Fanboys Anonymous

What started out as just another all-female "fan service" book has quickly and gracefully evolved into a story with great depth and perspectives into characters that we've long been without. Fearless Defenders, thus far, has been a story of Valkyrie, a former Defender, and her quest to assemble a group of worthy Shield Maidens. The powerful first act of the series has now ended, which brings us to Fearless Defenders #7 to pick up where the previous issue left off. 

Max Landis, writer of the movie Chronicle, has taken to YouTube to talk about his pitch for a reboot of the DEATH AND RETURN OF SUPERMAN storyline.

It's a long view (42 minutes) of him telling you his idea for it, but if you're a fan of comics (and I bet you are, you fanboy you) then I highly suggest checking it out.

The storyline itself is a bit of an amalgam take on several different concepts and I frankly found it to be fascinating.

Go ahead and check it out:

New Avengers #8 kills off The Living Tribunal, the second most powerful character in the ENTIRE Marvel Universe.

His three faces couldn't see it coming

Yes, that means more powerful than Hulk, Thor, the Celestials, random concepts like Eternity and Infinity, even Thanos and Galactus. In fact, The Living Tribunal is supposed to be only eclipsed by one character in the entire multiverse of Marvel...The One-Above-All.

Cause, you know, the name fits

The One-Above-All is supposed to essentially be God and this guy is the next best thing, so how can someone kill him?

Is it Thanos with the Infinity Gauntlet that somehow pulls out this feat?

Is it the combined power of the Celestials?

Did Black Bolt cough?

What repercussions will this have in the Marvel Universe? Some think it could lead to a reboot of Marvel comics.

Then again, others just think this is a mislead and there's no death whatsoever. Instead, we'll see another "he was in a coma" or "the Living Tribunal was actually unconscious in that scene" or "that was a hologram/impostor and not the real thing" switch-up.

What do you think is happening, and if he's truly dead, who do you think is responsible?

Episode 9 of the monthly Fanboys Anonymous roundtable discussion meeting podcast revolves around reviewing the latest X-Men film: The Wolverine. We break down the good and the bad as well as discuss other things going on with the Wolverine character and take a look at X-Men: Days of Future Past.

Hosted by Tony Mango, the panel includes Michael Burhan, Brandon Liggan and Nikki Mills.

Some topics we address:

• X-Men: Days of Future Past credit scene
• Was Viper the worst character of the movie?
• How did Jean Grey factor into the film's worth?
• The bullet train action sequence

You can watch the podcast below. Make sure to subscribe!


* Here is the link to the original video, which was taken down on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=To63DwuKF0s

* Here is the link to the video on the backup channel: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wCCCZVPYSIE

This episode has caused us a lot of grief as far as YouTube's policies go, but we stand by our opinions and our podcasts!

I've been experiencing a few issues with posting these videos, but I'm back now, so here's Week 5's 100 Movies in 100 Days additions.

This week differs from the previous weeks as it is a combination of live action and animated movies.

Enjoy!

Stay tuned for more Moviefile as I will be reviewing the movie catalog of one Sly Stallone!

Turbo, directed by David Soren, written by Darren Lemke, Robert D. Siegel and David Soren, starring Ryan Reynolds (Turbo), Paul Giamatti (Chet), Michael Peña (Tito), Samuel L. Jackson (Whiplash), Bill Hader (Guy Gagné), Luis Guzmán (Angelo), Maya Rudolph (Burn) and Snoop Dogg (Smoove Move).

Sometimes, the comic book movies and emotionally exhausting dramas just need to be put on the backburner to make room for something that seems like a lighter affair. I had this in mind when I wanted to see Turbo, almost entirely built upon the concept of "hey, that snail is cute" along with how many animated films tend to be quite good. Did it turn out that way? It's time for another REVIEWPOINT as we break down the film's hits and misses.

As always, let's start with the bad news first.


1. THE SLOW MIDDLE

Halfway through the film, everything stops dead. It then takes quite a while to get rolling again, almost as if it's starting from ground zero. This is annoying, because you'd like to keep the momentum going rather than come to a screeching halt. The reason they do this is to set up another problem...

2. THE HUMANS

I didn't like a single one of them. As mentioned, the setup for them slows the entire film down to...well...a snail's pace, and for what? Some incredibly cheap, overly stereotypical boring characters? Why did the human need to be a taco selling fat dude named Tito? How come Ken Jeong is playing an old, short Asian woman that owns a nail salon? I can't even tell you the names of the mechanics. Why they thought this was a good idea, I have no clue.

