Superhero fiction, fantasy, & sci-fi have long been dominated by libertarian fantasies. I mean, it makes a story more fun to root for an individual hero than to root for millions of anonymous masses to gradually do good through social action. But yeah, there are always Randian supermen, fascist governments, dystopian authoritarian futures, with heroes or rebellious outlaws saving the day.

The fantasy element is key though, I think – the appeal of fascism only really works within a fictional narrative because we come to understand the players so intimately. It’s one thing to trust our overarching safety to a stranger in the real world, it’s another when we know the backstories and psychologies of those we’re following – somebody as insane as Bruce Wayne, we’re with their character arcs from beginning to end and it justifies that element of fascism if only because our judgment of such entities is far more intimate than with a real human politician. It’s no different than the indulgence of a violence fantasy in a video game, or a sexual fantasy involving vampires – all of which make no practical real-world sense (at least not without getting arrested) but are fine when confined to something with parameters we can define (like the inexhaustible moral purity of Clark Kent or Steve Rogers).

The ENTIRE superhero genre is about power and how people deal with it. Tony Stark is on one side…The Avengers have acted with unlimited power and zero accountability. Worse still, they’ve begun making mistakes; from Tony’s creation of Ultron to the Scarlet Witch’s levitating Crossbones. People are afraid, and they need a system of accountability to be put in place to give them confidence in their superheroes once again.

And Steve Rogers is on the other. Now, with Tony Stark stepping back, Cap is the new leader of the Avengers. He surely feels bitter toward Tony for what he did with Ultron, but also proud the team was able to overcome an impossible-to-defeat enemy. With Stark now out of the equation, his job is whipping together a new batch of superheroes to defend the world as the Avengers. Captain America has a simple moral code: if he sees a situation that’s going south, he believes that he has a responsibility to step in. To him, government oversight complicates things.

So let me see if I understand this, Tony Stark/Iron Man believes that super powered humans should be held accountable by some kind of governing body (the United Nations in this instance)…Steve Rogers/Captain America meanwhile, maintains that The Avengers should have the power to act independently. I agree one hundred with Captain America: Let them do their job. Just imagine if the Avengers had to wait for permission to save New York from alien invasion. There would be several levels of government an ordinance would have to pass through, the bill would probably be hung up in Congress because some House member would want to tack something onto the bill, and by the time the Avengers were finally granted permission to act, aliens would have already taken over the world. No thanks. The Avengers are a unique group, and are therefore uniquely suited to saving the world. 

It’s conflicting ideologies on how to handle situations when you’ve got the means to basically do anything without oversight. The exact kind of story the genre was built for. Likewise, for ‘Civil War.’

That there are two sorts of freedom — Freedom of/to and Freedom from

At heart, superheroes embody this duality – they are people with powers who use their freedom to dress up in spandex and act outside of the normalized legal system in order to provide themselves and others freedom from criminals, from injustice, and from giant beings that eat planets.

It is no surprise then, that it is easy to come up with story where superheroes sacrifice freedom of/to in favor of “perfect” freedom from, transforming into fascist tyrants. However, the reverse, sacrificing freedom from in favor of freedom of/to, is what stories like ‘Civil War’ play with – are we willing to accept the price of total freedom to do whatever one wants, which is no accountability and no control over very powerful beings?

Personally, I think you need both type of freedom in a democratic society.

Too much of freedom from, and you have tyranny. Too much of freedom to/of, and you get anarchy. But most importantly, my point is that stories like those upcoming movies are not about freedom vs security, but about two kinds of freedom, and the compromise one must make between these to obtain balance.

A perfect example of what I am talking about id: FDR’s Four Freedoms. Two of them were “freedoms of” (speech and religion), and the other two were “freedoms from” (want and fear). The right to speak one’s mind and follow their conscience, but also the right to not starve in the street or get harassed or worse by an angry mob. The way he saw it & I believe they way that Cap does as well, you have to have both “freedom of” and “freedom from”, not just one or the other, to have true freedom. Team Cap ALL…THE…WAY.

-Dagobot



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Every story has a beginning, a middle and an end. In the beginning you setup your hero (or heroine) and his story, then you throw something at him that is a great source of conflict and takes him into a whole heap of trouble. After facing many foes and overcoming various obstacles the hero saves the day. An archetypal story pattern, The hero’s journey.

