The Wizard Sketchbook: Alex Ross invades the Marvel U.

A number of articles featured on Wizard Universe today that I'll reproduce here, since they interest me.

The first one features sketches from my favourite painter in the comics book world of all-time: Alex Ross!

Alex Ross drawing Captain America...a dream come true!


THE WIZARD SKETCHBOOK: ALEX ROSS INVADES THE MARVEL U.
The superstar painter opens his sketchbook for an exclusive look at his first mainstream Marvel Universe miniseries 'Avengers/Invaders'

By Kiel Phegley

Posted November 26, 2007 10:00 AM

Ask Alex Ross how he feels about having to coordinate his latest creative vision to the current landscape of the Marvel Universe, and the best-selling painter pulls no punches.

“[It’s] absolutely awful,” laughs the painter as well known for his majestic realism as he is for his adherence to creative freedom. “But then again, I’ve had it my way for so long, there’s got to be some give-and-take in this.”

And while the painter’s return to Marvel after a four-year absence has proven a happy occasion for artist and publisher, don’t expect the sudden arrival of the World War II-era Invaders team featuring Namor, Captain America, the Human Torch and their sidekicks to create quite as joyous a reunion for the New and Mighty Avengers squads.

“Both teams are going to be deeply suspicious of one another in this situation and wanting to get into contact with the Invaders first,” reveals Ross. “Eventually, the issue of what each one of them desires to do with this group of transplanted heroes is going to fall sway to a larger issue that will dominate both teams’ lives and choices.”

But before the 12-issue mini-series, Avengers/Invaders—with Ross covers, a script co-written with his longtime collaborator Jim Krueger and interiors from Steve Sadowski (JSA)—hits

INVADERS ON THE ATTACK
ROSS: “The thing that has appealed to me about the Invaders was that unlike the dramatic lead superheroes of the 1940s, the Marvel heroes were always shown as very much engaged in the war.

“They were illustrated in these phenomenal covers by Alex Schomburg fighting Nazi or Japanese forces. It was very striking that unlike other superheroes who seemed to be more stateside, dealing with more fantastical enemies, these guys were in the thick of it. ‘In the sh--,’ so to speak. [Laughs]”

THE MIGHTY AVENGERS
ROSS: “Not that I got much of a chance to do that here, but I look forward to any further illustrations I get to do of the more inspired-by-Frank Cho women of the Marvel Universe. Particularly in his depiction of Wasp and Ms. Marvel, I am so grateful for Frank’s contribution to the art form of making sexy women in comics, because he’s brought booty back. Plenty of guys can draw big boobs, but to really appreciate the structure of a healthy woman and a robust physique? God bless him for that.

“Every storyline in the Marvel Universe right now is about how Tony Stark is trying to manage the entire world and all the chaos therein. This is a new wrinkle thrown into his life, and so he would most deeply interact with the guy who had been his best friend. It is Cap. It’s 100 percent Cap. It’s just a Cap that hasn’t met Tony yet. I totally get behind the idea of where Tony Stark has

INVADERS UNMASKED
ROSS: “I had one model I started using in Marvels in 1990 when I first did my pitch art for that series. I was working with a friend of mine who I decided, since he was a handsome blond guy, let me use him as the Human Torch. And then as I started working on the series, I needed a model for Captain America. Well, hell—throw him in as Captain America.

“Here I’ve got the one guy my model Frank Casey posed for as the Human Torch sitting side by side with another blond guy he initially was the model for, and I don’t want you to see the same face. And I’ve always thought my top choice for Captain America, if he could have been portrayed in a movie in the last 15 years, would have been [former NFL star] Howie Long. So there’s a little bit of Howie Long in this face you see here.”


NAMOR VS. NAMOR
ROSS: “What should be obvious in the way that this story writes itself is that in today’s continuity, of the [three] original Invaders, there’s only one of those men who’s currently alive. And that’s Namor. So if they’re going to travel into the present and cross paths with modern heroes, how can you write a story that doesn’t pit the two of them at each other? And wouldn’t one of Namor’s first instincts be to go and find out what’s happened to his people?”

INVADERS DIVIDED
ROSS: “It relates to [the original] teaser piece I created. People could have figured it out by seeing those two other hands and saying, ‘Wait a minute. I recognize those gloves. I recognize those hands.’

“You start sketching the position of one figure like I did with Captain America, and then I just built from there the way that Namor with his back to Cap but still looking at Captain America has an interactive quality with the figure. And then Bucky completely with his back turned—it’s all interactive in one way or another. And it is intentionally playing up the importance of the Cap figure, but also placing sly commentary on the others.”

THE NEW AVENGERS
ROSS: “[The idea of an Avengers/Invaders series was] building off particularly the contemporary New Avengers, and their split into two groups over the past year has been an interesting addition to that. When this whole thing started off, the idea of Captain America meeting himself in the future was in there. It was going to be like Earth-1 and Earth-2 Captain Americas, but obviously you don’t have that here. You have an even more fragmented society, but in the case of our storytelling we’re going to get mostly the physical get-together of what had been the New Avengers with Iron Man, Spider-Man, Spider-Woman and Wolverine—all those guys together and seeing them operate together. But [in this piece] everybody is separated from Spider-Woman for a reason.

“[The toothpick in Wolverine’s mouth means] this is a guy who’s being forced to not smoke by external powers beyond his control. [Laughs] I’m glad that most restaurants and bars in Illinois have changed to be smoke-free. But at the same time, when it comes to these fictional characters, their smoking can’t harm me, and I don’t think kids read comics enough to actually want to learn to smoke.”


So looking forward to this. Even if it IS just Ross covers. But hot damn, it'd be awesome!

By the new Ross costume's early light

As posted last week, Captain America is going to have a new costume! But with a twist...and one I do not enjoy.

