Official "Watchmen" movie photos released

Well, I knew I probably shouldn't have posted yesterday's little blurb on Watchmen, simply because I knew sometime down the line, Wizard would have a separate article WITH the photos. And here they are!

OFFICIAL 'WATCHMEN' MOVIE PHOTOS RELEASED
See how the photos from Zack Snyder's film stack up to an original Dave Gibbons' drawing

Posted November 27, 2007 6:10 PM

Warner Bros. and Director Zack Snyder have released official photos from the upcoming “Watchmen” movie, based on Alan Moore and Dave Gibbons' classic comic.

Wizard Universe has obtained the photos and you can see them right here. And for an added bonus, check out how Snyder's set matches up with one of Gibbons' original drawings.

Video game buyers' guide

I gots to have me some cool new games! Wizard has picked eight new games to look out for in 2008...and also gives the low down on the comic book-related games out there:


VIDEO GAME BUYERS’ GUIDE
Check out 8 games to look for in 2008, and the latest word on comic book-based games in development

By the Wizard Staff

Posted November 27, 2007 5:35 PM

EIGHT FOR ’08

1. LOST (Ubisoft)

Ubisoft opens the hatch on TV’s mythology-filled, secret-keeping series with an immersive gaming experience, allowing faithful fans to delve deeper into the mysterious island and the events surrounding the crash of Oceanic Flight 815. Playing as a non-cast, amnesia-stricken character, secret-solving gamers embark on a journey that includes canon character interactions—complete with spot-on likenesses of the actors—playable flashbacks, island exploration and, of course, puzzle-solving. In keeping with the show’s more-questions-less-answers style, players are tasked with unraveling the events of their own twisted past in addition to unlocking the mysteries of the island. Don’t forget to ask Sawyer for a gun…

•Before panic sets in, know that this game is “official” and being produced in collaboration with the show’s creative team, including co-creators Damon Lindelof and J.J. Abrams.

•Prepare to run like hell as the island’s most mysterious inhabitant—the shape-shifting smoke monster—will be popping in and out of your island-traversing missions. Additionally, various animal and human threats will attempt to hinder your quest for answers.

•Exploration plays a big part in the overall quest; players will travel to never-before-seen locations, as well as fan favorites like the Black Rock (careful with that dynamite), the Swan, Flame and Medical hatches, and the castaway-cluttered beach.

•Especially cool are the missions that have you cooperatively teaming with the show’s characters. Map- and computer-related puzzles will have you enlisting the help of tech-savvy Sayid, while boar-hunting missions will find you chasing down Locke for his tracking and trapping assistance. No word yet on a Mr. Ecko Jesus stick-carving mini-game, but we’ve got our fingers crossed.

•The gameplay offers a nice mix of action, adventure, puzzle-solving and even photo-taking as players chronicle the island’s bizarre happenings on film.

Lost crashes onto Xbox 360s, PS3s and PCs just in time for the show’s winter return in late January 2008.

2. GRAND THEFT AUTO IV
(Rockstar Games)
2008’s most anticipated game doesn’t star Master Chief, Madden or Solid Snake; nope, next year’s most popular protagonist will be Niko Bellic, a scruffy-around-the-edges Eastern European thug, and star of Rockstar Games’ next city-sprawling epic, Grand Theft Auto IV. The hero—or antihero in this case—might be a fresh face, but the GTA formula will be instantly familiar to any gamer who’s jacked a car, slapped a hooker or maybe even popped a few rounds into a police officer, in GTA’s gritty, over-the-top world.

GTA IV returns to Liberty City—GTA III’s stomping grounds—but the metropolis’ next-gen makeover can’t be compared to its former, blocky self. Liberty City is now a near-perfect replica of New York City, tweaked with GTA style; the MetLife building now reads GetaLife, and Times Square is now Star Junction. Beyond the realistic architecture, Liberty City’s most obvious upgrade is its residents; unbelievably lifelike citizens walk the streets, using cell phones, eating, reading, living their lives, unaware of the wanton death and destruction you’ll soon be unleashing. Speaking of unbridled vigilante violence, you’ll be able to run over pedestrians, initiate street shoot-outs and roll disrespectin’ hoodlums in Liberty City’s underbelly on both the Xbox 360 and PS3 early in early 2008. But for those seeking the complete GTA IV experience, keep in mind, Microsoft paid a bajillion dollars to secure exclusive downloadable content on the 360.

3. RESIDENT EVIL 5
(Capcom, Xbox 360, PS3, winter ’08)
The can’t-wait-for-it follow-up to the genre-shaping Resident Evil 4 sheds new light on the zombie-infested franchise, literally. Set in an arid, sun-soaked village, RE5 brings the scares out into the open with a new breed of intelligent undead terror that’ll have you cowering in the corner and staying up late to fight your way through this game.

4. THE BOURNE CONSPIRACY
(Vivendi Games, Xbox 360, PS3, winter ’08)
While this title isn’t specifically based on a “Bourne” film, the developers have smartly adopted the swiftly paced style and globetrotting allure of the movies. Jason Bourne’s frenetic fighting style also translates, allowing gamers to beat the snot out of adversaries with rapid-fire hand-to-hand combat.

5. METAL GEAR SOLID 4: GUNS OF THE PATRIOTS
(Konami, PS3, winter ’08)
After watching old man Solid Snake run around in pulse-quickening cinematic trailers for the past two years, we finally get to jump into the surreal battle-beaten world. Polished production values, amazing boss battles and immersive stealth/action make this trilogy-topper the reason to own a PS3.

6. INDIANA JONES
(LucasArts, Xbox 360, PS3, winter ’08)
Utilizing new, advanced physics and AI technology, LucasArts is promising that Indy’s next video game outing will change the face of gaming. But who cares about all that? We were sold as soon as we saw Indy duking it out with a henchman atop a racing trolley car. Expect this game to have all the fun and fisticuffs of the films.

7. TUROK
(Disney Interactive, Xbox 360, PS3, winter ’08)
Big guns, rampaging raptors and enemy-engineered super-soldiers; what more could you ask for? How about expansive, lush “Jurassic Park”-like environments, and a defensive gameplay mechanic that turns your enemies into dino bait. If you’re an old school fan of the Turok series, wait until you see it on a next-gen system.

8. STAR WARS: THE FORCE UNLEASHED
(LucasArts, Xbox 360, PS3, winter ’08)
Force powers finally reap the rewards of next-gen hardware, allowing gamepad Jedi to harness the mystical magic like never before. Wielding the lightsaber of Darth Vader’s Jedi-hunting secret apprentice, gamers will also learn the secrets of a brand-new chapter in the sci-fi saga.

COSTUMES ON CONSOLES
After successful sales of Spider-Man 3 and Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer, expect the cape-and-cowl crowd to continue landing on our consoles. Details are scarce, but you can bet your utility belt that publishers are busy prepping these superpowered film- and comic book-based titles.

HEROES
Ubisoft—who successfully brought “King Kong” to consoles—will tackle NBC’s precious property. A reported close collaboration with “Heroes” mastermind Tim Kring is a good sign.

IRON MAN
While the buzz-generating flick steals the spotlight, Sega quietly toils in its secret underground lair on the game based on the blockbuster-to-be. Expect high-flying jetpack gameplay.

