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Magazine Archives for:
2014
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Saturday Morning Rewind: A Review of Amazing X-Men #7
If you are like me and are of a certain age, then you have very fond memories of the Saturday morning cartoon Spider-Man and His Amazing Friends. Running from 1981 to 1983, it featured Spider-Man… [more]
Grant Morrison’s 9/11: New X-Men’s “Ambient Magnetic Fields”
Grant Morrison’s New X-Men debuted in 2001, about five months before 9/11. New X-Men came at an interesting time in American comics history. Marvel was being reinvigorated under Joe Quesada, radically upping its storytelling and… [more]
With Days of Future Past Released, Where Does Fox’s Cinematic Universe Stand?
With the release of Days of Future Past, it’s time to reassess how Fox’s X-Men movie universe is progressing — and what it needs to do, if it’s going to be able to mount a… [more]
X-Men: Days of Future Past is a Lot of Fun
X-Men: Days of Future Past, released today, is one of the funner super-hero movies ever made. Caution: minor spoilers ahead. The movie’s been compared by some to The Avengers. Obviously, the two films are very different:… [more]
Bugged Out!: Scarab Reconsidered 20 Years On, Part Twelve
So here’s my theory: sometime between submitting his final scripts for Scarab #5 and #6, John Smith got word — probably via editor Stuart Moore — that DC wouldn’t be going ahead with his project… [more]
What Should Be Done with the Mutant Menace? Part 5: The Special Case of Professor X
…continued from yesterday. In the previous four parts, we’ve seen how a very particular plot line structures the X-Men comics: the losing and regaining of control over one’s powers (and the comics are based on the… [more]
Review of Arrow Season 2, Episode 23
For a good long while Arrow’s second season finale looked like it was going to be just about perfect. After last week’s installment that both set that pace and upped the stakes for this final… [more]
Is She-Hulk Too Sexy?: Goyer vs. Lee
I can’t be the only person on this planet who finds She-Hulk sexy. That combination of va-va-voom curves, strength and intelligence (the last is important) is a hugely attractive blend. So, the only question is… [more]
Your Homework Before Seeing Days of Future Past: Read All New X-Men and Whedon’s Astonishing X-Men
When comic book movies come out, it’s sometimes hard to tell what storylines they’re pulling from. Based on the trailers, X-Men: Days of Future Past focuses on a future where Sentinels have taken over, no… [more]
Review of Wallace Wood’s Cannon
It’s tough to unravel the two big mysteries at the heart of the creation of Cannon, but the strongest clue to solve one of them arrives shortly into the run. Is this wild, macho story… [more]
What Should Be Done with the Mutant Menace? Part 4: The Evolution of Iceman
…continued from yesterday. We’ve been looking at the underlying structure of the X-Men comics: how mutants pose an existential threat to themselves and others, necessitating that they either control themselves (Xavier’s dream) or be controlled (the… [more]
Maps to the Stars, Running to Paradise: Analyzing the Wild Palms Comic
If it’s even remembered at all anymore, Wild Palms is mostly known as the basis for an ABC network miniseries that attempted to combine the surrealism of Twin Peaks with the cyberpunk subculture, with decidedly… [more]
Some Cautious Thoughts on Zach Snyder’s Batman v Superman
Yesterday, Batman v Superman got a subtitle — Dawn of Justice — and began filming. I wrote about the film in a news story, but I thought I’d complement that with a few brief thoughts,… [more]
Why I Dig X-Men: The Last Stand
It’s widely believed that 2006′s X-Men: The Last Stand was a poor ending to the original X-Men trilogy. The film and 2009′s X-Men Origins: Wolverine seem to be regarded as the weak links in the X-Men movie… [more]
Batman v Superman Gets a Full Title, Begins Filming
It’s official: the Man of Steel sequel co-starring Batman will be titled Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice. The subtitle clearly suggests that the film will feature the formation of the Justice League — which… [more]
Going Old School: A Review of Nightcrawler #1-2
According to Urban Dictionary.com, “old school” is defined as: “Anything that is from an earlier era and looked upon with high regard or respect. Can be used to refer to music, clothing, language, or anything… [more]
What Should Be Done with the Mutant Menace? Part 3: Losing (and Regaining) Control
In Part 1 and Part 2, we’ve seen how Prof. Xavier’s dream for the peaceful coexistence of humans and mutants depends upon mutants being able to control their special powers. To this end, mutants must… [more]
Beneath the Planet of the Apes is Completely Nuts
Beneath the Beneath the Planet of the Apes is essentially an insane metal album turned into a movie, and that’s awesome. [more]
Chris Claremont and Documentary Filmmaking: An Interview with Patrick Meaney
Sequart has a new documentary all about Chris Claremont. We sat down with director Patrick Meaney to talk about comics, filmmaking, and working with Claremont: SEQUART: A lot of the times documentaries get a critical… [more]
Sequart Announces Book on Planet of the Apes Comics
Sequart is proud to announce that it will be publishing The Sacred Scrolls: Comics on the Planet of the Apes, edited by Rich Handley and Joe Berenato. Since the 1970s, the Planet of the Apes franchise… [more]
Kaiju-Sized Review of Godzilla
I was very excited for Gareth Edwards’ Godzilla. This had less to do with the fact that it was a Godzilla film (though I won’t lie and tell you that wasn’t a factor) and more… [more]
What Should Be Done with the Mutant Menace? Part 2: The Need for Self-Control
…continued from yesterday. Given that mutants exist, what is to be done with them? That question drives the narrative of the X-Books. The book’s villains—Dr. Bolivar Trask and his Sentinels, the Genoshan Magistrates, Apocalypse, Mr.… [more]
“Try Telling That to a 23-Year-Old Who Just Wanted to Play with the Toys”: The American Superhero Comics of Mark Millar, Part 19
Continued from last week. That “bloody big shadow” of Alan Moore’s extended far beyond the pages of Swamp Thing. Trying to compete with his achievements on the title was a daunting enough prospect. But Moore’s… [more]
Claremont’s Days of Future Past: A Story About Kitty Pryde
Unlike many comics fans, I never actually read X-Men as a child all those years ago. In fact, I stayed away from most superhero titles, other than the odd cross-over with Superman and Batman when… [more]
What Should Be Done with the Mutant Menace? Part 1: The Lack of an Ending
A curious yet distinguishing feature of the X-Men family of comics is their lack of an origin story, typically an essential element in superhero comics. Usually, the superhero’s identity and power is formed by a… [more]