BY THE NEW ROSS COSTUME’S EARLY LIGHT
5 burning questions with writer Ed Brubaker about Captain America’s new threads

By Brian Warmoth

Posted October 12, 2007 11:30 AM

Yesterday, Marvel premiered Captain America’s new, shinier Alex Ross design for the coming year, and the American hero looks like he’ll be entering 2008 with guns a-blazing. Writer Ed Brubaker talked about the gun and a few other key points about the design and the future of his blockbuster series’ lead character.

WIZARD: What do you like the most about Alex’s design work?

BRUBAKER: He’s got a classic sense of heroic costume design. His design work reminds me in some ways of the work John Romita did on new designs in the ’70s.

Who’s behind the mask?

BRUBAKER: Like I’m going to tell you. It’s Gwen Stacy’s clone.

Is this the first time since Dick Purcell in 1944 that Captain America has wielded a gun?

BRUBAKER: No. In the late ’60s there was a Cap novel called The Great Gold Steal where he carried a gun, I believe, and I think he’s used a gun a small number of times since then. But this is the first time it’s been part of his uniform.

What does this image say about the story you’re writing?

BRUBAKER: It’s a costume design. It doesn’t say anything. Hopefully it tells you to read the comics, if anything.

Did you have any input on this costume?

BRUBAKER: Yeah, I was there the whole way through, giving input, as was Steve Epting. Ultimately, though, the original and final designs came down to Alex’s handiwork: taking his original concept sketches, incorporating the ideas we all could agree on and just making it look good.

I wanted a belt buckle, but everyone else shot me down.


A GUN!? A fricking gun!? Ugh, no!

Captain America should be like Batman: he don't need no stinking guns to get the job done. In fact, I'm a bit perturbed about the whole black colour element added to the costume. Why black? What is he mourning? What is he symbolising? Is the black for added stealth, and if so, why continue having the blue, red and white then?

Ugh, no guns please. :( I realise that Captain America is a soldier and he probably has been trained in the use of firearms (and possibly used some against the Nazis in World War II), but this is Captain frickin' America! He doesn't need a gun! All he needs is his trusty shield and he'll mow down enemies faster than any gatling gun could ever hope to achieve without jamming!

A Cap suit re-cap

Captain America. Alex Ross. Put them together and what do you get?

No, not a balding Captain America who can draw/paint better than he did when he was drawing his own Captain America comic in the comic books. It was a rhetorical question.

You actually get Alex Ross designing the classic red, white and blue of Captain America's costume. Hot damn, this should be good!

A CAP SUIT RE-CAP
Alex Ross’ new Captain America design is only the latest outfit in the hero’s long line of flag-waving fashion

By Matt Powell and Brian Warmoth

Posted October 11, 2007 2:50 PM

Throughout his 67-year history, Captain America has never gone without a striking ensemble to match the force of his fist. This week, Marvel unveiled Cap’s suit du jour, a fully armored homage to Steve Rogers’ classic look by the inimitable Alex Ross. Here are the suits that have built one of the longest costume traditions in comics and made Ross’ possible.

THE COSTUME THAT STARTED IT ALL



Rogers’ original shield could have stabbed a hole through someone, and his headwear didn’t offer much in the way of neck protection, but as the decades rolled on, the stars and stripes stayed right where they began.

TRADITIONAL COSTUME



The longest-running Captain America uniform, accompanied by the classic discus shield, is equal parts inspiring to friends and haunting to foes, and proves you can’t beat a classic.

NOMAD

When Rogers rebelled against a government he couldn’t agree with in 1974, he temporarily dropped his red, white and blue duds and slipped into some spandex and a cape whose blue and gold color scheme might have better suited a national hero of Sweden.

THE CAPTAIN



Before John Walker inherited the suit as USAgent, Rogers briefly opted to wear black, keeping his classic red boots and gloves, but becoming significantly less visible against the night sky.

ARMORED COSTUME



When Cap’s super-soldier serum mutated and paralyzed his body, Tony Stark designed an armored exoskeleton to protect the hero in his crusade against injustice.

EX-PATRIOT



Following an accusation of treason and his subsequent exile from the United States, Steve Rogers donned the stars-and-stripes-less garb of the Ex-Patriot.

TRADITIONAL COSTUME WITH POUCHES



Expanding his arsenal beyond his shield, Captain America modified his traditional costume with mounted pouches on his belt, housing tools to keep him prepared for any possible encounter.

Alex Ross Superpowers sketches

I'm a big fan of Alex Ross and I generally buy any of his comic work in which he draws interiors. I don't purchase all of the comics featuring his cover art though...way too much of that floating out there in the market!

Dynamite Entertainment is about to publish a new series titled Superpowers by Alex Ross and I'll certainl be purchasing this series when it's out! Alex Ross rocks!

THE WIZARD SKETCHBOOK: ALEX ROSS
Compare the artist’s dynamic revamps for Dynamite’s upcoming ‘Superpowers’ series with their Golden Age counterparts

By Danny Spiegel

Posted October 5, 2007 4:10 PM

Look out world, guess who’s back! It’s the Black Terror! The Crusaders! The Owl! The Death-Defying Devil! Hey, wait a minute! Who are these guys?! Well, they’re the forgotten creations of several now-defunct comics companies from the ’30s and ’40s who, now that they’ve lapsed into the public domain (which means anyone can creatively nab them), are being reimagined courtesy of superstar artist Alex Ross for Dynamite’s Superpowers series. “I didn’t want to necessarily update anybody if there was no reason to do it,” says Ross. “It’s all about putting a little bit of a fresh coat of paint on it.” And now, before their triumphant return (er, “debut”?) in December, we get an exclusive preview comparing Ross’ sketches of each character’s original design with their all-new, full-color versions.