THE INCREDIBLE HULK
Edge of Reality is rumored to be working on this tie-in to next summer’s Hulk film. The bad news: They didn’t develop last year’s awesomely mindless Ultimate Destruction game. The good news: Uh…well…they did the Over the Hedge game?

HELLBOY: SCIENCE OF EVIL
Hellboy crushes consoles with this super-destructive game. It’s all about brute and brawn as you destroy everything in your path, from breakable props to gun-toting henchmen.

THE DARK KNIGHT
The Caped Crusader got his box office groove back, but fans are still waiting for a Bat-worthy game. That could change as Pandemic Studios (Mercenaries) is rumored to be handling the new Dark Knight project.


The one I'm looking forward to the most is, of course, Grand Theft Auto IV. The only problem is, it's only being released on Xbox360 and PS3 at this stage. Hell, ALL the titles reviewed are all either being released on the Xbox360 OR the PS3! Which alienates those people who don't actually have the coin to splash out on these next gen consoles.

Blast it. Don't tell me I've got to purchase myself a PS3 just to enable me to buy even MORE expensive games, get a Blu-Ray DVD player that I DON'T want, and allow me to play GTAIV. Booooo.

"Hulk" director speaks

I loves me a good comic book movie, though 2003's "Hulk" was pretty tragic, despite all the hype about Ang Lee making it. Jennifer Connelly was a scorching hot Betty Ross though, and I thought Eric Bana was pretty good too.

Anyway, here's an interview with the upcoming sequel to "Hulk", Louis Leterrier:


'HULK' DIRECTOR SPEAKS
In an exclusive interview, director Louis Leterrier discusses Ang Lee’s film and why he chose the villains he did for 2008’s ‘Incredible Hulk’

By Rickey Purdin

Posted November 27, 2007 3:15 PM

Best known for street-level martial arts flicks such as “The Transporter” and “Unleashed,” director Louis Leterrier gamma-irradiates the big screen on June 13, 2008, with the release of “Incredible Hulk.” Starring (and written by) Edward Norton as Bruce Banner, the titular alter ego of the Green Goliath, along with Liv Tyler as Betty Ross, “Incredible Hulk” acts as a fresh start for the monstrous hero from Marvel Studios after director Ang Lee took a stab at the franchise in 2003.

“It’s a fresh start because I saw there is a real fan base for Ang Lee’s movie,” said Leterrier of Lee’s ill-received “Hulk” in an exclusive interview with Wizard. “I didn’t want to offend [those fans] in any way, and also I like the movie. It was very interesting. [But] it was weaker ground to build a big franchise upon so we decided to scrap it and establish it from bases that are more comic book-based and TV show-based.”

“Incredible Hulk” will still feature several elements from the Ang Lee film such as General “Thunderbolt” Ross (played by William Hurt) and his hunt for Banner. But the development of other antagonists takes place in the film, as well. Heading for those comic book roots, Leterrier pit Hulk against someone very familiar to comic book fans.

“Obviously, General Ross is the villain, so he had to be in it,” added Leterrier. “But the Abomination, Emil Blonsky, was who Marvel wanted to put in this chapter—the first chapter of our new saga—because he’s the most famous. He’s an enemy that can actually threaten the Hulk. It’s very important for me that there is a danger. When Bruce Banner is Hulk, I didn’t feel in Ang Lee’s ‘Hulk’ that there was any threat. He was invincible. So with Abomination there’s actually a monster that can, you know, kill him when he’s in the Hulk form.”

Played in human form by Tim Roth, Blonsky isn’t the only new character. Look for Doc Samson (played by Ty Burrell) and Samuel “the Leader” Sterns (played by Tim Blake Nelson) when the film powerbombs into theaters next summer.

The Joker revealed

Whoa. I took back all I said about Heath Ledger not looking the part of The Joker. Based on this picture alone from Empire magazine, he looks more like The Joker that Jack Nicholson ever did!


THE JOKER REVEALED
Empire Magazine gets the scoop

Posted November 27, 2007 12:25 PM

Although it was rumored that the first good, clean shot of Heath Ledger as the Joker would debut online Wednesday at Empire, Empire Magazine’s January 2008 cover has leaked, revealing Gotham’s Clown Prince of Crime in “The Dark Knight.”

Miller's Time

OooOO...Wizard published a quiz! They haven't done that for a while. And it's a quiz about everyone's favourite "sinner", the man who desecrated the Batman: Year One character in the modern era himself, having Batman swear and calling himself the "goddamn Batman", Frank Miller!

Don't peek at the answers...actually try it out first!


MILLER’S TIME
Think you know comic and Hollywood legend Frank Miller forwards and backwards? Then set your canvas to two-color and proceed, Gaijin.

Posted November 27, 2007 11:20 AM

1. Which of these sentences isn’t a quote from All Star Batman and Robin the Boy Wonder?
A. “Are you retarded or something? Who the hell do you think I am? I’m the g--damn Batman.”
B. “I’ve taken enough grief about calling my g--damn car the g--damn Batmobile.”
C. “This g--damn city is going to be the death of me.”
D.” I’m the g--damn Batman and I can call my g--damn car whatever the hell I want to call it.”

2. Which of these hunky nobodies nabbed the part of the Spirit?
A. Mike Vogel
B. Gabriel Macht
C. Eric Johnson
D. Matthew Goode

3. Any fanboy can tell you that Daredevil was the guest star in Miller’s first issue of Spider-Man. Who’d the Web-slinger team up with in Miller’s SECOND issue?
A. Moon Knight
B. Power Man and Iron Fist
C. Doctor Strange
D. Batman

4. How many penises did Frank draw into the pages of 300?
A.10
B. 30
C. 60
D. 120

5. In the credits for 2003’s “Daredevil” film, Miller is credited as playing
A. Frank the chemist
B. Man with pen in head
C. Josie’s patron
D. Man in bar

6. Okay, pervs: Match the “Sin City” star with the film in which they appear naked.
A. Bruce Willis (3. Color of Night)
B. Mickey Rourke (1. Wild Orchid)
C. Rosario Dawson (4. Alexander)
D. Jaime King (2. Slackers)



8. In The Dark Knight Strikes Again, what is the name of adult film actress who takes up the mantle of Big Barda and later declares herself dictator of Columbus, Ohio?
A. Furry Fury
B. Open Valve
C. Cherry Sucks
D. Hot Gates

9. In The Dark Knight Returns, Frank Miller wantedBatman’s costume to appear with no yellow oval around the Bat-symbol, while DC demanded the more recognizable black and yellow figure appear. How did Miller compromise?
A. Used the symbol for a few pages and then had a bad guy blast it off with a shotgun
B. Drew it exactly as the bosses told him
C. Never drew the yellow oval symbol
D. Replaced it with Superman’s shield and made another artist fill it in

10. In Miller’s classic Daredevil arc “Born Again,” what does DD’s longtime love Karen Page turn out to be?
A. The kind of girl who would sell his secret ID to the Kingpin
B. The kind of girl who would appear in porn
C. The kind of girl who would be addicted to heroin
D. All of the above

SCORING: Give yourself one g--damn point for every g--damn correct answer.

This month we see how you match up against the coolest Franks of all time:



0-3, Franklin D. Roosevelt: Cool, but mostly in black and white, braugh.
4-8, Frank Zappa: Groovy man. But he’s given birth to some messed-up weirdos.
9-10, Frank Sinatra: The king of swing, baby. Frankly, it gets no better than this.


