The verdict is in from SXSW, and all of you horror nerds can breathe a sigh of relief, because the remake of The Evil Dead is damned awesome, as reviewed by THR. They’re kinda spoiler heavy with their review but it’s pretty glowing and a good indication that every whiny little jerk who thought this was “raping” the franchise is a pedantic little baby who refuses to embrace change. While I won’t quote the THR review due to said spoilers, I can say it certainly does spell out the major touchstones of the film, showing that it’s very faithful to the original. While I know it’s a bit silly to go on saying that a remake of a cult classic could be “spoiled” by a review, the case is still so with the THR review, so be warned if you do check it out you’ll know plot details. Suffice to say the plot details are pretty much the same from the original, but the details and whatnot are there and could ruin some of the experience for fans looking to be surprised by what’s new or the same, or newbies who aren’t familiar with the classic Evil Dead experience.
Welcome to Comic Rack! My pick of the top five comic news stories in no particular order…
Marvel’s Infinite Comics Launches New Weekly Wolverine Title!
Digital comics are weird. On one hand, they’re obviously the future of the medium, and I don’t mind them per se, but I’ve always preferred the idea of trades being released digitally, rather than individual issues. The bang per buck of a digital trade makes a lot more sense to me than a single issue for $2 or whatever the price may be. I can appreciate the attempt to give digital comics some added value over the printed page, specifically by utilizing the medium of a digital format in creative ways. That doesn’t mean I like it, exactly, and in my opinion I find it a bit redundant. It’s why I never liked “motion comics” or anything, because to me the beauty and simplicity of comics was the utilization of static images to convey motion and a sense of movement in every scene. It’s one of those things that sounds a bit fluffy when you describe it, but it’s a legitimate complaint, I believe. It’s yet to be seen if Infinite Comics will prove to otherwise be successful, but for not it’s an interesting idea, and this Wolverine comic will probably prove if Infinite Comics has legs or not.
A lot has been said about Orson Scott Card and his planned Superman story. The thing about it is, I truly can’t get behind reading the work of a man that vile and terrible. He’s pretty (obviously) famous for his vitriolic and terrible political opinions, and while at heart I think that shouldn’t affect the work itself, it definitely does. I’ve had a couple of discussions about separating the art from the artist and have generally come to the resolution that it’s amicable to do so, but ultimately impossible. A great piece of art can and will be tainted by the real life nature of the person who created it. It’s the focal point in some cases, as with serial killers and their art that is occasionally sold or displayed in museums. Did I just compare Orson Scott Card indirectly with the likes of John Wayne Gacy? Yes, but you know, F the both of them. A brilliant character who stands for acceptance, love and hope like Superman doesn’t need to be written by a hateful bigot like Card anyway, so good on Sprouse for deciding to leave the story. Obviously he can’t full on come out and admit exactly why, but c’mon, we all know why. A side of me is curious as to what Card’s story would have been though. Curious, but glad it didn’t happen.
In other, much better Superman news, there’s the wonderful announcement that Scott Snyder and Jim Lee are taking over Superman soon with Superman Unchained, a new book coming out just in time to coincide with Zack Snyder’s Man Of Steel. Aside from there obviously being a terrifying conspiracy between all those named Snyder working on Superman projects, this sounds and seems pretty damn amazing. For those who haven’t or aren’t reading Scott Snyder’s work on Batman right now, he’s absolutely killing it. Just balls out, hands down killing it every damn month. Normally I’d be pretty worried by a book with just the mere idea and title of a book called Superman Unchained‘, because let’s be honest, that’s kind of a lame title. But the Snyder’s (Scott and Zack, respectively) seem to understand that you can inject some of that tried and true Gritty Edge™ the kids love these days and still keep the Superman character intact. Hopefully they will, anyway. I have more faith in Scott Snyder because he’s a pretty brilliant writer, and the idea of trying new things with the character is an interesting mission statement for the book. I’m looking forward to reading it in line for Man Of Steel come April.