DEATH-DEFYING DEVIL
Ross: “Back in the ’40s he was one of the most popular characters of that era because it was such a great visual look. It’s really the precursor to Spider-Man’s look, the split face with the skintight mask that you don’t know how the hell that’s being worn by anybody. It’s that kind of Mr. Miracle substance that sticks to one’s features and allows the mouth to move. So with him I didn’t change much. It’s basically all in the finish of how to illustrate him, making him look more like a wet, high-gloss, like he’s wearing that latex fetish wear kind of thing that seems like a skin.”

SAMSON
Ross: “The idea of Samson is that he’s been wandering the Earth for 60 years and this version embraces the idea of him possibly being the biblical Samson or maybe even just thinking he is. The mark that he wears as a pendant is actually the last letter of the actual Hebrew translation of the name ‘Samson.’ And, of course, the bandages over his eyes are indicating that he’s blinded like the classic Samson. The cape plays towards the idea that if he’s now walking around as a blind man, including a walking staff, that it’s somewhat like a hiding, a withdrawing from society. Not being quite as naked.”

THE CRUSADERS
Ross: “Some characters have been abused by the government. They’ve been cloned in effect to create a controllable form of superhuman power. Basically, the American Crusader is a form of a black ops elite that’s used for quick seek-and-destroy type of material. I treated the classic circular symbol of the character as just a marking for what is ultimately a black-clad stealth fighter in human form.”

THE BLACK TERROR
Ross: “The Black Terror predates many other skull-wearing, black-clad heroes. He’s a super-strong character that’s driven to beat up his enemies; there’s a bare-knuckled quality to the character. And it seems as if the skull and crossbones on his chest glows within a void of black. The black of his costume [around his head] is treated as if it’s almost overtaking him in the form of his mask. He’s being enveloped by the darkness. The gloves and boots extend the idea of the character as somewhat of a superhero pirate, in effect. The buccaneer-style boots and gloves are really just a folding-down of the old [versions].”

THE OWL
Ross: “Originally The Owl’s mask design had a nose beak on the front of it much like Nighthawk did when he first appeared, and so I streamlined that into a shape that was coming off of the forehead. So, in a way, there is now the indication of where a Spider-Man [type] of nose impression comes through of the man underneath. And the design of the owl-like shape is [no longer] making this ridiculous yellow nose shape. And the ‘V’ with the two circles underneath is a graphic symbol I’ve already designed for a character that appeared in Astro City [Simon Magus] so I’m kind of extending it to this here.”

MR. FACE
Ross: “I always liked the design of a character that has that Creeper-like quality of being a ‘good guy’ Joker. And so the effect of a man with a monster face and a tuxedo is just such a simple, cool idea that I want to take this character and do something with him—where the effect of his face has a surreal quality on people much like Count Vertigo, where it sort of throws you off in a scarecrow-like manner once he enters the room. You’re actually terrorized by the effect of that mask.”

THE AMERICAN SPIRIT
Ross: “The idea is animating the flag as a source of inspiration for all flag-clad characters over time. Tons of guys were based upon the flag in the ’40s—the Archie Comics Shield character, Captain America, Wonder Woman and countless others followed. It’s this continual inspiration, giving form as its own entity that it is actually self-aware. You just take the flag and drape it like the shroud of some ghost and you suddenly have a new character.”

Shedding light on "The Dark Knight"

Even though I'm not really a DC buff, preferring the Marvel universe by leaps and bounds, I still do enjoy all things comicky, even if it means dipping my feet into the waters of the DC Universe.

Don't get me wrong though, it's not like I completely abhor DC characters and the world they live in. I just PREFER Marvel in general. Heck, some of my favourite stories of all time (and comics I might add) are from DC! Preacher, Watchmen, Alan Moore's ABC line of books...though technically Preacher was a Vertigo title (a mature readers line of DC books), the ABC line was an off-shoot of Wildstorm, which had been bought over by DC, and Watchmen, while published by DC, didn't contain any of the notable characters from the regular DC universe.

But I DO have some favourite stuff published in the mainstream DC universe though. Titles like Alex Ross' Kingdom Come, Brad Meltzer's Identity Crisis, all the big books drawn by Alex Ross like Superman: Peace on Earth et al, Jeph Loeb and Tim Sale's Batman: The Long Halloween, Frank Miller's Batman: Year One...just to name a few. So once again, it's not like I eschew DC Comics altogether...I'm just more of a Marvel guy.

Anyway, the one thing that I'm ALWAYS excited about, regardless of which company or organisation is movies that are based on comic book properties! I just love comic book movies whether they're superb (X-Men 2, Hellboy, Batman Begins), mediocre (Daredevil, Punisher, Superman Returns) or just plain bad (Batman and Robin). And there are a whole bunch of comic book movies coming out in the next year...they did a great job on Batman Begins, so I'm anxiously waiting for The Dark Knight!

SHEDDING LIGHT ON ‘THE DARK KNIGHT’
Get the first word on Heath Ledger as the Joker, the return of Two-Face and the early footage broken down frame-by-frame

By Rickey Purdin

Posted October 1, 2007 9:50 AM

“If it was up to me, you wouldn’t see anything until the movie came out,” said “Dark Knight” director Christopher Nolan without any hint of apology. As he introduced a super-secret clip of the film to 1,200 screaming fans at Wizard World Chicago during an exclusive “Dark Knight” panel, Nolan made sure the audience knew just how special the viewing was. Considering Nolan went to great lengths to keep the film protected from prying, spoiler-hungry eyes (the production was once codenamed “Rory’s First Kiss” to lessen attention), it was clear Nolan wasn’t comfortable exhibiting an unfinished product.

