Tag Archives: Catwoman

Batman: Arkham Asylum, Arkham City and Beyond… What We Want Next

I didn’t think a sequel to Arkham Asylum would ever be able to outdo its predecessor. But in an age where video games are all about topping the previous installment in terms of scope and depth, Arkham City did just that. Arkham City was huge compared to Arkham Asylum with familiar locales such as Crime Alley and the Ice Berg Lounge to geek out the countless Batman faithful out there. And if you thought that Asylum sported a good amount of the Batman Rogues Gallery, it was nothing compared to Arkham City. From Two Face to Mad Hatter, Arkham city showcased over a dozen of Batman’s greatest villains in roles small and large. So the next question is; where does the story go from here given what happened at the end of Arkham City? As those of you who have beaten the game know, there was a death at the end which is a pretty large void to fill. What villains should be featured in the next installment? I can think of a few that didn’t show up and a couple from Arkham Asylum that were noticeably absent from Arkham City.

Below we will discuss which villains need to make the cut next and what the possible story could be for the next Arkham sequel. So please don’t read any further if you haven’t beaten Arkham City because I’ll dropping spoiler almost immediately.

So we all know that the Joker is dead. D-E-A-D. And I doubt he’ll be coming back since Mark Hamil has stated that he won’t be back to voice the Clown Prince of Crime in any future Batman material. I’m fine with Joker being dead by the way, and it’s for the best because I wouldn’t want to see anyone voicing the Joker again. Hamil owned that role and for as big of a Star Wars fan that I am, I think that Hamil’s career is defined by the excellent work he has done voicing the Joker these past twenty years. Luke Skywalker comes in a close second. I can’t see anyone else voicing the Joker as well as Mark Hamil and would like to tip my hat to him.

Now, if you did some exploring to past locales after beating the game and you happened to go back to the Joker’s hideout at Sionis Industries you’ll find an interesting tid-bit on the floor next to Harley’s Arkham Asylum outfit. Yes, it’s a pregnancy test that is POSITIVE!

Also at the end of the credits you’ll hear Harley singing Hush little baby to someone in her own twisted way. That means we may have a baby Joker on the way? Oh, boy…. If done right this could be very interesting indeed. This would also mean that the next game would have to take place years down the road. And if we’re introducing the son of the Joker as Batman’s next big nemesis then I’d be all for them bringing Damien Wayne into play as well. Son of Batman v.s. Son of Joker? Sounds like a dream come true if you ask me! Talia did die after all, before Bruce could have any knowledge of little Damien if they decided to have him be a part of this Bat-continuity.

Also, if the games just want to continue going bigger and bigger in terms of environment then I suggest Rocksteady break free of the Arkham aspect and simply call the game Gotham City or Gotham Knights. This way the entire city can be opened up to play in and we can see plenty of other Gotham locations such as Wayne Tower. Actually, Wayne Tower would be the perfect place for the game’s climax if there is a final fight between Bruce and Joker Jr. or Damien and Joker Jr. I’d like to see Wayne Manor (Bat Cave included), Blackgate Prison, the Wayne Botanical Garden and even a revisiting of good old Arkham Asylum.

Now to the villains and my favorite part. There were not a whole lot left out of Arkham City that’s for sure, but there are a couple that I think would make good additions to the third installment. One of the most deranged villains and a personal favorite of mine is Professor Pyg. Pyg has his own strange meaning to the word “perfection” which he forces upon his victims by bonding doll faces onto their own face in gruesome fashion. Then by some form of surgery or simple lobotomizing, Pyg turns his victims into his own personal soldier, known as a Dollotron. I think it would be far the creepiest aspect of the games yet when Batman is being swarmed by groups of hideously transformed Dollotrons who want nothing more than to present the Dark Knight to their master for “surgery”.

Garfield Lynns would also be a welcome addition to the game and provide Batman with an interesting boss fight. It’s one thing fighting Mr. Freeze on the ground with his freeze ray assailing you at every turn, but imagine a foe flying above and trying to incinerate you! Lynns would of course not have much story depth to him, but after being featured on the front page of a Gotham newspaper in Arkham Aslyum I think it’s time for the resident pyromaniac to be set loose upon our gaming systems.

In terms of crime boss villains such as Two Face and Penguin, I think that the Great White Shark Warren White would be a great addition. The once meek Warren White underwent a terrible transformation during his time in Arkham Asylum that turned him into the hideous, hardened crime boss that he is in the comics. White was once on top in the Gotham underworld in the comic book continuity and he would work great in the next game.