Tony Starks journey began the moment he left that cave in his Mark 1 armor. First it was about his own security, than his friends and finally the whole world. Let’s talk about the evolution of Tony Stark in the MCU.

In ‘Iron Man 1’, he moved away from selling weapons and focused on Iron Man. He felt responsible.

In ‘Iron Man 2’, he resisted government oversight, and didn’t trust them (rightfully so. That senator that wanted his suit was Hydra).

In ‘Avengers’, he did not trust SHIELD, and immediately hacked Fury as soon as he got on the Helicarrier. It’s because of the Battle of New York. Tony has always been an enormous control freak, someone who needs to manage every aspect of events and sees himself as always bigger than the problem. Here, we see him deal with a threat larger than he had imagined and it caused the PTSD he suffered in the third film. And his fear over what could happen pushes him to create Ultron and it blows up in his face. Guilt on guilt on guilt.
 He was the absolute worst person to go through a hole in space and see an alien armada bigger than any army Earth has ever fielded in the entirety of human history.

In ‘Iron Man 3′, he saw the consequences on a personal level; having a problem bigger than he is led him to feel like everything in his life was spinning out of control. He stopped trusting himself, and began letting go. He made an army of robots to stop any crime/solve any problem. The crux of the culmination of IM2 & IM3, He had to deal with “demons of his own creation” – people he’d pissed off and ended up turning into villains who’ve harmed people in the process. More guilt placed on him, showing it or not.

In ‘Age of Ultron’, he wanted to create a system that could do the protecting for him, so he didn’t have to. It began with the Iron Legion (those drones), and ended with Ultron. I think his character is fairly consistent in that respect. Tony tries to help humanity with weaponized brilliance, oversteps because of his ego, then feels ISHT-y and tries to compensate. Usually Overcompensating. Which usually restarts the cycle. The PTSD—Wanda had to barely even nudge him to convince him that he had to build an unstoppable army of killer robots just in case the Chitauri came back. 

And in ‘Civil War’, we see him finally accept that he can’t solve the problem single-handedly…leading him to decide to micro-manage every other superhero in the world into getting on board with his new solution, because he still can’t let go of the need to be in charge of fixing everything. 

Tony’s entire arc has been all about dealing with the unintended consequences of Avenging. He’s done a complete 180 since ‘Iron Man 1’, gradually over all six of these movies.

That’s the unbelievable beauty of the narratives in the MCU – Tony and Steve (A.K.A Captain America) have basically flipped positions with each other when considering their initial character stances (Tony as a private weapons contractor who thinks he’s above reproach, Steve wanting to give of himself to a larger cause) and this happens because they’re not static characters. Events throughout the MCU have moved them into the other’s shoes – starting with Avengers and continuing Winter Solider, Steve realizes that even the large government-sanctioned institution, one started by the EFF-ing woman he loved, can become corrupt and ultimately his own judgment is the only one he can trust; Tony, thanks to ‘Age of Ultron’, realizes that his assumptions about the level of control he has over situations is not perfect and if somebody like him, even with the best intentions, could create an AI that destroys an entire city, then oversight needs to be a factor. And, they’ve done it without being quite as biased about Stark’s righteousness as the comic version was: Ultron showed us that it’s not about power, it’s about “wanting to put a suit of armor around the whole world.”

It’s character growth. 

However, with all due respect…

Unless I totally missed something in the previous movies, I find it deeply ironic that Tony Stark, Mr. “These are my suits of armor and I can do whatever I want with them,” is champing at the bit for more oversight. Tony Stark is a firm believer in maximizing the freedom of Tony Stark. Not coincidentally, the freedom of Tony Stark is maximized in a world where Tony Stark is the guy who’s calling all the shots. The guy who wants to restrict everyone is the guy who has the privilege of ignoring those rules and getting away with it. Tony plays by no rules, so of course he can’t see a problem with more of them for everyone else. In other words, it’s another self-serving and self-aggrandizing rationalization made by the guy who lives his life with abject certainty that he knows what’s best, and who has either directly or indirectly caused or worsened every fight he’s ever been in. I guess the other heroes will just have to learn and abide by the lessons Tony’s hubris have taught.