“Please be kind,” added the anxious director as security guards crept into the aisles with infrared night-vision gear to catch attendees attempting to record the footage. “This is a rough, rough cut.”

What followed, despite only shooting for nearly four months in Chicago, was about two minutes of pure Bat-fan-gasm, filled with plenty of Heath Ledger’s Joker, tons of action and the world’s first glimpse at the film’s other villain—Aaron Eckhart as Two-Face.

The director has every right to be secretive. The sequel to 2005’s “Batman Begins” doesn’t open until July 18, 2008, after all. Plus, if it weren’t for Nolan’s fresh, practical, cinematic approach to the Bat-mythos, the world’s last memories of a big-screen Bruce Wayne would’ve been lost in a sea of Bat-nipples thanks to a sputtered-out ’90s franchise. He’s earned the right to dictate what people see and when.

But it’s time to lift that leathery cowl and explore the elements of “The Dark Knight” that will make it DC Comics’ biggest blockbuster yet.

JOKER’S WILD
Moments before “Batman Begins” ended, Jim Gordon (played by Gary Oldman) approached Christian Bale’s Batman about a new thug in town, and in every theater across the land, the flashing of the joker playing card sent movie-goers into unbridled fits of hoots and hollers.

“We found a way of looking at the character and saw what role he could play in the film,” explained Nolan. “The joker card at the end of the first film created the right kind of feeling. That was the hook that got us thinking about the next one.”

Nolan’s writing partner (and younger brother) Jonah pointed the director toward the Joker’s first two comic book stories, both of which took place in 1940’s Batman #1. “We’ve come around to something that’s eerily close to those first two appearances,” revealed the director.

In the issue, the Joker appears as a grinning mastermind who predicts his murderous crimes over the radio before meticulously carrying them out. Each cold-blooded, calculated killing ultimately ends with the victim’s face frozen into a solid, monstrous grin. If the film version follows closely, as the writers have said it will, expect plenty of chilling death scenes.

“Once we established ‘Batman Begins,’ it was one take on Batman,” explained screenwriter David S. Goyer. “We had to decide, ‘How does the Joker fit in this world?’”

Part of that problem was solved when actor Heath Ledger (“Brokeback Mountain”) joined the cast in July 2006. One of the premier actors of his generation, Ledger dove into the role with an understanding of what he didn’t want to convey in the film.

“I’m not going for the same thing [Jack Nicholson] went for,” Ledger said in interviews. “That would be stupid. Tim Burton did a more fantastical kind of thing and Chris Nolan is doing nitty-gritty handheld realism. I love what [Nicholson] did, and that is part of why I want to do that role. But it would obviously be murder if I tried to imitate what he did.”

“What Heath is doing,” Oldman triumphantly stated in Chicago, searching for the right words to finish his thought, “…he’s going to knock everyone out of the park.”

Oldman’s words came true moments later during the screened footage. Flashing between scenes of the Joker robbing a bank and taking a Batman-administered body-slam in a police station, the teaser hit its Joker crescendo when a tired, emotionless Joker steadily opened machine gun fire on Gotham. Empty, deranged and angry, this was the Joker the audience was waiting for, and their wall-shaking screams confirmed it.

But it was the unexpected cameo of another villain that brought down the house.

TWO-FACE RETURNS
In “Batman Begins,” mob kingpin Carmine Falcone rules Gotham’s underground. When good guy District Attorney Carl Banks sticks his nose in Falcone’s business, he finds himself on the receiving end of a gangland shooting. Fast-forward shortly afterwards and Harvey Dent arrives on the scene.

“Dark Knight” promotional art features Dent running for DA, and like his comic counterpart, he wins the election. Vowing to clean up the city’s rampant crime rate, Dent takes a no-nonsense, Eliot Ness stance and mows down the street scum at the court level behind Lt. Gordon’s growing arrest record. Of course, that justice crusade comes with a price.

While the exact details leading up to Dent’s disfigurement haven’t been made public, comic fans can tell you Dent suffered acid burns over half his face during a court case. The attack sent Dent into a psychotic fit, resulting in the birth of the unhinged Two-Face. As soon as Eckhart was announced as Dent in February 2007, fans wondered if the actor might pull double duty as Two-Face, too. The footage in Chicago, along with comments made by Eckhart in interviews, put those questions to bed.

In the final moments of the clip, as explosions and sightings of the Joker resonated in the brains of the audience, a half-dollar spins wildly onto a barroom table. Two-Face plops down in a bar stool on screen with his back to the camera.

A bartender timidly pours a shot while staring up at Two-Face, crimson-maroon scar tissue running down the left side of the villain’s neck below slightly discolored hair. “Dent?” the jarred man screams in disbelief. “I thought you were dead!”

Then Two-Face speaks for the first time, saying only one word with a gravel-filled but glib voice: “Half.”

“Batman is a complex character, and Two-Face comes a little bit from the same world,” Eckhart explained in interviews. “I’m looking for the tension between the two, the similarities between the two. I want to find what’s similar to Batman and then find what’s opposite to him.”

BAT-PLOT
The title “The Dark Knight” provides a bigger clue to the movie’s plot than you might think. Just like “Batman Begins” explored the beginnings of Batman, “Dark Knight” looks to explore the Caped Crusader’s full-on immersion into protecting Gotham from its own shadows.

“‘Batman Begins’ was an origin story, and the important thing was to move the story forward,” described Nolan of the first film’s themes. “In [‘Dark Knight’], the detective [elements] will help move the story along.”

Reports indicate “Dark Knight” takes place shortly after the end of “Batman Begins” with Gordon still trying to clean up the Gotham streets after his promotion to lieutenant, Bruce Wayne rebuilding his family home with trusty butler Alfred Pennyworth (Michael Caine) and Batman refining his crimefighting methods when new baddies hit town.

