Blue Beetle & Booster Gold and Nighthawk

 

Despite his wealth and abilities, Nighthawk was never quite able to rise above B-list status.  Still, I always liked Kyle Richmond and he had a very cool costume, so I always welcomed his appearances.  I think he would work well with the Blue & Gold team, acting as kind of a less gruff Batman.

Infinity Inc. Vs. The Masters of Evil

 

Filming has completed on Avengers: Doomsday, and the movie is in the editing and special effects stage.  Word is that a first look teaser will be included in front of the next Avatar film, with lots of speculation as to what it will show.  My favorite guess is that the movie may undergo a last minute surprise name change - to Avengers Vs. X-Men!

Hawkman & Hawkgirl Vs. Magneto

 

I have wondered whether Magneto's mutant ability to control metal extends to Nth Metal, the mysterious gravity-defying metal that allows our Hawk heroes to fly.  An issue of STF seems like the perfect place to explore such a question.

Teen Titans Vs. The Brotherhood of Evil Mutants

 

Continued from yesterday's cover, we see the battle The titans have been training for.  Looking at these line ups, it seems like a pretty even match up - I' not sure which way it would go.  What say you?

Back when I collected original art, it was a lot more affordable than it is now.  Still, I could never afford a Jack Kirby piece.  I did pick up this Dan Adkins-inked Kirby image, though.  I examined it closely to see if there were any pencil lines under the ink and I couldn't see any, and plus the price was way too low, so I am confident that Adkins didn't ink over a Kirby original page - but it still looks cool so I was happy to get it:

Steel Vs. Magneto

 

I've been quite enjoying Superman and Lois on the CW, it's a step above their usual superhero fare.  One of the more pleasant surprises has been the inclusion of John Henry Irons.  I've been waiting for years for someone besides Shaquille O'Neal to bring the character to life, and this interpretation does not disappoint.  While he does operate in a suit of armor, he still isn't fully Steel yet on the show.  Hopefully future episodes will show that journey.

The Metal Men and Magneto

Every once in a while we will see a new updated version of the Metal Men, with their appearances redesigned to look more modern or "bad ass".  Usually that means more bulky looks, with sharper edges and extraneous parts.  Those changes never seem to last and they return to their classic streamlined designs.  Sometimes the original look is the best, and this is one of those cases.

A big thank you to David Welsh, a Patron of this Blog, for suggesting this team up!

X-Men Vs. Vigilante

There is much speculation about when the concept of mutants will be introduced into the MCU.  It will probably be some time before we see a fully formed team of X-Men appear, but there's no reason we can't see individual mutants show up here and there.  I think the best place to start might be with a character we already know.  Perhaps in the course of her upcoming series Wanda/Vision, The Scarlet Witch will discover her and her brother's true origin as mutants.  Maybe that revelation will cause her to seek out more like her... or maybe even create them.

Cyclops and Robotman

Cyclops is one of the X-Men that I am most eager to see given anther shot at live action once Marvel brings the team into the MCU.  I found him to be very under-utilized in the Fox films, both the original and the younger "First Class" team. Having him killed off in X3 was not what many fans wanted to see, I'd wager.  Hopefully his eventual return will feature the competent field leader that we know from the comics.

Magneto Vs. Plastic Man

This I think could be a pretty interesting battle.  Usually Magneto has the upper hand when fighting a hero due to his incredibly powerful skill set, but Plastic Man's unique composition would not lend itself to outside manipulation.  Then you have their disparate personalities to consider, action with a smile versus dead serious extreme activism - it would definitely be a fun match up to watch play out.

Tomar-Re and The Beast

I am surprised that Marvel has never paired up The Beast and Tigra in an adventure.  They are both card carrying Avengers who are at peace with the furry forms they have been transformed into.  It seems like they would have a lot in common.  Not that you need to have much in common for an exciting tale.. Tomar-Re is about a different character thank Hank McCoy as you can ask for, but I'd still love to see them join forces.

The Joker and Magneto

It was great seeing the original cast in Star Wars: The Force Awakens, but I have to admit being more than a little disappointed at how little Mark Hamill was given to do.  Sure, Harrison Ford is the A-List star to most - but for me, Hamill's return was the real draw.  He has always seemed like "one of us", from his collector-friendly Amazing Stories episode, to writing and directing Comic Book: The Movie, to his decades-spanning performance as The Trickster and of course his perfect turns as the voice of The Joker and many other animated characters.  Given the events in the film, it's a sure bet he will be much more involved in the action for Episode VIII... but it's going to be a long 18 months waiting for it!