I envision all of the established crime syndicates to show up in the next game actually including the Maroni and Falcone crime families and the return of Two Face, Penguin and Black Mask. Roman Sionis, the Black Mask, in particular had a very brief role in Arkham City which disappointed me greatly. If you’ll remember he was at the very beginning getting the living shit beat out of him by TYGER guards. Unacceptable! Black Mask is one of the most ruthless crime bosses in Gotham and he needs a little more to do than get beat down in the next installment!

Aside from Black Mask, Penguin and Two Face being brought back I have a few other choices of villains that need to make a repeat, two of which were noticeably absent from Arkham City; The first being that of Jonathan Crane, the Scarecrow. After being taken down by Killer Croc in the first game, Crane was not heard from in Arkham City except in a couple of instances. First, there is his mask and some hay laying atop a bridge just outside of Sionis industries.

Then close by on the little barge/boat in the water there is a secret door you can use your cryptographic sequencer to open which reveals a little laboratory of sorts. There’s even a tortured “patient”, containers of cockroaches and a shipping manifest made out to Dr. Crane from Falcone Shipping. The place is just straight up creepy. I suppose this means that our friend the Scarecrow is alive and well and Batman will have to stop him again sooner or later. I say later in the next video game.

Killer Croc was another who was missing from the game. You can have a little confrontation with him in the sewer after facing off with Ra’s Al’ Ghul but nothing beyond that. In the third game I want to see Killer Croc as a boss or someone’s enforcer. I enjoyed running from him in the sewers of Arkham Asylum but a head on fight would be most excellent.

Bane would be another foe worth running into again, this time as a head on enemy again and not a pseudo ally. This will more than likely happen depending mostly on the success of his character in the Dark Knight Rises which is already bound to be a box office smash hit. It would be nice if they use him a little better than just the Solomon Grundy type brute in the next game, maybe as a more calculating foe as he was in the Knightfall arc of the Batman comics.

It wouldn’t hurt to see Ivy return either, just because I’ve always had a thing for women with green skin who dress in skimpy prison clothes. I liked her small role in Arkham City but I think they could use her a little more somehow in the third game. Another huge favortite of mine would also be Clayface, who was my favorite rogue to show up in Arkham City. You know they’ll be doing something with him after he fell into the Lazarus Pit; perhaps he’ll return with some new mutation that will make him more dangerous than before.

On the bat family side of things I wouldn’t mind seeing more of Batman’s allies as playable characters in the third game. It was excellent being able to switch between Batman and Catwoman in Arkham City, and it was awesome to kick ass in the challenge modes with Robin and Nightwing. Hopefully in the third game it will allow you to switch between all of the characters to perform different missions throughout Gotham City. And I may go completely ballistic if the map is bigger than ever before and you are not allowed to use the batmobile. Vehicles seems like the next logical step in the franchise. It would be like Grand Theft Auto: Gotham City.

Well, that’s about all I have for now. Have I forgotten anything that needs to be in the next Arkham game? Locations, characters or otherwise? It’s probably a long way off from now but who knows, Rocksteady might be moving their asses off on this red hot franchise to follow up the release of the Dark Knight Rises.

Bored to Death – Season 3, Episode 2: “Gumball!” Review

Ok, so this is a little later than promised, but hey – I’m a busy (Arkham City) guy. Anyhow, when we last left our hero, he was hanging from the face of a clock and his bearded best friend was rushing to his rescue…well not straight away.

After a solid hour on the clock face Jonathan’s savior – Ray – finally shows up in a post bedroom state. Under the guise of a safety inspector, Ray fanagles his way into the apartment under the clock and is able to save our detective from certain doom.

It’s Ray’s earlier (perceived) successes with as a dad the give him to confidence to save Jonathan. And he that isn’t my interpretation, Ray actually screams “I’m a father now!” to convince Jonathan to drop down. And it works.

After this they flee to George’s apartment to hide out. And sleep.

In the morning the coppers show up at George’s place, which means Ray and Jonathan must escape out the dumb-waiter. From here they find themselves on the street and accused of murder.

Continue reading Bored to Death – Season 3, Episode 2: “Gumball!” Review

Hero Express – So Much ‘Dark Knight Rises’

Welcome to Hero Express, your one-stop sometimes SPOILER filled shop through the news filled world of superhero’s in Film, TV, Video Games and whatever else floats your boat.

