More of Jim Lee's comics...for Jim Lee to sign!

Went to the Camberwell Fair at the Camberwell Civic Centre yesterday morning...and there were quite a number of sellers there with comic book stock! Old issues, really really old issues from the Silver Age and new issues as well...I'm sure if I spent more time there and hunted around, I probably could have picked up single issue comic book gold like Amazing Spider-man #129 (1st appearance of the Punisher) and The Incredible Hulk #181 (1st appearance of Wolverine)...not that I could afford it.

I was there with two friends, Marcelo and Kim, so that was a good thing because I'm sure I could have spent AGES there browsing through all the wares. I went to each seller's booth though, just to quickly check out the wares and have a feel for where I thought I could get the best bargain or where I would find something I would purchase. Eventually stopped at the corner booth where they seemed to have the most variety (and the most number of) comics.

The seller was very informative and from chatting to him, he was a true comics fan...who actually read his comics! There are a lot of collectors who simply purchase comics because of the perceived (real or otherwise) increase in value after a period of time and they are more in the business to make money than true comic book fans. This guy certainly was not like that.

I wish I caught his name, but he worked in Evil Empire Comics in Coburg. He definitely knew his stuff though, because when I picked up some X-Men comics, he engaged me in a conversation about going to Armageddon 2008 because Jim Lee was there and we started chatting about the storylines in X-Men. In the particular bundle of comics I was browsing through, he was telling me that it had some valuable issues like issues #1 (still the best selling single comic of all-time with five variant covers...though there was only the gatefold cover),#25 (part of the Fatal Attractions storyline where Wolverine had the adamantium yanked out of his body) and #30 (wedding of Scott Summers and Jean Grey).

I mean, I knew all that information already, but it was nice chatting to someone who actually knew his stuff! So we talked about Jim Lee being at Armageddon and how, in that bundle, there were only 11 issues or so actually illustrated by him. It was nice that he actually warned me about that in case I thought all the comics in the bundle was illustrated by Jim...as I said, I already knew that, but it was information that was much appreciated.

So how could one not purchase something from his store? I bought the bundle of the first 30 issues of X-Men, which I used to own many many years ago but didn't anymore. There was another bundle for the first 80 issues, but not only was it more expensive (obviously), but I actually owned a lot of those issues already back in Singapore. I couldn't remember which issue I started from exactly so I thought it was probably better just to get the smaller and more inexpensive bundle of single issues...if I were missing out on certain issues from my collection I'm sure I could always obtain them from elsewhere!

So now I've got 30 issues of X-Men to read finish before this Saturday...or at least those issues drawn by Jim Lee, since I want to bring them all for him to sign at Armageddon 2008! I've already got Absolute Batman: Hush, All-Star Batman and Robin the Boy Wonder Vol.1 HC and Fantastic Four: Heroes Reborn TPB for Jim to sign.

Only five more days to go. To coin an Australian phrase: How excitement!

[PREVIEW] Ultimate Fantastic Four #48

So many things Ultimate this week! Here's a preview of Ultimate Fantastic Four #48, and a teaser of the newest Ultimate-universe villain making their debut:


[PREVIEW] ULTIMATE FANTASTIC FOUR #48
What new Ultimate villain will make their debut in this issue?

Posted November 10, 2007 9:45 AM

What new Ultimate villain will make their debut in this issue? Lost in the snowy vastness of Siberia, Reed, Ben and Johnny discover what they never hoped to find—the wreckage of Susan Storm's aircraft! Who brought Sue down, and has the Invisible Woman disappeared for good? What does this all have to do with the Crimson Dynamo? Is his arrival coincidence, or part of a much larger, sinister scheme?

ULTIMATE FANTASTIC FOUR #48
Written by MIKE CAREY
Penciled by MARK BROOKS
Cover by MARK BROOKS
Rated A…$2.99
On Sale—11/14/07

Now, Ultimate Fantastic Four has had some fantastic pencillers in the past. Adam Kubert, Greg Land...some spanking art has been contributed. And while Mark Brooks is no pushover when it comes to art I must say that I don't think his cartoony style fits in the Ultimate-verse. I think he'd be more comfortable working on a "humour" title like Deadpool and even perhaps one of the Spidey titles (not Ultimate Spidey though!)...his art just doesn't "click" with the rest of the art on the Ultimate Fantastic Four series so far.

[PREVIEW] Mythos: Fantastic Four

Check out the stunning artwork featured in this new Fantastic Four series!

Wizard Universe reports:


[PREVIEW] MYTHOS: FANTASTIC FOUR
Check out these pages from a fully painted retelling of the FF’s origins

Posted October 29, 2007 3:50 PM

The prestigious Mythos format returns as we find out how Marvel’s First Family became the team they are today! Paul Jenkins tells the tale while Paolo Rivera delivers the beautiful fully painted origin of the Fantastic Four!

MYTHOS: FANTASTIC FOUR
Written by PAUL JENKINS
Penciled by PAOLO RIVERA
Cover by PAOLO RIVERA
Rated A…$3.99
On sale 10/31/07

[PREVIEW] Ultimate Power #8

Ultimate Power, drawn by Greg Land, is soon coming to an end! I can't wait to buy the final two issues and then put the entire series together and read it in one sitting.