-Dagobot



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I’ll be the first to admit that I’m not as familiar with Doctor Strange as the rest of the Marvel universe. I’ve only really gotten to know him from the “Secret Wars” run, but I’ve thoroughly enjoyed what I’ve come across so far. Now, with the trailer for the upcoming movie, I’m all in, and I can’t wait to see what happens next!

Check it out below!

In a recent article over at Vanity Fair, Disney and Marvel sent a stern warning to the state of Georgia – drop your anti-gay discrimination bill or we will pull productions from your state. Marvel filmed “Ant-Man” in Georgia, and reportedly spent over $100 million in the state during production, and AMC famously films “The Walking Dead” there as well. While AMC didn’t specifically say that they would pull productions as well, if they did, it would be a huge hit to the state’s economy.

The bill in contention is HB 757, also known as a “Religious Liberty Restoration Bill” that would allow pastors to deny marrying same-sex couples – a freedom they already have – as well as allowing anyone who has a “sincerely held religious belief” to deny service to whomever they choose based off their religious bias. It would effectively enshrine discrimination in state law and would be used to mainly deny service to LGBT people. Governor Nathan Deal has criticized the law and said he would veto it which would return it to the legislative branch for an override.

A Disney spokesman made this statement earlier today:

“Disney and Marvel are inclusive companies, and although we have had great experiences filming in Georgia, we will plan to take our business elsewhere should any legislation allowing discriminatory practices be signed into state law.”

AMC quickly followed up as well:

“As a company, AMC Networks believes that discrimination of any kind is reprehensible. We applaud Governor Deal’s leadership in resisting a previous version of this divisive legislation and urge him to reject the current version as well.”

Governor Deal has until May 3 to veto the bill or allow it to become law.

There’s no shortage of collector boxes out there but for the Marvel fans there is one box that stands out from the rest. Marvel Collector Corps is a subscription box that sends out exclusives collectibles and wearable’s from Funko and Marvel. Each box cost $25 plus $6.95 for shipping. Collectors get their boxes bi-monthly and each one has it’s own theme, this time around it’s Deadpool!

Everything that was in the box.

This month’s patch and pin.

Deadpool #1 Variant Edition: Value $4.99 (estimated).

This is an exclusive variant cover and based off other variants you find at the store the price is a little higher than the average comic. I love the art on this book and can’t wait to read it. I mean it’s Deadpool and his comics are always entertaining. I would also pay a pretty penny for the POP figure designed after the Deadpool on this cover.

Deadpool Shirt: Value $10 (estimated).

The one I got is the inverse colored suit but I know others got a grey one that looks very similar to Deadpool’s X-Force costume. I wish I had gotten that one but the shirt is still cool nonetheless.

Exclusive Deadpool POP: Value $30-$40

The POP in this box is different from any other that I’ve seen because he’s leaping through the air. I’ve only just started my collection of these and was pleasantly surprised by this one. True to the Marvel POPs he’s still a bobblehead and makes the entire box worth the cost.

Exclusive Deadpool Dorbz: Value $10-$15

This is the first Dorbz figure I’ve ever gotten and at first I was underwhelmed by him but after I got it out of the box and put it up on my shelf I was hooked and hope I get more like this one in the future.

Deadpool Mopeez: Value $10

The inverse colors of this plush toy match the shirt I got which is pretty cool. It’s hard not to love these and as my collection grows the real challenge is not letting my kids take them from me.

Overall I was very excited for this box and it did not disappoint. I’m a huge fan of Deadpool and loved getting exclusive figures of the Merc. The next box is Civil War and closes April 15^th so if you haven’t yet sign up now.

The intensity heats up thanks to Netflix because, from the look of the most recent trailers, Marvel has another hit season of television in store for everyone. The first season of “Daredevil” and “Jessica Jones” were fantastic and they were both renewed for second seasons. The entire Netflix Marvel line isn’t out yet as “Luke Cage” and “Iron Fist” are still in production. Season 2 of Daredevil will have to hold fans over during the wait. As long as they keep making them though, fans will be sure to continue binge watching them while they wait for more. Marvel’s “Daredevil” season 2 streams in full on Netflix this March 18th.

