Silver Surfer comics and cartoons, secret sketches, secret blogs, Surfer emotions, the philosophy of Galactus, the Surfer's redone origin story by Stan and Jack, Surfer gets a job, Fantastic Four 90s animated show (song only), and more Surfer!!! Next week: the psychology of Batman villains.
Tag Archive for 'Silver Surfer'
The INDECENT PROPOSAL story arc begins here!!! It's part 1, and Ross Campbell and Nick Marino use TalkShoe for the first time as they chat about the pre-con rush for San Diego, the X-Men comic book line, Jubilee's cup size, Marvel's Ultimate line, a dream Ross had about sharing an office with Joe Quesada and Henry Rollins, a continuity-free line at Marvel Comics, superheroes as food and the Fantastic Four as elementals, backissues, Milestone Media, and an offer of original art from Ross for someone who shows up at SDCC with at least half of the Blood Syndicate series.
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Reflecting back on this recent miniseries from Marvel Comics, I'm fascinated by its underwhelming promotion and reception. Last Defenders was a smart, fun, and kinetic story that followed Nighthawk thru an introspective journey into modern superheroics. Kyle Richmond asked a lot of existential questions about his place in the universe and received a lot of answers in the form of temporal tampering via Yandroth, a time traveling superbaddie with a big chip on his quantum shoulder.
So what went wrong? I'm no expert, but I am an asshole. That's why I'm only giving you reason nine thru five this week.
9. Was the art accessible enough? I found the story both brilliant and confusing. Jim Muniz, Cam Smith, and Antonio Fabela brought this journey to life in a sort of Ed McGuinness meets Duncan Rouleau way. The art was a big selling point for me, mostly because the stylized visuals took what could have been a painfully old school story and made it impossibly fresh. But was the art too stylized for this book's demographic?
8. Was Last Defenders TOO old school? To say that this could have been "painfully old-school" is not a knock to Joe Casey or Keith Giffen. They both did a great job here, with Giffen co-writing the first few issues and Casey carrying the rest. The story pulls from the Defenders back catalog of adventures in an obsessive way that's just as disorienting as it is fun. This comic was like a thesis statement on Defenders history, sprinkled with non-team team book irony.
Continue reading 'The Top 9 Things That May Have Gone Wrong with Last Defenders - Part One'
9. Flight. Who doesn't want to be able to fly? It's sweet. But not so sweet that it would top this list. In fact, most superheroes that can fly are given some other sort of ability as well (Superman, Storm, Ms. Marvel, etc). Off the top of my head, the only pure flight hero I can think of is Angel (Warren Worthington III). For a time, he had that "blood can heal you" thing. But I'm sure that's being retconned as we speak.
8. Enhanced Senses. It's a simple notion. Take the sensory perception of a normal human and turn it up to 11 (thank you, Spinal Tap). As with characters like Wolverine, these senses are often linked to an animalistic connection. But that sort of totemistic power is a completely different thing. Daredevil is a great example of plain enhanced senses, but I personally prefer the enhanced awareness and reaction time of Slade Wilson (a.k.a. Deathstroke).
7. Invulnerability. This is another superpower often paired with other abilities, most commonly super strength. Superman is invulnerable, mostly as an afterthought. Luke Cage comes close to being a pure holder of this power, but he gained some super strength with his invulnerability. You need look no further than Avengers: The Initiative #13 and Emery Schaub (a.k.a. Butterball), a teen who had no special abilities whatsoever aside from the fact that he couldn't get hurt.
6. Telepathy. Don't get me wrong -- telekinesis is great and all, but I'd rather have the full range of someone's thoughts and feelings. Telepathy is the ultimate invasion of personal privacy that seems sort of delicious in a twisted kind of way. Professor Xavier is my favorite telepath, mostly because his power is extensive and he has impressive control over his ability to get into the thoughts (both conscious and unconscious) of others.
5. Agility. Maybe not the most impressive power on this list. In fact, this is probably my "pet power" choice, if only because I've always dreamed of rolling out of leaping somersaults like Nightcrawler or daftly dodging blows like Black Panther. Truthfully, I can't think of a hero who has agility as a singular ability. Tigra's close, but too totemistic. I'll go with none other than the friendly neighborhood Spider-Man as the finest example of the ability to perform fantastic gymnastics.