I’m not terribly familiar with AstroCity, I am pretty familiar with Kurt Busiek’s myriad DC works. He’s written a ton of great story arcs in the past and is one of those names that I see on books all the time. He’s not a super notable stand out for me, but I do know the name and know he means quality. It’s not like you’d jump into a book of his and find yourself reading something awful. That being said, perhaps it’s my own ignorance of Astro City that’s kept Busiek from joining the list of names that I immediately gravitate towards every time I approach the wall at my local comic shop. Here’s the description of the book, via [ComicsAlliance]:
[quote]Astro City began as a sort of anthology series in 1995 and followed the superheroes, supervillains and everyday citizens who lived in the eponymous city. Critically-acclaimed, and the recipient of a number of Eisner and Harvey-awards, the series has been on an indefinite hiatus since May of 2010.
The new series will be available in June, but you can find the original series collected at your local comic shop or public library.[/quote]
It certainly sounds interesting, and is yet another title to put on my increasingly longer list of books to read, when I have the time and money.
Marvel’s New Teasers Showcase New Savage Wolverine Creators!
New teasers from Marvel are no surprise, and lately have been hitting pretty much every other day. These new ones are unique in the fact that they are both promoting a new book with very minimal taglines that are very vague… which actually makes them not unique at all and well in line with the rest of Marvel’s teasers.
So the teasers obviously showcase both Wolverine and Spider-Man, along with the creative team of Zeb Wells and Joe Maduiera. It just so happens that this story, which had been previously teased as a Wolverine/Spidey/Elektra mini-series, will now follow Frank Cho’s arc over in The Savage Wolverine, which is apparently aiming to be a team-up book like Avenging Spider-Man. Wells and mad previously worked together on the opening arc of Avenging, and I am looking forward to this new arc for Savage. Seeing Joe Mad draw Wolverine always takes me back to the 90s X-Men stories like Onslaught that I remember so fondly, and I am definitely interested in this new story. –S. Fraser
I had plans to wait until I got home from a weekend trip to New Orleans to watch this week’s SNL, but the power of the Timberlake would not let me and I am grateful, because it was fantastic. I’ll admit that there was a bit of reservation initially because my slightly inebriated state may have made the show funnier than it actually was. Any doubt was erased when watched by the harsh light of a sober morning. And if there was any doubt that the writers were taking an easy/lazy break last week to gear up for this episode, they are now erased because minus a few missteps, the writing was as good as it’s been all season to date.
It is really rare to see the host in the cold open, to the point that I can not think of the last time I’d seen it. Of course, this is Justin Timberlake and it is well known that he rises above normal conventions. So there he was, in all his Elton John glory, singing at the funeral of Hugo Chavez. Nothing like a reworked ‘Candle in the Wind’ to start the night off right.
To truly appreciate the greatness of Timberlake’s “Five-Timers Club” monologue, you’d have to watch Tom Hanks’ monologue from his fifth time hosting back in 1990.
You’ve got the very young SNL writer, Conan O’Brien greeting Hanks at the door vs. current SNL writer Mike O’Brien who happens to also be behind one of my favorite webseries, Seven Minutes in Heaven with Mike O’Brien. I’m of the belief that all celebrity interviews should be conducted in a closet and end in awkward kissing. Of course the similarities between the two monologues continue with Paul Simon and Steve Martin. I really enjoyed it, but oh boy does it put a bit of a spotlight on how much more often men are the host of SNL as opposed to women. Well at least, frequent hosts. Perhaps next episode’s host, Melissa McCarthy can bring up that number someday and join Candice Bergen and Drew Barrymore in the ‘Five-Timers Club’.
Even though the monologue ran a bit long, it was really fun to watch SNL living history all come together and watch Bobby Moynihan and Taran Killam fight to the death.
