Batman: Arkham Knight Gameplay: “Evening The Odds?” More Like Unfair Bat-vantage If You Ask Me…

Posted on May 21, 2014 by geelw

Rocksteady is back as the developer in this upcoming hit and as you can see, their incredible work on this PC, PlayStation 4 and Xbox One only game will be well worth the wait and indeed might be a big system seller when the game ships out later this year. Sure, this looks like a movie trailer, but that’s all in game engine running and making your jaw land on your shoes or thereabouts. Yeah, it’s going to be a blockbuster you don’t want to miss if you loved the other Arkham games and double yeah, WB Games is going to be cackling like the Joker all the way to the bank when all is said and done. I can’t wait to get my paws on this one. It’s going to be the Year of the Bat for gamers, that’s for sure…

Batman v. Superman: Dawn of Justice Sounds Like A Court Case. It’s Not.

Posted on May 21, 2014 by geelw

Well, it’s official and I’ll get used to it, but I’ll admit I laughed out loud and IMMEDIATELY thought of one of those many “Judge” TV shows that crowd television these days. Batman suing Superman or vice versa? For what, one can only wonder. Of course, I’d better shut it with the snark or director Zack Snyder will whip out his trusty Leica, bash me on the head with it and take a photo to post on his twitter page. Ouch. or worse, I’ll suffer the raaaaage of a few hundred thousand DC fans who will be queuing up to see this one as soon as someone posts a release date. Anyway, updates to come when I feel like it. The film just started shooting today in Detroit (of all places, but hey – they NEED those movie studio dollars), so there’s a loooong road to go before it’s a wrap.

Batman Revealed: Affleck Shows Some Muscle (Of The Suit and Car Varieties)…

Posted on May 13, 2014 by geelw

So, after a tease yesterday of the new Batmobile on his Twitter account:

Director Zack Snyder has yet again whipped out his trusty Leica and finally shown fans what they’ve been waiting for:

To which I say “good!” While I’m not sure how “good” a film Batman & Superman will be when all is said and done, at least Ben looks decent in that suit, although I kind of got used to that Tumbler as the go-to Bat-ride thanks to it not being an extended black bathtub with wheels that looked more at home on the Bonneville Salt Flats than on the mean streets of Gotham City. Those Burton and Schumacher cars had the turning radius of a school bus! Anyway, I guess this means more reveals as the weeks pass, as the hype wheel turns and more gets dripped out on this soon to be blockbuster.

I’m still not convinced Gal Gadot (Who? Who?) will make a good Wonder Woman, but hey, she could surprise me and the many other skeptics that think she’s a LOT less of an Amazon and a lot more of a skinny gal who worked out to PLAY one. Eh, we’ll see, I suppose…

Constantine TV Trailer: NBC Wants To Give You A Few Cases Of Vertigo…

Posted on May 13, 2014 by geelw

I’ll reserve judgment on this until I see a few episodes, but while some are championing this as awesome, I’m skeptical on a few fronts because of what’s missing and what will be missed. First off, Hellblazer works better as a title (at least to someone like me who read the original books when they were first published), but network TV with a shiny new show in need of an audience in America probably isn’t going to touch that one (right, NBC?). Second, John’s icky chain smoking is gone, no doubt because network and public outrage deems he lose his nastiest habit. Although, this may not be a bad thing as I can see the show tying into the film (some still despise) by knocking away John’s habit because he lost the taste for ciggies in the movie. Finally, and this is the touchy part (no pun intended, maybe)… in the Vertigo books, Constatine was how do we say… swinging for both teams (to be as vague as possible but not about the man’s bisexual tendencies). Granted, getting people outraged about that sort of thing is WAY too easy these days and yep, I’ll bet that NBC didn’t want to even go near that bit of business…

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It’s Hikari Friday! Funko Wants To Make You Bats This Week With Another Awesome Giveaway!

Posted on May 9, 2014 by geelw

Well, Oooooh. This week’s Hikari Vinyl giveaway from Funko will make you Bat-fans get nuts and really fast. Well, you’d best act fast if you want to score this one, folks. Just Batusi on over to Funko’s facebook, twitter, or Instagram pages and enter NOW or else someone other than YOU will win this super cool Batman figure (the FIRST one off the line of 600, at that).

Of course, even if you don’t win, you still have 599 other chances to BUY this super-limited edition figure when it ships out in August. I like the “sharkskin” effect that paint job gives off and that red cape? Not standard Bat-issue, but it fits the stylized figure just fine, I say.

GOTHAM Trailer: Fox Wants To Make Me (And Other Bat-Fans) Nuts In A Few Ways (Good & Bad)…

Posted on May 6, 2014 by geelw

Hmmm… this extended trailer for Fox’s upcoming GOTHAM looks REALLY good, but has me concerned about a few things. I dislike the whole concept of these “origin” reworkings because all these writers seem to LOVE throwing together every character they can write in who they think need to be in these shows with an intent to show how they came to be from nearly every angle. Sure, the fact that young Bruce Wayne is probably going to be VERY important to this series is a selling point, but do we REALLY need to see a young Catwoman as a fence-hopping Hot Topic outfit shopping (or shoplifting) kid, what looks like a too-tall Penguin and other characters who really don’t need full-on “Hey, we were in Gotham City, too!” stories? Granted, like the other DC shows, none of this will be seen as “canon” by many, but the show WILL be seen that way to younger fans growing out of the cartoons and into the Nolan films (like them or not, they’re important for a few reasons).

