[Review] Lego Batman Trading Cards (2019)

So recently I decided to buy two Lego Batman magazines because they came with one minifigure each, which I did not own. One of them was a classic light blue version of Superman (because I only own the Man of Steel movie version of the character as well as a Clark Kent minifigure), and the other figure was Robin. I only own the Lego Batman Movie version of Robin, so a classic design version was once again, a figure I couldn't let go. The magazines also came with the new Lego Batman trading cards, so I was excited to see how they looked, and to my surprise, they were more than just your average trading card collectibles. These cards and characters had stats so I was eager to find out how to play the game.

Although I have not had chance to actually play the game yet, I have looked at how it is played and from what I can tell it looks similar to games like Top Trumps, except that instead of holding a hand full of cards, you place them on the game board and move them around trying your best not to allow your weaker stat to be adjacent to the other players cards. Also your cards face you, so that they are upside down from the opponents perspective, which is how you match the same stat types in order to battle (i.e. Strength vs Strength not Strength vs Speed).

So in this instance, we have Action Batgirl (I'll explain the 'action' part later in this article) vs Green Arrow and the two have met on the playing field with Speed as the stat that needs to be beaten. Action Batgirls Speed is a whopping 73 whilst Green Arrows is a mere 42, so in this battle, Action Batgirl Wins.

The four stats are Attack (Red), Defense (Green), Speed (Orange) and Power (Blue) and each character has two, three or four different card types. For instance there are 5 Batman character cards to collect which include Batman, Action Batman, Ultra Batman, Limited Edition Batman & Batman/Batzarro. This not only adds to the collection but also adds to the game because each of these cards has different alterations to their stats which mean no two Batman (or any other multiple characters) cards are the same, so whilst your opponent may play an Action Batman cards and think they have the win, you could play the Ultra Batman card and beat them for a shock twist in the end game result!

I can't wait to collect the rest of the cards and play the game. It seems like something that is quick to play and simple to pick up for family members of all ages. It's the type of card game you can play with friends, family members, or children if you're looking to get into more activities with your kids on rainy days. It's a fun little collection and I'm sure there will be plenty of different buying options on ebay for those who wish to collect box fulls instantly, or visit your local supermarkets for the card binder and starter packs so you can get the limited edition cards. The binder comes with an excluisve oversized Ultra Joker Card as well which is a fun little collectible to have.

The art on the cards is spot on for what you expect from Lego as well with the characters posing in different ways, and then of course you have the shinies to collect (also called holo foil these days) which include the Silver holo foil collectibles and the rarer Gold holo foil cards.

There are a few characters I wish were added to the collection, but maybe one day we'll see a larger collection of cards to collect that includes a wider majority of the DC Universe because there are so many great characters.

Overall this type of collecting isn't for anyone, and it's not something I do a lot myself, but since discovering it was more than just collecting then I just had to because I love Lego, I love DC and I love card games.

[Review] Jonah Hex (2010)

The beautiful face of Jonah Hex is one that has not apart of my personal fandom for long, but since his appearance on Legends of Tomorrow, as well as recently having watched the 2010 movie on blu ray, I can honestly say he is a character I would love to read more about.

So let's get on with the movie review. First of all, this is not a great movie, in fact some of the cast have even claimed to have regretted the film, with some claiming it to be their worst film in their career. That doesn't mean that it's a god awful film for the audience though. It's still very watchable. Whilst I'll be unable to comment on the film from a comic book accuracy point of view, I can comment on it from a film point of view, and what this film reminded me of was the early late 90's / 2000's action fantasy films, that all seemed to concentrate on special effects and quantity over quality. 

The film had some great ideas of what it could have been, some of which were executed properly such as the backstory being told in comic book graphics which I really enjoyed. It was a nice way not only to tell the story, but to remind people (or introduce them to the fact) that the character and the world are based on comic book fantasy.