Credit to: flyinseacrest
I’ll admit that when the dating show set was shown during the commercial break I groaned a bit. This has been the year of musical monologues and game shows, some have worked but there have been some that really did not. However when it became clear that this was just going to be a vehicle for the singing sleazebags known best for ‘Dick in a Box’, it became infinitely better. Of course I really wasn’t expecting the Festrunk brothers (as often cameos in the monologue stay in the monologue) so they were an awesome surprise. As much as I enjoyed both duos, Bobby Moynihan as the rejected bachelor was equally as funny. He usually plays the weird part of the joke so seeing him as the straight guy is always a refreshing change of pace.
It would not be a Justin Timberlake show without a costumed street singer promoting some random business. I have a feeling if it were anyone else, this sketch premise would have been old and tired by now. Luckily the writer’s have been able to keep the jokes and song parodies pretty fresh each time so it’s exciting to see Timberlake dressed as a big block of tofu as opposed to that “oh man, here we go again” feeling.
If you were wondering who on earth is still watching Harlem Shake videos and giving SNL the idea that it was still at all relevant and not beaten to death… it’s me. I love them in all their stupid glory and was downright giddy watching the cast do the “Vegan Shake”.
As great as Justin Timberlake is and how awesome his performances were, it was actually the “NuvaBling” fauxmercial that was the funniest to me. Probably because it was unexpected (unlike the rest of the episode, I mean we knew pretty much what sketches were going to be done) but it was hysterical. I mean come on, diamond encrusted birth control? Cool.
Diamond encrusted birth control that then becomes earrings? Perfect. Between that and the final line of “and yes, it does hurt”, easily my favorite commercial of the year. Birth control should all be “100% effective at getting dat swag on”.
So apparently there was some dust-up between Timberlake and Kanye West? I was unaware so I couldn’t have told you anything about the changed lyrics to “Suit and Tie”, but the internet quickly let me know of my ignorance. I guess we are all now just sitting and waiting to see what Kanye has to say in response.
Weekend Update was really short, likely due to the length of the monologue and the first few sketches, but it brought back Stefon who seems like he has been missing for quite a while (John Marbury who usually writes that character has been off working on his pilot for NBC). Bill Hader never fails to entertain as the ridiculous Stefon and this was no different. The club named “Your Mom and I are separating” located in a burnt out Red Lobster is sure to be the hotspot everyone is talking about.
“Sober Caligula” was the obvious low light of the episode. However, I do give them credit for trying a new sketch. If you’ve watched SNL with any regularity you know that when hosts make repeat appearances, they often will pull out the same characters that they know people like and have been successful (Veganville, Dick in a Box), so it was nice to see something new. Of course I wish it’d been a little bit more successful but A for effort and let’s not lie here, there’s nothing wrong with a sketch that features a half-naked Taran Killam.
I would never have thought that Maine Justice would be a recurring sketch. Ever. For good reason. It was great as a one time “this is really weird but oddly entertaining” kind of thing. Coming back? Eh, not so much. Unlike the later sketch with the “not porn stars anymore”, Maine Justice just needs to go ahead and call it a day.
You can sell all the albums in the world and you can star in as many movies as you want; hell, you can be a member of the SNL ‘Five-Timers Club’, but I think we can all agree, you haven’t really “made it” until the Three Amigos introduce you.
“She’s Got a D#*k” was all right. Not much to write home about but it was better than Maine Justice. I did like how Nasim didn’t have a name instead was billed as just an “adorable brunette”.
After a long day, I totally look forward to a glass of “Monica and Chandler” champagne and feel like it’s about time it got a chance to shine. Even though we have a general idea as to what the two idiot former porn stars are going to say, it still is funny as hell. I take that back because at no point did I ever think I’d hear someone tell a story of jerking off a horse on TV. That was a new one.
