#cause like regardless of whether captain becomes a comic or not it still needs a script LMAO

[princekirijo]

Last line challenge

I was tagged by @sayheykid (thank u for the tag!!)

rules: in a new post, share the last line you wrote and tag as many people as there are words (or as many as you feel like).

This is from a lil thing I was experimenting with:

As Skull was about to object, Joker stopped causing the rest of the party to come to a halt behind him. They'd reached the end of the corridor they'd been travelling down. The hall had been fairly uneventful, something they needed after the disaster that was the previous floor, Riku still winced when he thought about how close that blade trap had come to knocking his head off.

"Anybody see any other doors on the way down?"

The thieves shook their heads.

Joker sighed, "well guess the only way forward is through this door. Let's just get this over with."

Nodding in agreement they all braced themselves. Hopefully there would be a safe room close by, the tower was really starting to do a number on all of them

I'm gonna tag @ragecndybars @latenitewaffles and anyone else who would like to give it a go :3

[themadamespod]

The Great White Gripe

A lot has been said about the “social commentary” within The Falcon and the Winter Soldier. 

“Since when is Marvel a bunch of SJWs? I don’t need this shit.”

“All this race stuff feels SUPER forced.”

“Oh here we go Marvel tryin to be all woke to get the libs on board.”

If you personally know anyone who spews this brand of ignorance, we’re sorry. 

Let’s make one thing perfectly clear: there is no social commentary on TFATWS. Showrunner Malcolm Spellman and director Kari Skogland simply show the reality of life in America. It’s not their fault that so many (white) people (men) don’t like looking in the mirror.

And some people claim they have no problem with film and television addressing politics and social change.

“Just keep it out of my comic book movies. It doesn’t belong there.”

They could not be anymore wrong, even if Chandler Bing himself was lecturing them. 

If you asked 100 people to name the top ten movies of all time, you’d get 100 different lists. But one thing we can all agree on is that film has power. It has the power to move us, to divide us, to unite us. Entertainment can lead to the kind of discourse that prompts action and positive change.

And that’s why The Falcon and the Winter Soldier and the conversations it’s sparking are so important.

One World, One Reality

“Marvel has always been and always will be a reflection of the world right outside our window.” - Stan Lee

There are two takeaways from that statement:

One: Stan Lee didn’t say that in the 1960s, 1970s, or even the 1980s. He said it in 2017.

Two: Our window, not your window, is a subtle but important distinction, particularly as it relates to TFATWS. The Flag Smashers, led by Karli Morgenthau, live by a simple creed: “One world, One people.” The core message of the show is that white Americans and Black Americans experience the world very differently, but there’s still only one world, one reality. 

It’s just a matter of people opening their eyes and seeing it.

TFATWS is an extension of Marvel’s early support of the Civil Rights Movement. In 1963, Stan Lee created the X-Men as an allegory for the ongoing struggles of the African-American community. Though he didn’t explicitly base Professor X and Magneto on Martin Luther King, Jr. and Malcolm X, there are ideological similarities.

Five years later, following the assassinations of Dr. King and Robert Kennedy, Stan wrote the following:

“Bigotry and racism are among the deadliest social ills plaguing the world today. It’s totally irrational, patently insane to condemn an entire race—to despise an entire nation—to vilify an entire religion. Sooner or later, we must learn to judge each other on our own merits. Sooner or later, if a man is ever to be worthy of his destiny, we must fill our hearts with tolerance.”

In 2021, Stan’s words still resonate. Racism in the United States is as virulent and damaging as it’s ever been. Black Americans are facing deadly policing, Jim Crow 2.0 voting laws, mass incarceration, and countless other roadblocks to mobility that most white people have never encountered.

Through the journeys of Sam and Sarah Wilson, Lemar Hoskins, and the heartbreaking Isaiah Bradley, TFATWS shows the unvarnished truth of what Ira Glass might call Black American Life. And through John Walker, the writers nail home the message that’s really making certain people squirm:

White men are the greatest threat not just to Black Americans, but all Americans, because TFATWS is as much an indictment of toxic masculinity as it is of bigotry. 

As aggressive racism has spread like wildfire since 2016, so has hostile sexism towards women of all colors. John Walker is the embodiment of the hyper aggression that the Proud Boys applaud. The clearest example of this comes when Walker dares to clap the shoulder of Ayo, one of Wakanda’s Dora Milaje.

Her swift and, ahem, pointed response had women the world over screaming like they’d just won the lottery. 

One could also argue that Walker’s dogged pursuit of Karli and displaced peoples supporting the Flag Smasher cause mirrors the Trump administration’s war on immigrants. 

There are plenty of parallels to draw. The point is, none of them are forced or manufactured or exaggerated. And whether we’re talking about a fictional road in Latvia or a real street in Minnesota, white Americans need to stop avoiding conversations that make them uncomfortable.

The Politics of Comics 

In 1938, Americans were still reeling from the Great Depression. Enter Superman, the everyman hero, who made his comic debut while the nation was facing widespread unemployment, rampant poverty, and blatant corruption at every level of government.

Superman could have faced off against any number of supernatural villains. But Siegel and Shuster went a different route, setting a precedent for comic books that has prevailed to this day:

They got political. 

Throughout Superman’s earliest adventures, he fought against evil politicians, apathetic bureaucrats, aggressive police officers, greedy businessmen, and even a Washington lobbyist. 

Then in 1941, Joe Simon & Jack Kirby introduced Captain America just in time to fight the nazis and free the world from fascism. A couple decades later, Kirby and Stan Lee would tell the tale of the aforementioned Erik Lehnsherr, who survived the horrors of Auschwitz. These comics endured because their passion and nuance transcended entertainment. So what was the secret sauce?

Like Siegel and Shuster, Simon, Kirby, and Stan Lee were Jewish. Representation matters, folks. 

Later on, the X-Men weren’t the only conduit through which Marvel supported Civil Rights. In 1966, on the heels of the “March Against Fear” from Memphis, TN to Jackson, MS, Stan Lee & Jack Kirby unveiled Black Panther. When African-Americans were fighting harder than ever, Black children could suddenly read a comic book about T’Challa, the noble warrior king of a highly advanced African nation. 

Marvel has never been shy about critiquing foreign policy either. Tony Stark and Iron Man debuted in 1968 as the conflict in Vietnam was escalating. And let’s not forget, Tony made his MCU debut in a film that is a clear indictment of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan.

We could do this all day, but you get the idea. 

Comic books have always reflected the politics of our times, and so has the MCU. Fanboys can’t start crying now just because they’re on the wrong side of history. And when they do, we defer to the great Jon Bernthal when asked about alt-righters appropriating the Punisher symbol:

“Fuck them.”

Life Imitates Art

In 1986, American men felt the need for speed. After Top Gun was released, applications to U.S. aviation forces increased by a staggering 500%. 

Two years later, Errol Morris exposed police corruption in his film The Thin Blue Line. The documentary prompted a new investigation that eventually exonerated death row inmate Randall Adams for the murder of a police officer.

That same year, the Polish government ceased all executions after leaders were swayed to do so by A Short Film about Killing.

Following the release of Michael Moore’s Bowling for Columbine in 1999, Kmart bowed to public pressure and stopped selling handgun ammunition. 

And 5 years ago, Pakistani Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif changed the law on honor killings in response to the critically-acclaimed film A Girl in the River. 

Like we said earlier, film has the power to spur social change. Even if the effects aren’t always so direct and immediate, television and movies have always contributed to the process in America. 

Seeing the Ricardos sharing a bed allowed some Americans to start relaxing their prudish ways. 

The Mary Tyler Moore Show and Maude empowered women as they fought for reproductive rights.

The Jeffersons and Good Times facilitated calmer discussions about race relations.

And The Ellen Show led to greater representation of queer people on screen and greater acceptance of queer people in society. Though Ellen herself has become a problematic figure in the last year, that legacy still remains.

The Falcon and the Winter Soldier is hardly the first show of its kind. And given the impact film has on society, we believe Hollywood has a moral obligation to produce content that exposes society’s ills and fosters productive debate. 

Stan Lee would be very proud of the team behind TFATWS for bringing the stark reality of American life into people’s living rooms. The next time you see someone bitching about it, remind them what Stan himself said just a few years ago: 

“Those stories have room for everyone, regardless of their race, gender, religion, or color of their skin. The only things we don't have room for are hatred, intolerance, and bigotry.”

[baymaksu]

A Team Divided?

@jr2157 brought up an interesting question to me regarding how the BH6 team would be in a Marvel Civil War situation.

Whether from the MCU’s Sokovia Accords or Marvel Comic’s Superhuman Registration Act, the Marvel Civil War’s arguments can be boiled down to opposing philosophies of Freedom vs Order. Individual Responsibility and Fate vs Safety through Accountability and Constraints

At least under that lens, I can try to divvy up the team to who would be Pro-Registration (Team Iron Man) and Anti-Registration (Team Cap).

I would certainly not want to see the BH6 divided to an extent of fighting each other and I don’t see that happening as friendship and family is strong connection that supersedes obstacles between the nerd gang.

But each member does have differing ideologies and tendencies. So they could most definitely debate amongst themselves and choose to act accordingly under the grander scheme of things in relation to authority.

Hiro Hamada (Anti-Registration)

At first glance for me, he seems like an easy candidate for Anti Registration. On account that his tendencies are more towards freedom of action and as Granville would say, “questioning of authority.” And we can see that in Fugitives Arc, he’s willing to act on what needs to be done despite the prevailing authorities. But he could still be very conflicted on these moral-philosophical questions since he may have some distrust in his own discretion after the CTC Incident. He’s still trying to find his balance between freedom and limitations. And he was willing to abdicate his freedom to superhero how he saw fit for a moment with Granville. This could at least make it possible for him to at least consider some middle ground rather than be impulsive and pick a side. But again, I’m inclined to believe he’s more anti-registration. He’s not primed to blindly follow authority and limitations if it prohibits him from helping others how he believes Tadashi would want him to.

Fred Flammarion Frederickson IV (Anti-Registration)

I think he’s a rather easy one I don’t quite have to deep dive. Fred is chaotic and devoted to super-heroism. There are respectable principles behind his goofy demeanor, but we’ve seen that this dedication would land him in the hot seat with authorities. Mini-Max was created for the sole reason of keeping him more on target and creating less collateral damage. He means well but prevailing authorities would want him in check and accountable. But he’s compelled to act as a superhero, it is now deeply ingrained in his identity and by his actions, opposes the functions of a registration act.

