin Tin Tin

 

Here's another idea from the mind of Blog Patron Bob Greenwade. I get lots of suggestions for character pairings where the only connection is a similar sounding name, and they don't always seem to make a lot of sense to me.  Sometimes the incongruity is what makes a cover fun though, so I thought I would finally give this one a try. I hope Bob approves of my choice of villain for this tale!

Giant-Man and Nuklon

 

It will be interesting to see how Atom Smasher (Albert Rothstein's super hero identity after his time as Nuklon) will be depicted in live action when Black Adam hits the theaters.  Noah Centino will be playing the part, and it looks as though the hero will be another in the long line of de-gingered comic book character adaptations.  Hopefully, the costume will be comics accurate - although with a full face mask, I have my doubts about that, as Hollywood is generally not a fan of those either.  Still, a great performance will override any aesthetic details, so I will remain cautiously optimistic.

The Hulk Vs. Doomsday

 

When Bob Greenwade, commenter extraordinaire and Patron of this blog, mentioned that I had not had a Hulk/Doomsday math up on this blog, I thought, "That can't be right, can it?"  Indeed is was, so here's a cover to rectify that oversight.  Thanks for the heads-up, Bob! 

Martian Manhunter Vs. Gladiator

 

I was happy to use an image of J'Onn J'Onzz by John Romita Jr. here, I quite like his depiction.  I was lucky to be ably to pick up a couple of JR JR original pages several years back (inks by Klaus Janson and Christopher Ivy):

Batman and Tron

 

I can't wait to see Michael Keaton reprise his role as Batman/Bruce Wayne for  the Flash movie.  I'm also happy to hear that he will be sticking around for more appearance in the role in future films.  It does seem strange that he will be in Batgirl, as that movie will feature J.K. Simmons as Commissioner Gordon - so wouldn't that mean Ben Affleck should be the Batman of that tale?  I guess The Flash really is going to mess with continuity.  If I was in charge, I'd have Keaton back on his own, heading up a Batman Beyond film.  Warner Bros never seems to consult me, though.

Superman and Valkyrie

 

Superman and Lois continues to entertain in its second season.  I am really impressed by how the super heroic feats are presented on a TV show budget.  I do have one nitpick, admittedly a minor one.  Why does Superman/Clark constantly seem to have a five o'clock shadow?  That looks works for The Punisher, Daredevil or even Batman - but in my minds eye, the Man of Steel should usually be clean shaven.  Hasn't TV Superman learned the "shaving with heat vision and a mirror" trick?

Metal Men and ROM in: "Building a Better Spaceknight!"

The Metal Men should have had action figures all their own, just like ROM did.  Well, maybe at least Stretch-Armstrong type toys to go along with each member of the team.  I know I would have loved to see such an offering on the toy shelves when I was a kid - but I'm guessing there weren't enough fans of the wacky robots to make it a profitable venture.

The Metal Men first encountered ROM in STF #2340...

Black Panther Vs. The Black Spider

 

I don't know if he was killed off or just forgotten about, but The Black Spider is one of those cool 80's Batman villains that we don't really hear about anymore.  That's too bad, I remember thinking that he was an interesting antagonist. 

Black Panther here is by the legendary Dave Cockrum.  Here's an original sketch by him that I was lucky enough to pick up several years ago:

Buffy the Vampire Slayer and Morbius

 

Buffy first encountered Morbius in STF #387, but it looks like this time they are on the same side. The Morbius movie has been delayed once again.  It's becoming a situation like New Mutants, where the film's release has been pushed back so much that audiences are either forgetting about it or questioning its quality.  I actually thought New Mutants was OK when it was finally available to view, so I will hold out some hope for Morbius.