3. MOST SUPPORTING SNAILS

That's not to say that the humans were the only problems. With the exception of Chet (Paul Giamatti) and to an extent Whiplash (Samuel L. Jackson), I didn't really like any of the other snails outside of Turbo. Burn and Skidmark were utterly pointless as was Smoove Move, which just got annoying after a while.


1. THE STORY WORKS

Is it generic? Sure. But that doesn't mean it's a bad things. The most repetitive stories are often done so because they work and you can't blame them for going the easy route. Snails are slow, so let's make him a racer. Everything's already done for you outside of the touches here and there that you make along the way.

2. PUNS, REFERENCES AND JOKES

One of the best things about these films is how they incorporate aspects about the subjects into cute little jokes. For instance, Turbo uses a tortilla for a blanket and a sauce packet for a pillow. His eyeballs are his headlights. So on and so forth.


The big flaws come in the supporting characters, so every scene that focuses on them ends up being a drag, but the Turbo scenes themselves are entertaining enough to not make that overbearing.

Would I recommend it? Maybe. If you typically like animated films like this, you should check it out. If you're someone that has an aversion to them, avoid it. I wouldn't suggest anyone watch this as their first viewing of an animated film if they weren't used to them, as there are FAR better options out there (Toy Story for instance) but if you're looking for something light to watch, particularly to take the kids to see, go for it.

If you want to check out some more recent Reviewpoint articles: White House Down | The Lone Ranger | Man of Steel | Justice League: The Flashpoint Paradox | The Wolverine

This review was done so fast you can only see it's shadow

Being what I consider to be in the mainstream of video games, I tend to, like everyone else, gravitate towards the most pronounced and name-branded games out on the market. Such franchises like Resident Evil and God of War have graced my consoles over the years. But once in a while I do find a game out there that many people have seemingly never heard about. and when that happens, I feel it my duty to share said gems to the world at large. such is that case with today's game, a game so obscure that not even fans of its source material know it exists. I'm talking about the Dreamcast Gem: Sword of the Berserk: Guts Rage.

Sword of the Berserk is a video game based off of the popular Berserk manga series by Kentaro Miura, and stars a mysterious swordsman named Guts, who is accompanied by his love interest, Casca, and a tiny winged elf named Puck. If you're looking for any sort of backstory on any of these characters, You're gonna be sadly let down. See, this is one of the few problems I have with this game: The game's continuity takes place between issues of the manga, the very, very lengthy manga. In fact, the game takes place late in the manga's series. This means there's alot of backstory with these characters, as well as plot points in the game that tie into the previous manga issues, that sadly the game doesn't delve into at all. The three main characters just pop up into the main story and are given no real background say for a few throwaway lines by Puck. There are creatures such as a giant demonic gargoyle and a demon knight that pop up in the game that I think are supposed to mean something, but without any context, their appearances just leave you scratching you head as to what they matter to the overall game story. Even the main FMV that starts the game up just describes Guts sword, the Dragonslayer. We know nothing about Dragonslayer, or the tattoo on Guts's neck that seems to react around danger or something, or why Casca, one of the main characters, seems to be suffering from a condition that makes her mute and child-like in mentality., or where in God's name did this wise-cracking elf thing come from. The only saving grace is that the main story of the game itself is pretty procedural. It's its own thing independent from the main series, save for these tiny book-ends that link the two issues. There's a glossary you unlock after beating the game that tells you all the details behind everything in the game, but by then why even bother. at that point its just homework.

Now, onto the main story, which has Guts entering a small castle town ravaged by a mysterious plant called the Mandragora, which has the effect of turning people infected by it into mindless zombies. Guts is asked by the town ruler, Balzac (stop giggling) to help procure the heart of one of these creatures in order to make a cure, and in exchange he will cure Casca of her mental condition. Guts agree and starts on a journey to a neighboring village to find a Mandragoran heart and cure is love. along the way you meet up with other characters including the leader of a resistance against Balzac, where Guts learns that not everything Balzac said was the whole truth. The story even throws in the question of the nature of good and evil with the Mandragorans, and what their true nature is, that elevates it past just your standard action filler. The story is somewhat predictable, but is told well enough that it doesn't feel trite.

