Showing posts with label Super-Team Family. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Super-Team Family. Show all posts

Wednesday, April 11, 2012

Mr. Terrific, Mr. Fantastic and Mr. Incredible



I put this one together as a goof, but now that I look at the three of these guys together, it occurs to me that they would make for a formidable team!  I love all of the Pixar films, and  The Incredibles is one of the best, hopefully Director Brad Bird will give us a sequel one day.  Mr. Fantastic will get a second chance at cinematic life if for no other reason to retain Fantastic Four movie rights, it seems - hopefully the stretching effects will be a little better realized this time around.  The solo Mr. Terrific title was one of the first cancellations from the New DCU.  That's too bad, because I like the Michael Holt character.  Perhaps he can find another place to shine in the upcoming Earth 2 series.

Tuesday, April 10, 2012

Martian Manhunter Vs. The Human Torch



I remember being fascinated by the Fantastic Four cartoon that was part of  The Amazing World of Hanna-Barbera.  I had seen the Super Friends, but this was something different - it was the first time I had seen a cartoon show that adapted actual stories from the comics.  Add in the Kirby design work and it was like a comic book coming to life.  Unfortunately, the FF was part of a rotating cast on the show and I only caught a few episodes.  It would be decades before I tracked down some shaky VHS copies and was able to see all the episodes (and I'm still waiting for a nice DVD/Blu-Ray collection).  I remember being excited  when I heard the FF was returning to Saturday mornings a few years later, but to my dismay there was no Human Torch in the new version due to a rights dispute.  It took a long time to see Martian Manhunter on the small screen, but he has made up for it by appearing on multiple shows since his debut on Justice League.

Monday, April 9, 2012

Timber Wolf Vs. Wolverine



It is interesting that Wolverine became such a smash hit character, when he shared so many traits with the far lower profile character Timber Wolf, who preceded him.  The talented Dave Cockrum worked on both characters and he seemed to bring over the parts that worked best on the Legion of Super-Heroes member to the new bad boy in the Uncanny X-Men.  I do prefer Logan's brown outfit to the blue and yellow that he reverted back to - Cockrum had a keen eye for costume design.

Friday, April 6, 2012

Cyborg and the Fantastic Four



Cyborg joining the JLA in the new DCU is an interesting development.  There is definitely precedent for it, as he was featured with them on the final season of Super Friends back in the 80's.  He certainly is powerful enough and definitely lends a unique skill set to the rest of the team.  Still, it's another nail in the coffin of the classic New Teen Titans line-up.  Cyborg, Starfire, Changeling, Raven, Donna Troy and the rest of the team never worked as well as they did when they were teamed together, and once they got scattered around to separate titles they never seemed to shine as bright.  Cyborg joining DC's flagship title looks to break that cycle, I only hope the rest of those characters find as much success... or better yet, get back together!  They could learn a lesson from The Fantastic Four - cast changes are fun for a story line or two, but it's always good to get the original team back together again.

Thursday, April 5, 2012

Ghost Rider and Evel Knievel



I haven't seen Ghost Rider: Spirit of Vengeance yet but I think I will get out of it what I did from the first Ghost Rider flick - a thin plot and hokey performances with some cool looking Ghost Rider effects to make things a bit more palatable.  Hopefully the second film has a better villain, that's what really did the first one in for me.  Evel Knievel held a special  fascination for me as a kid.  I remember watching his jumps on TV and thinking he was about the closest thing to a real-life superhero that there was.  I also used to love the Evel Knievel toy bike that you could crank up and perform stunts with.

Tuesday, April 3, 2012

Captain Marvel and Ms. Marvel



This cover comes at an interesting time.  After years of not being able to use his own name on the cover of the comics he appears in, the original Captain Marvel is finally giving up the title once and for all and will officially go by the name Shazam!  Of course. now he won't be able to say his name without transforming back to Billy Batson, so that's gonna be an issue.  I think a better solution perhaps would have been to rename him Captain Thunder.  This change leaves the Captain Marvel name free to use and now we find out the Ms. Marvel will be taking it on as her official superhero moniker (seemingly closing the door on a return of the Mar-Vell Captain Marvel).  To further confuse things, she will be sporting a costume very close to that worn by Marvelman, the character who started as a knockoff of the original Captain Marvel, whose rights were just bought by Marvel Comics.  I've been reading comics for decades and it makes my head spin, I can only imagine what this name and identity shuffling looks like to those outside of the hobby!

