Monthly Archives: November 2016

Comic Gift Guide for the Geek in Your Life

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I’ve been reading a lot of comics (or graphic novels if you prefer) lately.  With the holidays right around the corner, this seemed like a good time to put together a little shopping list for the geek in your life.  I hope this list helps you find something for that comic lover in your life!

The Good Stuff – These are just really good

Marvel 1602 – I probably don’t need to say much more than this book is written by Neil Gaiman.  That alone tells you it’s great.  All your favorite Marvel characters, but set in Victorian England.  With plenty of intrigue and surprise, this is great for any comic lover.  You can order it on Amazon here: http://amzn.to/2fqLFsj

Superman Red Son – What if Superman had landed in Soviet Russia instead of the United States?  That’s the question this tale tries to answer.  The Man of Steel being in another country has a profound effect on the rest of the DC Universe.  Another great book.  Available on Amazon here: http://amzn.to/2gnHAas

House of M – When Wanda Maximoff, the Scarlet Witch, changes reality as we know it, the X-Men and the Avengers must team up to find a solution.  Another great “Alternate Reality” book.  Get it on Amazon here: http://amzn.to/2gj8Rgz

Avengers Vs. X-Men – Following the events of “House of M” (and a few others), we get this epic battle.  Who wouldn’t want to see various X-Men fighting various Avengers??  The battles are great in this entertaining book.  Available on Amazon here: http://amzn.to/2fTpWNB

Batman: The Killing Joke – One of the all-time greats.  The Joker is once again out to prove that the line between sanity and insanity is grey at best, and of course he brings Batman along for the ride.  This is a must-have for any comic fan.  Get it on Amazon here: http://amzn.to/2fTocnb

The Dark Knight Returns – Another classic.  An older Batman returns to fighting crime, and has to deal with opposition from crime-lords as well as the police and government.  You’ll see lots of inspiration here for modern DC movies.  Get the 30th Anniversary Edition on Amazon http://amzn.to/2gnK1tn

For the Marvel Cinematic Universe Fan

Civil War – This really belongs up above with the “Good Stuff” books, but this category seemed like a good spot for it too.  We’ve all seen “Captain America: Civil War” (and if you haven’t, what’s wrong with you? Get on it!), now read the inspiration.  The story is vaguely similar, with superheroes becoming government employees in order to help control them, and you do get Captain America Vs. Iron Man, but the overall outcome is much different.  Get it on Amazon here: http://amzn.to/2fqJHIj

Infinity Gauntlet – The Marvel movies have spent years building up to Thanos acquiring the Infinity Stones, which will culminate in 2019’s “Avengers Infinity War” but don’t let the name fool you, this is where you want to start.  This collection starts with Thanos getting the Infinity Stones and wiping out half the life in the universe.  It’s up to the Avengers and other heroes to come together to find a way to stop him.  Get “Infinity Gauntlet” on Amazon here: http://amzn.to/2fqNFk2

For the Horror Fan

The Walking Dead – Know a fan of AMC’s “The Walking Dead”?  Of course you do.  Probably the best spot to start is “The Walking Dead: Compendium One” which collects the first 48 issues of the comic.  Starting from the beginning of Rick’s saga, this is a great collection.  Get the Compendium on Amazon here: http://amzn.to/2gnO9te

Not sure that the full Compendium is what you want?  Get the first trade which includes the first 6-issues of “The Walking Dead”.  Get it here: http://amzn.to/2gi0U7H

American Vampire – Much like “Marvel 1602” above, I probably just have to say that Stephen King is involved with this one.  As America moves west and Hollywood grows bigger, the first of the American vampires is born (made?).  He’s not quite the same as the vampires of old.  This is an awesome book, a must for any horror fan.  Get “American Vampire” on Amazon here: http://amzn.to/2fqOA3Y

For the Man-Child in Your Life

Deadpool Kills the Marvel Universe – Come on, the series is called the “Killology”.  With the success of the “Deadpool” movie, fans will enjoy this one.  The character Deadpool isn’t exactly what we would call “stable.”  And this contributes to him setting off to kill all of the heroes and villains in the Marvel Universe.  Definitely not for kids!  Get it here http://amzn.to/2ftwvFI

Deadpool Kills…Everything – There are actually several series around Deadpool killing stuff.  “Night of the Living Deadpool” explores Deadpool during a zombie apocalypse.  “Deadpool Kills Deadpool” has, well, Deadpool killing other Deadpools.  And “Deadpool Killustrated” has Deadpool killing all kinds of literary characters (like Moby Dick).  Finally, “Deadpool Vs. Thanos” has Deadpool battling the Mad Titan, Thanos.  These are all lots of fun.  Note that the “Marvel Universe,” “Killustrated” and “Deadpool Kills Deadpool” make up the awesomely named “Killology”.

 

Bold Prediction: Rogue One: A Star Wars Story

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If you read my movie prediction on “Doctor Strange” then you know It was a bust.  But that’s not going to stop me from making my prediction on the upcoming “Rogue One: A Star Wars Story”.  My inspiration came from the most recent trailer.  If you haven’t seen it yet (what’s wrong with you??), here it is:


In this trailer, we see Jyn’s father, played by Mads Mikkelsen, apparently being taken away by the Empire, and forced to work on the design of the Death Star.  He makes the statement that “Whatever I do, I do it to protect you.”  So he’s going away peacefully in order to protect her, but that gives me the impression that he doesn’t support the empire.  Which leads me to my big prediction:

What could be happening?

What could be happening?

Since he is being forced to work on a superweapon that he does not support, I think the whole exhaust port leading directly to the outside of the Death Star….will be an intentional design flaw.  Although he is helping to design it, he’s going to build in a weakness, hoping it can be found and exploited.

So there it is.  Instead of a “critical design flaw,” it’s intentionally left there for the Rebels.  This immediately popped into my head when I saw that trailer, and I’m sticking with it.

Maybe this was intentional?

Maybe this was intentional?

So what do you think we will see in “Rogue One”?  Am I crazy with my theory?  Leave your thoughts in the comments below.

Movie Review: Dr. Strange

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Marvel’s “Doctor Strange” came out today, and I was able to catch an opening show last night.  This is your standard warning that this does include spoilers, so if you want to avoid that, stop reading now!

Doctor Strange

 

Let’s start with the special effects.  The visuals are stunning.  If you’ve seen the previews, that should be no surprise.  The best way I heard it was “Inception” on LSD.  The nice thing is that no matter how much is going on, it’s done in a way that you can still follow what is going on.

As for the story, although it’s a bit slow to get going (it is an origin story, after all), I really enjoyed it once things got going.  I found the good Doctor to be pretty obnoxious at the beginning, but I get that they had to build the character as an egotistical genius before his accident.  There were some pretty big jumps in time that you just had to accept, but overall I think this was handled well.

The biggest part I’ve been struggling with was toward the end.  In order to defeat his enemies, Strange goes to the Dark Dimension to bargain with Dormammu.  He essentially blackmails Dormammu into taking his enemies away.  After giving it some thought, I really enjoyed this.  Dr. Strange battles lots of enemies far more powerful than any human, and he has to use his intellect to find a way to beat them.  I think a lot of viewers who are used to the other Marvel Cinematic Universe films will be expecting a giant fight.  But Dr. Strange is no Thor, Iron Man or Captain America.  Which is a good thing.

I’m super glad that Marvel has brought Dr. Strange into the movie realm.  He will play a key role in the Avengers’ battle with Thanos, and I can’t wait.

Overall, I enjoyed this movie, and look forward to seeing more of him!

What did you think of “Doctor Strange”?  Leave your thoughts in the comments below.