Speaking of story telling, there's the production, which is what really to me stands out the most in this game. The publishers of this game was Eidos via their Crystal Dynamics label, and it shows. Its obvious that the team behind the Legacy of Kain series had a hand in production because the game has that exact same level of movie-quality production that their other series has. The voice acting is top notch, and really one of the standouts of the game. Even Legacy of Kain alumnus Micheal Bell (Raziel) lends his voice as Guts. Cutscenes are shot like they were right out of a movie studio. Remember folks, this is 1999, and very few games at this point were reaching those levels of production, save for Metal Gear Solid. So seeing production this clean and high in a game is something to remark on. As are the graphics of the game, which really show what the Dreamcast could offer. In my previous Dreamcast review (Dead or Alive 2) I mentioned that that game and Soul Calibur really set the bar high for what the Dreamcast could do. This game really in terms of scope goes just as close. Areas are fully realized as opposed to the locked off levels of those fighting games, characters are solid-rendered (no cut pieces) and alot of the details are rendered out as opposed to painted on textures (although even those are top notch). the biggest stand-out in my mind are the faces, which were fully rendered and animated. Remember folks, 1999, so most games out on the market would cut corners in that regard and paint faces onto flat surfaces. To see fully rendered and animated faces on the main characters really lends alot to their performances. Sound design is done by Susumu Hirasawa, the composer from the Berserk anime, so if you are a fan of the anime, the score is lifted right from it.

As for the gameplay, I would hesitate to say that the gameplay was really ahead of its time. As stated, this came out in 1999. The PS2 was not out yet, and so we had yet to play games like Onimusha and Devil May Cry, which in my opinion set the standard for hack and slashers of that era. So to play a game that is essentially a precursor to those really is remarkable considering how little people apparently played this game. Essentially you go around hacking and slashing up enemies left and right. You have several tools at your disposal, including a rapid fire crossbow, bombs, and ninja throwing arrows. Control-wise you have the ability to hack with a quick vertical strike, or a much slower yet more effective horizontal slash. You also have a dodge and block feature, as well as a melee attack without your sword. But the main feature, and the namesake of the game itself, is Guts' Rage, where after filling up a bloodlust meter (its not really called that, but its what I like to call it) you enter an invincibility-mode that not only turns the screen blood red but also powers up your strikes to the point of being able to completely dismember your enemies with a single strike (which is not that over the top considering your normal strikes cause geysers of blood to flow from enemies) Gameplay-wise the game really stands up, albeit except for two gameplay quirks that might rear their ugly heads all too much. First, alot of the game's combat takes place in tight indoor corridors and alleyways. The problem with this is that game developer Yukes (yes the same company behind the WWE games) programmed a stun lock when you strike hard surfaces with your sword, i.e. walls. this means in battle its really easy to hit the walls and get stun locked while your enemies wale on you, especially considering how big your sword is. This means you are better off using your melee attack, which is powerfully weak and bad against groups of enemies. You have no idea how many times I have died trying to fend off a group of soldiers in a hallway because I wasn't able to use my crowd clearing horizontal slash out of fear of stun lock. Another issue is the lack of a lock-on or targeting feature. Maybe this is just a new school mindset, but I find in the heat of battle completely losing my positioning after dodging around and getting attacked from behind. this is especially the case in boss battles. Its not as game-breaking as the stun lock, but its worth mentioning.

So at the end of the day, is the game worth your time? Honestly, I would give it a shot. There arent many non-arcade Dreamcast titles that really stand out among the pack, and this one really brings alot to the table. Amazing production values boost a game whose gameplay is a bit rough, but satisfying. Who knows, maybe you'll enjoy the game enough to go out and read the manga or watch the anime. It's a win-win all around.

Grade: B

Episode 35 of the I Got Gameplay podcast is now online. On this episode, Michael Burhan, Shaun Walker, Travis Goss, Nikki Mills, Chris Dace, Miguel Leon, and Jeff Croop discuss Capcom from the company's hits to its misses to Dace's love and dire need to bring back Crash Bandicoot.

This episode is one you can't miss, so check it out with exclusive content on Mega Powers Radio of Dace singing the Mario Bros theme tune as Michael Bolton!

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The Wolverine, directed by James Mangold, written by Mark Bomback and Scott Frank, starring Hugh Jackman (Logan), Tao Okamoto (Mariko), Rila Fukushima (Yukio), Hiroyuki Sanada (Shingen), Svetlana Khodchenkova (Viper) and Famke Janssen (Jean Grey).

When X-Men Origins: Wolverine turned out to be as bad as it was, the future of the X-Men franchise was in question. Particularly, how could they do a spinoff if the one that was guaranteed to succeed was met so poorly? Ever since then, there had been rumors that we'd see another solo Wolverine film and this year, we finally got one. Promised to be much better and "the Wolverine film we've all been waiting for", how does it measure up? It's time for another REVIEWPOINT as we break down the action film's hits and misses.

As always, let's start with the bad news first.


