The Hollywood Reporter broke the news that Brad Caleb Kane, a writer and producer on Fringe, will be taking care of writing duties for the Daredevil reboot.
Brad Caleb Kane, a writer-producer on cult Fox TV show Fringe, has been hired to pen the franchise’s relaunch, which has high ambitions: Kane is being asked to adapt one of the most influential and acclaimed comic stories of all time, Frank Miller and David Mazzucchelli’s “Born Again” run from Daredevil.
Born Again is an incredible run, but perhaps one of the darkest chapters in the life of Matthew Murdock. If that movie were to be made it would be pretty bleak. Sure, it all ends up well, but… Jeez… Talk about a nadir…
Having said that, I’m incredibly excited about that prospect. Hopefully, Fox learned their lessons with X-Men: First Class and now know the difference between a good superhero movie and one forced out of spite and greed. With the story they’ve chosen, if they follow suit with a great team, this could be a fantastic superhero movie. And I’m doubly excited since Born Again isn’t an origin story. And it’s probably some of Miller and Mazzucchelli’s best work.
And what excites me even more is the possibility that this could pave the way to an adaptation of Kevin Smith’s dynamite run on the book.
If you haven’t read it, you have no excuse. It’s a fantastic book whether it’s getting made or not. And it’s less than $15 on Amazon.
Well, the forces of the Scarab certainly want to keep Captain America down! Not only do they get into an all out brawl with the Star-Spangled Avenger, but they make sure he falls down a rocky shaft! Then, just to add insult to injury (serious injury, Cap had to have broken a limb o two in the fall), they drop a humongous weight down the shaft after him to finish the job. Never has a cliffhanger been so thorough and seemingly inescapable! You’ll have to watch chapter 7: Wholesale Destruction to see how Cap gets out of this scrape!
Wasn’t that exciting! Well, wasn’t it? Well at any rate, this is where I usually add the supplemental material for each episode, but I actually don’t have anything for this chapter. What I do have is a bit of history behind the serial itself. I have to give a Shoutout to commenter Bill who pointed out that the supposed reason that Captain America is so out of character in this serial is because it was never meant to be a Cap serial at all! This may have been originally intended as a serial starring the Fawcett Comics character Mr. Scarlet! It makes sense to me, Republic had already made two other serials with Fawcett characters, namely The Adventures of Captain Marvel and Spy Smasher. Also, in his civilian identity, Mr. Scarlet is a District Attorney, much like the serial’s rendition of Captain America. The speculation further goes on to say that Mr. Scarlett had been losing favor with readers and was relegated to back-up features. I can personally confirm this. Mr. Scarlet used to be the cover feature of Wow Comics, but was quickly superseded by Mary Marvel. To my knowledge, he never had his own solo title. While I can’t confirm this story, it’s extremely plausible. For comparison’s sake, here’s a comparison shot of both characters’ first appearances. Until next week, Keep Em’ Flying!
Let me start off by saying that I’ve believed this movie could be good since day one. Bryan Singer has never faltered for me in the X-Universe on film and he’s got story and producing credit on this film. And with Matthew Vaughn (from Kick-Ass and Stardust) in the director’s chair, I’ve put a lot of faith in the fact that this movie will turn out much better than the last two film forays into the world of the X-Men.
Then the marketing campaign started and everyone started writing this movie off as terrible. A lot of people don’t understand (or don’t care to understand) that the marketing department at FOX has NEVER known what to do with these films and are a completely separate department from the filmmakers. Vaughn and Singer aren’t exactly cutting trailers and designing posters. And while these horrible marketing missteps did lessen my faith just a bit, I never thought this would be a bad movie. Maybe it would look a little silly, maybe it wouldn’t be as good as the first two X-Men movies (the ONLY X-Men movies….)
I thought we’d get a pretty good movie out of this at best. Boy was I wrong. We got a phenomenal, incredible movie out of this.
X-Men: First Class is the X-Men sequel I’ve been holding my breath for since X2 came out. The more I chew on it, the more I think it’s as good as that film. In fact, as much as I loved Thor, I MIGHT have liked this one better. I’ll need to see it again to be sure, but it begs to be watched again. In fact, I’m buying tickets to see it at least twice more. It was incredible.
