A Film Review of "Comedian"
Copyright 2002 Glenn Walker
This is being advertised as a movie about Jerry Seinfeld returning to stand-up. That's only about half the picture.
It's a very confused flick. At times it's an art film, at times a documentary and sometimes a straight performance film. But only half of it is about Jerry Seinfeld's struggle to do comedy clubs again after having one of the most successful sitcoms on television.
Comedian could have been just about that but they decided to switch hit. We also see the rise to the top of Orny Adams (yes, his real name), a surly obsessive compulsive manic depressive young comic who could've quite easily been the star of this flick. Indeed he overshadows Jerry.
Once we return to Jerry we get bored waiting to go back to the manic antics of Orny and his inability to be happy with his success. I see big things for this guy. Either that or at least entertaining stories in the National Enquirer.
Chris Rock, Bill Cosby, Robert Klein and Colin Quinn all have cameos but only Colin Quinn is funny. Wait for the video and keep a look out for Orny Adams.
Tuesday, November 05, 2002
Sunday, November 03, 2002
Showtime
"COPS" FROM HELL
A Review of "Showtime"
Copyright 2002 Glenn Walker
"Cops" on the Fox Network is one of my favorite shows, I rarely miss it, even in syndication. It literally began the reality television rage we're currently in and still can't be beat by its competition. The show is an endless source of entertainment, any given episode will have family fights, drunks and fun in trailer parks that'll make your home life seem tame. Who can forget the singing homeless woman who thinks she's married to the cop? The attempted suicide who wants to bring his houseplants along in the ambulance? The masturbating transvestite trucker? Or, my fave, the vampire purse snatch victim with the childhood photos?
Showtime wants to be "Cops" soooo bad.
It's a buddy cop movie in the vein of a Lethal Weapon or a Stakeout with the added bonus of a television camera crew following them around. Robert DeNiro plays a wannabe Dirty Harry who is hooked up with aspiring actor/cop Eddie Murphy. Rene Russo is the television producer out to make a hit TV series out of this. It's like rehab for actors who can't pick a good script.
Speaking of the script, it's co-written by Alfred Gough and Miles Millar, the duo behind the WB's hit series "Smallville." There's no hint of that talent here in Showtime.
DeNiro must've taken quite a financial hit when his Tribeca offices were destroyed in the World Trade Center disaster to be taking roles like this. Murphy, who has never been known for his ability to pick appropriate roles, ends up playing the same character he plays in all his films - Eddie Murphy (dude should've stuck to stand-up). And Rene Russo? Rene Russo made The Adventures of Rocky and Bullwinkle (also with DeNiro), nothing more need be said.
We do get a few good scenes with William Shatner playing himself trying to teach the cops how to look better on camera a la "T.J. Hooker" but that's about it. Not worth the rental.
Reprinted from Project: Popcorn at:
http://www.whitevioletpictures.com/popcorn
A Review of "Showtime"
Copyright 2002 Glenn Walker
"Cops" on the Fox Network is one of my favorite shows, I rarely miss it, even in syndication. It literally began the reality television rage we're currently in and still can't be beat by its competition. The show is an endless source of entertainment, any given episode will have family fights, drunks and fun in trailer parks that'll make your home life seem tame. Who can forget the singing homeless woman who thinks she's married to the cop? The attempted suicide who wants to bring his houseplants along in the ambulance? The masturbating transvestite trucker? Or, my fave, the vampire purse snatch victim with the childhood photos?
Showtime wants to be "Cops" soooo bad.
It's a buddy cop movie in the vein of a Lethal Weapon or a Stakeout with the added bonus of a television camera crew following them around. Robert DeNiro plays a wannabe Dirty Harry who is hooked up with aspiring actor/cop Eddie Murphy. Rene Russo is the television producer out to make a hit TV series out of this. It's like rehab for actors who can't pick a good script.
Speaking of the script, it's co-written by Alfred Gough and Miles Millar, the duo behind the WB's hit series "Smallville." There's no hint of that talent here in Showtime.
DeNiro must've taken quite a financial hit when his Tribeca offices were destroyed in the World Trade Center disaster to be taking roles like this. Murphy, who has never been known for his ability to pick appropriate roles, ends up playing the same character he plays in all his films - Eddie Murphy (dude should've stuck to stand-up). And Rene Russo? Rene Russo made The Adventures of Rocky and Bullwinkle (also with DeNiro), nothing more need be said.