Daredevil meets The Flash & The Atom

 

There are a bunch of different artists on this one.  Al Pratt here is by Jerry Ordway & Mike Machlan - Ordway's renditions of the JSA members are always a treat to see, as is his art on anything.  Here's a couple more pieces of his original art that I was lucky enough to pick up several years back (from Green Lantern: Secret Files and Zero Hour):

Sub-Mariner Vs. Green Lantern in: "Vengeance From Below!"

 

No other artist, except perhaps Sal Buscema, was better at depicting someone delivering or receiving a massive wallop than my personal favorite Marvel cover artist, Gil Kane. I was glad to include an example of both on this blog entry.

Namor and Green Lantern first clashed in STF #1475...

Doctor Fate Vs. Galactus

 

I have a strong suspicion that Pierce Brosnan's time as Doctor Fate will be limited to one movie, with him passing the mantle on by the end of Black Adam. Hopefully we will get plenty of him in action in the film, it will be interested to see how his magic spells are presented to set him apart from Doctor Strange or The Scarlet Witch.  I'm looking forward to seeing a full shot of him in helmet and costume soon.

Star Wars and Star-Lord

It's been cool to see the expansion of some Star Wars locations, first on The Mandalorian, and now on The Book of Boba Fett.  It's been cool to hear the history of Tatooine (once a water planet?) and see the interactions of the different tribes and factions that call it their home. I look forward to finding out if Fett can tame his territory through respect rather than fear as those before him have.

 

Tigra and Zatanna

 

Zatanna is another DC Character that has had a movie announcement with no following information since.  There have been rumors that it will be a solo movie and others that indicate it may be a Justice League Dark story featuring other DC supernatural characters, with Zatanna in the lead.  There have even been actresses teasing that they are up for the role.  Still, with no official announcements, I'm not holding my breath waiting for this one.  It's been eight years since The Rock first started talking about playing Black Adam, after all.

Batman & Robin and The Avengers

 

Set photos from the upcoming Batgirl movie seem to indicate that there is a Robin active in that version of Gotham City.  It's still uncertain as to how Batman will even be handled in that movie - Commissioner Gordon will be played by The Snyderverse's  J.K. Simmons, but Ben Affleck will have already retired from Playing the Dark Knight following the events of The Flash - a film which will also bring back Michael Keaton's Bruce Wayne, setting him up to appear in Batgirl.  Maybe all of this will make more sense once we se a trailer, but it seems a bit crazy right now.

Batman met with The Avengers a few times way back in my Brave and the Bold: The Lost Issues! days - First when he tried to rewrite the team's roster, then when he was a part of the the original line-up and finally with Cap's Kooky Quartet...

Paws of Fury!

 For today's team, I thought that it might be fun to put together a dojo consisting of some of the best four-footed fighters in fiction.  I just completed the fourth season of the oh-so-addictive Cobra Kai this week and it had me in a karate mood.  Maybe the next Kung-Fu Panda movie can have Po enter the multiverse and we can get a team like this assembled.

Moon Knight and The Elongated Man (Vs. The Joker!)

 

This marks the 11th appearance of The MK-EM Team.  Thank you for humoring my presenting this pairing from time to time.  It's a little self indulgent but for some reason I get a kick out of seeing them together.  

We saw a few glimpses of the Moon Knight show at a recent Disney presentations, and while quick, they looked quite promising to me.  Hopefully we will get a trailer soon now that we are into 2022.  

Moon Knight and the Joker previously clashed in STF #2021...

Aquaman and Star Trek

 

After being so pleasantly surprised by Aquaman and really enjoying his Fast and Furious installment (best of the series in my opinion), I decided to give some other James Wan-Directed movies, and I am glad that I did.  I really enjoyed Insidious and The Conjuring films are some of the best haunted house movies I have ever seen.  Malignant was a bit violent for my tastes, but it was so off the walls bonkers and included an absolutely amazing chase sequence, so I couldn't turn my eyes away.  After all of that cinematic goodness, I can't wait to see what he gets up to in Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom.

