Green Lantern Review

Green Lantern

     DC's latest shot at getting another one of their characters besides Superman and Batman on the big screen.  Now this one will probably get me a lot of negative comments but I for one enjoyed this movie.  I have been rooting for this movie ever since I first heard about it.  DC's track record in the movie department is a very short one.  Trying to pull out a lesser known character as Green Lantern, essentially a space cop assigned to a sector with only a green will powered ring, was going to be a tough job.  Now when I say lesser known I am not referring to my fellow comic nerds but rather the general public.  Ryan Reynolds as comic book Green Lantern favorite Hal Jordan was a spot on pick.  At first when I heard I moaned and groaned but honestly he pulled it off.  Blake Lively as Carol Ferris was a good supporting actress, helping Hal come to grips with his new found power.  Peter Sarsgaard as villain Hector Hammond did an admirable job playing a character with a very larger bulbous head. Mark Strong was excellent as Sinestro, who starts out as Hal's ally but ultimately becomes a villain using the yellow power ring of fear.  Now for a movie as heavy with CG as this I expected a multitude of mistakes but in all there were only a couple, usually with the mask.  The suit which was all CG looked fantastic in action and in most still shots.  Planet OA was amazing to look at.  During opening week I watched and read almost every review as they came in and unlike X-Men it was like finding a needle in a haystack when it came to good reviews.  I was definitely disheartened by this because I knew that DC had a lot riding on this being successful.  If this performed very well then the likelihood of us getting more DC characters on the big screen would be better.  Alas the movie performed better than studio expectations the first weekend but, unlike Hal Jordan, I am afraid that we may have to wait and hope for another character to give DC that big push.  Let's face it right now DC is riding Superman and Batman's capes in the movie industry.  Now like I said with such a big task of heavy CG I thought the movie pulled it off.  What Hal created with his power ring were interesting constructs.  Now remember this was an origin story and now that is out of the way a sequel wouldn't get bogged down with having to do so much explanation.  So I went opening weekend like so many others and I walked out actually enjoying the movie.  It was way better than other critics would have you believe.  All in all I give Green Lantern 3 gamma bombs out of 5.

X-Men: First Class Review

X-Men: First Class

     The next on my list of films I seen thus far was the next, or should I say pre, chapter of the X-Men universe.  Set back during the sixties this is a telling of how Professor Charles Xavier and Erik Lehnsherr, better known as Magneto, started out together and ultimately ending up on opposite sides.  I found that James McAvoy portrayal as Xavier was much more entertaining than, dare I say it, Patrick Stewart's portrayal.  The same can be said about Michael Fassbender as Magneto than Ian McKellen as Magneto.  The story really centers around their relationship and even though we know the outcome you can't help but root for them to find middle ground and work together.  Alas we know it is not to be and the filmmakers stay true to that but in the scenes with both actors is so intense you find yourself lost in their performance, really getting into the story.  Both actors chemistry works so well together that a lot of the time you don't even care about the other mutants and find yourself waiting impatiently for the next scene with them in it.  I initially was content waiting for this to hit DVD/Blu-Ray and watch it then but was stunned that after opening weekend that it was hard pressed to find any negative reviews and rightfully so.  I kept reading about how this was one if not the best of the franchise so far.  So second week out I was there skeptic at how this could pull me back into the X-Men mix.  But I assure you that by the end of the movie I was a believer that there was hope for a franchise that I thought burned out long ago.  I give X-Men: First Class 4 gamma bombs outta 5.

THOR Review

     Well I fell off of blogging recently and haven't posted in quite awhile, but in that time three big comic movies have been released -- THOR, X-Men: First Class & Green Lantern.  My reviews of each film are my own opinions and many of you will likely disagree with some of what I say but I stand by my word.