4. Energy Manipulation. This one's a doozy. I mean, there are so many ways to bend energy, absorb it, and rechannel it out. Endless iterations pop up in comic books because you can draw it however you want, splash it with bright colors, and it looks sweet. My two favorite examples of energy manipulation come in the form of Havok's concentric blasts and Bishop's ability to spray you back with whatever energy you shoot at him. (And of course, the Silver Surfer's Power Cosmic too).
3. Water Manipulation. This one that's a bit obscure and sure to have its detractors. Still, I think the ability to manipulate water is probably one of the most impressive superpowers. Straying from comics, we've seen fantastic examples of water manipulation by Katara in Avatar: The Last Airbender. But in comics, the best example I can think of is Hydro-Man. Yeah, the character is a moron but his powers are absolutely incredible.
2. Density Control. Okay, this one is also a bit obscure. I mean, I actually had to sit down and reason out what density control entails just to write this list. This ability is not to be confused with the mass control of Harry Leland. Instead, I'm talking about Vision's power to fluctuate between intangible and diamond-hard. Emma Frost and Kitty Pryde represent the opposite sides of this power spectrum, while Vision has the ability to make himself both ethereal and super solid with a mere thought.
1. Invisibility. Sue Storm, the Invisible Woman, is probably the best pure example of this ability. She also has a host of other awesome tricks she can do that are only tangentially related to hiding herself and other objects from view. And that energy manipulation is extremely awesome. But at the end of the day, she would still have my favorite power of any superhero out there if she just had the ability to hide herself in plain sight.
Next: The Top 9 UK Oddities! [instead of The Top 9 Obscure Movie Soundtracks]
Why the Top 9? Because 10 is too many and 9 is better. 3 X 3 = Awesome. Now that’s what I call math.
9. Fantomex's E.V.A.. From Grant Morrison's run on New X-Men comes Fantomex and his mutant gift, which acts as both his external nervous system AND his kickass transportation.
8. Captain America's Motorcycle. Kind of a boring inclusion, but you gotta admit that Cap looks sweet when he's tearing it up on his bike. Bonus points for the use of Cap's motorcycle in the 80s made-for-TV movies.
7. Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles' Turtle Van. Well, in the comics, if I'm not mistaken... it's just a van. But in the cartoon, it was a tricked out mobile fortress! And the toy was pretty excellent as well. TURTLE POWER!
6. Avengers' Quinjet. I feel like I had to include this one not because it's that great but because it's a memorable superhero vehicle.
5. X-Men's Blackbird. I love the Blackbird. Some of the most intense X-Men drama has happened aboard this vessel. If this list were based strictly on good memories, this would be #1.
4. Batman's Batmobile. Yeah, it's the Batmobile. It's classic. It's iconic. Me, I prefer the old school hot rod style Batmobile. The modern ones lack a certain flashy charisma.
3. Fantastic Four's Fantasticar. Look, it splits apart. Isn't that enough for you? Plus, this damn thing has been to how many different dimensions? It's awesome.
2. Wonder Woman's Invisible Plane. It's a plane. It's invisible. It's an invisible plane. How does it work? WHO KNOWS??? What I do know: it rules.
1. Silver Surfer's Board. You really can't top the combination of the Power Cosmic and surfing. I mean, hell, the Silver Surfer is the ultimate mobile superhero! To this day I still pretend I'm the philosophic chromed-out guy-formerly-known-as-Norrin-Radd whenever I use my skateboard to go to the grocery store.
Next: The Top 9 Comic Book Superpowers!
Why the Top 9? Because 10 is too many and 9 is better. 3 X 3 = Awesome. Now that’s what I call math.
Here, in painstakingly particular (and genius) order, are the Top 9 Best Live-Action Superhero Movies of all-time:
9. Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (1990)
8. Blade (1998)
7. Batman: The Movie (1966)
6. X2 (2005)
5. Batman Returns (1992)
4. Iron Man (2008)
3. Batman (1989)
2. X-Men (2000)
1. Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer (2007)
I know what you must be thinking. "Nick," you're saying to yourself, "You are completely out of your @#$%ing mind." But go back and reread the list. The effect should sound something like, "Wait… this list is actually quite brilliant."
So here's the thing: I KNOW that people out there will disagree with me. If you think there's a better Top 9 Best Live-Action Superhero Movies, then post your version in the comments.
However, if you don't post your own version of this Top 9, I will consider my list as unchallenged and therefore the definitive list of Best Live-Action Superhero Movies by default.
More: The Top 9 Ways to Piss Me Off in the Movie Theater!
Why the Top 9? Because 10 is too many and 9 is better. 3 X 3 = Awesome. Now that’s what I call math.
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