This film has a very, very tight screenplay that is constructed in such a careful way that Clang! Boom! Steam! and I left the theatre and were literally marveling at it for hours, talking about how each nook and cranny of it was so tight and efficient. Yes, the story is good and the screenwriting was great, but the direction proves that Matthew Vaughn might just be the better director amongst X-Men filmmakers. He brings the story to life with an economy and speed that sucks energy from you (in a good way) and leaves you breathless. This film was 132 minutes long but didn’t feel like a minute over 90.
And I have to say: the cast was perfect. I had reservations about seeing a younger Charles Xavier and Erik Lensherr and their origins (it’s not something I’ve read much of in any of the comics) but it serves this story and the film X-Universe so well that I couldn’t argue. They completely offered new depth to a host of characters I thought I new and showed me things I simply didn’t know about them or expect. And they did something I didn’t think was possible for a lifetime fan of the X-Men: they showed me something fresh and new with the relationship between Charles and Erik. The First Class team was completely appropriate and they kicked a lot of ass. I never thought Banshee would be so cool on screen, and they knocked Beast out of the park. (Particularly with all of the Robert Louis Stevenson subtext with him… And Frankenstein with Magneto… It was all so literary, but also never pretentious.)
And the style of this film is so wonderful that words can barely describe: This feels like a cross between a James Bond film (the music sounded like Bond music without 007’s trademark theme and there were shots of Magento straight out of Goldfinger) and an X-Men movie (X2, actually, since that one was the best.) There were nods in the cinematography and style to the other X-films, echoing conversations between the main players, motifs (like Chess) were brought back, but never obtrusively or inappropriately. And the villain? Wow…
Let’s talk about the villain. Kevin Bacon’s Sebastian Shaw is so ruthless and scary I couldn’t even believe it. His first scene in the film is as good as the opening scene in Inglorious Basterds and has very much the same tenor to it. His evil schemes were brilliant and everything worked about him. I’m completely okay that they took some liberties with The Hellfire Club and his character, because this worked so much better.
Emma Frost is something else to talk about. January Jones played Emma Frost in a way only January Jones could. And they minimized her part accordingly. All of her interactions were appropriate for the film and since everything else was so good I gave her a pass on this one.
The star making parts, though, went to James MacAvoy and Michael Fassbender. They were incredible in this film and their relationship was heartbreaking, even coming close to drawing tears to my eyes. Twice. There’s a fascination they have with each other, and they feed off of each other, proving that neither could exist without the other in the most tragic of ways. Seriously, the climax of this film isn’t dealing with Sebastian Shaw, that’s long settled before the real climax, and that’s the confrontation between Charles and Erik. It’s beautiful. It was an excellent story, well told.
And I wouldn’t be opposed to them throwing Daniel Craig out of the Bond role and them installing Fassbender. Or he should play a Bond villain. He’s tremendous.
There’s so much more to say about this film but I just don’t want to ruin it. I could spoil all of the cameos (which were amazing!) but I won’t. I will say, though, this film had the single best use of the single F word allowed in a PG-13 film ever. Period. Not a single one of you could possibly disagree with me.
Damnit. More than anything, this film was just fun and exhilarating and goes a long way to elevate the genre of superhero movies into high art. I haven’t seen Captain America yet, but it seems as though Marvel might have three homeruns on their hands this summer.
I know a lot of you are on the fence about this movie, but you shouldn’t even consider skipping it. It’s dynamite and you’ll love it, as long as you can get over being a nerd… I’ve heard some people calling the lineup sacriligeous because it wasn’t the original First Class, but guess what? This isn’t the comic book First Class. This is a prequel to the first two X-Men movies and it couldn’t have been done more beautifully. Ignore the marketing campaign and just go see it. It’s a better movie than you’d think.
