Disney Buys Marvel For 4 Billion

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It was announced today that Disney will be buying Marvel for 4 billion. It's not known yet what the possibilities of this union are but speculation is already running rampant across the internet. New movies, toys, television shows, and even new rides at Disney theme parks. These are just a few of the things that could happen from all this. I could see Disney doing a whole Marvel theme park that would be in the same vein as Six Flags. This deal won't really change everything since both the X-men and Spider-man movies are licensed to other studios. I'm sorry but there is still no hope for those movie franchises. I'm interested in seeing what happens to the comic books. Will it stay the same or are we going to see Spider-man and Donald Duck team ups? All in all, I love both companies so I can't wait to see what these two can dream up.


Source: Yahoo

Dollhouse Season 1 Review

I hated Dollhouse when it first aired on television. Being a big Joss Whedon fan, I was eagerly awaiting the show and when it finally came I was hugely disappointed. The show suffered from poor acting and terrible plot lines. I gave up watching the show after only watching two episodes because I couldn't bear it anymore. When the show was released on DVD, I decided to give it one more chance since I thought that's the least I could do for Joss Whedon. I have to say that after watching the whole show, I am totally in love with it.

Whedon has created a show with infinite possibilities which become apparent as the show progresses. The plot goes like this: a mysterious organization known as the Dollhouse has created the technology to imprint a personality into any human being who has had their mind wiped. The Dollhouse keeps these "dolls" and rents them out to high-paying clients. The client might want a sexual encounter or they might need a negotiator to get back their child. The Dollhouse can provide anything they need. The show focuses on Echo (Eliza Dusku) who is a doll and every week they put her into different situations. I don't want to give anything away about the possibilities with this show because it will ruin the surprises. All I can say is that the technology of imprinting personalities can lead to some very interesting story lines. When you watch Season 1 on DVD don't forget to check out the unaired 13th episode which stars Felicia Day, it will really blow your mind. I can't wait for season 2 and I thank Fox for not canceling it. Go rent this season now!

8/10

Review: Count of Monte Cristo (2002)

The Count of Monte Cristo is a tale of revenge adapted from the book of the same name. The story follows Edmond Dantes (James Caviezel) who is accused of treason which he did not commit. Before he is taken to jail, he finds out that his best friend, Mondego, (Guy Pearce) turned him in because he was jealous of his life. Dantes is taken to a remote prison where he spends around 15 years plotting his revenge in hopes that he will escape one day.


This movie has so much going for it that its hard not to love it. First off, the acting is top notch. Richard Harris delivers an excellent performance as the teacher of Dantes in the prison. Caviezel and Pearce are at their best and you can feel the hatred and tension between them. I think what I like best about the movie is the prison parts because you get to see Dantes slowly slip into insanity. If you like revenge, drama, and action then definitely see this movie. You can also check out Oldboy which is the Korean adaptation of the book. Oldboy is probably in my top ten movies so even if the Count of Monte Cristo doesn't seem appealing then see Oldboy anyways. If you are still wanting more Monte Cristo, try Gankutsou which is an anime based on the book that focuses on the son son of Dantes.

Spotlight on: Adam Hughes

If you don't know Adam Hughes by now then you need to crawl out of your trash can, buy yourself a beer, and go kill yourself. Or go check out some of his covers because they are amazing. This man is one of the best artists in the comic book industry and his Eisner award proves it. He has done incredible and beautiful covers for both Wonder Woman and Catwoman. Both of his runs on those comics are finished but he has a lot more coming up. He supposedly has a Wonder Woman limited series coming which he does the pencils for. I can't wait to see what this guy is going to do next.

Catwoman, boobs, and the Lost numbers. I couldn't ask for more in a cover.

Check out his website www.justsayah.com

Also check out his deviant art where he posts new sketches all the time




















For another great artist, check out the Spotlight on David Mack

Top 5 Batman Villains

Batman has the best rogues gallery out of any other super hero comic. Like Batman, most of them don't have superpowers but are aided with technology. This is what sets them apart from any other comic villain. This list is not based off of one TV show or movie but instead the batman franchise as a whole. Without further ado, here are my favorite batman villains:

5. Mad Hatter

The Mad Hatter is a unique villain because he doesn't really pose a threat to Batman. It's always interesting to see how the writers fit him in to make him somewhat dangerous. It's also fun to see Batman in the Alice in Wonderland setting. I can't wait for a villain to be obsessed with Wizard of Oz.

4. Mr. Freeze

Lets just forget about the movie version of Mr. Freeze and focus on everything but that. Mr. Freeze is a simple villain but his ice gun makes him a formidable opponent. If you want some good Mr. Freeze then check him out in the 1992 animated series where they go in depth into his back story and what motivates him.