We do get a few good scenes with William Shatner playing himself trying to teach the cops how to look better on camera a la "T.J. Hooker" but that's about it. Not worth the rental.
Reprinted from Project: Popcorn at:
http://www.whitevioletpictures.com/popcorn
Wednesday, October 23, 2002
Red Planet
A Video Review of "Red Planet"
Copyright 2002 Glenn Walker
Val Kilmer as a janitor, now why does that appeal to me so much? Because of his performance in Batman Forever? Nope, contrary to what one might think, Kilmer is quite good in that piece of crap, better than his predecessor Michael Keaton, I thought. I even liked him in Thunderheart and The Doors (and I hate Oliver Stone) and even the universally panned Top Secret!. It's his decimation of "The Saint" that makes his suffering in Red Planet so pleasing to me. Don't ever ruin TV icons, dude, or I'll root against you.
Red Planet has some great cinematography, great scene fades and the red tinge to all the Mars stuff is ingenius.
Carrie Anne Moss puts in a good performance but her appearance here (and in Memento) convinces me she's really nowhere near as hot as she looks in The Matrix. The Wachowski brothers must have used one hell of an airbrush in The Matrix.
The story is astronauts crashland on Mars and play a game of survival until only Kilmer and AMEE, a robot probe gone a bit whacko, are left. Now the previews made this out to be a suspense thriller with these two playing cat and mouse but that's not the case, not until the last fifteen minutes, that is.
And while I rooted for AMEE, Kilmer is still good here and Red Planet is still worth seeing.
Copyright 2002 Glenn Walker
Val Kilmer as a janitor, now why does that appeal to me so much? Because of his performance in Batman Forever? Nope, contrary to what one might think, Kilmer is quite good in that piece of crap, better than his predecessor Michael Keaton, I thought. I even liked him in Thunderheart and The Doors (and I hate Oliver Stone) and even the universally panned Top Secret!. It's his decimation of "The Saint" that makes his suffering in Red Planet so pleasing to me. Don't ever ruin TV icons, dude, or I'll root against you.
Red Planet has some great cinematography, great scene fades and the red tinge to all the Mars stuff is ingenius.
Carrie Anne Moss puts in a good performance but her appearance here (and in Memento) convinces me she's really nowhere near as hot as she looks in The Matrix. The Wachowski brothers must have used one hell of an airbrush in The Matrix.
The story is astronauts crashland on Mars and play a game of survival until only Kilmer and AMEE, a robot probe gone a bit whacko, are left. Now the previews made this out to be a suspense thriller with these two playing cat and mouse but that's not the case, not until the last fifteen minutes, that is.
And while I rooted for AMEE, Kilmer is still good here and Red Planet is still worth seeing.
Friday, October 18, 2002
What Not to Rent at the Video Store
WHAT NOT TO RENT AT THE VIDEO STORE
Copyright 2002 Glenn Walker
It's Friday night and you don't want to go out. You just want to snuggle on the sofa with your honey with a few videos and some Orville Redenbacher's Sweet 'n Buttery Gourmet Popping Corn (the absolutely best popcorn on Earth, no contest).
So it's off to the video store, yes, one of life's great adventures. First you have to choose a video store. If they want blood and urine samples to rent, that's a bad choice of video store. If their foreign section is only one shelf, the sign says "F'ern," and the staff thinks Fellini makes pizza down the street, bad choice. If the employees are playing makeshift basketball with a mannequin head and a trash can on the counter, bad choice. If the movie posters in the window are for Titanic and Patch Adams and are bleached white from the sun, no. If they have a Jean Claude Van Damme section under 'drama,' uh uh. And if they have Moulin Rouge playing on the monitors, run, don't walk to the exit.
Once inside, how do you know what to look for? There are so many movies, literally thousands. Or more importantly, how do you know what not to look for?
First if you're at Blockbuster, avoid the staff picks at all costs. If these people knew anything about movies they wouldn't be working at Blockbuster, right? At any other store the staff picks might be worth a look.
The new movies, if there are more than five copies left, forget it. It sucks and obviously no one wants it, unless it's the first week it's out and the public at large doesn't know any better yet.
