Best of 2014: Movies – Best Drama of the Year

Another year is in the books, and we here at Hush Comics couldn’t pass at the chance to rank our favorites of this year’s releases in all types of mediums. Some of the winners will surprise you; heck, some of the results surprised  us. The results are completely subjective, and therefore were chosen with infallible logic. We would love to hear your opinions on what we have chosen, or if you thought we missed anything. This should be a fun review before we gear up for 2015.

Click on the link to take you to the “Best of 2014” homepage.

Best Drama of the Year

• Birdman
• The Fault in Our Stars
• Fury
• Noah
• The Normal Heart

WINNER – Birdman

Everyone loves Michael Keaton, or at least they should, and Birdman was an amazing way for the world to be reminded of that. It was sweet and sad, and Keaton’s portrayal of an actor known for playing a super hero who’s fallen off the map is not only bitingly reminiscent of the real man but it hits a soft spot for all nerds who once loved an actor just for playing their favorite character. The movie is dynamic and has a great cast of characters – some you love, some you hate, and all that confuse you at varying times. Birdman tells a great story that makes you really sad at times, but it’s edgy and funny and honestly that’s how I think all dramas should be. And I don’t care what anyone says, Keaton was the best Batman, even if he sounded like Beetleguese at times. – Keriann

Second Place – The Fault in Our Stars

Like I said in my review of The Fault in Our Stars back before the film came out, this story holds a very special place in my heart. Based on the bestselling novel by John Green, I have seen Hazel (Shailene Woodley) and Augustus’ (Ansel Elgort) journey with cancer and love five times, three of those times on the big screen. Every single viewing I end up sobbing, not only because I am grieving for the characters I love, but because this story has come so far. The online community of Nerdfighters feel extremely connected to this story, having been infatuated with it since before it was even released. As the little guys, seeing TFIOS hit the big screen feels like a giant slap in the face to anyone whoever told us we were weird for being the outcasts. TFIOS was extremely successful this Summer, beating out Tom Cruise’s Edge of Tomorrow in the box offices with $ 304 million worldwide and being the number one film during its opening weekend. – Charlotte

Third Place – Fury

A group of elite tank cavalry hold off the German war machine so the rest of the allied forces can push into Europe. Fury is like the last scene of Saving Private Ryan but with more tanks and for the entire film. It’s exciting it’s dramatic and it’s extremely well put together. The cast is one of the strongest put together for most films. Brad “Wardaddy” Pitt leads the brilliant cast with a stellar performance. The rest of the tank crew is made up by Shia LeBeouf, who despite being a little nutty in real life is excellent here, Logan Lerman, the new to the crew young kid whom I’d like to see more of, Michael Pena, as good as ever, and Jon “Bring back Shane” Bernthal. Drama, action, and an outstanding cast, there aren’t more reasons necessary to see and love Fury. – Scott

RUNNER UP – Noah

I think I’m maybe one of five or seven people on the planet that liked this movie. The problem is too many people saw it and thought, “Rock monsters? I don’t remember any rock monsters in the story of Noah,” and hated it. However, this is an Aronofsky joint, and he likes his weird. Additionally, he might have invented the style of the rock monsters (or nephilim as they’re called), but almost all his extra content was culled from extra-biblical sources, most coming from the Book of Enoch. I can’t say enough about Aronofsky and his cosmic vision of the world. – JH

RUNNER UP – The Normal Heart

Everyone has AIDS. AIDS, AIDS, AIDS. Also known, apparently, as gay cancer. In all seriousness, though, this movie will destroy you emotionally. Mark Ruffalo and Jim Parsons star as part of a group of gay men in New York City fighting desperately both for recognition as a people coming under a deadly new virus, and to fight their stigma as second-class citizens. There’s really nothing happy about this movie; it’s meant to alarm you. The early 90’s were a time of progression, but there was a whole other civil rights movement going on that never got any attention. – Sherif

Next Category: Best Horror/Thriller

We Can Do It! Gwen Stacy

“We Can Do It!: Women in Comics, Television and Beyond” is Hush Comics’ answer to what women in comics mean to the world and to us  Visit our page every week to learn about a new super lady! 

*Note: I wanted to write this piece because of the latest release of The Amazing Spider-Man 2.  There will be spoilers for Gwen Stacy’s story.  However, this piece focuses on the comic book character rather than the movie character.