After Bats took down Falcone in the last film, a criminal power vacuum sucks countless thugs and gangsters into Gotham with plans to control the city. This, of course, summons plenty of the eccentric villains Gotham is known for, and as more and more fill the streets, Batman, Gordon and Dent scramble to keep the peace. The influx of new bad guys also pushes Bats to develop new gadgets, including a streamlined bodysuit complete with projectile glove blades and a “Batpod” motorbike packing grappling hooks, cannons and machine guns.

Meanwhile, according to the teaser trailers, the lower criminals start to side with a single leader in desperation as the mobsters begin picking each other off. In the clip, Bruce Wayne and Alfred discuss the crime wave before Alfred lays the situation out on the line.

“You hammered them, and in their desperation, they turned to a man they didn’t fully understand,” he says, referring to the Joker. “Some men aren’t looking for anything logical. They can’t be bought, bullied, reasoned or negotiated with. Some men just want to watch the world burn.”

The Chicago footage echoed that sentiment as scenes of Gotham cars and buildings literally on fire littered the clip, proving the power struggle mutates into a gang war at one point. As for Joker plot specifics, Ledger points to one comic in particular.

“The Killing Joke was the one that was handed to me,” admitted the actor in interviews. “I guess that book explains a little bit of where [the Joker’s] from, but not too much.”

The Killing Joke, written by Alan Moore with art by Brian Bolland, explores the origins of the man who would become the Joker—a loser comedian caught up in a crime and then accidentally disfigured after his wife and baby die in an unconnected mishap. And even if the details are different, a similar, sympathetic glimpse into the slow, tortured birth of the Joker may be present in “Dark Knight.”

LAW AND LOVE
Aside from the fact that “Dark Knight” marks the first time a Batman film hasn’t featured the hero’s name in the title, it’s also the first film to feature a returning love interest for the character—kinda.

In “Batman Begins,” Katie Holmes played Bruce Wayne’s childhood friend Rachel Dawes, who becomes Gotham’s assistant DA. Later in the film, Dawes and Wayne begin sharing a slim romantic link after she discovers he’s Batman.

In January 2007, reports of Holmes leaving the cast surfaced. Her reps revealed the actress had joined the cast of “Mad Money,” a buddy film with Queen Latifah and Diane Keaton with a conflicting shooting schedule that would keep her from appearing in both films. In March 2007, Maggie Gyllenhaal (“Stranger Than Fiction”) was announced as her replacement.

“I’m not thinking of it as a role that anyone’s played before,” related Gyllenhaal to sources. “I’m not walking into Katie Holmes’ performance. I’m thinking of it as an opportunity to play somebody who’s alive and smart. Chris asked me to do this because he wanted me, not because he wants some generic lady in a dress.

“Doing Batman has shocked me at every turn,” noted the actress. “When I started, I thought, ‘Well, it’s a huge movie, I’ll just do my best to put what I can into it.’ But, in fact, they’ve been really hungry for my ideas.”

In “Dark Knight,” expect Dawes and Dent to spend some quality time together as Dent takes over the DA’s office. A love triangle has even been hinted at involving Wayne, and the Chicago clip teased a freaky scene with the Joker holding a knife to Dawes’ shivering neck as he slowly spins her around a room.

But these aren’t the only new players in Gotham.

BAT-CAMEOS
Everyone knows about the major villains plowing through “Dark Knight,” but what about the surprising stars flying under the radar?

For starters, Eric Roberts, the Oscar-nominated actor who appeared in five episodes of NBC’s “Heroes” last season, plays Salvatore Maroni, a rising mob boss. In the comics, Maroni is responsible for scarring Harvey Dent’s face with acid, creating Dent’s Two-Face persona.

“Spawn” star Michael Jai White beat out hulking rapper David Banner among others for the role of Gamble, a new mobster who bumps heads with Maroni and other mob elements.

But not just ordinary underworld figures are set to appear. Early spy reports from the “Dark Knight” set in downtown Chicago surmised that the Scarecrow would pop up in the film. Amateur video caught a man in a brown hood and suit (the costume worn by actor Cillian Murphy as the Scarecrow in the first film) backed by a gang and arguing with another group of people during a scene in a parking garage. The report jells with the plot, as it would make sense for Scarecrow to make a play for the Gotham underworld.

Murphy wouldn’t comment when approached about the report, but did tell sources just after “Batman Begins” bowed that he was signed to do more than one Bat-film. He’s not the only speculated super-cameo, though.

Anthony Michael Hall (“The Dead Zone”) told sources in May 2007 he’d also joined the cast, but couldn’t specify his role.

“I signed a confidentiality agreement, and I can’t say which part I’m playing because it affects the story,” said the actor. “I can’t give away the suspense. It’s a $200 million surprise, and I don’t want to be the guy to ruin it.”

Online gossip pegged Hall’s expensive secret as the Riddler, a Batman foe obsessed with puzzles. Other reports indicate Hall plays a Gotham journalist obsessed with Bruce Wayne. Whatever the secret is, it’s not a stretch to imagine comic book Easter eggs hidden all over the film. After Arkham Asylum, home to many Gotham villains, was partially destroyed in “Batman Begins,” don’t be surprised to see more Bat-rogues lining up for a slice of the crime spree pie in “Dark Knight” or even a possible third movie.

“The script leaves room for a very interesting follow-up,” Bale admitted to sources. “I think we could take it somewhere else.”

As long as the secretive Nolan’s onboard, expect that somewhere else to be the top of the box-office charts.


The thing I'm looking forward to the most about the movie? Seeing Aaron Eckhart as Harvey Dent. He just looks perfect and was born to play the charismatic district attorney who will eventually become one of Batman's greatest nemesis: Two-Face.