Ask other customers what to see. Don't ask the staff (unless you actually know them outside the store) because they'll say anything to get you to rent anything. It's their job, it's what they get paid to do. Other customers are in the same quandry you are and word of mouth is always the best recommendation (my opinions notwithstanding).
When walking through the store tapes with dust on them are usually bad choices. Now, when you find a tape hidden behind other tapes (especially those with dust on them) this is a good choice. Someone has hidden it so no one else can rent it and they're saving ot for next time. This is a winner.
Look for warning labels on the movies. For instance, avoid any films whose boxes carry words like "Adam Sandler," "Robin Williams," "Billy Crystal," Moulin Rouge or any movie with numbers after the title. Any thing that has Ebert & Roper giving a 'thumbs up' to is also a bad sign.
So remember: no staff picks, no dust, no Blockbuster and no Adam Sandler. Good luck!
Reprinted from the Project: Popcorn website at:
http://www.whitevioletpictures.com/popcorn/
Copyright 2002 Glenn Walker
It's Friday night and you don't want to go out. You just want to snuggle on the sofa with your honey with a few videos and some Orville Redenbacher's Sweet 'n Buttery Gourmet Popping Corn (the absolutely best popcorn on Earth, no contest).
So it's off to the video store, yes, one of life's great adventures. First you have to choose a video store. If they want blood and urine samples to rent, that's a bad choice of video store. If their foreign section is only one shelf, the sign says "F'ern," and the staff thinks Fellini makes pizza down the street, bad choice. If the employees are playing makeshift basketball with a mannequin head and a trash can on the counter, bad choice. If the movie posters in the window are for Titanic and Patch Adams and are bleached white from the sun, no. If they have a Jean Claude Van Damme section under 'drama,' uh uh. And if they have Moulin Rouge playing on the monitors, run, don't walk to the exit.
Once inside, how do you know what to look for? There are so many movies, literally thousands. Or more importantly, how do you know what not to look for?
First if you're at Blockbuster, avoid the staff picks at all costs. If these people knew anything about movies they wouldn't be working at Blockbuster, right? At any other store the staff picks might be worth a look.
The new movies, if there are more than five copies left, forget it. It sucks and obviously no one wants it, unless it's the first week it's out and the public at large doesn't know any better yet.
Ask other customers what to see. Don't ask the staff (unless you actually know them outside the store) because they'll say anything to get you to rent anything. It's their job, it's what they get paid to do. Other customers are in the same quandry you are and word of mouth is always the best recommendation (my opinions notwithstanding).
When walking through the store tapes with dust on them are usually bad choices. Now, when you find a tape hidden behind other tapes (especially those with dust on them) this is a good choice. Someone has hidden it so no one else can rent it and they're saving ot for next time. This is a winner.
Look for warning labels on the movies. For instance, avoid any films whose boxes carry words like "Adam Sandler," "Robin Williams," "Billy Crystal," Moulin Rouge or any movie with numbers after the title. Any thing that has Ebert & Roper giving a 'thumbs up' to is also a bad sign.
So remember: no staff picks, no dust, no Blockbuster and no Adam Sandler. Good luck!
Reprinted from the Project: Popcorn website at:
http://www.whitevioletpictures.com/popcorn/
Monday, October 14, 2002
Sweating 03: Batmania Vs. Supermanga
SWEATING THE SMALL STUFF 03
Batmania Vs. Supermanga
Reviewing: Secret Files & Origins To The DC Universe 2001-2002, Sugar and Spike Replica Edition #1, Birds of Prey #42, The Dark Knight Strikes Again, Batman: The 10-Cent Adventure, Superman #178, 182, Adventures
of Superman #603-605 and Ultiman Giant Annual #1
Copyright 2002 Glenn Walker
DC has been doing these Secret Files books for awhile, sometimes they're worth it, sometimes not. I'd have to say Secret Files & Origins To The DC Universe 2001-2002 was not. This was a commercial, and false advertising at that.
Let's just look at the cover. Superman (who at least looks like Superman, a rarity as we'll see below) appears in six panels in the lead story. Wonder Woman, two panels. Hawkman, the reason I bought it, was mentioned once and appeared barely in two panels. Saturn Girl, also two panels. Krypto, apparently the star of the book, six panels like his master. Azrael gets a vague non sequitor two page sequence. Orpheus, a new character gets a text piece - an ad for his new book basically. And Steel? Only on the cover. What a rip!