Josh Brolin was a great choice for the lead role, as he brought the tough, rugged, sharpshooting Hex to life from the page to the screen. He was a character that the audience sympathised with, because he had everything a comic book protagonist needed; a tragic backstory, a lone wolf persona, with a lonely soul beneath it, and not to mention the one friend with all the gadgets and tech he needs to complete his mission. Jonah Hex is a complete badass in the film, who is close to lawless but then again, it is set during the American Civil War, so there was a lot of lawless violence still occuring at that time. It's because of that, that you can still feel sorry for Hex, because his life is drowned in violence and violence is all he knows, as well as being all his enemies know, so in some ways he has little choice if he wants to rid the world of these villains.

My second favourite actor highlight of the film would have to be Michael Fassbenders character, who is a psychopath, and great at it as well. His character was fun, creepy and very entertaining. I love Fassbender, to the point where I can happily say he is one of my favourite actors of all time. I'd enjoy seeing more of him in comic book films especially DC (yes I know he's Magneto and I love him in that role but that's Marvel and I need more DC live action characters).

Another aspect of the film I loved was that it was a vigilante film, or even a superhero film. It's a story of revenge. The film wanted to be a gritty, violent, western film but didn't quite hit the mark on all of those points, but the revenge story was spot on. The motive was clear, the destination was clear, the execution was just not so great. It tried too hard to be action packed and entertaining, but instead fell hard into the same problem as films like Wild Wild West (1999) because they tried to be cool and added in their own version of modern technology with the machine guns and weird glowing explosive cannonballs that reminded me of the dragon balls from Dragon Ball Z anime.

However, some of the fantasy elements really worked, such as the ability Jonah Hex has to talk to the dead. Whilst this was something I wanted to research a little more, I discovered this was an ability that was created just for the movie. The best part was, it wasn't just a power he had that he could use constantly. It had rules and limitations. Jonah Hex must be touching the body that he is reviving to talk to them, but this revival isn't permanent. There is a time limit on how long he can revive someone before they begin to burn and turn to ash. This essentially means that instead of an afterlife their extinguished from the world completely. This means that he cannot merely revive someone he didn't want to die which makes the power a blessing and a curse which is what all power should feel like. This is was probably the best aspect of the film that made it feel like a comic book movie, which is why I was disappointed to discover it wasn't an ability of his in the comics, but that doesn't make me any less interested in reading more about Jonah Hex.

The costume and makeup design of the film was really well done, with the characters feeling like they belonged in the time period in which the film is set, as well as Brolin definitely looking like Jonah Hex from the animated appearances I've seen him in, so from a design stand point, the film looks fine, though a modern day upgrade would be great to see. I would not be disappointed to see Josh Brolin reprise the role, but if someone else was to take on the role, if a revamp was to be made, then it would be great to see the character brought to life either way.

Overall this film isn't great but it certainly is worth a watch just to get an idea of some of the earlier DC films that had the right ideas but the wrong executions. Either way it makes for some great conversations about what a revamp of this character in a movie could be like if done right. Maybe the world will listen and maybe we'll get what we hope for in the future. I am all for another Jonah Hex movie to be made, and I will be looking further into the comics to find out more about this mysterious sharpshooting character who has a face only a mother could love....or Megan Fox's character apparently.

[SPOILER REVIEW] Reign of the Supermen

If you read my The Death of Superman review, then you know what comes next, and why these reviews are so closely published together. If you haven't then I suggest you go back and read that one first as this next review follows the sequel to that film, and I will add to more of the points I made previously in the first review.

The sequel to 2018's The Death of Superman, sees us continue the story that now follows the aftermath of the previous films events. Superman is dead after a power battle with Doomsday that saw the demise of both characters, but the finale of the film baited us into this second film, as we see that Supermans body has been removed from it's resting place in the park and it would seem that Superman is alive...or so we thought. 

 

Six months have passed since the events of the first film and the world still isn't the same without Superman. The Justice League is still around but without Superman, the world just doesn't feel right, especially since no one can discover where his body disappeared to. So how does a world without Superman react? It creates it's own heroes.