Eh, we’ll see, as always. I probably just don’t trust Fox for other things entertainment-wise, so my bias is showing here. Or the show will stink despite the good looks. Eh, we’ll see. I’ll at least catch the first season and see if it stands upright. The casting seems solid here, so it’s up to the writing and directing to make or break this one…

July 23 Is Batman Day. You May Want To Stay Indoors Reading Comics…

Posted on April 30, 2014 by geelw

Now, I’m NOT saying it’ll be dangerous out on this officially DC Comics-sanctioned day, nope, not at all. In fact, it may be too SAFE out there, what with all the people dressed up as Batman stopping crimes only they can see before they occur, helping old ladies and kitties and puppies cross streets, attempting to swing or drop from light poles, building and other fixtures only to find out how actual physics works (and how long capes are REALLY a bad idea) and so forth and so on. Anyway, it will indeed be a BASH! at local comic shops and online – go take a peek here and see for yourself what’s coming…

Me, I’ll stick to reading in bed wearing some Batman pajamas or something. Unless it’s REALLY nice out. Then, I’ll go shopping and get a Bat-escort back home form some nice kid all dressed up. Or maybe luck out and get a Batgirl escort! Woo-hoo! Of course, there’s a 99.98% possibility of me just getting Bat-Mite trying to bite me, but so it goes…

IDW Wants Some Of You To Go Broke: Silver Surfer, Manhunter, Lawnmower Man Artist Editions On The Way…

Posted on April 21, 2014 by geelw

Well, wow. According to the fine folks at Comic Book Resources, IDW’s pricey and VERY desirable Artist’s Edition series is getting at least three more amazing tomes this year in a limited print run form only a select few will be able to get their hands on. To the press release, Robin!:

At the Artist’s Edition panel, Special Projects Editor Scott Dunbier showed off some of the amazing art included in the Marvel Cover’s Artist’s Edition and announced that John Buscema’s Silver Surfer (in cooperation with Marvel Comics), and two more projects with Walter Simonson, Walter Simonson’s Manhunter & Other Stories (in cooperation with DC Entertainment), and Walter Simonson’s Lawnmower Man Artist’s Edition portfolio, collecting the entire Stephen King-penned story into a deluxe portfolio, will soon join the IDW Artist’s Edition catalog!

I’ve seen a few of the previous Artist’s Editions in person thanks to a friend who can afford to shell out for them and all I’ll say is they’re the closest thing to owning the original art you can get (at a far more reasonable price, of course). Expect superior quality reproduction from the originals, warts and all (hey, comic art SUED to be all hand-drawn and lettered!) and something you’ll not want to loan out or have the kids use as snack table reading after that finger painting session, that’s for darn sure.

Prices and release dates TBA. I’ll also see if I can dig up pics from that Lawnmower Man book, as it’s one of Walt Simonson’s quirkiest-looking stories in terms of the artist cutting loose and having a blast with his pens and brushes.

Trend Setters Morphing Dark Knight Mugs: You’ll Go Batty For Your Favorite Hot Beverage…

Posted on April 17, 2014 by geelw

Let’s see now, eight different Bat-mugs mean you can buy one for each day and have one left over for when company drops by or as a gift. Or you might know seven other people who need an extra licensed lift with that morning mug of hot steaming whatever. Each heat transforming mug is black until 11 ounces of something hot enough lands inside of it and each retails for $18.99 over at the Film Cells website. There’s a ton of other cool licensed goodies there from other pop culture classics from then and now, but you’re probably already poring over that site as we speak with your wallet whining away…

Batman Arkham Knight Reveal Trailer: Rocksteady Is Back With A Killer Finale…

Posted on March 4, 2014 by geelw

Yeah, yeah… it’s JUST a CG trailer and not gameplay, but this year’s E3 will probably feature a bigger reveal of that which everyone wants to see. Only two things bugged me about this otherwise drool-worthy teaser. One: A voice mail message from Thomas Wayne? Hmmm… TOO convenient and somewhat corny in a way, but I’ll forgive the team if they twist that up into a villain being behind that ruse or something like that. Two: Catwoman. Where is she? I think she NEEDS her own game to play around in just to wash the residue of that gawdawful Halle Berry flick and even worse video game from about a decade ago or so. I still cringe when I think of how lousy both were (sorry, Halle!).

Anyway, I do hope we see Cats in her own game at some point, as she could be a more empowering character (and not a cara-cat-ure, ha!) than even Lara Croft is if done right. Other than that, a Batmobile we can drive in this one is fantastic and makes me thing Knight will have a more GTA-like open map to get around in, something the series has been needing since Arkham City. Given that Lego Batman 2 did the open world thing quite well (albeit in a campier manner), Rocksteady is on the right track with what’s looking like a game with even more replay value. Back with more on this biggie soon…