Overall? Great episode. I do wish they’d tried more original sketches but I understand they were trying to go for that typical cameo filled episode to try to drive up the ratings, and they were successful as more people watched this weekend than have since Charles Barkley hosted last January. I can see them getting close to those numbers with Melissa McCarthy hosting on April 6th because there might be people tuning in to see if Kristin Wiig or Maya Rudolph make cameos. Even if they don’t, McCarthy is a great sketch comedy actress so I’m very much looking forward to that episode.
Here’s the problem with teasers. I hate writing about them. Not in a whiny “Oh, I don’t wanna write this” way (although I am a whiny little b**ch about things like that), but because by their very nature I don’t like them. I mean who really, actually likes being teased? I mean, I know I don’t. I know some ladies who claim they do, but that’s not the kind of thing I’m into. When it comes to my sci-fi entertainment I want it big, hard, fast and now. I want you to give me aural and ocular pleasure, and I want my needs sated, right this moment. Don’t wiggle your little teasing sci-fi movie member around my entertainment erogenous zone and make me beg, just stick that thing in so we can both come together in science fiction ecstasy! [Ed. Note: I feel like I should have censored something… Oh well.]
Aside from providing the most disgusting metaphorical description of why I hate teasers, I also hate teasers because they seemingly never end. Is it too much to just be kept in the dark until the thing comes out? I know there are a lot of nerds out there who love this sort of thing, but man, I am so not one of them. I love Star Trek to bits but waiting for this sequel is killing me. That’s the worst thing about JJ Abrams is he loves to make his fans just beg for his sci-fi wang, all bedazzled and shining with lens flare. Well, here’s some more of that proverbial sci-fi c*ck teasing for all of us Trekkies, with yet another teaser aimed to make us all cream our pants once again.
It’s more or less a mishmash of what we’ve seen before, but every little split second of new scenes is another thing to obsess over, speculate about, compare to previous Star Trek canon and spread to all of our friends on the internet. I personally can’t wait to see if Captain (Admiral?) Pike ends up as Mr. Box man like he was in the Original Series.
Ladies?
But the whole thing is a just a ploy, a way to keep us waiting patiently so as to build up a huge opening for the movie when it releases. It’s basic movie marketing, I know, but I suppose this strategy is for non-Trekkies, because apparently they’re the folks who need to be convinced to go see this movie. The rest of us are dying and can’t wait to see it already. CURSE YOU ABRAMS, WHY MUST YOU BE SO CRAZY SEXY CRUEL!
Clear was one of the best episodes of The Walking Dead I have seen in a long time. Can we say character development? This entire episode focused solely on Rick, Carl and Michonne. The unlikely trio head back to where the Grimes family used to live; where Rick was a sheriff and Carl was a child. The idea behind risking their lives was to gather guns, ammo and supplies from places that Rick remembers.
Almost immediately, they all realized that someone else had made a home out of the place, this is where we run into Morgan. Morgan, in case you don’t remember, was in season one and saved Rick’s life. Rick hid out with Morgan and his son and nursed to health before meeting up with the rest of the group. Morgan has gone a little bit crazy since then, which of course pulls at Rick’s heart strings, considering his own recent hallucinations. We learn that because Morgan could not kill his walker wife, she eventually attacked his son. Rick explains that Morgan has to come back from this… this horror of what he’s seen, what has changed, and what he has been through. He may be too far gone, though, there’s really no way of telling.
Carl and Michonne went to get a crib for little Judith, and made a stop in a tavern that contained a photo of his mom, dad, and himself back in the world. In this episode, we saw Michonne’s human side. Unlike her usual robotic demeanor, Michonne is buddy-buddy with Carl, and even saves his life. Carl says to his dad that she might be one of them, which indicates that she has gained his trust.
Clear was an episode that looked like it was right out of season 1. Not only was it very focused, but it showed how small the world really is. Morgan was still around, and was the only human they ran into. It wasn’t shown so that we could see the group take guns from Rick’s old stomping grounds; it was made to show the humanity left in humans.