Lex Luthor (voiced by the brilliant Rainn Wilson a.k.a Dwight from The Office US series) has created a clone of the fallen hero, using Superman's DNA mixed with his own DNA for intellect, he creates what he calls 'Superman' but the world, especially Lois Lane, calls Superboy. He's not the only new hero in town though. The Man of Steel inspires a new hero dressed in steel (or at least some form of metallic technological armour) who wields a large and powerful hammer to aid him in his quest to fight for justice the way Superman did. Thirdly we have someone who looks like Superman in every way, except for a yellow visor, a new power to shoot electric yellow beams from his hands, and the idea that criminals should be 'eradicated'. Finally we have one of the coolest looking characters I have seen, who looks like half of Superman, whilst the other half is a cyborg.

If you haven't guessed the names of the other three characters by now, they are Steel, Eradicator and Cyborg Superman, two of which I was previously aware of (Steel and Cyborg Superman) but Eradicator was someone I had never even heard of before. Once again, this is due to my own lack of knowledge on the wider world of Superman outside of the movies and TV shows I have seen. This film, like its predecessor, opened up my eyes to a larger understanding of the world of Superman.

Similar to the first film, Reign of the Supermen continues the fantastic art of containing all the same elements as before, from action and suspense to comedy and although lessened by a somewhat wide margin, there is still some horror and tragedy in this film which gives it that true emotion, as Supermans past haunts not only him, but the rest of the world. We are at first uneased by the appearance of the new Supermen because unlike the real Superman we do not know who we can trust. Superboy could easily become angered by the discovery that he is a clone, Cyborg Superman could be (and actually is) controlled by a higher power, Eradicator is too violent and Steel's identity is hidden behind his armour. So who can the world trust to save them?

Cyborg Superman (Reign of the Supermen 2019)

This sequel added more intensity to the overall story that the two films tell together, with this film playing less upon the horror aspect of a monstrous creature, instead moving more towards adding action as well as an insight into the minds of the people who were effected by the death of the world's greatest hero. Some people rejoiced because they believed there was no one to stop them now, while the majority of the world mourned in their own ways, but together, they mourned.

The soundtrack to this second film proved as impressive as the first if not more so, and the scenes that play out in front of us keep us in true awe, as we watch Supermen fight one another to prove who is the real Superman, all whilst Lex Luthor seeks to gain the spotlight for his clone, Superboy. Lois on the other hand is in a desperate attempt to find closure as she questions the Supermen to see if any of them are truly the real Kal-El, but in doing so she uncovers some strange and somewhat dark secrets, that proves she is indeed the best investigative reporter the world has ever seen, and thats her super power. She quickly pieces together the puzzle and discovers that Steel is simply one of the scientists from the first film, who claims that Superman had onced saved him and in doing so, he felt he was indebted to Superman and felt the need to do something about it now that he was gone. She also figures out that Cyborg Superman is in fact Hank Henshaw, who felt betrayed by Superman due to events seen in the first film. Finally she is able to work out that Eradicator is a holographic projection, of Kryptonian origin, and so we finally have all we need to know about our Supermen. That is until we discover how Cyborg Superman came to be. 

Justice League (The Death of Superman 2018)

One villain who we all know and love for his tyrannical, overbearing presence, is behind both events of these two films. We just didn't know it (or at least anyone who's not read the comics etc. didn't like myself). The story comes together in this film as we uncover more and more secrets that some may have worked out previously, whilst others like myself who are unaware of the story behind the adaptation, are left to the surprise appearance of Darkseid who was the mastermind behind the Doomsday creature as well as the demise of the only hero who was truly strong enough to beat him. However, stopping Superman was only the first step, because the Justice League was still a threat, so they must also be removed and with the help of Cyborg Superman this was possible. So now we are left in a world without Superman, and without the Justice League. What could be worse?

Reign of the Supermen showed me a world that was divided in it's ways of dealing with loss. Some people were easily manipulated into becoming tools for Darkseid and Cyborg Superman whilst other people remained strong and faced danger head on, but this resulted in casualties that made the world seem somehow darker. Just when you think this film is as dark as it can be, it opens up a new wounds. Even without Doomsday destorying the city, innocent civilians are being beaten and broken either by their own masters or by those they loved who were manipulated. There's only one thing left to do in this situation...bring back the real Superman!