1. ALL JEAN GREY CAN DO IS LAY DOWN NEXT TO LOGAN

Seriously, that's all she does this entire film. Every single scene that she's involved in is her laying down next to him. That's it. Famke must have been pissed that she had to do about 10 scenes of the exact same thing.

2. VIPER

What a pointless character! In all honesty, I can't figure out a single purpose that she served in the film. Her powers are to be exactly like a snake (why? why does that factor in here?) and to be toxic. Okay. Maybe if Wolverine had an aversion to snakes or, I don't know, the toxin was the factor that made him temporarily lose his healing factor? Nope. Instead, it's some nanobot Matrix type squid-looking thing that does the job. They could have had any normal human implant that in him...or, if you had to make it a mutant, you could give them cooler powers and hire a better actor.

3. UNNECESSARY ROMANCE

If the whole film is about how Logan loves Jean, why was there a shoehorned random romance with Mariko and Logan? If anything, it seemed like Yukio had a crush on Logan. Mariko had a failed fiance, a failed relationship with a guy that she loved from childhood, and just kind of boned Wolverine when he clearly didn't care about her. They may have had a romance in the comic, but it just didn't serve much of a purpose in this film in my opinion.


1. THE ACTION

Logan kills people left and right, like he should. There are some decent action sequences that are fun, most predominantly the bullet train scene.

2. THE END TAG CREDIT COOKIE

Midway through the credits, you see a sneak peak for X-Men: Days of Future Past in typical Marvel Cinematic Universe style (despite this not being in that line of films). Fucking awesome! I don't want to say what it is, but it was pretty damn cool.

3. A FRESH, MODERN TAKE ON AN ODD CHARACTER

Comic purists might be angered that the Silver Samurai is not exactly how it is in the books. There's no teleportation, it isn't Kenuichio Harada, no mutant energy. Still, I think it was an odd way of doing things that they somehow were able to pull off.


If you go into the movie expecting it to be the next Iron Man, Batman Begins, or any of those other "really good movies that just happen to be about superheroes", you'll be disappointed. However, if you go into it expecting it to just be a fun, random X-Men film, such as watching an adaptation of a one-shot graphic novel (similar to how DC does their animated films), then it'll be received better.

Would I recommend it? Overall, yes. The movie isn't going to win any Oscars, nor is it going down in history as one of the best comic book films of all time. Still, it's entertaining and it works as a continuation of the classic character's story.

If you want to check out some more recent Reviewpoint articles: White House Down | The Lone Ranger | Man of Steel | Justice League: The Flashpoint Paradox

Have you ever felt like you needed to relax and just couldn't find that song that would help you do it? Apparently, you don't need to look any further, as a group of scientists have figured out how to make the most relaxing musical tune ever.

Marconi Union, a band of "sound therapists" are responsible for creating the song, which supposedly is even more effective at relaxing humans than things like massages, tea, bubble baths, etc.

It makes use of a 60 BPM structure that puts your brainwaves and heart rate in sync with the rhythm which is supported by low, underlying bass tones to help you slip into a deep, calm state.

I listened to this after having a headache and I have to say, it actually did take it away. Granted, that might be more of a placebo effect than anything else...or, hell, maybe the two Motrin that I took a few hours ago actually kicked in, but one way or another, I did enjoy listening to it and I figured that this was pretty interesting, so I think you should give it a shot.

You can listen to it via SoundCloud below:



What do you think? Did the song calm you down, or are there other songs that do it better for you?

Source: Shortlist.com | Lyz Cooper, founder of the British Academy of Sound Therapy

Check out episode 5 of The Dace Man Show with special guests Michael Burhan, Dan Raup, Brian Gibson and first-timer Nikki Mills!

Join The Dace Man this week as he tackles:

Celeb News This Week:

• A stripper from CA who had been saving her one dollar bills over her 15 year career has won a case to retrieve the money from an officer in NJ who had confiscated it from her lackeys.
• Amanda Bynes is exhibiting signs of schizophrenia...and medical professionals and others WILL seek a 2-week extension on her 5150 psychiatric hold so doctors can properly diagnose her.
• Prince William and Kate Middleton are dirty secret keepers -- refusing to release the name of the future King of England...and their subjects are pissed!
• George Zimmerman saved car crash victims
• Law & Order star Dennis Farina passed away due to a blood clot this past Saturday.

Sports News:

• Ryan Braun was suspended for the rest of the season due to the Illegal Drug use allegations.
• Aaron Rodgers writes a check with his tweet his ass cant cash.
• Dustin Pedroia officially became the first second baseman in major league baseball to cross the $100 million threshold. With the Boston Red Sox.
• U.S. men's national soccer team is on a roll like never before.
• Madden Games gets sued again.

