Thursday, June 21, 2012

Superman and The Silver Surfer



These two actually appeared together in a fun one-shot written by George Perez and illustrated by Ron Lim & Terry Austin.  Still, wouldn't you have loved to have seen Jack Kirby get a chance to craft a tale featuring these two powerhouses?  Nobody could draw the Surfer like Kirby.  And when he got hold of Superman, he took him to places the character had never been before.  I imagine that we would have seen a beautifully drawn tale full of far out concepts if The King had gotten the opportunity.

Wednesday, June 20, 2012

Spider-Man and The Original Blue Beetle



I am sure I'll check out The Amazing Spider-Man in the theaters but I still have mixed opinions about it.  I like that Spidey now had web shooters rather than organic webs, but I don't get the addition of the metallic slippers.  I like the mask much better than the one from the Raimi movies, as it looks closer to the original Ditko design, but then the costumers added the unnecessary pin stripes and eliminated the belt portion in the front... which just seems like change for change's sake.  I like the use of the Lizard finally, but the look and the voice seem off to me.  And finally, retelling the origin so soon still strikes me as a strange decision.  If nothing else, the action scenes look cool (when he isn't whipping his mask off in mid-battle).  I'm going in with middling expectations and I hope I will be pleasantly surprised by what I see.

Tuesday, June 19, 2012

Martian Manhunter and the Sub-Mariner



The chances of getting a solo Martian Manhunter movie are very minimal, and that's another reason I look forward to an eventual Justice League film.  J'onn has always been the heart and soul of the League for me and I would like to see him featured prominently.  Heck, if they made White Martians the villains, they could center the whole plot around J'onns arrival on Earth.

I'm not sure what the status of Namor is as a movie property - is he lumped in with the Fantastic Four stable of characters, or does Marvel have the rights to produce a Sub-Mariner film on their own?  I hope the latter is true because I would love to see him interact with Captain America at some point in the movies.

Monday, June 18, 2012

Nightwing and Moon Knight



It will be interesting to see whether Moon Knight ever gets a chance at a film treatment.  There would definitely be the same kinds of comparison to Batman that the character had when he first appeared in comics, so Marvel would have to emphasize the elements that make him unique.  The costume would be another hurdle.  It looks very cool and works well in comics, but I imagine it would be tough to translate an all-white costume to live action.

Nightwing has been enjoying new life as an animated character, thanks to the leap forward in time on Young Justice.  I am glad they kept with the blue on black color scheme for his costume rather than the red on black from the current comics.  The red just doesn't work as well as the blue for me - and it reminds me too much of Chris O'Donnel's suit from Batman and Robin.

Friday, June 15, 2012

The Demon and Captain America



I thought I would pay tribute to The King with another all-Kirby cover. I think images from his work at different companies work well together, and there will definitely be more all-Kirby covers in the future.  I am a little concerned for the Captain America movie sequel.  I thought that Joe Johnston was a perfect choice for the first film and am disappointed that he will not be back for the second.  It seems the film will now be co-directed by Joe and Anthony Russo, producers on the TV show Community.  Don't get me wrong, I love Community, it has great inventiveness and heart, and usually makes me laugh out loud - I just don't know how these guys will work with a property like Cap.  Still, they could be huge Captain America fans and deliver a great film for all I know, so I will wait until I hear and see a lot more before passing judgment.

Thursday, June 14, 2012

Supergirl Vs. Storm



There was a lot to like about X-Men: First Class.  The characterizations were spot on and the costumes were much better then the biker leather of the previous X-films. Unfortunately, due to the wonky continuity previously set up in the franchise, this prequel could not feature the classic team of X-Men that fans really want to see in a film.  Now comes word that the studio has purchased the rights to domains pertaining to "Days of Future Past", which has sparked speculation that the next movie will be based upon the time-altering story line.  I hope that this is true, because it could give the filmmakers a chance to reboot the franchise with a timeline and look closer to the original comics.  Storm is one character that could really benefit from this as I feel that the original trilogy never got her right.  Halle Berry's accent was all over the place and the costumes were not nearly as cool ad Dave Cockrum's design - they could have at least kept the tiara!.  Her abilities seemed to be really reduced in scope as well.  We have yet to see a movie version of Storm really cut loose with the full power of her comic book counterpart.  Say what you want about the cheesy Supergirl movie from the 1984, Helen Slater looked great in the costume, which was right out of the comics.

Wednesday, June 13, 2012

Aquaman and Wolverine



This is an admittedly weird one, but I am sure a creative Bob Haney type author could make a story to fit this cover.  I wanted to use the cool blue costume that was created for Aquaman in a 1986 mini-series.  I really liked that new look and was disappointed that it did not last beyond those four issues.  DC gave Tempest,  the grown up Aqualad, a red version of the outfit -  but I don't think it worked as well as the original  blue design.

Tuesday, June 12, 2012

Hawkman and The Phantom




I always thought that Carter Hall's occupation as a Museum Curator/Archaeologist was really cool and helped to set him apart from other superheroes. His adventures had ties to the past which juxtaposed nicely with the futuristic Thanagarian elements.  The later concept of Hawkman being reborn throughout time really fed well into this appreciation of history.  The Phantom is another character that has appeared throughout many eras, thanks to a mantle passed from fathers to sons.  With such long legacies behind them both, a meeting between these two would be bound to happen sooner or later!

Monday, June 11, 2012

Green Lantern and Nova



This would have been a cool team up anyway, but now that I understand there is a Nova Corps in addition to the Green Lantern Corps, it is even more fitting.  They are both Earth men who spend a lot of time off-planet hanging out with various alien races so I think that a great story could be told featuring the two of them together.