Eradicator (Reign of the Supermen 2019)

During the end credits of The Death of Superman, we get a quick glimpse of the rise of the Fortress of Solitude, which we all know is where Superman is being kept in order to be revived by kryptonian technology. Steel visits the fortress and this is where we discover that Eradicator is a hologram, though a very powerful one. While we await the rise of the real Superman we are given knowledge of what has been happening while he has been resting, and the consequences of bringing him out of this healing process so early. After a world without Superman, we are now given a world with Superman, but without his powers. A mortal Superman, who is as close to be human now as he will ever be, but that doesn't stop him from protecting those he loves, the people of earth, and of course Miss Lois Lane, who constantly throws herself into danger because like Kal-El she is strong minded and unafraid.

Cyborg Superman fights to gain control of his own mind again, and in doing so becomes the real villain of the story. He is devastatingly angry at Superman for not saving Hank Henshaw, or his wife from the Doomsday meteor from the first film. Despite how much Hank once loved Superman, there is now only resentment for the man who failed him.

The script and voice cast for this movie truly portray the emotion of each scene, which gives us a greater insight into the minds of these characters, who I did not know much about before, but now I feel like I understand them more. Each scene educates people like myself on the world of Superman, and for those of you who already know the stories and characters, I'm sure this was just as thrilling for you to see the pages and characters of the comics come to life on screen.

I've said it before and I'll say it again, Sam Liu and the entire team that worked on these two films are to be commended for bringing us two of the most brilliant DC Animated movies that I have ever had the pleasure to see. I am so glad that my first viewing for both of these films was on the big screen because I don't think that the scale of this film can truly be enjoyed fully without the cinematic experience. That being said I cannot wait to get my hands on the Blu Ray releases for both of these films, as well as the soundtracks on my iPod to enjoy whilst I wite reviews such as this and indulge in reading more Superman stories in 2019.

This film gets a 9/10 from me as I think it is a superb film for both veteran Superman fans and newbie fans such as myself, and together the two films get a 10/10 for the Cast and Crew who worked on them both, to bring them to our screens. Thank you to all of those hardworking people for making me a wannabe Superman fan now. I personally think The Death of Superman was my favourite simply because of the horror elements which made me feel uneasy at times (which is what horror elements are meant to do) with Doomsday feeling like a truly unstoppable force to be reckoned with, giving Supermans sacrifice to defeat his foe, that much more impact. However that is not to say that Reign of the Supermen is a lesser film in any way. I would highly recommend these films to anyone who wanted to get into DC or to anyone who simply hasn't watched them but enjoy animated movies.

[SPOILER REVIEW] The Death of Superman

Last night (14th January 2019) I went to Cineworld for a double bill screening of the 32nd and 33rd DC Animated movies by Warner Bros Animation Studios; The Death of Superman and The Reign of the Supermen. I can say for sure that these two movies are easily on my top list for DC Animated movies, and that's coming from someone who has only gained interest in Superman over the past few years, but still hasn't read any of his solo stories in comics. I have seen all the other DC Animated films that include Superman including his solo films in order to gain any knowledge I can, but until now, I thought I understood Superman...I was wrong. 

The Death of Superman film opened my eyes to a version of not just Superman, but the entire Justice League as well, which I had not seen before, and although this was a shock to me because I thought I already understood these characters in their animated universes at least, it was also incredibly exciting, which made my viewing experience that much sweeter.

One thing this film did from the start, which to me no other film has done before, was to show the true strength of all these heroes. Superman being the main focus, let's start with him. Whilst fighting the Intergang (human gang members with advanced alien tech), we see the true extent of Supermans speed, which I don't think any other film has properly shown us. I knew he was fast, but in this film we see just how fast he really is. Whilst fighting the Intergang he is able to save civilians and move them out of harms way whilst fighting the gang members themselves, all within a matter of seconds.

Superman during the battle with Doomsday (The Death of Superman 2018)

During the second half of the movie, we see Superman's true strength and sheer willpower to fight on no matter how bleak the situation looks. The ferocious and horrific Doomsday monster is a force to be reckoned wtih, as Superman is by all appearances, truly beaten to standing on his last legs, as he has to truly force out the energy to keep fighting to save the people of metropolis. Broken, battered and barely breathing, the Man of Steel finally met his match when he faced of against the one enemy that took out the Justice League, even before Kal-El gets there.