Inside the book we get a jumbled but touching story about a working couple who hardly have time for each other because their jobs have them each running around the DC universe. It's interspersed with mentions of various major plotlines going on in many DC books this past year. The highlight is a fictional movie ad for "Topeka" a movie made about the Worlds At War series that ran through the Superman books.
Then we have the blatant ads, the pin-ups and text pieces on upcoming series or books DC wants to push. Suicide Squad (already on the cancellation block), Haven, Doom Patrol (yes, another new Doom Patrol), Orpheus (a Bat spin-off I won't bother with cuz I don't want to buy the other fifty Bat-books to keep up), Power Company (actually quite good, but this dry text piece sure wouldn't have sold me on it), Josie Mac (also quite good but dry as well) and Legion which is completely unrecognizable to me as the Legion but makes sure to make itself inaccessible to new readers. Hmmmm, ads that don't work, another $4.95 down the drain, I think I won't be buying any more Secret Files.
To wash the sour taste of that one out of my mouth I also purchased the reprint of Sugar and Spike #1 originally published in 1956. This was a joy by the master Sheldon Mayer and worth every penny of $2.95. Why can't we have more comics like this?
Birds of Prey is a hot topic lately. It's been picked up as a series for the WB by the same people who do "Smallville." To be aired Wednesdays at 9:00 PM it will be in the future as "Smallville" is supposedly in the past. Also in common with "Smallville" the comics continuity is thrown out the window, in other words some of the characters in this show will have the same names as characters in the comics. The plot for the pilot has Batman (played by the actor from the OnStar commercials) fleeing Gotham City after the Joker (voiced but not performed by Mark Hamill) kills Catwoman and cripples Batgirl. Years later Batgirl, now a computer hacker tries to fight crime with help of two new female crusaders.
Casting for the moment has Dina Meyer (who was so hot in "Starship Troopers" and "Johnny Mnemonic") in the Oracle/Batgirl/Barbara Gordon, Rachel Skarsten as the telepathic (?) and teenage (??) Dinah Laurel Lance (not called Black Canary in the pilot but sources say her mother appears in later episodes and is referred to as Black Canary) and Ashley Scott ("A.I.", Fox's "Dark Angel") as the Huntress/Helena Kyle (reverting to the original comics continuity as the daughter of Batman and Catwoman). Recent casting changes have Sherilyn Fenn ("Twin Peaks"), who was to have played Dr. Harleen Quinzel who eventually becomes the Joker's companion Harley Quinn, having her scenes reshot and replaced by Mia Sara ("Ferris Bueller's Day Off", "Time Cop") because she could not commit to the series.
Now I don't follow the comics series because it's so tied up with the Bat-continuity and I don't want to buy fifty books a month for one story but I know enough to know the show certainly won't attract viewers to comics, they'll be hopelessly confused. The most recent BOP I picked up was #42 because of Power Girl.
I'm a big Power Girl fan mostly because of the Justice Society and the 1970s All Star Comics series. That said, this issue read and the horror of what's been done to the character in the intervening years I think the only writer that should be allowed near her is Paul Levitz. The story in this book, why Power Girl no longer works with Oracle, is good by Chuck Dixon (who should be pounded in the head for getting PG's secret identity wrong - it's Karen Starr, not Steele. Hello? What do these DC editors get paid for anyway?), it's just not my Power Girl.
As long as we're on the Bat-books, this summer welcomed the long-anticipated sequel to the classic The Dark Knight Returns by Frank Miller. I bought all three issues of The Dark Knight Strikes Again or DK2 at a tragic $7.95 each and am wondering who I see about getting it back. Who said we needed a sequel anyway? The original was just that, original. It had things to say, trends to set, unexplored territory to explore and talent to show off. Unfortunately I think Frank Miller (like Peter David and the Hulk in my last column) has said all he has to say about Batman and should quit while he's ahead. DK2 is drivel, and a waste of money - for me, for you and for DC cuz I'm sure Miller did not come cheap.
On the other side of the Bat-coin this summer was the Bruce Wayne: Murderer story arc running through all the books. I only picked up the first part; Batman: The 10-Cent Adventure. Ten cents… I find the marketing ploy rather curious considering most comics shops gave these away for free. It's a great story, the best Batman I've read in years, by Greg Rucka. You get the origin, the motivation, brings you up to date in continuity, springs a great cliffhanger to launch this summer's story arc and entertains as well. As interested as I am to find out what happens I just don't have the cash to buy all the Bat-books this summer to find out. Shame, cuz the start is terrific.
