Black Panther, Red Sonja and FF Minus One

The Black Panther motion comic has been on DVD here in Australia since the 1st of December last year, but for some reason other countries haven’t had that privilege until now. The 6 episodes briefly premiered on iTunes before disappearing, but now the DVD is out collecting all the episodes based on the Reginald Hudlin/John Romita Jr. comic story. See if it was worth the wait here.

Jen Van Meter is writing a 40 page Red Sonja one-shot for Dynamite that arrives in April. It’s a surprising choice for the writer of Hopeless Savages and Black Lightning: Year One, but it should be worth a purchase, even though the title seems a bit odd.

Written by Jen Van Meter and drawn by Edgar Salazar, the Red Sonja: Break the Skin one-shot is a must-read!  In the story hitting comic shops this coming April, it looked like such a simple job: Zepur, a princess of the nomadic Talakma Horsemen, sought Sonja’s sword to defeat an unwelcome suitor and his army. When Sonja discovers she’s led her mercenary band into the middle of a bitter and vicious rivalry for leadership of Zepur’s clan, she’s got to figure out who’s lying to her the least, which promises she can keep, and how to fight the soul-eating avatar of an angry ape god.

“It had been awhile since I’d gotten the opportunity to write a character like Sonja–an unapologetic badass who answers to little outside herself–so I dove into this gleefully,” says writer Jen Van Meter.  “Red Sonja: Break the Skin is my effort to really look at her mercenary, sword-for-hire life in a world in which  the lies and political machinations that are handled comparatively cleanly in other genres are visceral and passionate and immediate, and in which angry gods are active players who can be manifest, grotesque and cruel.  The great thing about Sonja, to me, is that she feels like a lone gunslinger and a wild-eyed pirate captain at the same time; there’s tons of charisma, lusty bravado and brazen ego there, alongside this wonderfully quiet isolation.  There aren’t a lot of female characters who have both those modes available to them so readily, so it’s been a real delight to write her.”

Writer Jonathan Hickman talks about the death in this week’s issue of Fantastic Four. I won’t mention who it is, unlike the mainstream press.

Sticking with Marvel super teams, you can see two more full episodes for free of the new Avengers: Earth’s Mightiest Heroes! cartoon, focusing on Hawkeye, Captain America and Black Widow. I assume it only works if you’re a U.S resident though as it won’t work for me, alas.

Takio Preview

Writer Brian Michael Bendis and artist Mike Avon Oeming got their big break around the same time with their work on Powers. Now they’re reuniting for an all-ages OGN due for release in March. Details and preview below.

Your New Look At Bendis and Oeming’s TAKIO!

On March 2nd, the powerhouse creative team of writer Brian Michael Bendis and artist Michael Avon Oeming, take the comics industry by storm with their first all-ages graphic novel – TAKIO! When two sisters from a multiracial, adoptive family drive one another to the brink of insanity, is there anything that can bring them together? Well after a one-of-a-kind, once-in-a-lifetime accident gives them real-life superpowers; the world’s first superheroes will be closer than ever! Perfect for comic fans of any age, Takio brings together Bendis’ acclaimed trademark dialog with Oeming’s fan-favorite art style for an action packed adventure like no other!

With its release right around the corner, the masterminds behind Takio are teeming with enthusiasm!

“As exciting as it was to stretch my writing muscles and help create this new modern all ages superhero world, I am most excited for people to see a new side to the entire Powers crew,” explains writer Brian Michael Bendis. “This book is so good looking.”

Artist Michael Oeming adds “This has been an exciting adventure for me, drawing and creating with my extended family has added a whole new dimension to our work. One of the best times I’ve ever had making comics.”

Can these two sisters put aside their differences, save the world and be home in time for dinner? Be sure to get in on the ground floor for the graphic novel that will have everybody talking, as Takio hits stores everywhere this March!

TAKIO GN HC (DEC100634)

Written by BRIAN MICHAEL BENDIS

Pencils and Cover by MICHAEL AVON OEMING

All Ages …$9.95

FOC – 2/7/11, On Sale – 3/2/11

Frozen Review

Just a quick one to say that this film is great and you should see it. There’s been far too many bad thriller/horror films out in the last few years, but occasionally a stripped down, surprising one will stand out, such as Open Water, Descent and this little beauty. Apart from Shawn Ashmore (Iceman from the X-Men trilogy), there are’t any recognisable actors, though all 3 of the main cast, which includes Emma Bell and Kevin Zegers do a great job. It almost veers towards laughable territory thanks to the frequent hysterics, but the characters (two lovers, and his best mate) are well rounded and sympathetic.