Doomsday (The Death of Superman 2018)

Superman: Doomsday was my first real introduction to the monstrous character of Doomsday himself and to the death of Superman storyline, but after seeing this new film, Doomsday is more terrifying than I originally imagined. Of course if you ask anyone who knows about the character, you'll hear "Doomsday has no regard for life of any kind and is engineered for one thing....to kill all lifeforms it comes across" and that sounds scary, sure, but until you watch The Death of Superman, like me, you see the true horror and power of a monster such as Doomsday. One thing I loved about this films take on the character was the slow reveal of his appearance, as he first appears in some form of suit that hides his hideous and terrifying form. This creature is seen to have the strength to break even the will of Green Lantern, and the speed, or at least the intellect to predict the movements of, in order to hit the Flash as he zooms around Doomsday, beating him with Hawkman's mace. Doomsday is a true force of power, and this film reveals all of that in a way that previous films could not.

We see Doomsday kill all life forms it crosses, from Atlanteans, to human scientists, to a wild bear, some police officers, and of course innocent civilians. The animators did not hold back on the horror of these deaths either, as this film is bloody and the soundtrack as well as sound design, is incredible at building the scenes, making you feel uncomfortable in places such as hearing a blood curdling scream of pain from Martian Manhunter as he is set on fire after being thrown into a petrol station.

This film has all the elements it needs to make it a quality animated movie. It has action, horror, suspense, tragedy and comedy. The comedy doesnt seem forced either, it has perfect timing and is always in the right place at the right time. The other elements make this film a rollercoaster of emotions, which make it more than just a movie, it's an experience.

The soundtrack is nostalgic and powerful, adding emotion to each scene, putting you on the edge of your seat. The credit for this film goes to the entire team who worked on it. The writers wrote a spectacular script, the director gave us exactly what we wanted, the animators gave us true art on the screen, the voice casting was excellent and the entire workforce of this film gave us one of the best DC Animated films I have ever had the pleasure of watching. So thank you to all of those people. 

The film gave me a better understanding of Superman as a character. Back in 2013 I became more interested in Superman as a character after seeing Man of Steel. However, I still have not yet read any of the solo comics starring the man himself, but whilst I am familiar enough with the character, Man of Steel gave me a better understanding of his origins, as well as his struggle to fit in with life on earth. The Death of Superman film gave me a similar understanding, but this time it was Superman struggling to live a human life with Lois Lane, whilst already being an established character in the world. The Death of Superman has already established Superman as having been around for years in the previous DC Animated movies, so to see him still struggling to cope with human life gave me a better understanding of just how alienated he feels even after the world already loves him almost unconditionally. Not only that, but this film also showed me the impact of his passing, a true insight into a world without Superman. It shows this through civilians and heroes alike, as we see just how much the Justice League struggle with their loss of the greatest power on earth, including Batman himself who doesn't openly express this feeling, but it can be seen through his body language. We all know Batman and Superman were Best Friends/Frienemies, but its not until Superman's death that we see just how close the two actually were. It was emotional to see even the slightest reaction from Batman, even whilst everyone else seemed to be crying, a simple gesture of unease from Batman and you truly felt the impact of Supermans death. That is why this film is so good, because it can tell you the story through the smallest of details. 

Overall I would give The Death of Superman 9.5/10. The .5 that remains out of this film is simply due to my own knowledge. I think that given time, after I read some more superman, I'll understand some of the elements that I missed the joy of experiencing to it's full extent. However, this film in itself is educational for me. I want to read more Superman, and I will do just that since I already own two Superman graphic novels. For now though, I leave you with a simple request. If you are a fan of Man of Steel, or DC in any way but you haven't seen The Death of Superman, go and watch it. You will not be disappointed.

[SPOILER REVIEW] Titans Season One

The time has finally come for us UK fans to enjoy DC's newest live-action tv series; DC's Titans! As of writing this (January 11th, 2019) the UK can now watch the show on Netflix, and so of course I'll be binging the entire season, with a review on the entire show as a whole because I'm not too good with episode by episode reviews.