So...how many did YOU get correct?

First off, the quiz is completely crappy. Take question 6 for instance. The fricking answers are already listed there IN ORDER! I only knew the Bruce Willis one, but screw it, I answered the question the way they listed it and it was correct, so I'm getting that one correct.

And there's no fricking question 7! So I'm getting that one correct too.

Even with those two correct, I only got three others: Questions 4, 9 and 10. I'm SO not the Miller-phile...I really should have gotten Question 1 correct, but I haven't read All-Star Batman and Robin the Boy Wonder #2 for a long LONG time so there's no way I'd remember. Just like I should know the answer to Question 8, but once again, hadn't read that book for AGES.

Theo, you might get a kick out of this quiz, if you still came to this blog to read it, but you're probably too busy back in Singapore with all the stuff you need to do.

Anyway, here are the answers that Wizard Universe listed for the above quiz:

ANSWER KEY: 1. C; 2. B; 3. C; 4. B; 5. B; 6. 1B,2D,3A,4C; 7. Batman and Daredevil; 8. D; 9. A; 10. D

New "Watchmen" images hit web

And while I'm still on the topic of movies, here's an update on the Watchmen flick:


NEW 'WATCHMEN' IMAGES HIT WEB
New photos from the set of 'Watchmen'

Posted November 26, 2007 7:30 PM

“Watchmen” director Zack Snyder updated the film’s official Website with four new photos, and provided a rundown of some of the more interesting facts about the film’s sets constructed in Vancouver.

Planned for a March 6, 2009 release, the movie’s new photos appear to show a glimpse of Rorschach as he walks by a Richard Nixon re-election poster, as well as some teasers of key scenes and locations from the classic comic.

Check out Snyder’s new post and photos here and check back to wizarduniverse.com for the latest info on the film.

"The Dark Knight's" dueling newspapers

OooOo...some rumblings about "The Dark Knight" the sequel to "Batman Begins"!


‘THE DARK KNIGHT’S’ DUELING NEWSPAPERS

Two Gotham papers go live online with possible clue about Warner Bros.’ new Batman film

By Brian Warmoth

Posted November 27, 2007 10:20 AM

Two websites launched over the holiday weekend with radically different views of Gotham City. Newspapers appeared on thegothamtimes.com and thehahahatimes.com with an official Gotham paper and seemingly Joker-edited parody, respectively. And plenty of Batman universe fan fodder lurks between the lines.

One click on the Gotham Times’ headline “Mobsters Fight for Dominance” reveals a tear leading to the second paper, The Ha Ha Ha Times. Possible spoilers for the film contained in the first paper include a story describing a bloody clash between forces led by “The Chechen,” an organization previously loyal to Carmine Falcone who is now under Sal Maroni and another gang of “street toughs” headed by someone named Gambol.

The Gotham Times cites the city’s police commissioner as “Commissioner G. Loeb,” a character from Frank Miller’s Batman: Year One.

A URL contained in another story leads to the website www.wearetheanswer.org, which offers form e-mails to submit to Harvey Dent either in support of his work or submitting tips about crime in Gotham City.

The Ha Ha Ha Times, meanwhile, includes doodles and commentary on events in the city, which appear to be directly from the Joker.

The new sites follow an internet marketing campaign launched by Warner Bros., which kicked off on the website whysoserious.com, which now includes a personality profile quiz from the Joker meant for potential clown gang recruits.

"Heroes" Worship: Nov. 26, 2007

And now, another edition of "Heroes" Worship! Incidentally, tomorrow is the "Season Finale" of the new season of Heroes in Australia. But I'm sure it's still going to continue showing in America. What gives, Channel 7?


‘HEROES’ WORSHIP: NOV. 26, 2007
Get caught up on last night’s episode of ‘Heroes’ with our in-depth recap!

By Wade Gum

Posted November 27, 2007 10:15 AM

What’s the Excitement About?

In case you slept under a rock during last year’s television season, “Heroes” is NBC’s newest hit show masterminded by Tim Kring. The series follows ordinary people with extraordinary abilities and their attempts to sort out their lives and save the world.

Last season’s chief protagonist was Peter Petrelli, a male nurse who has the ability to absorb and retain the power of any other superpowered individual he comes into contact with. He was relentlessly pursued by Sylar, a murderous villain who can also take powers, but only by killing other people who possess them. Throughout the season, Peter and his allies worked to prevent the destruction of New York as foreseen in a painter’s apocalyptic vision.

Hero Roll Call

Claire Bennet—The biological daughter of Nathan Petrelli. A cheerleader with regenerative powers.

Noah Bennet—Adoptive father of Claire. Possesses no superpowers and once worked for the villainous Primatech Paper Co.

Monica Dawson—The cousin of Micah Sanders. Possesses the ability to mimic any physical ability she sees demonstrated.

Elle—Daughter of Primatech’s Bob. Possesses electrical powers.

Alejandro and Maya Herrera—A brother and sister from Central America. Maya has a deadly power and is afflicted with a disease that kills superpowered individuals. Alejandro seems to have the ability to counteract his sister’s power.

Takezo Kensei—The legendary Japanese hero, who actually turns out to be a scumbag with the power of regeneration.

Hiro Nakamura—Son of Kaito Nakamura. Has the ability to manipulate time.

Matt Parkman—NYPD officer with the ability to hear people’s thoughts.

Nathan Petrelli—Brother of Peter Petrelli. Former politician. Has the power of flight.

Peter Petrelli—Brother of Nathan Petrelli. Has the ability to absorb and retain powers.

Micah Sanders—Son of D.L. and Niki. He has the ability to “talk” to technological devices.

Niki Sanders—Wife of D.L. and mother of Micah, with an alternate personality that possesses super-strength.

Mohinder Suresh—A genetics professor in search of superpowered individuals.

Sylar—The show’s central villain. His power is the ability to determine how things work. With this ability, he kills superpowered individuals and is able to steal their abilities.

Molly Walker—A young girl with the ability to concentrate and locate anyone in the world. Adopted by Matt Parkman.

West—A teenage boy who attends the same school as Claire. Has the power of flight and was tagged by Noah when he still worked for Primatech.

Previously on ‘Heroes’

The crap hit the fan last week when Noah clashes with Mohinder and the Company over the fate of Claire. Noah made his peace with West and then teamed up with him once Bob kidnapped Claire. The two of the managed to capture Elle and set up a hostage exchange. Things didn’t go entirely to plan as Noah ended up getting shot in the eye by Mohinder during the swap. Luckily for him, Mohinder used Claire’s regenerative blood in order to bring him back from the dead.

Hiro traveled back in time in an attempt to prevent his father’s murder. Kaito refused to change fate and was determined that Hiro should leave him to die. Hiro came to terms with Kaito’s death and allowed his father to be killed, but couldn’t resist freezing time and sneaking a peek at his father’s murderer. He was quite surprised to learn that it was Takezo Kensai aka Adam.

Matt Parkman learned that he has awesome abilities just like dear old dad. He possesses the ability to send mental commands to people and force them to obey his will. If the person has a particularly sturdy mental constitution, they can resist Matt’s power for a bit and cause blood to come out of their noses. Matt now walks a dangerous line in exploiting his powers for the cause of good. Will he turn to the dark side?

