The Adventures of Captain Otter

Even though Robert Downey Jr. is confirmed for the Avengers, not all of his potential cast mates are.  Edward Norton, who played Bruce Banner in the Incredible Hulk, has yet to be added to the movie.  However, he did talk about that today.  Sort of.  When asked about the movie, Norton had no comment, claiming that Marvel is very tight-lipped about that stuff and said he would let them release any information.  He also said that he loved the Hulk, and felt a special connection to the movie.

So why wouldn’t they announce anything with the Hulk?  I mean they have the actor, so why don’t they just tell us?  The easy answer is that they don’t know exactly what to do with him.  Even though the Hulk is a classic Marvel character, he’s not always a team player.  He has a tendency to smash everything in sight, which is just flat out problematic when you’re the guy standing next to him.  The script isn’t done yet, and at this stage I don’t think they know for sure what the Hulk’s role is going to be.  Until they are certain, they don’t need to cast the character. 

Still, this news is a change of pace from Norton’s previous comments.  Earlier in the year, Norton had stated he just didn’t know what was going on, claiming that Marvel was hard to read on this issue.  There were rumors that there had been fights regarding certain scenes, but both parties seemed to feel like it was blown way out of proportion by the media.  So, if Norton still doesn’t know what is going on, I think he would just say so.  You only say “no comment” when something isn’t certain or if it’s kept secret, so something must be going on.  And what information is he talking about them releasing?  If he didn’t know anything, there wouldn’t be any information.  So it does sound like they’re getting closer to making these decisions, and if I had to guess, I would say they are bringing Norton back.  If they wanted to replace or ignore him, they wouldn’t talk to him at all.  They could ignore Banner altogether, and include only his bigger, greener, and all around cooler alter ego, but this just seems boring.  If I had to guess, I would say he’s coming back to wreak some more havoc.

There is also a question of whether or not Banner will make a cameo in Iron Man 2.  There had been a rumor a very long time ago that Norton would basically repay the favor for RDJ popping up in the Hulk, but we’ve heard nothing more on this.  That could be old news, but it’s worth mentioning it.  If we do see Banner in Iron Man 2, this would all but confirm his role in the Avengers.  I don’t know what the cameo would be involve, but it would be a fun way to end the movie.  If we’ve learned one thing so far, it’s that you always have to stay after the credits.

As I said yesterday, Marvel vs. Capcom 2 is a classic.  It’s fast paced and fun to play even if you have no idea what’s going on.  Better yet, it’s filled with all the big legends from the Marvel U.  Well, most of them.  While playing the game, there were more than a few characters I was dying to play as.  Meanwhile, characters like Spiral or Shuma-Gorath make the cut.  Now, if there were to be an expansion to the game or (if we’re lucky) a flat out sequel, these are the heroes who should be added to the roster.

Thor

-Thor is an integral part of the Marvel Universe.  He’s a founding member of the Avengers and one of the best characters in the industry.  He also has a big hammer and can throw around lightning bolts at a whim.  How can he not be in the game?  This one is a no brainer.  Bring in Thor.

Deadpool

-When Marvel vs. Capcom 2 was released, Deadpool was seen as another B or C list character from the 90’s who liked shooting things.  I don’t blame them for not including him.  Now there is no excuse.  The world has realized how amazing Deadpool is, which means he has to be put in the game.  Or else.

Someone from the Fantastic Four

-Love them or hate them, the Fantastic Four are a big part of Marvel.  At least one member needs to be included, and it’s safe to say that this should either be the blue eyed Thing or Johnny Storm.  Either works, but I’m hoping for the Thing just so we can hear him say “its clobbering time”.

Nick Fury

-Nick Fury owns Marvel.  He’s a guy with no powers, no power armor, and one eye.  And yet he still runs just about everything.  Why?  Nick Fury is just that awesome.  The only reason he wasn’t in the last game is because he was busy spying on every one and learning their special moves.  An alternate costume would also have to be the Ultimate Nick Fury.

Doc Ock

-It never hurts to have more villains.  Unless we’re talking about Spiderman 3 that is, but this is a video game.  I just thought of Doc Ock while writing this, and now that I have, I realize how cool this could be.  The tentacles would be fun to play around with and would make a unique character.

 So those are just five possible characters who should make a showing.  Of course, even if they add these guys, I’ll probably still want a bigger roster.  Still, these guys are big parts of the Marvel Universe who have to get some representation.  If we wanted to add a few more just for fun, I think they should throw in Ares, the Green Goblin, Bullseye, the Black Widow, Spider Woman and Hawkeye.  You know what?  We don’t need the capcom part of this game anymore.  Just make a giant fighting game with 60 or so Marvel heroes.  Until this happens, we’ll just have to play Marvel Ultimate Alliance 2, which comes out in September.  Now that’s a game I’m looking forward too.

