Tim, I finally saw Sin City what a cool flick? I hate to say it, but I don’t know if Batman Begins can top that.
Hmm…well, stylistically, I think not. And in terms of being a pure reflection of the comic, also no. As a piece of “film” though, it very well could. Before everyone loses their mind, allow me to explain. Sin City is, in essence, a recreation of the comics in a new medium. There is nothing “new” in it when comparing it to the source material. That’s bold and it certainly worked in this case. However, from a film snob standpoint, its a bit disappointing. The filmmaker isn’t saying anything “personal” with the project. It is less a film and more a slavish recreation. Again, that doesn’t make it bad (because it wasn’t) but the film minor in me feels the need to differentiate between the two.
To illuminate it from the other direction, take Stanley Kubrick’s The Shining. As a reflection of the book, it is a bit of a disaster. (So much so that Stephen King won’t talk about it beyond saying, “I think Stanley was looking to hurt someone with that movie). However, as a “film” adaptation, it is an utter success (according to most). So, in conclusion to my long winded dissertation, there is still some grounds on which Batman can best Sin City.
End Transmission.
Let’s jump to…
LINKS
Don’t be a snob, check out the Marvel message board and the Other Comics board too.
Music rocks.
Movies has plenty of news.
Games has previews!
Sports has commentary.
TV has spoilers.
Figures has peeks.
Moodspins has personality.
Tim, what are you linking this week?
Whatever I damn well please!
Which happens to be:
First, there is a brand new column that debuts today all about the world of web comics. It is written by Diner Talk contributor Bill Ellis and is going to be a smart, funny, sarcastic, interesting look at comics that most of us are not aware of. Please check out the first column today and then brand new ones on its regularly scheduled day: Saturdays, every week.
On the veteran side of things, Matt Morrison makes like he wants Mathan and I’s job by giving us the rundown on the real Donna Troy. And trust me, it ain’t pretty.
Read Last Week
Adam Strange #7 – This is an action packed ride. I’m surprised I like this book so much. But this issue has plenty of answers.
Nightwing #107 – Bold new direction. Give this issue a try if you’re curious about the character.
If you can get past the “yous” and “fuggedaboutit” (or however they spell that) this is a good issue and I am loving the art team. I just hope that the gangsters become a little less stereotypical in their speech as time goes on.
Green Arrow #49 – Eh, I’m not a huge fan of Battle’s art. But the story is pretty good. That last page was a shocker.
JSA #72 – Wow. This was a fun arc. I appreciated the Huntress reference.
Bloodhound #10 – Boo. What a bad ending. I wish Jolley had wrapped something up. Boo.
I wouldn’t go so far as to play the “boo” card, but yeah, I was disappointed that this book ended so abruptly as well.
Breach #4 – I love Marin and Lopez’s art. The story is good, but art is my favorite part of the book.
I’ll second that love of the art. Chiang-esque, no?
Black Panther #3 Review forthcoming.
Why…that’s not a DC book at all!
Action Comics #826 Read my review.
Sadly no one placed the lyric at the close of the column. Boo.
Brad B. is easy like Sunday morning and that’s why he takes the plate first with this softball:
Just finished Lex Luthor: Man of Steel #1 (MUCH better offering from Azzarello than his confusing Superman run!) and Countdown to Infinite Crisis. Luthor’s in as good a form as he’s ever been, but how the hell did he get out of jail? Didn’t he get removed from office and imprisoned in the pages of Superman/Batman?
Well I wouldn’t say he was “removed from office” so much as “he went on a Green K induced rampage, donning some oddly familiar green and purple battle armor and attempted to smear Superman’s name and body, and Batman’s too.”
Lex went a bit loony at the end of the first Superman/Batman arc. He was drunk on power and a bit Green Kryptonite that he had injected in himself. He was defeated, but not imprisoned. He was “presumed dead” but Bats and Supes were skeptical since no body was found.
In fact Lex had survived the his bout and was last seen crawling from the wreckage of the battle, blabbering about a “Crisis” way back in Superman/Batman #6. It was that utterance all those many months ago that got the comic community all abuzz regarding an upcoming “crisis” in the DCU.