The Recap—‘Truth and Consequences’
Now that his memory has returned, Peter is resolved to stopping the Shanti virus and rescuing Caitlin from the future. Adam is interested in Peter’s knowledge about the Shanti virus because he knows a member of Primatech who has it. According to Adam, the Company is responsible for the virus. Victoria is the member of the Company with the virus, so the two head out on the road to track her down. They head out to good old Maine, home of Stephen King monsters and maple syrup.

Peter goes into Victoria’s house and confronts her. He lets her know that the virus will be released in 24 hours and demands her help. Peter attempts to get Victoria to believe her with his sob story about abandoning Caitlin. Victoria tells him to look for strain 138 of the virus, exactly what Adam is looking for. Victoria shoots Adam and Peter with a shotgun and prepares to turn Adam’s head into paste before Peter stops her. The two tie Victoria up. Victoria tries to tell Peter that Adam wants to spread the virus but Peter won’t listen. Peter reads Victoria’s mind in order to learn the location of the virus. Adam lets her go and Victoria grabs a shotgun, giving Adam ample cause to shoot and kill her.

Bob appears at the Bennet household with an urn in tow, supposedly with the ashes of Noah inside of it, but we all know better. Bob gives Elle the job of monitoring the Bennet family and blames her for everything that went wrong. Noah wakes up in a mysterious hospital bed with his injuries healed. Mohinder is there to take care of him and lets Noah know what’s up. An angry Noah tries to convince Mohinder that the company is behind the virus, but the easily manipulated professor can’t be manipulated in this circumstance.

Claire goes to the beach to throw her fake dead father’s ashes into the ocean and notices that Elle is following her. She pulls Elle out of the car and confronts her and they have a little throwdown. Claire resolves to show the world her abilities and send people like Elle running from society once people know that superpowers exist.

Hiro and Ando clean up his father’s belongings in Japan and make plans for taking out Adam. They try to follow the paper trail that Adam left behind and discover his current alias is Adam Monroe. They also discover that Kaito had Adam locked up back in 1977. He travels back in time to that day for the heck of it. He sees his father talk with Adam, who released the virus for the greater good of the world. He wanted to make the world come together and cull the herd, Watchmen-style. Kaito refuses to destroy the virus and takes it to Odessa instead. Hiro returns to the present and gets ready to go to Odessa.

Niki returns home to Micah and the two have a happy little reunion. She tells him about the Shanti virus that she has. In the greatest hardship the heroes have ever known, Micah’s backpack is stolen. He wants to get a posse of heroes together in order to go get his backpack from some evil thugs, but Niki is dead set against that idea.

Monica is willing to help, so she sneaks out at night with Micah to try and get the backpack. Once Mohinder uses Claire’s blood to mess with the virus, he gives Niki a call and lets her know that a cure is on the way. The call wakes up Niki and alerts her to the fact that Micah and Monica are missing. Monica uses her abilities to break into the thugs’ apartment and get the backpack, but they return home and catch her in the act. She’s easily subdued and captured. Perhaps she should have watched some more wrestling videos.

The Maya/Alejandro/Sylar “Three’s Company” saga continues to roll along. Sylar tries to woo Maya and take Alejandro out of the equation as best he can. He forces her to attack him with her own power, teaching her how to control her power in the process. It turns out Alejandro isn’t necessary for controlling her powers after all. Alejandro figures out who Sylar really is and gets him to admit that he murdered his mother. Sylar finds a way to get all Casanova about it and makes Maya love him more than ever. Wow, he’s smooth. Alejandro ends up leaving his sister behind.

Later that night, Alejandro returns and has a little scuffle with Sylar. The villain comes out on top and finally kills the annoying brother. Sylar makes out with Maya mere feet from where Alejandro’s corpse lies. He’s that smooth. After that, he goes and “babysits” Molly Walker and gives Mohinder a threatening phone call.

As the episode ends, Peter and Adam arrive at the Odessa facility. Hiro arrives as well and stops time. Peter and Hiro have a little showdown of their own as Peter decides to protect Adam. Who will win this titanic battle of the wills?

‘Heroes’ Highlights

BOB-O-METER
Not only does he fake HRG’s death, but he has the audacity—THE AUDACITY!—to deliver an urn of fake ashes to the grieving Bennet family! Faux Noah shizzle! This guy’s got balls of adamantium. A solid 9 out of 10 on the Bob-o-meter. —Executive Editor Brian Cunningham

HRG BADASS-O-METER
…he’s stuck in a bed recovering from being dead. The only thing that’s “badass” here are his bum’s bedsores. —Executive Editor Brian Cunningham

GRANDMA OF STEEL!
“Blade Runner,” “Superman: The Animated Series” and now “Heroes”! Joanna Cassidy can still kick some ass at age 62! Say, didja know she was originally cast as Wonder Woman before a director insisted Lynda Carter be cast instead? —Executive Editor Brian Cunningham

WANNA SEE ‘STAR WARS’ WHILE YOU’RE AT IT?
Bellbottoms, Bay City Rollers and the Bronx is burning! Yeah, it’s 1977 and Hiro stumbles upon the Shanti virus. Finally we see some cool (albeit short-lived) time travel to a familiar era. —Executive Editor Brian Cunningham

SYLAR…PLEASE COME HOME!!
“Everything’s going to be okay, Maya. I’ll take care of you.” The ticking sounds that oozed from Sylar’s creepy-ass grimace and murder of Alejandro made me hope that the good ol’ serial killer could soon return. Please come back, Sylar! I can’t take this powerless shtick for much longer! —Executive Editor Brian Cunningham

USEFUL INFORMATION OF THE WEEK: KILLNG KENSEI
It’s noted a couple times in this episode that if you want to take Adam/Kensei out, go for the head, “Highlander”-style. Conveniently, there’s a good guy with a samurai sword and a score to settle with the nigh-immortal one.—Wizard Universe editor Eric Moya

DOPE OF THE WEEK: DAMON
Micah’s cousin wants to find out how much some comics are worth and takes them to a group of thugs for an appraisal? We need to get this kid a subscription to Wizard. —Wizard Universe editor Eric Moya

CLIFFHANGER RATING: 6

Brother versus brother! Well, actually only one of these dudes has a brother, and really you all know they’re not brothers because they’re not even from the same continent. But still! It always pushes fanboy buttons to see former allies mixing it up, and with Hiro and Peter, the creators of “Heroes” couldn’t have picked a more likable pair of cast members to have a power-filled hissy fit right in the middle of the end of the world. If anything else, this week’s finish reminds us that unlike the end of Volume 1, Volume 2 is going to have plenty of good ol’-fashioned fightin’ before all is said and done.

Next Time on ‘Heroes’

Thanks to the writers’ strike, next week marks the season finale and the final chapter of Book 2. Everyone converges on Primatech Paper in Odessa, resulting in a big clash between Peter, Nathan, Hiro, Matt and Adam. Micah recruits his mother in order to try and save Monica from the evil thugs and Sylar finally does some real villainy when he goes after Mohinder and Molly Walker.

Civil War Directors' Commentary

I love Director's Commentaries! Especially when you find out the going-ons about how your favourite comic or series or storyline got created and you managed to pick up those little fanboy tidbits that was left in the panels...and then to pick up those things that you DIDN'T see the first time around.