Oh Marvel vs. Capcom 2, how I missed you.  We had so much fun together all those years ago.  What happened?  Oh right, my dreamcast stopped working.  Well, enough of that.  Marvel vs. Capcom 2 is back, and you can download it directly on to your Xbox 360 or PS3.  The new games comes with updated graphics as well as online gameplay, meaning you can test your skills against the best the world has to offer.

Marvel vs. Capcom 2 was the final game in the Marvel vs. Capcom series, which included titles like X-men vs. Street Fighter and Marvel Super Heroes.  This game took every character so far and added even more.  The result is more than 50 playable characters, even though I don’t recognize half of the Capcom fighters.  Most of your favorite Marvel heroes are there in style.  The lack of Thor and the Fantastic Four are some big losses, but most of the big players are there.  If you ever wanted an Avengers vs. X-men battle, or never could figure out if Omega Red was stronger than Zangief, this is your chance.  The game is great fun and a true timeless classic, and is certainly worth the money.  I’m looking forward to the online gameplay, which is the big addition to my dreamcast experience.  Playing the computer isn’t quite as fun as going up against a real player, so now you can test your skills even when playing alone.

I’m not sure what my final team is going to be, but I can guarantee Iron Man will be on it.  And it’s not just because he’s my favorite character, he’s also really good with the ability to fly and unleash racks of smart missiles.  Not to mention the Proton Cannon, which is just a giant gun that pops out thin air.  I could go for a classic Avengers line-up and add Captain America and the Hulk.  If I could choose Thor instead of the Hulk, I wouldn’t be able to help myself.  Then again, Wolverine is just so fun to play with and did join the team.  What’s your favorite line up?

I’m a big fan of the Green Lantern mythos and just how epic it is.  No other character has quite the same opportunities for epic battles for the fate of the galaxy, which we’ve seen in the Sinestro Corps. War and the current Blackest Night.  So when an animated movie comes out, did you honestly expect me not to run out and pick it up?  I did, and watched it today.  All in all, it wasn’t bad.  The story revolves around Hal’s induction into the GLC and Sinestro’s betrayal, culminating in a final showdown between the student and the teacher.

 So is the movie loyal to the mythos?  For the most part, yes.  You can’t expect a short feature like this to cover the depth of backstory without feeling like a history textbook.  It would have been fun to see some of the emotional spectrum stuff from the current volume emphasized, and we do get some of it.  They just couldn’t fit all of willpower and fear stuff.  The movie is roughly 75 minutes long, so this is all understandable and not a problem.  They do throw in alot of references to the bigger story, which is good fun.  Most of the characterizations are spot on, with one exception.  Boodikka is a very different character than she is in the comics, although she is more likeable and alot less whiney.  Sinestro is portrayed amazingly, and it feels like this is more his story than it is Hal’s.  We see Sinestro make all the important choices while Hal just reacts to what’s going on.  I’m pretty sure that Sinestro has significantly more dialogue as well and I never felt like Hal developed throughout the story.  They leave out the death of his father, and Hal gets used to becoming an intergalactic cop pretty quickly.  I would have thought that seeing aliens for possibly the first time in your life would be surprising, but Hal doesn’t seem to care.  I don’t know if he’s just that cool or just that stupid.  A good Green Lantern story is about Hal overcoming his fears, but this story feels like a series of fights without a solid theme.  If anyone undergoes character development, it’s Sinestro.  I’m not saying it’s bad, but the live action movie better have some real development.  You know, emotion and stuff.  The movie captures Hal’s personality well even though we should be seeing Hal as more of a rookie.

If the story had any slight story problems, the animation more than made up for them.  Everything looks great and it’s hard to be disappointed.  The action sequences have a few minor flaws, like when a veteran Green Lantern acts like a deer in the headlights in the face of a scary weapon, but are still well done.  All of the imagery feels like it’s right out of the comics, and I mean that in a good way.  My favorite aliens of movie were the Weaponers of Qward, who just plain rock.  Victor Garbel makes a perfect Sinestro and completely steals the show.  Everything about him works.  I actually think this guy should be considered for the live action movie.  He was that good.  Christopher Meloni makes for an interesting Hal Jordan and sounds confident without being too cocky.  The only voice problem I could find was with Kilowag.  Kilowag is undeniably the greatest lantern of them all, regardless of what anyone else might say, and I was really excited about Michael Madsen voicing him.  After watching it, I couldn’t help but think he wasn’t the best choice.  I’m sure there is a voice actor somewhere who could have nailed him, and this Kilowag feels a bit too gravely for the character.  He does a good job, just not a great one.  I’m not sure why the voice director chose to go with almost exclusively well known actors, but the results don’t lie. 

