Thougts of Recentness

Yep, another brain.

 

Okay, so thoughts of the week isn’t realistic. Here’s a collection of thoughts of recentness, instead.
And let’s face it; there are only two pieces of news here:

The words “The New 52” are ending… and that’s about all.

He won't destroy the DCU, but he WILL get rid of three words in the top corner of
your comics, and THAT'S the victory that matters!

 

Okay, haters. You win. The New 52 is ending.

HA! SUCKED IN!

No, it really isn’t. We’re just not calling it the New 52 anymore.

I gotta admit, there’s a lot here that I’m excited for. Cyborg, Dr Fate, Batman Beyond and Black Canary are all books that sound great, but for me, the most exciting thing is We Are Robin.

The most fresh and exciting thing on DC's new
menu.

The idea of what will hopefully be a teenage team emerging as people inspired by Robin is really interesting, and I just can’t go past that cover art.

That said, what isn’t there gets me concerned. It looks like we’re not getting a return of Nightwing, which was what I wanted out of DC more than anything. And is Kyle Higgins really not on any of the post-convergence titles? That’s sad, it really is- I’ve been loving Higgins’ characterisation in each of his titles that I’ve read and it’s a shame to see him leave DC.

Marvel can include Spider-Man in movies now

Spider-Man's now-permanent position in Marvel continuity.

Honestly, I know everyone’s excited about this, but personally, I’m not. I know that Spidey becomes the emotional centre of Civil War, which should equal a (somewhat) more faithful adaptation, but I never saw Spider-Man’s comics as being subservient to The Avengers. I don’t want a Spider-Man movie that’s nothing more than a two-hour ad for Infinity Gauntlet- I just don’t. I’d honestly rather have another Amazing Spider-Man 2 than see a movie purely designed to get Spidey into the Avengers (that should give you an idea of how unexcited I am about this). He’s not a bit-player, and to see him play second fiddle to Iron Man would just be insulting.

Yep, I’m anticipating hate comments, but I really don’t see how sharing Spider-Man with Marvel is going to result in a better Spider-Man franchise (Sony still has creative control, after all).

Thoughts of the week: Marvel Universe ends and Fantastic Four trailer.

Because it's a brain... geddit?

Okay, a new regular article I plan on writing, I look at the big news this week and make some comments. I can’t say that you’ll agree, but let’s see what you think.

The more unnecessarily busy, the better! 

Marvel Universe ending but it’s totally not a reboot. Stop calling it a reboot. Why does everyone think it’s a reboot?

Okay, even though some Marvel fans are denying it left, right and centre are denying that Marvel is rebooting the universe, I’m not sure that there’s another name for it. Sure, maybe it won’t be a full-on, nothing-matters-anymore-style reboot, but the evidence is pointing towards a reboot of some kind. The big question seems to be what kind of reboot we’re talking about.

Although it would make me lose faith in Marvel for the rest of my life, I’m anticipating that Marvel will likely place the X-men, Spider-Man and Fantastic Four in a universe separate to 616. That way, Marvel can still make money off the considerable X-Men and Spider-Man fanbases without having to admit that they exist to the franchises in the MCU. It sounds pessimistic, but look at the facts; the Fantastic Four has been cancelled partially due to bad sales, partially because Marvel doesn’t care for Fox Studios. The X-Men are slowly being phased out by the Inhumans, and Spider-Man’s place in 616 isn’t as significant as it once was. We need to face facts; Marvel is by-and-large a movie studio now and comics are quickly being repurposed as commercials, no matter what Tom Brevoot says.

Oh, the reviews of movies that
nobody's seen yet...

That Fantastic Four Trailer

We spent a good long time riffing on Trank’s Fantastic Four reboot, haven’t we? But now that trailer has launched and…

Well, I’m not going to say we’re shutting up, but we’re a bit less sure about how awful it’s going to be now, aren’t we?

It’s time we just admitted that, as fans, we don’t know as much as we think we do. We thought Affleck couldn’t be an imposing Batman until the pictures dropped. We were ready to dismiss Days of Future Past and it ended up being one of the greatest X-Men films to date, and need I mention Guardians of the Galaxy, which was supposed to be Marvel’s Achilles’ heel? We’ll never learn, will we?

Personally, I get the feeling it’s going to be average- The Amazing Spider-Man-standard work. But I may find myself being blown away by it anyway. Currently, I’m intrigued about the interpretation, but don’t see myself getting blown away.

And currently, that’s all. Your thoughts?