Director's Commentaries in comics makes it feel as if you're getting a whole lot of information to help you enjoy the comic, akin to a DVD. I even purchased the Wizard Xtra! Exclusive Creator Content Collection, which was basically a reprint of all the Director's Commentaries Wizard had published over the years.

So I'm psyched that there's a Director's Commentary for Civil War, perhaps the event of the 2007 so far! I'd love to read what Millar and McNiven were thinking when they chose to have Spider-man reveal his identity to the world!


CIVIL WAR DIRECTORS’ COMMENTARY
The war heroes! The wild controversy! Mark Millar and Steve McNiven dish all the dirt behind the decade’s hottest event!

By Mike Cotton

Posted November 26, 2007 5:50 PM

No one in the room really cared much that Mark Millar wasn’t schooled in the history of America’s Civil War. n “I don’t even know which side won,” he smirked through his Scottish accent. n All everyone present at 2005’s Marvel summit knew was that Millar was the man to lead them through a Civil War of heroes vs. heroes. And in a think tank that included superstars such as Joe Quesada, Brian Michael Bendis, Jeph Loeb, Joss Whedon and more, it was high praise indeed. n And there were debates—Who would die? How would it end?—but now it’s done. And the two men most responsible for the biggest-selling miniseries of the past decade are ready to reflect upon the controversies, the Easter eggs and even a few regrets.

CIVIL WAR #1 [Pg. 7]
NITRO
MILLAR: This is the bad thing [about crossovers] actually because my knowledge of Marvel stuff after Stan Lee stopped writing it is incredibly, incredibly small, right? It’s funny, whenever the scripts that are eventually published in hardback, people will realize that Marvel was really badly distributed to where I grew up, but we got loads of reprints of the Stan Lee, Jack Kirby, Steve Ditko stuff…I’m really familiar with all of that. And I had never even heard of Nitro. I put in the panel descriptions and [Civil War editor] Tom Brevoort came up with Nitro. And you see that all through the script. It’s shocking. But it seems to sell well.

McNIVEN: [Laughs] Yeah, Tom was great with that. He really was a very supportive guy with all the reference you ever need.

MILLAR: Tom is one of the two heroes of this whole thing. One is Steve for doing a spectacular job and the other one is Tom for absolutely saving my ass when every single page is incredible. And it does mean a lot of work. Sometimes I was rewriting this stuff five or six times and you watch it, Tom is just doing it right. He knows everything. He’s read every Marvel book.

CIVIL WAR #1 [Pg. 8-9]
THE AFTERMATH
McNIVEN: Mark had a very clear idea of what he wanted to see with that spread. Mark’s got the ability to not have you second-guess the script and go, “Is that going to work?” It’s all right there. I really did want to convey the mood of it, and have the guys on opposite sides of the page.

MILLAR: Even if somebody’s a really good artist, there’s no guarantee they’re going to gel with you. That’s always a concern before the pages come back, and it’s kind of like that Julia Roberts/Brad Pitt situation in that movie, “The Mexican.” The [film studio] just said, “Let’s get the biggest male star and biggest female star together, and it’s going to be the greatest movie ever,” and it just tanked because there was no chemistry. There was a relief when the pages came through—Steve and I just clicked. It’s like a relationship. There’s got to be chemistry there. Bryan Hitch and I have it, and John Romita Jr. and I have it. And it’s just great to see Steve and I having it, as well. It was very exciting switching on the computer in the morning because usually [pages] were sent, Scottish time, during the night. So it was like Christmas every couple of days and seeing another lovely page.

CIVIL WAR #1 [Pg. 14]
TONY STARK: VILLAIN?
MILLAR: We were kind of slightly shocked by some of the reaction because a lot of people saw Tony as the über-villain, and really if you read the core book, we really do play a balance. But the other thing is that Tony comes off as a little safe because [Captain America] is the guy who threw the first punch and started the fight. And some of the tie-ins…I mean, there’s so many books, how are they going to keep everything under control? We just have control for our seven comics and try to make it balanced, and some of the [tie-in books] made Tony a little more evil than we even intended.

CIVIL WAR #1 [Pg. 16-17]
ONCOMING STORM
McNIVEN: I think this worked well. [Mark] wanted to bring in the Fantastic Four into the story reasonably soon, because they are one of the pillars.

MILLAR: My thinking was, Johnny Storm is the most likely guy to have his identity out there in the open and be wandering around in a slightly dangerous civilian situation. Johnny just seemed the logical one to me. Plus, the Fantastic Four have never really had that thing in the Marvel Universe where Spider-Man was being hunted by the policemen. The Marvel Universe loves them. To actually see them get mobbed in the street is probably a little more shocking.

CIVIL WAR #1 [Pg. 18-20]
CHOOSING SIDES
MILLAR: We had the same picture in mind. I didn’t say to Steve the image I had in mind was this great John Buscema shot in Avengers [#60, see inset] I saw when I was a little kid. He even took a very similar angle. That was the sign that we were on the same page, that things are going well. Both our minds were in exactly the same place.

McNIVEN: If you ever read Mark’s scripts, when he really wants something, he’s like, “You got to draw the best freaking spread ever! It’s like the comic book Kirby would draw. It’ll make your ass swell up.” And you’re just sitting there going, “Holy sh--!” That was the first one where I went, “Whoa, okay.” It was a challenge. It was a lot of work, but Mark was really nice about it. And actually I sent you that page.

MILLAR: I was just going to say I’ve actually got that page hanging up in my home as you walk in. You’re welcomed into my house with that page.
I was a bit anxious about [choosing sides for each hero] so I didn’t speak to any other writers at all. Just because it would really overcomplicate it. And it’s bad enough doing it with editorial and senior writers without adding in all the tie-ins. I thought the only way to stay sane on this project is really have no contact with anyone. And it sounds terrible, but what I did was I just said, “Look, don’t phone me, anyone. I’m just working on this.” The minute you start listening to people, then your story’s off in 20 directions. And you really have to let it cross over as it is. So what I did was I wrote the spine of it. But Tom [Brevoort, Civil War editor] knows the characters so well, he drew up a list of who would be on what side, and again, that was one of those cases where Tom was just invaluable and knows all the minutiae.

CIVIL WAR #1 [Pg. 25-30]
CAPTAIN AMERICA UNLEASHED
McNIVEN: I think Morry [Hollowell] did a great job coloring this. He did a lovely job with setting the mood of the page, lots of blues and reds and it’s a good chance to sort of cut in with some two-fisted action, and it was great. It was fun. Mark gave me all the great beats to hit and I just went with it.

MILLAR: What I wanted to do is put that sequence in a little file and [send it] to these other artists: “Look what Steve McNiven can do.” And make them all really angry. But I sent it to my friends and they were just awed by it. They absolutely loved it. That’s one of my favorite sequences in the whole book actually.

McNIVEN: I had fun with it. Some of the parts are really difficult to put together, especially the strobing shot with Captain America falling off the side of the helicarrier and all the bullets bouncing off of him. It took a bit of work. But it’s fun. It’s worth it. It’s better than drawing a whole bunch of freaking talking heads over and over again. [When I first get a script] I pick up the scenes that I think will really stand out, the few pages here and there that I’ll spend extra time on, and that sequence had a few pages along the way in that sequence that I went, “I’m going to break out an extra day.” I’ll spend like a day and a half, maybe even two days working those pages out because I think it’s worth it in terms of the overall read of the book.