If you’re a Green Lantern fan, chances are you’re going to buy this.  You won’t be disappointed, just don’t expect something as epic as the comic book in a 75 minute movie.  For people new to Green Lantern, this movie could serve as a fun introduction to Hal Jordan and the awesomeness of Sinestro.  I wouldn’t call First Flight a “can’t miss” but it’s definitely worth checking out.

Two years ago, the Hulk declared war on the entire planet and came pretty close to winning.  Hulk got some revenge against the members of the Illuminati who sent him up into space, fought almost every hero on the planet and then squared off against an unhinged Sentry.  Only when he realized he had been betrayed by one of his own did he start to calm down and decide to not…you know… destroy the world.  To be fair, I think we can actually call this a draw.  The event got mixed reviews from critics, and I thought it wasn’t bad at all.  At comic con, it was announced that this war is far from over.  And what are they calling this new event?  I would hope they call it some classy like WWHII or something downright clever.  Nah, they decided to go with World War Hulks, which is the dumbest event name ever.  Well, even with the title, this is one event I’m seriously looking forward to.  Wait.  No I’m not.  I’m dreading this storyline even more than seeing a Vision solo series, and the only possible good outcome is that the Red Hulk can die and never bother us again.

Maybe I exaggerate, but the cast of WWHS (which is the accepted abbreviation) doesn’t inspire much confidence.  We get to see the Hulk (yey!), his son Skaar (meh), the Red Hulk (boo), A-Bomb (….), She Hulk (hells yeah!), Red She Hulk (wtf?) and probably some other characters with gamma related powers.  There are exactly two characters in that list I care about, the Hulk and his cousin.  What do they have in common?  They’re the only characters on that list who havn’t been created in the past three years.  Every other character on that list deserves some kind of slow and painful death.  The Red Hulk has been around for well over a year now, and I’ve given him the chance to win me over.  And he has failed oh so miserably.  I can live with him beating down some of the other heroes.  That’s more of a problem with the story than the character.  It’s the dialogue that gets me.  He just annoys me with every word that comes out his mouth.  Literally.  I reread all the issues so far and he hasn’t had a decent line of dialogue yet.  He can’t stop talking about how he’s so intense and smart and stuff.  Please.  Every comeback or witty remark he makes falls flat.  Also, they’ve got to show his identity sooner or later.  I would have been satisfied if in issue six, they just said it was Samson.  Instead, I feel like there is no way they can have it be anyone I care about.  And what’s this Red She Hulk?  I kind of want to call her Rush.  You know take “Rulk” and replace the “lk” with “she”.  Stupid I know, but I’m not saying Red She Hulk over and over again.  You can’t make me.

So we have all these characters I don’t really care about and a series that has been god awful for the past seven issues.  I thought the first issues were alright, and at least enjoyable.  Since then, Hulk has been awful and left alot unexplained.  I want a Hulk title with half decent character development and a respectable plot.  I think that after almost destroying the world, Bruce Banner would be concerned with turning into the Hulk.  No, it was like the whole thing never happened until 13 issues in.  My only hope is that with Greg Pak back on the team, he can make some of this stuff work.  Pak is a long time Hulk writer, and I trust him to do a bit more than Loeb.  I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again: I love the Hulk.  He’s an amazing character and a cornerstone of the Marvel U.  Could WWHS be good?  Maybe.  A Skaar/Rulk fight could be fun, and I think it would be amazing if the Green Scar Hulk steps in to save his son.  Something to show Rulk how it’s really done.  That would be great.  If we see Bruce Banner get some character development, I’m on board.  They have a fantastic opportunity to explore the after effects of WWH, and I hope they don’t mess this up.

 Speaking of green, Hal Jordan’s first flight comes out on DVD tomorrow.  I’m hoping for big things and expect a full review tomorrow.

This update will be a quick one.  It’s been said for a while that Iron Man will get a trilogy, but there had been some concerns that the third installment would be the Avengers rather than a solo adventure.  Jon Favreau cleared this up, and said that there would in fact be Iron Man 3.  There better be.  They havn’t had the Mandarin yet, and it would unacceptable not to include Iron Man’s archnemesis. 

Favreau also thought that this movie could come out before the Avengers if the team-up gets delayed again.  I’m hoping that this doesn’t happen.  Not only do I not want to wait for the Avengers, but I think that Iron Man 3 will be better for it.  The second is looking to explore Tony’s being by himself, and I want to see a movie where his work on the Avengers has been established. 