And, in case you missed part one of the “Daredevil” season 2 trailer, view the amazing Punisher sequences below.

Movie studios are becoming more and more reluctant to invest in R rated comic book movies, and don’t kid yourself, that’s not because of some sort of artistic choice either, it’s because of avarice, pure and simple. The studios are no longer content with making a measly $100/$200 million at the Box Office anymore, they all want a taste of the tantalizing prospect of some of that ‘Dark Knight/Avengers’ style money. I don’t blame them for that, movies cost money to make and having your film land the ‘PG-13’ rating versus Restricted would in most scenarios guarantee those Scrooge McDuck like gold piles that you can jump into.
The film, ‘Deadpool’, is on its way to becoming one of the most modern successful movie launches ever and it killed the competition with a 150 million four day opening.

So, What do you suppose made ‘Deadpool’ a runaway success?
 



The marketing was brilliant. They played on the fact that the Deadpool character is aware he’s a comic book character to concoct a campaign that made fun of the super hero genre and also made repeated attempts to produce content that could go viral. The Deadpool media blitz kicked ass. It was anywhere and everywhere. 

My own pet theory is the fact that audiences are still craving a ‘superhero’ style film that’s not too afraid to have a little fun with itself, in comparison to both DC’s ‘EVERYTHING IS GRAY AND DARK’, and Marvel’s own admittedly pretty ‘samey’ films. The notable exception being a lot of my non-comic booky friends still talk about ‘Guardians Of The Galaxy’ at times, which was probably the most outside the Marvel style in a while. Also, ‘Deadpool’ being the first big sf/superhero release since ‘Star Wars: The Force Awakens’ didn’t hurt.

But then again, why it succeeded is incredibly simple. The same reason ‘Guardians’ succeeded. There was nothing like it before hand. Not to say either film was COMPLETELY original, but when you look at the combined parts… They were different than everything else coming out around it, and everything that had come out (especially superhero wise) before it. Friends who saw the film over the weekend sang its praises unasked.

One thing is clear about this movie/property- Reynolds really, truly, actually loves Deadpool, and somehow got a production team that understands that. The film got made on the weight of fan demand (the leaked test footage didn’t hurt) and the persistence of Ryan Reynolds and a very dedicated crew. It got an R rating on the same. This weekend result shows what happens when you actually listen and have people who really love the source material make a film. I love it. Us comic book fans have our own lobbyist in Ryan Reynolds…how awesome is that?

And please, there’s a market for R-rated super hero flicks. There has been pre-Deadpool and there will be post-Deadpool. Time that was taken advantage of. provided the source material or the story being told lends itself to an R-rating for content and not just to include gratuitous swearing and graphic violence.

‘Moon Knight’, ‘Lobo’, ‘Hitman’, ‘Lady Death’, ‘Spawn’ (a better one), ‘Hellblazer’, ‘Deathstroke’, ‘Blade’, ‘Wolverine’, ‘Swamp Thing’, etc…sign me up.

‘Batman’, ‘Superman’, ‘Avengers’, ‘X-Men’, ‘Spider-Man’, etc….PG-13 is fine.

The real question is can lightning strike twice. The issue (IMO) with ‘Deadpool’ as a comic is it gets boring quick. He has great runs, but some writers push to far into the “reddit” humor side of him. While this film was amazing, I worry the second and follow ups might just run thin on a lot of the same stuff over and over. I’m also not excited for all the films trying to “copy” ‘Deadpool’, similar to the treatment ‘Guardians’ got. It’s going to be hard to take ‘Suicide Squad’ seriously at PG-13 when we see how good an R-rated superhero movie can be.

I am afraid that Hollywood will learn lessons from Deadpool’s deserved success — but they will inevitably be the wrong lessons.

-Dagobot



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I was sad to see Marvel’s Ultimate line of comic books perish in last summer’s “Secret Wars” but the fact that Miles made it on one of Reed Richards life boats gave me hope for the future. That hope is now realized as Miles Morales, The Ultimate Spider-Man, gets his own ongoing series in “Spider-Man” #1. Sure, I know he’s been kicking around for a few months in the not-so-post “Secret Wars” Avengers book by Mark Waid & Adam Kubert but I’ve missed Miles as the star. Check out the preview pages of the upcoming issue below the Marvel’s official words on the comic:

Miles Morales Comes to the Marvel Universe in SPIDER-MAN #1!

