7-11 Wolverine Mutant Berry Slurpee

Sweet.

Or maybe I should say tart. It was a bit on the sour side. Pretty tasty if you like berry. Thought I'd share a pic of the cup and the straw / toy.








Florence needs a 7-11.

You Can't Stop Crap!

In a recent interview with Stan Lee, when he was asked about current projects, the Disney superhero films came up, as well as some other stuff that's made the round in the news. (I'm sure you've heard about the Disney deal - I didn't realize the films had names: Tigress, Blaze, and Nick Ratchet - they sound like winners.)

What I didn't know about was the animated TV series he had planned with Paris Hilton. Or maybe I heard it and blocked it out.

He made Pamela Anderson into a supehero stripper. I cringe to think what he could do with Miss Hilton.

Newest Comic Book Movie Adaptation

The Onion never ceases to deliver. Check out this news clip about the upcoming Iron Man adaptation. Lets hope the film is as good as the trailer.


Wildly Popular 'Iron Man' Trailer To Be Adapted Into Full-Length Film

Premiers and Releases

I guess I haven't been paying much attention to the news wire...a ton of stuff has been happening. Now I've finally caught up and updated some dates and links to the right.

Batman: Gotham Knight is finally available by pre-order from Amazon.com.

The two short-lived series - WB's Birds of Prey (which I enjoyed) and TNT's Witchblade (which I never actually caught) - are both coming to DVD.

(Huh - apparently, July is a big month for comic adaptations - all three of these DVDs are out that month.)

Punisher: War Zone has been pushed back a few months.

And finally, everyone seems to be all excited about XIII coming to NBC. I realize NBC officially announced it on their winter line-up, but still - I think I heard about this a while back.

Superhero Movie Opening Weekend

It's Saturday night, I'm at Superhero Movie here in Florence, Alabama, the movie is about to start, and the theater is definitely not empty. I'm here. And in this poorly lit theater, you can see the only other person here - my brother, who I dragged here with me.

I'm guessing this doesn't bode well. We'll see.

I Can't Think of a Good Title for This Post

I guess it's been a couple weeks since I've posted. I was off of work for a few days for various reasons and "got to" to lay around and do nothing for a while, so I was able to catch a few films. Silver Hawk had been sitting on my DVR for a few weeks. My brother gave me Comic Book: The Movie for Christmas, so I finally watched that. And finally got to sit through Superman: Doomsday. Of course, I've been playing catch-up with work and life since.

Dang but Kevin Smith got a lot of mileage out of writing that Superman Lives script. Probably more than he would've gotten out of it if it was the script they actually used for Superman Returns. It came up in Comic Book: The Movie, and even as a weird cameo in Doomsday. But I think the funniest telling was in An Evening with Kevin Smith. That DVD's a bit raw, but if your ears can handle it, it's pretty funny.

Doomsday wasn't bad. I wouldn't go out and spend the money on it for myself, but I was lucky enough to have a friend who bought it and didn't like it, so he gave it to me. I'm not sure if it needed to be PG-13. It seems like they just added some gratuitous language and a suggested sexual relationship between Superman and Lois just so they could up the rating. If you haven't seen it, you didn't miss a lot. You already know what I think of Silver Hawk, and I still need to post my Comic Book: The Movie review.

Ah, well; I'm off to see Superhero Movie.

Here's hoping I laugh more than twice.

The Gene Generation

So, what's the deal with The Gene Generation? Is it going straight to DVD? When will I be able to see it?

But nearly as important, is it based on the comic The DNA Hacker Chronicles? Or is the comic just a prequel, and the story got cooked up because it's so cool to base movies on comics (er, graphic novels) right now?

I'm not here to spoil anyone's marketing campaign; I just love comic book movies and really want to get down to the truth - is the film based on a comic book? If it is, I'd like to see the source material - what was the original comic like?

The answer took a little work.

Bloodfire studios is publishing the comic The DNA Hacker Chronicles as a prequel to The Gene Generation. But they're saying it's a redesign of a a "cuberpunk comic" that was a "sold out underground hit". The problem is, I couldn't find a single reference to the "underground" comic anywhere on the internet - except in reference directly to the Gene Generation movie. Bloodfire Studios' web site (linked above) states, "Creator Pearry Teo is quoted saying 'I've held back the idea of re-releasing the comic book unless I can find an amazing slew of artists and cutting edge minded people to work with...'" So, according to them, Teo is the original creator of the underground comic. The Bloodfire Studios ComicSpace page notes that "The DNA Hacker Chronicles is a 6 issue mini series from the mind of Pearry Reginald Teo" and that with it, they are bringing to the U.S. the "...the underground comic sensation that inspired the movie The Gene Generation."

Hmmm...