Who:

Gwendolyne Stacy

Nicknames/Aliases:

Gwen Stacy

Skills:

Advanced knowledge in science, being cute and sassy.

Origin Story:

There are two things to know about Gwen Stacy:  she is the quintessential college girlfriend and (SPOILER!) she dies.  Yup, I broke that news to you quick.  As soon as you fell in love with her, she was gone.  The quick history of Gwen is that she is Peter Parkers girlfriend.  But of course, when you are involved with a man who is also superhero, in this case Spider-Man, things aren’t always that simple. Gwen and Peter met at Empire State University when she was a student of Biology, and their encounter wasn’t on the best of terms.  Over time, they developed a friendship that became a relationship.  They were then on-again and off-again for years.  Contrary to most of the story telling, Gwen Stacy and Mary Jane Watson knew each other, and even ran in the same circles.  Also, she was a model.  Peter Parker is a lucky guy.  But their love wasn’t so lucky for so many reasons.  Because Peter never revealed his alter-ego to Gwen, she often felt abandoned by him when he “disappeared.”  During a battle with Doctor Octopus, Gwen’s dad, Captain George Stacy, is accidentally killed by falling rubble.  Gwen leaves the country only after trying to get Peter to propose marriage.  Peter, of course, is guilt ridden, not only because he felt responsible for George’s death, but because George knew the truth about Peter, so he does not ask Gwen to marry him.  After being gone for some time, Gwen returns to New York.  Only 22 issues later, Gwen’s life ends.  Even worse, it is by Spider-Man’s hands.  After being kidnapped by Norman Osborn as Green Goblin, Gwen is thrown off of a bridge. When Spidey tries to save her by casting a web, he accidentally snaps her neck.

Why is she important?:

The thing about Gwen Stacy is that her life and her death don’t exist without the other.  There are many compelling arguments that Gwen was just a plot point.  Gwen is referenced in Gail Simone’s Women in Refrigerators.  However, a large part of me has to disagree with this.  Gwen and Mary Jane have been compared for decades.  It has been debated in and out who is Peter’s true love.  And in references even up to modern day (Gwen died in 1973), Peter still loves Gwen.  Girl has been dead for 41 years.  He still puts flowers on the bridge she died on every year.  Yes, Gwen’s death was an easy way to give Peter an emotional break-down and to make Mary Jane grow up a bit.  And killing her off prevented a teenaged Peter from getting married.  But Peter’s background as Spider-Man has always been a dark tale.  And I don’t believe Gwen was a one-time boo-hoo for him.  She represents a lot of things for not only Peter, but fans of books.  Gwen is what could have been and what we all believe our lives will be when we are young.  Gwen was more than a looker, too.  She had a strong mental connection with Peter.  Sure, she didn’t know his secret identity, but she had a high level of intelligence, matching Peter’s.  Peter considered her an equal and possibly the only person to understand him.

Gwen Stacy sparks a lot of debate.  Did her neck snap or was she dead before the fall?  Is she hotter than Mary Jane?  Is she a better match for Peter than Mary Jane?  Is Gwen’s death the end of the Silver Age?  Is Gwen’s death the epitome of the female trope in a genre that is male-centered?  I think the fact that you can find countless, and I mean countless, articles on all these questions proves why Gwen Stacy is important.  She may not have super powers.  In the comics, she may not have known about Peter’s identity.  She may be just a very smart and pretty girl who had to die.  But that doesn’t make her any less.  Gwen Stacy is what makes comic books dynamic and important not only to the comic culture, but to our society because we can take a girl who seemingly is very normal and create a very large dialogue about what it all means.

What she means to me:

Really and truly what Gwen means to me is the first love we all lost.  Gwen was meant for Peter.  She just was.  She was smart and witty.  And then she was gone.  We have all experienced the loss of our first love.  And many of our favorite characters from other stories have, too.  We all feel a strong connection to them.  FIrst loves stay with us forever.  Gwen was beautiful and it was readily accepted that she was a Science Major.  Of course in the movies, she is a high school student, on her way to Oxford, and very knowledgable in science, even working for OsCorp.  Gwen doesn’t try to be anything she’s not.  Therefore, she accepts Peter for what he is.  Because of that, they connected so well.  But first loves rarely work out.  In this case, their love ended tragically.  However, I believe the Peter Parker and Spider-Man wouldn’t be the well-known creations they are now with out Gwen Stacy’s life or her death.