THOR

     I went and seen THOR the weekend it came out because I was thoroughly excited not only for the character but also for the obvious Avenger's movie tie-in it would deliver us.  On the other hand I was very nervous about how a character from Asgard would translate in a world where comic book characters are balancing keeping comic nerds like myself happy yet have you believe this could happen in reality.  Of all the Avengers tie-in films I personally felt this would probably be the weakest of link.  I wanted all tie-in movies to do well leading into The Avengers.  In a world where the latest Batman trilogy would have you believe he exists how do you make the audience believe a mythological GOD exists?  Well in short they did an excellent job at that.  Explaining that what we call science and magic is where he comes from, they are one and the same.  Chris Hemsworth did an amazing job portraying the cocky GOD of Thunder and on the flip side a humble man.  Anthony Hopkins as always steals the screen whenever he is present as Odin.  He is just such a wonderful actor to watch.  Natalie Portman was decent in her role as scientist Jane Foster.  Tom Hiddleston as Loki was worth watching.  He was so manipulative you sometimes believed him.  They kept many things from the comics and throughout the film I found myself searching for things that THOR did in the comics.  He flew with one arm holding the hammer (Mjolnir) outwards, he hovered using Mjolnir as a helicopter blade substitute twirling above his head, his GOD like anger.  The suit they used for him was beautifully crafted and was just stunning the way his color scheme looked against the desert background.  Also we get our first brief look at Hawkeye who will not get a solo movie before the Avenger's movie.  Plus the post credits Avengers tie-in sent a chill down my spine.  All in all I give it 4 gamma bombs outta 5.

Captain America: The First Avenger v.s. The First Avenger

     It was announced earlier today that Captain America: The First Avenger will be the title for the movie globally except for three countries in which it will be titled simply The First Avenger -- Russia, Ukraine & South Korea.  I would like to give a round of applause for everyone except those three countries.  Now the question I have pertains to the dialogue.  They obviously took the route of taking out Captain America from the title so are we to believe they are going to also omit his name from each bit of dialogue addressing him as "The First Avenger" or "Avenger" or "Captain" or will they address him as "Captain America"?  Maybe the dialogue will go something like this "Hello, I'm Captain *******" or "Thank you for saving us Captain *******" or my favorite "Curse you Captain *******"  Why show a movie that is obviously American, only to change the name of the movie but still the title character is dressed basically in U.S.A colors?  Why even show the flick?  There is no sense in altering the title if said three countries hates our country only to have a character representation of our country pre-dominantly throughout the movie.  If you don't like our country then why even show the film at all?  We're not forcing you to take the movie, yet you decide to shorten the name of the film to exclude the main character's name.  Would you rather we call it Comrade Russian?  Captain Ukrainian?  Captain Korea?  I know I have been ranting on and on but honestly if you don't want Captain America in the title of the film then why would you want to watch a movie about Captain America?  That's all I have for you today my little gamma radiated freaks but until next time this is Bobby telling you to Shield Up!

Captain America Super Bowl Spot

     Well smack my ass and call me whatever the fuck you want.  Just watched the Super Bowl spot for the Captain America: The First Avenger trailer.  It is so epic that I am just in awe.  We got to see Steve Rogers (Chirs Evans) pre super-soilder serum and he looked like he was supposed to, skinny and sickly.  We then see Steve hooked up into a machine where then he comes out looking like the badass he is.  We got to see some great shots of him in full costume in action which looks great.  The shield they made for the movie is beautiful.  FINALLY we also got to see the Red Skull (Hugo Weaving) in full red face.  He looks fucking sick, love it.  I cannot, I repeat CANNOT wait for this movie to come out in theatres.

Super Bowl XLV Movie Trailers

     A little slow on this one but as the day for the super bowl has yet to come I still have time.  They have officially announced the movie trailers for this sunday February 6th.  During the game we will get to see the trailers for Kung Fu Panda 2, Priest, Captain America: The First Avenger, Cowboys and Aliens, Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides, Super 8, Thor and Transformers: Dark of the Moon.  We already have teasers of all these except Captain America to which I am really excited for.  So stay tuned Sunday night as I review these trailers.

Smallville News

     So here we are, last season of Smallville, last half of Smallville.  This Friday kicks off the second half of the 10th season of Smallville.  I for one never imagined 10 seasons, kept saying after season 5 that the next had to be the last and yet they kept delivering year after year.  Oh sure they had some seasons or episodes that fell short or flat on its face but never the less the ratings kept up and here we are.  Over at tvguide.com they reported that Supergirl will make one final appearance this season and that there are rumblings that the series finale might be a two hour send off.  All I can say is let's hope, because to try and tie up 10 seasons worth of show into one hour program might seem a little cramped and rushed.  Still no word yet on Michael Rosenbaum returning to play Lex Luthor.  Times running out on that one so either they know and are not announcing anything or we will just end up getting some cheap knock off version.