CIVIL WAR #2 [Pg. 5-6]
REED & SUE
MILLAR: It’s interesting because there are so few married couples, especially between superheroes. Even as a kid, I knew it was an unusual marriage. You have this genius who is married to a person of average intelligence. And somebody who is beautiful and young married to somebody who’s middle-aged. The guy’s distracted all the time. So maybe I just took my cue, as all of us did, from the Lee-Kirby stuff. And Steve, you draw a hot Sue Storm.

McNIVEN: Thanks. I usually take reference photos. In that case I just sort of put on a nice leotard and put some padding up there and I got a pretty tight ass.

MILLAR: I feel so dirty from being turned on by these pictures. [Both laugh]

CIVIL WAR #2 [Pg. 20-22]
SPIDER-MAN UNMASKED

McNIVEN: I think Mark did a great job with the Spider-Man unmasking, just having Jonah disappear, like fall behind his desk and everyone react. I think it was a great moment. It was really difficult. I was worried that I couldn’t pull it off, but it read great in the script.

MILLAR:That was a big one because the one thing you don’t want to screw up is something as monumental as Spider-Man’s unmasking. It must have been quite scary drawing those pages because you knew that they were [going] in every newspaper in the world and fans were going to be talking about them for years.

McNIVEN: Oh, and I hate the pages. I really do.

MILLAR: I think they look great.

McNIVEN: Oh God, I hate them.

MILLAR: Well, what don’t you like?

McNIVEN: I left them in my drawer for the longest time. I just would redo them entirely but I think the pressure got to me a little bit with those pages and I just don’t think I did the best job that I could.

MILLAR: Well, I think you draw a great Spider-Man.

McNIVEN: Thanks.

MILLAR: It actually looks like Spider-Man. You and John Romita Jr., I think, are the two best Spidey artists.

McNIVEN: Cheers.

CIVIL WAR #3 [Pg. 11-15]
THE TRAP
MILLAR: I think Tony was given a tough break by people. Tony was like, “Hey, let’s not fight. Come on. I’m just trying to do the right thing here. I don’t want superheroes getting closed down.” This is the big compromise and then Cap has a bomb in his hand. And Tony somehow seems like the bad guy? So yeah, that scene was important because the natural inclination is always to root for the guy who’s the underdog. I think for me that was a turning point when you suddenly thought Tony’s actually trying to do the right thing here. He’s offering his hand of friendship and Cap screws him over.

McNIVEN: I think it was clever for him to lift his visor up as well because usually Iron Man, if he has his visor down he looks a little cold, a little menacing. So bringing the visor up, we get to see his face, and he generally wants, even though he has an army behind him, he’s offering the hand of friendship.

CIVIL WAR #3 [Pg. 22]
THOR RETURNS

MILLAR: We talked about this quite a lot actually because normally a miniseries, like an event thing, when you use cliffhangers or something, there’s a moment. But the thing that was nice with this was there was a lot of kind of big moments and Thor coming back was huge, but it was eclipsed by Spider-Man unmasking the previous issue. There was a lot of stuff happening on the page there. I think we were just reeling and punch-drunk by that point. We had no idea what to expect. It just seemed like another big event.

McNIVEN: That was crazy. It was great. I thought it was an excellent cliffhanger after obviously, as you said, issue #2 being Spider-Man unmasking. I mean, the last thing you want is to come out with issue #3 and have it sort of lackluster. It really packed a huge punch. It was fun. And then the next issue when he starts tearing into everybody and killing people, I knew that was going to whip up the fan frenzy a little bit more.

CIVIL WAR #4 [Pg. 4]
ANGRY CAP
MILLAR: Some people were really angry. Cap is saying the most horrible things. Tony is a guy who was born with a silver spoon in his mouth. Cap was born behind a bakery in Brooklyn or something, probably shared an apartment with a lot of people in the Depression. And so I think Tony’s going to look like he’s had a pretty easy life compared to Cap.

McNIVEN: I think you’re right. It’s not like they’re going to consider what they’re saying. They’re speaking in anger and I think that definitely shows the caliber of writing involved in the book.

MILLAR: I can only agree with that.

McNIVEN: It really works well. I think a lot of people are taking issue with it without realizing the kind of horrible things that you do say when you’re fighting with someone like that. Especially somebody with such entrenched views of how things should be, they say things that they probably wouldn’t say that if they were just hanging out, but they’re fighting.

CIVIL WAR #4 [Pg. 8]
GOLIATH: DEAD
MILLAR: The thing that makes me laugh about this is I got an e-mail about five minutes after this came out from a white guy and he says, “Well done. You just had the ultimate visual of an Aryan Superman, taking down one of the Marvel Universe’s few black guys.” And I never really thought about it. Thor would actually be probably like the Ku Klux Klan’s favorite superhero, you know? I hadn’t actually pictured it in those terms because I’d just e-mailed Marvel and said, “Listen, I’ve got to take down a big character, who will you give me?” And the best they could give was Goliath.

McNIVEN: Was there anyone that you were thinking of besides Goliath? If you could, who would you have taken out?

MILLAR: I don’t know. You know I feel a bit funny killing guys off. That’s exciting. But I literally don’t have anyone in mind. I mean, people kept saying to me, “How many Marvel characters are you going to kill off in the series?” And I kept saying almost none because I don’t think you had to do something as cheap as kill them off in the book to get excitement going.

McNIVEN: That was a hard shot to draw actually, because Thor’s hammer’s pretty small compared to Goliath. Y’know, there’s Dagger’s ass again. [See inset] Yeah, I did draw Dagger’s ass well, didn’t I?

MILLAR: Yeah. You’ve got a piece of her ass showing, even.

McNIVEN: I know. [Laughs]

CIVIL WAR #4 [Pg. 9-12]
THOR REVEALED
McNIVEN: It was a great moment in that issue where you suddenly realize, whoa, it’s not really Thor. I think, again, it generates a buzz.

MILLAR: We thought it was a hilariously brilliant twist. And a lot of people were like, “Hey, we thought Thor was coming back.” We forgot how excited people were going to be that Thor’s coming back.

CIVIL WAR #4 [Pg. 10]
SUE SWITCHES SIDES
MILLAR: I used to have a crush on Sue Storm when I was a kid. And I had this crush on the Scarlet Witch. They were both drawn by Kirby at the time and when I look back at those, they look like meaty transvestites because Kirby tried to eliminate the old look. I’m sure that there are young kids on the floor looking at those pictures. I have a feeling. I also said too much.

McNIVEN: [Sue switching sides] was a great moment, really dramatic moment. Make her show her [boobs].

MILLAR: You know, Steve, when you think about it, some kids out there are wanking to your drawings. Haven’t you ever thought about that before? The wanking must now go on today.

McNIVEN: …Yeah. I prefer not to think about that.

MILLAR: It’s going to be in the back of your mind now every page you draw.