I know in my lead ups, I always tend to talk about the cliffhanger from last week. It’s mainly because those are my favorite parts of the serials. Sometimes they can be incredibly goofy, but when they are done well, they actually still work in a suspenseful way. Take the last cliffhanger for example, Gail is about to be guillotined for failing to reveal Cap’s identity. Sure, it’s a tried and true death trap, but the way they lead up to it in this case gives me a case of white knuckled thrills if ever there was one! Will Cap save Gail, or will she be getting a head in life? Let’s watch Chapter Six: Vault of Vengeance and find out!
And for this week’s supplementary material, I don’t have anything directly related to this chapter, but I do have a giant scan of the poster art I used for the header image. Wheras most movie posters are one sheets, this baby is a three sheet! Apologies for slower load times, but I didn’t want to sacrifice quality. Enjoy!
After the wringer marvel put Daredevil through last year, a fresh start is always nice, and from these preview pages, I’d say they’re doing it right. Marcos Martin is one of the best artists to break out in recent times and Mark Waid is, well, Mark Waid. Marvel was even nice enough to break their tradition and actually include captions and dialog this time around. It all adds up to me wanting to pick up a Daredevil book, and that has never happened before. If you dig it as much as me, get your LCS on the phone stat, and reserve a copy!
Marvel is pleased to present your first look at Daredevil #1, from the creative dream team of Mark Waid, Paolo Rivera and Marcos Martin! Daredevil’s exciting new journey begins as he retakes the alleys and rooftops of New York City with monumental life changes, new enemies, new friends and a new role in the Marvel Universe! Billy club in hand, Matt Murdock must tackle his greatest challenges yet, but will he be welcomed back to New York with open arms? Who will stand in his way and can Daredevil be trusted? Find out as Daredevil soars to new heights in the double-sized Daredevil#1, this July!
DAREDEVIL #1 (MAY110660)
DAREDEVIL #1 ROMITA SR. VARIANT (MAY110661)
DAREDEVIL #1 MARTIN VARIANT (MAY110662)
DAREDEVIL #1 ADAMS VARIANT (MAY110664)
DAREDEVIL #1 BLANK COVER VARIANT (MAY110663)
Written by MARK WAID
Pencils by PAOLO RIVERA and MARCOS MARTIN
Cover by PAOLO RIVERA
Variant cover by JOHN ROMITA SR.
Variant Cover by MARCOS MARTIN
Variant Cover by NEAL ADAMS
Blank Cover also available
Rated T+…$3.99
FOC – 6/27/11, ON SALE – 7/7/11
Last time, our ersatz Captain America was careening wildly in a remote controlled truck filled with explosives headed for an orphanage full of nuns! Just kidding about that last part. One thing I love about old stuff like this is how etymology has changed. We’d never say that something is a robot car because it can be controlled remotely. I think we should bring it back though. So if you’ll excuse me, I’m going to fire this my “robot viso-screen” and watch Chapter 5 of Captain America: Blade of Wrath!
As for this week’s extras, I have both the poster and the lobby card for this chapter. The lobby card is from the film’s re-release, but the poster is the from the original release. Hope you enjoy them!
By now, you guys all know that a lot of the robots here at BSR! are huge pinball fanatics. We’ve previously reviewed Zen Studios Mars table for Pinball FX2 on the Xbox, and we had generally positive things to say about it. Today, the guys at Zen released the newest addition to Marvel Pinball… Fantastic Four! Will it hold up to the criticisms of HyperZord and Shaz-Bot? Well, you’ll just have to read on, won’t you?
Shaz-Bot: I got my first taste of the FF table when we spotlighted the trailer last month. I mentioned then that I thought that Marvel’s First Family should have been honored with a table from the beginning, but from what I’ve played so far, I can forgive the extra time, because it has resulted it a highly polished and enjoyable experience.
HyperZord: When I first started playing Pinball FX 2 I was surprised at how bad at pinball I was. All of my scores were nearly 30 times lower then Shaz-Bot and I couldn’t figure out what I was doing wrong. But then about 3 weeks ago I looked up some pointers online and started to really explore each of the different tables and within about a half hour at each table I started to figure out how to play and suddenly I became really good at the game. So if you think you’re not very good at pinball this game is still for you because it just takes a little bit of patience before the fun comes rolling out.