Look! Up on the big screen! A new Superman!

     It has been reported that Henry Cavill will indeed play the role of Superman in the next movie.  He starred in the show Tudors which airs on Showtime.

Henry Cavill will play Superman in the upcoming reboot.

X-Pics and Hathaway is Purrrrfect

     We have some great news in the world of comic book movies.  The first is from X-Men: First Class, we finally have a good promotion shot from the movie showing most of the mutants from the movie.  The plot of the movie revolves around the early days for Professor X and Magneto.  Before they were enemies they were friends first starting up the school for mutants.

     The second bit of news comes from the next Batman movie Batman: The Dark Knight Rises.  It was reported today that Anne Hathaway is going to be Catwoman.  She will now join the likes of Michelle Pfeiffer and Halle Berry as the perrrrrfect cat burglar.  I believe that is actually a good decision on the casting side, unexpected but good.  I look forward to seeing her in outfit.  Plus Tom Hardy has been cast as the villain Bane in the new Bat movie.  I am really curious as to how they will portray Bane in the movie.  In the comics Bane is infamous as the man who broke Batman's back and put him out of commission for awhile.  Plus in a movie where they are intent on placing as much real world applications as possible (trying to make you think that Batman could exist) will they make him comic book bulked up, hopped on some type of drug that made him so unbelievably muscle bound or just a regular muscle bound dude.  In addition, surely they couldn't go the route of back breaking just to have it healed again all within a two hour movie so I wonder what they might try to do.

                                                Anne Hathaway is Catwoman

                                                             Tom Hardy is Bane
     X-men: First Class opens this summer June 3, 2011 while The Dark Knight Rises will be out for the 2012 summer blockbusters.

Being Human SyFy Review

     Ok stop me if you've heard this one, A Vampire, A Werewolf and A Ghost share an apartment . . . no I'm not kidding. Let me start off by saying I had high hopes for this show and it surpassed every expectation plus through in an unexpected one. This show has it all, comedy, drama, action and mystery. Sam Witwer plays Aidan a vampire who wants to stop drinking blood from humans. You might remember Sam Witwer from Smallville as Davis Bloom (A.K.A. Doomsday) or for you gamers he was The Apprentice from the Star Wars The Apprentice 1 & 2. I am glad to see him in another show because he really is an excellent actor. You really feel his pain when he slips up.
     Sam Huntington plays Josh The Werewolf who is struggling to cope with who he is and how to deal with his curse. You really feel his despair as he has had to leave his family and friends behind so as not to endanger them. You might remember him from such films as Superman Returns as Jimmy Olsen or Detroit Rock City as the drummer on his way with his friends to see a KISS concert. I love both movies and am glad to see him further his career. Plus he adds also the perfect comedy relief.
     Meaghan Rath plays Sally a Ghost who is relativity new to the scene of being a ghost. She is all giddy and upbeat most of the time but still unclear as to how she perished. She has yet to move on to the other side and resides in the apartment where she and her fiancé lived when she died. Her filmography isn't as impressive as the other two but I think this could be her shot to shine as she plays a very lovable character.
     All in all first episode is a two parter and we will have to tune in again next week to see where the events
takes us. The plot of the story as you can gather by the character infos revolves around those three characters trying to lead normal lives minus the ghost, kind of hard to work at Burger King when no one can see you.  It really surprised me the human element they put in.  They aren't just putting all these great monsters together in one show and then delivering it, they also show us the human side of these characters. This is a great show and something you wouldn't expect put of SyFy but more like the CW. I highly recommend this show to anyone who has not seen it. I give it 9 gamma bombs outta 10.

From left to right: Sam Huntington (Werewolf); Meaghan Rath (Ghost); Sam Witwer (Vampire)

First Images of Captain America and Spider-Man

     Today is full of exciting movie news my friends.  Over at IGN they showed the first images of Chris Evans in Captain America: The First Avenger in full costume.  Might I say I am thoroughly pleased to not only finally see the costume but that it looks totally bad ass.  It is definitely a WWII era outfit and it looks as if he is ready to rumble.