The Off the Wall topic of the week…San Diego Comic Con Announcements. Also the fan favorites The Dace Man's High 5: Comic Book Movies! and the Douche Bag of the Week presented by Brian Gibson.

Step into the Crazy Train with Chris "The Dace Man" Dace this week on The Dace Man show....queue the Final Countdown!!!

Check out The Dace Man Show live every Wednesday at 8pm EST on Mega Powers Radio. As well as all archived episodes!

If you're looking for an app that lets you control your computer via your phone, I highly recommend Winput.

I've tried about ten other ones over the course of the past few months and there hasn't been a single one that I would bother suggesting people download.

For instance, Remote Mouse was problematic when it came to three different factors. If you were to use the magnifier on your computer, it wouldn't recognize the mouse the same (ie, it wouldn't work). The right-click often wouldn't work, either, and would force the program to crash. Then again, the program would just randomly crash every so often anyway, so that shouldn't be a surprise.

Winput, however, has been on my phone for about a month now and I haven't come across a single miniscule problem with it.

Everything has been extremely responsive, it's yet to crash or have any sort of glitches, and the interface is quite nice as well:

So if you're as lazy as I am and you're looking for a way to control your computer's mouse from the couch or the bed, you can download Winput for your Android device on Google Play

What are some of your favorite apps that do things like this?

Sub Pop Record's official Tumblr page posted something interesting today, a letter sent by a college student who claims to be a mascot who hopes to have Nirvana record a special greeting for their Homecoming video.

One could assume that perhaps this was a letter from the past that was dug up... until they start talking about posting the video to YouTube and sending it via iPhone. Where to begin? First off, why Sub Pop and not Geffen? Did Bleach suddenly become the most popular Nirvana album?

No actor will ever be quoted as saying that their favourite part of the movie making process is doing interviews to promote the film. In fact, it's not uncommon for actors to down right seclude themselves from doing it. However, Bruce Willis takes it to new levels while on an interview alongside co-star Mary-Louise Parker with Magic 105.4's entertainment reporter Jamie Edwards. While Jamie just tries to do his job and ask his guests about their upcoming release Red 2, Willis turns into too-cool-for-school mode and begins sarcastically insulting the reporter by the end. Seriously, what's this guys deal?

Someone has to die in the upcoming sequel to Thor, entitled Thor: The Dark World...but who should that be?

First off, you might be thinking "WHY does somebody have to die?" It's because the stakes need to be raised and Thor has far too many peripheral characters NOT for someone to be killed off to do so.

Think about it. We have Thor, Odin, Fandral, Hogun, Volstagg, Lady Sif, Loki, Frigga, Heimdall, Jane, Dr. Erik Selvig, Darcy Lewis as well as possible influence from S.H.I.E.L.D. and even more potential crossovers. That's far too many, and they didn't even introduce Balder or Beta Ray Bill (though c'mon, if they do the latter, that'd be ridiculous). Speculation has been (for some reason) that Thor will lose his hand in battle, but I prefer to think that a character or two will die...and I'm hoping it's even more than two.

I'd love to see all of the humans die, particularly Erik Selvig. What purpose does he serve, now? I don't want to see him eating up any more screen time like he did with Avengers (which should have been Hank Pym's spot!). Jane Foster can die and give Natalie Portman a way out, or perhaps she can just leave with Darcy and not return in the third film of the franchise. We still have Sif that we can use as a romantic interest and she's more than capable to carry that load, considering their relationship in the comics.

Now, Earth shouldn't be the only ones to lose someone. In fact, if you want to bridge the worlds, making Thor feel like he lost someone on both grounds, someone has to die from Asgard. That person needs to be Frigga, who is essentially pointless. Plus, if Odin were to die, then Thor would need to become king, and that shouldn't happen until the third film's Ragnarok. Loki and Thor can still lose their mother and it would be a huge blow.

I'm not in favor of killing someone for the sake of killing them in every movie, but this is one wherein I think a death needs to happen. There are too many sacrificial lambs, too many opportunities to kill them off, and too much that could be gained by it to ignore.

Justice League: The Flashpoint Paradox, directed by Jay Oliva, written by Geoff Johns, James Krieg, and Andy Kubert. Starring Justin Chambers (The Flash), Michael B. Jordan (Cyborg), Kevin McKidd (Flashpoint Batman), Kevin Conroy (Batman), Sam Daly (Superman), Dana Delany (Lois Lane), Jennifer Hale (Iris West), Ron Perlman (Deathstroke), Nathan Fillion (Green Lantern), Cary Elwes (Aquaman) and C. Thomas Howell (Reverse-Flash).