Shaz-Bot: For starters, let me tell everyone something, this table is not for beginners.If you go in, flippers blazing, you shouldn’t expect to get far. It behooves you to read the table rules so you can get a general idea of how to play the table properly. Trust me, you’ll have a much more pleasant time if you do.
When reviewing a licensed game like this, not only do you have to review how good the game is, but how well the license is represented. It’s was obvious with the previous Marvel tables that Zen Studios knows their stuff when it comes to Marvel lore, but FF takes the cake. Each member of the foursome has comic-accurate dialog and mannerisms. Ben and Johnny even bicker at each other!
HyperZord: I actually disagree with Shaz-Bot about the beginning, I sorta went in flippers blazing trying to figure out things as I went along and within about half an hour I hit 42 Million. It’s a nice morale booster since there are some really good quick shots to make you a bunch of points. I’m less into Fantastic Four lore then Shaz-Bot so I’m glad he covered it, but I will say all of the Marvel tables have had more of an appeal to me simply because I do know the characters and so The Fantastic Four are a nice fit.
Shaz-Bot: There is so much to do on this table, it’s amazing! Each member of the FF has their own ramp and a goal tied into each of them. You can get the Thing to toss your ball around and eventually earn a multiball that is anywhere from 2-4 balls based on your skill. With the Human Torch, you can literally set the ball on fire and eventully trigger his own multiball. Mr. Fantastic has the ability to activate the Negative Zone ball saver, and the Invisible Woman has out lane savers as well as a skillshot that can be controller by you or the computer once you spell INVISIBLE. The coolest hidden bit is when you take on the role of H.E.R.B.I.E. and have to defend the Baxter Building from a Skrull invasion using a mini-playfield that actually emerges from the building.
HyperZord: I had no idea who H.E.R.B.I.E. was when I pulled off that mini game the first time so I was a little confused but it got me to look up more about the Fantastic Four and look up things I didn’t know about. One of the things which did improve my game was getting better at multi-balls and this game actually has three multi-balls, the two Shaz-Bot mentioned and one involving Doctor Doom as well. But the cool thing is that you can use the multi-balls to further and stack other mutli-balls, what I mean is when doing one you can trigger another while playing it. It’s really cool.
Shaz-Bot: I think the game really starts to shine when you activate the game modes. One you shoot a ball into the Baxter Building and then the mission hole you have a choice of 5 missions. One for each member of the FF and one with Dr. Doom. With the Thing, you have to fend off an army of Doombots. I probably enjoy this mode the most, just for the delightful *ting* the Doombots make when you hit them with the ball. The Torch’s mode is very fun as well, you have to continually hit the orbits/spinners to increase his Nova Flame to 1 million degrees. If you manage this, the screen is illuminated (due the Torch burning so brightly) for 20 seconds. During that time, everything you do has a 40X multipler, so you can really rack up the points. Dr. Doom and the Invisible Woman’s missions are similar due to the fact that Doom is attacking the Baxter Building in both of them. With Sue, you must hit the appropriatte ramps to add forcefields to fend off Doom’s attack. With Doom’s mode, you have to use his own power against him before the Baxter Building is utterly destroyed! Mr. Fantastic’s mode has you helping him build components in his lab by hitting his extended hands with the pinball. If you can manage to conquer all of these modes, there is a hidden 6th mission where you have to stop Galactus, and yes, the Ultimate Nullifier is involved.
HyperZord: I’m not nearly as far as Shaz-Bot as the only mission I’ve successfully completed has been The Thing’s which can get you a quick 12 million really fast. I actually did get Human Torches’ up to his super nova and right before I could get any more points I lost the ball.
Shaz-Bot: As much as I love playing this game, there are two things I have a problem with. Thankfully, they don’t affect the actual gameplay at all. I am not fond of the music used for the table. It seems much too epic and grandiose for the FF. I know that may sound off, seeing as this is a group that tackles 7 dimensions before breakfast, it just didn’t gel with me. The other thing I wasn’t terribly fond of was the table art itself. Don’t get my wrong, the 3D models of the FF and Doom are great, I love the attention to detail like the ends of the rails looking like Kirby’s “flying bathtubs”, but the actual art on the playfield looks off to me. Reed is too young, the Torch is has hard to distinguish features, the Thing is OK, but Sue has such an elongated torso that you’d think she temporarily gained Mr. Fantastic’s stretching power! Also, the Mole Man is present on the playfield art, but doesn’t seem to be represented in the gameplay at all.