This is the Hero Express for October 06, 2011:

Catwoman set photos – (Cinema Blend)

Anne Hathaway’s upcoming turn in the catsuit has us all a little curious. What exactly has Christopher Nolan got in store for Selina Kyle in TDKR? Here are some new photos of  Hathaway rockin’ the new outfit. I particularly like the shot of her and Bats chatting behind off-camera.

Selina Kyle set photos – (Comic Book Movie)

Actually more interesting for me to see than Catwoman’s get up is getting a good look at the Selina Kyle in Nolan’s Bat-verse, which we get a ton of here. Hathaway looks amazing in these photos and I’m really seeing why she was cast as the character.

Interview with Nestor Carbonell – (Splashpage)

You know Nestor Carbonell as Gotham’s mayor, Anthony Garcia. Back for the ride in The Dark Knight Rises, he had a lot to vaguely say and tease about the experience of finishing the Batman trilogy:

“I finished [filming] about a month ago in Pittsburgh. It was a lot of fun, it’s nice to go back to Chris Nolan’s world […] He has announced that this is his last go at ‘Batman’ but yeah, if it is the last for him, he certainly goes out big. It’s massive.”

“What I saw of the sets was just unbelievable. When we were shooting a particular scene I snuck around to see the image on the dolly of what the D.P., Wally Pfister, Academy Award Winner [was shooting]. I looked and immediately thought, ‘Wow, I see why he is who he is, it’s beautifully framed, beautifully shot, half is on IMAX.”

On Christopher Nolan:

“He’s one of these amazing storytellers in our generation, he’s one of the guys who’s taken that genre and grounded it and done something with it that hasn’t done before […] He’s made it that much more real, much more accessible, and he’s made a psychological thriller out of all of them, so he’s great, he’s amazing.”

New set photos of Bane – (Script Flags)

Here we get to my most interesting part of the Hero Express so far; some new images of Tom Hardy as Bane. In addition to photos of the Inception co-star in the face mask, there are a couple of images and videos of his Bane Truck to enjoy:

And his truck:

Even MORE set photos; Christian Bale and JGL – (Comic Book Movie)

Okay, this is getting a little ridiculous. Here are some photos of Joseph Gordon-Levitt driving Christian Bale around Gotham in a police car.

Adam Rodriguez gets cast in TDKR – (Deadline)

Oh my God, look at that. News that isn’t 25 videos and a 360 degree photo gallery of Anne Hathaway’s leather-coated butt (Not that I’m complaining). Adam Rodriguez, famous for his role in CSI: Miami, has just been added to The Dark Knight Rises cast, in a small role that as yet hasn’t been announced.

And that’s it for this edition of The Hero Express! I have a new-found respect for SupaScoot, having filled in for him this week and sorting through piles of links and news stories. Drop a comment telling us what you think about all this Dark Knight Rises news!

Batman: Arkham City – Robin Skins, Villain Side Missions and More!

I can’t wait for this game. Seriously. How often do I say that? All the freakin time. Doesn’t matter. Changes nothing.

I can’t wait for this game. And the more news we hear about it the more excited I become. I started playing Arkham Asylum again just to get back in the mood, to warm my sticks up. This only further increased my excitement, and I’m ready to snap in a fit of rage if this game doesn’t come out soon. Anyways, I digress.

Continue reading Batman: Arkham City – Robin Skins, Villain Side Missions and More!

10 Comic Books Best Suited For The Small Screen

With all the news lately regarding different comic book adaptations heading to TV, I couldn’t help but notice a lack of ‘superhero’ content in the shows. Which is fine, some of the stories like 100 Bullets and of course the smash hit The Walking Dead are great without featuring powers, costumes, any of that.

But that’s not what I’m listing today. I understand the problems with bringing brightly colored costumes and powers every week to the general public, which is made clearer by the numerous attempted hero pilots and TV shows, some of the worst ones we listed here. But there are some heroes out there that I think are perfect for TV.

Here’s the Top Ten Superheroes Suited For The Small Screen:

Continue reading 10 Comic Books Best Suited For The Small Screen

Hero Express – DC Edition: Superman, Batman, and Flash

Welcome to Hero Express, your one-stop shop through the news filled world of superhero’s in Film, TV, Video Games and whatever else floats your boat.

This is the Hero Express for August 15, 2011:

Continue reading Hero Express – DC Edition: Superman, Batman, and Flash