The latest in the long line of DC animated films follows the trend of keeping Batman or Superman involved, but branches off a bit more to be focused quite a bit more on The Flash instead. For the most part, these movies have been entertaining to me, but I don't consider them particularly great, so how does this one pan out? It's time for another REVIEWPOINT as we break down the action film's hits and misses.

As always, let's start with the bad news first.


1. CYBORG

Seriously, why is Cyborg the top priority at DC right now? They're shoving him down everyone's throats. I understand that they want to diversify and I have no problems with that, but come on. It's blatantly obvious how badly they want him to catch on by just how much he's being shoehorned into things. Has there been a single DC venture that hasn't featured Cyborg lately? They're making him a member of the Justice League, he's in every animated film, the Injustice video game, etc. Give me a break. What happened to Steel, Martian Manhunter (I know he's not black, but his human disguise should be), Mr. Terrific, etc?

2. THOMAS WAYNE

Shouldn't he be something like 30 years older than Bruce? You mean to tell me this guy who was a doctor suddenly became Batman, learned how to fight, become a detective, a scientist in other realms, and so forth...and he can do all this when he's something like 60 years old?

3. EXAGGERATED ART STYLE FOR CHARACTERS

Something that DC tends to do in a lot of their animated takes is draw the characters to look out of proportion and with weird features such as giant chins, weird lips, beady little eyes, or bodies that are so oddly shaped and muscular that these top-heavy people would fall over in an instant? Shit, look at Superman here with his bulging body and tiny little head:

This is an even uglier design than the one in All Star Superman

1. THE OLD CREW

Any time you have Kevin Conroy, Tim/Sam Daly (or George Newbern), and Dana Delany back voicing Batman, Superman and Lois Lane, I'll enjoy at least that. Those voices are just so immensely tied to the characters that I can't escape them, and if I hear something else, it just doesn't sound right to me.

2. AQUAMAN VS WONDER WOMAN

While I find these two to be boring and bland for the most part, I liked the idea of having the two worlds feuding with each other as the war. When it comes to the core Justice League (and no, I'm not looking at you, Cyborg), I consider these two to be the two most likely to do something like this. Batman never would, Flash never would, Superman is about 50/50, Green Lantern for the most part doesn't fit the mold unless he's under the Parallax situation, but both Wonder Woman and Aquaman have these attitudes that would fit this scenario.

3. BRUCE CRYING

For some people, they think Batman should be this emotionless psycho who is just on a warpath for crime and completely shuts himself off from the world. To me, it should be the opposite. Batman is the persona he puts on in front of everyone, even himself as often as he can, as a protective shield for his emotions. Bruce finds it hard to let his guard down because he's afraid of being hurt again, as on the inside, he's still fueled by the death of his parents. Having Bruce cry reading the letter from his father is exactly what I was hoping would happen and I'm so glad they added that in there. The comics need to do stuff like that more often and show that instead of just redeeming villains, there's a chance you can redeem heroes as well.


This isn't as bad as Green Lantern: Emerald Knights, All-Star Superman, Superman vs. The Elite, or Superman: Unbound, but it isn't as entertaining as Superman/Batman: Public Enemies, Batman: Under the Red Hood, Justice League: Doom or Justice League: Crisis on Two Earths. It suffers from the same problems as nearly all of the other ones, but hey, I'd rather see them pump these out than to stop, especially considering how they can't seem to get their live action universe going for the life of them.

Would I recommend it? Only for true comic book fans to watch when they're bored as something to do. I'd never recommend it to someone as an actual movie and give them the impression that it's The Godfather or anything.


If you want to check out some more recent Reviewpoint articles: White House Down | The Lone Ranger | Man of Steel

White House Down, directed by Roland Emmerich, written by James Vanderbilt, starring Channing Tatum (John Cale), Jamie Foxx (President James Sawyer), Maggie Gyllenhaal (Carol Finnerty), Jason Clarke (Emil Stenz) and James Woods (Martin Walker).

I've been watching a string of disappointing movies, from The Lone Ranger to the two Grown Ups films and G.I. Joe Retaliation and even Man of Steel, so when it came to White House Down, I was desperately hoping for something I'd enjoy. Thankfully, that was just the case. It's time for another REVIEWPOINT as we break down the action film's hits and misses.

As always, let's start with the bad news first.