As it turned out, the DCU’s had a couple of crises; first Identity Crisis and later this year Infinite Crisis.
But to answer your question; Lex hasn’t been in jail since being President.
Tim, how do you prefer your Lex; Commander in Chief of Criminal Mastermind?
Commander-in-Chief, Billionaire Industrialist, and Criminal Mastermind all suit me fine. What doesn’t is “kryptonite injecting lunatic”, “battle suit wearing crazy man”, “just generally bat$h!+ insane”, or “man who makes out with Amanda Waller”. All of those characterizations I can do with out. How did Loeb go from getting Luthor so right to getting him so wrong?
Gaz is blinded by the Light and needs a guide.
Anyway, my question for Who’s Who is this – who are all the Doctor Lights, and where are they all now? Im aware that there may have been up to 5 people using that name in the DCU, both hero and villian.
Is the Teen Titans villian, and retro-attacker of Sue Dibny, Doctor Light I? Is he the same guy who is part of Lex Luthor’s Injustice Gang in JLA: Rocks of Ages? (and if so why does he look so different?)
What about Kimyo Hoshi, the JLE member (and one time leader) – what number is she? And who is Doctor Light IV??
Are all their powers pretty much the same?
We answered a similar question a few months ago, but we only focused on the two best known Doctor Lights. There were, in fact, two before them.
There was indeed a Doctor Light I before Arthur Light. The original Doctor Light was a foe of Doctor Mid-nite, but he’s not been seen lately.
There was indeed a Doctor Light II before Arthur Light. Doctor Light II was a guy by the name of Jacob Finlay. He was a scientist at S.T.A.R. Labs and was research partners with Arthur Light. While they worked well with each other they also kept secrets from each other.
This was probably wise on the part of Jacob, especially since Arthur was selling secrets to a rival company. Jacob was actually using his time to develop a suit full of light powers and create the heroic identity of Dr. Light. One night Dr. Light stopped Arthur from stealing from S.T.A.R.. But the hero didn’t turn Arthur in, out of misguided loyalty.
Arthur deduced that Jacob was Dr. Light. But before the two could have a talk, Jacob was killed by one of the lasers they were working on. Jacob died, but continued to haunt Arthur, because he blamed his partner for his death. Arthur was so troubled by one of these haunting that he stumbled about and actually discovered Jacob’s hidden Light suit.
Arthur Light clearly a man of low moral fiber decided to use the suit for a life of crime. And thus he became Doctor Light III.
Doctor Light III is indeed the violator of Sue Dibny and punching bag of the Teen Titans. He’s also the guy was part of Lex Luthor’s Injustice Gang. He even popped up in Green Lantern during Final Night.
Arthur Light is the Doctor Light that most people are familiar with.
During Crisis on Infinite Earths Doctor Kimiyo Hoshi was looking at the stars, when she was empowered with light abilities, taking the name Doctor Light (IV). She was a member of the JLI, but has decided to put the hero biz on the backburner in order to spend more time with her family. She is a single mother after all.
Doctor Light III initially got his abilities from his suit but has since internalized his abilities. He’s also become living light. His powers since his recovering from his mindwipe haven’t been catalogued, but he did some nifty things in the most recent issue of Teen Titans implying that he has the ability to control all manner of light; including Superboy’s heat vision and Wonder Girl’s god sent lightning.
Doctor Light IV could absorb light. She could then expel that light in different forms from lasers to bright flashes. She could also create illusions and fly. She did lack the “aura” that most flying heroes have, which meant wind resistance could affect her.
Tim, do you think any of the other Doctor Lights will ever see the light of day now that Arthur Light has become such a major heavy?
Highly doubtful. Of all of them, I’d give numero cuatro the highest likelihood of making an upcoming appearance. But I expect that would only be for the purposes of Dr. Light the third slaying her for being a “pretender”. Thus, I hope she stays on the down low, for her own and her kid’s sake.
Glen D’s got a thing for obscure rides.
What is the status of the Supermobile?
Dude! I had one of those. They rocked, young Mathan loved his Supermobile.