     I like that they didn't deviate from the comics too much.  The helmet has the wings painted on rather than sticking out.  I like the shoulder pad look, along with the straps being red acting as stripes rather than there being straps around his mid-section.  It looks as though he has been fighting judging by the marks on his shield.  Looks as though he was deflecting some bullets.
     On another note IGN also showed us the first picture of Andrew Garfield as Spider-Man in the reboot.  I love this outfit and how it isn't totally classic Spidey that it appears to be Ultimate Spider-Man.

     This appears as though this film might be darker than its predecessors.  Ofcourse it might not be and Sony might just released this one at night because it looks really awesome.  Compared to the other Spidey suit that Tobey Maguire wore I like this one more.  It appears to have just a little more flair than the other one.  If you head over to IGN you  can see and enlarged version of this but on his wrists there looks to be web-shooters.  One of my complaints about the other Spidey films was that they went with organic web-shooters rather than making them himself.  One of the neat things about when the radioactive spider bit him was that it not only gave him the strength, agility, sense but also the knowledge to make his web.  The other Spidey just had it coming out of his wrists.
     Spider-Man reboot comes out in 2012, whereas Captain America: The First Avenger is released this summer July 22, 2011.  Go ahead and chat about it in my comment section and let me know what you think about them.

Hello again

Let me start off by saying thank you to those of you who are following my blog. Tonight I plan on reviewing some comics of mine so stay tuned for that. These first two reviews might not be the best but I'm learning as I go and hope to bring them to you quick and better than I have thus far. When Supernatural and Smallville return in a few weeks be prepared for weekly reviews for those two shows plus a special Smallville goodbye when the last episode is aired. Thank you again and be sure to stay tuned for any reviews or news that might pop up on here.

Need For Speed Hot Pursuit XBOX 360 Review

     Does anyone remember 2002?  I do, it was my senior year of high school and also the year I met my wife.  Bands like Eminem, Nickleback and Linkin Park are at the top of the scene.  Hollywood brings us such films as Spiderman, Ice Age and Signs.  Well not to be outdone EA Black Box develops and releases a game Need For Speed: Hot Pursuit 2.  I had the PlayStation 2 at the time and this game showed me what a racing title could and should be.  I fell in love with it instantly and played for hours on end.  The game received great reviews but for some reason EA never followed up with a sequel.  No they instead decided to go the way of street racing instead of open country roads; to tuner cars instead of muscle and sports.  Enter 2010, EA produced, Criterion Games developed Need For Speed Hot Pursuit.  Criterion Games is no stranger to racing with their ever popular Burnout series.  So when you mix high octane speed that Need For Speed series has come to offer with wild crash scenes and destruction that Burnout series is known for you get possibly the best racing game to date. 
     Need For Speed Hot Pursuit takes us back to either running from the law in high speed racing or chasing down the punk speeders as the cops.  We are brought back to the great cars like muscle, sports, and oh-my-god-how-fast-does-this-thing-go.  You can do both Cop and Racer story mode which is actually just a bunch of races both ways.  This time around although the Cops get to call in spike strips, road blocks, helicopters and EMPs to slow the racer down or to ultimtely bust him.  While that seems unfair to the Racer just know that the Racer is not without his/her tricks.  The Racers are equipped with spike strips, turbo, EMPs and jammer.  The jammer temporarily knocks out communication among the Cops stopping them from either calling one of their weapons in or to shake off that EMP lock before you are hit.  Turbo is one long burst of speed that does not let up until you have emptied the tank, so make sure you have a straight stretch before punching it.  The online mode is equally as fun and challenges you to put the skills you learned form single player to the test against your friends and all of XBOX Live.  One neat thing that they added that I found particularly cool was Auto log.  Auto log keeps track of each race you perform and the time it took you to complete it.  It then compares it with any of your friends to see if you or they have done better.  If you have not beaten them it will tell you on the speed wall their time and you then have the chance to re-play and try and beat their time.  If your a perfectionist like me then it will drive you nuts as you try to stay on top of the speed wall but it's fun to see how your friends stack up against you..
     All in all the game is damn near perfect, but like every game you can't please every gamer.  I wish there would have been some great jumps to get some awesome air time.  It does get a little monotony playing race after race after race.  Auto log seems to just black out at random times and re-connecting to it isn't always right away.  The scenery is quite stunning and they did an excellent job on graphics.  This game finally brings the series back home where it should be.  I give Need For Speed Hot Pursuit 10 Gamma Bombs outta 10.