HyperZord: My biggest problem is the same problem I have with most of the tables where the third achievement is basically impossible to get. You have to have the perfect game to get it and achievements are the bane of my game playing because I want to earn them so bad.
Shaz-Bot: To close, despite the (admittedly small) issues I have with it, Marvel Pinball: Fantastic Four has almost overtaken Spider-Man as my favorite Zen table of all time, and it is definitely worth your time and money, whether you like pinall, Marvel, the Fantastic Four or all three!
HyperZord: So far I’d actually put it in third place behind Secrets of the Deep and Pasha but still among how many tables they have to get third so quickly is a big accomplishment.
Marvel Pinball: Fantastic Four retails for 240 Microsoft Points and when it appears on the PSN, it’ll be $2.99. Codes were given to the staff by the developer for review purposes.
Stay tuned for an upcoming contest for your own XBOX code.
Funny story, a few weeks ago I was talking to someone of twitter about what would be done when Steve Rogers took back the name and costume of Captain America. I joked that Bucky would also be Captain America, but would then franchise the name out to others, much like a certain Grant Morrison-penned series over at the Distinguished Competition. It was a silly and snarky joke to make, but it seems it actually had a bit of merit, because we’re getting a book titled Captain America Corps! Granted, from the looks of these preview pages, the Captains all come from different points in the timestream,so it’s not exactly the same. Plus, Roger Stern always gets the benefit of the doubt from me. If nothing else, I want to pick this up just to see why the Watcher looks so bored!
Marvel is pleased to present your first look at Captain America Corps #1 (of 5), from legendary writer Roger Stern and artist Philippe Briones. When bedlam breaks loose in a dystopic America, the Watcher calls together the nation’s greatest team to save our nation and the world! Steve Rogers, Bucky Barnes, U.S.Agent, American Dream, and Commander A must band together to cut the American public loose from the malicious control of Americommand. But can the Sentinel of Libertys, led by Steve and Bucky, work with one another before it’s too late? Find out this June when Captain America Corps #1 (of 5) hits comic shops everywhere.
CAPTAIN AMERICA CORPS #1 (of 5) (APR110583)
Written by ROGER STERN
Penciled by PHILIPPE BRIONES
Cover by PHIL JIMENEZ
Rated T+ …$2.99
FOC – 5/23/11, ON SALE – 6/15/11
Today’s spotlighted origin just had his first big screen appearance, and while that was just a cameo, he’ll likely have a more prominent role in the upcoming Avengers movie. That’s very fitting, seeing as this guy is one of the most prolific members in Avengers history. It wasn’t always that way though. Much like Pinocchio, our would-be hero is led astray by misunderstandings and less than scrupulous companions, and he actually starts out as a villain! Yes, I of course speak of one of the only heroes able to pull off a predominantly purple union suit, the Avenging Archer, Hawkeye!
Hawkeye’s story actually begins with one Tony Stark, aka Iron Man. Iron Man is spending his day as usual, pretending to be his own bodyguard and saving his employees from the dangers of working in his own factory, as well as insinuating company time is better spent not lollygagging about. After that Stark-approved PSA, Tony’s chauffeur, Happy Hogan asks for a minute of Shellhead’s time. It seems Happy (who, incidentally, always has a frown on his face) wants Iron Man to get their boss, Tony Stark to help out the ol’ love life by asking Pepper Potts to go out with him. This is a problem, because Stark likes Pepper as well, but refuses to go out with her because the shrapnel in his heart could be an embarrassing ice breaker over dinner at Chez Affluent.