CIVIL WAR #4 [Pg. 22]
VILLAINS UNITED
McNIVEN: Again, another great ending to an issue to generate a lot of buzz and controversy. I don’t think Mark’s a stranger to controversy and this one really upped the ante for that. It’s great. It’s fun. I keep saying that over and over again today, but it’s fun. Bullseye’s such a great character. He’s got such an interesting backstory, all the Frank Miller stuff, so that was one character that I wanted to draw. The other characters, I mean, the pumpkin-headed guy [Jack O’Lantern]…that’s just f---ing ridiculous. I looked at that and I’m like, “I’m going to put him as close to off-panel as I possibly can.” Who ever thought the flaming-pumpkin-headed guy was scary? Honest to God.

MILLAR: It was funny because we knew that a couple of these guys were going to die and we were like, ‘Hmmm, who are we going to kill off? Are we going to kill off Venom? Lady Deathstrike? Or the guy with the pumpkin head that we just drew in the background?” [Laughs]

CIVIL WAR #5 [Pg. 9-11]
SPIDER-MAN OF THE RUN
McNIVEN: I really hated—you can ask Tom—I hate the pumpkin-headed guy. Like, with a passion. I think he was the most ridiculous…something that drives me crazy in comics is when they come up with....There was another guy in the issue that was minor character that I just couldn’t draw. Some guy with a giant bone for a head.

MILLAR: A bone?

McNIVEN: Yeah, a bone for a head. And I’m like, “I can’t, I cannot draw that.” The shame would be too much. But you know, the pumpkin-headed guy…I just wanted him dead so much. And then I’m like, “Yes! I get to blow his brains out.”
MILLAR: My dream has always been to draw a pumpkin-headed guy. I can’t believe you were annoyed about it.

McNIVEN: Never again. He’s really dead, right? I hope. He could be a very popular character. I’ll bet you I’m pissing off tons of loyal pumpkin-head fans.

MILLAR: I’ve actually got a vegetable superteam in the works that he was going to lead.

CIVIL WAR #6 [Pg. 10-13]
CAP vs. PUNISHER
MILLAR: I think there’s a little nobility to the Punisher because in his heart he absolutely believes he’s doing the right thing, and I think I have a line in here about how those two guys—Cap and Punisher—are two superheroes separated by different wars, really. Cap is the product of a good war and the Punisher’s the product of a really bad war that America lost. And it was all very vague. And so I think they’re kind of the same guy in a sense and Cap I think recognizes the decency in Frank Castle. I think he retains a hope for the best when Frank comes and says he wants to help you, he means it in his own screwed-up way.

McNIVEN: I think Cap’s always had Bucky to mentor and all that stuff. I think it makes sense. I think at the end [Cap] realizes [Punisher is] completely insane, but I don’t think he thought that all along.

CIVIL WAR #6 [Pg. 18-19]
SPIES
MILLAR: Iron Man keeps showing up and saying, “Hey, everybody, come on. Let’s just chat.” And Cap’s always ready to fight. I’m on Iron Man’s side. [Revealing Tigra as a traitor on Cap’s side] was a great way to destabilize things, to activate the cells so that [Cap’s side] could get all their big guys out. So it was just a genius piece of plot.
McNIVEN: It was. And we actually sort of alluded to that whole thing at the beginning of the issue, though it didn’t really come across as well as it could have. My fault. But at the beginning of issue #6, the S.H.I.E.L.D. guy that comes and gets Commander Hill is actually supposed to be the Hulkling.

MILLAR: I thought it worked.

CIVIL WAR #7 [Pg. 1-2]
THE BIG FIGHT
McNIVEN: This was fun. I love stuff like Cap shoving Bishop’s head into the ground. It’s a bunch of guys fighting!

MILLAR: I love when Neil Gaiman has a new novel and goes to do a reading and it’s brilliant because they can sit down and just read it out and it’s like reading a novel. But if
I could do a reading of one of my books, it’s just things like “Ah! Look out! Oh, no! Ah!”

McNIVEN: You don’t have any sound effects though. I think we had sound effects at the beginning of the issue for a little bit, didn’t we?

MILLAR: Really? Because I never really put sound effects in. Maybe Marvel did it or something.

McNIVEN: I think they put some in the Cap scene at the very first issue. [See p. 106 for panel with sound effects]

MILLAR: Oh yeah. Yeah. That actually did work well. Generally, I’m not a fan of sound effects.

McNIVEN: I’m glad there wasn’t any.

MILLAR: Generally, whenever I’m doing something, [my script is] very specific. But with Steve, we got to the point where I just trusted him. And I just said, “Cap takes someone down and then next panel Iron Man takes someone down with a blast,” you know. So Steve was really doing all the work by the end of the series.

McNIVEN: I can’t remember. Sometimes he does put in descriptions for stuff and sometimes it’s just a cool shot of Cap taking someone down. You know, it’s fun to choreograph the scene. I kind of wanted to get him, get Cap a feeling of him moving around the fight as well as I could. But it’s just a matter of camera changes—you know, turning the camera around—and it was still kind of difficult when you’ve got such a large group of characters. Your initial thought is to jam it as packed as you can and I’m just not one of those guys that likes to jam panels. I mean, there are the guys that can put in a huge amount of characters and actually make the composition work, and then there’s other ones that just fill space, and that drives me nuts because you can’t really tell the movement of the composition, the way the action’s supposed to be flowing and which way the camera’s turning.

MILLAR: Yeah. I thought at least in this, I don’t know if anyone noticed Woody Allen in the New York scene where they all appear in New York and there’s an explosion of yellow cabs and Woody Allen driving to work.

CIVIL WAR #7 [Pg. 14-15]
HERCULES’ REVENGE
McNIVEN: There’s a shot of Thor and the Hulk in that amazing issue #5 of the first series of Ultimates. I was trying for something as cool as that. [The art on Ultimates] is spectacular stuff and I thought, “All right, I’ve got to avoid doing that shot.” So for me I was just trying to compose something that had a good scrunch with some good bits coming out. I didn’t put any blood in, though. I should have put some more blood in there.

MILLAR: It’s so sinister-looking. It really is. I mean, that eye hanging out from a big string and everything. It’s just horrible.

McNIVEN: I was going to put his jaw on the other side between, by Hercules’ hammer, just like his jaw was flying off but it didn’t really come across very well.

MILLAR: It’s more disturbing than a human head exploding. A human head I can handle. But seeing “Clor” taken down is very disturbing. But what a great composition. Composing a page is a big deal for me. Like, so few guys can do it. And I’ve got quite a snobby eye when it comes to that stuff. And I just think that’s a perfectly laid-out page. It’s absolutely beautiful.

CIVIL WAR #7 [Pg. 16]
CAP DEFEATS IRON MAN
MILLAR: It is very satisfying that you’re seeing someone get the sh-- kicked out of them. Look at Dark Knight Returns Book 2, where Batman is fighting a mutant leader. There’s nothing better than seeing your guy come back and just kick the living sh-- out of a guy. And that [third] panel on that page is the most disturbing image ever, that Iron Man’s helmet just goes to that floor. That’s horrible, but really brilliantly done. At the meeting [where Civil War was planned] it was asked, “Where the hell do we end this?” Because all the specifics of it, you work out all the plot stuff and everything, all the little back-and-forths, that was easy. But it had to be a group decision of who was going to win this because it’s such a change in the Marvel Universe, depending on who won. So yeah, that was actually really hard. And as you know, we argued for a day and a half over who should win and how they should win. And Joss Whedon came in as the voice of common sense and suggested a really nice, simple ending, because one of the things we talked about was a kind of “Hey, everybody wins.” You know, you’re all winners. And he was saying that’s the most unsatisfying ending, and after seven months you have to have one guy beat the other guy. And it was a really good point.