Having the 3 stuck on an abandoned ski lift for the majority of a film sounds like a boring premise, but writer/director Adam Green (Hatchet) does a superb job of keeping the plot diverse, throwing in enough elements such as humorous pop culture references, almost rescues and some hungry wolves that you won’t know what to expect, and I was certainly surprised by Green’s harsh treatment of his characters, considering there’s only 3 of them. Frozen is suspenseful and very entertaining and goes to show how a well crafted film can be made from such a basic concept.

Check the trailer out below and the film out now.

Craig Thompson’s Habibi on September 20

The creator of that marvellous tome, 2003’s Blankets, Craig Thompson is readying his new project, Habibi. It lands on September 20. Yes, it’s been a while between drinks but anyone who’s seen the intricate style (in both art and story) of Blankets knows that his time consuming renderings are worth the wait. The 672 page book will be published by Pantheon and feature clothbound hard cover with stamped gold foil. The big pic below is the final cover, and next to it are some that didn’t make the cut.

For me, (and many, many others) Blankets was a real eye opener and revealed to me the wonder of non-superhero comics. I have lent it, bought it and recommended it to many non-comics readers in the years since, and will surely do the same with Habibi.

Extra Sequential #24-Talking Animals

75 mins. Our anthropomorphic special. That’s talking animals and we talk about  a wide variety of comics containing them. Also – Spock, corporate branding, bell bottoms and annoying movie scores.

LISTEN TO IT BELOW, DOWNLOAD IT HERE, ON ITUNES OR MIXCLOUD

2:37 NEWS

Pics of the Spider-Man, and Captain America films. X-Men: First Class and Priest too. Also, the WAI-CON anime convention in Perth.

12:45 WHAT WE’VE BEEN READING

Viking collection from Ivan Brandon and Nic Klein. Large format old timey action.

Casanova Vol. 1. Spies, multiple dimensions and hip zaniness from Matt Fraction and Gabriel Ba.

The Infinite Vacation #1 from Nick Spencer and Christian Ward.  Handy, though dangerous iPhone application that allows you to buy and sell alternate universe lives of yourself.

Star Trek New Frontier Book One. A novel by prolific scribe Peter David.

30:15 ANTHROPOMORPHIC READING LIST

Early Mickey Mouse from Floyd Gottfredson

Lions, Tigers and Bears

Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles

Cerebus

Elephantmen

Elmer

WE3

Maus

Blacksad

Sam and Max

and more!

WEBSITE OF THE WEEK (Yes, it’s been a while)

Lackadaisy

Bane and Catwoman in Batman 3

So the dust of casting rumours has settled and now the facts can be revealed. Anne Hathaway is playing Selina Kyle and Tom Hardy is playing Bane in the third and final Batman film from Christopher Nolan, entitled The Dark Knight Rises. Both are interesting choices.

Hathaway has shown more light hearted humour in her roles rather than the darkness that the former prostitute and inconsistent flame of Bruce Wayne requires, but we don’t know what Nolan’s version of the femme feline fatale will be. The press release from Warner Bros. notes that she’s playing Selina Kyle, not Catwoman, so she may not leather up and grab her whip, but Aaron Eckhart was only ever credited as Harvey Dent, not Two Face in 2008’s The Dark Knight, so we could be in for a nice surprise when TDKR opens on July next year.

Tom Hardy starred in Nolan’s Inception (and as the bad Picard clone in Star Trek: Nemesis) and bulked up considerably for crime drama Bronson, so playing Bane is a good choice. Everyone expected Hardy to play doctor Hugo Strange, not Bane though, but I am curious to see what they do with the character who broke Batman’s back in the awesome KnightFall saga in the early ’90s. Bane is a master strategist and the most recent comics supervillain to show up in these films and is a pivotal one in Batman’s history, and it’ll be good for the Dark Knight to have a bad guy to match his strength and dedication on screen. More than just a forgotten character from the ’90s period, Bane has shown up as a multi-faceted character in Secret Six, showing honour and surprising concern for his fellow crims.

Being as this is the final film in this trilogy, it’ll be interesting to see Batman’s arc. Things left off in the last film with Batman taking the fall for Dent’s death and being labelled a rebel. Will Bruce now retire and marry Selina? Will Batman have his back broken by Bane? Or will Bane even replace Batman as Gotham’s law enforcer?

Hulk #30 Preview

Ed McGuiness draws bulging muscles and bombastic, powerhouse battles like no-one else, and now he’s returning to Hulk. Details, and rare preview pages with text, below.

Ed McGuinness returns to HULK!

