Ultimately Off-Topic VII: The Miles Frontier

[Drz]

Yes!!!!!

[Sinx]

I love Muse. They're one of my favourite bands and I love the songs they've been pumpin out recently. Their newer stuff more influenced, but I think they're all the better for it. I've been singing 'Uprising' a lot lately, really loud in the shower and on the landing when I come out of the shower. It gets me in a good mood before I start my day.

Yeah This Is England is great. I love how it was about friendship. Woody was a very likable character. I also liked how it sort of explained the ugly, stupid, dick-head-ish-ness of some of the racial hatred within the UK. There is quite a lot of general ignorance amongst men between the ages of about 45 and 65 in the UK who often get drunk and complain about immigrants, military, terrorists and shit. They're hateful human beings who drink heavily and often show their disgust for Thatcher, her selling the country out to Europe back in the eighties and the war in the Falklands. There are more brown people in the UK than white, so it's a pretty cultured country, but the News doesn't really help when it complains about immigrants. There are a lot of stupid folk in Britain who are mostly older men, and they blame everything on immigrants, arabs, asians, the lot. However nowadays, in the 21'st Century, those stupid old ****s are dying of liver failiure or some shit, and their beliefs are dying with them. So good riddance to them.. Have you seen This Is England '86 TV series. It was a short series but it was brilliant. All the characters from the film are in it too but a little older. It explores each of the characters a little more and it's absolutely superb. And because it's 1986, the World Cup is on the telly. Ever heard of the Goal of Maradona? You'll laugh when you watch it. :}

I actually haven't listened to Muse's latest, but The Resistance was pretty good. Showbiz is my favorite album from them though. It's just a lot more passionate than their newer stuff.

I had no clue This is England had a TV series as well. I'll have to see if I can find that. =o

[Drz]

Sinx/Balfro, how did you two like Superman: Earth One volume two? I found it superior to the 2nd volume, but at the end of the day some of the clichés we're abit bleh, like really hamfisted into this graphic novel and sadly my biggest excitment was the build up for volume 3.

Justice League #14 preview!

Wonder Woman #14 preview! Includes a sneak peak for #15:

[MarvelMaster616]

Batman: Earth One volume 2 confirmed for next year!

Sweet! Batman Earth One was one of my favorite comics of the year. I remember going to Midtown Comics in New York City over the summer and seeing this big display for just this one book. And it was well deserved. Everyone I talked to agreed that it was a great comic and one that was set up for a sequel. Between this and the ongoing Death of the Family story, it's a great time to be a Batman fan.

[Drz]

Theres nothin great about Death of the Family outside of Greg Capullo's pencilling. Batman Incorporated and Morrison run is where it's at with being a great time for Batman fans.

[Sinx]

Sinx/Balfro, how did you two like Superman: Earth One volume two? I found it superior to the 2nd volume, but at the end of the day some of the clichés we're abit bleh, like really hamfisted into this graphic novel and sadly my biggest excitment was the build up for volume 3.

Justice League #14 preview!

Wonder Woman #14 preview! Includes a sneak peak for #15:

I haven't had a chance to pick it up yet. =( Hopefully I'll get it within the next couple of weeks though.

Theres nothin great about Death of the Family outside of Greg Capullo's pencilling. Batman Incorporated and Morrison run is where it's at with being a great time for Batman fans.

You're crazy! Death of the Family is awesome so far! You always have these crazy conspiracy theories that writers are stealing Morrison's work because every idea in comics was somehow his originally. =p

[Robbie_Jee]

I actually haven't listened to Muse's latest, but The Resistance was pretty good. Showbiz is my favorite album from them though. It's just a lot more passionate than their newer stuff.

I always liked thier Origin of Symmetry album.

I had no clue This is England had a TV series as well. I'll have to see if I can find that. =o

Hand on heart, I can tell you that it is a LOT better than the film. The season finalle is particularly powerful and ends the... er.. 'franchise'.. very nicely.

Sinx/Balfro, how did you two like Superman: Earth One volume two? I found it superior to the 2nd volume, but at the end of the day some of the clichés we're abit bleh, like really hamfisted into this graphic novel and sadly my biggest excitment was the build up for volume 3.