Alex Ross talks about Captain America and Kingdom Come

The latest Alex Ross interview from Wizard Universe:

CAP IS BACK!
…or is he? Ross dishes on Avengers/Invaders and his return to Kingdom Come in ‘JSA’

By Danny Spiegel

Posted September 30, 2007 10:40 AM

WIZARD: When Avengers/Invaders was unveiled the initial reaction was that the real Captain America was coming back, but obviously that’s not the case.

ROSS: It was all just a big tease that was entirely my fault. I had this last-minute idea of a teaser illustration of Cap with a “hinting” of the other silhouetted Invaders figures, but focusing on the idea of Cap and the word “Return” in a dramatic haunting. And everybody bit into it. We loved the idea of teasing people for a short time that this was actually the return of Steve Rogers. Not a dream, not a hoax. But of course it would turn out to be, “Oh, it’s time travel and that’s him from the past!” Does that make it unsatisfying? I don’t know. Hopefully it makes it interesting for people just to see where it goes.

Did you even know back then that Captain America would be dead by this point?

No, I didn’t know that Cap was dead until he was dead. I heard a hint of somebody asking me about it, like, a couple of weeks before. “Did you hear about this whole thing that they’re gonna kill Cap?” And I thought, “No, they’re not gonna do that!” And then...bada bing!

Which characters are definitely coming back when this comes out in February?

The original five Invaders, who, technically, were the only ones who actually existed in the ’40s: Captain America, Bucky, Human Torch, Toro and Sub-Mariner. Characters like Union Jack and Spitfire will appear in the series but they actually didn’t exist until the 1970s.

Will the two Buckys interact with each other?

Well, that’s something I’d like to see.

“... He said, coyly.”

[Laughs] That’s enough of a tease, right? After all, it’s not like I can say “He’s gonna meet him in issue #4 and they’re gonna go out and have scones.”

I love cinnamon scones. What about you?

It’s the breakfast of champions.

I think that’s Wheaties, actually. On a more serious note, can you comment on your affinity for characters from the ’40s?

I was always intrigued with these characters from a bygone age that by comparison with a modern art style seemed more like cave paintings. When you look at the earliest style of art given to characters like Superman and so many others, it’s a bizarre origin that was absolutely entrancing to me as a young boy.

Do you ever play, like, big band music to get yourself into the ’40s mode?

No, not at all.

So what type of music do you listen to then?

Uh, Queen doesn’t sound very ’40s-ish, do they? But I do like them as well as the Beatles, the Monkees and Badfinger.


You’re co-plotting Justice Society of America, but whose idea was it to bring in the Kingdom Come Superman?

That was mine. The thing that I miss about the Justice Society that I loved when I was a kid is the fact that they had an older Superman in the group. That was something that was really cool. Not just the idea that he was the first Superman but that here you have him as truly the patriarchal hero. And I made the recommendation that instead of the Earth-2 Superman who I had no idea was going to be revived in Infinite Crisis—

Geoff Johns didn’t tell you?

He did not tell me, no, because he is a sly bastard. [Laughs] I said we—he—should take the Kingdom Come Superman from that story, and then I immediately concocted a way in which we could do this. He’s taken from the middle of the story before the end of Kingdom Come when he’s still wearing the costume and everything.

How does that happen?

I can say that Starman is pivotally responsible for bringing him into the DC Universe.

How long will this Superman be hanging around?

We’ve yet to put a limit on that. I certainly wouldn’t have a grand objection to him being around a year or more. Then again, I don’t control Geoff. And he is a sly bastard. [Laughs]

Before Alex Ross returns to Marvel, he first returns to the universe he helped create in DC's critically-acclaimed Kingdom Come way back in 1996:

KINGDOM COME AGAIN
The JSA gets its most powerful member ever: 'Kingdom Come' Superman! Alex Ross and Geoff Johns explain the effects for the DCU's first superteam.

By Ben Morse

Posted September 4, 2007 2:00 PM

The Justice Society of America gains a powerful new member, and he may be just the guy who blows the entire DC Universe straight to Kingdom Come.

Beginning in September’s Justice Society of America #9, series cover artist Alex Ross revisits the dystopian future of the fully painted, 1996 classic that put him and writer Mark Waid on the map as comic book superstars, in which a weary Superman returned to contend with a new generation of unruly superheroes. Along with Justice Society of America writer Geoff Johns and artist Dale Eaglesham, Ross promises to shake up the DCU’s most tenured heroes as the Man of Steel from the world of Kingdom Come joins the ranks of the JSA.

“In many ways, this story is almost the opposite of Infinite Crisis,” explains Johns, who also penned that tale. “In that story, we had a Superman come here and look down on our world, judging it unfavorably. This Superman sees our world as almost being heaven.”

Ross quickly points out that while the Superman who joins the Justice Society arrives from the world of Kingdom Come, he comes from a point before the story concluded, a crucially important distinction: “The importance of [Kingdom Come] was that, just like Dark Knight Returns was to have been the very last Batman story, this was the last big story of the DC Universe,” explains Ross. “They hang up their costumes at the end. So this is not the guy from after the last page of Kingdom Come; he’s pulled right out of the story.”



That said, how could the Justice Society potentially affect the outcome of their new ally’s tragic future?

“Kingdom Come was more or less a world without a JSA,” notes Johns. “This story poses the question: If they had existed there, could they have made a difference?”

By the same token, the foreboding presence of the aged Man of Steel has some of the JSA’s younger members asking some hard questions. “It deeply affects Stargirl, who thinks she may ultimately fail to make a positive difference, but also some of the more troubled guys like Damage and Citizen Steel, who have to wonder if they could go wrong,” says Johns. “Does it make them try harder, or does it make them give up?”