Favreau also gave a bit more info on the Avengers.  Kind of.  Since Thor and Captain America havn’t been made or even started production, they can’t really say what the Avengers is going to be like.  Favreau may or may not direct the movie, and they don’t know what kind of role he’ll play.  There had been a rumor that one of the reasons the Avengers was pushed back was because they wanted to give Favreau the chance to work on it after Iron Man 2, although this is all far from confirmed.  I think Favreau would be a great choice, and he certainly cares about the movies enough.

Okay, so this was a pretty bad update.  All I said was that there would be an Iron Man 3 and that they have no idea what to do for the Avengers.  But I just couldn’t live with myself if I didn’t write this.

It looks like the news keeps on coming.  After yesterday’s updates on Batman 3 and Iron Man 2, it’s only fair for something about the Avengers to pop up.  Marvel producer Kevin Feige, the man who runs the Marvel Movieverse, talked a bit about the team line-up.  He says the team will consist of Iron Man, Thor, Captain America and Nick Fury.  Also joining the team will be members of the Hulk’s universe, and some other “additional” members.  The impression I got was that those four characters are the heart of the team, and members like the Black Widow will be showing up as support.  This means we still might get Hank Pym, but the chances of him having a main role are looking pretty slim.

Having the big three on the team is no surprise.  You can’t have the Avengers without them, and they’re gettting their own movies.  Nick Fury being a full member is a bit interesting.  Fury has never really been an Avenger, but was a big part of the team in the Ultimate Universe.  Feige also cited the relationship between Steve and Tony as a big part of the movie.  I always thought those two made a great pair, and its good to see that carry over to the movie.  Throw in Thor and we’ve got a good old fashioned bro-mance.  And who could this character from the Hulk’s world be?  The obvious candidate is General Ross.  In the Incredible Hulk, Stark told Ross that they were putting a team together, so the old general knows about the Avengers.  William Hurt put in a great performance and I really hope he reprises the role.  Who else might join?  Betty Ross is a decent guess and the only other character who has a decent shot.  Leonard Sampson just wouldn’t fit.  The team doesn’t need a shrink.  Tony probably does, even if he won’t admit it though.

 But wait, what about the green guy himself!?!?!  How can the Hulk not be part of the team?  Feige’s response was that Zak Penn was still writing the script, so we’ll see.  Whatever role the Hulk has on the team is going to mercurial at best.  You just can’t control the big guy.  Still, I just can’t imagine the movie without him.  Even if he isn’t a full member, expect to see him work with the team.  Maybe the team’s first mission is to bring in the Hulk?  Who knowns.  This also explains why Marvel hasn’t signed Edward Norton up straight away.  They just don’t know what they’re doing with the character.

And what about the rest of the Avengers crew?  Alot of fans have been clamoring about seeing Hawkeye, the Vision, the Wasp, etc. etc.  Feige said that having all these characters would be cool, but just too hard.  Having more than four characters is hard enough; 10 or 15 would be a nightmare.  As much as you might want to see some of the Avengers classics, I agree that it would be too hard to pull off.  Then again, they really need Hawkeye in this thing.  At the very least make him an agent of SHIELD like in the Ultimates.  He could be one of the few “additional” members.

We also got some news on Captain America.  The movie is going to be very “international”, which makes sense considering it’s a WWII movie.  The movie will also include a team that Cap works with that will have alot of foreign actors.  The first group that comes to mind is the Invaders, although they arn’t really an international team.   They have two Americans, an android and an Atlantean.  I guess I’m not too sure exactly what group it will be then.  For the villain, it looks like they want to lay the foundation for the Marvel U.  Hydra and the Red Skull were both mentioned, which is just fun.

Even though we won’t see any big announcements until October, it looks like they know what they’re doing.  The script is half way done.  The movie will be about Captain America finding a way to live up to his own ideals, which sounds perfect.  All this stuff is coming together, and looks like it’s well on track.  All we have to do is wait 3 more years for the movie to come out!

I know I just posted 5 minutes ago, and I don’t care.  This is important.  Iron Man 2 just released its first trailer, which was close to 5 minutes long.  Too bad we can’t see it.  I’ll just have to read some of the reports.  So what did all those special people at comic con get to see?

One thing is Stark hanging out with Nick Fury, who still wants Stark on the Avengers.  I guess Tony refuses to join the “super powered boy band”.  Thats the most awesome quote ever.  Tony likes doing things on his own.  This tells me a few things.  I think Tony is going to reject Rhodey’s help, only to realize he can’t do all this alone.  He’ll then wind up joining the team at the end of the movie.  That sounds brilliant, and I’m loving it so far.  I also think that the Black Widow is going to be Nick Fury’s girl on the inside, and that would explain her purpose.  I didn’t know why she would spy one of her own people, but this makes sense.