Later, Tony asks Pepper about a date, which she infers means that Tony wants to ask her out. Tony, being of two minds of the subject, just kind of stammers his way into a date, when he obviously could have just said it was a misunderstanding. Instead, in classic Marvel fashion, Tony decides to take Pepper on the most pedestrian, unromantic date he can, so they go to the carnival! Finally, the real story can start. At the carnival, Tony and Pepper happen upon a tent, featuring “Hawkeye, the World’s Greatest Marksman!” This is great for two reasons, the first is that Hawkeye already has a built-in codename, and second, well, let’s have Tony tell you.
"That is, unless Pepper really wanted to see the dancing girls, as well."
Before you can say “plot complication”, one of the carnival’s rides goes all screwy, and Tony makes a lame excuse so he can get knocked around in a portable garbage can. Fortunately for him, this is attaché case-era Iron Man, so he can put the armor on in seconds. He somehow stops the flying pinwheel by giving it a big bear hug. Before you can start to apply logic or physics to the situation, the danger has passed and Iron Man flies off, pre-occupied with explaining to everyone how Iron Man was on the scene so quickly. He settles on “Iron Man is my bodyguard, and he was following us, yeah… That’s the ticket!” As you might expect, everyone is thrilled that Iron man saved the day. Well, almost everyone.
"Even when I do that cool 'Spock eyebrow' thing!"
Well, it seems there is no greater motivator than jealousy, because that night, Hawkeye sets off to make himself a hero. He comes up with a gaudy costume, and whips up some trick arrows. I don’t exactly know how he does this with the obviously limited resources of a carny worker, especially since his DC counterpart Green Arrow uses his vast wealth to do the same thing. Maybe things are just really cheap to manufacture in the Marvel Universe. All the while, he complains about his hurt pride, and how he’s going to make everyone else look like a piker. There’s no way he’s doing this to compensate for anything…
You guys don't really need a caption for this one, do you?
Eventually, he’s all set and bounds off for the rooftops, because that’s what costumed characters do, dammit! He runs across the city a bit, truly exhilarated at his own prowess. Modest this guy is not.
I hate to break it to you, but you're not wearing gloves.
Anyway, Hawkeye shows that he does indeed have the chops to be a hero. he spots a jewel thief, and stops him in jig time. Unfortunately for our bountiful bowslinger, he stops to check out the swag the jewel thief leaves behind. The police arrive on the scene quickly, because this is comics and not real life, and assume Hawkeye is an accomplice. While you can’t fault the officers, given that there is a be-masked vigilante with a bunch of jewels in his hands, you’d think they’d know a hero when they see one. Hawkeye doesn’t even try to explain himself, and he runs off. He probably would have gotten away with it to, if not for those meddling kids a mysterious stranger picking him up.
"Nothing, it's just that your hands aren't at 10 and 2!"
The mysterious lady turns out to be the Black Widow, who is still a communist spy at this point of her career. All you need to know about her at this point is that Hawkeye is a lovesick puppy for her, and that she and Iron Man have clashed in the past. BW proposes a partnership with Hawkeye that’ll be mutually beneficial. She shares her resources with him, and in return she only asks for one small thing, a pittance, really.
"I swear on my quiver, If anyone's gonna date Tony Stark, it'll be me!"
Hawkeye wastes no time breaking into Stark’s munitions factory. He uses a new explosive arrow to get inside, which brings him to the attention of Iron Man, just like he planned it. Hawkeye is a pretty awesome strategist though, even at this early point in his career. He sticks to the shadows firing off trick shot after trick shot. He finally pelts Shellhead with a trio of errors that cause Iron Man’s suit to rapidly rust. Since Iron Man doesn’t have any WD-40 on him, he only has one course of action…
"This time, I'll surprise him! Let's see how he fights a man in his underwear!"
Because he was a Boy Scout, Tony is prepared and just happens to have spare armor pieces lying around his factory. While he scrambles to get some fresh armor on, Hawkeye takes the opportunity to steal the discarded pieces of armor, but also has ample time to get away. You may wonder why this is. It turns out that Tony doesn’t want to go into battle with only one boot. No, seriously. Tony Stark, freaking Iron Man lets the criminal get away because he’s missing a bootie. He does finally find it, but by that point Hawkeye has a pretty good head start…
Similarly, he let the Mandarin get away last time because he broke a nail.