1. EMILY CALE

One of the main plot points of this film is that John Cale's daughter, Emily, is amongst those held captive at the White House. I'm virtually never a fan of kids in movies and television shows, as they're typically written to be obnoxious little brats that can save the day despite how for most of the story, they're complete idiots. This is no exception. Emily is bitchy to her father who is doing the best he can and a total dork. I know why she's in the film as far as structurally, but every scene with her made me wish it would end so we could get back to the entertaining things.

2. THE MOTHER

I see why Emily is the way she is. Her mother is annoying as well.


1. TATUM AND FOXX

These two work extremely well together. In buddy films, this is an absolute must, and there's no flaw on this side of White House Down. I'd like to see the two of them work on another film in the future....possibly White House Down 2?

2. THE HUMOR

When you can get me to legitimately laugh out loud at something that you've put there to be intentionally funny, I naturally have to give props. Nothing is worse than when a film is trying to be funny and wants to beat you over the head with something in the hopes that you laugh, but nothing is better than when it just simply does its job and actually IS funny when intended.

3. THE ACTION

Of course, the focal point of this film is the action, and this delivers throughout. There are instances where the fighting is pretty gritty and realistic, but then there are other times when the gloves are off and it's time to just have some fun. Sometimes, you need that break where you can watch the President of the United States drive around in a limo with a rocket launcher on the White House lawn.

4. VILLAIN MOTIVE

A lot of action films take the cheap way out. This could have easily been about terrorists just trying to kill the President or about a ransom, but instead, each and every villain was given a motive that would fit them. Whether it be glory, revenge, politics, the aforementioned money, things lined up nicely when you find out just how these people from opposite ends of the spectrum got together to concoct such a plot.

5. DONNIE THE TOUR GUIDE

He was the man. I would have liked more scenes with him, as ridiculous as he was.


Is this going to win Best Picture at the Academy Awards? By no means. However, this is exactly the type of film that it claims to be. It's fun, entertaining, popcorn escapism and exactly what movies need to be once in a while. If everything was doom and gloom with people wailing about their emotions, life would suck, wouldn't it? But the key factor here is that this did not fall under the traps that most other films do. Many movies—particularly under the action, horror, and comedy genres—get so swept up in being the opposite that they just turn out to be garbage. They have random explosions, no real plot, horrible acting (and so on and so forth). White House Down is able to fire on all cylinders and come out as a breath of fresh air.

Would I recommend it? Absolutely, especially if you're in the mood to just sit back and watch some action. Just stay away if you're the type of person that only likes indie films, foreign films, or anything else with a pretentious attitude.

Now that the Man of Steel sequel has been announced as a Batman / Superman crossover, speculation has begun on everything from "who will play Batman" to "what will the storyline be" and everything in between, so I figured I would throw my ideas around for just how I think this will go.

Obviously, they need to build upon the previous film. Superman is still not gold with the public. Metropolis and Smallville were SEVERELY ruined with Zod's invasion. There needs to be repercussions of this.

Stepping in to clean up a lot of the mess is Lex Luthor, a billionaire mogul who has his hands in every pot from philanthropic ventures to weapons manufacturing deals with the government. In true Luthor format, Lex is also very jealous of Superman. After all, Lex Luthor was the big man on the scene before he came along and now, nobody is talking about him anymore. Suddenly, the top of all mankind is no longer good enough when there's a SUPERman on Earth.

Another person helping to clean things up is Bruce Wayne, a competitor of Luthor's who, obviously, is already established as Batman - though Batman is more of a myth going around at this point. This version of Bruce needs to be more like the Bruce Timm animated series version, wherein not everything is incredibly realistic and gritty. He needs to be more of the Bat-God, in a way: ridiculously awesome physical prowess as well as an intellect that is unmatched by nearly everyone (except possibly Lex Luthor, of course).

Batman will be looking into Superman as well, trying to analyze the threat potential. Can he trust this guy, or is this something he's going to have to take care of?

Something else we need to establish is Kryptonite. Now that Emil Hamilton is dead (WTF, Snyder) we're left to Luthor and Batman as the only two people that should really be examining the stuff. Kryptonite needs to be big in this, for two primary reasons.

The first of which is the supporting villain, Metallo. John Corben can be introduced as a member of the military that was wounded in Zod's invasion and, as expected, has a bit of a grudge against Superman for it. Who steps in to make him Metallo? Why, none other than Lex Luthor - weapons manufacturer that has been working on an attempt to make a legitimate Man of Steel (ahem.....that's why the first movie should have been called Last Son of Krypton, and been about Brainiac instead of Zod...). Kryptonite powers his heart, as we all know. This gives Superman someone to fight who poses a big threat.