Monday, April 2, 2012

Power Girl and Power Man



I like Power Girl and I am glad to see that she will be getting another turn in the spotlight with the upcoming Worlds' Finest series, especially since that book will be featuring art by George Perez and Kevin Maguire.  Unfortunately, Power Girl is yet another victim of the New DCU's unattractive costume redesigns.  It seems off to me Supergirl now has a more revealing outfit than Power Girl!  But hey, at least she will have a recognizable costume, which is more than I can say for Luke Cage.  I can understand the desire to present him as a street-level hero, but the T-shirt and jeans look he has been sporting for the past decade looks out of place when he is fighting alongside the Avengers or Thunderbolts.  There have been a few recent tweaks to his look that are definite improvements, but what can I say - I'm a fan of his 70's threads.

Friday, March 30, 2012

The Joker Vs. Iron Man



Brian Bolland can illustrate just about anything, but if there was a single character that he was born to draw, it's The Joker.  I had many issues with the story in  The Killing Joke, but the artwork in it is stunning - even more so when you see the re-colored pages in the new edition that was recently released.  If you are a fan of his work, I highly reccomend The Art of Brian Bolland and Cover Story: The DC Comics Art of Brian Bolland, two great books which contain tons of great art and insights from the artist.

Thursday, March 29, 2012

The Guardian and Captain America



I have always liked The Guardian and think that is is too bad that never quite reached the heights of Jack Kirby;s other shield-wielding classic hero.  Still, he made for a cool supporting character in the Superman titles for a while, and has recently made his animation debut in a few episodes of the excellent Young Justice series. I look forward to the Avengers movie, although I feel Cap's modern-day suit does not look as good as the WWII version designed for his solo film.  I could forgive it if they had gotten the wings right instead of wimping out and just painting them on the sides (and will someone tell Thor to pus his helmet on already?)

Wednesday, March 28, 2012

Nightwing and Nightcrawler



I am split when it comes to Nightwing.  On one hand, it has been interesting to watch his evolution from teen sidekick to solo adult hero, which gives him an interesting perspective on things.  Then again, the aging and eventual abandonment of the Robin identity in New Teen Titans set forth a domino effect in the DCU.  By aging Dick Grayson, you had to age all the Teen Titans, which aged all of the mentors even more.  Before long we had multiple Robins, Kid Flashes, and Wonder Girls running around and things got a bit confusing and clunky.   I thought that some of the original sidekicks would be de-aged in the rebooted DCU when I heard that the characters were supposed to only have been around for five years, but now it makes even less sense to me now.  Batman has had 4 robins in five years?

Is Nightcrawler still dead?  I've seen solicitations recently which seem to include him but for all I know that  may be some alternate reality Kurt Wagner.  Sheesh, comics were never this hard to follow when I was a kid!

Tuesday, March 27, 2012

Starman and The Silver Surfer



The Jack Knight Starman series by James Robinson was a favorite of mine.  Some of my favorite issues were the "Times Past" tales that would chronicle early adventures of Ted Knight.  Between those and the current day Ted Knight as a supporting character, Robinson was really able to find new depth in a character that had been around for decades.  He also did some nice work with Ted Knight in the Golden Age mini-series, well worth seeking out if you have not read it.  I originally started creating this cover because I thought that the images went well together, and then I realized the cosmic connection between the two characters, so this pairing wasn't as out there as I had originally thought.

Monday, March 26, 2012

The Phantom Stranger and The Watcher



The Phantom Stranger was the perfect character for Jim Aparo to illustrate.  Aparo's mastery of mood and shadow really got a chance to shine when depicting the mysterious Stranger, forever cast in dim  light. The Watcher has had a few different looks over the years, from a chubby guy in a fancy toga to a more alien looking design with huge gaping white eyes.  I decided to make Uatu a little more proactive on this cover because it seems that most times he shows up, he winds up breaking his vow of silence anyway!