The Gene Generation MySpace blog mentions the re-release of the comic through Diamond Comics. It also says the film is based on the The DNA Hacker Chronicles, showing a pic of Bloodfire's new release. It also gives this little blurb:

From grassroots beginnings, The Gene Generation started out through artists and friends and fans who have a similar vision: That Cyberpunk is still alive and kicking. With only a couple of sketches in 2004, we have come a long way to finally completing a feature film. This myspace page is a dedication to those who have stuck with us as we continue (without studio backing) to push forward in spreading the word about this humble project, both as a comic book and a movie.

Which doesn't tell me much - except maybe both projects started in parallel.

But maybe it's really underground. I couldn't find references on the author's (director's) MySpace page, I couldn't find anywhere that's selling back issues of the "sold out" comic. I mean, sure, maybe it was self-published and there were so few copies that it's extremely rare. But I would think that somewhere on the internet, as much information as gets posted about everything, that somebody would talk about it. Nothing in Google searches, nothing in Wikipedia, nothing on ComicSpace. Nothing concrete on any site related to the Gene Generation or DNA Hackers; just the aforementioned vague references to the sold out underground comic hit.

There are even some interviews that talk about how the movie came about. Teo talks about getting the script in this interview - nothing about a comic. And the interviews on this Gene Generation MySpace page don't allude to a comic book source either.

And finally paydirt. One of the stars of the film (Parry Shen) blogged in December that the comic was coming out in January "to strengthen the audience base for the movie." But the final nail in the coffin was reading on comic book artist Matt Olson's web site that he was working on a "comic adaptation of a feature film." The internet trail can be a funny thing. I found his site from his MySpace page. But I got to his MySpace page from another MySpace page, where he left the comment, "I have this other book series in the works called 'DNA Hacker Chronicles' in the meantime (not my idear but based on a movie) ".

So, it looks to me like Bloodfire Studios cooked up the story for a little publicity.

I think my work here is done.

I'm sorry if I bursted anyone's comic book movie bubble...

But if there is some sort of weird underground comic that came before - somebody please let me know.

The Surrogates

The year is 2054, and life has been reduced to a data feed. The fusing of virtual reality and cybernetics has ushered in the era of the personal surrogate, android substitutes that let users interact with the world without ever leaving their homes. It's a perfect world, and it's up to Detectives Harvey Greer and Pete Ford of the Metro Police Department to keep it that way. But to do so they’ll need to stop a techno-terrorist bent on returning society to a time when people lived their lives instead of merely experiencing them.

It's late, and I'm a bit tired, so instead of trying to come up with a description for The Surrogates, I dropped in Top Shelf's blurb for their first TPB. Variety reported last November that Bruce Willis had the starring role in Disney's film adaptation, and I'm adding it to Upcoming Films on the right because on Wednesday, they reported that Disney had set a release date.

It sounds like a great idea. If I remember correctly, Phantom Power had some positive things to say about the comic. Willis's comic book-related films seem to do better than his sci fi films. I wonder how a sci fi comic adaptation will fare. Let's hope this one is more like Unbreakable or Sin City, and less like Fifth Element or Armageddon.

Superhero Movie Trailer

Finally, a little info about Superhero Movie. Here's the trailer!

Superhero Movie


Good grief. Everything's on myspace these days. Here's hoping they didn't put all the funny parts in the trailer. Of course, I only laughed a couple times, so if they did, it doesn't bode well for the movie.

Largo Winch

Wow - it's shaping up to be a big year for French-language comics translated into film, and Google Translate is getting a workout on my computer (ok, I've forgotten the 3 years of French I had in high school and college). First it's the next Asterix movie in January, then the XIII: The Conspiracy translation of the Belgian comic, and now, another Belgian comic comes to the big screen - Largo Winch.

Actually, this is the first I'd heard of the comic - apparently, the comics debuted in 1990 (originally based on a failed series of novels from the 70s). Largo Winch was born in Yugoslavia, was orphaned at two, and adopted by a billionaire business owner to be his heir. From what I can tell from translating the main Largo Winch page (from French) and reading the (rather brief) Wikipedia entry, the comics follow Winch through his adventures protecting himself and his company from those that are after him and his money.

Comics2Film recently posted the debut of the teaser trailer (which led me down this research trail). It looks pretty good, and is slated for release this year on December 17. In France. I can't seem to find when it will be released in any other markets. So, here's to seeing Largo Winch on DVD sometime in 2009.

Oh; I've also posted the link to the production blog and main page to the right in it's original form. Here's the translation via Google Translate.

Comic Book Thesaurus

I'm holding onto the phrase comic book, but it seems there are new terms popping up everywhere. I think all of the comic book movies last year were based on graphic novels. And I read a new one yesterday in my wife's Redbook. (Hey - I just can't bring myself to leave my comics laying around in the bathroom.) It talked about how the animated film Persepolis was based on an illustrated autobiography. I hadn't heard that one before. Good grief, what's next? Should we start referring to our comics as "pictorial fiction"?

I'm sticking with comic book.

Not to detract from the fact that Persepolis does indeed look like an interesting, even socially relevant movie.

It got a limited release here in the States yesterday. Who knows if it'll come anywhere near here. Maybe if it gets good Oscar buzz. Here's a trailer if you haven't seen it.

