This genre has been tackled from numerous directions by numerous players.  DC has been playing this field for decades now, but most of their attempts to continue something successful has only come back to bite them (e.g., the Superman, and Batman movies prior to Batman Begins).  Marvel has also attempted to plant their flag and, at least I think, has succeeded in doing what Douglas Adams is famous for stating we as humans are capable of but nearly always fail to do – learn from the mistakes of others.  After hitting some snags letting other studios mung things up, they’ve taken the reins back and brought to the big screen what has always made their comics great – continuity.

Not to say that DC can’t get it right – Batman Begins & The Dark Knight are clear evidence that they can.  But their big screen floundering with any reasonable Superman reboot/continuation hasn’t been confidence building, nor has their 180 on bringing Wonder Woman back to the small screen.  Unlike seemingly most of the critical world, I greatly enjoyed the recent Green Lantern movie … up until the mid-credit bonus scene ruined it (I won’t spoil it for those who haven’t seen it, but honestly the only way that scene makes sense is as a teaser trailer for the next film, otherwise it goes against the relational dynamics and apparent character stances they built throughout the movie).  And outside of those properties I haven’t seen much to indicate they are putting any significant efforts into any other properties, which is disheartening given that I think they have a pretty deep bench from which to pull.

I also would be remiss to say that Marvel has been pitch perfect.  Clearly they have had faults in the not too distant past (e.g., X-Men Origins: Wolverine, Spider-man 3).  But their recent efforts with Iron Man and the converging storyline with other future members of the Avengers have been spectacular.  Not only have the stories themselves stood on their own, but the semi-subtle use of character cameos and post-credit bonus scenes give them even more dimension.  As a result, each of these have been movies that can easily be enjoyed by both hardcore fans and the uninitiated.

So far I’ve caught all of the comic-book genre pics released this season and I have yet to be significantly disappointed.  If you are interested in my grading of these, here is the report card:

• Thor - B - I enjoyed the complexity of this story arc and how they were able to give the characters more depth than I’d anticipated.  Though I have to deduct points on behalf of my kids who found the villains a bit too scary (especially in 3D), and the delayed hero-gratification off-putting.
• Green Lantern – B- – As I said, I really enjoyed this take on this origin story.  Aside from a few flat supporting characters, it was as true to canon as would have been believable and staged things for strong potential continuation of the title (aside from the ruinous mid-credit scene).
• X-Men: First Class – A+ – This proved to be much better than I had expected and depicted an intriguing starting point for the eventual path of Profession Xavier and his long-time nemesis and friend, Magneto.  I really felt the characters were well developed and depicted and that the film did an excellent job of retconning itself into our own historical events.  I look forward to any future development of this franchise.
• Captain America: the First Avenger – A? – Obviously I cannot grade a movie I haven’t seen yet, but if the previews and my own speculations on the gaps based on canonical knowledge are any indication, this one is going to be a winner.  I have a feeling, though, that following this movie (or more likely, during) I will have to explain some of the historical context to my daughter.

Anyway, she and I have managed to work through all 30 levels in Story mode and managed to get a good amount of the minikits and red bricks in Free-play mode (I think we are around 90% complete right now).  Once we get through all of it, we may move on to Lego Star Wars.  But we have discovered some interesting quirks in the game.  For one, we found that there are 5 different extras you can unlock that are score multipliers (scorex2, x4, x6, x8, x10) and it seems you can enable all 5 at the same time thus getting a score multiplier of x3840.  As a result, it has been cake to reach Super-Hero/Super-Villain mode in any levels we hadn’t before.  But also it has led to another discovery – it seems the game has a maximum allowable score of 4 billion studs (the currency of choice within the Lego realms).  So any studs accrued beyond this amount are simply lost in the ether (possibly garnished for Gotham City urban renewal programs?).  Granted, it is a ludicrously high number (though ludicrously easy to reach with all the sore multipliers on) and those studs will never get spent even if I never use the multipliers again.  But it is funny that a cap exists (probably a programmatic limitation).

So my daughter and I now moonlight as Lego billionaires.  It is a complex and lavish lifestyle, but we try not to let it go to our heads.  We try to keep our priorities straight - after all, we still do have a city to save.

On my morning drive as I was attempting to ignore an unusually long commercial block waiting for some more interesting programming, I heard a spot that featured none other than Peter Cullen doing his best Don LaFontaine impression to shill some initially unnamed product. Not long into the commercial, I find that it is none other than Coors Light who has employed the voice of Optimus Prime in order to promote their color-changing bottle-label and taste-preserving bottle-cap technologies. I was beside myself to say the least. Let me explain why.

