Metal Men and Big Guy & Rusty (And More!)

 

For this Anniversary Issue, I thought I would go for an all-robotic theme. Looking at all of these match-ups, I'm not sure which one I would want to read first. Probably the lead feature, especially if it sported George Perez or Geoff Darrow art like the cover image. But, any story with a robot in it is entertaining to me, as they often offer some keen insights into the human condition.

Let the march to STF #4000 begin!

Deathlok Joins Star Wars

 

This was a team up that I hadn't considered before but once I started to put together, began to really to make sense.  Luther Manning fits right in with the world of Star Wars.

I am always happy to use an image by the amazing Dave Cockrum.  I was lucky enough to pick up a couple of pieces by him several years ago:  

Flash Gordon and Princess Leia

 

I wonder how much of the upcoming Obi Wan Kenobi Disney+ series will focus on the Skywalker twins.  I've heard that Joel Edgerton and Bonnie Piesse will be back as Uncle Ben and Aunt Beru, which indicates that a young Luke will be in there somewhere.  Will we also see scenes from the early years of Leia?

Adam Strange Joins Star Wars

 

 

Continued from yesterday's cover, we see Adam has found Tatooine's most famous resident along with his friends.  Jabba's not going to know what hit him!  I quite liked this Adam Strange costume redesign by Pasquale Ferry.  It looks a bit more modern while still maintaining the aesthetic of his classic uniform.

Iron Man Meets R2D2 and C3PO

 

We finally see the reason Shellhead has been spending some time in the Star Wars era.  Iron Man previously met Han Solo, and later on, Chewbacca, but that was with his original armor.  We see him here in my personal favorite suit - one can only imagine what kind of tech Tony Stark would come up with after having some time to examine droids!

Magnus: Robot Fighter meets C-3PO and R2D2

The latest trailer for Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker features an ominous moment where it appears that C-3PO is saying goodbye to his allies for the last time.  If they must kill of the beloved droid, I hope that he at least sacrifices himself in a heroic manner.  I'm still mad at the way they had Admiral Ackbar go out like a punk in The Last Jedi.

Space Ghost joins Star Wars

OK, so the DCEU is having trouble finding solid footing, but there's no reason that we can't have another series if interconnected superhero movies in addition to Marvel's.  The Valiant Universe looks to be making an attempt to get in on the action, which could be cool - but what I'd love to see is a series of films featuring the Hanna Barbera heroes.  Start with Space Ghost and Spin out the Galaxy Trio, Herculoids, Birdman, Shazzan and more.  The kids who were fans of those shows growing up are now directors, producers and movie executives - Let's finally see those properties get some live action love!

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.

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.

C-3PO and Wall-E

I am a giant fan of the Pixar movies.  I am always impressed with the quality of the writing, character design and animation.  I think they have a great track record, I have enjoyed pretty much everything that has come out of the studio, even some of their sequels which weren't huge hits - they never seem to phone it in.  Wall-E is one of my favorites, especially the dialogue-free first half of the film.  It was amazing how much they made me care about these simply designed robots through their unspoken interactions.

Iron Fist and C3PO

Continued from yesterday's cover, we now see what Luke Cage's partner has been up to...

I am hearing great reviews for the pilot of Jessica Jones and Luke Cage continues to impress with its casting decisions, so I hope that Netflix can keep the streak going with Iron Fist.  There have been rumors of difficulty in adapting the character, but if those are true I am sure it isn't anything that can't be overcome.

Make sure to stop in tomorrow for the exciting conclusion to this three-part saga!

Jarvis meets C3PO and R2D2

I came up with this as one of my off the wall combinations, but now that Disney owns the rights to all the characters, maybe it isn't such a crazy idea after all.  They will all be back on the big screen in a couple of summers, anyway - with the return of the Star Wars franchise and The Avengers returning in what promises to be a tech-heavy sequel  (Jarvis being relegated to a robotic voice over for the films).

The Decoders

I had fun assembling this team.  I tried to select members based on the function they could serve.  Max Headroom would be the conduit to all media, C3PO would handle communications with any type of language or code, Tron is the ultimate inside man with his ability to enter the computer grid, Arno Stark is the high-tech muscle, and Oracle runs the show and coordinates the operatives.  I almost included Cypher from the New Mutants but C3PO covered his skill set.  Looking at the team, I think their varied personalities would make for some fun interaction as they worked together.

Man-Thing in Dagobah

Like most Star Wars fans, I am looking forward to the new films and having old favorites like Han Solo and Luke Skywalker back up one the big screen.  I know that decades have passed and age is a factor, but I still would prefer a script set around the original characters than one where new characters dominate the action.  Fortunately, the non-Human characters like Chewbacca and the Droids are much easier to bring back, so I hope that means we can count on them getting a lot of screen time.  Sure, they may have to add some wisps of grey to Chewie's coat and explain how a couple of robots built with 60 year old technology would still be able to keep up, but that's no reason for them not to have their moment in the spotlight again!

The Thing and Han Solo

Ah, Han Solo - one of the greatest characters ever created for the screen. The prequel trilogy for Star Wars certainly had it's share of problems which have been discussed over and over, but one thing I don't hear people bring up is the absence of a lovable rogue type character. Harrison Ford played the part so well in the original films and he brought a much needed humanity to them. Here was a character who could play the skeptic and say a lot of the things the audience was thinking. You have to love Chewbacca, too. My eight year old eyes thought he was about the coolest thing ever when I first saw the film... although I still wonder how the heck a mercenary like Solo had the patience to learn the Wookie language!