It was recently announced that Wolfgang Petersen, director of action films like "Air Force One", "The Perfect Storm", "Outbreak" and "In The Line of Fire", was online for preproduction of a film project called "Batman Vs. Superman". Sadly from interviews it seems the German director knows very little about these two great American icons. It will be based upon the old day vs. night, hero vs. anti-hero cliche which is from a script by the multi-talented Kevin Williamson ("Scream", "I Know What You Did Last Summer" and "Dawson's Creek") which is at least a good sign. Petersen wants to cast unknowns in the title roles rather than actors already established in the parts. It should be noted that there is also a "Batman Year One" (Darren Aronofsky), a live action "Batman Beyond" (Neil Stephenson) and a new "Superman" (McG) all in preproduction and unrelated to this project right now as well.
If we were to do a Batman Vs. Superman as far as comics quality this summer Bats would be the sure winner because the Superman books surely do suck. Over the past months the art has been turning more and more manga. Sorry this is not my Superman, he's not big eyes and cartoony exaggerated muscles. My Superman is Max Fleischer, Wayne Boring, Curt Swan, even John Byrne or Alex Ross but no how no way manga. If I want that crap I'll watch one of my videos or read Impulse. It ain't Superman.
With my thoughts on the deteriorating art stated I'm just going to review the writing on the following books. Superman #178 features a visit to Smallville (do I smell a marketing link here?) and the return of Quality Golden Age great Uncle Sam. Sam has been restored to his original form after a stint as the costumed Patriot (a biiiig mistake in my eyes) and engages Supes in a Marvel Comics style brawl for no apparent reason (shades of the Hulk and the Thing). Superman #182 has Supes saving Lois from various members of the newly-re-formed Suicide Squad (now this is a marketing ploy) like Killer Frost, Solomon Grundy (again? Wow, between the "Justice League" cartoon and the comics this has been one busy summer for old Grundy) and Deadshot. As with the Batman 10-Cent Adventure above both these books have great cliffhangers but are so continuity-heavy in the subplots it kills any desire to pick up the series regularly.
I also picked up Adventures of Superman #603-605 because I'm a sucker for the Crime Syndicate even if they're not the evil Justice League from Earth Three anymore. Crisis still burns me up, I was five when I was introduced to the concept of parallel Earths (Justice League of America #91 to be precise) and have never had a problem understanding it. I still maintain it was the idiot editors at DC who didn't do their jobs that were the morons who didn't understand it, not the readers. Jeez, how did anyone watch "Sliders" if it's such a hard goshdarn concept???
Post-Crisis the Crime Syndicate now hail from an anti-matter universe which of course makes even less sense than Earth Three thanks to the twisted mind of Grant Morrison (don't get me started…). Here again, the art… ick. Mirror Mirror is an appropriate title for this trilogy because the manga-ish art has turned into some dark twisted Bizarro version of manga - it hurts my head to look at it, let alone read it. Any coolness the story may have had was destroyed by the visuals. It will be a loooong time before I pick up another Super-book.
For us Superman purists at least there is still Big Bang Comics. These folks specialize in paying homage to the Golden Age and the Silver Age of comics. Their version of Superman, Ultiman, has the Ultiman Giant Annual on the shelves this summer. Set up like the DC 80-Page Giants of the 1960s we get a few Silver Age style stories of Ultiman, a Thundergirl (sort of Mary Marvel meets Supergirl), and a Blackjack and his Flying Aces (Silver Age DC Blackhawks). A great tribute to the comics of the sixties. Ahh, memories... definitely pick this one up.
reprinted from http://www.comicwidows.com
Batmania Vs. Supermanga
Reviewing: Secret Files & Origins To The DC Universe 2001-2002, Sugar and Spike Replica Edition #1, Birds of Prey #42, The Dark Knight Strikes Again, Batman: The 10-Cent Adventure, Superman #178, 182, Adventures
of Superman #603-605 and Ultiman Giant Annual #1
Copyright 2002 Glenn Walker
DC has been doing these Secret Files books for awhile, sometimes they're worth it, sometimes not. I'd have to say Secret Files & Origins To The DC Universe 2001-2002 was not. This was a commercial, and false advertising at that.