3.13 – “Arrow on the Doorpost”
It’s finally time for the face off! Rick and the Governor sit across from one another at a table to discuss what to do about their precarious situation. Philip seemed, once again, quite charming and relatable. He divulged information about his wife’s tragic death; the car accident after she’d called him at work, and he explained to Rick that he’s always wondered what she called for. It was a very thought-provoking story, because you always consider what the characters have been through since the apocalypse, but rarely think about who they were before hand. Philip was a broken man before zombies started taking over his land.
While Rick and the Governor were swapping stories and sipping whiskey, the rest of the group keeping watch decided to pair up. Oh, except for Andrea, who I could not possibly want to strangle any more than I already do. Daryl and Martinez kill through a line of walkers together, which was very impressive to watch. Daryl with his circus-like knife throwing skills, and Martinez with his baseball bat baton twirling act, was the coolest killing streak this episode. Hershel and Milton discuss the amputation of Hershel’s leg when he was bitten. When Milton asked to see his stump, Hershel replied by saying he should at least buy him a drink first. Laughter… something we hear very little of in this show. It was refreshing.
Over at the prison, sure the Governor would kill them all. Merle tried to go help defend his brother and the rest, but it was Glenn and Maggie that put their foot (feet?) down and stopped him, followed by a gunshot from sweet little Beth to break up the fight.
Glenn and Maggie have a sweet discussion where they make up from the tension surrounding their visit from Woodbury. This is followed directly by one of the sexiest… no…. THE sexiest scene in the history of The Walking Dead. Maggie and Glenn got their freak on… and it was HOT. Glenn has been one of my favorite characters this season. Much of what takes up our daily lives, being it love, sex, lust, like, and romanticism, are lost in the post-apocalyptic world. It is so sweet to see a couple actually making it in such harsh conditions. In fact, it is a regular American love story.
In the end, the Governor gives Rick an ultimatum; Rick can hand over Michonne and he will agree to leave their whole group and the prison alone. Rick is given two days to come up with an answer. The way both groups reacted to the meeting in the end was an amazing way to finish off the episode. The Governor explains to Milton that they are still going to kill Rick’s group, which Milton explains will be a slaughter – but Rick is no fool. He tells the group that the Governor wants them all dead and wants to take over the prison and that they are going to war. Rick and Hershel have a heart to heart during which Hershel explains that Michonne has earned her keep and saved some of their lives by this point because Rick seems to be considering giving up Michonne.
This episode was absolutely brilliant! The face off had to happen sooner or later, and I am overjoyed that it happened this way. I love the double-sided betrayal. I honestly cannot say much more than I am way too excited to see what the final three episodes of the season bring.
I would rate these two episodes as one, because the first of the two was a focused episode involving only three members of the group. 5/5 is something I am encouraged to rarely, if ever, give. However, in light of Arrow on the Doorpost being the best episode of the show this season, 5/5 it is.
What on earth is left for Chris Cooper to play? Apparently it’s Norman Osborn, aka The Green Goblin.
Cooper will join Jamie Foxx as Electro and Paul Giamatti as Rhino as they tackle Spider-Man (Andrew Garfield, of course) in the upcoming sequel. Will Cooper’s Green Goblin be on par with Willem Dafoe’s from Sam Raimi’s Spider-Man? That will be difficult as Dafoe plays the unhinged supervillain so well, but if anyone is up to the task, it would be Chris Cooper.
If you follow no one else on twitter (besides Grizzly Bomb of course), make sure you follow The Amazing Spider-Man 2‘s director, Marc Webb. He’s been tweeting photos from the set everyday and it’s always fun to get a look behind the scenes, and commentary from the director isn’t too shabby. Yesterday he sent out a picture of an upended car on top of a crushed cab… Rhino’s handiwork? [Ed. Note: I’ve included a shot of Shailene Woodley as MJ from the set. No reason.]