Here's a preview of issue #8:


[PREVIEW] ULTIMATE POWER #8
Who’s throwing the Ultimates off their game as they battle the Squadron Supreme?

Posted October 28, 2007 10:15 AM

A new player has been thrown into this cosmic game of survival, upsetting the plans of S.H.I.E.L.D. Director Nick Fury. The Ultimates suddenly find themselves at the lowest point in their struggle against the Squadron Supreme. And that’s very bad news for our Earth.

ULTIMATE POWER #8
Written by JEPH LOEB
Penciled by GREG LAND
Cover by GREG LAND
Rated T+…$2.99
On sale 10/31/07

Comic Book Movie Poll

Wizard Universe has got a fabulous comic book movie poll! Go log onto their site and vote for your favourite answers!

I'll be commenting on which my selections would be within the post.

COMIC BOOK MOVIE POLL
Best actor? Sexiest heroine? Worst movie? Tell us what you think about your favorite (or least favorite) comic book movies!

Posted October 8, 2007 11:45 AM

Here at Wizard, our favorite types of movies are, of course, those based on comic books. We can be the biggest critics, but now, we’d like to hear what you think! We’ve assembled a few questions about comic book movies that have come out already and would like to know your opinions! Check for the results in the next Wizard Movie Spectacular issue, on sale Dec. 5th in comic book shops!

Of the following, which male actor gave the best performance as a superhero in a movie based on a comic book?
Hugh Jackman as Logan/Wolverine in “X-Men”
Tobey Maguire as Peter Parker/Spider-Man in “Spider-Man”
Ron Perlman as Hellboy in “Hellboy”
Welsey Snipes as Blade in “Blade”
Christopher Reeve as Clark Kent/Superman in “Superman”
Christian Bale as Bruce Wayne/Batman in “Batman Begins”

This is a tough one. A VERY tough one. I'd have to think long and hard before actually voting for this one. I love Maguire's turn in Spider-man, just like I loved Jackman's role as Wolverine. But because Christopher Reeve preceded them a good 20+ years ago, that would have to be my vote.


Which of the following female actors gave the best performance as a non-superheroine in a movie based on a comic book?
Natalie Portman as Evey in “V for Vendetta”
Lena Headey as Queen Gorgo in “300”
Hope Davis as Joyce Brabner in “American Splendor”
Rachel Weisz as Angela/Isabel Dodson in “Constantine”
Thora Birch as Enid in “Ghost World”

Not much choice, eh? I really like Thora Birch in Ghost World, but this one would easily be Natalie Portman. And no, I'm not biased or anything. :p


Who is the hottest movie superheroine?
Helen Slater as Supergirl in “Supergirl”
Halle Berry as Storm in the “X-Men” movies
Famke Janssen as Jean Grey in the “X-Men” movies
Pamela Anderson as Barb Wire in “Barb Wire”
Jessica Alba as the Invisible Woman in the “Fantastic Four” movies
Alicia Silverstone as Batgirl in “Batman and Robin”

Ugh. Who's the hottest movie superheroine or who's the hottest out of all these women who HAPPEN to play a movie superheroine? Ask me ten years ago, I would have easily answered Alicia Silverstone. I didn't like Alba's bimbo-esque Sue Storm though, so I'm giving this to Famke Janssen, just because I loved her interpretation of Jean Grey...though Jean could have been so much hotter.


Which of the following is the best movie based on a Dark Horse comic book?
“Sin City”
“300”
“Hellboy”
“The Mask”
“Mystery Men”

Close one between Sin City and 300. And I really loved Hellboy too. But I think I'll go Sin City.


Which of the following has done the best job directing a comic book movie?
Sam Raimi (“Spider-Man” movies)
Christopher Nolan (“Batman Begins”)
Zack Snyder (“300”)
Guillermo del Toro (“Hellboy”)
Bryan Singer (“X-Men” and “X2”)
Robert Rodriguez/Frank Miller (“Sin City”)

Bryan Singer for sure. Not only did her predate the rest of the directors for comic book movies, he almost singlehandedly revived the genre with the success of X-men, after Batman and Robin pretty much crippled the comic book movie market. Plus Sam Raimi gets knocked down a few rungs because of certain scenes in Spidey 3.


Which of the following was the coolest shout-out to die-hard fans in a comic book movie?
The Fastball Special in “X-Men: The Last Stand”
Sentinel head in “X-Men: The Last Stand”
Stan Lee not being able to get into Sue and Reed’s wedding in “Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer”
Uncle Ben telling Peter, “With great power comes great responsibility” in “Spider-Man”
The appearance of a dormant Roger the Homunculus in the BPRD headquarters in “Hellboy”
The appearance of Willie Lumpkin the mailman in “Fantastic Four”

Stan Lee not getting into the FF wedding was hilarious. Uncle Ben's speech to Peter was poignant and fantastic...just a classic moment. I hated the Fastball special. But I think, to answer the question, the coolest shout-out for comic book fans had to tbe the Sentinel head.