Drz, it's been over a year. Unblock me already.

I just read Superman: Earth One vol.2 the other day and I loved it. It thought it was a lot better than the first, which I also liked.

A lot of people complained about the first Superman: Earth One and said that if felt too Ultimate and wasn't exactly the iconic homage they were looking for. But this book further explains Superman's character, in a nice round-about way, as if the first Superman: Earth One desperately needed this sequel. And once I understood who this character was, I felt sorry for him. The way he struggled to fit in, as everyone around him felt so alien. It was superb. I never understood why Clark Kent was always portrayed so differently to Superman in the old Superman: The Movie, among other stories; Superman being confident and charming, and Clark being a clumsy fool.. it always felt very jarring and unrealistic to me. But Earth One vol.2 set everything straight. And for that, it is the greatest Superman story I've ever come across. I get Superman now. Suddenly, thanks to DC finally not being scared of character development, they were able to create a much more realised take on what was once one of DC's most boring characters.

Ultimate Marvel and their characters seem like a more realised version of their mainstream counterparts. Cap is an arrogant dickhead in 616 too, but IMO even more so than Ultimate Cap, and in a more annoying and deluded way. Also, 616 Wolverine, just like Ultimate Wolverine, is a murderous psychopath. The only difference is that 616 Wolverine actually thinks it's OK what he's doing and that it's the right thing to do, like when he wants to cut up his friends and teammates in AVX, which of course makes him even more dangerous because his values are that distorted. Ultimate Marvel is simply more aware of its characters. DC's Earth One range shares this similarity. But this is the only similarity they share. The Earth One range is a more realised take on it's characters. DC have never been known for much actual character development, as they tend to stay within the confines of rather dated superhero traditions. And as a result, their characters come across as very wooden. IMO, DC sticking to what's iconic and traditional, their desperation to cling onto the past and not move forward, is what has stagnated their entire creative development. But the Earth One line is something very different to what DC are used to doing. It's a line of comics that build and grow their most iconic characters from scratch, and slowly build them towards their iconic status. And they've had to be more 'aware' of their characters than ever to pull it off.

When I first opened the book, I was suddenly struck with a fear that this was going to be way too much like Ultimate Spiderman, as Clark was shown at work at the Daily Planet. But I was pleasenly surprised how different it actually was to the Bugle. Lois Lane was fantastic. I know that in the TV series, Lois finds out that Clark is Superman, WAY before the audience realise she knows, but she keeps it a secret, and when Clark tells her and pulls off his glasses, she says that she's known for years. In Superman: EO vol.2, she catches him crushing a stapler in his hand at work. I loved that. But I expect we won't know about her knowing for a long time yet, possibly in like ten years time (realtime), once the Earth One range has developed enough.

Man, the Earth One line is everything DC should be. I'm very thankful of it's existence.

I really like the character portrayals in this book. Parasite provided some excellent Superman action which was very satisfying. The book was also a lot better paced than the first one, and every scene fitted together very nicely.

One thing that I'm not sure I liked in the book though was when Superman let the warfare and the murder carry on in the that over-run country he went to, when instead I think he should have taken away every single gun there. Not agree and say 'Yeah, I suppose guns should exist because they get things done. Now they're going to kill you, old man.' It kind of spoilt the ending for me a little bit. Superman just let the killing continue. Bit of shame we got that, considering the high quality of the rest of the book.

[Drz]

I haven't had a chance to pick it up yet. =( Hopefully I'll get it within the next couple of weeks though.

Heh, i won't spoil things but it has some funny things happening that pissed off the internet. "NOT IN MAH SUEPRMAN" ;)

You're crazy! Death of the Family is awesome so far!

I like the art, i like the renderition of the Joker (outside of the jokes he pulls at the cops) but i dislike how Batman is freaking out like a pussy, simply because Scott Snyder has that villain gary-sueness and has to make Batman weaker, in order for his own story to work more properly. I liked the cues to the Killing Joke and Joker's 1st appearence alot too.