Let's just look at the cover. Superman (who at least looks like Superman, a rarity as we'll see below) appears in six panels in the lead story. Wonder Woman, two panels. Hawkman, the reason I bought it, was mentioned once and appeared barely in two panels. Saturn Girl, also two panels. Krypto, apparently the star of the book, six panels like his master. Azrael gets a vague non sequitor two page sequence. Orpheus, a new character gets a text piece - an ad for his new book basically. And Steel? Only on the cover. What a rip!
Inside the book we get a jumbled but touching story about a working couple who hardly have time for each other because their jobs have them each running around the DC universe. It's interspersed with mentions of various major plotlines going on in many DC books this past year. The highlight is a fictional movie ad for "Topeka" a movie made about the Worlds At War series that ran through the Superman books.
Then we have the blatant ads, the pin-ups and text pieces on upcoming series or books DC wants to push. Suicide Squad (already on the cancellation block), Haven, Doom Patrol (yes, another new Doom Patrol), Orpheus (a Bat spin-off I won't bother with cuz I don't want to buy the other fifty Bat-books to keep up), Power Company (actually quite good, but this dry text piece sure wouldn't have sold me on it), Josie Mac (also quite good but dry as well) and Legion which is completely unrecognizable to me as the Legion but makes sure to make itself inaccessible to new readers. Hmmmm, ads that don't work, another $4.95 down the drain, I think I won't be buying any more Secret Files.
To wash the sour taste of that one out of my mouth I also purchased the reprint of Sugar and Spike #1 originally published in 1956. This was a joy by the master Sheldon Mayer and worth every penny of $2.95. Why can't we have more comics like this?
Birds of Prey is a hot topic lately. It's been picked up as a series for the WB by the same people who do "Smallville." To be aired Wednesdays at 9:00 PM it will be in the future as "Smallville" is supposedly in the past. Also in common with "Smallville" the comics continuity is thrown out the window, in other words some of the characters in this show will have the same names as characters in the comics. The plot for the pilot has Batman (played by the actor from the OnStar commercials) fleeing Gotham City after the Joker (voiced but not performed by Mark Hamill) kills Catwoman and cripples Batgirl. Years later Batgirl, now a computer hacker tries to fight crime with help of two new female crusaders.
Casting for the moment has Dina Meyer (who was so hot in "Starship Troopers" and "Johnny Mnemonic") in the Oracle/Batgirl/Barbara Gordon, Rachel Skarsten as the telepathic (?) and teenage (??) Dinah Laurel Lance (not called Black Canary in the pilot but sources say her mother appears in later episodes and is referred to as Black Canary) and Ashley Scott ("A.I.", Fox's "Dark Angel") as the Huntress/Helena Kyle (reverting to the original comics continuity as the daughter of Batman and Catwoman). Recent casting changes have Sherilyn Fenn ("Twin Peaks"), who was to have played Dr. Harleen Quinzel who eventually becomes the Joker's companion Harley Quinn, having her scenes reshot and replaced by Mia Sara ("Ferris Bueller's Day Off", "Time Cop") because she could not commit to the series.
Now I don't follow the comics series because it's so tied up with the Bat-continuity and I don't want to buy fifty books a month for one story but I know enough to know the show certainly won't attract viewers to comics, they'll be hopelessly confused. The most recent BOP I picked up was #42 because of Power Girl.
I'm a big Power Girl fan mostly because of the Justice Society and the 1970s All Star Comics series. That said, this issue read and the horror of what's been done to the character in the intervening years I think the only writer that should be allowed near her is Paul Levitz. The story in this book, why Power Girl no longer works with Oracle, is good by Chuck Dixon (who should be pounded in the head for getting PG's secret identity wrong - it's Karen Starr, not Steele. Hello? What do these DC editors get paid for anyway?), it's just not my Power Girl.
As long as we're on the Bat-books, this summer welcomed the long-anticipated sequel to the classic The Dark Knight Returns by Frank Miller. I bought all three issues of The Dark Knight Strikes Again or DK2 at a tragic $7.95 each and am wondering who I see about getting it back. Who said we needed a sequel anyway? The original was just that, original. It had things to say, trends to set, unexplored territory to explore and talent to show off. Unfortunately I think Frank Miller (like Peter David and the Hulk in my last column) has said all he has to say about Batman and should quit while he's ahead. DK2 is drivel, and a waste of money - for me, for you and for DC cuz I'm sure Miller did not come cheap.