Which of the following comic book movie moments gave you the biggest goose bumps?
Christopher Reeve as Clark Kent ripping his shirt open to reveal the big “S” on his chest in “Superman”
Christopher Reeve as Superman heralding his return by saying, “General, would you care to step outside?” in “Superman II”
Hugh Jackman as Wolverine baring his claws for the first time during the fight in the seedy Canadian bar in “X-Men”
Michael Keaton as Batman saying, “I’m Batman” in Tim Burton’s “Batman”
The first time Nicolas Cage as Johnny Blaze transforms into Ghost Rider in “Ghost Rider”

The comic book movie moment that gave me the biggest goosebumps isn't one of the choices...it was in X-Men 2 when Colossus "armoured up" for the first time. But that isn't one of the choices, so I'll go with Christopher Reeve ripping his shirt open. Such an iconic image.


Of the following, which was the best one-liner in a comic book movie?
“You’re a d--k.” –Wolverine to Cyclops in “X-Men”
“What do they call you? Wheels?” -Wolverine to Prof. X in “X-Men”
“I’m giving away money, and where is the Batman? He’s at home, washing his tights!” –Joker to henchman in “Batman”
“Do you know why the number 200 is so vitally descriptive to both you and me? It’s your weight and my I.Q.” –Lex Luthor to Otis in “Superman”
“That’s a cute outfit. Did your husband give it to you?” –Spider-Man to Bonesaw McGraw in “Spider-Man”

"Wheels!" Easily, out of the other choices. There are so many more classic one-liners though, and I've got so many other favourites than those listed here.


Which superhero looked best in their panel-to-screen translation?
Daredevil in “Daredevil”
Ghost Rider in “Ghost Rider”
Superman in “Superman”
Batman in “Batman Begins”
Spider-Man in “Spider-Man”

Spider-man. Superman did look kinda cheesy in his costume even though he made everyone believe a man can fly. And while Batman really looks awesome, it's gotta be Spidey, simply because of the acrobatics involved when swinging around in New York City and the breathtaking camera angles.


Which is your favorite comic book movie city?
New York in “Spider-Man”
Gotham City in “Batman”
Gotham City in “Batman Begins”
Metropolis in “Superman Returns”
Sin City in “Sin City”

Sin City comes close, but let's go with the ONLY city listed there based on a real city: New York.


Which is your favorite headquarters in a comic book movie?
Xavier’s Mansion (“X-Men”)
Matt Murdock’s apartment (“Daredevil”)
Fortress of Solitude (“Superman” and “Superman II”)
BPRD headquarters (“Hellboy”)
The Batcave (“Batman”)
The Baxter Building (“Fantastic Four”)

Xavier's Mansion. Because we got to see so many cool cameos within the mansion. Plus, Danger Room!


Which of the following is the coolest comic book movie vehicle?
The Fantasticar in “Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer”
Ghost Rider’s motorcycle in “Ghost Rider”
The Tumbler in “Batman Begins”
The X-Jet in “X-Men” and “X2”
The Batmobile in “Batman”
Green Goblin’s rocket sled in “Spider-Man”

I thought the Tumbler would look ridiculous before actually seeing the movie, but it came off really well. So that's my coolest comic book movie vehicle...mainly because that really could be something that could be developed in real life. For a long time, I thought the original Batmobile from Burton's Batman was awesome though. I still do...Tumbler edges it out though.


Which of the following comic book movies had the best special effects?
“X-Men: The Last Stand”
“Spider-Man 3”
“Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer”
“Ghost Rider”
“Hellboy”

I'd actually have gone with X-Men 2. But since those are the choices...I think I've got to go with Spider-man 3 because of Venom!


Which is the best series of comic book movie films?
“X-Men,” “X2” and “X-Men: The Last Stand”
“Superman,” Superman II,” “Superman III” and “Superman IV: The Quest for Peace”
“Batman,” “Batman Returns,” “Batman Forever” and “Batman and Robin”
“Spider-Man,” “Spider-Man 2” and “Spider-Man 3”
“Fantastic Four” and “Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer”
“Blade,” “Blade II” and “Blade: Trinity”

OoOo...tough one. The first two Superman movies are perhaps the most iconic comic book movies of all time. But III and IV were just poo. I liked Batman, but being lumped with Batman and Robin means it's out of contention. Only watched Blade and not the other. Fantastic Four was ok...nothing spectacular compared to the rest. Even though X-Men 2 is probably my favourite comic book movie of all time so far, I'd have to go with the Spider-man series.


Which of the following theatrical releases was the worst movie based on a comic book?
“Howard the Duck”
“The Punisher” (1989)
“Superman IV: The Quest for Peace”
“Batman and Robin”
“Steel”

What, you mean there's a choice? Batman and Robin wins hands down EVERY TIME.


What is your favorite straight-to-DVD animated movie from the past two years?
“Hellboy Animated: Sword of Storms”
“Hellboy Animated: Blood and Iron”
“Ultimate Avengers”
“Ultimate Avengers II”
“The Invincible Iron Man”
“Doctor Strange: The Sorcerer Supreme”
“Superman Doomsday”

Really hard to choose, since I've only watched Ultimate Avengers I and II. I'll go with Ultimate Avengers though.


Who’s your favorite X-Men movie villain?
Sir Ian McKellen as Magneto in all movies
Vinnie Jones as Juggernaut in “X-Men: The Last Stand”
Brian Cox as Stryker in “X2”
Aaron Stanford as Pyro in “X2” and “X-Men: The Last Stand”
Tyler Mane as Sabretooth in “X-Men”
Rebecca Romijn as Mystique in all movies

Geez, the deck is stacked in this choice. Obviously Magneto.