We also hear of Tony verbally abusing a senate committee, and you can just imagine how this would go.  Cut to Whiplash.  His voice-over reveals that he thinks the Starks have a legacy of blood, and that he’s going to end it.  These are the best villains.  The one’s who are doing what they think is right.  I can’t wait to see him on screen and in action.  The last piece of info?  Rhodey in full War Machine armor, guns blazing.  Every site I’ve looked at talks about how amazing it was, and how this is looking to be one fantastic movie.

This just leave me to wonder, what would a super powered boy band look like?  If the Avengers were a band, Thor would be on guitar as the God of Rock, Hulk would rock the drums, Hawkeye would be on bass, Iron Man on electric keyboard/backup vocals and Cap would be lead vocals.  And they would save the world from bad music.

There’s no comic book movie I’m looking forward to more than the Avengers.  Yet for some reason, it’s the rumors about Batman 3 that get me the most excited.  I guess that’s because so much of Batman is up in the air.  We don’t know who the villain is, and we don’t even know what it’s going to be called.  I’m looking forward to the day when I can stop calling this thing Batman 3.  I’m also happy to say this is the first decent Batman 3 rumor I’ve brought up, so this is a special moment for me. 

So what’s the news?  Gary Oldman said that they would be filming Batman 3 next year, which means it would come out two years from now.  This comes as a huge change of pace from the rumors that the movie would be coming out in 2012 at the earliest.  I had originally thought that Batman would make another showing in 2011, since there was a 3 year gap between Begins and TDK.  Then came all the stuff about Nolan not knowing what to do and there not being a script.  Actually, as far as I know, there isn’t anything resembling a script at this point.  So can we trust Mr. Oldman?  I want to say yes, since Commissioner Gordon scientifically incapable of being wrong.  Then again, Michael Caine told us the movie would have the Penguin and the Riddler, only to later say he has no idea of what the hell is going on. 

All this news is a bit strange, and it doesn’t tell us if there is a script or if Nolan is on board.  If the movie is coming out in 2011, we should start hearing some more rumors soon.  They would have to start getting the actors on board and prepping sets.  I still say that it comes out in 2012, but that’s just me.  If Bats does come out in 2011, we’ll have a summer of Thor, Captain America, Spiderman (possibly), Green Lantern and now Batman.  That would be overkill.  I don’t think the world could take so much spandex, and for the good of mankind I’m going to say that Bruce Wayne should give the other heroes a chance.  If Batman 3 comes out in 2012, we’ll get an epic battle between him and the Avengers.  Come on.  You know you want it.

Some men just refuse to stay down.  You can do whatever you want to them, but they’ll always come back for more.  One such man is the Master of Magnetism, Magneto.  The character is irrevocably tied to the X-Men, and the team just seems less interesting without their mortal enemy.  Decades after his creation fans still see him as one of the best villains, and as I mentioned a while back possibly the best villain.

I recently started picking up my first ongoing X-title.  I’m an X-man fan, but with so many titles I didn’t know where to start.  Uncanny this, Legacy that, I just wanted to read an X-men book.  I jumped on during at the start of the X-men/Dark Avengers crossover and am happy I did.  With Magneto back, things are bound to get interesting.  I just hope I don’t need to get caught up on old stories or anything to figure out what’s going on.  Either way, if you arn’t reading X-men now you might want to check it out.  Matt Faction has high hopes for the newest arc, and he seems to have big plans.

 But Magneto isn’t the only man coming back.  Deathlok, a big nasty cyborg, is coming back with his own mini-series.  I never cared too much for Deathlok, and felt he was out of place at Marvel.  He looks like a DC character, and I’ve never paid too much attention to him.  Marvel has been waiting for the right pitch, and I guess it came along.  The series could be worth checking out I guess.  We’re also seeing the return of someone called Marvel Man.  The character looks really old school, which is why I’ve never heard of him.  This is supposed to big news.  Supposed to be.  I’m going to be honest and say that I don’t care too much.  See?  At Captain Otter you get journalism with integrity.  If I don’t care about something I’m going to tell you about it.  Captain America would be proud.

 Today’s news proves one thing.  If you’re that awesome, no one is going to keep you down for long.  It also proves that no one ever goes away in comic books.  So… I guess today’s news proves two things.  Even if you don’t care about Deathlok or Marvel Man, Magneto’s return should get you excited.