See, if it was winter – in the heart of football play-off season, I wouldn’t really take issue with it. It would be a prime beer promotion season and reaching for that “in a world” vibe for their marketing would be completely viable. But it is not football season and Coors is not trying to reach the tailgaters of America with this campaign. This marketing decision was made with the upcoming release of the Transformers sequel in mind. Coors is specifically trying to reach my generation with these ads (there is apparently a TV spot as well) – they are exploiting the sci-fi/comic book geek generation with this casting choice. If you doubt my claim, you need only hear the commercial’s tagline to know I’m correct: “With great beer comes great responsibility.” (If you are not one of us, you may not recognize this phrase, but we know!)

So in this blockbuster movie season when many of the hot titles to see are of the science fiction and comic book genre, it seems that a beer company has opted to capitalize on this market. And it disturbs me. Because while I hate to see such childhood heroes as Optimus Prime and Spider-man have their visage tarnished promoting adult beverages, I have to commend them for their efforts. I don’t like it, but it is well played.

I will try to avoid hearing this commercial again. And I will try to rationalize in my head that neither Hasbro or Marvel had any part in the creative licensing for this campaign (after all, Peter Cullen is not acting as Optimus Prime and the tagline is different enough that they didn’t likely need sign off to use it). As I said, I’m a purist, and I plan to try and keep it that way.

The film adaptation of the graphic novel was brilliantly executed – there was little if anything that die-hard fans could take issue with.  There was almost nothing left out (at least nothing essential – and that which was will likely be on the DVD).  Almost nothing was edited or toned down or added  And as such, the movie fit together well and was masterfully written.  It was over 2 hours long and I could easily watch it again.

From a non-comparative stance, the casting and cinematography couldn’t have been better.  All of the characters seemed realistic and none were over-shadowed by the talent that portrayed them.  The special effects were fantastic and the backdrops all felt authentic.

For those completely unfamiliar with the graphic novel, here is a basic synopsis:  it is the year 1985 in an alternate version of our world where non-powered costumed vigilantes became common and accepted in the times following World War 2.  And due to their intervention (as well as that of one true superhero), the US won the Vietnam war in a short time and Nixon went on to serve several more terms on a cold war mandate.  The film opens to one of these costumed heroes – long since retired – being attacked and murdered in his apartment.  The remainder of the movie follows the investigation of this murder and on the way explores the past and secret lives of many of the super heroes who knew him.  And every one of them seems to have flaws as great as their strengths.

Despite my ringing endorsement, this movie is not for the squeamish.  Do NOT take your children to see this movie.  I didn’t even take my wife and I think she is probably glad I didn’t (if she did go, she would likely have enjoyed it but regretted it).  This movie starts off with violence and ends with violence and there is no shortage of it in between.  Plus there is sex and questionable behavior … and a glowing blue dude who rarely wears pants.  I myself would have been happy to see significantly less of the blue member.  So with those warnings put forth, if you are still interested then please go see it.  It was well worth the cinema experience.

The article is a list of 75 comic book properties that are being vetted for a big screen treatment, and there are so many delicious items on this list.  I’m already jonesing for the next chapters in Spider-man, Batman, the Avengers set, and Superman.  It is exciting to hear that Wonder Woman and Green Lantern may be in the works as well.  Many of the indy options they are entertaining have got me intrigued (e.g.,  Y:  the Last Man).  And the team-up/ensembles (i.e., JLA & Avengers) are just a fantasy come true.

Sure I’m also a critic and not all of the attempts have been stellar.  I was skeptical of Batman Begins until I saw it as a result of the previous offerings.  I’m a Marvel fan moreso than a DC guy, but they’ve laid some eggs as well (e.g., Electra).  But they can’t all be winners and I’m not about to lose faith in the genre over the losers.

I’m also prepared for the possibility that the bubble may burst and a lot of the ideas on the list may never make it to the big screen.  But many of them do have the story substance to create compelling dramas and in the end, that is all we all are really looking for – a reasonable balance of fantasy and drama we can relate to.  So as long as no one tries to sell us on another hyber-drama in rubber nipples (a la Batman & Robin – btw, why didn’t Batgirl get rubber nipples too?), I think the trend can carry on.  And if so, I would be very happy.  After all, I am a huge fan.