The Reluctant (Super)Hero

I happened to see the trailer for Hancock, Will Smith's new superhero movie, when we went to see National Treasure today. Have you seen the trailer for it? It looks like it could be hilarious...but you never know with these kinds of things.

Check out the trailer below, or visit the site to the right.

rock and roll Superhero

Something else that I stumbled across - rock and roll Superhero.

Sounds like a fascinating documentary of the ups and downs of a rock band - and their experimentation with superheroes...

See more at the official website. This'll go on my Christmas list.

Confessions of a Superhero

It's funny how some movies can fly under the radar, so to speak.

I came across the documentary Confessions of a Superhero after stumbling across a post on the blog Comic Alliance. It's the story of Batman, Superman, Wonder Woman, and the Hulk - about 4 people who dress up daily as these superheroes as they try to make it in Hollywood.

I'll be picking this up when it comes out. Take a look at the website if you want to find out more.

Comic Book Movies - Investigative Research

It appears that Pathfinder is similar in it's genesis to The Fountain (which I still haven't seen, dadgummit). I heard recently that Pathfinder (recently released on DVD) was based on a Dark Horse comic. Lo and behold, I do an internet search, and a ton of sites came up saying the same thing. But it doesn't seem to be that simple. Keep searching, and a number of sites (including some info on IMDB), indicate that it's based on the 1987 movie Ofelas.

So what's the truth? Well, aside from discussions about whether or not we can actually know truth, it appears there's a bit in both. According to this article on Movies Online, the producers originally intended to do a remake of the 1987 film. They ended up meeting director Marcus Nispel and the movie took a bit of a different path, so to speak.

As Nispel took the film in a slightly different direction, he was having trouble getting it off the ground, and he describes in this interview with Coming Soon how he decided to make it into a comic, and soon after, the film was greenlit. While it appears there was some synergy between making the comic and making the film, it's not technically based on the comic. More like The Fountain, it was a movie with a troubled production that became a comic, but was finally released as a movie.

There...all better. I can sleep tonight, now that I've got my head wrapped around the unraveling of another comic book movie mystery.

Wristcutters: A Love Story

I guess this festival favorite finally found a release date.

This is pertinent, why?

Simply because Wristcutters: A Love Story is based on the short story Kneller's Happy Campers.

And...?

The graphic novel, Pizzeria Kamikaze was also based on that short story.

So, while it's not quite a comic book movie, Wristcutters almost makes it.

Terminator Homage in The Batman

Did anyone catch the homage to Terminator in The Batman last Saturday? At first I thought it was just a reference, but the more I look back at the movies, I think it may have been a conscious homage. Of course, we have Metallo - who kind of looks like the Terminator, anyway; but the one that jumped out at me was Robin's "Hasta la vista, baby!"


It wasn't until after I started looking at screencaps did their seem to be more than just the reference above. Maybe just a coincidence, but tell me these look like an accident...


And the spoiler-filled final moments of both:

"This isn't good. Yeah...definitely not good."

Ironically, while Flash Gordon was laying in his torture chair, saying these words, I was watching the pilot of this new Scif Fi series, thinking the same thing.

I don't know - it just seemed a bit hokey. Bad acting, poor dialogue. Kind of like a poorly made 80s scif fi film. But it definitely doesn't have the heart of the 1980 incarnation. They are trying to put that feel into it. The commercials for the show look much better than the pilot - and feature a remake of the Queen Flash Gordon theme song. (But I do love how they advertised the Flash Gordon (Saviour Of The Universe Edition) DVD during the show.)

This isn't the only crappy new comic-book-related Sci Fi Channel premier in the last couple of weeks. Stan is once again showing the world how stupid comic books can be. Who Wants to Be a Superhero? season 2 has started, and it looks like it's going to be the same insipid reality show as last time. The thing is, it has a lot of potential. It just seems like whoever is the creative brains behind the show is just going to be stuck writing Stan's corny "comic book" dialogue.

I still can't believe Hygena (Fighting Grime and Crime!) is the name of a superhero that made it onto the show.

Hmmm...right now I'm watching the second episode of the season and Stan just told one of the superheroes, "No one takes a superhero seriously without his pants on." I think no one who sees this show will ever take comic books seriously...

I've got all the answers.

Well, the world's most over-rated comics creator has given his advice to all the screenwriters and directors out there on how to make a good comic book movie.

Stan Lee's 10 Rules on How to Make a Good Comics Movie is only one part of movies.com's POW! A Complete Guide to Comics & the Movies (presented, of course, by Who Wants to Be a Superhero). Most of them actually kind of make sense, but after such celebrated hits as Stripperella and Lightspeed, I'm sure everyone's knocking down Lee's door to find out his secrets on adapting comics and superheroes into other media. C'mon Stan - maybe you should follow some of your own advice. 'Nuff said.

While you're there, take the quiz. I got a crappy 10/12 right. Maybe I should relinquish my blog...

Spider-Man 4

This was stupid, but it made me laugh.