Wasabi no Ginger (Pro-Registration)

He’s a rather extreme personification of order and safety. We could see that in his mannerisms (from how he sciences and his conflict when working with Hiro) and typical adherence to laws (“Society has rules!”). It would be fitting for him to be more inclined towards the benefits of pro-registration in terms of social order providing accountability and constraints for everyone to abide by to keep everyone safe and protected. Again, this is ideologies and tendencies considered. But he would still most likely stick with the team regardless, as he regards the safety of his friends most important to him. He’d be uncomfortable going against authority, but he’d prioritize their safety and fight alongside them. And if it came down to it, he would still act to help people.

Honey Lemon (Neutral)

I’m going to have to say that Honey Lemon is an interesting character in this instance. She deplores conflict and would most likely be a mediator or attempt to pacify arguments among the team to ensure that everyone remains cohesive despite differences in beliefs. So, at least outwardly, she wouldn’t choose a side per se. She’d choose the side of her friends remaining together more so.

Gogo Tomago (Anti-Registration)

From her very first appearance in the movie, she has always exuded this free agency to do what she wants or feels is right. She is action-oriented and that’s probably why she was first to really agree that the nerds needed to be powered up to apprehend Callaghan for Tadashi. She has the strength to take action for others. In the case that authorities may not align with that, she’d most likely be against losing that freedom to take things into her own hands and her own individual accountability.

Baymax (neutral)

His programming is built on helping people, his actions would align to Hiro but perhaps his curiosity on the situation would prompt Hiro to think critically just to try to explain the situation to the robot.

Bonus: Karmi (Anti-Registration)

She idolizes BH6 for their heroic acts, I believe that she’s inclined to keep faith in them and that they need not register and become essentially controlled. Bonus bonus: A superhero version of Karmi as Lab Lady, definitely not one to be tied down.

Awesome Bonus: Boss Awesome

No surprise here, he is the righteous placeholder for Captain America in the BH6-verse. He’d keep things classic and fight the good fight for others because it’s the right thing to do. He’s bound by his own principles of compassion and justice. If he and Captain America co-existed, it would be an interesting interaction. They aren’t one to one on personalities but by principle they are very similar.

BH6 Team in a Marvel Civil War-universe?

As a whole, I think the team would remain together regardless of their consensus and wouldn’t split themselves to join either cause actively. If they were to face authorities or were caught in a skirmish with other heroes of either team on the issue, they would simply prioritize safely escaping.

[takerfoxx]

She-Ra and the Princesses of Power, Season 4, Episode 1, First Impressions!

New season has FINALLY ARRIVED, which means I finally get it in front of my eyeballs! So, it’s first impressions time!

...however, since I’m watching it right after it dropped instead of being kind of late to the party like I was with the previous three, I’m gonna play it safe and seal off my thoughts under the spoiler cut. So yeah.

Anyway!

So the first part of my prediction was pretty much correct, in that it’s about Glimmer’s coronation, and she’s still really shaken up over Angella’s death (and why wouldn’t she be?) and Adora and Bow are trying to be supportive but it’s super stressful, though it did play out a bit differently. Turns out, rather than be nervous about whether or not she could fill her mother’s shoes and that everyone is looking down on her and judging her like I thought, she’s instead mega-pissed about how no one is even addressing the big THE QUEEN, WHO OH YEAH WAS MY MOM, IS SUPER DEAD! and is instead all going on and on about party arrangements and ceremonies and rituals and stupid stuff that doesn’t matter because her mom is dead and no one is even talking about it!

Bow and Adora certainly had the best of intentions, and I like how neither the show nor Glimmer made them out to be the bad guys in this despite them kind of making things worse. Glimmer’s hurting, but just not in the way they were thinking. Fortunately, in the end she got what she needed in hearing Angella’s final message to her, giving her some measure of closure and letting her accept her new position as Queen of Brightmoon and the leader of the Princess Rebellion, which is pretty much what she needed all along.

That having been said, I did kind of feel like her pain over losing her mom was resolved kind of...too neatly, I guess? I get that it’s a new season and they need to move the plot along, but even so. Still, just because she’s gotten some closure doesn’t mean that the wound is totally healed (because it never will be) and that this won’t come up again, so I’ll be keeping a close eye on her.

In other news, the other princesses were as delightful as always in their trying so hard to do things right but completely missing the point. Frosta was...kind of terrifying (poor Sea Hawk!), Mermista’s obsession with her “floral” arrangements were a hoot, and poor Perfuma really needs to get back to her hippie roots and get some meditation in while smoking some kush, because I feel that her patience for her fellow princesses is very close to running out and she’s just going to go all Poison Ivy on everyone. And jeez, someone rein Castespella in!

Though on a side note, I feel kind of bad for this, but Swift Wind continues to irk me. Yeah, I know he’s supposed to be a comic relief character, but at least the other characters were trying to do right by Glimmer in their weird, kind of egotistical ways, but he was making his thing all about him and...look, I’m sorry, but I just don’t like Swift Wind, okay?!

Also, give Netossa and Spinnerella something to do, already!

Ahem.

So, back to the bad guys’ side, that’s where things take a...fully predicted and interesting turn.

So, let’s talk about Catra.

Catra continues to be the most fascinating character in the entire show. On the one hand, she is very much an abuse victim, someone who was mistreated her entire life, who was forced to live in the shadow of her best friend, who was clearly starved for any kind of positive reinforcement but was constantly denied it, who was constantly told that she wasn’t good enough, that she was inadequate, that she was a failure, etc. It’s a terrible situation for anyone to be in, which is why her sympathetic moments play out so well.

But however, despite how she’s been treated by her so-called betters, Catra’s kind of the most competent character in the whole show. Every time she has the freedom to do things her way, she quite often comes out on top, and unless her deeply-seated issues get the better of her or some other happenstance that she couldn’t account for occurs, she tends to win. She is a master of psychological warfare and a terrific and cunning fighter, able to adapt to quickly changing situations and new environments scarily fast and get the drop on her opponents. Hell, she’s gone toe-to-toe with She-Ra and managed to hold her own just through her wits. 

And that has led her to having a rocketship strapped to her back, sending her soaring upward.

Through sort of a fluke, she was made Force Captain in Adora’s place and kicked ass. She out-thought Shadow Weaver and deposed of her, taking her power and her job. She made herself out to be the biggest threat the Rebellion has ever seen (I can’t remember the figures, but Entrapta once said that under her leadership, the Horde saw a massive leap in efficiency). When she was exiled to the Crimson Waste pretty much to die, she took it over in a day, captured Mara’s ship, took Adora’s sword, and brought it back to Hordak when he had pretty much written her off.

Point is, when she has her eye on the prize, Catra is almost unstoppable. And here we are shown what that prize is. She wants the Rebellion crushed and Etheria ready to offer up on a silver platter when Horde Prime finally arrives, as expected, though I truly doubt that has much to do with actually believing in the Horde’s right to rule and has more to do with it being because the Rebellion is where Adora and Shadow Weaver are. But regardless, it’s always been made very clear that she is in it for herself, and not out of any kind of loyalty to Hordak. I mean, after he treated her last season, why would it be? And now she has had it up to here with his constant moping despite having a distinct advantage that he’s not pressing.

So she decides to do something about it. Namely, she does to him what she did to Shadow Weaver: exploit her knowledge of his weaknesses and make him her bitch. 

Damn. I mean, we all saw it coming, but damn.

Catra’s...running the Horde now. I mean, Hordak’s probably still going to be the front, but she’s going to be the real power from now on, and that is really bad news for the good guys. And I have no doubt that that’s where Double Trouble comes in.

But anyway, as sympathetic as Catra’s story is, and as impressive as her actions have been, that doesn’t take away from the fact that she’s kind of become a really terrible person. Which is totally deliberate and the writing is great, don’t get me wrong! But she’s replaced both Shadow Weaver and Hordak, and like them, she has her own victim of her abusive behavior. 

Scorpia.

That scene honestly broke my heart, even if I saw it coming. Scorpia honestly is pretty much my favorite character. I love how she’s this big, powerful, intimidating person with a totally sweet, caring, awkward, and kind of ditzy personality. Her crush on Catra was pretty obvious from the get-go, and I loved their dynamic...for the first couple of seasons anyway. But as much as I got into the Scorptra train, it’s clear that it’s not going to work out, given how toxic Catra’s become, and Scorpia knows it, and it’s tearing her up. I am very interested in how her arc is going to turn out this season. I mean, she’s got an entire solo episode coming up, which I am very much looking forward to. But I hope that this is the catalyst that causes her to finally stand up to Catra and break away from the Horde. At the very least she doesn’t buy what Catra did to Entrapta one bit, and I love that she’s still looking after Emily. Maybe she and Hordak can team up and go to Beast Island to rescue our favorite autistic gadgeteer princess. 

But getting back to Catra, if the last season was seeing her at her lowest point, then this one will be seeing her at her highest, but on the side of evil. I predict that she’s finally going to get everything she’s convinced herself that she wants only to lose it all at the end, leading to her final arc in the final season. Now, will that be a true redemption arc like everyone is hoping for? Will Hordak redeem himself as well?

Well...probably not. 

See, I am totally on board with the two of them finally confronting the years of abuse that made them the way they were, breaking away from it, and actually becoming better people, but redemption does kind of mean making up for all the pain and damage that you’ve caused, and I’m afraid that they’re in waaaaaaaaaay too much debt to do that. 

However, they are perfectly capable of having a reformation arc. Because just because you can’t make up for what you’ve done doesn’t mean you can’t better yourself going forward.

Not Shadow Weaver though. Don’t think I didn’t notice you lurking around in that one scene. Honored guest my ass. She’s totally up to something.

[mysterylover123]

My Top 10 Favorite Series of All Time

Mysterylover123, to my followers.

This list, of course, could change. At some point in the future, I could always discover a new series that topples the competition - but for the moment, here they are. My top 10 favorite series of all time - mostly comics or television, but also film, and a few novel series made the honorable mentions list.

Of course, these are all just my personal favorites - that’s the key word. While I did consider objective quality when making the call, I mostly went with my gut and listed series I love for whatever reason - maybe sentimental value, pushing my personal buttons, or just characters I adored. I also made myself list the things I don’t like about the series as well, just to avoid gushing too much and remember that all but one (my #1) series out there are at least, a little, flawed, but nonetheless still lovable. With that in mind, here they are:

#10. CSI: Crime Scene Investigation (2000-2015)

Type: Live-Action TV show

Genre: Crime/Mystery; forensic drama, police procedural

Favorite character: Catherine Willows (Marg Helgenberger)

Favorite episode: “Grave Danger”, Parts 1 & 2 (Season 5 finale)

Favorite Season: 7

Favorite villain: The Miniature Killer/Natalie Davis

Bad points: Weak later seasons, forced romance subplot, copious amounts of filler

Why it’s here: CSI is nostalgic for me. I watched it during my early crime drama loving years, and found out that as much as I liked the premise, what made the show for me was the cast. That was the first time I realized how essential characters are to creating intriguing drama. CSI is still my favorite traditional crime/mystery show, since in seasons 1-8, it maintained a good balance of character drama and mystery-of-the-week. Season 7 is a high point,  balancing an ongoing story with lots of fun one-offs and an emotionally explosive payoff. Later seasons, however, wear down the show’s quality for me. Too many beloved characters left and the series becomes too reliant on filler, ending with a thud that is the series finale. But the best of CSI is still enough to land it here for me.