For those of you not in the know, there was a brief time, a long time ago (I’m talking Pre-Crisis) when Superman lost his powers. What was a Silver Age Superman to do with no powers and an entire city to protect? Why build a Supermobile to help him battle crime.
It looked just like this; Superman’s Supermobile!.
This cool whip appeared in Action Comics #480 in a storyline where Superman’s abilities are cut in half due to the energy from an exploding red son. That same energy wakes up Amazo. Superman tries to fight Amazo, but since his power is diminished he decides to create the Supermobile to help him do it.
The Supermobile could shoot beams that would function just like his vision powers. It was also capable of flight, and had “arms” as you could see. Did I mention that it was made out of Supermanium?
Basically it was concept introduced to the comics to give the Superman Toy Car line a cool looking vehicle to go alongside the rather dull “Daily Planet Deliver Truck” toy car.
Tim, Batman gets all the attention with is Batmobile, but wouldn’t you really rather have the Supermobile?
What answer can I give that would ensure that we never ever discuss this ridiculous vehicle again?
Sheesh…and Spider-Man’s embarrassed by his buggy. He has no idea what a shameful vehicle truly is.
JohnBritton, our Cosmo Kramer, wants to know who wields influence at DC. Beyond us, of course.
Kryptonite came to the comics from the Superman radio program. Barbara Gordon came to the comics from the Adam West TV show. Harley Quinn came to the comics from the Bruce Timm animated Batman series. I’ve never watched Smallville, but what elements of the show are likely to migrate to the comics? Anything likely to come from JLU or Teen Titans Go, or elsewhere?
In terms of Smallville it’s not quite the same thing. Unlike the examples you pointed out many aspects of Smallville actually existed in the Pre Crisis DCU.
There are few things unique about Smallville. The show featured a Black Pete Ross, but it’s unlikely that DC would follow suit, especially since Pete has been written off of the show.
Chloe Sullivan, who is the Editor of the Smallville High newspaper and also happens to be Lois Lane’s cousin is unique to the show. There’s a chance she could appear in the comics, but it would raise too many questions at this point. For instance; why are we just now seeing someone that Clark went to high school with?
There are a few aspects of the show that existed in the Pre Crisis DCU and are slowly being reintroduced into the comic universe. Multi hued kryptonite is a fixture on the show and has made a reappearance in the comics.
Teenage Clark Kent befriending Lex Luthor in Smallville was a part of the Silver Age. As a result of Birthright this is now the case in the DCU again. However the show features a mogul in training, fully legal Lex as opposed to the Silver Age’s classmate Lex and Clark relationship.
The notion that Clark had access to his powers at an earlier age is also a Silver Age concept that has experienced a new life as a result of Smallville.
I never catch Teen Titans or JLU so I can’t comment on them. I do think it should be pointed out that in terms of Barbara Gordon and Kryptonite, both came from a time before continuity was taken so seriously, so a free flow of ideas from mediums was acceptable.
Harley Quinn came from a cartoon that was very loyal to the source material. Smallville isn’t as loyal to the material as the Batman cartoon was. Teen Titans is somewhat true to the comics, but it is adapted for a new audience. And JLU isn’t quite at the Batman level either. But I don’t think that either cartoon has created anything so monumental that it needs to leap over into comics.
Tim, you know more about this than I do. Take it away.
First off, just a quick correction. The one thing Smallville is pretty faithful about is the idea that Clark didn’t have powers as a child. They have taken great pains to show him slowly acquiring each of his gifts. As a high schooler he is around the same age that the comic book version of Clark started to demonstrate abilities as well. Nothing particularly different there.
The multi-hued kryptonite has been running about neck and neck with DC’s reintroduction of the same. The “coincidence” has less to do with the popularity of the show and more to do with a common denominator between both worlds: Jeph Loeb. Jeph Loeb brought back kryptonite in every color of the rainbow in S/B (except red, which is synthetic, and brought up by Mark Waid and his first JLA arc, Tower of Babel) and is a writer/consultant on Smallville. Thus, the synergy there.
Chloe was long rumored to be making a main DCU appearance, but editors sought to stop all that noise at a recent convention so I wouldn’t hold my breath on that front. Which is a shame since she is the best character, except Lex, on that show.