3. Poison Ivy

Poison Ivy=Sex. This is one of the best villains because she brings sex and lust into the Batman universe. Her powers are very effective and her whole "help the environment" side brings a lot of complexity to the character. Can Batman really get mad at Poison Ivy for killing some men destroying a rainforest?

2. Catwoman

Catwoman is the perfect example of a woman, sexy and very confusing. Catwoman likes to play both good and evil. One minute she's stealing a diamond and the next she's helping out batman take down some enemies. The version of her in Batman Returns is one of the best performances and I hope we will some day see her in the Christopher Nolanverse.

1. The Joker

Wow no surprise here. Batman's archenemy is almost always at the top of any list concerning Batman villains. He wasn't always my favorite though. It wasn't until Dark Knight that I could no longer keep him from taking the number one spot. Its funny that the Joker has no known super powers (unless you count insanity as a power) but he can always elude Batman. His arsenal of clown gadgets make him powerful and unpredictable. The Joker will always be Batman's number one foe in one form or another.

Review: Veronica Mars Season 1

I kept hearing how great this show was but I just didn't believe it. It looked like every other crappy high school drama but I decided to try it out anyways. I was literally blown away by how great this show was. I have to admit this is one of the best seasons of television I've ever seen. The show revolves around the daughter of a private investigator and her experiences in high school. The format is a "case of the week" like CSI or any other police drama but is that Veronica Mars has an incredible over-arching plot line.



Veronica's best friend was murdered and the killer was supposedly caught but Veronica and her father knew that he wasn't the real killer. The season follows their quest as they dig deeper into what really happened. The witty dialogue and great pop culture references proves why this show has a cult following. This is an example of how to do television right. Also Kristen Bell is incredibly hot so you can't go wrong with that. I highly recommend you watch this immediately.

10/10

Amazing music video...

If you've seen American Psycho with Christian Bale, then you need to check out this music video by Miles Fisher




You can also check out his site for everything that is Miles Fisher

Review: World Without Superman

Normally I would write a review of the latest issue I read but I feel like all them are equally terrible under the current story arc so I will just review the whole thing. First of all, why would anyone want to read a Superman comic that doesn't even have Superman in it? This current arc has Mon-El replacing Superman while he is away on New Krypton. The comic is essentially the same as it always is with Mon-El fighting off whichever big baddie is in town but the difference is that I don't care about Mon-El at all. Now if this was just a one-shot, I would be fine with it but its not even close. This story arc spans multiple issues and now I am finally giving up buying Superman comics. I can't believe DC would publish both of their bestselling titles (Batman and Superman) without the main characters! This is just a way to make fans buy the New Krypton miniseries and also get them to continue buying Superman and Action Comics. Well it's not going to work for this fan. The good thing about all this is that I don't have to continue wasting my time and money on this title. If there is a great story arc that everyone is raving about, then I'll just buy the TPB. Goodbye Superman it was good while it lasted.

Top 5 Miyazaki Films

Since Ponyo was just released in the US, I thought I would give my top five Miyazaki films:

5. Howls Moving Castle

Two reasons why I love Howl's:
1) The portal door
2) The little boy that could change into a little old man with an awesome beard.

4. Kiki's Delivery Service

This is such a charming movie and I find it fascinating that Kiki is a witch but the only magical thing she can do is fly on a broom.

3. My Neighbor Totoro

Two words: Cat Bus!

2. Nausicaa of the Valley of Wind

This is one of my favorite movies. The design of the characters are amazing, especially the Ohmu. The movie is based off of the manga by Miyazaki which I have yet to read but it's high on my list. A lot of Miyazaki fans have skipped this one since it's pretty old but please don't because you wont be disappointed.

1. Princess Mononoke

This the big daddy of all Miyazaki films. Picking this over Nausicaa was actually a very hard decision. I love them both equally but I think Mononoke takes the premise of Nausicaa and takes it a step further. I love this movie because of the violence and the demons. Watching samurai lose their limbs is so sexy. The demons are done well and they look really gruesome. I also can't forget my favorite miyazaki creation...

the Kodama!

Review: District 9

District 9 has had a good marketing campaign since the beginning. Their posters and trailers don't show much of the movie which increased expectations. Let me tell ya that the movie lives up to the hype. I really went into the movie not expecting anything because I had no idea what the movie was about. The premise is that aliens have crash landed on Earth and the government collects them in a internment camp. 20 years later, the aliens live in slums and the humans just want them to go home. The government needs to move them to a new camp so they have to go in and serve each alien with an eviction notice. This whole part is shot like a documentary with interviews from various government officials. The story starts to turn when one of the government agents gets sprayed by some alien liquid. This gives him the ability to use alien weapon technology, which the government has been desperately trying to get.