(Just to clarify, I mean Las Vegas)

#9. Futurama (1999-2003; 2008-2013)

Type: Animated TV Show + movies

Genre: Sci Fi Dramedy

Favorite character: Philip J Fry (Billy West)

Favorite episode: “Jurassic Bark”

Favorite season: 4

Favorite villain: Bender

Bad points: Sexism, weak later seasons, bad 2nd movie

Why it’s here: Futurama came to me during a phase of depression in my life, and the show’s combination of humor and cry-your-eyes out tragedy kept me going. I’ve seen it through five times, and it’s always a blast. To me, Futurama is better than The Simpsons. Simpsons is funnier, but only for seven years or so. Following those seven years are 21 of mediocrity, whereas Futurama thankfully cuts it short. While some of the later seasons are weaker than the early Fox years, they still have quality gems and the show’s unique flavor. The series speaks to me so much; it’s a mix of hilarious comedy, serious character drama, and high sci-fi concepts that all mesh together in a unique experience. This is a series that’s not afraid to try new things, to experiment and let the characters age and grow. My personal favorite part of the series is the friendship between the core trio, Fry, Bender and Leela. Any episode starring them is a-ok by me.

Favorite memories: Binge-watching the series during a period of unemployment.

#8. Death Note (2003-2004; 2006-2007)

Type of series: Manga/Anime

Genre: Supernatural Crime Thriller

Favorite Character: L Lawliet (Alessandro Juliani)

Favorite Episode: Episode 2, “Confrontation”

Favorite Arc: The first one

Favorite villain: Light Yagami (Brad Swaile)

Bad points: Weak second half, so-so character development

Why it’s here: Death Note is a dark, twisted, engrossing thriller, which under normal circumstances shouldn’t be re-watchable. But I keep coming back to it, regardless of how many times I’ve seen it before. It’s a digestible 37 episodes and 108 chapters, for one thing. It introduced me to two characters that endlessly fascinate and frustrate my analytical brain. The antagonists, Light and L, are two of the most brilliant characters I’ve come across in fiction, and their dynamic with each other is endlessly engaging. Well, it should have been through the whole series…if not for certain incidents. But no matter; we have what we have. Flawed, yes. Terrifying, certainly. Death Note scares me like no other story. But what frightens me in DN isn’t so much there gruesome deaths, but how effortlessly it portrays the banality of evil.

Favorite memories: Watching the show during the winter holidays while on vacation, and contemplating the series during the drive home.

#7. Spider-Man (1962-)

Type: Comic book; various mediums of adaptation

Genre: Superhero

Favorite character: Mary Jane Watson

Favorite Storyline: The Night Gwen Stacy Died, #121-122

Favorite villain: The Green Goblin

Bad points: Weak later issues, lots of filler, “One More Day”

Why it’s here: Spidey is still my favorite superhero. He was me in high school (I got into Spider-Man in high school, incidentally), the everyman, the representation of my nerdy outcast struggle and need to both escapism and greater responsibility. But what really drew me to the comic, and still does, was the vast and multifaceted supporting cast. In the great eras of Spidey (Ditko, Romita, Conway, and late 1980s), the supporting cast make the series. Whether it’s Peter’s various complex lady loves, the endless cavalcade of memorable villains, supporting dude-friends like Flash and Harry or my personal favorite, mainstay Mary Jane “you just hit the jackpot” Watson, the cast of Spidey was majorly influential with good reason. The series loses it’s skill in the 1990s, thanks to the Clone Saga and general 90s comic badness, and plummets into an irretrievable black hole in 2007, never to return. But fortunately, there’s still thirty years’ worthy of fascinating comics to draw from before that insanity begins. And those stories have in turn fed fantastic adaptations, whether it be the sentimental 90s animated show, a few of the films, or the superlative Spectacular cartoon.

Favorite memories: Reading Spider-Man comics after high school, while waiting to get picked up. Also, watching the 90s show as a little kid, even if those are kinda dim.

#6. Gravity Falls (2012-2016)

Type of series: Animated TV Show

Genre: Supernatural

Favorite character: Mabel Pines (Kirsten Schaal)

Favorite season: 2

Favorite episode: “Not What he Seems”

Favorite Villain: Bill Cipher

Bad points: A few filler episodes, some odd messages, so-so ending

Why it’s here: I love a good spooky story. Gravity Falls caught my attention around Halloween in 2016, 8 months after the series finale; I binged the whole series through in a weekend. The series remains one of the all-time best I’ve ever watched. With one or two exceptions, there are no outright bad episodes. Everything is either entertaining or incredibly entertaining. The characters feel real, the messages really hit home, and the creativity on display is astounding. Gravity Falls has something in every corner - great character development, compelling drama, laugh-out-loud comedy, and a truly engaging mystery that doesn’t disappoint. I wish the franchise ran a little longer, but I’ll give it props that unlike nearly every other show on this list, Gravity Falls doesn’t over-stay its welcome. Two seasons of brilliance, wrapping up with a strong, though not perfect, finale, before the series had a chance to go on too long or burn out the creators. It’s a welcome treat to watch again, and again, and again. It’s mostly low on this list, not because of the few weak points, but because I don’t have as much emotional attachment to the series as I do to my top 5 pics.

Favorite memories: Watching the show with my dad and brother on vacation. Both of them are very surly and nit-picky, so presenting them with a show this good meant no cause to complain.

#5. Frasier (1993-2004)

Type: Live Action TV series

Genre: Sitcom

Favorite character: Niles Crane (David Hyde-Pierce)

Favorite season: 4

Favorite episode: “Something Borrowed, Something Blue”

Bad points: Weaker later/early seasons, sometimes annoying

Why it’s here: Frasier has a record for the most Emmy awards won by a single show. And rightly so, in my opinion. This is one of those series with astonishingly top-notch writing all around. It’s a sitcom that banks it’s humor on taking down pretentious snobs and prejudiced jerks; the jokes stay funny because, like all good humor, they stay relevant. This series feels kind of timeless; despite coming out in the instantly dated 90s, the characters’ fashions, mindsets, and relationships feel like they could be written today or twenty-forty years earlier. My heart belongs to the series’ ongoing love story between uptight, snippy Niles and eccentric, lovable Daphne (Jane Leeves). I have yet to see a better executed TV romance, one that pulls out all the stops like this one does. If I were to compare Frasier to anything, it would be to a Jane Austen novel. It has the same social satire, the same sardonic humor, the same understanding of romance and human psychology. That, to me, is what makes a great comedy.

Favorite memories: Discovering Frasier out of Sideshow Bob on The Simpsons - and coming to realize which of the two is truly the better comedy. (Sorry to take another potshot at Simpsons; I do like the early seasons, I just think the show is overrated).

#4. The Marvel Cinematic Universe (2008-)

Series type: Live Action films and TV

Genre: Superhero

Favorite characters: Tie: Steve Rogers (Chris Evans) and Loki (Tom Hiddleston)

Favorite film: Captain America the Winter Soldier (2014)

Favorite phase: Phase 3 (so far)

Bad points: Occasional weak/so-so film, lack of representation

Why it’s here: I first watched only a handful of MCU films; after Avengers, I gave it up and focused on other things. I loved it the first time, but when I came back and screened every picture in the lineup till the present, that is when I fell in love with the franchise. I was missing out on some of the series’ best characters. And that’s what makes the MCU special to so many people: the characterization. The series is at it’s best when it’s giving it’s multi-layered cast focus and development. Marvel comics have always been a favorite of mine, so naturally their best known adaptation is one of my favorites in general. I’ve found something to enjoy in just about every film in the franchise. The biggest surprise hit for me was the Captain America films - a part of the franchise I never dreamed I’d love, but which won me over with the stellar writing in the 2011 film, the indelible Winter Soldier, and the stunning, heartbreaking Civil War. I’m almost afraid of what will come next, as the franchise is heading towards a finale.

Favorite memories: Watching the films over a long, bitter summer, as my only source of joy while working a thankless job and living in a place with bad internet reception.

#3. The Buffy-verse (1997-2004) Series Buffy the Vampire Slayer & Angel

Type of series: Live-Action TV shows

Genre: Supernatural

Favorite characters: Buffy, Cordelia, and Spike

Favorite season: Season 5 of Buffy, Season 2 of Angel

Favorite episodes: “Once More with Feeling” Buffy, “You’re Welcome” Angel

Bad points: Weak later seasons, Season 6, some bad filler

Why it’s here: If I was going on sentimental fandom value alone, the Buffy-verse would be number one. I still squee over this franchise years after I first discovered it; the characters have that special Joss Whedon flair that makes them stand out over the crowd, the series’ core relationships are so fascinating I’m tempted to write fanfic about them, and the philosophies and emotional moments in the series have shaped my life. I would never have known what existentialism was, for instance, if not for Whedon’s show. Angel’s line about “ all that matters is what we do” has helped motivate me ever since I heard it. But looking at the series’ quality (and diversity), I will admit that out of my top 3 favorites, it has the most problems. Both shows have one season I can cheerfully proclaim to be outright terrible, (Season 4 for Angel, Season 6 for Buffy), and very shaky first seasons that take a while to find their feet. There are some plot decisions I just can’t forgive, and some truly weak arc villains. But there is also so much that this franchise does so well, whether it be stellar standalones, bold plot moves, and of course, the character arcs.

Favorite memories: Rewatching the show on vacation in France.