The biggest influence the show has had on the comics is found in Birthright’s re-jiggering of the Clark/Lex dynamic. But, as Mathan points out, that is also a bit of a Silver Age throwback and thus not something the show is introducing to the comic world. More of a reintroducing, really.
Bryan G may not know anything about Primal Scream Therapy, but he sure is interested in another Primal “something”.
Primal Force. I was in and out of comics while it started, but I wonder what actually went on there.
Funny you should mention that team, I have a rundown of them a bit ago;
From the 7/10/04 column
I myself actually only have a few issues of the comic. I enjoyed what I read of it. I think that it may have been a tad “out there” for the time. It was launched after Zero Hour along with Fate, Starman and Manhunter. None were truly traditional super hero books, thus they never really caught on. Fate reeked of blasphemy, and Manhunter isn’t DC’s hottest property. Starman had a unique voice and a champion in the form of Archie Goodwin, who had faith enough in James Robinson’s vision to make sure Starman lasted long enough to get critical acclaim enough to keep it afloat.
Primal Force was an interesting concept. It was about this dude named Maltis (who you may know better as Dr. Mist.) He’s been around forever and part of the Leymen. The Leymen were a group of ten guys whose duty was to protect the Earth. They had been doing it for two thousand years and decided to retire. So Maltis performed the ritual that got him a new bunch of Leymen. See he would ask the Earth to select them. But this time instead of asking of normal folks he asked Earth to pick out some heroes to be the Leymen.
The Earth made its choices and Maltis got five heroes; Claw, Golem, Jack O’Lantern, Red Tornado and Meridian. This was the first time a woman, Meridian had been selected and the first time that all ten who had been chosen didn’t accept the call. Here’s a brief rundown of who did accept the call.
Claw is related the DC character by the same name. John Chan hooked up with the purple claw while studying Chinese history. He encountered the purple claw, which sliced off his hand and attached to his arm. The claw makes whoever possesses it more violent, and less able to control their anger or rage. So John can be savage at times.
Golem was apparently the same Golem that showed up Ragman. He’s not too different than the Monolith. He’s a molded statue that is given life through mystical means. He’s kind of like Pinocchio in the fact that he just wanted to be human, and has a good heart.
Red Tornado was in shambles when two kids found him the Grand Canyon. They messed with him and he became reactivated. He joined the Leymen but was damaged and sometimes collapsed. During the series he once again merged with the Tornado Tyrant that he separated from all those years ago in the JL of A. This time he managed to stay on the side of good.
Meridian Mychaels has the power to teleport, but only along ley lines. She’s also a pretty good hand-to-hand combatant. Her power manifested itself when a mugger was attacking her, and she wished herself to safety. Maltis didn’t want her as part of the team, because he was old fashioned, or as we say now sexist. But she did join eventually.
Liam McHugh is related to the original Jack O’Lantern. They are cousins. But when the original Jack died, Liam inadvertently inherited the weapon (the magic lantern) and the title. He was a rookie hero when he hooked up with the Leymen, but he learned much while with them, including how to manifest the power internally.
Two other heroes who initially rejected the call to join the Leymen but eventually joined were;
William Twotrees is half Apache and half white. His grandfather always told Will that thunderstorms were bad news, and that a storm had taken his father away. Will thought it was just a tale, until one day an approaching storm called out to him. He was struck by lightning and transported to the clouds. While up there he becomes living lightning, but can’t get down. The Red Tornado gets him out of the clouds and Will discovers that he’s a Leyman, how to change between forms, and that he’s Johnny Thunder’s son.
Black Condor also joined the team, but the book was canceled before his story could really develop.
And that about does it for Primal Force. Honestly I’m probably going to collect this series next. Like I said I enjoyed the issue I had. Hopefully the next time I do a Retro Review it will be Primal Force.
Like I said, I’ve only got a handful of the issues. The book sounds interesting, but didn’t succeed. It certainly sounds interesting enough for me to scoop up some back issues. The book seemed to be about fulfilling destiny and answering a call. These were some pretty misfit heroes thrown together and trying to save the world. It may sound cliché, but the book took an interesting take.