Who’s your favorite Batman movie villain?
Jack Nicholson as the Joker in “Batman”
Liam Neeson as Ra’s Al Ghul in “Batman Begins”
Michelle Pfeiffer as Catwoman in “Batman Returns”
Jim Carrey as Riddler in “Batman Forever”
Uma Thurman as Poison Ivy in “Batman and Robin”

As much as I liked Jack Nicholson as the Joker, Ra's Al Ghul, portrayed by Liam Neeson, wins hands down.


Who’s your favorite Spider-Man movie villain?
Willem Dafoe as Green Goblin in “Spider-Man”
Topher Grace as Venom in “Spider-Man 3”
Thomas Haden Church as Sandman in “Spider-Man 3”
Alfred Molina as Doc Ock in “Spider-Man 2”
James Franco as the new Green Goblin in “Spider-Man 3”

VENOM! Actually, no, because he wasn't given that much screen time. Topher Grace was awesome as a big jerkoff though. I'd vote for Dock Ock for this one.


Which was Stan Lee’s best cameo?
As a security guard in “Hulk”
As a hot dog vendor in “X-Men”
As a man dodging debris in “Spider-Man”
As Willie Lumpkin in “Fantastic Four”
As himself in “Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer”

Hot dog vendor! I suppose his most SIGNIFICANT role would be as Willie Lumpkin, but hot dog vendor was the first classic appearance.

First Look: Millar and Hitch's Fantastic Four

It's coming! It's coming! What's coming that's making so excited, you ask? Well, anything new in the Ultimate universe, for one. I just can't wait to read the first issue of Jeph Loeb and Joe Madureira's The Ultimates Season 3 when it's released in December.

I love seeing old Ultimate-universe teams being reunited too. Former The Ultimates collaborators, Mark Millar and Bryan Hitch, are making the jump to the normal Marvel Universe when they take on Marvel's first family, the Fantastic Four, next year.

Wizard Universe has some previews!

WIZARD FIRST LOOK: MILLAR AND HITCH'S FANTASTIC FOUR
Check out Bryan Hitch's brand-new art as he takes over Marvel's first family with Mark Millar

By Ben Morse

Posted September 26, 2007 9:00 AM

Why Fantastic Four?

After five years and 26 issues of bloody fights, politics, sex and other mature themes in Ultimates, why would writer Mark Millar and artist Bryan Hitch choose the one Marvel title that screams “family friendly” more than any other for their next collaboration?

“The honest reason is that it was my favorite Marvel book as a kid,” admits Millar. “Stan Lee and Jack Kirby’s first 100 issues were just perfect. Every Fantastic Four story since has been a retread. The idea of trying to add to that brilliant legacy is a poisoned chalice in a lot of ways because the book has never touched those heights again.”

Hitch, like his partner, relishes the challenge of returning the one-time “World’s Greatest Comic Book” to its early peak.

“High concept and characterization is something Mark is excellent at, and the big-scale science fiction and quiet character moments are things you can happily throw at me,” expresses the artist.

With the Millar/Hitch regime set to kick off with January’s Fantastic Four #554, both men have been working overtime to put things in place for the grand opening. Over the next few pages, enjoy the fruits of the duo’s labors thus far.

NEW FRIENDS
MILLAR: “An ex-girlfriend of Reed’s shows up and brings basically the worst news possible for the FF at the end of our first issue. She needs Reed’s help, and Reed will have to leave the team and go off with her. To me, the FF was always at its best when it took stuff that happens to real families to that fantastic level, and here it’s an old love threatening the family.”

HITCH: “The most fun character for me has been Ben’s new girlfriend, Debbie, a schoolteacher and essentially the replacement in the family for Alicia Masters. She provides that completely human voice and perspective to these bizarre lives the FF lead but which they think are perfectly ordinary.”

NEW FOES
MILLAR: “Johnny’s dating a supervillain. There’s a scene where he’s fighting this girl who is robbing a place, but she’s hot so he starts kissing her and can’t help himself. He figures she didn’t kill anybody. [Laughs] There’s also a guy named Cap who I won’t get into details about, but he’s the villain of the first four issues.”

MOVING FORWARD

MILLAR: “It’s the classic FF better than you’ve ever seen them drawn. Bryan is taking it to a new 21st century level.”

HITCH: “Everything I did on Ultimates I had to learn from scratch because I didn’t feel a natural affinity for drawing real-world stuff. I learned to draw off the weird, silly stuff. Fantastic Four works very nicely because I have all the elements of big-scale stuff and then intimate character stuff at my disposal. It’s more fun, it’s more fluid and it’s faster because it’s nowhere near as dense or saturated as Ultimates.”

DOCTOR DOOM
MILLAR: “You always think of the FF as a family structure, and to me Doctor Doom is the weird uncle. He’s the one who shows up drunk at Christmas. We’re going to bring him back, but the plan is to use him in a way that has never been utilized before.”

HITCH: “Doom really is the first member of Reed’s family, his evil half-brother. Right now, apart from several covers he’s featured on, I haven’t really gotten to delve into Doom as a character yet. We’ll absolutely be keeping the classic armor; it’s the only way to go. It’s great for what it is. I could put in more detail or make it more form fitting, but it’s Doctor Doom.”