The movie really blew me away because it was really an action movie and not a documentary. There was so much violence which was very realistic and looked awesome. Watching people being blown to bits by alien weaponry is one of the highlights of my life. One thing that I wished was in the movie was more back story. The trailer shows an interview with one of the aliens which seems to reveal a lot of reasons why they were on earth and why they couldn't come home but I guess they didn't want to include it. The movie was very thought provoking and incredibly entertaining so go see it right now before you regret it!! It's 10 out of 10 Alien Beards!

Review: Wizard of Oz #7

This is the second to last issue of the Wizard of Oz series by Eric Shanower and Skottie Young. To begin with, I am a huge fan of the Judy Garland series but I have never read any of the books. So I was very excited to read take a look at this comic and see all the differences between the movie and books.

If you don't want spoilers then stop reading now...


The story continues with Dorothy and her friends waiting for the Wizard to give them their rewards for killing the Wicked Witch of the East. The wizard comes up with some creative ways to give each character what they want. For example, the scarecrow got his head filled with pins and needles to represent brains. Dorothy is the only who isn't given what she wanted because the Wizard didn't know how to get her back to Kansas. He comes up with a plan to build a balloon to return both him and Dorothy back. After that, the comic follows the movie where Dorothy misses the balloon and the Wizard flies away. From there, the scarecrow comes up with the idea to call upon the flying monkeys to fly them to Glinda, the Witch of the North.

The art for this comic is simply amazing. The designs of all the characters and the settings are fantastic. One of my favorite parts of this comic is the Emerald City and the goggles the citizens wear to make everything look green. I'm very excited for the last issue and I'm even more excited when they adapt the Marvelous Land of Oz which comes out in winter 2009.

Check out: Woot Shirt

shirt.woot.com is a website that puts up a new shirt for sale everyday. The site takes submissions from artists and the best ones make the site. The artists can also make a good chunk of change from the sales. Check them out for some really cool shirts that are very inexpensive. Here is just a sample of what they offer...

Review: Wizard's First Rule

This is the first book in the Sword of Truth series by Terry Goodkind. The book follows Richard Cypher, a woods guide, who lives in a land divided by a magical boundary. The other side of the boundary holds a place filled with magic. Richard encounters a strange woman from the other side of the boundary which sets off a chain of events that changes the world.

This is one of my favorite books and is the best of the Sword of Truth series. The premise of the book sounds like almost any other fantasy novel but its not even close. The story includes a lot of sex, rape, and torture which makes it more adult than most novels. I call these the three essentials because every story needs a little bit of rape and torture. The book is a lot like the Song of Ice and Fire series except there is a lot more action and adventure. I highly recommend you buy the first book and you can thank me later. I shall give this book 10 out of 10 Beards of Truth!

Review: Gankutsuou

Gankutsuou is based off The Count of Monte Cristo by Alexandre Dumas. The story follows Albert as he meets a very interesting figure on his travels. This man turns out to be the Count of Monte Cristo who is bent on getting revenge. Oh by the way the the story is set in the year 5000 so get ready for some science fiction. Its a definite twist on the classic story. Another twist is that the Count is some sort of vampire adding a supernatural element to the story.
The animation for the characters is amazing. You should watch at least one episode to see the crazy visuals that are almost vomit inducing. A lot of the backgrounds and spaceships are done with CGI. This is where my main fault with the series lies. The CGI looks very unfinished like the TV show ReBoot. My other fault is with the mech suits. They come out of nowhere and they don't belong in a movie like this. The greatest part of the series though is the mystery of the Count. Who he is and where he comes from stays a riddle for most of the show. For the most part, the series was enjoyable but ultimately unsatisfying at the end. I give it a 6/10

Top 5 Blizzard Games

5. Warcraft 2

This was the first Blizzard game I played when I was in Elementary school. One of my friends had it and I was blown away. I'd go over to his house all the time to watch him play. I had never played a real time strategy game before and this opened my eyes to all the wonderous things a video game could do. The fantasy setting and cartoon-like animation made me play this game for hours upon hours. With the battle.net edition was able to connect with people all over the world and let them kick my ass.

4. Diablo 2

I actually had never played the first Diablo game when I bought this one. My friends were obsessing over it and I wanted to join in. I created a paladin who wasn't very powerful but I loved playing co-op with my friends. I was one level away from 99 when Blizzard released a patch making it impossible to do the "Cow level" millions of times. God damn I loved killing those bovines. I'll also never forget finding my first SOJ and thinking of all the things I could get with it. I am eagerly awaiting Diablo 3.