Tim, are you familiar with Primal Force?
Only insofar as I can recall seeing house ads and thinking to myself: “Would you look at that…there’s another title that I’ll never buy.” And you know what? I was right.
Julian L. Smith has a timely question in light of this Wednesday’s releases.
What do you know about The One Man Army Corps, OMAC? Wizard talked about an upcoming ‘Project OMAC’ mini-series. Has OMAC done anything of importance?
OMAC was one of Jack Kirby’s DC creations, along with Kamandi and The Fourth World. OMAC was certainly a Pre Crisis concept and doesn’t really have any link to the current DCU.
OMAC was just a guy named Buddy Blank, who gained powers and a nice physique from Brother Eye. Brother Eye, like all satellites orbited Earth. However unlike other satellites Brother Eye was actually sentient. He aided OMAC in his fight against Mr. Big in the future.
A few years ago John Byrne revisited the concept in a prestige format mini. Fans enjoyed it.
The current OMAC seems to be an homage to the Kirby incarnation, but if there are any direct ties, they’ve yet to be seen.
Tim, are you excited about OMAC?
Well, it is a bit unfair to say “excited” as if in anticipation because I have already read the first issue. However, I did enjoy it and am looking forward to subsequent issues. The Rucka is truly running on all cylinders on this project and Saiz’s art is nothing to sneeze at.
It’s just not a Who’s Who without Neil, so here he is!
How about Eclipso have we covered him, his relationship to Bruce Gordon, how anyone can be Eclipso now, and his ties to the Spectre?
Well back in the day, (and I mean “back in the day”) Eclipso was the wrath of God. But God didn’t dig how much Eclipso enjoyed his gig so he replaced him with The Spectre. When Noah sent out a dove to find land Eclipso crushes it. But the dove was a trap and it explodes into light. It gives Eclipso’s essence the ol’ Ralph Cramden (sends it to the moon) and traps his body in the Heart of Darkness, a giant uncut black diamond.
Then way later, in 1890 some guy named Henry Gordon found the Heart of Darkness and hat it cut into a thousand diamonds the very next year. The diamonds then spread around the world.
Then a few years ago Bruce Gordon was cut by a black diamond and “became” Eclipso. Bruce wrestled with his nature and would become Eclipso whenever there was an eclipse. (Bet you didn’t see that one coming…)
He eventually learned that he wasn’t Eclipso but just became eclipsed as many others had been. Bruce still devoted his life to tracking down Eclipso and beating him. When Eclipso took over the country of Parador, Bruce assembled a group of heroes to stop the villain. The heroes were demolished. The next group faired a bit better and Eclipso was thought to be defeated.
Now I know you’re thinking hmm…”Henry Gordon”… “Bruce Gordon”… hmm, yup they are related. Henry is Bruce Gordon and Mona Barrett’s child. In the future Henry will travel back in the past to try to fix things and end up setting off the entire Eclipso tyranny. Furthermore, he’ll be eclipsed and live to face is father in the present. Pretty crazy stuff.
As far as powers here’s what I wrote awhile ago;
From the 1/14/04 column
Originally whenever there was an eclipse Dr. Bruce Gordon would turn into Eclipso. Eclipso was super strong. He also had a nifty black diamond. When it was held to his eclipsed eye it would fire a “frigid beam of impenetrable black light.” If he used his uneclipsed it shot out your typical destructive laser beam.
But then in the 90’s he became much cooler. See it turned out that there were hundreds of black diamonds floating around. They were all cut from one large stone, which held Eclipso’s essence. The diamonds made their way around the world. Now if you happened to be in possession of a black diamond and something made you mad one of two things would happen.
The first that could happen is that you would evoke Eclipso and become eclipsed yourself. You would be just like Bruce Gordon was, super powered and all, for you to enact your revenge. After you got your “revenge” then Eclipso would still be in possession of your body to do with as he pleased. The only way for you to become normal again would be to get blasted by sunlight.