Harley Quinn and the Daughters of the Dragon

 

Jessica Henwick mentioned that she turned down the opportunity to star in Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings to do The Matrix: Resurrections.  That's OK because it still leaves her free to reprise Colleen Wing alongside Simone Missick as Misty Knight.  They were great in the roles in the Netflix shows, but it was a shame that they never truly became The Daughters of the Dragon.  If Matt Murdock and Wilson Fisk can make the transition to the MCU, why not them?  I'd love to see them show up on Echo, a new Daredevil series, or even a show of their own.

Marvel Boy and Superboy

 

I'm looking forward to the return of Superman and Lois next week.  At least we will have a decent TV version of the Man of Steel while Warner Bros. movie decision decides what they want to do with the character.  Most fans seem to simply want a Henry Cavill sequel film, but that doesn't seem in the cards.  We do have a variant Supergirl coming up in The Flash (Superman's daughter?) and two separate movies in development featuring African American versions of Superman (one a period piece and one featuring Val-Zod).  There are some rumors of a Cavill Superman showing up in either Black Adam or Shazam: Fury of the Gods, but I have my doubts that either will come to pass.  

Justice League Dark Vs. Mephisto

 

Ever since Wanda/Vision, there has been rampant speculation as to when and where (and if) Mephisto will show up in the MCU.  I haven't really been expecting him to show up yet, so I have not been disappointed at his absence thus far.  Now that Agatha Harkness is getting her own spinoff Disney+ series, there's another chance to get him into the mix though.  If he's going to make his debut anywhere, that might be an appropriate place.

Adam Strange and Iron Man

 

I'm still waiting for live action versions of these heroes, in these outfits.  Adam Strange appeared on the now-cancelled Krypton, but he never wore his signature costume or learned to use his jetpack. Iron Man made many appearances in many different suits of armor - but frustratingly, never in his classic Red and Gold widow's peak, hip disk look that dominated his first three decades of comic appearances.  Maybe we'll get it in a multiversal variant Iron Man at some point?

Power Girl and The Hulk

 

One of the big rumors for Doctor Strange and the Multiverse of Madness is that we will be seeing cameos by established MCU heroes as played by other actors, either from previous movie franchises or castings that didn't quite work out.  I am trying to avoid to many spoilers to see if this is true and if so, who exactly will show up.  Still, one I'd love to see is Edward Norton's Bruce Banner/Hulk.  I don't know what the relationship is between Norton and Marvel following his replacement with Mark Ruffalo a decade or so back, but it would be a pretty cool moment to see him show up.

Fin Fang Foom Vs. Mr. Miracle & Big Barda

 

DC seems to be having some trouble adapting The New Gods to the big screen.  Zach Snyder introduced elements in his Justice League movie, but Warner Bros does not seem to want to move forward with his vision.  They also cancelled Ava DuVernay's New Gods movie that was in development, and are most likely not encouraged by the muted reactions to Marvels similar Eternals.  I've got the perfect solution - go with a New Gods animated series first!  That will give the property the proper length to tell an expansive story that features such a large cast of characters.  If it's a hit, audiences will be primed to se a live action version as a follow up.

Dick Tracy and The Rocketeer in: "The Case of the Dormant Informant!"

Regular visitors to this blog will know that this cover serves as a direct sequel to STF #2805, in which these two heroes first pursued Rats McTattler.  It looks like they weren't the only ones in hot pursuit!  I felt that the tale was worthy of a follow-up as these two pulp heroes really do seem to go well together.

Power Man & Iron Fist and The Justice Society of America

 

Concluding our Three Part Epic, we see that the Heroes for Hire have successfully located and liberated the JSA - now the whole crew is going to have to deal with Immortus!  I'm looking forward to seeing an image of Hawkman in full costume from the upcoming Black Adam movie.  It has to be one of the toughest looks to pull off in live action, and I hope to finally see it done justice.  Then again, we're getting a bald Adam with no pointy ears, so who knows what changes will be made to Hawkman?