#2. Avatar: The Last Airbender (2005-2008)

Type: Animated TV series

Genre: Fantasy Steampunk

Favorite characters: Zuko, Azula and Sokka

Favorite season: 2

Favorite episode: “The Guru”

Bad points: Forced romantic subplots, The Great Divide, odd conclusion

Why it’s here: You may have heard, if you’ve spent any time on the internet, what a fantastic series ATLA is. I try to avoid such phrases when attempting to sell the show to people, because describing a series that way is usually a bad move. But rest assured, it’s warranted. Avatar The Last Airbender is a stellar show in every possible way. Aside from the few bad points I mentioned above, ATLA does everything right. It has the best world building I’ve ever encountered. The animation, storytelling, emotions, messages (sometimes), plot points, philosophies, individual episodes, comedy, drama, action, epic sweep, surprise reveals…(several hours of listing things later) all of these things are pitch perfect. But as always, what makes this show is the cast. My lord, what a cast. These characters are so embedded in my mind, their arcs, personalities, development and entertainment value all stand out a cut above the rest. ATLA is a stunning masterpiece, one that no adaptation could capture, and that even it’s own creators have yet to follow up on, with either the sequel or the comics. But no matter. The original is there, it always will be, and more people discover it every day.

Favorite memories: Nothing quite compares to seeing ATLA for the first time. I saw it in 2014, one of the worst years of my life. Once again, my miserable experience was improved by a fantastic story.

Before #1: The Runners-up.

Game of Thrones: I used to adore GOT, but it started losing me after season 3; I lost respect for the show in season 5. still, those early seasons are still crucial parts of our culture and should be remembered.

Harry Potter: I grew up with these books and I still enjoy parts of them; overall, however, they strike me as being just a little less than they could have been.

Percy Jackson: I binged through the whole first book in a few hours, and loved these novels as a teen. As an adult, they don’t hold up as well, but I still appreciate the things they do right.

The Legend of Korra: The sequel to ATLA is spotty in many ways, but contains enough moments I absolutely love to make it at least a runner up.

South Park: Another series that got me through a bad time in my life and helped me deal with certain aspects of myself (especially episode 1507.) However, the early and late seasons are pretty bad, and the show doesn’t age very well.

Neon Genesis Evangelion: A bizarre little anime that nonetheless really stands out to me for how crazy it gets and how unique the story is.

Hannibal: A guilty pleasure - definitely a show that gets too far up it’s own butt in later episodes, but nonetehless appealing and interesting in the subjects it’s willing to tackle.

Parks and Recreation: My other favorite TV sitcom besides Fraser - it’s a strong runner up for the list but not quite sentimental enough.

Steven Universe: 3 great seasons, followed by a lot of recent mediocrity. Great when it’s great, bad when it’s not.

Code Geass: an immensely ambitious series, that doesn’t quite realize it’s goals but god damn if it isn’t a beautiful try.

Daria: Another show that really spoke to me in high school

Firefly: This was the biggest runner-up for the list. Firefly is 14 amazing episodes of television cut short too soon, giving us amazing characters and great world building in a short amount of time. The series has some bits that haven’t aged well, and those were enough to keep it off my top 10.

And now, the moment you’ve all been waiting for…

#1. Fullmetal Alchemist Brotherhood (manga: 2001-2010, anime 2009-2010)

Series type: Anime/Manga

Genre: Sci Fi (I think)

Favorite character: Edward Elric

Favorite episodes: “Flame of Vengeance”; “Backs in the Distance”

Bad points: None

Why it’s here: I’m gonna be brutally honest: FMAB is here because I can’t find anything wrong with it. It is, without question, the single most perfect piece of fiction I’ve ever come across. It almost frightened me when I first finished the series. Surely there must be some major, glaring flaw, some bad installment or weak character, that I could point to and say Look! Here’s the flaw! This was made by human hands after all! But nope. Many, many rereads through, and I still haven’t found one. FMAB stands supreme. This series has everything. The most fleshed out and real-feeling cast of characters I’ve ever come across (even minor background characters have spectacular arcs and feel like real people). The best pacing and plotting of an overall story arc. The best world building, aside from ATLA. The best exploration of social issues, the best feminism, the best use of mature storytelling. Everything comes back around. The themes, the mystery, the overall tone and story structure. I feel like an engineer gushing over the most perfectly calibrated car ever made each time I watch it. But Fullmetal is even more than just expertly made. It’s appealing. It’s popular. It’s the kind of story you can write essays on or write fanfic for. FMAB can be enjoyed in every capacity. I recommend taking the time to read the Manga first (that’s what I did), then watch Brotherhood. There really is nothing quite like FMAB. (oh, BTW, it has the best series finale of anything e ver. Period.)

Best memories: Watching Fullmetal while coping with death for the first time in my life. There is no better series when it comes to dealing with this subject.

[renaramblesaboutcomics]

Wednesday Roundup 4.10.2017

This week ended up being a relatively light reading week for yours truly, but that doesn’t lessen the quality of my enjoyment whatsoever. In fact, I had enough love to share that I wanted to go over all of the available Marvel Legacy Primers for this week as well, even if they’re just short blurbs!

So without further ado let’s jump into it.

Marvel’s America, Marvel’s Black Panther, Marvel’s Incredible Hulk, Marvel’s Invincible Iron Man, Marvel’s Jean Grey, Marvel’s Monsters Unleashed, Dark Horse’s Usagi Yojimbo, Lion Forge’s Voltron Legendary Defender, Viz’s Yona of the Dawn

Marvel’s America - Marvel Legacy Primer Pages (2017-present) Robbie Thompson, David Lopez

As interested as I am in America, I haven’t had the opportunity to really follow her outside of the Young Avengers run she is in. So I think, oddly enough, for me this is one of the most necessary “Primers” of any of the ones I’ve read so far, and the information was very good to have. It really helped to frame her history, her relationship with her mothers, and her confidence in herself in a new light that is really appreciated. And the art from David Lopez is as beautiful as any of his issues on All-New Wolverine.

Marvel’s Black Panther - Marvel Legacy Primer Pages (2016-present)  Robbie Thompson, Wilfredo Torres

There’s honestly not going to be that much more to say on most of these Primer pages. They’re fun, quick run throughs of relevant histories of the characters and teams that they showcase and depending on your interest and engagement may influence whether or not you want to hop in on the next storyline that they’re promoting. 

I do like the sense of unity and legacy that is built into the Black Panther title already, having it be a responsibility tied to kingship that T’Challa knows and the all-important bond it has between him and the memory of his father. 

It really puts a spin on the importance of Legacy that this event seems intent on hammering home.

Marvel’s Captain Marvel - Marvel Legacy Primer Pages (2016-present)  Robbie Thompson, Brent Schoonover

Carol Danvers is one of those characters I desperately want to lie on every feasible surface level, but whose books have never quite got me on board and whose guest appearances always leave me a bit more confused about her than I had been before her said appearance. And yet there was still not a whole lot added here. I appreciate it, and young Carol is adorable, but there was nothing here that didn’t make me feel like... well, like she’s Hal Jordan. And ‘m not a fan of Hal Jordan.

Marvel’s Incredible Hulk - Marvel Legacy Primer Pages (2017-present) Robbie Thompson, Joe Bennett

Everything I have read so far with Amadeus Cho, both in Totally Awesome Hulk and in his guest appearances or team-ups in Moon Girl and Devil Dinosaur to Champions has  really connected to me on a level that Bruce Banner hadn’t exactly managed over the years. So it was nice to see a little blurb that went over their mutual histories and explored what was there.

It almost makes people forget that Marvel unnecessarily killed Bruce Banner for... no reason. Almost. Not quite. Though he might be alive by now. I am obviously not current.

Marvel’s Invincible Iron Man - Marvel Legacy Primer Pages (2016-present) Robbie Thompson, Valerio Schiti

Gah, reading this overview of Tony and Riri’s history really reminded me how much I really loved reading Invincible Iron Man when it first came out and just how much I positively adored Riri’s character and her banter with Tony. You know. Before they completely undid the relationship within the first storyline and then Bendis went all Bendis on us and it became obvious that Tony was coming back sooner than later and then Secret Empire destroyed the world... somewhat literally. 

I’d love to read a Riri-centric book in better circumstances. Or at least once the next trade is out. We’ll see.

Marvel’s Jean Grey - Marvel Legacy Primer Pages (2017-present) Robbie Thompson, Mark Bagley

I was actually just recently talking to my good friend @shobogan about how much more interested I would be in Young Jean Grey if only Marvel had the guts to either give us a romantic relationship with her and Laura (or her, Laura, and Scott OT3 hullo) or have Older Jean Grey return to mentor her younger self and others at the school since she’s the only X-Man kept dead for this long who was considered a Top Tier X-Man. And since we’re finally getting the latter, it seems, now I have to look at what we know of Young Jean and consider my feelings all over again. And this primer gave me the opportunity to do just that!

While I’m not following Jean’s book at the moment, I’m obviously a pretty big X-fan so I have a general sense of where all the moving pieces are at the moment. And I have to say, with Older Jean returning it’s going to be a pretty awesome time for comparing and contrasting their characters and relationships. After all, this younger Jean is far, far less experienced than her counterpart, but has a peripheral knowledge of her own fate, and as much as she tries to not be defined by it, it’s been defining her in the opposite direction in a sense. And more than that, she’s a Jean who sees the Phoenix Force not as an asset or a tool, but sees it as an honest to god enemy, which I’m not sure how that will work. And I’m even more interested in Jean’s return now because of the possibilities of their interactions with the Force together. 

Guess we’ll wait and see!

Marvel’s Monsters Unleashed - Marvel Legacy Primer Pages (2017-present)  Robbie Thompson, David Baldeón

I have actually been planning for a little while now to pick up the trade of Monsters Unleashed because I had fun with the miniseries earlier this year and I have been craving more Elsa Bloodstone (as well as the entirety of the Nextwave crew) and this seems like one of the more interesting powers to come from the Inhuman collision.

.... Actually it’s completely stolen from the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles comic and later adapted TV episode dedicated to Jack Kirby who had the power of creativity to draw and create anything he drew and also had a a penchant for creating monsters and different worlds and so on. So I mean. There’s that unavoidable fact. But Kei’s cute so I’d be willing to overlook it for the sake of seeing what Marvel plans on doing with this very wild and unruly power. 

Dark Horse’s Usagi Yojimbo (1984-present) #162 Stan Sakai, Tom Luth

The conclusion of Usagi and Inspector Ishida’s investigation about the doctors’ murders has come and the hilarity of Kitsune and Kiyoko bumbling along with them and incidentally becoming crucial to the entire investigation does not lose its edge either.

Story: The conclusion of this particular caper is interesting mostly in how the framing by coincidence is not ultimately a linchpin to the story, having been solved almost immediately in the story’s first issue. The inventiveness of Sakai’s work, overall, is simple subterfuge which continues to make each new adventure feel unique and uncertain. In this instance, it would be in the assistance that Kitsune and Kiyoko end up providing by revealing the true murderer almost by accident. 