Now the other thing that could happen is that you would manifest an eclipsed form. Say you were mad, and wanted the object of your anger to get killed by a pack of rabid hamsters. If you happened to be in possession of a black diamond, a pack of rabid hamsters would manifest from you and take care of your nemesis. Then Eclipso would be in control of them. Again I can’t urge you enough to pick up the comic series Eclipso.
Tim, you have to have something to say about Eclipso, right?
I sure can discuss the dark one. First, the boys of Wrath are getting back together this fall. Except…one of them is a girl now. I won’t say who, but the preview is available at DC’s site if you just can’t wait. The lady is the new Eclipso and Spectre is host-less. As such, Eclipso takes advantage of the situation and sets the spirit that took his job on members of the magic community in an effort to eliminate all magic. The Spectre’s doing it because magic=chaos=bad, but Eclipso’s motivations are uncertain. It might just be destruction for the sake of destruction, but I’m guess there’s more to it than that.
Also, since Mathan took the time to recommend Eclipso’s series, let me recommend the most recent non-Hal Jordan Spectre series. Great stuff. Do not accidentally pick up the Hal Jordan series though. It will shake your very faithful in comics and humanity at large.
JohnBritton, whom we also call “our Norm”, wants to chat about the JLA. And who are we to say no?
Who is in the JLA rogues gallery? Not just who they’ve fought, but who do you think of the same way that Joker, Penguin, etc are in the Batman rogues? Off the top of my head, Despero and Starro seem to get treatment every few years. Who else keeps coming back because they’ve captured the imaginations of the readers and writers?
Well John,Britton I don’t know if there are any characters who actually equate to the JLA the same way Joker or Penguin equates to Batman or how The Flash equates with his rogues. In those relationships the two characters kind of define each other.
In terms of the JLA, it has more to do with a character being powerful to stand up against a group of the most powerful heroes on Earth. It has less to do with defining relationships than with being “tough enough.” Thus it’s a pretty short list.
These are also characters who are rarely seen outside of JLA.
Amazo – “He” recently popped up in Batman. He’s been known to tussle with Hourman, but when you’ve got the powers of the JLA combined, you are probably only going to play in the big league.
Lord of Time – He showed up during Grant Morrison’s run on the title. But he’s menaced the team through various incarnations.
The Key – Ditto.
Kanjar Ro – He was a major foe in the early years, and has popped up from time to time.
Royal Flush Gang – They were frequent foes of the JLA in many incarnations. But they’ve pretty much been relegated to a joke in the DCU.
Professor Ivo – Another “old school” foe. He’s the guy who built Amazo and is immortal. In the Pre Crisis DCU he carried his grudge with the JLA all the way to the 30th Century.
Professor Amos Fortune – This guy from the JLA’s past seems pretty tame now. But I can’t see him battling anyone else.
T.O. Morrow – This guy was a thorn in the JLA’s side, and played a hand in the creation of Red Tornado. He can be a threat when written correctly (DC 2000) he’s great. He’s another of the “JLA Rogues” that Grant Morrison brought up during his run.
Doctor Destiny – This guy has fought the League numerous times as well.
I think of the things that prevents the JLA from having a traditional “Rogues Gallery” is the fact that the JLA is so formidable as a team, it greatly inhibits villains from making repeat appearances, at least in the modern era.
Tim, I can’t think of anymore “JLA Rogues.” Did I miss any? Care to add anything?
Well, Prometheus got his start as a JLA villain but has since been neutered and rendered Hush’s sidekick in the Bat-titles. The Shaggy Man, now the General, is a former joke revitalized by Morrison’s run. Morrison also introduced/re-introduced the White Martians and they have popped up a couple of times since. You could point to the Injustice Gang, but they’re just essentially enemies of the individual heroes teaming up to wreak havoc. The CSA is an obvious choice. Beyond that…the well runs a little dry.
The column is through. I hope you’ve gleamed a bit of knowledge this week. Visit the forum for comments, questions and possibly even corrections. And don’t forget to get me your questions. Y’all are the biggest part of the column.
Wow…that was a quick one. I guess I was just having so much darn fun that I didn’t even notice the pages flying by.
See y’all on the forums.
“They got five televisions, in a house full of three”