Marvel is pleased to present your first look at HULK #30, as superstar artist Ed McGuinness returns to the book he helped create and joins red hot writer Jeff Parker for the gamma-irradiated team-up you never thought you’d see! That’s right, the Green Goliath and the rampaging Red Hulk must put aside their differences to take on a threat so massive it’ll take the both of them to put a stop to it. The Earth will shake as the COMPOUND HULK makes its shocking debut!

“Thanks to his amazing run with Jeph Loeb, Ed’s become THE definitive Hulk artist of our time,” said Senior Editor Mark Paniccia. “HULK #30 is pure McGuinness madness, introducing new characters that are bound to be instant classics, and some Hulk villains that fans have been frothing for. All this and the Impossible Man, too.”

Prepare for an action-packed, gamma-fueled beat down that only the combined might of two Hulks can deliver in HULK #30, on sale this February!

HULK #30 (DEC100576)

Written by JEFF PARKER

Pencils and Cover by ED McGUINNESS

T+…$3.99

FOC 1/24/11, On-Sale 2/16/11

A Bunch of Broken Frontier Stuff

There’s a few things up at Broken Frontier now with my name on them, including my review of an Aussie anthology, my interview with Lions, Tigers and Bears and The Phantom writer Mike Bullock and finally the latest issue of The Frontiersman.

The Mighty Thor by Fraction and Coipel

Thor is the man of the hour, or the year, and now has a new title. At least this series has promise, thanks to its creative team though. Here’s the skinny, and the two covers including a film focused one and an even better variant from artist Travis Charest. Artist Oliver Coipel helped relaunch Thor back in 2007 with a new series with writer J. Michael Straczynski, and Matt Fraction has been writing the current Thor series for a while. However that series will now be renamed Journey into Mystery, (by Kieron Gillen and Doug Braithwaite) the series that debuted Thor decades ago. Poor Thor. He’s getting shuffled around all over the place, just to make the most of becoming a movie star. Fair enough really. Find out more here.

Marvel Announces THE MIGHTY THOR By Fraction & Coipel

Prepare yourselves for a new Asgardian age with The Mighty Thor #1! In this all new ongoing series, from the superstar creative team of Matt Fraction and Olivier Coipel, Thor must defend his homeworld of Asgard from Galactus! When Thor and Sif retrieve an artifact from deep within the World Tree, nobody expected the Silver Surfer to show up. And where the Sentinel of the Spaceways travels, Galactus is sure to follow! It’s the World Eater vs. Asgard in the explosive opening arc that’s great for new readers! No fan can miss this monumental new series that will redefine what it means to be the Odinson!

“The God of Thunder ain’t never been mightier than now!” exclaims writer Matt Fraction. “Everything is going beyond-epic in The Mighty Thor and I couldn’t be more thrilled to have Olivier onboard for the book’s maiden voyage. Look up – think big – fight hard!”

“It’s a really exciting time to be working on Thor. A lot of things that have been developing over the last few months are about to come to fruition in a big way—and in a way that’s going to affect not only all of Asgard, but all of the Marvel U,” said Marvel Editor Charlie Beckerman. “With the release of Marvel Studios’ Thor this May, we wanted to be sure that we pulled out all the big guns. And I’m talking talent—Matt, Olivier, Mark and Laura—and I’m talking characters: I can’t say exactly who’s going to show up, but I will say that it will knock your socks clear off.”

The fate of the golden city of Asgard, the wonder of the nine realms, hangs in the balance and only Thor can ensure the survival of the Asgardians! What does the World Eater seek and what terrible outcome awaits the Mighty Avenger? Discover the answers you seek as Fraction and Coipel pull out all the stops in The Mighty Thor!

THE MIGHTY THOR #1

Written by MATT FRACTION

Pencils & Cover by OLIVIER COIPEL

Variant Cover by TRAVIS CHAREST

Variant Cover by WALT SIMONSON

Blank Variant Cover also available

Thor Movie Variant also available

Rated T+ …$3.99

ON SALE IN APRIL!

Great Supergirl Gallery

Supergirl has had perhaps more incarnations than any other comics character, all with different visual interpretations. Abduzeedo have a nifty post on the character with pics from different artists, centred on the current incarnation of the classic superheroine – Kara Zor-El, Superman’s cousin.

 

Infinite Vacation #1 Review

Image Comics is on a roll lately, with some stand out new series that have flown off shelves and garnered much interest even before their release. Of their recent string of successes, I’ve only read Chew #1 but liked it, it did take me a while to warm up to the charms of Skullkickers, 27 was an interesting idea but not enough of one to keep me coming back, and Who Is Jake Ellis? was a clear fave. Infinite Vacation from Nick Spencer (writer of another popular Image series Morning Glories) and artist Christian Ward (Olympus) is the latest title to generate buzz.