The show concentrates heavily on two primary characters; Richard 'Dick' Grayson a.k.a Robin and Rachel Roth a.k.a Raven. Both are very dark characters in this show, with Rachel being haunted by nightmares and 'something' inside of her, whilst Dick Grayson is fighting against his past, and the pressure of wanting to be a hero but living in the shadow of the Batman.

Hawk (Alan Ritchson) & Dove (Minka Kelly)

This show has many great references back to the stories and characters we know, within the first few episodes, and throughout the entire season. Titans already seems to be opening up it's own universe similar to that of Arrow, as we are introduced to characters such as Hawk and Dove which gives us a new story which is equally as dark as the rest of the show, which gives us a look at the original Hawk and Dove who were brothers. We are also treated to an introduction to Robotman, The Chief, Elasti-girl & Negative Man who make up the DC Comics team known as Doom Patrol which is the title of the episode in which we are introduced to them. It has already been comfirmed that a Doom Patrol series is coming in 2019 to DCUniverse, so this would be the first show to find its way into this new universe whilst going in it's own direction. We are introduced to the group through Garfield Logan a.k.a Beast Boy so no doubt he will want to return at some point to meet up for a family reunion, and possibly a crossover event like Arrow has done for the past few years, where it takes both teams to defeat a greater enemy, but we'll have to wait and see.

Promo Image of the Doom Patrol team (2019). From left to right; Negative Man, Robot Man, Crazy Jane, Elasti-Girl & Cyborg

One of the highlights for the series is how much of Robin we get to see, specifically Dick Graysons' story as we watch him battle with his past as he tries to run away from his past, despite how much it comes back to haunt him. This show is a much darker take on the Robin portrayals we know however, for both Dick Grayson and for Jason Todd, who is introduced at the end of Episode 5, but more heavily explored in Episode 6. Dick seems to be trying to fight against his past which he says has changed him into something else, which we see through his violent actions during his fight scenes where he uses brute force and shows almost no mercy to his foes. Although he still doesn't kill, which is at least something, but that can't necessarily be much better than being hospitalised from a shar R shaped shuriken in the eye, or broken limbs, which make for great cinematic sequences.

Dick Grayson a.k.a Robin (Brenton Thwaites)

As the episodes go on we learn more and more about the characters but the season seems to focus more heavily on Dick Grayson and Raven as I previoulsy mentioned because the first season seems to be all about the attempted capture of Raven herself (although the alias of each of the Titans are never used in this show) in order to help bring her father through to our world, whilst Dick aims to protect her from harm and refrain from bringing her up in a way that Batman would have.

The production throughout the show is fantastic, and although some of the more heavily CGI scenes seem somewhat lower in quality, there is no doubt that this show is brilliantly made. It has a great casting of all ages that set a nice tone and theme of 'family' that makes us sympathise for each of the characters as we see them struggle with their own lives and abilities. We also understand them more as we learn about each of their pasts, to the moments that brought them to where they are now. The cast have a great chemistry on screen and we believe how much they want to help each other, as well as how much they're hurting when they find themselves feeling lost or unwanted.

Rachel Roth a.k.a Raven (Teagan Croft)

The elements of horror, mixed with action and drama make this show a rollercoaster of emotions. They blend well together, working with one another rather than cancelling each other out as is seen in some shows, where it feels it's trying to take on too many genre's at once, but the writers of Titans have exceeded my expectations with how well this show is put together. From beginning to end, this show gets better and better and whilst it's not perfect (nothing ever is) it is incredible, and awesome in my opinion. It's a great take on the Titans, and I can't wait for season two because this is yet another show for DC fans that opens up a new world with old characters, given new directions in familiar stories.

If you haven't watched this show yet I highly recommend you give it a shot, but more than that, give it a chance. It's full of lovely little easter eggs, references and characters that you can't help but sympathise with and want to get to know more about. I myself do not know much about the Teen Titans from the comics, apart from what I have learned in adaptations such as Teen Titans! animated series, Teen Titans Go! and the DC Animated films such as Justice League vs Teen Titans.