That being said, as simple as individual stories are for Usagi Yojimbo, the complexity really rests in the margins for long time fans, and that shows most clearly in the way a quiet buildup of several arcs seem to flow together for coming to a head. Perhaps the most famous and arguably best all around example of this would be in “Grasscutter” and how years of storytelling and slow vignettes linking together culminated in one of the greatest comic storylines of all time. We seem to be getting something similar in the backgrounds of more recent adventures with this guild of assassins which Usagi has unknowingly crossed the path of and caused ire to several times at this point. 

I’m excited to see where that story is taking us, and likewise interested in how little details, like Kiyoko successfully pickpocketing Inspector Ishida, will pay off down the road. 

Lion Forge’s Voltron Legendary Defender Vol. 2 (2017) #1 Tim Hendrick, Mitch Iverson, Jung Gwan Yoo, Ji-in Choi

Egghhhhh. Are you ever really rooting for something against your own common sense and get bit in the butt regardless? I feel like that happens to me on an inconceivably high average and almost all of it can be blamed on the fact that for some reason I am still expecting comics to play fairly with me. If anything my standards should be lower by now. But, well, let’s see if I’m being a bit too harsh on Lion Forge’s second effort in making a Voltron comic. 

Story: I would argue that one of the reasons that I had unreasonably high expectations for this comic is in part because the first comic produced by Lion Forge had actuallymanaged to not only be a fairly solid effort as a comic but managed to capture the spirit of the current Dreamworks Netflix series in a wa that was welcoming to fans new and old, and importantly of all ages. So I was hoping for more of the same with this comic project.

In more or less words... I did not exactly receive that. Where there was a solid read of the characterizations in the last comic, this issue showed a severely flattened to the point of parody version of the paladins, especially poor Hunk here who had the already obnoxious and unnecessary fat jokes and food jokes from the series amped up to the point of being his only characteristic in this comic. To the point that at one point he doesn’t even form a full sentence, just grabs a pie successfully from a training maze and says “Hunk win”. Which... I guess is somewhat better faring than the other paladins who didn’t even have dialogue that really fit them. Save for Pidge who was likewise flattened to “the smart one.” 

The storyline itself of a new planet where Voltron is needed but the species they end up helping... they actually fail initially, I won’t lie, is a pretty solid premise for Voltron overall, and would be something I’d love to see the show tackle similarly, but the fairly generic wolf-furry aliens didn’t receive a whole lot of depth in this first issue. 

Depth trended on being the biggest problem for this issue overall. There wasn’t an examination of the characters and their interactions, how they treated each other and how they tackled problems differently. The sort of things you’d want from an ensemble cast like Voltron. Which is surprising since again the first series by Lion Forge managed all that and was written on a much younger reading level at the same time. Each issue tackled exactly those very things -- individual characters, how they functioned in the group, and how they tackled obstacles differently to find a solution together. I would expect the same here but it didn’t seem to be on the menu. 

Hopefully all of this will be addressed and fixed as the comic progresses, but as for now I’m apprehensively putting this series on my three issue trial run. 

Art: The art was not a great improvement on the previous comic but it also wasn’t bad in the least. In fact I think the art popped very well, adjusting colors and textures about as well as you’d expect from a television show adaptation for kids. I do wish that the face models for the paladins would keep more consistent and overall there was a rushed feeling to the comic that seemed fairly unnecessary considering it’s the first issue. 

Viz’s Yona of the Dawn (2009-present) Vol. 8 Mizuho Kusanagi

You know, I keep hearing over and over again from friends and trusted sources that Yona of the Dawn is a series that will continuously subvert my every expectation and make me continue guessing and yet every volume I really do manage to be caught off guard by something which the story chooses to do which is shockingly poignant and new even to its fairy tale epic adventure structure. 

Story: So the Yellow Dragon joining the group was hilariously and purposefully anti-climactic but what we got as a result of that choice is the new direction for the series that ties directly into Yona’s own self-realization. She doesn’t simply want to rule and she doesn’t simply want to conquer. What she wants is to know her people and to save them from the crises that were overlooked by her father before her and by Su-Won now. She wants to take up arms to protect the entire country not just with the power of the loyal followers she has gained but with her own hands. She is something that neither of the kings -- her father or her cousin -- could have ever dreamed of being.

And then my expectations were really taken for a loop by us then in turn following Su-Won as he travels to the Earth Tribe and earns the respect and allegiance of the chieftan general there through a series of manipulations, tactical conceits, and ultimately quiet and subtle intimidation mostly by the fleeting moments in which he dropped his ditzy and well-meaning act to show his true intentions. But as fascinating as it was and as surprising as it was, for me at least, that this complete shift of POV for a few chapters actually managed to keep me on board when I’m not one to often fully appreciate the “villain’s side of things”, probably the most interesting part of any and all of this is actually how much tension is underlying Su-Won’s leadership. HIs appeal to the Fire and Earth Tribes is less in the leadership that he promotes and more in this current of possible warmongering that appeases the more warlike fractions of Kohka. 

It’s all fascinating and offers a sense of danger in Yona’s new quest to help the people of fher country feel a new sense of danger, knowing that our group is ultimately pretty unprepared for helping parts of the country which would not be as receptive to their quest or the offer of Yona’s leadership.

That being said... the final chapter driving home Yona’s relationship with Hak and everyone’s strange obsession with protecting Yona but rejecting her attempts to grow her own strength and independence. Lik eI guess we’re just all going to overlook the way she killed the slave trader mob boss in teh previous volume. But beyond all of that, my real concern is just... I cannot stand the way Hak’s character is portrayed in his “over protectiveness” of Yona. It’s far from romantic to me to continuously have a character obsess over someone to the point of “jokingly” considering locking them away for the world to see. 

It’s not the best issue of the series by far, but it has some great moments, especially for Yona.

Art: I actually do think that the further we’ve come in this comic, the more consistent and confident the at has gotten. There are still lots of soft tones and all the markings of a usual shoujo, but the real stand out this time around is that we’re beginning to see more and more the variation in ethnicities in the people of the country, which is honestly relieving even if for now the Earth Tribe, which drives that point home, consists mostly of Su-Won’s supporters and may carry with them some more unfortunate stereotypes being fed that I might not be aware of as a non-native to Japan.

So far as single issues this week are concerned there’s really no competition for Usagi Yojimbo in a regular week but especially not in a fairly light week. Yona is still a fantastic book and if there were other trades to compare it to I’d probably lavish on it more, but since we’re on singles I have to give this one to the unending quality that is Stan Sakai’s anthromorphic feudal epic.

And, once more, I am in a bit of a financial crunch for a multitude of reasons, not the least of which being the medical bills I’m paying for my dog, Eve, who experienced a catastrophic dog fight and underwent surgery recently. On top of that, I have exactly a month and a half to pack up everything I own and move halfway across the country again which is not helping those financial crunches I mentioned before either.

As such, I really would appreciate if you enjoy my content or are interested in helping me out, please check out either my Patreon or PayPal. Every bit helps and I couldn’t thank you enough for enjoying and supporting my content.

You could also support me by going to my main blog, @renaroo, where I’ll soon be listing prices and more for art and writing commissions.

RenaRoo Ko-Fi

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[keirametzbrassknuckles]

Coldwave coffee shop au?

Non-powered, Modern AU. Pre-slash. More of a meet-cute that happens at a coffee shop than an actual coffee shop au I’m afraid.  Leonard is some kind of engineer (I borrowed from Prison Break okay. Let me live). Mick installs heating systems. I Imagined the city as Boston purely for familiarity’s sake and also cold. 

Leonard Snart was one of those people who drank iced coffee in the dead of winter. Not out of any desire for brain-freeze or frostbite but simply because iced coffee every morning on the way to work was a habit he couldn’t be bothered to break. It had become a habit of Lisa’s too and, since he didn’t mind the cold as such, he figured that it would only cause unnecessary stress to both of them to change the routine.

Every morning like clockwork the elder Snart sibling would enter the coffee shop and his little sister would have his iced coffee there waiting for him. Sometimes she would throw in a flavor or some whipped cream as a joke (he argued that it offended his masculinity, to which she tended to reply “what masculinity?”). Regardless of what kind of girly shit Lisa put in his coffee, Len was generally in and out and on his way to work with the ice jingling in his plastic cup in under 6 minutes.

This morning was shaping up to be a little different.

Leonard found himself stuck in line behind a man whom he had never seen before. He was very large, very slow, very musclebound, and very very much Leonard’s type. The man ran nervous hands over his buzzed scalp as he squinted at the menu hanging over the pastry counter.

He was dressed in rust-colored coveralls and a big, stained, workman’s jacket - some kind of mechanic, Len reasoned. He was built like a tank; broad shoulders, trim waist, biceps which were roughly the circumference of Leonard’s head. He had smile lines around his eyes and little, confused, wrinkles between his eyebrows. His nose had obviously been broken a few times before. His mouth was set in an intense line that weaker men than Leonard had probably run screaming at the sight of. His eyes, still scanning the menu, were like pieces of flint.

He looked like the kind of man who would break you in half and then buy you take out afterward.

Oh yes, very much Leonard’s type.

Leonard checked his watch in order to make his ogling a little less obvious. He was getting behind schedule.

The man was still looking at the menu.

Leonard shifted from foot to foot and tried to convince himself he wasn’t staring at the man’s ass.

Time seemed to drag to a crawl. Leonard was forced to pretend that he wasn’t about to vibrate out of his skin - both on account of the anxiety of being behind schedule as well as the sudden, gut-punch, realization that he hadn’t gotten laid in months.

Lisa caught his eye from over the pastry counter and waived his medium iced coffee forlornly at him, bottom lip stuck out in a comically mocking pout.

He simply glared at her.

Finally, finally, the man moved up to the register and ordered his drink.

When pressed for details much later, Len would recall it had something to do with butterscotch and caramel and that it was very large. Mick for his part would insist that it had been a very large peppermint mocha - no caramel to be found.

Regardless, the drink ordered was very large, very strong, very sweet and very hot - all things that Len appreciated in men but certainly not in coffee. He couldn’t help the judgemental noise that he made when the man finalized his order.

He gave his name as “Mick” to the cashier and turned to Leonard, eyebrows drawn together in appraisal.

“You got a problem, Blue?” his voice was gravelly and warm with the bite of steel hidden somewhere beneath, a veiled but deadly threat. He didn’t make any effort to conceal the fact that he was checking Leonard out - whether out of pure, innocent unselfconsciousness or simply not-giving-a-shit Leonard didn’t know. He would be lying if he said it didn’t turn him on - just a little bit.

“No problem” he replied, meeting the man’s - Mick’s - eyes and holding them. He knew he could be frightening but he had a hunch that Mick could be frightening too. He wanted to see who would break first.