MR. FANTASTIC
REED RICHARDS

MILLAR: “Reed is really Marvel’s George Clooney. He’s clearly the world’s smartest man, but he’s also fantastically handsome and an amazing adventurer. I really want it to be like all the girls are reading the National Enquirer and being like, ‘Oh my God, Reed and Sue’s marriage is on the rocks—wouldn’t it be great to f--- Mr. Fantastic?’”

HITCH: “Indiana Jones is an archaeologist, and on paper that sounds dull, but look what they did with him. I’m equating Reed with guys like Harrison Ford or Pierce Brosnan.”


THE INVISIBLE WOMAN
SUE RICHARDS

MILLAR: “What would it take to capture the heart of the world’s smartest man? It can’t just be that she’s beautiful. She isn’t a scientist and can’t talk with Reed about a lot of what he’s interested in, so there must be something wonderfully charismatic about her. To me, they’ve got the most interesting relationship in comics.”

HITCH: “I thought there was no reason the suit couldn’t be a little sexier to show a bit of skin, but not too much. When she’s not in costume, I like to have her with her hair down and no shoes on because she’s very happy and comfortable in the Baxter Building.”


THE HUMAN TORCH
JOHNNY STORM

MILLAR: “He’s probably the most fun character to write. He’s a male Paris Hilton. He would totally be in a club with friends one night and say, ‘Dude, we should make an album,’ spend six months as a rock star, have his record bomb, then move on to something else. He’s got a good heart, but he’s also incredibly superficial.”

HITCH: “The guy doesn’t feel cold, so I gave him short sleeves and a costume that’s more like extreme sports wear. The fire effect will be rendered several different ways by [colorist] Paul Mounts, and we’ll be doing things like using the flame as a light source.”


THE THING
BEN GRIMM

MILLAR: “In the ’60s, pre-Wolverine, he was the Marvel badass. The guy you didn’t want angry at you was Ben Grimm. But also, he’s the heart of the Fantastic Four, the guy that grounds them.”

HITCH: “I was determined to make [Ben] more socially expressive and human under there. He’s almost like a burn victim physically, but the eyes are still human, not cartoon circles. In the [‘Fantastic Four’] movies, you can’t see any of Michael Chiklis [the actor who plays the Thing] under that makeup, so he had to act with his eyes.”

Ultimates team to do UFF!

Yay! One of my favourite creative teams of the 00s is reuniting in the Ultimate universe! While they won't be doing The Ultimates anymore, they WILL be doing Ultimate Fantastic Four. Wizard has this report:

‘FANTASTIC’ NEWS
‘Ultimates’ team of Millar-Hitch tapped for ‘Fantastic Four’

By Ben Morse

Posted September 2, 2007 11:30 AM

Fantastic Four gets a truly “ultimate” creative team when the acclaimed Ultimates duo of writer Mark Millar and artist Bryan Hitch comes on board in 2008 as the new regular creators chronicling the adventures of Marvel’s First Family. On the heels of the official announcement made at Wizard World Chicago, Millar talked about taking hold of the reins on “The World’s Greatest Comic Magazine.”

WIZARD: How did you and Bryan end up taking on Fantastic Four as your first post-Ultimates gig together?

MILLAR: We were actually going to take over Astonishing X-Men and had been talking about doing a big X-Men project for awhile. But that seemed like another monumental thing [coming off Ultimates], like we were jumping into a project even bigger than [the one we just did]. [Bryan] felt kind of wary about it, and I think he fancied taking it easy for a year and then doing something a bit lighter, self-contained and fun. Fantastic Four was the one.

What is the crux of your plans for the book?

What we’re doing is really a response to what happened to the FF during Civil War. Instead of a family breaking up, [our run will be] all about a family coming together.

How long are you planning on sticking around?

I’m going to do at least 15 or 16 issues.

Given that Ultimates had some trouble shipping on time, how far ahead are you guys on this one?

We managed to do the first issue in seven weeks. Everybody thinks that Bryan draws for two hours a day or something, but he’s sitting there for like 10 hours a day. He’ll spend a day just on a panel sometimes. But we’ve both agreed there will be no delays [on Fantastic Four].

How does Fantastic Four contrast to Ultimates for you and Bryan?

In a way, [Fantastic Four] is the antithesis of Ultimates. Ultimates was all about how real you can make superheroes, but I think you’re making a big mistake if you go in that direction with Fantastic Four. They’re not called the Mundane Four or the Ordinary Four. [Laughs] You have to make it almost a cartoon where anything can happen, and no idea is too silly.



I'm crossing my fingers and hoping that the issues will be on time, or at least NOT horribly late.

The Iron Man movie!

Read the rest of Ultimate Fantastic Four Vol.3 HC yesterday afternoon after I decided that I wanted to come home instead of working...I hadn't had a regular seven hours of sleep over the last couple of days, partially because of the new Wii.

It's absolutely brilliant...Mark Millar's creativity and imagination really made it seem like Ultimate Fantastic Four really WAS the "World's Greatest Magazine", a title that was given to the original Fantastic Four comic series. I'm sure his work on UFF would be compared to Stan Lee and Jack Kirby's legendary run on Fantastic Four.