Overall I'd give this show an 8/10 and I'm sure that with more seasons hopefully to come, that we'll get to see a better production budget in order to bring bigger events to the screen and better visuals including some of the costumes and CGI. It has already climbed onto my list of favourite TV shows (I don't watch much TV as it is so take that as you will) and more importantly one of my favouirte DCTV shows (of which I do watch plenty of).

[END CREDITS SPOILER]

This next part is about the scene we get after the credits of the final episode of Titans. If you have not watched this yet then please do not read on unless you are absolutely sure you don't mind the spoilers.

At the end of Titans, I was told on Twitter by those lucky enough to have watched it on DCUniverse, that there is a post-credits scene at the end of the season finale, episode 11. So I waited patiently whilst I began this review, and I at first I was thinking "I wondered when they'd show us this character" but then that same character, who presumably is Superboy due to the classic S symbol tattooed on his shoulder, and the fact that he's escaping a lab, then proceeds into a room lit completely green. Inside this room lies a small transparent box containing a lovely looking white dog. The door is pulled from the container with force, as the dog stands up and turns to the camera. His eyes then begin to glow red and if you haven't figured out before now, it is confirmed in that moment that this is our new live action Krypto the Superdog!

 

 

Krypto (or at least the name belonging to a dog) has appeared before only once in live action in the TV Series Smallville, but this new version of the super dog seems to appear as a closer adaptation of the character looks wise and performance wise since the version we saw in Smallville only seemed to have super strength, but none of the other powers. The red eyes in Titans already suggest to us that this Krypto already has heat vision and will most likely join Superboy in helping the Titans defeat Trigon.

[REVIEW] Batman: The Long Halloween

Title: Batman: The Long Halloween

Written By: Jeph Loeb

Art By: Tim Sale

Usually in Batman stories, the Dark Knight can take anything from one night to one week to find and capture the villain of the story, no matter how hard they try to hide, no matter who gets in his way, he always finds the "one" who committed the crime. So when I picked up a copy of 'The Long Halloween' having no previous knowledge of the story or of anything that may unfold within the pages of this graphic novel, I at first assumed it was a title that simply meant the one night of the year which would be so horrid that it would feel like one night lasted a lifetime. However, upon having read the story now, and followed Batman and other characters through this 'Long Halloween' it certainly fells very different to my original thought.

I absolutely loved this story because it takes you on such a journey and has you questioning what you've already read, in order to try and figure the big mystery. The brief plot of the story is that there is killer who at first seems to only kill members of the Falcone family, but soon decides to target other unlucky victims. It all begins on the night of Halloween, and it ends on the night of Halloween, but not on the same night.

This killer decides that they will only kill on certain days of the year; the holidays such as Halloween, Thanksgiving, Christmas, New Year etc. and yet it is not the suspect that Batman first thinks of. This new criminal mastermind is dubbed by the Gotham newspapers with the name 'Holiday Killer' or simply 'Holiday'. So what is so great about this story, and this new villain.

The story itself feels long and slow in parts, but that's not a bad thing in this case, because this book feels like a true drama and tragedy, playing out in similar ways to a film, with each murder inked instead of coloured (mostly inked at least) and there is a true crime mystery to this story which is a delight upon first introduction such as mine. I would certainly read this book again, but I doubt that my feelings would be the same as this first encounter because honestly, emotions were running high, my brain was all over the place with questions such as;

"Who could it be?"

"Is it them? Or is that too obvious?"

"It has to be this guy? or is it that gal?"

One of my favourite elements of the story was the involvement of so many of the Dark Knights more classic villains, which helped add to the suspense of who was working for who and why were they involved. It's a really dramatic story with lots of suspense and plenty of questions, some of which are answered, others which are not.

It takes Batman a whole year to bring the criminal to justice, so it has to be said that this was one of Batman's more intesne villains, because who else could escape the 'World's Greatest Detective' for that long? Not only that, but who could make Batman question so many different suspects and still get the wrong answer each time, which in turn makes him question his own sense of judgement? How many villains can you say have done that against the Dark Knight? Not many in my experience, but I would certainly love to read more like this if they are out there (and I know there are some).