Magneto Vs. Doctor Polaris

I think that Magneto holds the distinction for most film appearances by a comic book villain.  X-Men: Apocalypse will mark his 6th time as part of an X-movie.  Lex Luthor is hot on his heels though, with his 5th film appearance coming up - and if rumors of his appearing in Suicide Squad are true, he will have his sixth turn as well. Doctor Polaris is still waiting patiently.

Magnus: Robot Fighter Vs. Magneto

It is going to be interesting to see Magneto played by both Michael Fassbender and Ian McKellan in next summer's X-Men: Days of Future Past.  McKellan was too old for the part even in the first X-Men film, but I liked his interpretation enough that I was able to overlook that.  I thought Fassbender did a great job in X-Men: First Class, and he had the physique and presence to closer emulate the character from the comics.  The sequel looks to be quite different from the DOFP comic storyline, so who knows where Magneto will wind up by the end of the time-bending tale.  Will Bryan Singer bring things around to reflect the comics more, or will the franchise continue to stake out it's own wonky continuity?  I guess we will all find out next year.

Green Lantern and The X-Men

X-Men: Days of Future Past is shaping up to be a very interesting, if crowded, film.  Brian Singer will be uniting the cast from his X-Men films with that of X-Men: First Class in a film that promises sentinels and time travel.  I hope that the film ends with something closer to the comic book timeline, as the series has played fast and loose with the continuity thus far.

The word is still out on which Green Lantern will be showing up in the Justice League film, and I doubt that we will hear much concrete information until Man of Steel hits the theaters.  While I would like to see Hal Jordan get a Hulk in The Avengers type of rehabilitation, I wouldn't mind seeing John Stewart in the film.  I have always liked the character and he worked well in the animated series.

Superman and The X-Men

Patrick Stewart recently mentioned that he would be appearing as Professor X once again on the big screen. The next X-film promises to draw from the Days of Future Past timeline, so are we in for some reality altering by the end of the film?  Could be... and if so I hope we end up with something closer to the actual "first class" of X-Men.

Recent pics of Actress and MMA star Gina Carano hanging out with Henry Cavill have folks speculating that she will be making a cameo in Man of Steel as a certain Amazonian princess.  I find that highly doubtful, but have to admit, she certainly looks the part.

Cosmic Boy Vs. Magneto

You didn't think that I'd ask the question, "What has Magneto done with Cosmic Boy?" without addressing it, did you?  Here we seen the motivation for his trip to the future.  I actually did these two covers months apart (hence the larger size on part two - eventually all covers will be this larger size as I changed up my templates shortly after I began STF).  Sometimes I will look back on an earlier cover and the story will suggest a follow up issue.  Hmm... now that I have established his lineage, maybe Cos will have to cross paths with his siblings one of these days...

Legion of Superheroes Vs. Magneto

Magneto has become of one of comicdom's most complex villains doe to his ever changing status in the Marvel Universe, as well as the skillful onscreen portrayals by Michael Fassbender and Ian McKellan.  Much is made of how his tragic past and sympathetic motivations give him shades of grey, but frankly I always enjoy him best as a straight up villain.  Sure, in his mind he may think what he is doing is right, but at the end of the day he is no better then Dr, Doom and the Joker. The Legion depicted here is from my favorite era of that team.  Paul Levitz, one of the architects of that LSH phase, is writing their current adventures.  I'll have to check some of those out and see if they have any of the old magic.

Batman and The X-Men

This was actually the first attempt at an X-Men cover, as I did the "All-New" X-Men cover a bit later. As much as I liked the international team introduced in Giant-Size X-Men #1, the original group is a great team in their own right. I love the Lee/Kirby issues and seeing Neal Adams' more modern (at the time) take really blew my mind.

I was excited to hear the news that the next X-movie would be titled X-Men: First Class, and had hoped that is would be informed by the comic series of the same title, exploring the early days of Cyclops, Beast, Angel, Marvel Girl and Iceman. Alas, the film will instead be a prequel to the existing film series, which has played so fast and loose with continuity and character ages that such a film cannot me made. It might still be fun and I like that they are making it a period piece, but I think I would have preferred to see a complete reboot instead.