Lee and Kirby gave us Galactus, the Silver Surfer, the Watcher and so much other brilliant stuff on their seminal run. Mark Millar didn't really create any new characters apart from the Marvel Zombies, but his re-imagining of the world the UFF live in, as well as new takes on the Skrulls, Namor, Alicia Masters and the Frightful Four just reminds one of how ground-breaking his work on the title was. Who would imagine the Marvel Zombies' version of the Fantastic Four would be the UFF's Frightful Four? And it's always nice to see that the heroes of New York actually interact with each other rather than being separate entities, with the Ultimates being a major part of the Ultimate Frightful Four story arc that ends Millar' and Land's run.

While I was in Melbourne yesterday morning waiting for the train back to Geelong, I browsed through the new issue of Empire as they had pictures of the new Iron Man armour that ws going to be used in the movie. Wow...pretty awesome as far as metallic red and gold go! The armour has a classic look, but updated for modern sensibilities.

Check out how awesome this armour looks...you will believe a man can fly in that thing and that it's not just some immovable clunky rock!

Iron Man Armour pics

While you're there, look how good Robert Downey Jr looks as Tony Stark. I remember someone on MTGParadise actually saying that Downey doesn't look the part, but he certainly does, PLUS he's got the acting chops to pull off playing one of the Marvel Universe's most complex characters.

Oh! Just found this out when browsing the imdb entry for Iron Man...Samuel L. Jackson is going to be in it...as NICK FURY! Omigod! They're doing the Nick Fury from the Ultimates universe, in which he's black, bald and looks EXACTLY like Jackson! Wowee. Can't wait to see how good he'll look as Marvel's premier super agent on screen.

Gwyneth Paltrow plays Pepper Potts and Terrence Howard (from "Hustle and Flow") plays Jim Rhodes. And Hilary Swank also has a role in the movie, but they haven't credited her as to which part she's playing yet...my guess it'd be one of Tony Stark's lovers. No word on whether long-time Stark associate Happy Hogan is going to be in the movie. If Pepper Potts is going to be Tony's love interest, then my guess is Happy Hogan won't make the movie.

Empire magazine also had word on some other movies. The fourth Indiana Jones movie will be out next year too...man, Harrison Ford has aged SO much. He really looks like an old man in the preview pictures. There's going to be Narnia 2 coming out next year too! There are seven fantasy novels C.S. Lewis wrote about The Chronicles of Narnia, so perhaps it'll be like the seven Harry Potter movies! It certainly makes sense, from a money-making perspective.

I'd like to see more of Roald Dahl's (my favourite children's book writer of all time) work made into movies.

Ultimate FF: The debut of the Marvel Zombies!

Not much on the comics front today. I finally opened up the Vol.3 HC of Ultimate Fantastic Four and read the first couple of issues of Mark Millar's and Greg Land's run on that title.

The first arc was also the arc that gave birth to the uber popular Marvel Zombies who's popularity just keeps going up and up and up. Then the second arc introduces the Four to the lost continent of Atlantis...and when there's Atlantis, you know who can't be far behind: Namor! What I really loved about Millar and Land's Namor though, is that he's not who you THINK he is. I remember reading those issues for the first time last year and the twist threw me for a loop. Fantastic stuff.

Greg Land's art is just spectacular as well: lush and sensual and photo-realistic. One might argue that it's photorealistic only because Land does a lot of photo-referencing...and tracing.

Cue random Kevin Smith pop culture reference from Chasing Amy:

"Your mother's a tracer!"

Check out Greg Land's Wikipedia article:

Greg Land - Controversy

But hey, his artwork is gorgeous to look at, whether he traces or not.

I remember seeing a recent Morbius ad which had artwork by Greg Land. Looked very much like a Gene Simmons pose, if you ask me!

A "Civil War" Memorial in Chicago

More on Mark Millar, including his upcoming comics and more artwork of Bryan Hitch's Fantastic Four!

[WWC] A ‘CIVIL WAR’ MEMORIAL IN CHICAGO
Mark Millar reflects on the ramifications of registration and touches on a handful of new Marvel projects, including Fantastic Four with Bryan Hitch and 1985 with Tommy Lee Edwards
By Brian Warmoth

Posted August 11, 2007 3:05 PM

Mourning was not on Mark Millar’s to-do list Saturday at Marvel’s “Civil War: In Remembrance” panel. The writer who scripted the superhero clash that rocked the Marvel Universe in 2007 accompanied Joe Quesada and Jim McCann at Wizard World Chicago to look back at Civil War and respond to audience questions about the event—as well as spring a surprise look at his upcoming Fantastic Four run with Bryan Hitch and 1985: Haunted with Tommy Lee Edwards.

“I know this is the Civil War panel, but I think we’ll get started on time,” joked McCann, kicking the program off with an allusion to the title’s shipping delays. Quesada went straight to a question-and-answer session—though Millar interrupted with an important disclosure.

“I’d just like to point out to you that I’m naked from the waist down,” the writer pointed out, punctuating Quesada’s welcome.

Leading the long line of fan queries, one attendee asked if the rest of the world’s reactions to registration and Civil War would be addressed. “From the Scottish perspective, anything said outside America—even I’m not interested,” Millar said.

Asked both if he had any regrets and if there was anything he would have included given a second chance to write Civil War, Millar didn’t miss a chance to jest. “I wish we’d made them $4.95,” he smiled. As for extras he would have included in hindsight, he only shrugged, “When you killed Goliath, there was nothing left to do.”