The Cape Review

As most of you know this past Sunday January 9th, 2011 NBC premiered its newest attempt at trying to cash in at the superhero genre with their new show The Cape.  Everyone remembers Heroes on NBC a couple years back.  The first season of that show started off as something fresh and new and blew peoples minds.  After that first season, unfortunately, they went downhill until their eventual cancellation.  The Cape seems NBC's next attempt to capture lightning in a bottle.  While it seems that it isn't going to be as fast catching on to the public's attention as Heroes that may be a good thing, so long as the ratings keep it in good graces with the studio.  The Cape is about a cop, Vince Faraday, who is framed as the masked criminal Chess for killings in Palm City, and then dons the alter-ego The Cape to try and clear his name and return to his family who thinks him dead.  Now warning from here on out that there will contain SPOILERS!  Now if you haven't seen the show yet and are not interested in spoilers then watch the episode then return, but if your like me and don't mind them, then please by all means continue.

     For around the first thirty minutes of the show we are spent gathering a little background about the main character Vince Faraday.  We find that he is a loving father to his son as well as a loving husband.  He reads to his son every night a comic about a superhero named The Cape, yeah I think you see where this is heading.  He is contacted via his computer by Orwell who tells him that she's been watching him and knows that he is a good man and gives him information on a shipment of weapons coming into the city via cargo trains.  When Faraday investigates with his partner he is double-crossed and turned over to Chess.  Chess is the main villain but he also has a secret identity which is Peter Fleming CEO of Ark Industries.  Ark Industries is currently working with the police to put a stop to Chess so when Faraday is handed to him he staples the mask to him and tells him to run.  The chase of framed Faraday wearing the Chess mask is televised as swat teams pursue him through the train yard eventually ending up with him escaping into a tunnel underneath a explosive freight right before it is blown to pieces.  So everyone thinks Chess is dead, Faraday was framed and now the mayor hands over the police force to Ark Industries for finally putting an end to Chess.  The rest of the show has Faraday meeting up with a gang of circus folk, who rob banks, and them teaching him all the tricks they know for fighting and giving him this cape that is extraordinary.  So before he starts off on his crime-fighting job he stops off to see his son and play the part of his son's favorite comic book character The Cape.  He tells his son that he knew his father and that he did not commit those crimes.  Orwell turns out to be a woman who knows quite a good deal about what's going with Ark Industries and joins him in trying to bring down Peter Fleming and Ark Industries. 

         Now the fight scenes aren't as good as they could be but I believe that given the time they will get better at it.  It definitely has that cheesy factor but it seems to fit.  There are a couple of funny scenes as he tries to explain to people who he is.  All in all they did a decent job for the first episode.  The series has potential of growing into even more than what it is now.  I like it despite it's fall and drawn out story at times but because it kind of reminds you of Batman meets Spawn.  I highly recommend tuning in to catch the show if you are able and give it a shot.  I give it 7 Gamma bombs outta 10.

Number One Baby

First post out trying this blogging thing here.  Here is a list of stuff I will be keeping you informed on here in my blog.  Movies, mainly superhero themed movies but others will wined up on here as well.  T.V. also, now there isn't as many superhero themed shows but there are a great deal of good programming out there.  Video games, I have a good collection of video games for the XBOX 360 and will review some of my more recent purchases to get the ball rolling as well as future purchases and DLC also.  Comic books will aslo be reviewed and will be telling you my favorites for the month and standout issues.  I am not a hard critic but I will not hold back if something doesn't sit right with me.  This site is, obviously, my opinion and more times than not you will probably disagree and I welcome that but please let's just agree to disagree and keep it "nice" on here.  Later on I will review my comic purchase I made today and it was a hefty one.  I will try to branch out of my norm for the sake of blogging because our tastes may differ a little, but if you have any suggestions on a certain series let me know and next trip to the comic store I will purchase, read then review for you.  I am 25 years old and am a big nerd in ways of superheros but am not a know it all.  There are areas that you know better than me and vice-versa.  I am excited to get this going and for all of you to share this with me.