However this is to Dan Didio & others supervising this stuff, but having Batman's entire history crammed in about 5 year timezone, but having Night of the Owls last a whole year is just complete bullshit.

PS. To conclude, it's just that Scott Snyder's Batman after the relaunch has been incredibly overrated, but i highly praise of Greg Capullo with his story telling skills.

You always have these crazy conspiracy theories that writers are stealing Morrison's work because every idea in comics was somehow his originally. =p

It's not "stealing" or "Morrison is original" it's just that "Morrison did it 1st" wqhen it comes to these elements in Batman stories to happen:


MARVEL EVENTUALLY: Age of Ultron event coming in March, lol Marvel needs to get something to compete DC's upcoming Man of Steel title?


Atleast this one is solely written by Bendis, features Moon Knight (i liked Bendis' take), Hawkeye & Spider-Man. Me gusta.

Cliff Chang on the New Gods!

CBR News: We're just about set to see your version of Orion. I would say your take on Hephaestus has a Kirby-esque feel -- when it comes to Orion, is he going to be even more Kirby-like in design?
Cliff Chiang: I think initially when Brian and I talked about the New Gods being in the book, in terms of design, we were thinking to stay more Kirby-ish. But as the design process went on, we realized that it actually needed to change a little bit more. We sent out initial design, and [DC] felt it was too respectful of Kirby's design, so they pushed us to really think a little bit differently and come up with a new take. I think our approach is not necessarily about Kirby but about trying to capture some of that energy.

We spoke with Brian at NYCC, and he said he felt the New Gods fit into and played with the series' overall mythology theme. What was the impetus on your side to want to play with Orion?

It just made sense, you know? The Dog Of War; personality-wise and everything, he's not that different from the Kirby version. But to see how that plays against Wonder Woman and her more compassionate side I think will be interesting. They'll definitely butt heads quite a bit, but they're ostensibly after the same thing.Comic book fans have such a love for the Fourth World characters and can be very specific about the way they like to see them appear. You mention Orion is the opposite of Wonder Woman -- how would you describe his role in the upcoming story?

In a way, Orion is kind of the opposite because he's given himself the ability to act out whereas Wonder Woman hasn't. I think our Wonder Woman is impulsive and does kind of act first, but our Orion has totally given himself over to that and has no qualms about hurting people, while Wonder Woman does. But there is a part of her that's similar to Orion ,and it'll be interesting how they connect.

I love the Fourth World characters; I really think they're a tremendous achievement. They're so great and we're trying to do this in the spirit of, it's not a strict Kirby interpretation, but it works for the character. We'll see him, hopefully, a little larger than life and from a different world in the way he acts and why he's messing around on Earth.

[Sinx]

I like the art, i like the renderition of the Joker (outside of the jokes he pulls at the cops) but i dislike how Batman is freaking out like a pussy, simply because Scott Snyder has that villain gary-sueness and has to make Batman weaker, in order for his own story to work more properly. I liked the cues to the Killing Joke and Joker's 1st appearence alot too.

I don't think Snyder's made Batman weaker. I think he's just exposing his feelings more so than other writers, which I like. I don't think Batman should be this stoic, stagnant character who is impervious to fear. I like my characters a little more human than that.

However this is to Dan Didio & others supervising this stuff, but having Batman's entire history crammed in about 5 year timezone, but having Night of the Owls last a whole year is just complete bullshit.

Night of the Owls is supposed to be a whole year? O_O That's ridiculous. Where did you hear this at?

PS. To conclude, it's just that Scott Snyder's Batman after the relaunch has been incredibly overrated, but i highly praise of Greg Capullo with his story telling skills.

I'll agree that Greg Capullo is the man. =p

It's not "stealing" or "Morrison is original" it's just that "Morrison did it 1st" wqhen it comes to these elements in Batman stories to happen:

I guess I can't say too much since I haven't read his previous Batman work, but it seems like Alfred getting kidnapped is a broad enough plot point that I wouldn't even give it a second though that another writer might have done it before.

Cliff Chiang's character designs are freaking awesome. I love that dude.

[Drz]

I don't think Snyder's made Batman weaker.

Because?