Hawkeye, now reunited with the Widow, are speed towards LaGuardia airport. Iron Man has had enough though, and just hits their car with a power ray. Well, he says it’s a power ray, but it certainly looks like a death ray to me, especially considering it totals the vehicle. Hawkeye and Iron Man continue their battle, neither having a clear headway. Hawkeye fires a shot, Iron Man repulses it away. You’d think Iron Man would have the advantage in speed and maneuverability, what with the ability to be airborne and all, but Hawkeye is Just. That. Good.
The unstoppable cocky force meets the immovable brash object.
Iron Man has about had it and gains the upper hand when Hawkeye tries to ensnare him with a nylon rope arrow. Calling this a misstep is a bigger understatement than saying “clowns are damned creepy”. Iron Man lands himself on the pier where Hawkeye is standing with so much force that the wood splinters and Hawkeye is cling on to a remaining post for dear life. Iron Man then proceeds to knock Hawkeye out cold, or so it would seem. Anyone familiar with Hawkeye will tell you that his skull is thicker than the mantle of the Earth, so when it’s revealed that this was a feint, it’s no surprise. As Iron Man turns his back, Hawkeye prepares his most potent arrow, the Demolition Blast! Sadly, all it does is ricochet off of Iron Man’s metal hide and ends up seriously harming the Black Widow.
Scroll up a few lines, Hawk. I just explained it.
Apparently the blast was enough to stun Iron Man, so Hawkeye beats feet to help his lady friend. It’s obvious she needs a hospital. Hawkeye shows genuine concern and frantically decides what to do. Conveniently, the Widow had a boat already ready in the harbor, and the twosome flee the scene post-haste. Iron Man flies off to pursue, but gives up when he realizes that he’s in LaGuardia’s airspace. So our story ends with no clear victor, but an obvious loser.
After this tale, Hawkeye and the Widow continued their team, and their love also grew. Eventually, Hawkeye saw the error of his ways and applied for member ship in the Avengers. His audition kind of leaves me scratching my head, however.
Kidnapping and bondage: The perfect way to show you're a good guy!
Astoundingly the Avengers accept him (it’s later revealed that Jarvis was saved by Hawkeye earlier and they set up this display to impress the others), and Hawkeye has been one of the most stalwart members of the Avengers ever (except for the time when he was Goliath, but man, that’s another story entirely)!
This story originally appeared in Tales of Suspense #57 September 1964, It was reprinted in Marvel Masterworks: Iron Man Volume 3 among others. The final image is from Avengers #16 May, 1965.
In a stunning move of “corporate synergy” I don’t think anyone was expecting, Marvel Super Scribe Brian Michael Bendis will pen a graphic novel of fictional author Richard Castle’s famous Storm Front series. For those who aren’t GLUED to ABC’s Castle every Monday night, it’s a police procedural (zzzzzz. . . .) starring Nathan Fillion (zzz- wha? WAHT?!?!) as crime novelist Richard Castle and his work as a consultant to the NYPD. Yes, it’s “Murder She Wrote” starring Captain Tightpants, but it’s really fun and doesn’t take itself seriously at all, and unlike most procedurals, not everything is splattered in blood and semen. A nice change. And it’s a can’t miss every week for me and the wife, which is becoming rare on TV these days.
Richard Castle’s first set of popular novels revolved around Derrick Storm, whom viewers of the show know almost nothing about. But thanks to the wizards at Marvel, we’re going to get a new graphic novel in December CASTLE: RICHARD CASTLE’S DEADLY STORM. Writing this will be Marvel Super-Scribe (and my man crush) Brian Michael Bendis. Well, duh. Of COURSE it’s going to be BENDIS. I mean, is there anything he ISN’T writing at Marvel now? I want to know what intravenous amphetamines they have Bendis on that cause him to write so much and write so well.