This story also includes a new interpretation of the origin of Two-Face. Harvey Dent is a prominent character in this story, and as the story goes on, as the killer continues his streak, we can only watch as Dent sinks deeper into darkness until suddenly the ever famous story of acid being thrown into his face in a courtroom, disfiguring one side of his face and spawning a new obsession with the number Two, unfolds before us, which leads us into the mindset of Harvey Dent. Once a respected D.A. and now a deformed man, full of rage, thirsty for vengeance, we feel sympathy for him, but we know as a reader that he is a villain....or is he simply a victim of this whole thing?

My only issue (and this is just because of my mind, not a real flaw because honestly this book is incredible!) is that it left me with so many more questions than it answered. I know that is the way the book is meant to be like so many other great works out there across all mediums, but in my mind I hate being left with unanswered questions! Perhaps I'm similar to The Riddler in that sense HaHa!

Overall I give this story 9.5/10 (the 0.5 is lost through questions I'm afraid....so many unanswered questions, some of which I understand, others I'd have like to have understood). I highly recommend this book to anyone reading this blog, because if you haven't read it yet, you're in for one hell of a ride.

[REVIEW] Batman: Killing Joke

In 2016 DC fans across the globe rejoiced when we drew ever closer to the release of another DC Animated Film, this time it was an adaptation of the famous Batman: The Killing Joke graphic novel, written by comic book legend Alan Moore and illustrated by Brian Bolland.

This story gave us a Joker origin story that was loosely adapted from the 1951 story arc "The Man Behind the Red Hood!" and showed us a new perspective on the Jokers psychology. It has been a fan favourite story arc for many years now and ever since DC started doing their series of top quality Animated Films, people have begged for them to adapt The Killing Joke into an animated movie, and in 2016 our wishes finally came true, and to hype up our excitement even further, we were told that none other than the legends themselves, Kevin Conroy and Mark Hamill from Batman: The Animated Series, would be reprising their roles of Batman and the Joker. So of course this movie was already getting the attention it needed to sell tickets.

The movie itself begins with a simple fourth wall break as Batgirl tells us that we weren't expecting this story to start with her, and she was right. We were told that Batgirl would have a part to play before the events of Killing Joke, but the amount of time we spend with Batgirl before those events and what happens within her story were all things we didn't really expect. It split many fans down the middle with their opinions of this film. More on that later though.

The part of the film that was faithful to the book, was insanely faithful to the book. More so than I believe any other adaptation we've seen to date. It takes the words right from the book and puts them into the script, and it works. The animation is brilliant as are all the DC animated films, and the voice cast is brilliant. We even get the flashback sequences that show us the Jokers life before and leading up to becoming The Joker. The scenes that truly stand out though, for me at least, were the ones that took place at the Joker theme park. From the freaks hired by the Joker, to the rollercoaster ride that haunts James Gordon, and even a song by Joker himself. All delivered with brilliant talent.

The issue with this film was certainly the first half of it. However I enjoyed the first half, because I enjoyed seeing Batgirls side of the story, seeing her relationship with Batman and seeing the events that lead her to the position we see her in during the story from the comics. On the other hand, that doesn't mean that I think this part of the story belongs in this film. I think that if they wanted to tell Batgirls story, they could have easily made it into a different film, a prequel of sorts that lead up to the events of Killing Joke. I'd have loved to see more about Barbara getting into the role of Batgirl, her relationship with Batman build up as she learns from him, and then the story we see in the first half Killing Joke being the ending, we'd have had a real connection to the character in order for us to feel any sort of sympathy for her and her father. The Killing Joke has enough content that could have been stretched out into a whole movie on it's own, and it could have even included the story at the end of the graphic novel that saw a someone planning to kill Batman. I just think that if there truly wasnt enough for a movie, it could have been dealt with by making it a simple video online, or as a special episode of some sort. What the people behind the film created was something spectacular but it wasn't really executed well in the final product.

Nevertheless, I give this film a solid 7.5/10 for its faithfulness to the source material, it's incredible voice casting, and the brilliant animation that always makes these animated films so spectacular!