Mick looked away first. But not before Lisa had coughed surreptitiously twice and began to obnoxiously, continuously, shake Leonard’s cup like a rattle in an effort to get his attention.

Leonard paid and collected his coffee from his sister who gave him a massive, saucy, wink.

He gave her his best impression of a steel beam in response - cold, brittle, non-plussed. She knew him well enough to know what he meant.

“Iced Coffee in January?” Mick, hanging by the counter to collect his drink asked, raising an eyebrow and looking like he had just delivered some kind of ultimate verbal smackdown.

Leonard shrugged, taking a sip - consciously keeping eye contact to monitor whether or not Mick’s gaze was drawn to his lips around the straw.  It was. Leonard celebrated; quietly, internally.

“I like the cold,” He said, heading over to the counter under the pretense of adding more sugar to his already sweetened drink.

“Well then you can have it” Mick said “The cold. It’s horrible”

“I hate to break it to ya big guy, but you picked the wrong place to live if you hate the cold”

“I build and install heating systems for a living, there’s not much call for that in places where it never gets cold”

“Touché.” Len took another sip of his drink. Lisa had put some kind of weird flavor in it. He wasn’t sure he liked it.

“What do they call you then?” Mick asked. Lisa slid him his drink across the counter. Mick leaned against the counter with surprising grace for such a large man, curling his broad hands around the cup.

“They call me Leonard,” Len said, trying in vain not to imagine what those hands would feel like in his or, better yet, burning bruises on his hips.

Mick made an appreciative noise, taking a sip of his own drink. “Sure then. Captain Cold it is”

Leonard shrugged, expression carefully impassive “Whatever you like, Mick”

They spent a long moment just looking at each other. There was definitely something there - something shivering and strange in the space between them. Leonard didn’t know what it meant but fuck if he wasn’t curious. He took out one of his business cards and wrote a short message on it before starting to flip it around between his fingers - an old card trick, a nervous tick. Mick’s gaze followed the movement of his fingers avidly.

“Well,” Leonard said with reluctant finality “I have to get to work” that was an understatement. He was 5 minutes behind schedule and was running the risk of missing his train at this rate. Honestly, though, he didn’t really care.

Mick rubbed one hand over his scalp with the air of an astronaut suddenly and unceremoniously returned to earth “Yeah, fuck, me too”

“Here,” Len said, offering Mick the business card and, carefully keeping eye contact and lacing his voice with every ounce of seduction he could muster added, “just in case you ever need someone to keep you warm”

He turned on his heel, smirking, and strode out into the freezing wind. Maybe Mick would call him, maybe he wouldn’t (he did), but at that moment Leonard had a train to catch, a freezing January day to enjoy, and a cold coffee to drink.

[aion-rsa]

Rob Liefeld’s Most Controversial Comics Titles

Rob Liefeld recently announced that his Extreme Studio line of comics had been optioned as a possible movie universe by Graham King and Fundamental Films, a deal that reportedly includes up to 9 different titles. With the recent success of “Deadpool,” another one of Liefeld’s creations, it seems like Hollywood might be about to get a Liefeld makeover.

RELATED: Grant Morrison’s Most Controversial Stories

This may or may not be good news. Liefeld rose to popularity in the late ’80s and early ’90s, becoming one of Marvel’s most popular artists. He would later go on to help form Image Comics, home of “Spawn” and “The Walking Dead.” Liefeld is a controversial figure in the industry, however. His art and writing style have been heavily criticized. As a comic book creator, he has been just as successful as he is notorious. Here are some of his most controversial hits.

DEADPOOL

Wade Wilson, the merc with the mouth, first appeared in “The New Mutants” #98, by Rob Liefeld and Fabian Nicieza. After becoming a recurring character in “X-Force” and starring in a couple of miniseries, a “Deadpool” ongoing series was launched in 1997. Eventually, he would go on to become one of Marvel’s most popular and recognizable characters. Of course, many people felt he was so recognizable because he was so similar to another popular DC Comics character.

Deadpool bore a striking resemblance to Deathstroke, a “Teen Titans” villain. Even Deadpool’s real name, Wade Wilson, is a play on Deathstroke’s real name, Slade Wilson. While many argued that Deadpool was a rip off, not just of Deathstroke, but also other characters like Spider-man and Wolverine, many other fans argued that Liefeld was clearly just inspired by these other characters and that Deadpool had grown into a unique character all of his own, anyway. Many of the character’s key traits, like his sense of humor and breaking of the fourth wall, were completely unique to him. Regardless of his origins, Deadpool is clearly one of Liefeld’s most successful creations.

AVENGELYNE

When Liefeld was helping to form Image Comics, he also created a separate studio to publish ideas that didn’t fit under the Image umbrella. This studio was known as Maximum Press and it was home to “Avengelyne.” A warrior angel who had been banished from Heaven, Avengelyne fought the forces of evil and Hell itself. Her battles on Earth were all in preparation for the final war which would signal the Biblical apocalypse.

When people complain about Liefeld, they often use art from Avengelyne as an example. Critics complain both about the objectification of women and the bizarre anatomy of Liefeld’s female figures. Also, there was a scene in an Avengelyne story, “The Godyssey,” where a crucified Jesus jumps down from the cross and then battles a bunch of Olympic gods. Scenes like this divided fans, with many debating whether this was the good or bad kind of over-the-top comic book silliness. Recently, it was reported that Paramount picked up the rights to Avengelyne, so clearly the character still has her fans to this day.

HEROES REBORN: AVENGERS

During the mid-1990s, Marvel attempted to boost sales by outsourcing some of their most popular characters to independent comic book studios belonging to Jim Lee and Rob Liefeld. Liefeld took over “Avengers,” plotting and penciling the book, while Jim Valentino handled the scripts. The new book reimagined the team for modern times. This time, Captain America led the heroes on a mission where they discovered and awakened an ancient Thor frozen in a block of ice. Also, this team’s Hawkeye wore a full face mask, with there being hints that it wasn’t Clint Barton underneath the mask, but this plotline was never resolved.

The first issues were hugely successful, sales wise, but critics complained about Liefeld’s art and storytelling and many of the character updates weren’t appreciated. Even worse, this was Liefeld’s return to Marvel after abandoning the company to form Image. This move seemingly strained his relationship with other Image creators. While all of the parties involved tell different stories, not long after “Avengers” was released, Liefeld and Image parted ways.

HEROES REBORN: CAPTAIN AMERICA

Along with “Avengers,” Liefeld took over plot and artwork duties on “Captain America,” this time being joined by Jeph Loeb for scripting. Unlike the mainstream Captain America, this Steve Rogers was never frozen in ice towards the end of World War II. Instead, he was a sleeper government agent, who was placed in an out of suspended animation between missions for the government. Rogers eventually uncovered the truth of his existence and became Captain America full time.

Once again, there were a lot of complaints about the updated origin, but it is worth noting how similar it is to the Winter Soldier’s story, which was embraced much more favorably. There were also complaints about Cap’s “modern redesign,” which was the classic uniform, except there was an eagle on his mask instead of an A. Liefeld was initially hired to write at least 12 issues of both of his “Heroes Reborn” titles, but after sales began to dip, Marvel tried to negotiate the contract, causing Liefeld to leave his books after about six issues each. This early departure would lead to one of the most controversial moments of Liefeld’s career.

FIGHTING AMERICAN

Back in the 1950s, Joe Simon and Jack Kirby were unhappy with the current state of “Captain America” comics, so they created a new politically charged character, “Fighting American.” He would eventually become a satire of superhero books, and then fade into obscurity. When Liefeld left “Captain America” earlier than expected, he still had some stories left to tell. He contacted Joe Simon and Jack Kirby’s estate, and after some negotiations and an attempt at creating a third character named “Agent America,” he was eventually able to negotiate a deal to license “Fighting American.” Obviously, Marvel wasn’t thrilled.

Since Liefeld planned on using pages he created for “Captain America” for a different book, Marvel sued. One of the most interesting aspects of the resulting trial was a decision made about Fighting American’s shield, which he did not acquire until Liefeld took over the character. It was eventually decided that it “Fighting American” could be released, with shield in hand, as long as he never threw it.

YOUNGBLOOD

During the late ’80s and early ’90s, some of the comics industry’s most popular creators were upset that because they were doing “work for hire,” they didn’t own their creations. This led to a mass exodus from the major companies and the formation of Image Comics. Rob Liefeld helped lead the charge and his new superhero team book “Youngblood” was the company’s very first release. It was a massive success and, at the time of the release, it became the highest selling independent comic book ever.

Despite the success, “Youngblood” suffered from poor reviews and, even worse, an unpredictable production schedule. Liefeld would eventually blame the book’s scripter, Hank Kanalz, for the story problems and fire him. Fellow comic book writer Peter David would later use this as an example of Liefeld passing the blame for the book’s issues. Despite all of this, “Youngblood” is still considered one of the most impactful comics ever. Its success changed the independent comic book industry and helped cement Image Comics as a true competitor in the industry.

CABLE

Growing up in a dystopian future ruled by the tyrannical Apocalypse, Cable ended up traveling to past, where he tries to build a better future. First appearing in “New Mutants” #87, by Louise Simonson and Rob Liefeld, he quickly became one of the most popular “X-Men” characters of the time period. He was also, for some, one of the most prominent examples of everything that was wrong with comics at the time.

In “Kingdom Come,” a character named Magog appears, and according to artist Alex Ross, he was a response and criticism of the design of Cable. Ross hated how Cable’s design seemed to just be a mash-up of too many overused concepts. In his mind, the combination of facial scarring, the metal arm, the glowing eye, and the over abundance of guns perfectly exemplified the flaws with ’90s comics. Criticisms like this really drove the point home that Liefeld was part of a movement in comics that took them away from their classic roots and that not every fellow creator was on board.

TEEN TITANS

Liefeld often credited “The Teen Titans” as the inspiration for “Youngblood.” According to him, the original idea was actually a Teen Titans story that he had pitched to DC, but was unable to get made. Liefeld finally got to work on “Teen Titans” for a two issue story arc in late 2005, working with Gail Simone. The story was notable for featuring the characters Hawk and Dove, who were the stars of Liefeld’s first published mainstream comic book work.

This run was also notable among critics of Liefeld. The majority of criticisms about his art style will feature multiple examples from these two issues. Even people who hate Liefeld’s art have to admit that some good came from it with these issues. According to Liefeld, he donated the art from one of the issues to an auction that was benefiting the victims of Hurricane Katrina. So even if Wonder Girl does look a little weird in certain frames, and all of the Teen Titans look like grown ups, it’s probably excusable this time.