Gwen Stacy first appearance in 1965 in the Amazing Spider-Man Comics

Gwen and Spidey in the Amazing Spider-Man comics

The Night Gwen Stacy Died in 1973.

Bryce Dallas Howard as Gwen Stacy in 2007’s Spider-Man 3

Gwen Stacy in 2008-2009’s Spectacular Spiderman. She appeared in almost every episode.

Emma Stone as Gwen Stacy in 2012’s Amazing Spider-Man

Stone as Gwen in 2014’s Amazing Spider-Man 2.

photos belong to Marvel Comics

written by Adrian Puryear

SPOILER-FREE Amazing Spider-Man 2 Review

Genre – Action, Comic Book, Superhero

Director – Marc Webb (Amazing Spider-Man, (500) Days of Summer)

Cast – Andrew Garfield, Emma Stone, Jamie Foxx, Dane DeHaan

Alluring element – The return of the Amazing Spider-Man!

Scorecard:

Plot – 9

Acting – 8

Representation of genre/Identity – 10

Cinematography – 10

Effects/Environment – 10

Captivity – 9

Logical consistency – 9

Originality/Creativity – 8

Soundtrack/Ambiance – 7

Overall awesomeness – 10

 

Since being rebooted just one decade after the historic trilogy (okay, we can forget about Spider-Man 3) changed the way comic book adaptations were viewed by the world, The Amazing Spider-Man destroyed all doubt in fans that this was just a cash grab, but instead a legitimately sustainable universe. It was a risky move rebooting so soon, especially when many fans considered the third installment of the Raimi films to be a complete deal-breaker, but the two films have easily become a juggernaut, earning a place among the likes of the Nolan Batmans, Iron Mans, and Kick Asses. This has been well-deserved, as Peter Parker is one of the most beloved character of all-time, and second in popularity to nobody but maybe Superman or Batman. From KRS-One to Barack Obama, everybody loves their friendly neighborhood Spider-Man.

The Amazing Spider-Man does whatever a Spider-Man can… but better. From the get-go, we’re introduced to a Spider-Man who has been not been taking his two-year hiatus lightly. His skills are honed and the obligatory montage where Parker learns how to do like a spider does is long in the past. Instead, we are treated to spectacular scenes of Spidey chasing bad guys, infuriating them with his hilarious jabs at their incompetence – seriously, I’m convinced Peter Parker’s middle name is sarcasm. Although the end of AS1 left us in emotionally distraught from the death of Captain Stacey and the forced promise to leave Gwen Stacy alone (yeah, right. We’re talking about Emma Freaking Stone here), the tone of this movie is fervently fun and exciting.

We join our hero as he is graduating high school, which jumps years ahead in chronology, missing out on some potentially valuable years of high school chronology for Peter. It could be looked at as a rushed attempted to fit everything in, but I really see it as a clear statement that Webb will be focusing on the growth of Peter Parker, the man. The term “this isn’t high school anymore” is literally applied to Peter’s relationships across the board. It doesn’t take away from the light-hearted nature of the character himself, but the nature of the story and the villains which he faces lets us no right away that he has a monumental task ahead of him.

You know watt they say: with great power, comes villains with even greater power. Electro makes his first film appearance here, and it’s mostly a win. Max Dillon, played by Jamie Foxx, is a sad, lonely, brilliant man who never seems to catch a break. The ability to control electricity was the ultimate gag joke when Electro first broke onto the scene (actually, February 2014 marked his 50th Anniversary) However, in this completely wired society we live in now, the ability to control electricity made Max Dillon nothing short of a god.

Unfortunately, in The Amazing Spider-Man 2, Electro is reduced to somewhat of a goon to the real villain of the story. His character is so creepy and weird that you almost can’t feel sorry for him, even though his character is really the victim of unfortunate circumstance. There are also a few mishaps with his ultra-corny lines – you’ll know which ones when the time comes. Aesthetically, though, Electro is one of the coolest bad guys you can find in a movie. His entire body is comprised of electricity, making him look like a conduit. He’s part Dr. Manhattan from The Watchmen – except, thank goodness, he wears pants – and part conduit from the  inFamous video game. I think it looks phenomenal; you can argue one way or the other, but you have to admit, it looks much better than, ya know, this:

Image from Ultimate Spider-Man Season 2 “Electro”

Electro isn’t just used as physical muscle; he was worked over to introduce the real bad guy, Harry Osbourne. Dane DeHaan (Chronicle) plays a perfect Harry; he’s smart, emotional perturbed from being neglected by his rich dad (#richpeopleproblems), but finds solace in his one friend in this world, Peter Parker. DeHaan might not be the stud-muffin that James Franco was, but he does have this very DiCaprio vibe going on, even down to the patented hair flip thing. Due to Norman Osborn’s sickness, Harry finds himself thrust into power. Curt Connors failed to replicate the lizard serum in the film film – that thing that made everybody turn into giant lizards, remember? This has direct consequences in the sequel, and viewers might not even notice the connection if they aren’t looking for it.