Millar segued to a quick anecdote about a disturbing response to Goliath’s death in Civil War that he received from a reader who asked, “Did you realize you had a [Norse god] taking down a black guy?” Millar assured the room that he had no intentions of framing the death in that way, though he hypothesized sarcastically, “Three guys in Kentucky were like, ‘Yeah!’”

Millar and Quesada explained the role “Buffy the Vampire Slayer’ creator Joss Whedon played in planning Civil War at the meeting where the final confrontation between Captain America and Iron Man was outlined. Quesada said that Whedon suggested most of the key details surrounding how the climactic end played out.

Elaborating on a comment Millar made about Whedon showing up magically during times of crisis and indecision, Quesada corroborated the assertion with the story of Whedon’s agreement to write Astonishing X-Men. “San Diego [in 2002], it was that convention where Grant Morrison announced that he was going exclusive to DC,” Quesada explained.

The Marvel editorial head said that he had been surprised by Morrison’s move and was nervously pondering who would he would assign to write X-Men. “Then I looked and there is Joss Whedon,” he recalled. “I said, ‘Hey, would you like to write X-Men?’ He said yeah.”

Marvel saved their big surprise slideshow for the end of the panel as Millar, Quesada and McCann all looked at each other and premiered a trailer announcing Millar’s next big Marvel run, which will see him re-team with Ultimates collaborator Bryan Hitch on Fantastic Four.

“Bryan Hitch and I for five years have been doing The Ultimates, and it’s finally finished,” Millar began, introducing the video. The writer said that their enthusiasm for FF has already produced several complete issues. “We’re already on writing the 10th issue,” he stated.

Millar also expressed a great deal of pride in his upcoming project 1985, which he said he is “most proud of” out of his entire body of work at Marvel. Tommy Lee Edwards will team with Millar on the sequel to Jim Shooter’s Secret Wars, where Millar said Marvel’s supervillains will discover existence in a world without superheroes.

“I think this is the book where he becomes a superstar,” said Millar of Edwards’ work on the story.

Millar forecasted a number of Marvel stories he will be writing in 2008, including a cagey hint: “Steve McNiven and I are getting together for a secret project.”

Millar and "Fantastic Four" get Hitched

OoOoo...this is bloody brilliant! I'm a big fan of Bryan Hitch as well, so I'd definitely be buying this when it comes out! Or I'll probably wait for the HC to be released...since it IS Bryan Hitch, it'll be a long wait in between issues anyway, so there's no reason why I shouldn't just wait for the TPB or HC to begin with.

The preview pages do look awesome...topping Hitch's work on The Ultimates, if that's even possible. I can't wait to see what his Doom looks like!


[WWC] MILLAR AND ‘FANTASTIC FOUR’ GET HITCHED
Marvel announces the reunion of its all-star ‘Ultimates’ team for 2008

By Brian Warmoth

Posted August 11, 2007 1:30 PM

Even as Marvel reflected on its violent past year at the hands of Mark Millar in Civil War, the bombshell of Joe Quesada’s Civil War and Remembrance panel at Wizard World Chicago today was a look into Marvel’s future. The company’s editor-in-chief announced that Millar will succeed J. Michael Straczynski writing Fantastic Four in 2008, where he will be joined by his former Ultimates partner, artist Bryan Hitch.

“Mark and I are definitely doing 12 [issues] together,” Hitch explained from his home in the U.K. “It launches in January.”

Though the two A-list creators have been busily working ahead on their first arc, which is still several months from shipping, both said the plan to place them on FF unfolded quickly enough to catch even them off guard.

“Our plan was to have Ultimates in 2002 and have it finished by 2004, and then our next thing was going to be X-Men,” Millar said. “As far back as 2004 we’d been planning X-Men.”

The plan to move the pair to X-Men was firmly in place by the time Millar caught wind of other events at Marvel and began to wonder if there wasn’t a more fitting title waiting for them.

“It was weird,” the writer said. “I just assumed that [X-Men] was going to be the next project we were doing, and then I just heard a rumor that JMS was leaving FF, and I suddenly got in the zone and I just couldn’t stop thinking about FF. I just thought, ‘I’ve got to get this and I’ve got to get Bryan to draw it.’”

When Millar brought his proposition to Hitch, his longtime friend was already several steps ahead of the decision. “I wanted to do it but I didn’t think Mark would want to do it because he’d done Ultimate FF and didn’t want to repeat himself,” Hitch said.

“’It took him about 3 seconds,” Millar recalled. “He said, ‘That would be great,’ because it suddenly seemed incredibly exciting—something we hadn’t anticipated yet—so we just started talking about it every day, and we phoned up Marvel and extricated ourselves from X-Men, which they were cool about.”

THE NEW SOAP OPERA
As one of Marvel’s in-house writers with a keen eye for long-term storylines, Millar’s vision for their upcoming run was already percolating prior to their move, and FF historically was a model for the kind of scripting he wanted to do next. “What I noticed was the best runs, especially the first hundred issues or so, are one continuous soap opera,” the writer explained. “It never really ended. I liked that structure because nobody does that anymore,” he lamented. “The thing everyone does now is 6 issues, decompressed 3-act structure, you know?”