Luthor is the primary villain for Batman, in turn, for the final fight. Earlier on in the movie, you need to have Batman in an confrontation with Superman where Kryptonite comes into play, but at the end of the film, there's a trust built between the two that calls for Superman giving the Kryptonite ring to Bruce. If anyone is going to take down a rogue Superman, it's going to be Batman.

What do you guys think? Do you like this situation or are you up for something else? Is this how you imagine the film will pan out?

Here's hoping they change the logo as this is one ugly Bat Symbol

Comic-Con 2013 has given us some more information on season 2 of the CW television series Arrow.

• The Black Canary story will start to be told, but it may not necessarily start with Laurel Lance. I still think they should have named her Dinah, like...you know...her character should be?
• Roy Harper will be put through his own trials and tests to becoming Red Arrow (or Arsenal...they haven't really said)
• We'll start to see a transition from "The Hood" to "The Arrow" and then "Green Arrow"
• Brother Blood will be on this season, played by Kevin Alejandro
• Not only will Bronze Tiger be on this show (played by Michael Jai White) but he'll also be part of the Suicide Squad. One would assume that Deadshot will be on this team as well.
• Felicity will start to make the Arrow Cave a bit more decked out

In other news, the character of Diggle has become popular enough that they've decided to toss him into the comics and make him an official member of the Green Arrow mythos. Although I would have rather had him die in season 1 than Tommy (who was in my opinion, EASILY the best part of this show, far above and beyond anything else), I can see why they're going to include him. The question is, how? Will he be the actual character in the show or will they mess around with it like Chloe Sullivan's introduction into the comics?

What are your thoughts on these reveals for season 2? Are you excited about the new season?

Let us know what you think in the comments below!

For now, check out this sneak peak at season 2:

The title to the Avengers sequel has been revealed as AVENGERS: AGE OF ULTRON.

My first reaction? Awesome! My second reaction? Wait...what?

Joss Whedon has said that both there won't be Hank Pym in this film and that Quicksilver and Scarlet Witch will have a big role, which means I'm utterly confused.

First off, when it comes to the Maximoff siblings, I've always thought it was a stupid idea to bring them on board. Granted, I don't know how they're doing this, so they might have a legitimate way to do it, but I'm starting to get the impression that I did when Spider-Man 3 came around.

And before you say it...no...I don't mean "there are too many characters". Spider-Man 3 was a fault NOT because they added Venom into it (as Nolan's films have proven that you can have lots of characters and still do a good job), but more so because Sam Raimi let his inner fanboy out and forced Sandman into it just because he liked him. I'm fearful that Joss Whedon just might be a fan of Pietro and Wanda and shoehorned them into the film for that reason.

What purpose could they possibly have in this movie, particularly if Ultron is the villain? The only connection is a huge stretch, with Vision (Vin Diesel?) being the romantic interest for Scarlet Witch. Surely, we're not going to cram an entire origin story for Ultron AND Vision AND the Maximoffs into one movie that also has Black Widow, Hawkeye, Thor, Captain America, Iron Man, potentially the Guardians of the Galaxy, SHIELD, etc?
 As far as the Hank Pym situation, I just can't help but feel that they messed up in terms of scheduling. Why is Guardians of the Galaxy a part of Phase 2 if Thanos isn't the villain in Avengers 2, but #3...meanwhile, Ant-Man is in Phase 3, but not 2? Wouldn't it make more sense to include Ant-Man in Phase 2 and build towards Ultron that way, then include Guardians of the Galaxy in Phase 3 to ramp up to Thanos?

My guess is, they're altering the storyline and making it so Tony Stark is the creator of Ultron. After quitting the Iron Man game, he could very well spend his time trying to make a replacement Iron Man for SHIELD using Jarvis as a template.

There has also been talk that Captain America: The Winter Soldier is the biggest lynchpin to bringing Avengers: Age of Ultron plot elements to screen, which has me confused as well. Iron Man 3 could theoretically lead to the scenario I mentioned above, but where would the other films? Guardians of the Galaxy has nothing to do with Ultron. The Winter Soldier is a political thriller starring villains that are a mercenary and a brainwashed soldier. Thor: The Dark World is TOTALLY not about Ultron.

Does Marvel really have this all planned out and well? Do they know what they're doing, or are they setting themselves up for failure like when they thought people would love the Mandarin twist? How do you think Ultron is going to fit into this series? What about Pym? Guardians of the Galaxy? Quicksilver and Scarlet Witch??