The topic of Peter’s parents is also revisited, something that I felt was sorely lacking in the first film. Have patience though, friends; it was all done on purpose, showing just enough in the first film to give enough context for the “aha!” moments in this one. It’s nice to see a little foresight, and that is something the franchise definitely has. There are numerous foreshadowings to a Sinister Six/Venom movie to be found (most of it was unfortunately spoiled by the internet weeks before the movie even came out), but they  were more-so Easter Egg rewards for comic book fans than distractions from the main events.

Clocking in at two and a half hours of run-time, AS2 flew by. The film is cut into enough transitions that I didn’t feel like the movie needed to end, nor did it feel too sporadic to keep up with the fast pace. There were a few scenes that felt bipolar, ie – Parker’s inevitable guilt trip about hooking up with Gwen in lieu of the promise to her dad, even though he had just laid on some hardcore PDA earlier that day. There are also several montages with music that doesn’t really fit the ambiance of the situation. They’re all forgivable and minor missteps, as Spider-Man almost gets a bit of a pass because Peter Parker is such an awkward character already.

I wouldn’t say that the heroism takes a back seat, but to call AS2 anything but a love story first and foremost would be a disservice to the dynamic performance that Emma Stone and Andrew Garfield give. This feels like you wish your first love story was. Arguably, Gwen means more for Peter’s character development than being Spider-Man does. What makes Gwen so important to Spider-Man’s journey is her ride-or-die attitude. She has no great power, but still feels the responsibility to do the right things – a value surely instilled in her by her late father.

What I really love about The Amazing Spider-Man 2 is the ability to keep the spirit of the Web Slinger intact while still trying to evolve the story to make it fit in a 21st century setting. The evolution of OsCorp into genetic manipulation – as well as “The Vault” and its contents – is a lunge in the right direction. It makes OsCorp directly responsible for the origins of The Lizard, Spider-Man, Electro, Rhino with his mechanized suit and more to come (Sinister Six and Venom, presumably). Furthermore, making the “Goblin” trait into a degenerative disease is a brilliant way to tie everybody back together, especially Peter’s parents. At the heart of it, though, is still your friendly neighborhood Spider-Man. From the incredible slow-mo Spider-Sense sequences and the ludicrously awesome lack of effort when facing impending doom to the heart-to-heart that he has with Aunt May and even as subtle as the replacement of dark eyes on the costume with white ones, I fell in love with Spider-Man all over again. Ultimately, with director Marc Webb and Andrew Garfield as lead Peter Parker on board for a third movie as well, there’s just as much to be excited for going forward as this is to enjoy in Amazing Spider-Man 2.

Thanks to Aurora Rise, a non-profit organization that funnels donations to the rehabilitation of victims in the Aurora theater shooting, we were able to see Amazing Spider-Man 2 a few days early AND support a good cause. Thanks to Aurora Rise and Aurora Movie Tavern for hooking it up!

 

Hush Family outing!

 

All media credited to Marvel Comics and Sony/Columbia Pictures 

So Far This Week… April 30th, 2014

Holy crap! Get ready to have your socks knocked off; this week brings in a lot of great news tidbits.

This Sunday is May the Fourth!  Hush Comics is lucky enough to be running a panel at StarFest to commemorate the holiday.  Come see us at 10 AM!

This Saturday, May 3rd, is FREE COMIC BOOK DAY! Head to your local comic book store for free issues of some of the biggest (and smallest, in the case of Mouse Guard) stories in the industry. Many local shops are holding insane sales for books, so it’s an amazing opportunity for new fans to dive in head-first to the comic book world. Don’t believe me? Just take Levar Burton’s word for it.

For more information on which books are available, this is your one-stop shop (figuratively, I mean, you still have to go to the shop to get the books. duh.). Also, Denverites, visit the Mile High Comics’ Jason Street Mega-Store for some awesome festivities on  Saturday.