CIVIL WAR #7 [Pg. 17-20]
CAP SURRENDERS
McNIVEN: I think it was the Cap crying thing, Mark really wanted him to be bawling out. And initially I was like, “I hope I can hit this right.” But I think it did. I think he genuinely has an expression of remorse and sort of stunned into silence in that way. I love that shot with him dropping the shield, and it’s really paved out in the script. It was all there. It was just done for me to draw.

MILLAR: Steve just picked the perfect angle on it. It’s beautiful. Cap with his head down crying, walking away in handcuffs. This is maybe my favorite moment in the book. But I’ve got to say, I should point out that there’s a line that I love on the previous page that Mr. C.B. Cebulski came up with, which was “They’re not arresting Captain America. They’re arresting Steve Rogers.”

CIVIL WAR #7 [Pg. 21-24]
THE NEW BEGINNING
MILLAR: It was great for me to touch on all these little pieces of the Marvel Universe. So with those final eight pages or so, I got to do a blueprint for the Marvel Universe, which is the fun part, you know, coming up with the high concepts. And that’s actually very satisfying. It’s nice having to set up this new Marvel Universe and then letting other people do the hard work. And some of them get carried through and some of them didn’t. Like one I really wanted was the Punisher to become the new Captain America and we have that on some level, but I wanted him to be in costume as the new Cap, that was my idea from there. The Initiative is actually a run I was going to do at some point. My brother used to have a company called the Scottish Initiative that pulled together all of these charities from all over Scotland. So just all these little things like that. I had a very loose idea for [Alpha Flight] that Mike Oeming did a much better job with, which was that some of the heroes would flee across the border because nobody’s really interested in Canadian heroes. Sorry, Steve. [Both laugh]

McNIVEN: When Hank is introducing those guys, the Texas Rangers…these guys are sad. One guy’s an armadillo. [Laughs]

BEYOND CIVIL WAR
MILLAR: I didn’t look at a single thing after we finished.

McNIVEN: I’m reading Mighty Avengers and New Avengers. Leinil Yu is doing a beautiful job on New Avengers. It’s absolutely gorgeous.

MILLAR: I love all the guys, but I just got too close. After all that time I had to go away and do something else. It would have felt like we were still working on the book if we read the new stuff.

McNIVEN: True. You have a sort of vested interest in it. Yeah.
MILLAR: It was like probably 10 months of a life, but it was literally in your every waking thought.

McNIVEN: Yeah. Well, that last issue, I did it in all of January. Like I started Jan. 1 and I drew every single day until Jan. 31, like every day. Straight through. Thank God it’s done.



Oh yeah, for those of you who think that Spidey's identity has been irrevocably damaged and revealed to the public and there's no way back for him, you might want to check out Avengers: The Initiative #7. I was going to drop this title from my list of purchases, but after THIS bombshell reveal and an awesome story, I'm starting to reconsider!

Marvel Mondays: "Daredevil" #102

Hey folks! I now know why there was so much stuff posted yesterday on Wizard Universe...I had posted stuff stretching TWO days! Well, there's quite a lot more stuff today, so enjoy!

Have I mentioned that Daredevil is now one of my favourite characters in the Marvel Universe? Ever since Kevin Smith and Joe Quesada relaunched the title as part of the Marvel Knights stable, the book has gone from strength to strength. Then Brian Michael Bendis started his legendary run and Ed Brubaker now carries on that legacy.

It's remarkable, considering there's nothing really special about Daredevil. Sure, he's got pretty unique powers. But he can't shoot lightning bolts out of his arse or anything fancy like that...he's just an expert hand-to-hand combatant with a radar sense and enhanced senses...and those enhanced senses are sometimes more of a disadvantage than an advantage!

So why do I like the character so much? Perhaps it's because he's a flawed hero. He makes bad choices in his personal life (some of which he's been pushed into) and his interaction with his supporting cast makes it one of the best reads right now. Daredevil, the hero, isn't anything special, when you're talking about superpowers. Matt Murdock, the CHARACTER though, now there's someone unique and special.


MARVEL MONDAYS: 'DAREDEVIL' #102
A glimpse at Mr. Fear and a look at Daredevil’s most vicious vendettas throughout history
By Brian Warmoth

Posted November 26, 2007 5:10 PM

Daredevil’s long history with Mr. Fear dates back for decades, but the masked villain crossed a new line when he sent Murdock’s wife Milla over the edge into a drug-induced psychotic rage. Now, Milla sits in a mental institution and things are very personal for the Man Without Fear. Mr. Fear earned a slot on top of an elite list of villains to land on the wrong end of one of Daredevil’s grudges. Alongside a preview of this week’s Daredevil #102, here are the worst of Daredevil’s rogues and what happened to them.

FIXER
The Grudge: Roscoe Sweeny had Matt Murdock’s dad Jack killed after the veteran boxer refused to throw a fight. If that wasn’t bad enough, he slipped right through the legal system and back onto the streets. The crime inspired Matt to take on his identity as Daredevil.
Daredevil’s Revenge: Daredevil not only managed to track down his father’s assailant Slade, he also found the Fixer in a subway and scared the life out of him—literally, the old man had a heart attack and croaked.

MICAH SYNN
The Grudge: Synn beat Daredevil to a pulp and then not only got a restraining order filed against him, but also tarnished his image in the media and kidnapped Murdock’s secretary. Synn also messed around with Foggy Nelson’s wife and used her against both Nelson and Murdock.
Daredevil’s Revenge: Daredevil teamed together with the Kingpin to completely dismantle Synn's crime syndicate and reduced the bare-chested pile of machismo to a groveling, begging embarrassment to supervillains everywhere.

KINGPIN
The Grudge: The Kingpin outed Daredevil as Matthew Murdock to the F.B.I. and got him thrown in jail. Then he had Murdock's partner and pal Foggy Nelson brutally stabbed. Unfortunately for him, the F.B.I. threw the Kingpin for a loop and tossed him in jail as well, right along with Murdock.
Daredevil’s Revenge: When a prison riot broke out and Daredevil and the Kingpin were forced to look out for each other momentarily, Murdock let the Kingpin catch a crippling blow from Bullseye and jumped out of jail with the big criminal Kahuna still behind bars in a world of pain.

OWL
The Grudge: The Owl got way out of line and teased Murdock about Foggy’s stabbing. The crude comments hit a nasty chord with the recently arrested hero.
Daredevil’s Revenge: Murdock slammed a few fistfuls of hurt into the Owl in response to the taunt and left him with a few bruises to remember him by.

MR. FEAR
The Grudge: Murdock’s law school classmate Larry Cranston carried his own grudge into a career as the third Mr. Fear. Partnering with chemist Dante Govich, Cranston lashed out at Milla and drugged her into a psychotic stupor.
Daredevil’s Revenge: Daredevil’s out for blood now, as well as an antidote for Milla’s condition. As history shows, messing with Daredevil’s loved ones rarely ends with a slap a on the wrist.

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