I’m loving this news, as well as the news, via Bendis’s Twitter that he will also be featured on some upcoming DVD extras and commentaries. My hope is we’ll see even more cross-over: maybe get Castle poking around a crime that involves Bendis or Marvel comics properties in some way? Can we get a Castle poker game populated (instead of by crime/pulp novelists like James Patterson, Stephen King, etc) with Bendis, Matt Fraction, Ed Brubaker, Joe Quesada? But no Tom Breevort. Because that’s just outside the realm of believability that anyone would dare play poker against the T-Voort.
So I’m incredibly excited by this. Way more excited than I should be over what is essentially cross-promotional marketing. Normally I’m jaded about this type of corporate overreach, but I’m cautiously happy about this project between Marvel and the Disney Empire.
Here’s their press release, below and so, until Richard Castle has a crime he can’t solve or quip about: MAKE MINE MARVEL?
MARVEL ENTERTAINMENT & ABC STUDIOS ANNOUNCE “CASTLE” HARDCOVER GRAPHIC NOVEL
All New Original Graphic Novel Brings Star Studded Talent To World of ABC Primetime Hit Series
Marvel Entertainment and ABC Studios are proud to announce Castle: Richard Castle’s Deadly Storm, an all-new hardcover graphic novel inspired by the popular “Castle”television series. This 112 page hardcover hits comic shops and bookstores everywhere on September 28th, 2011. Fans can get a first look at the upcoming graphic novel, when Richard Castle (Nathan Fillion) reveals the cover on “Knockout,” the Season Finale of “Castle,” MONDAY, MAY 16 (10:01-11:00 p.m., ET) on the ABC Television Network.
When viewers first met Richard Castle, he had reached celebrity author status with the success of his Derrick Storm mystery novels. In an unprecedented collaborative effort between Marvel, ABC Studios and the producers of “Castle,” the adventures of Derrick Storm will be chronicled in an all new graphic novel from some of the most accomplished creators in the industry. “I am honored and humbled to see Derrick Storm join the ranks of some of the greatest heroes of all-time,” said Richard Castle. “Being a part of the Marvel family is a childhood fantasy come true for me.”
Castle: Richard Castle’s Deadly Storm brings together a star studded cast of the best creators in the industry, including co-writers Brian Michael Bendis (Avengers, Ultimate ComicsSpider-Man) and Kelly Sue DeConnick (Captain America And The Secret Avengers); interior artist Lan Medina (Fables); and cover artist Carlo Pagulayan (Planet Hulk).
“We are incredibly excited to be partnering with marvel to bring Richard Castle’s early literary works to life,” said Andrew W. Marlowe, “Castle” creator/executive producer. “It’s a great way to expand the Castle universe for all our fans.”
The release of Castle: Richard Castle’s Deadly Storm marks the first adaptation, in any medium, of the Derrick Storm novels by New York Times best-selling author Richard Castle.
“It’s exciting to bring the Derrick Storm novels to life for the first time ever” said Axel Alonso, Marvel Entertainment Editor in Chief. “Whether you’re new to the world of ‘Castle’ or a long time fan, there’s something for everyone in Castle: Richard Castle’s Deadly Storm—and it’s the kind of book that reaffirms Marvel’s commitment to creating new fans of comic books.”
CASTLE: RICHARD CASTLE’S DEADLY STORM
Written by BRIAN MICHAEL BENDIS & KELLY SUE DECONNICK
Art by LAN MEDINA
Cover by CARLO PAGULAYAN
Rated T+…$19.99
ON SALE SEPTEMBER 28, 2011
ISBN: 978-0-7851-5327-6
“Castle” stars Nathan Fillion as Richard Castle, Stana Katic as NYPD Detective Kate Beckett, Susan Sullivan as Martha Rodgers, Molly Quinn as Alexis Castle, Ruben Santiago-Hudson as NYPD Captain Roy Montgomery, Tamala Jones as Medical Examiner Lanie Parish, Jon Huertas as NYPD Detective Javier Esposito, and Seamus Dever as NYPD Detective Kevin Ryan.
“Castle” is produced by ABC Studios. Andrew Marlowe is the show’s creator/executive producer, along with executive producers Rob Bowman, David Amann, Laurie Zaks and Armyan Bernstein.