While Kingdom Come may have been established as an alternate world in the new post-52 Multiverse, the presence of Superman serves to warn the JSA and the DCU that it could still well be what’s in store for them as well.

“Kingdom Come is a timeless story of warning of what not to let happen to your world,” insists Ross. “It’s not definitely the future of DC—but it’s a haunting future that could be.”


SOCIETY SEARCH
Take a closer look as Alex Ross reveals the exclusive secrets behind the JSA's whereabouts during 'Kingdom Come'!

POWER GIRL/POWER WOMAN
SOCIETY SCOOP: Superman’s feisty lieutenant during Kingdom Come, the all grown-up Power Woman displayed an even more aggressive attitude and pumped-up physique.

ROSS REVELATIONS: “I wanted to go back to the original [Power Girl artist] Wally Wood style, but also address that if she’s got these huge breasts, wouldn’t she also have this buff weightlifter type body? I based her upon this woman called Zap from the then-popular show ‘American Gladiators.’”

THE FLASH

SOCIETY SCOOP: The Kingdom Come version of the Flash incorporated visual elements of Jay Garrick, Barry Allen and Wally West. In writer Mark Waid’s follow-up The Kingdom, he revealed the Scarlet Speedster in question to be West, humanizing the character and portraying him as the father of twin children, one of whom became Kid Flash.

ROSS REVELATIONS: “The [Kingdom Come] Flash was always intended to be a combination of the three Flashes, and the character was to be called Mercury with the young female Flash just being the new Flash. But then [writer] Mark [Waid] had him show up just as ‘The Flash’ in the first issue and renamed her Kid Flash in The Kingdom. It was always intended that she would be the daughter of Wally West and Linda [Park].”


GREEN LANTERN

SOCIETY SCOOP: Stationed in his emerald city orbiting the Earth, the stoic Green Lantern of Kingdom Come broke away from the common man ostensibly to guard his planet from extraterrestrial threats. After subtle hints, the KC GL stands revealed as Alan Scott when he joins the United Nations at the end of the tale.

ROSS REVELATIONS: “It was meant to be a bit of a mystery—could that be an older Hal Jordan? He’s got both the Golden and Silver Age Green Lantern symbols on his armor, and was meant to resemble Hal as Parallax. Ultimately, it’s shown to be Alan Scott, and the clue is in the final battle when Green Arrow pierces his armor with wooden arrows.”


HAWKMAN

SOCIETY SCOOP: An environmental terrorist, the Hawkman in Kingdom Come bore an inhuman avian appearance that the original Winged Warrior’s godson Northwind would adopt six years later in the Geoff Johns-penned JSA.

ROSS REVELATIONS: “Leading up to Kingdom Come, [then-Hawkman writer] William Messner-Loebs had done a lot of work establishing the source of Hawkman’s Nth metal as being this other-dimensional Hawk god. I [took] that beast form of the Hawk god and [made] it the next housing for Prince Khufu, the original Egyptian version of Hawkman.”


DR. MID-NITE

SOCIETY SCOOP: A background player in Superman’s new Justice League, Dr. Mid-Nite appeared as little more than a cloud of smoke beneath the character’s familiar cape and cowl in Kingdom Come.

ROSS REVELATIONS: “In doing what I did with Red Robin, it took away so much of the look of Dr. Mid-Nite that when I got to Mid-Nite, I had to come up with something to make him look distinctly different.”


WILDCAT

SOCIETY SCOOP: An animalistic ally of Batman, Kingdom Come Wildcat’s background remained largely untapped. Tommy Bronson, the long-lost son of original Wildcat Ted Grant, recently showed up in Justice Society of America sporting a similar look.

ROSS REVELATIONS: “[The Kingdom Come] Wildcat was never intended to be Ted Grant. We don’t answer the question of what happened to Ted Grant, we just assume that…he would be too old to still be out there. One idea I had was that Ted Grant raised this new Wildcat who was dropped off on the doorstep of the JSA as a skinny cat-kid. He would be Ted’s spiritual descendant, but not literally his son.”


OBSIDIAN
SOCIETY SCOOP: Another of Batman’s covert operatives, Obsidian forsook his traditional spandex in Kingdom Come for a pulpy jacket and fedora.

ROSS REVELATIONS: “[The design is 1940s pulp hero] the Shadow. The [current day] Obsidian is in his 20s, so 20 years from now [when Kingdom Come takes place], would he be wearing the same spandex outfit?”


CYCLONE/RED TORNADO
SOCIETY SCOOP: Though she didn’t play a significant role, a redheaded bombshell with powers of wind manipulation calling herself Red Tornado did show up in Kingdom Come a decade before Maxine Hunkel became Cyclone in Justice Society of America.

ROSS REVELATIONS: “When Geoff was telling me about [Cyclone], I asked if she could be a redhead to hint that she’s [Red Tornado] from Kingdom Come. In Kingdom Come, I based the character on Cindy Crawford and made her a super-fox, but in [Justice Society of America], she’s more of a ‘girl next door’ type. My idea is that she has a bit of a Gwen Stefani look, where she’s a bit more approachable when she’s younger, but she’ll mature into that ‘va-vavoom kitty’ in the future.”


SANDMAN

SOCIETY SCOOP: Three years before Sanderson Hawkins experienced a rebirth as Sand in JSA, Ross had the former Sandy the Golden Boy eschew the gas mask of his mentor Wesley Dodds—whose death set the events of Kingdom Come into motion—for the traditional superhero outfit of another former Sandman.

ROSS REVELATIONS: “I loved that old [1970s Jack] Kirby costume (inset). That was the very first Kirby comic I ever got as a kid, and it was a f---ing awesome costume, cooler than anything I had seen done with the Sandman. The coolest thing about Kingdom Come was that I had the chance to pay homage to anything I wanted to in any way I wanted to."