If you’re like us, you like to occasionally use the ComiXology to supplement the physical copies of comics you buy at your local stores… RIGHT?? Well, since the acquisition by Amazon, there have already been some swift changes to the storefront. If you’re as confused as we are, check out this informational article.

Today marks the return of the Amazing Spider-Man to the comic book world. After over a year of Otto Octavius as Spider-Man (it’s complicated), Peter is back in command and with a new lease on life! And just in time for the movie, Amazing Spider-Man 2, to hit theaters.

Gwen Stacy herself challenged Tonight Show host Jimmy Fallon to a lip-sync battle, which is quickly becoming my favorite recurring bit on the show. Emma Stone destroys Fallon – all she does is win, win, win.

Before last week’s episode of Game of Thrones, “Oathkeeper,” a trailer for the upcoming series called Leftovers. I’m still not too sure what it’s about, but I’m interested enough to check it out when it airs June 29th.

Speaking of Game of Thrones, the upcoming video game by Telltale Games is getting some narrative assistance from the story creator’s right hand man, Ty Corey Franck as a story consultant. With games like The Walking Dead and Wolf Among Us, I’m sold with anything Telltale puts out.

Marvel is not just trending, but making it a priority for gender equality in their books. Our article on what Ms. Marvel means to us (and the world) is just the start. Now that Elektra, Black Widow, Captain Marvel, She-Hulk, X-Men (all female cast) and the aforementioned Ms. Marvel have solo titles, it’s time for another leading lady to get her own series; Storm debuts this summer, written by Greg Pak – an interview from C2E2 can be found here.

Not even a year after the series’ Felina, and we’re still mourning the legendary Breaking Bad. Fans should check out this 8 minute-long tribute (seriously, whoever made this should win a freakin’ award) to the Heisenberg; while you’re at it, read our Breaking Bad Week articles. You’re God Damn Right.

Image Comics (The Walking Dead, Saga, Deadly Class, Black Science…..) is trying to get some much-deserved cred with Humble Bundle, a site that lets users choose how much they pay for these works (sorry, there is a minimum payment lol). Here are some more details on the deal.

2014 is the year of the Bat…man 75th Anniversary, and July 23rd has been officially dubbed Batman Day! To celebrate, go to your local shop and pick up a FREE issue of a reimagined Detective Comics #27; Batman Day also coincides with the release of Grayson #1 and Robin Rises: Omega #1. Ah, it’s a good time to be a Bat.

The DC New 52 run of Batman has been arguably the best comic out since it went to print in 2011. A line of Greg Capullo-inspired action figures will be released soon (Batman and Talon coming this month). I want to buy an army of Talons, but I will likely settle for two.

Saturday morning cartoons meets Sunday night slow jams! Check out this awesome rendition of the classic Ducktales theme song.

Spider-Man is definitely the topic of choice this week, but DC and Warner Bros. can’t let Marvel steal all the shine. Zack Synder has been announced as the director to a Justice League movie to be released after Batman vs Superman.

Classic Frank Miller graphic novel, Ronin, is getting picked up by the SyFy channel. Hell yes.

Just in time for Star Wars Day, the initial cast for Star Wars: Episode VII has been released. What do you think?

To continue to expand upon its appeal to fourteen year old boys (just a good ribbing from a PlayStation person), X-Box One has launched WWE Network on consoles.

The Disney-Marvel connection will be in full effect this fall when Disney Infinity brings the big guns to its platform for its second iteration, Disney Infinity: Marvel Super Heroes. I haven’t gotten a chance to play the game, but it seems like a great game for kids.

DC’s adult alter-ego game, Injustice: Gods Among Us, is rumored to be getting a sequel out next year. I’m not too sure how a new installment will be justified, but I’m excited, nonetheless. We’ll have more news on that as it develops.