Millar wants his run with Hitch on FF to be the exception to that norm. “What really impressed me when I looked at it was that it’s kind of structured like an HBO show and each episode is very satisfying and self-contained, but it all forms one big picture and it’s made up of lots of arcs that interweave with one another, so you might have the Inhumans for a 3-parter, but then they would maybe be hanging around for a few pages and then somebody else’s story and the next one, so the story flows very organically,” he outlined.

Millar and Hitch both cite Stan Lee’s advice, describing the type of everyday cosmic drama and absurdity that permeate the Richards family’s lives. “They do all the same stuff that ordinarily you and I do, but they do it on a cosmic scale,” Hitch asserted. “They could be decorating their Christmas tree, but when you look closer it’s miniature planets with a sun on top and you could imagine interplanetary warfare breaking out over Reed Richards’ Christmas tree, and it’s perfectly normal for them.”

FOUR NEW SUITS
Hitch, who shocked and awed with his costume designs in Ultimates, steps up to the plate again, this time in the real Marvel Universe and redesigning original long-established characters. “What always struck me about looking at the stuff was that they’re obviously wearing costumes,” Hitch observed. “You can’t be drawing them with folds in their clothes, they’re environmental suits. So I took that as an idea and added a model version of an environmental suit—a wet suit, an extreme clothing thing.”

Along with the costume touch-ups, Hitch wants to update Reed’s look to jibe with the eccentric energy that first launched him and his family into space. “I think there’s been a problem with Reed sometimes where he’s this stuffy old guy who smokes a pipe,” Hitch pointed out. “And he’s not a stuffy old guy who smokes a pipe. The guy’s about 40-45, so you want somebody who’s obviously good-looking and obviously charismatic and obviously attractive to a beautiful 28-year-old woman.”

The actor Hitch envisions for the role of Mr. Fantastic reflects not only those traits, but those of the artist whose visual bombast spread throughout the title’s cast early on. “You can begin with a character who would almost be played by someone like George Clooney, who’s an attractive, wealthy, successful, charismatic older man, but at the same time he does have this kind of hairstyle that looks like it belongs on Jack Kirby,” Hitch said.

“There were points when Reed started to look an awful lot like Jack Kirby,” Hitch said. “Reed looked like Jack, and Ben talked like Jack. These were aspects of Jack Kirby.” Hitch chuckled over the topic of the team’s lone female: “What part of Jack Sue represented, I’m not quite sure.”

“There’s the angry young man side of it, and reading interviews with Kirby you always got the impression that the emotional side of Jack was in Johnny—the pent-up anger and aggression and frustration,” the artist continued. “Using the George Clooney analogy, I wanted Reed to have at least a little bit more of a modern hairstyle. You can’t change the physical aspect of the character too much, but looking at it I thought the hairstyle that Reed had was always of the time he was created, but I wasn’t really [aiming for] a very modern thing.”

Of all the characters on the team, Reed’s haircut has remained one of the least tampered with. “Sue has always changed her hair, Johnny’s always changed his hair, so why don’t we give Reed a haircut? It’s a little thing, but it makes him a little more modern and a little better-looking,” Hitch assessed.

THE VILLAINS
The threats Millar has up his sleeve for the FF in 2008 are also rooted in Millar’s amazement over Lee and Kirby’s work. “The idea of a guy coming to eat the world, there literally had never been anything like that in a comic before,” Millar said. “But if Galactus hasn’t eaten the world the last 35 times he’s appeared, you’re going to probably relax when you see him on the splash page at the end of an issue.”

Trying to re-create the spontaneity and fresh mystery of the stories FF is best known for provoked Millar to focus on inventing new threats for them to dominate his year on the series, which will also feature appearances by a handful of classic foes like Doctor Doom.

“I’ve avoided using a lot of the clichés, because I think people use them as crutches,” explained Millar. “We can exist on the exhaust fumes of [Lee and Kirby], but at the same time it wouldn’t be the FF if it didn’t have a familiar touch to it. So some of the classic characters will be kind of weaved in and out of it, but only in a way that we’ve never seen them before.”

THE JANUARY 2008 LAUNCH
This year still has plenty of weeks left before Millar and Hitch hit the racks with their new blue costumes, but the series is already well under way on paper. “I’m so far ahead on FF. I’m like teacher’s pet. [Laughs] I’m like Brian Bendis,” Millar joked. “I’ve written 10 issues already, and for me that’s unbelievable. I’ll probably finish the whole run before the first one comes out.”

And Millar’s artist is right behind him. “I started issue #1 Feb. 15,” Hitch said. “I remember that because I remember being with my wife on Valentine’s Day thinking, ‘Oh I have to work on Fantastic Four tomorrow, hurrah!’”

Listening to their plans for Fantastic Four, the energy and common wavelength Millar and Hitch share is evident. And while the cultural cache of Marvel’s first superhero family attracted them both, their personal bond cinched the deal.

“We’re almost exactly the same age, and we both grew up in Northern Britain,” Millar said. “He grew up about 90 miles from where I lived. We read exactly the same stuff growing up and there’s a weird collective between us. It’s really strange; I almost don’t have to put in panel descriptions for Bryan—Bryan just gets it.” And the ease and understanding fostered by that relationship may underline everything else behind their latest announcement.

“There’s an intuitive thing going on between us that neither of us feels with other creators or collaborators,” Millar said. “It feels great.”