BLOODSTRIKE

While still working with Image Comics, Liefeld launched a second superhero team book called “Bloodstrike.” This was a team of deceased soldiers and special ops agents who had been resurrected by the government. Each team member needed continued treatment to stay alive, which would be withheld if they refused a mission. Eventually, the book shifted focus to just one character who took on the name Bloodstrike.

The series was infamous for printing a flash forward issue #25 after issue #10 was released, as part of a gimmick to show where things would be at the end of issue #24. Unfortunately, the series came to an end with issue #22, leaving the 25th issue as an awkward reminder of how gimmicks don’t always work out. Recently, “Bloodstrike” was included as part of the deal between Liefeld, Graham King and Fundamental Films, who are looking to develop a movie universe based on Liefeld’s Extreme comics line.

NEW 52 DEATHSTROKE

After the events of “Flashpoint,” DC rebooted their universe in what’s referred to as the “New 52.” This resulted in the majority of their characters receiving updated origins, although to varying degrees. Some characters, like Green Lantern, were hardly altered by the new continuity, while characters like Superman were heavily modified. Liefeld had a brief run “Deathstroke” and got the opportunity to update Slade’s origin story.

Liefeld actually stayed fairly close to the origin depicted in “The Judas Contract,” by Marv Wolfman and George Perez. The problem that some fans had was that it was a little too similar to the original, in the sense that many of the panels looked like they were just redrawn from the original art. “Swiping” is a controversial practice where one artist will copy or trace another artist’s work, and Liefeld has been accused of this many times, although he has always either denied the allegations or defended some occurrences as being homages.

SHATTERSTAR

First appearing in “The New Mutants” #99, by Rob Liefeld and Fabian Nicieza, Shatterstar is often considered the epitome of a Rob Liefeld character design, with his giant face guard, gigantic pony tail and double-bladed sword. Born on Mojoworld, Shatterstar was genetically engineered from his gestation chamber to have enhanced physical abilities so that he could fight as a gladiator. He joined a rebellion and eventually made his way to Earth where he encountered Cable. He joined X-Force and has been involved with the X-Men world ever since.

Later writers would eventually have Shatterstar come out as gay and enter into a relationship with fellow team member, Rictor. While fans were relatively supportive of this development, Liefeld was against it. He didn’t seem to have a problem with homosexuality, however, so much as that he just didn’t create the character to be gay and didn’t believe that the revelation was true to the character’s origins as an “asexual person.”

SUPREME

First appearing in “Youngblood” #3, Supreme was Liefeld’s answer to Superman. Initially, the character was a violent take on the DC icon, who was more arrogant than the classic Clark Kent. He probably would’ve faded into obscurity if not for the fact that Liefeld was eventually able to bring Alan Moore on board to write “Supreme.” Moore, famous for classic comics like “Watchmen,” “The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen,” and many others, revamped the book and made it an homage to silver age Superman stories.

Moore basically took over the book and created a brand new version of Supreme, and Moore’s writing on the book earned an Eisner award in 1997. At that time, however, “Supreme” was being published by Liefeld’s Awesome Comics company, which was going out of business. Moore was working on a six-issue “Supreme” miniseries at the time and the final script was written but never produced. To make matters worse, reprints of the fifth issue had the words “the end” added to the final page, despite it clearly not being the end of the story. It took until 2011 for Liefeld to finally get Moore’s final script produced, with art chores handled by Erik Larson.

ONSLAUGHT REBORN

A decade after Marvel’s “Onslaught” and “Heroes Reborn” events, the company decided to revisit these characters in “Onslaught Reborn,” by Jeph Loeb and Rob Liefeld. The series picked up after the events of “House of M” and “Civil War,” where Scarlet Witch de-powered most of the Earth’s mutants and then its heroes fought each other over the registration act. These events awakened Onslaught, who immediately seeks revenge against Franklin Richards.

Franklin flees Onslaught and ends up traveling to the “Heroes Reborn” Earth, which is populated with duplicates of the Marvel heroes, who have no idea who Franklin or Onslaught are. Onslaught begins possessing heroes like Hulk and Thor and has them fight each other. Eventually, Franklin is sent home and Onslaught is blasted into the Negative Zone along with Ricky Barnes, the “Heroes Reborn” version of Bucky. This series received poor reviews, and despite being reborn, Onslaught only made one more appearance in the mainstream Marvel Universe before once again fading into obscurity.

SHRINK!

While Liefeld’s art isn’t known for subtlety, this takes the cake. “Shrink!” was a webcomic that the artist briefly dabbled with, and the results speak for themselves. The strip features a group of superheroes and villains visiting a shrink and explaining their problems to her. For example, a man made out of fire complains that he just gets “pretty hot under the collar sometimes.” Obviously, humor is subjective, and it’s pretty clear that Liefeld was going for some pretty simple jokes.

What makes “Shrink!” stand out, however, is that it was at one point going to be a movie starring Jennifer Lopez. Her production company bought the film rights back in 2002, although nothing ever came out of it. The idea of a psychiatrist treating heroes sounds like it could make for a fun movie, but maybe Jennifer Lopez got cold feet when she realized that she might have to listen to a tiny man with a huge bulge in his pants brag about not having any “shortcomings.”

THE INFINITE

Liefeld teamed up with another one of Image Comic’s most famous creators, Robert Kirkman, for “The Infinite.” A freedom fighter from the future travels to his past and teams up with his younger self to try to prevent the world-shattering war with The Infinite. The first four issues were released, and solicitations had been released up to issue #8. Unfortunately, issue #5 was delayed, and ultimately never saw release. Eventually, it was revealed that Kirkman and Liefeld were having creative differences over the art of the series, which would ultimately lead to its early demise.

According to Liefeld, Kirkman didn’t like one of the inkers that was working on issue #5. Apparently, Liefeld really liked the results and wasn’t a fan of having to redo segments of the book. Since the book never saw release, it’s not clear which inker Kirkman allegedly had an issue with. Either way, the series ended before any of the plotlines could even begin to be resolved, and it’s unlikely that it’ll ever be completed.

What’s your favorite Rob Liefeld story? Be sure to let us know in the comments!

The post Rob Liefeld’s Most Controversial Comics Titles appeared first on CBR.com.

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[spynotebook]

Greetings, general public whom I serve! “Postal Apocalypse,” io9's mail column, has returned for a second week in a row, so I’ve got a pretty hot streak going on. I’ll try to keep it up! Meanwhile, you’ve got questions about Civil War II, Rogue One, The Winds of Winter, the next Indiana Jones movie, and more. Coincidentally, I have answers.

The Assassination of Carol Danvers by the Knuckleknob, Marvel Comics

Jason M.:

Dear Postman of the future, I need you to tell me about the future by answering a question about...seeing the future.

Ignoring a lot of the secondary reasons most people hated Civil War II, the biggest area of discontent was how people hated the “character assassination” of Captain Marvel due to her outrageous support of Minority Reporting situations via Ulysses. One thing that shocked me is how literally every post, article, comment, and tweet I read said that anyone who would try to fight crimes that haven’t happened yet is horrible and wrong.

And yet...let’s say that something of this scale was all real. Like, a week from now a 50-story guy in a purple dress and the universe’s most fascinating hat showed up to LITERALLY EAT OUR PLANET. Or someone in an Eastern European country who studied science in the US before a horrible accident invented a time machine and was going back in time rewrite the US out of existence. If these types of planetary extinction events were possible (or even the casual cases of powered beings stomping down the street on a daily basis killing or injuring hundreds), wouldn’t you want, nay, demand that we use future-profiling it to stop crimes/events before they happen?

I think Civil War II’s biggest mistake was assuming that people would think of it in real-world terms, not comic-world terms. If some visions of the future could stop a gray dude who bedazzled an oven mitt from killing half the universe, sign me up.

I get what you’re saying, but the real problem is that Marvel was the one thinking about it in “real-world” terms. Had Ulysses’ visions been contained to preventing giant natural disasters like Galactus (and yes, although he is a big dude who wears purple, he has no more intent to do evil than an earthquake does) and/or stopping the biggest, most thoroughly evil supervillains’ plans, things probably would have been fine. Ulysses’ power would basically be a smoke alarm for trouble and evil—detect smoke, stop it before something catches fire. Who could argue with that?

No one, which is why Marvel had to exacerbate the problem so it could have its superheroes punching each other again. The issue had to be morally gray so that Carol and Tony could argue about it, which, as everyone has noticed, basically turned into the plot of Minority Report. So the argument became not just about using Ulysses’ visions to prevent disasters or thwart supervillains’ plans, Captain Marvel used it to imprison people for crimes they hadn’t even thought of committing yet, and that’s messed up.

Let’s go back to the Doctor Doom example: Based on Doom’s long history of being evil, yeah, he probably would eventually build a time machine and attempt to erase the US. But if until he starts actively trying to make the time machine, he has technically not committed a crime—well, not that crime. You would be punishing him for a crime he didn’t commit.

To be fair, Doctor Doom is a poor example, as are most comic book supervillains. They’ve all been evil for decades, so it’s harder to argue that they haven’t already earned life sentences. So imprisoning them for the many crimes they have committed, and their long history of evil, to predict their future behavior is a bit more understandable.

But of course, that’s also not what Captain Marvel was doing. She was imprisoning anyone Ulysses saw committing a crime, regardless of who that person was. She was arresting US citizens, not only without a trial, but again without them having done anything wrong (see above). Best example: Miles Morales, who she wanted to arrest after that vision of him killing Captain America several months in the future. Miles Morales has been a hero 100 percent of the time he’s operated as Ultimate Spider-Man. He’s never done anything like that before, and it’s clear that he had no intention or designs to do it. He was shocked and appalled by the vision as anyone else. But Carol was willing to imprison Miles on the mere possibility he would eventually murder Cap.

This isn’t just morally wrong, it’s stupid. Even if Ulysses’ visions were always 100 percent, inexorably correct—spoiler alert, they aren’t—they don’t give any context about the event. So, as crazy as it sounds, when Miles kills Captain America in the future, there could be some mitigating circumstances—circumstances like, oh, I don’t know, Captain America having been Cosmic Cube-ed into a Hydra agent. All she saw was a vision—nothing else. No motivations, no reasons, no explanations. And she just assumed Miles was guilty anyway.

There’s another reason why this is both idiotic and insidious: Carol assumes that Captain America’s murder is inevitable unless she imprisons Miles. But that makes no sense. Either Cap’s death is certain, in which case imprisoning Miles clearly won’t work because he’ll somehow have to get out in order to kill Cap, or—if the future isn’t certain and Cap’s death can be prevented—then the future can be changed by anything, not just arresting heroes who have done nothing wrong and are not even thinking about doing anything wrong. Either anything is possible or nothing is.