Village idiot Joe Dirt may be getting a sequel. Yeah, that’s where we’re at with comedies…

Graphic Novel Review-Spider-Man: Torment

Spider-Man: Torment

Collecting: Spider-Man #1-5

Original Release Date: 1990 (collected edition released 2011)

Publisher: Marvel

Pages: 144

Characters: Spider-Man, Mary Jane Watson, Calypso, The Lizard, Kraven The Hunter

Writer/Artist: Todd McFarlane

StoryLine – 6

Art – 10

Captivity and Length – 7

Identity – 7

Use of Medium – 10

Depth – 8

Fluidity – 6

Intrigue/Originality – 9

The Little Things – 8

Overall awesomeness – 9

On the eve of the early premier to Columbia Pictures sequel to The Amazing Spider-Man, I ventured out to my garage to uncover my collection of Spider-Man arcs from over the years. Sidebar; It is important to recognize for the sake of this review that Spider-Man was my first nerdy obsession. I came to comics in purist tradition. There was no multi-billion dollar studio backing a franchise of movies or chain of retail stores carpet bagging 80’s cartoon T-shirts for the neo-nerds to wear as ironic or trendy. There were no celebrities gushing over their love of all things Marvel in hopes of landing the next big role. Web-heads like me had NBC’s Spider-Man and His Amazing Friends on Saturday mornings, and that’s about it.

Todd McFarlane’s Spider-Man saved my life. 1988 was a hard year for my family. My mother decided to move from New York City half way around the country to Denver to be closer to my grandparents. Nothing could have been more crushing to me at the time. All I knew was New York; other cities didn’t even exist to me. There are only two truths that keep me half-way sane: the Yankees are the greatest sports team ever assembled and Spider-Man is the best super hero in all of comics.

Parker is a New Yorker without both of his parents. He is nerdy and unsure of himself. Spider-Man reminded me of home. Without Spider-Man, I may not have fallen in love with comic books.

When McFarlane announced that he was leaving The Amazing Spider-Man, my heart sunk. The man who gave us spaghetti-webbing was leaving; who could possibly replace him? It was soon released that McFarlane would launch a new Spidey book simply titled Spider-Man. Not only would Todd pencil the book, but he would write its stories too. This was a dream come true! The man who gave us Venom would be responsible for creating new villains and plots in the Marvel universe! His first attempt launched in 1990 was the five part mini-series, Torment.

The first issue gave us an iconic cover. The Wall-Crawler, hunched over, over-exaggerated eyes, twisted arm, nestled safely in his web was here! Spider-Man sold 2.5 million copies initially. It’s variant covers helped push the title into uncharted territory in sales.

And to top it off, in the top right hand corner of the issue, McFarlane dubbed the series, The Legend of The ArachKnight. This was an obvious dig at DC Comics and the tidal-wave success of Tim Burton’s blockbuster film, Batman. There were more subtle jabs towards the Bat in the first few pages and web-heads went nuts! The success of Batman was overwhelming, there seemed to be no stopping the media blitz and little if no space was left for any other heroes. Quite frankly, it was hard to identify with a billionaire playboy who played cops and robbers in some fictitious town, but Peter Parker was from Queens, and he could never quite get over the hump. His character was much more relatable to me.

Despite Torment‘s initial popularity, McFarlane faced wide-spread criticism from fan-boys, peers and even his last Marvel editor Danny Fingeroth. His initial editor, Jim Salicrup, offered Todd the shot to author and pencil his own title. The book was a huge cash cow for Marvel but Todd seemed to face opposition at every turn. He had already weathered the storm of critics who claimed that he couldn’t draw anatomically correct figures. Instead of changing his style and falling victim to self doubt, he drew even crazier. He twisted bodies in ways they shouldn’t have been able to, he gave us MORE spaghetti-webbing and made Spider-Man his way. He would, “Rise above it all.” With that being said, Torment isn’t Shakespeare, and it didn’t have to be. McFarlane used the Torment series to push HIS brand of art. And even though the company tried to tame his style, they encouraged their next generation of artists, including Amazing Spider-Man successor, Erik Larsen, to draw Spidey the same way because that’s what sold comics.

“The City. New York. Littered with towering concrete giants that seem to swallow up the sky.” Torment is simple – the Lizard is out of control in New York. He is under the control of the dark voodoo priestess Calypso, and on a vicious killing spree. The sensually drawn Calypso has revenge in her dark soul. Her wish? To kill Spider-Man and resurrect Kraven The Hunter. Spidey nearly loses his life in this bloody battle. Any true McFarlane fan will tell you that you don’t need much more than that.

Critics argued that McFarlane never learned how to establish tone in his writing, but if the artwork does it for you, imagination should take care of the rest. The panels are elegantly illustrated. The backdrop of New York is gritty and terrifying. The flow of the first five books may seem a bit sloppy, but the Spider-Man he depicted was a stretch from our friendly neighborhood hero. He is placed in a mysterious plot for no reason – other than torment – and we, the reader, get to enjoy a fresh perspective from one of the most successful comic book artists of all time.

