10+ Page Preview for Criminal by Brubaker and Phillips

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The art above is just one of a ten page preview for the new Criminal comic series by Ed Brubaker and Sean Phillips.  The series will be on-going and feature new and returning characters from previous Criminal stories.  The first issue is self-contained and the second and third issues will start and wrap-up a two-part story.  I cannot recommend Brubaker and Phillips’ Criminal stories highly enough.

If you click over you can see the other nine pages of the first issue preview as well as the Criminal covers for issues one, two and three.

Source: Comics Beat.

“Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse” (2018) / Z-View

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Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse (2018)

Director:  Bob Persichetti, Peter Ramsey, Rodney Rothman

Screenplay: Phil Lord & Rodney Rothman from a story by Phil Lord

Stars: Shameik Moore, Jake Johnson, Hailee Steinfeld, Mahershala Ali, Brian Tyree Henry, Lily Tomlin, Zoë Kravitz, Nicholas Cage, Liev Schreiber and Chris Pine.

The Pitch: “Let’s make an amazing animated Spider-Man movie featuring all of the various versions of Spidey!”

Tagline: Enter a universe where more than one wears the mask.

The Overview: Beware of Spoilers…

Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse is a beautifully animated movie that is a joy to watch and a love letter to comic books.  That’s because Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse is unlike any other animated movie ever.  It actually looks like a comic book come to life right down to the zip-a-tone dot patterns, captions and sound effects come to life.

The story involves young Miles Morales bitten by a radioactive spider and empowered with, you guessed it, spider-like powers.  Miles finds himself the heir to Spider-Man when Peter Parker is killed trying to stop Wilson The Kingpin Fisk from opening up a portal to other dimensions.  Miles has no idea how to use his new powers or to stop Fisk.  Fortunately, when the portal opened alternate universe versions of Spider-Man came through.  These versions of Spider-Man team with Miles to try to stop Fisk and get back to their rightful dimensions before they disintegrate.

Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse has well-developed characters, humor and suspense.  It’s beautiful to watch and a fun way to spend a couple of hours.

Rating:

“Bird Box” / Z-View

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Bird Box (2018)

Director: Susanne Bier

Screenplay: Eric Heisserer based on the novel by Josh Malerman

Stars: Sandra Bullock, Trevante Rhodes, John Malkovich, Sarah Paulson, Jacki Weaver and B.D. Wong.

The Pitch: “Let’s turn the apocalyptic novel Bird Box into a movie!”

Tagline: Never Lose Sight of Survival.

The Overview: Beware of Spoilers…

When an unknown global pandemic strikes a diverse group of strangers find themselves barricaded in a house.  They soon discover that unknown entities are causing people who see them to go crazy and kill themselves or others.  As the time they’re holed up grows longer and supplies grow smaller, they become as much a threat to each other as the unknown that awaits outside.

I’m a huge fan of apocalyptic movies where strangers must find a way to get along to survive.  Bird Box falls into this category and doesn’t disappoint.  Although this is clearly a Sandra Bullock showcase, she is surrounded by an excellent supporting cast.   Trevante Rhodes is especially good.

Fans of The Mist, World War Z and the like should really enjoy this new twist on the apocalypse.

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Ed Brubaker Interview!

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Alex Segura has an informative interview with crime fiction author Ed Brubaker where he talks about his work for Marvel and DC, his collaborations with Sean Phillips, working in television and his new Criminal series!  Check out TALES OF JUNKIES, FADE-OUTS, SUPER-HEROES AND CRIMINALS: Talking with Ed Brubaker, Acclaimed Comic Book, Graphic Novel and Television Writer.

The “Kingdom” Trailer is Here!

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Here’s the synopsis for Kingdom, a six episode mini-series coming to Netflix on January 25, 2019:

In a kingdom defeated by corruption and famine, a mysterious plague spreads to turn the infected into monsters. The crown prince, framed for treason and desperate to save his people, sets out on a journey to unveil what evil lurks in the dark.

If you like what you’ve read, my best is you’ll love the trailer.  I sure did.

 

 

 

 

New “Hellboy” Posters!

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What do you think about the new Hellboy poster above?  Yeah, me too.  It’s kind of cool but not, ‘Whoa!  Stop what you’re doing and check out the new Hellboy poster!’ cool.  

There’s a new Hellboy motion poster out today too.  You can see it here.  Again, kind of cool but not make you move closer to the monitor cool.

On Thursday we get the first Hellboy trailer.  I’m hoping for something that’s more than kind of cool.

TKO Studios Offers Free First Issues!

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TKO Studios is a new comic publisher and they’re looking to shake things up with their award-winning artists and writers and the way their comics are released. 

TKO Studios seeks to redefine the comic book industry creatively and commercially.

TKO Studios was founded by award-winning comic book, entertainment, business and tech professionals. We create unique takes on established genres, promoting diverse and exciting voices that reflect the modern audience.

Our aim is to publish high quality books and expand the comic book audience using modern methods of marketing, distribution, and audience engagement. We proudly offer the premier issue of each new miniseries available for free digital download.

You read that right, each premier issue of a new series is offered up for free as a digital download.  If you don’t like what you see, no harm, no cost.  If you do like what you’ve read, you can buy the entire series in any of three formats:

  1. As a digital download
  2. As individual comics with a collectors box
  3. As a graphic novel with all issues collected into one volume

TKO is on to something smart.  Now fans can check out the stories before committing to a series they may not like.  If they do enjoy what they see, there’s no months-long wait to get the whole story and they can get the story in the format that they prefer.  

I’ve checked out TKO’s first four offerings and ordered (as a graphic novel) The 7 Deadly Sins by Tze Chun (writer),  Artyom Trakhanov (artist), Giulia Brusco (colorist) and Jared K Fletcher (letterer).

Check out the TKO series available now and coming soon — it won’t cost you a cent and you may find something you’ll love.

Why Stallone is Still the Greatest Action Star

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Renaldo Matadeen and CBR.com remind us why Stallone Is Still the Greatest Action Star.   Here are a few tidbits…

Stallone picks up this accolade for a couple of reasons. Firstly, it’s his longevity that really puts him ahead in the field. His resume is stacked, with untouchable franchises like Rambo and Rocky under his belt, not to mention other projects that impressed fans of the ’80s and ’90s action scene.

…Creed and Expendables franchises perfectly illustrate his staying power…

…another reason he deserves the title of greatest action star — he’s adapted to the landscape…

That’s another reason why he’s the best action star, period. He mixes drama with his heroics in a style unlike any of his peers. Creed got Stallone an Oscar nomination for Best Supporting Actor, and he was previously nominated for Best Actor and Best Original Screenplay for Rocky in 1976, which is something the likes of Bruce Willis, Kurt Russell, Arnold Schwarzenegger and Jean Claude Van Damme can’t boast.

Check out the Matadeen’s entire piece, it’s worth your time.