It’s apparent why that would be the case, with its central concept being so attractive. The notion of alternate universes has been a popular one in sci-fi and comics for a long time, and to take that idea and put it in the hands of today’s techno loving populace is a grand one. For the most part, it works here.

Basically, red headed Mark makes the most of this possibility, like 97% of the population, to buy and sell alternate versions of their own lives. After recounting a few horror stories where his other lives didn’t end up like he’d hoped, Mark remarks that whatever life he chooses, it always ends the same, with a dead-end job, failed relationship and boredom. As an everyman hoping for more from life and craving it like an obsessive, Mark’s a good central character, though in this first issue he primarily serves as the personification of exposition. It’s understandable that Spencer would want to make the protagonist’s life relatable, but so far he seems more like an alt-universe junkie than a well rounded, sympathetic figure.

Early in this issue there’s a 4 page sequence using photographs that shows a sleazy salesman pitching the Infinite Vacation application. It looks good and is a novel visual idea, but it’s in a comic that is already filled with such, thanks to Ward’s dazzling art, which renders this photo explanation unnecessary.

Those who’ve read Olympus, or checked out Ward’s site know what he’s capable of and his work stands out in a welcome way. This is the kind of trippy story filled with potential that allows an artist of Ward’s loose layouts and experimentation with design to take this comic and make it even better, in much the same way J.H Williams III and Jonathan Hickman (the artist) do.

The concept of all the alternate Marks slowly dying and “our” Mark’s investigation into why makes what could’ve been a flat, easily throw-away idea into something well rounded and filled with intrigue. Ideas such as other Marks being his own therapist and technical support consultant are just awesome, as is one scene where Mark is bidding on a world in which a lovely lady at a cafe stays a little longer for a chat. It’s a shame the script and the lettering is out of synch on the exact price though, but that’s a minor detail.

In what could well be the deserved next big thing, Infinite Vacation is off to a pretty good start, but to keep the momentum, deeper issues about the interaction between technology, fate and responsibility will have to be addressed.

X-Men: Legacy #245 Preview

The first chapter of the new epic, Age of X appears in February’s issue of X-Men: Legacy. Text-free preview below.

Your First Look at AGE OF X: CHAPTER ONE!

Marvel is pleased to present your first look at X-Men: Legacy #245, from writer Mike Carey and artist Clay Mann! Slam headlong into the landmark first chapter of Age of X! Mutantkind has been purged from the very face of the earth and its eradication wasn’t an accident…it was government policy. But just who are the unlikely survivors of this grim future…and do they dare announce their existence to a world that fears and hates them? The pulse-pounding X-saga kicks off this February, only in X-Men: Legacy #245!

X-MEN: LEGACY #245 (DEC100623)

X-MEN: LEGACY #245 FF ANNIVERSARY VARIANT (DEC100541)

Written by MIKE CAREY

Pencils by CLAY MANN

Cover by LEINIL YU

Fantastic Four Anniversary Variant by PAOLO RIVERA

Rated A…..$2.99

FOC – 2/1/11, On-Sale 2/23/11

Episode 23-Star Wars, Alan Moore and Stuff

59 mins. Our most rambling episode yet in which we hardly yak about comics, but do talk about all the different versions of Star Wars, and the good years of The Simpsons, plus wearing scarves, Johnny Mnemonic, Cheers, crying at Spock’s death, Liz Hurley and more ramblonic nonsense.

LISTEN TO IT BELOW, DOWNLOAD HERE, OR ON ITUNES OR MIXCLOUD

1:45 NEWS

Star Wars on Blu-Ray in September, writer Neil Gaiman as himself on The Simpsons, the Batman teen toon that could’ve been in Gotham High, casting truth for Judge Dredd and casting rumours for Dark Knight Rises.

23:15 WHAT WE’VE BEEN READING

Steel #1, zombies in the Wild West series Rotten, and the classic run on Swamp Thing from Alan Moore and Stephen Bissette.

41:50 FEATURE DISCUSSION

It’s the battle of the beards as writer Alan Moore vs writer Jason Aaron. Actually they don’t fight as such, but Aaron talks about a recent Moore interview and then we dissect it as only geeks can.

We finish by talking about Star Wars games and podcaster vanity.

Four Infinite Vacation Teaser Images

For the last week Image Comics have been releasing a series of images promoting Infinite Vacation, the first issue of which is out now, from writer Nick Spencer and artist Christian Ward. Below are all 4 of those teaser images. If that’s not enough, go here for a 15 page preview.