Alex Ross' upcoming Marvel project

Alex Ross is coming back to Marvel soon! I so can't wait:

From Wizard Universe:

FIRST LOOK: ALEX ROSS
We put the spotlight on the superstar painter’s new ‘Avengers’ book and his ‘Escapists’ cover!

By Andy Serwin

Posted August 31, 2007 9:20 AM

What’s this deal with this new Avengers book, and who’s involved?

It’s a 12-issue Avengers/Invaders project. I’m painting covers and co-plotting, Jim Krueger’s writing it and Steve Sadowski (JSA) is drawing it. It’s meant to be in continuity, with the world as it is post Civil War, and the timing of how the Invaders come into the modern day is meant to be for the shock value of seeing the young Namor, Captain America and Bucky together in the their prime, and maybe some culture shock reaction to the modern age of superheroes. This kind of event would have to poise the opposing groups of Avengers against each other to manage [the Invaders] in their timeline. If in fact that’s what these guys are, if they’re not Skrulls or something! [Laughs]

It’s been almost four years since Paradise X, your last project for Marvel; why hook up with them now?

This is in every way shape and form due to Dynamic Forces. Nick Barrucci has been my olive branch to mend fences and open new relationships. He has created this idea himself, and he’s brought in myself and Jim Krueger and is making a future for us back at our alma mater of sorts.

How did this Escapists cover come about for Dark Horse?

I’ve collected all of the Escapists comics, and I have respect for what [Michael] Chabon accomplished. I had a reaction to the simplistic archetype that he created in the Escapist. When I first heard the name, I thought, “That’s an awesome comic character name.”

Alex Ross returns to Marvel!

Well, if you've read the article I posted up two days ago, you'd already know that Alex Ross is coming back to Marvel Comics. What we DIDN'T know though was what title he was going to be on, specifically.

We now know:



ALEX ROSS RETURNS TO MARVEL!
The superstar painter talks about his upcoming 12-issue ‘Avengers-Invaders’ and other dream collaborations within the House of Ideas

By Andy Serwin

Posted August 14, 2007 12:15 PM

The House of Ideas gets a new coat of paint with its latest blockbuster announcement, and none other than superstar painter Alex Ross will be holding the brush.

Marvel announced today at Marvel.com that Ross, along with Marvels and Justice collaborator Jim Krueger and penciler Steven Sadowski (JSA), will be the creative team on Avengers-Invaders, a 12-issue miniseries kicking off sometime in 2008 that features Earth’s Mightiest Heroes meeting up with their World War II predecessors, led by the original Captain America, Steve Rogers. Ross will paint covers and co-plot with Krueger, while Sadowski provides penciled art for the interiors.

Marvel Comics teased fans mercilessly at Wizard World Chicago last weekend with a painted promo image of Captain America with the enigmatic catchphrase “The Return” across the Sentinel of Liberty’s chest, prompting the fanboy nation to speculate that the Star-Spangled Avenger—killed by an assassin in Captain America #25—was returning from the grave. However, it was in fact a tease of Ross’ return to Marvel, as his last work for the publisher was nearly four years ago with the completion of Paradise X. Wizarduniverse.com talked to Ross to get his take on this titanic team-up, his return to Marvel and making the Sub-Mariner a redhead!

I know you’re a big comics history buff; do you have a favorite issue or memory of the Invaders?

ROSS: What I’d say the best adventure involving crossing over a team with the Invaders before was Fantastic Four Annual #11. It was drawn by John Buscema back in the 1970s, where the Fantastic Four found themselves teamed up with the Invaders when they all invaded a castle where Baron Zemo was working. That’s actually the event that led to Baron Zemo’s mask being covered with the adhesive that secured it to his face forever. I had that as a kid, and I always remembered that as an awesome use of those characters. There was something very dated to the 1940s that was captured by Buscema. The way they were shown, the way they behaved, is very different from what our modern perceptions of Namor and Captain America were. Keep in mind that the Invaders only have one survivor now in modern day, in current continuity, and that’s Namor.

You’ve painted and drawn most of the characters before, but this will be a whole new setting; anyone in particular you’re looking forward to tackling?

ROSS: The fact that I’ve started my history with comics and Marvel with the Human Torch, it makes me want to get back to not just that, but particularly Toro is somebody I barely ever touched on. The idea of a flaming little kid is something I think is hysterical and awesome. How can that not be cool? The kid is on fire, that’s awesome—as all children should be. [Laughs] Graphically, I look forward to that. I look forward to trying to approximate the old Bill Everett version of Sub-Mariner. Every illustration I did in Marvels of Sub-Mariner, you could look at and see I actually made him have red hair. That’s one of the early things of the character that has been wiped out, and I’d like to try and bring in as much of that as I can. [Laughs]

This clearly opens up some doors for you to do future stuff at Marvel; any thought to what you might do beyond this? Anything you’d like to do?

ROSS: As it is with this stuff related to Captain America and the Invaders, I may be getting the chance to talk with Ed Brubaker soon. Whether or not I’d ever work with him in the future, I don’t know, but I’m just a big fan. I’m a big fan of the lot of the stuff I’ve read at Marvel over the last few years, particularly what guys like Brian Michael Bendis and Brubaker have done. I just have admiration for the solid writing that I’ve read from these guys.


Ah. So Steve Rogers really IS returning...just now to the regular real-time Marvel Universe, as originally suspected. :( I'm sure they'll find some way to bring him back sometime soon though.

And although Ross only does the cover art, it'd still be worth getting this series for me, as Steve Sadowski has proven his artistic chops on JSA. Looking forward to this one!