In addition to the day to day photos, some pics of the new Spider-Man suit have been released. Now you aren’t going to make everyone happy, and there were quite a few people displeased with the suit inthe first film of this trilogy, but I like this one. The eyes look great, much better than the first attempt.
Now that filming is underway, I’m sure there will be plenty more in the way of news and such from The Amazing Spider-Man 2 so stay tuned!
Justice League
Christopher Nolan is Allegedly Producing with Zack Snyder Possibly Directing, and Christian Bale Might be Batman! But Probably Not.
I can not be the only person who feels like this movie has been in the works for decades now and with every passing day comes another rumor only to be shot down the following day. At this rate, my grandchildren might get to see a Justice League movie, but only if they are lucky.
The latest of these rumors was that Christian Bale was going to be returning as the Dark Knight, but that has been apparently dismissed. However, it was confirmed that Christopher Nolan is involved in some capacity, most likely as a producer. Also a producer is Man of Steel director Zack Snyder and there are hints that he might be directing Justice League as well.
Of course the biggest statement in the ComicBookMovie report is that we will probably not be getting much Justice League news until after Man of Steel is released on June 14th of this year. What that really means is we won’t be getting any “official” information but if it’s like anything else in the internet age, we’ll know plenty. It may not be completely factual but we will know it!
Fantastic Four
Vampire Hunter Scribe Takes a Stab at the Script, And a Producer is Named!
What do Pride and Prejudice, zombies, Abraham Lincoln, vampires, and Mr. Fantastic have in common? Well, thanks to the Fantastic Four reboot, Seth Grahame-Smith. He’s taken on the task of “polishing” the script and one can only hope that means this reboot will be much better than Rise of the Silver Surfer because I think we can all agree, that is a movie that just needs to be forgotten about, for all eternity. Burned from the annals of geek history. Grahame-Smith wrote the screenplay to last year’s Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Killer based on his novel of the same title (he also wrote the incredibly popular Pride and Prejudice and Zombies) and the Johnny Depp vampire movie, Dark Shadows. Also of note, he is the writer of the hopefully upcoming Beetlejuice 2.
Matthew Vaughn has been announced as the producer of the FF reboot, directed by Josh Trank. Vaughn is obviously no stranger to the geek world with a resume including Kick-Ass and X-Men: First Class, so I think we can rest easy knowing that the Fantastic Four family will be treated right.
Speaking of Matthew Vaughn and X-Men…
X-Men: Days of Future Past
Peter Dinklage, Richard Nixon, and Halle Berry!
Ever since Game of Thrones (and the movie Station Agent, that everyone should see) actor Peter Dinklage was announced for X-Men: Days of Future Past, there has been speculation as to who he would be playing. Now it appears as if there’s a character emerging from the rumors as a front-runner.
[quote]But thanks to a tipster who prefers to remain anonymous, but is extremely reliable, we can tentatively confirm: Dinklage is playing Bolivar Trask, inventor of the mutant hunting robot Sentinels in the movie sequel. -MTV[/quote]
Obviously fans have been waiting for the Sentinels to feature into the story for a long time, and Peter Dinklage as any character in the world is fine with me.
While that is fun news, it’s still technically a rumor so it could easily change. However, director Bryan Singer has said that there is one person we are sure to see in Days of Future Past and that is none other than the 37th President himself, Richard Nixon. Apparently part of the movie is based in the ’70s, and Singer has promised that Tricky Dick has a role in the story. If I have no other reason to watch this movie, it will be to see how Richard Nixon factors into the X-Men universe.
Also official? Halle Berry is returning as Storm. Is there really much more to say on that besides an underwhelmed “that’s good, I guess, for her, maybe?”
Didn’t think so.
That about does it for this edition of Hero Express! Let us know what you think of these stories in the comments and we’ll see ya next time!
I can not be the only person who feels like this movie has been in the works for decades now and with every passing day comes another rumor only to be shot down the following day. At this rate, my grandchildren might get to see a Justice League movie, but only if they are lucky.
Grizzly Bomb 
