Hela and The Black Racer

 

Hela has been one of the best realized villains in the MCU, and I have heard that she may make a return in one of the upcoming Avengers films.  Just rumors and speculation at this point, but if Marvel truly wants to bring some characters back to life, the involvement of the Goddess of the Dead could assist in that endeavor.

The Bondsmen in: "Operation: Doomfall!"

 

This cover marks the fifth appearance of The Bondsmen.  Their live action movie was featured in STF #3170, They found themselves in a beastly situation in STF #3050, They had to temporarily replace one of their own in STF #880 and were first introduced in STF #564...

It took a bit of cleaning up of Latveria before I could add in our heroes on this cover.  Here's a peek at the process: 

Boba Fett Vs. Aliens

 

I'd love to know what happened behind the scenes on The Book of Boba Fett.  While I really enjoyed the episodes they appeared in, having The Mandalorian and Grogu show up halfway through the series and reduce Fett practically to a minor supporting character was a very odd choice.  I can't believe that was the original plan.  Will we see Boba Fett back on Disney+?  I'm betting yes, but only as a guest star. 

Bronze Tiger and Shang-Chi

 

I think that the Suicide Squad movies both missed an opportunity by not putting The Bronze Tiger on the team.  The Suicide Squad comic was where I really got to know Ben Turner as a character and it would have been great to have seen him brought to the big screen.  I don't know if there will be a third movie, but with Rick Flag out of the picture, the cinematic Squad could use a character like The Bronze Tiger to act as a moral compass.

Master of Kung-Fu and The Phantom Stranger

 

I'll be checking out Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings when it hits Disney+ later this month.  I am looking forward to it after it had such a positive reception.  I waited for Black Widow and didn't feel like I missed much - other than the introduction of Yelena, it's pretty filler and skippable for a Marvel Movie.  The early reviews for Eternals do not fill me with confidence, and despite an Oscar I thought Nomadland was deadly dull, so I'll be waiting on that one too.  I think the next movie to actually get me to a theater will be Spider-Man: No Way Home - if the studio ever stops delaying it!

Master of Kung Fu and Man-Bat

 

It looks like Marvel is making up for lost Covid time and the second half of 2021 will be jam packed with content - four movies in addition to as many Disney+ shows.  This means we will be seeing Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings sooner than I thought (September 3).  Hopefully that means that publicity will kick into gear soon and we will finally get to see some footage in the form of a teaser or trailer.

Heppy to feature the work of Mike Zeck here.  Here's a sketch by him that I picked up several years back:

Alfred and Black Panther

Andy Serkis is playing Alfred Pennyworth in the new Batman movie.  Filming has just begun, so perhaps we will see a shot of him in character soon - will we finally get a movie Alfred with a mustache? I'd still like to see Serkis return as Klaw in a Black Panther sequel.  Yes, he was killed, but that just means that he can come back in energy from as a more comic accurate version of the villain.

Power Man & Iron Fist and Doctor Who

The Netflix Marvel shows ended just when things were getting good.  All the pieces were in place for the Daughters of the Dragon to formally join forces.  Iron Fist and Power Man were both at crossroads, and I was ready for them to get together to form Heroes for Hire.  Alas, it will be a year or two before Marvel can start using them in the MCU.  Hopefully once that time passes, they will find a way to realize the still unfulfilled potential of these characters, either in the movies or on Disney+.

Master of Kung-Fu and Bruce Lee

Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings will finally bring the true Mandarin into the MCU.  Most comics fans did not like the bait and switch fake Mandarin from Iron Man 3, so it will be interesting to see how the character is handled now that Marvel Studios is giving him another shot on the big screen.  Collecting the ten rings, each possessing its own power seems a little similar to the Infinity Gauntlet, so I wonder if they will change that up at all.  Most interesting is the rumor that The Mandarin will be revealed as Shang-Chi's father, replacing Fu-Manchu from the comics version.

Conan and Mr. Spock

In addition to reprising his Terminator role, there are plans for Arnold Schwarzenegger to once again play Conan The Barbarian on the big screen.  I realize there were plenty of King Conan tales featuring an older version of the character, but I don't know that he was ever in his 70's in those stories.  It will be interesting to see what direction will be taken and how much physical combat is involved.