(Also? If everything is inevitable, then no one is really guilty of anything because there is no free will and we’re all locked into fixed loops where everything we do is unavoidable, and thus it’s not our fault.)

So… yeah. Marvel’s the one who made this weird. They love having their heroes fight each other, but it hasn’t figured out a way to gave them do it without turning one of them into a de facto supervillain themselves (exactly like Iron Man was in Civil War I). And for everyone who had been so excited about Carol’s pretty recent resurgence as Captain Marvel and one of Marvel’s biggest heroes, it was equally aggravating and heartbreaking to see her become so, so awful.

Words Are Wind

John W.:

Where do you stand on the debate about whether GRRM owes his fans updates on the status to The Winds of Winter and A Dream of Spring? I use to be on the side of the “he’s not our bitch” argument but now I’ve switched sides. I definitely think he owes us some kind of update, as to the frequency that’s up for debate, but let’s face it he’s rich and famous because people are reading his books, watching the HBO show, and buying all the ancillary products (merchandise, Dunk & Egg books). He should throw us a bone. What say you?

Let me ask you a question in return: What benefit does him giving an update give to him or us? If he makes it his date, he doesn’t win any prizes. If he doesn’t make it, fans lose their minds and freak out at him.

As a writer, I can tell you that some days I just can’t write. (That’s a softball for you guys.) Some days I can churn out the words, and some days they just don’t come at all. And I mainly write silly and/or mean-spirited stuff for the internet, not a massive fantasy epic with hundreds of characters and centuries of backstory that is also one of the most popular book series in the world.

He doesn’t know when the book will be finished until it’s finished. Yes, he has more facts than the rest of us—how many chapters he’s done, for instance—but it’s still just a guess, because he probably doesn’t know for sure how many chapters The Winds of Winter will be. Some authors can meticulously plan out their stories and stick to it like a machine, but that’s not GRRM, and it’s one of the reasons A Song of Ice and Fire is so good. He won’t know if an Arya storyline is one chapter or three until he sits down and writes it, but when it’s/they are done, it/they will be what’s best for the story.

If you want a guess, I can give you one with almost as much certainty as GRRM: April 2018. Meanwhile, you know who wants The Winds of Winter to be finished even more than you do? George R.R. Martin.

En Rogue

Confused Rebel:

Dear Mr. Postman,

Thanks to the generosity of friends, I was able to see Rogue One recently. Surprisingly, the film was enjoyable even with the stereotype of having an Asian character know martial arts.

But I have to wonder about the uses of the Death Star during the film. One shot was used to take out a city resting atop a mine of the crystals that powered light sabers. Wouldn’t that shot have caused a chain reaction that would have vaporized the entire planet? The second shot hit the planet where the Imperial Archives were stored. Wouldn’t that destruction have crippled the Empire by wiping out important records?

With such questionable bits of destruction, why is it that Grand Moff Tarkin still managed to have a job controlling the Death Star in “A New Hope?”

Kyber crystals don’t store energy, they focus it and amplify it. For lightsabers, they’re what keep the laser from just shooting lasers like blasters; for the Death Star it increases the power of its laser to the point where it can destroy planets. It’s not a power source unto itself, and it’s not explosive. So when the Death Star destroyed Jedha City, it didn’t blow up anymore than it would have without the crystals.

We don’t know much about the Imperial data center on Scarif, but think of it this way: even the loss of a million research and military projects wouldn’t mess up the Empire’s infrastructure. It would massively screw up things in development, but in terms of the day-to-day tyranny, the Empire would keep on chugging. Plus, we know that Tarkin deemed it better to destroy the research center than let the rebels get away with the Death Star plans, which is proof in itself that the Empire considered it at least somewhat expendable.

As for Grand Moff Tarkin, there is 100 percent no doubt that he blamed literally everything that went wrong on director Krennic, who was too dead to defend himself. Had Krennic done his duty and stopped the rebels on Scarif, why, Tarkin wouldn’t have needed to destroy the planet at all!

Flash Facts

Silver Age Fanboy:

Dear Mr. Postman, it’s been fun seeing Flash bring back D.C. villains ranging from Captain Cold to the Bug-Eyed Bandit. But two classic Flash villains, Captain Boomerang and Abra Kadabra, have not crossed paths (I don’t think) with Barry and the Super STARs. Is the problem that visually they’re too silly to work in the world of The Flash? Or is there some other problem I’m not aware of?

Captain Boomerang actually has appeared in the Arrowverse. Not on The Flash, weirdly, but in Arrow season three, during the first Flash/Arrow crossover. I had also totally forgotten until James Whitbrook reminded me like an hour before this went up.

But nothing is too silly to be on The Flash TV series, and I thank Grodd for it. The Golden Glider, the Pied Piper, Weather Wizard, the Turtle, Tar Pit, King Shark, Rainbow Raider… hell, the show even did the Bug-Eyed Bandit. Captain Boomerang and Abra Kadabra are deadly serious compared to some of those guys. (Also, given Barry’s incessant time-travel shenanigans, the fact that Kadabra is a magician from the 64th century makes him practically a gimme for the show.)

The only thing that’s stopped Captain Boomerang from returning to the DC/CW was the Suicide Squad movie, but since WB cleared Arrow’s version of Deadshot to return for an episode (albeit as a hallucination by Diggle) and for Harley Quinn and Killer Croc to appear on Gotham, I can’t imagine why Captain Boomerang would be the one character WB desperately needs to keep their hands on.

Indiana Jonesin’

Mike F.:

Will the next Indiana Jones movie be any good or is Harrison Ford just too old to pull it off? What are the chances it gets made even with Ford, Spielberg, and David Koepp attached? I know it will make money but is Ford too in love with the franchise to see the hieroglyphics on the wall that this probably shouldn’t be made or it will tarnish the brand further? What are the odds they introduce his successor and thoughts on who it might be?

If Harrison Ford was willing to be Han Solo again, he should almost certainly be willing to go back to Indiana Jones, a franchise he actually likes. (To be fair, age may have softened him on Star Wars.) But between the fact that Kingdom of the Crystal Skull tried to introduce a successor in Shia LaBeouf, King of the Monkeys, and failed, and the fact that Ford is now likely prohibitively old at age 74… well, I’m sure Spielberg and Ford are game, and we know David Koepp is currently writing the script, but I don’t see them all pulling it off before Ford becomes prohibitively old. Or at least too old to do much more than make a cameo, at which point the movie’s not about Indiana Jones at all, but the new guy.

Here’s what I predict will happen: The Han Solo movie will come out in 2018, do great, and Disney will take it as a sign that the public is willing to accept new actors playing beloved Harrison Ford characters. They will recast the part, allowing for a script that doesn’t need to accommodate Ford himself with all the action-adventure audiences want from an Indiana Jones movie.

Which is fine with me. Seeing old Indiana Jones in Kingdom of the Crystal Skull depressed me. Sure, a lot of things in Kingdom of the Crystal Skull depressed me, but that was definitely one of them.

Kingspin

Santiago:

Postman, why does everyone praise Vincent D’Onofrio’s performance as Kingpin on Daredevil? I think he’s a great actor but for me, he was the weakest part of the show. The way he talked with that forced accent, or whatever that was, really stood out terribly. I agree that Kingpin as a character was good since they got to really flesh him out, but why did he have to speak like that? Am I the only one that thought he was terrible? I feel like I’m taking crazy pills!

Well, you may be taking crazy pills, because D’Onofrio doesn’t have an accent in Daredevil. He’s enunciating things weirdly, but that’s something he does a lot when he’s playing deeper, more serious roles. He did it in every episode of Law & Order: Criminal Intent, for instance.

I don’t think it’s bad at all, but I would describe it as a slightly ominous quarter-Shatner. In fact, I believe it works for the moody, prone-to-fits-of-random-rage Wilson Fisk very well.

Don’t Hate the Leia, Hate the Game

Chris:

After our heroes escape the Death Star in Episode IV, Leia casually notes that the Empire “let us escape” because “they’re tracking us.” Yet she does nothing about it! She didn’t check for a tracking beacon on the Falcon’s hull, or try to swap ships, or even go to a different planet. Instead she led the Death Star directly to the rebel base after personally witnessing its destructive power. So the question is, did Leia do this on purpose in order to lure the Empire in close for a knockout blow, or is she just lazy, or is this just a plotting oversight by GL?

I may be feeling extra-protective of Leia right now for obvious reasons, but here’s how I figure it: The Death Star had just destroyed an entire planet. Getting the plans to the Rebel base on Yavin as soon as possible was more important than keeping the base hidden, because the Rebels needed the plans as soon as possible to figure out how to destroy the Death Star as soon as possible.

Also? Leading the Death Star to Yavin keeps the Empire’s attention on the Rebels and not blasting random planets, killing millions of innocent lives while hunting the Alliance. It was risky to be sure, but between risking the Rebel base versus risking innocents, well, for Leia that was no question at all. Unlike the disturbingly less moral rebels of Rogue One, who are surprisingly okay with killing allies just in case they pose a problem, Leia is all integrity, all the time.

Game Movie Over

Josh N.:

First off, I keep getting more and more excited about the new Logan film. It seems like a worthy send off for Jackman, as opposed to a lame origin with Origins. I’ve seen the plot compared to the excellent game The Last of Us, based strictly on the trailers of course. Do you think that’s a fair comparison (obviously no one had claws in the video game), and do you think more movies could look to games for inspiration? I know the state of straight adaptations is kind of a bust.

It’s a fair comparison—badass adult and child take a journey through a near-future semi-apocalypse—but it’s not like The Last of Us pioneered that particular pairing. It’s a long-used trope, accurately titled “Badass and Child Duo” over at TV Tropes, with oodles of entries, which arguably started with the Japanese Lone Wolf and Cub manga (and subsequent movies). In that, wrongfully-disgraced-samurai-turned-assassin Ogami Itto travels with his incredibly young son Daigoro, in a wooden baby carriage also filled with deadly weapons.

As to your other question, I think that most of the time, video games are looking to other movies and TV shows for their own inspiration, which means movie don’t need to scour them for ideas. Also, I’m no longer sure that a “good” video game movie is even possible anymore—but that is a question someone will have to ask me next week.

Have a nerdy question? Need advice? Want a mystery or argument solved? Email them to postman@io9.com! I’m trying to answer a lot of questions each week to make up for the hiatus, so I need a lot of questions sent to me each week, too. Remember, no question too difficult or dumb! Probably!