Friday, June 8, 2012

Captain Marvel and Thor



This seems like a natural pairing.  They both have incredible powers granted from the gods and like to call down the lightning.  They divide their time between their heroic personas and their non-powered human identities (well, Thor used to anyway).  Their personalities are quite different though, with the regal Thor and the unassuming Billy Batson, so that could make for some fun conflict.  I do think that Billy could probably lift Thor's hammer, if given the chance.

Thursday, June 7, 2012

Black Canary Vs. She-Hulk



There's a picture floating around on the web of Brigitte Nielson as She-Hulk and as far as I know that is the closest that the character has ever come to making the transition to a live action property.  She-Hulk is a tough one to pull off on the big screen, but I do think that there is an angle which could work for the character.  I could see a TV series that maintained the humorous tone of the Dan Slott run striking a chord with audiences.  Mix in equal doses of superhero action and courtroom antics and you could have a unique show.  Black Canary will be getting another chance at live action soon with the upcoming Arrow series.... or at least Dinah Lance will - but I am sure it will only be a matter of time before she suits up.

Wednesday, June 6, 2012

Krypto and Lockjaw



I love dogs and I love superheroes, so it's no wonder that I love dog superheroes.These are two of the best and I am glad to see that both of them have been enjoying more exposure lately.  Krypto had his own TV series and is currently starring in the  new Superman Family comic.  Lockjaw has been center stage in the recent Pet Avengers and Lockjaw and the Pet Avengers mini-series.  I've enjoyed adventure starring these pooches since I was a kid and it's good to see these dogs finally getting their day.

Tuesday, June 5, 2012

The Justice League of America Vs. Galactus



I had fun with the Galactus/JSA cover, so I wanted to match him up with the JLA as well.  The Justice League is at it's best when placed against larger than life interstellar threats and they don't come any bigger than the devourer of worlds.  I can already envision him taking a bite out of the JLA Satellite like he's eating an apple.

Monday, June 4, 2012

Swamp Thing and The Hulk



Now that The Hulk is getting renewed interest as a film property due to the success of his appearance in The Avengers, perhaps it is time for DC to take another look at their own big green guy.  I think enough time has passed since the cheesy 80's Swamp Thing films that audiences could be willing to give a new film a try.  Imagine a serious Swamp Thing movie that used the latest in CGI and had the Alan Moore issues of the comic as a template.  It could be very cool and cross the line between horror and action, the way the series did.  Swamp Thing is enjoying a nice revival  in the comics right now, so the time is right - let's go, Warner Brothers!

Friday, June 1, 2012

Kamandi and Captain America & The Falcon



I'd really like to see The Falcon introduced in a Captain America sequel.  He is my favorite of Cap's partners over the years and an appearance there could set up Sam Wilson's involvement in The Avengers as well. I think it will be a while before we see a live action Kamandi due to the under-performance of John Carter, but I hold out hope for an animated version of the property one of these days.

Thursday, May 31, 2012

The Black Racer and The Silver Surfer



Only Jack Kirby could come up with a space faring character on a surf board and make it cool!  Kirby then went a step further and created an interstellar character that traveled via skis... and rather than treat him as a joke, he was one of the most grim and powerful members of The New Gods pantheon.  Other creators' attempts at giving a character a popular mode of transport met with less success... Rocket Racer and his skateboard never really took off and Dazzler soon ditched her roller skates.  His ability to make wild concepts work is another reason that Jack Kirby will always be at the top of the list for character creation.

Wednesday, May 30, 2012

Legion of Super-Heroes and The Inhumans



This is the kind of story I would have loved as a kid.  I was, of course, a big fan of team and team up comics and I would love tales that would feature many characters interacting.  The master of this was Gardner Fox.  In his Justice League stories, he would have his characters split off into smaller teams for a series of chapters, and then bring everyone back together for a slam bang finale.  It was great to see stories on such a large scale, yet completely told in the span of a single issue.

Tuesday, May 29, 2012

Batman and the Outsiders and The Phoenix



I read with interest yesterday a report that among the upcoming DC Zero issues will possibly be Katana #0.  Katana has recently been a member of the new Birds of Prey series, and will have a supporting role in the new CGI Beware the Batman animated series.  I have liked the character since Mike W. Barr created her and I am glad she is finally getting a higher profile.

Despite her name and history, The Phoenix has surprisingly remained deceased in the Marvel Universe for a while now.  The Phoenix force seems to be central to the current Avengers Vs. X-Men event, so we may just be seeing Jean Grey back before the story line's  end.


Monday, May 28, 2012

Man-Bat Vs. Spider-Man



Man-Bat is one of my favorite Batman villains.  Villain is probably the wrong word though, as he is often not in control of his own actions when pitted against the caped crusader.  I like tales featuring the more clear headed, heroic Man-Bat as well.  I still think there is a great Batman movie to be had using Dr. Hugo Strange and pulling in Man-Bat and Killer Croc in via his monster men experiments.  Alas, that film is only in my fevered imagination, so I will have to make do with Spider-Man battling the Lizard in a few weeks.  That looks to be fun, but I wish the Lizard looked closer to his comic counterpart.  As Man-Bat illustrates - monsters are cool, but monsters wearing pants are cooler!

Friday, May 25, 2012

The Spectre and Doctor Strange



The Spectre is one of my all time favorite characters, particularly the Jim Corrigan version.  He has had other hosts since Corrigan finally faced his demons in the excellent 60 issue series by John Ostrander and Tom Mandrake, but they never quite seemed to work as well as the original version.  Here's hoping that when The Spectre reemerges in the new DCU, it will be Corrigan beneath the cloak once again.

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