New York, NY—January 11^th, 2016 — Welcome to the Marvel Universe Miles Morales, hope you survive the experience! That’s right, he’s here – and the Marvel Universe will never be the same again. Today, Marvel proudly presents your look inside SPIDER-MAN #1 – the highly anticipated new series from blockbuster Miles Morales co-creators Brian Michael Bendis and Sara Pichelli! Sure, he’s been doing the super hero thing for a while now, but following the events of Secret Wars, Miles finds himself a full-fledged member of the Marvel  U. Swinging next to Iron Man, Captain America and Thor as a member of the Avengers and patrolling the Big Apple’s rooftops as NYC’s own Spider-Man! But it’s not all fun and games. A lot has transpired in the eight months since Secret Wars and an entire new universe awaits him – friend and foe alike. Plus, his grades are in the toilet. The adventure begins this February in the can’t-miss SPIDER-MAN #1!

SPIDER-MAN #1
Written by BRIAN MICHAEL BENDIS
Art & Cover by SARA PICHELLI
Hip-Hop Variant by ADI GRANOV
Variant Covers by MICHAEL CHO, SKOTTIE YOUNG, and MARK BAGLEY
Blank Variant Also Available
FOC – 1/11/16, On-Sale – 2/03/16

Image: Marvel Entertainment

Image: Marvel Entertainment

Image: Marvel Entertainment

Image: Marvel Entertainment

Image: Marvel Entertainment

Image: Marvel Entertainment

Image: Marvel Entertainment

Image: Marvel Entertainment

The new “Obi-wan & Anakin” comic book coming from Marvel might be the one I’m most excited for. It’s set in an era we know little about, and even less so since the new canon shift. And it involves two of my favorite characters. It’s also being written by Charles Soule, who came up with the brilliantly written Lando book. How can we lose with this?

Here’s the official synopsis and preview pages. It comes out in January.

 Before their military heroism in the Clone Wars, before their tragic battle on Mustafar, and many decades before their confrontation on the Death Star…they were Master Obi-Wan Kenobi and his Padawan learner, Anakin Skywalker. Today, Lucasfilm Ltd. and Marvel Entertainment are pleased to present your first look inside OBI-WAN AND ANAKIN #1 – the newest Star Wars™ limited series from blockbuster creators Charles Soule (Lando, She-Hulk, Daredevil) and artist Marco Checchetto (Star Wars: Shattered Empire, Avengers World, Punisher)! Set between the events of Star Wars Episode I: The Phantom Menace and Star Wars Episode II: Attack of the Clones – it has been a few years since Obi-Wan pledged to train the young Anakin. Though they have grown closer through training, the road has been a difficult one. Now, called to a remote planet for assistance, Master and Padawan’s skills will be put to the test. And their relationship will be pushed to the breaking point. Before they became brothers-in-arms during the Clone Wars, be there as Soule and Checchetto weave a tale of the Jedi at the height of their power, and the foundations of their doomed friendship. It all starts this January in OBI-WAN AND ANAKIN #1!

And here are the covers:

Mark Millar’s “Civil War” storyline was a massive event for Marvel comics and the upcoming “Captain America” film of the same name has been, and is, highly anticipated. Tonight fans were finally given their first glimpse at footage from the movie.

While the events of Millar’s story were triggered by the reckless actions of a group of low tier heroes looking for glory through the lens of a reality TV camera, the implication in the trailer is that at least one of the driving forces are the actions of Bucky while under the influence of Hydra.

It’s difficult to get a sense of the entire scope of a movie in only two and a half minutes but this teaser does as well as you would hope by showcasing the rift caused between Earth’s Mightiest Heroes, the threat of the government and public opinion, serious tension, and sweet moves. Falcon’s kung fu is strong.

There isn’t much more that needs to be said, I’ll let the trailer speak for itself. In lieu of writing anymore I’m just going to watch it again.

“Captain America: Civil War” hits theaters May 6, 2016.

Are you as excited as we are? Sound off in the comments.