3. Warcraft III

I had a lot of expectations for Warcraft 3 and I have to say that they were all exceeded. The addition of two new races made this game incredibly exciting. Also single heroes that you could control made this game totally different than any other RTS. Night elf was my favorite race and I could sit all day watching the archers focus fire. Seeing the Priestess of the Moon in action always got me revved up to play again. Eventually I stopped playing the game and moved onto Defense of the Ancients as did a ton of other players. I always get the urge once in awhile to install the game and try to beat the damn computer.

2. Starcraft

This is the mother of all RTS games. In middle school, I didn't know anyone who wasn't playing this game. This was Warcraft in space. At the time, I was more into sci-fi than fantasy so this game was perfect for me. The one thing I absolutely loved about the game was the cinematics. I wasn't very good at the single player missions but the cutscenes were worth every ounce of frustration. My favorite race was Protoss by far. I couldn't help but build a million defense cannons so my opponent couldn't get to me. Eventually they would give up and I was satisfied that I just wasted 3 hours of building the same thing over and over again. Starcraft 2 is coming out and its going to be huge. I cannot wait!

1. World of Warcraft

This is my absolute favorite game but I actually haven't played it in a few years. I was one of the first people that bought the game at the Fry's Midnight party. I created a night elf hunter and I instantly fell in love. The visuals and the soundtrack took me to another world. I loved killing all the cool-looking creatures and fighting huge bosses. I grinded all the way to level 60 and I was excited to start collecting some of the epic gear. This was when molten core was the only raid and you had to be in a huge guild to run it. I gave up the game because I started to realize I was wasting too much time sitting in Ironforge waiting for a party to form. I tried creating a new character but I got bored too fast. Those six months were probably the most fun gaming I ever had. I don't think I will be able to recreate that experience until they release World of Warcraft 2 or another MMO.

Spotlight on: David Mack

Once in awhile I will find an artist who really blows my mind. David Mack is one of those artists. He is the creator of the critically acclaimed Kabuki series, about an assassin working in Japan. The whole series is written AND drawn by Mack which is an incredible feat. I highly recommend you pick up the first volume, The Circle of Blood.


David Mack also did an amazing run on Daredevil, writing some stories and drawing others. Pick up volume 3 where he does the interior art. I've met David at Comic-Con a few times and I have to say that he is the nicest person I have ever met. My friends and I make it a point to see him multiple times at the con because he always has a smile on his face.

Mack has a couple of upcoming projects including the Electric Ant, which is an adaptation of a Phillip K Dick short story. When I talked to him at Comic-Con he said that he will be re-teaming with Brian Michael Bendis for more Daredevil!

To find out more about David Mack check out this amazing fan site which David Mack highly recommends. http://davidmackguide.com/

Director John Hughes has passed away...

Director John Hughes died this morning of a heart attack while he was on a walk. Hughes was a movie titan back in the 1980s. He most notably directed The Breakfast Club, Ferris Bueller's Day off, Sixteen Candles, and Weird Science.

He also wrote a ton of movies including my two favorite Christmas movies: Home Alone and Christmas Vacation. Hughes was able to capture what it was like to grow up during those awkward puberty years. He will always be known as the King of the Teen Comedies.

Check This Out: 5 Second Films

I laughed my ass off to this video. I think I've watched this video over a hundred times which means I've only wasted 500 seconds of my life.

5 Second Films

Hilarious videos. They release a new 5 second video every weekday.

Review: Lost Season 1

This is my absolute favorite show of all time. The show was created by JJ Abrams, who directed the newest Star Trek movie. If that doesn't hook you then you are a lost cause and you shouldn't be reading this blog. So the premise of the show is that a plane crashes on a deserted island and the castaways must learn to survive. Obviously there is a lot more to it than that but what makes this story different from Castaway, Lord of the Flies, or Robinson Crusoe is the island itself. The island becomes a main character and the mystery that surrounds it drives the show. The ensemble cast is perfect and the acting is top notch. Each character is intriguing and you will be fighting with your friends over who you favorite is.

What really makes the show great is the storytelling. The characters' back stories are told through flashbacks which are done really well. The flashbacks always tie in with the themes that are happening in the present . JJ Abrams has crafted an amazing show and with the Blu ray edition just released you can see the beauty of Hawaii in HD. I highly recomend you get off your fat ass and buy the dvds or rent them. I would even suggest killing a man if you have to.

P.S. If I could only have one thing on a deserted island, this would be it.

Review: Detective Comics #854

This was a great read. I was a little scared at first because I didn't know much of anything on Batwoman. I was kind of sick of all the wannabe batmans running around but this comic changed my mind. The art on the inside is really breathtaking. The composition of the panels and the colors makes this one of the best comics I have read in a while. The writing by Rucka is also top notch. I haven't been really satisfied with his work on Superman lately but his writing here restores any faith I had lost in him. I highly recommend you go buy this now and the next issue since I think its also out. I am eagerly awaiting what happens next.