Friday, March 23, 2012

The Atom and Ant-Man



I'm a bit confused as to who is The Atom these days.  I grew up with the Ray Palmer version, and then a few years back he went missing and Ryan Choi was introduced as his replacement.   A few years later he was killed off and Ray Palmer returned to reclaim his title.  Now the entire DCU has been rebooted and from art solicitations it looks like the Ryan Choi version will be back, at least in the JLA.  I think Ray Palmer may have a supporting role somewhere but not as the Atom.  It's all a bit murky.  Over at Marvel, poor Hank Pym finally started to be getting hi act together when his on and off partner The Wasp was killed off!  I'd like to see her back among the living and the two of them acting like a non dysfunctional couple for once.

Thursday, March 22, 2012

Metal Men and Transformers



I understand that Michael Bay will be staying with the Transformers franchise, but promises to revamp it with a completely new cast, to be led by Jason Statham.  While the previous movies have some great moments of spectacle, they are undone by flat attempts at humor and overly long running times.  We'll see if the new film adjusts for these shortcomings... but I don't expect Bay to take my advice, given the hundereds of millions the films have earned.  Now, Bay producing a big-screen Metal Men epic?  That's a movie I would be first in line for!

Wednesday, March 21, 2012

The Freedom Fighters and The Invaders



You have to love a big sprawling superhero wartime story.  Unfortunately, judging by the solicitations,  it looks like the new Earth Two series from DC will be taking place during current times, severing the JSA from the backdrop of World War II once and for all.  While I can understand the desire to modernize their line, I think they are letting go of a big part of the appeal of the Goden Age characters.  I always enjoy seeing superhero period pieces and even when those characters are brought into present day, it's cool to see how they interact with others, given their sensibilities from a bygone era.

Tuesday, March 20, 2012

The Justice League of America Vs. Fin Fang Foom



I was really hoping to get the Mandarin and Fin Fang Foom as villains In Iron Man 3 to set it apart from the "man in suit vs. man in bigger suit" match ups we have seen thus far in the series.  Imagine my surprise when what kind of looked like Fin Fang Foom was chasing Iron Man in the final shot of the awesome Avengers trailer that was recently released!  I have since read speculation that it is probably the Asgardian Serpent, which makes a little more sense.  Still, It looks like Joss Whedon is using his comic chops to give us a superhero outing unlike any we have seen before.  Hopefully the inevitable success will finally get a JLA movie in motion again.

Monday, March 19, 2012

The Joker and The Masters of Evil



I have always liked how The Joker can always seem to hold his own when placed alongside much more powerful super-villains.  He may not have any special abilities, but his insanity gives him an unpredictability that can give him the edge over more methodical characters.  It's always fun to see him alongside other villains because you are just waiting to see who is going to double-cross who first!

Thursday, March 15, 2012

Sandman and Sandman



The Sandman is such an iconic name in comics.  It has been used by such a wide variety of characters, each one cool in their own way.  While I really like Neal Gaiman's Dream and Jack Kirby's 70's hero, the above two are my favorites to bear the name.  Wesley Dodds was the first and greatest to use it.  I have always loved his gas mask and trench coat look and became an even bigger fan after reading the excellent Sandman Mystery Theater series (which really should be turned into a TV show one of these days, it's perfect for it).  Flint Marko has always been in the top tier of Spider-Man's villains for me and his powers are as versatile as they are visually interesting.  I like that he is somewhat of a sympathetic bad guy as well.  It would be less fun if he went completely good, but it's nice to see some shades of grey in there.

Wednesday, March 14, 2012

Deadshot Vs. Bullseye


This would be an interesting match up. Maybe a quick one as well - these are two guys who never miss, so it might just be a matter of who gets a shot off first!  I liked the utilization of some of Bullseye's abilities in the Daredevil movie but neither his appearance or Colin Farrell's performance seemed much like the character from the comics.  Deadshot showed up on Smallville, but he was barely recognizable too.  I'm surprised he hasn't shown up in a Batman movie yet - he's the kind of low-tech villain that would work well in the films.

Tuesday, March 13, 2012

Justice League of America and Spider-Man



Well, it has been announced that Brian Michael Bendis is leaving the Avengers titles for the X-Men titles once the Avengers Vs. X-Men series is over.  Maybe we will finally  have Spider-man off of the Avengers now.  Don't get me wrong. I like having Spidey guest star in tales featuring The Avengers or the FF, but as a full time tema member it just doesn't work for me.  Spidey's loner status is a big part of his appeal and I think he loses something when he becomes an accepted member of a premier super-team.  Of course, now that BMB is going to be on the X-Books, maybe we'll be seeing Spidey in an X-Man uniform soon!

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