On the other side of the Bat-coin this summer was the Bruce Wayne: Murderer story arc running through all the books. I only picked up the first part; Batman: The 10-Cent Adventure. Ten cents… I find the marketing ploy rather curious considering most comics shops gave these away for free. It's a great story, the best Batman I've read in years, by Greg Rucka. You get the origin, the motivation, brings you up to date in continuity, springs a great cliffhanger to launch this summer's story arc and entertains as well. As interested as I am to find out what happens I just don't have the cash to buy all the Bat-books this summer to find out. Shame, cuz the start is terrific.
It was recently announced that Wolfgang Petersen, director of action films like "Air Force One", "The Perfect Storm", "Outbreak" and "In The Line of Fire", was online for preproduction of a film project called "Batman Vs. Superman". Sadly from interviews it seems the German director knows very little about these two great American icons. It will be based upon the old day vs. night, hero vs. anti-hero cliche which is from a script by the multi-talented Kevin Williamson ("Scream", "I Know What You Did Last Summer" and "Dawson's Creek") which is at least a good sign. Petersen wants to cast unknowns in the title roles rather than actors already established in the parts. It should be noted that there is also a "Batman Year One" (Darren Aronofsky), a live action "Batman Beyond" (Neil Stephenson) and a new "Superman" (McG) all in preproduction and unrelated to this project right now as well.
If we were to do a Batman Vs. Superman as far as comics quality this summer Bats would be the sure winner because the Superman books surely do suck. Over the past months the art has been turning more and more manga. Sorry this is not my Superman, he's not big eyes and cartoony exaggerated muscles. My Superman is Max Fleischer, Wayne Boring, Curt Swan, even John Byrne or Alex Ross but no how no way manga. If I want that crap I'll watch one of my videos or read Impulse. It ain't Superman.
With my thoughts on the deteriorating art stated I'm just going to review the writing on the following books. Superman #178 features a visit to Smallville (do I smell a marketing link here?) and the return of Quality Golden Age great Uncle Sam. Sam has been restored to his original form after a stint as the costumed Patriot (a biiiig mistake in my eyes) and engages Supes in a Marvel Comics style brawl for no apparent reason (shades of the Hulk and the Thing). Superman #182 has Supes saving Lois from various members of the newly-re-formed Suicide Squad (now this is a marketing ploy) like Killer Frost, Solomon Grundy (again? Wow, between the "Justice League" cartoon and the comics this has been one busy summer for old Grundy) and Deadshot. As with the Batman 10-Cent Adventure above both these books have great cliffhangers but are so continuity-heavy in the subplots it kills any desire to pick up the series regularly.
I also picked up Adventures of Superman #603-605 because I'm a sucker for the Crime Syndicate even if they're not the evil Justice League from Earth Three anymore. Crisis still burns me up, I was five when I was introduced to the concept of parallel Earths (Justice League of America #91 to be precise) and have never had a problem understanding it. I still maintain it was the idiot editors at DC who didn't do their jobs that were the morons who didn't understand it, not the readers. Jeez, how did anyone watch "Sliders" if it's such a hard goshdarn concept???
Post-Crisis the Crime Syndicate now hail from an anti-matter universe which of course makes even less sense than Earth Three thanks to the twisted mind of Grant Morrison (don't get me started…). Here again, the art… ick. Mirror Mirror is an appropriate title for this trilogy because the manga-ish art has turned into some dark twisted Bizarro version of manga - it hurts my head to look at it, let alone read it. Any coolness the story may have had was destroyed by the visuals. It will be a loooong time before I pick up another Super-book.
For us Superman purists at least there is still Big Bang Comics. These folks specialize in paying homage to the Golden Age and the Silver Age of comics. Their version of Superman, Ultiman, has the Ultiman Giant Annual on the shelves this summer. Set up like the DC 80-Page Giants of the 1960s we get a few Silver Age style stories of Ultiman, a Thundergirl (sort of Mary Marvel meets Supergirl), and a Blackjack and his Flying Aces (Silver Age DC Blackhawks). A great tribute to the comics of the sixties. Ahh, memories... definitely pick this one up.
reprinted from http://www.comicwidows.com
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