Winter Soldier: The Bitter March #1 Preview

Cinemagoers around the world will now be familiar with the name, The Winter Soldier thanks to the advertising for a certain Marvel sequel called Captain America: The Winter Soldier. Comic fans will already be familiar with the identity of the Soldier, and eagle eyed viewers of the trailer will have already pieced it together – he’s Bucky Barnes, Cap’s former (and once presumed dead) partner. It took years to tell the tale of Bucky’s resurrection in the comics thanks to scribe Ed Brubaker, but the film will hopefully cover it in entertaining fashion in two hours. There are still a lot of blanks in Barnes’ history though, and the February 12 debut of this 5 ish mini will cover some of them. Text-free preview below.

Bucky Barnes Strikes in WINTER SOLIDER: THE BITTER MARCH #1!

Bucky Barnes has been called many things – Avenger, Invader, and even Captain America. But to many, he’s known by only one name – The Winter Solider! A name that carries a bloody legacy reaching deep into the pages of history. And today Marvel is proud to present your first look at WINTER SOLDIER: THE BITTER MARCH #1 – a new limited series from blockbuster writer Rick Remender and fan-favorite artist Roland Boschi!

At the height of the Cold War, S.H.I.E.L.D. sends their top operative, agent Ran Shen, deep into enemy territory to retrieve two Nazi scientists that could be the key to winning the war. But they aren’t the only ones who want these high value scientists. The Soviet Union have unleashed their most ruthless agent – THE WINTER SOLDIER! His mission: acquire the scientists by any means necessary – or kill them before they fall into enemy hands!

“In the late 1960s, a S.H.I.E.L.D. mission gone wrong begat the creation of the Iron Nail, the foe whose schemes and strategies are bedeviling Captain America in the present in his own series,” says Marvel Executive Editor Tom Brevoort. “WINTER SOLDIER: THE BITTER MARCH tells the story of that fateful mission, and the events that set S.H.I.E.L.D. operative Ran Shen onto the path that would result in him becoming the dreaded Iron Nail.”

Don’t miss the intrigue, adventure, romance, and action in this high-octane, pulse pounding thriller that will have grave consequences for the life of modern day Captain America when WINTER SOLDIER: THE BITTER MARCH #1 hits comic shops this February!

WINTER SOLDIER: THE BITTER MARCH #1 (of 5) (DEC130640)

Written by RICK REMENDER

Art by ROLAND BOSCHI

Cover by ANDREW ROBINSON

Variant Cover by IN-HYUK LEE

Animal Variant by CHRIS ELIOPOULOS

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Batman TV Show Coming To Disc

The 1966-68 Batman TV series has a love it or hate it response from a lot of people. For many years, it has understandably been mocked and reviled by comics fans as it portrayed Batman as something he wasn’t – lighthearted and family friendly. It took years for the mainstream press to take comics seriously, without putting eye-rolling exclamations such as “Bam!” or “Pow!” in the headlines. That was mainly due to the Batman TV show starring Adam West (yes, the mayor on Family Guy) and Burt Ward as Batman and Robin respectively.

However, as we look back on it now, it has to be said that it did at least accomplish two things for the comics medium; 1. it brought the Dynamic Duo in to the public consciousness (the show was insanely popular at the time), and also allowed colourful villains such as The Joker, Catwoman, Penguin, and Riddler to become household names, and 2. it brought awareness to comics, with its animated intro sequence and speech balloons during its fight scenes.

Also, as much as jaded comics fans may hate to admit it, the comics of the Silver Age where as whacky as the TV show. Actually much more so, really. The ’50s and ’60s Batman comics were the only time in which The Dark Knight wasn’t the brooding, serious character we all know and love.

TV show host Conan O’Brien broke the news, which seems like an odd approach, but I guess Warner Bros. just couldn’t wait to get the news out. Many people have been waiting a long time to hear this news, but it’s been held up for years due to complicated rights issues. It’s not a total surprise though, as late last year the first wave of licensed goodies tied to the show such as action figures were made, and so was a new comic from DC set in the fun filled continuity of the TV show.

All the details we know for now is that the show in its entirety (all 120 episodes) will be released on presumably Blu-ray and DVD this year. We can expect official further details from Warner Bros. soon.

Conan O'Brien tweets Batman TV Series coming via WBHE

 

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Photo by Will Becton.