 

So Far this Week… April 16, 2014

Wow!  It’s a big one this week!  Make sure you check out our news wrap-ups every Wednesday and Sunday!  Feel uneasy, ecstatic or just need to vent?  Sound off in the comments!

If Bat-fans need any more reason to be excited about WonderCon 2014, here are all the festivities, panels and otherwise, that will be blessing the convention to celebrate Batman’s 75th Anniversary.

DC royalty Dick Grayson had his world turned upside down when the Crime Syndicate outed his secret identity to the entire world (kinda weird how nobody has been able to trace that little tidbit back to Bruce, himself). Now, he must fake his death and become a special agent. This will all be chronicled in July’s new series, Grayson. I love the idea of Dick Grayson, Boy Wonder, becoming a deadly assassin, but I don’t know that I’m ready to let go of Nightwing.

Legendary comic book writer and Hush-dubbed “Asshole that killed Damian Wayne” will be launching Multiversity later this year and into 2015. Prepare yourself for an abundance of really weird alternate universes.

DC is developing another TV series!  This time, it comes from its offshoot, Vertigo  Based on the 2007-2012 run Scalped, the new series will follow a man returning to his reservation and fighting organized crime.

It’s been announced the the late, great King of Pop will be releasing his first (I don’t count Michael) posthumous album titled Xscape. While others argue whether or not it’s too soon to release his music, I ask if it is too soon to have a track called “Do You Know Where Your Children Are?”

Oh, and there is new DLC coming out for Call of Duty: Ghosts next week that lets Snoop Dogg narrate all of your kills, because why the fuck not?

Another win for the Marvel TV universe! Peggy Carter’s series has been made a 13-episode commitment by ABC. We’re really excited to see S.H.I.E.L.D.’s first agent in action.

It’s official, we’re all screwed. Apparently, a massive super-virus hacker thing has invaded pretty much every facet of the internet over the past couple years (much like HYDRA has in S.H.I.E.L.D. – this is not a coincidence). It’s a futile effort, but if you want to know what all was affected by Heartbleed, here’s a nice infographic to explain how f’d you really are.

Paul Walker is dead, you guys. Okay, that’s not news, but the fact that his own brothers will be filling in for the remainder of his 7 Fast 7 Furious (we’re crossing our fingers that they will change all the movie names to this format) sequences. We’re really glad they didn’t decide to CGI him in there a la Philip Seymour Hoffman.

Everyone’s favorite meth dealerAaron Paul gave a couple a very special surprise last weekend at Coachella.

The Eisner Award nominations were announced this week. Surprise!  Lots of nominations for the independent guys.  Congrats to all the nominees, and a special shoutout to Ibrihim Mustafa for his nominations!

We try to avoid “rumors” as much as possible, but there’s a likely chance that heartthrob Channing Tatum will be playing Gambit in the next X-Men adaptation, Apocalypse. I’m only behind this if he has dark red eyes and a floppy haircut.

Speaking of X-Men, apparently there is an X-Men after-credit scene following Amazing Spider-Man 2. This is kind of a big deal, as Sony owns the rights to Spider-Man and Fox owns the rights to the X-Men. Could they finally be playing nice in the promise of a bigger payday working together?

There is lots of speculation about who exactly will make up the Sinister Six in the film of the same name.  What does seem certain by all speculators?  Venom.

For fans of the Rocksteady Arkham video-game series, October can’t come soon enough. To tide you over, here are some new screenshots of the spectacular finale, Arkham Knight.

Emma Stone is a huge Spice Girls fan – I mean, who isn’t? Well here’s a video of British host Graham Norton pranking her into thinking that they are at the studio to make a guest appearance. Who says Brit humor is too dry?

The Guardians of the Galaxy are expanding their ranks – at least for the near future. The next issue of GoG will include Venom (symbiotes in space – sounds catchy) and Captain Marvel (readers of Captain Marvel #2 already saw this). I’m hoping Marvel doesn’t oversaturate Guardians, but I’m definitely enjoying the ride.

Is Batman ready for a Robin again? Who would that Robin be: Harper Rowe, Stephanie Brown, Carrie Kelly, Tim Drake, the recently deceased Damian? In July, we will find out as Batman will be getting a Robin, in some facet or another.

written by Sherif Elkhatib and Adrian Puryear