I think he's just exposing his feelings more so than other writers, which I like.

Greg Hurwitz's Dark Knight title deals with Bruce's inner psyche, Batman & Robin deals with Bruce's parenthood with Damian, Batman Incorporated deals with Bruce's parenthood and his relationship with Talia.

Batman title is about Snyder wanting Batman toi be more brooding and loner, hence having Bruce punch Dick Grayson for no reason and freaking over about Alfred getting kidnapped, instead of getting serious.

I don't think Batman should be this stoic, stagnant character who is impervious to fear. I like my characters a little more human than that.

And noone said that. You're just trying to defend Scott Snyder with an argument that can be summed up: Well Drz i aint reading better Batman comics like you do, so this is my defense for Snyder, yo!

Night of the Owls is supposed to be a whole year? O_O That's ridiculous. Where did you hear this at?

It was written by Scott Snyder in the event you called "Awesome!!!!" Batman #13. Damian and Bruce discuss the Owl event.

[Robbie_Jee]

Heh, i won't spoil things but it has some funny things happening that pissed off the internet. "NOT IN MAH SUEPRMAN" ;)

What are they complaining about, specifically?

Use spoiler tags to avoid spoiling anything for Sinx.

lol Marvel needs to get something to compete DC's upcoming Man of Steel title?

Avengers. By Jonathon Hickman.

[Sinx]

Because?

Because he simply hasn't. =p He hasn't lost any physical strength and just because his emotions are a little closer to the surface, that doesn't make him more weak.

Greg Hurwitz's Dark Knight title deals with Bruce's inner psyche, Batman & Robin deals with Bruce's parenthood with Damian, Batman Incorporated deals with Bruce's parenthood and his relationship with Talia.

Batman title is about Snyder wanting Batman toi be more brooding and loner, hence having Bruce punch Dick Grayson for no reason and freaking over about Alfred getting kidnapped, instead of getting serious.

Yea, Bruce punching Dick was a little off, but I think it's perfectly justified that he gets a little antsy because he's losing the man who raised him. I wouldn't go as far to say that he's 'freaked out' though.

And noone said that. You're just trying to defend Scott Snyder with an argument that can be summed up: Well Drz i aint reading better Batman comics like you do, so this is my defense for Snyder, yo!

I think I have a perfectly sound defense. =p Each writer has his or her own take on characters. Some readers (me and a lot of other people) love it, others (you) don't. To each their own.

It was written by Scott Snyder in the event you called "Awesome!!!!" Batman #13. Damian and Bruce discuss the Owl event.

I certainly don't remember Snyder saying that it lasted a whole year. I need to reread it. It was an awesome event though. =p That said, Death of the Family is going to top it for sure.

[Robbie_Jee]

Can someone ask Drz to unblock me?

[sage6paths]

Can someone ask Drz to unblock me?

Sorry I can't. He blocked me as well. Not that I really want to speak to him anyway.

[Drz]

Yea, Bruce punching Dick was a little off, but I think it's perfectly justified that he gets a little antsy because he's losing the man who raised him. I wouldn't go as far to say that he's 'freaked out' though.

Batman was emotionally freaking out to Dick in Batman #14.

I think I have a perfectly sound defense. =p Each writer has his or her own take on characters. Some readers (me and a lot of other people) love it, others (you) don't. To each their own.

So what you're saying is that Sam Humphries' writing on the Ultimates is perfectly good, because each writer has his/her take on the characters? ;) See this is where the argument leads to:
* Continuity
* Writer doing his own take

Who on earth cares about Snyder making a Batman pussy in order for his bigger villains to work? He did a fine job with Dick Grayson without pussifying him, this isn't about making Batman "more human, more heart" because you got plenty of books like that. It's a lousy defense.

I certainly don't remember Snyder saying that it lasted a whole year. I need to reread it. It was an awesome event though. =p That said, Death of the Family is going to top it for sure.[/QUOTE]


Haha oh wow, Night of the Owls was an awesome event? The villains and their motivations we're horrible, the Owls claim to run the city and then they go announce themselves to the world and go on full killing spree. Thats not how controlling a city works, this is how you do it: