Archive: November, 2008

"Twilight" zone: There is apparently some new movie about vampires called "Dawn" or "Twilight" or something like that. If you want to know more you can read this Los Angeles Times review by critic Kenny Turan, who says the movie actually makes him wish he could be a 13-year-old girl. Or you can check out Nikki Finke’s Deadline Hollywood blog for an appraisal of the early box-office totals. Or investigate this CNN report about how some of the rabid fans are giving star Kristen Stewart the creeps because they are so jealous of her on-screen smooches with the hunky vampire guy. Or you can peruse this TV Guide story about said bloodsucker, Robert Pattinson, who is getting a bit creeped out himself ("You get little girls like, ‘I want to have your babies!’ It’s like, seriously. I don’t even want to ...

"Loscon 35 Trades Romulans for Romans at LAX Marriott" That was the headline to the press release introducing the theme for this year’s Loscon, a fan convention organized by the Los Angeles Science Fantasy Society (LASFS), a 3,000-member group founded in 1934. Loscon regularly draws about 1,200 attendees each year, and its 35th convention has a lineup that includes author guest of honor John Scalzi (debut novel "Old Man’s War" was nominated for the Hugo Award in ’06), artist guest of honor Gary Lippincott (fantasy/historical) and fan guest of honor Michael Siladi (veteran convention organizer). The programs include panelists ranging from J. Michael Straczynski (comics/TV) to Jane Espenson (from "Buffy" to "Battlestar Galactica").  They may not enjoy being called a mini Comic-Con International, but when they also offer anime programming and a masquerade, their lineup calls that imagery (albeit on ...

EXCLUSIVE: First look at the cover art for the 100th and final issue of "100 Bullets"  Vertigo’s "100 Bullets" began with a truly killer concept: There’s an attache case containing a gun and 100 bullets — not just any bullets, though, these were special. Better than a "get out of jail free" card or a license to kill, the ammunition handed out by the cryptic Agent Graves is untraceable and, in fact, any police detectives who come across these singular slugs in a corpse will find their investigation goes exactly nowhere. More than immunity, the people who are handed that attache case become ghosts in the urban machine … It was that starting-point notion that made "100 Bullets" such a gripping new pulp experience when the Vertigo title arrived in the summer of 1999. The series, written by Brian Azzarello, ...

Hero Complex contributor Jevon Phillips spends a lot of time surfing the Internet and pretending to work. Sometimes he comes across websites he likes. Here’s one of them: HowtoBeatUpAnything.com.  Just the name is funny, but the way this guy Kevin — a yellow belt in Tae Kwon Do — goes about explaining the ‘how’ is the reason the site is worth wasting some time on. His latest is "How To Beat Up Daily Bugle Photographer Peter Parker." Here’s an excerpt from the post: Um, approach him and sock him in the head with whatever you feel like throwing. He’ll crumble up and blow away just like that guy in the Charles Atlas ads said that other guy in the Charles Atlas ads would do. I honestly can’t imagine A SINGLE THING going wrong. You talk about your born losers, this ...

Having a crazed day here at Hero Complex, I’m off to see an advance screening of Frank Miller’s "The Spirit," which opens Christmas Day, and then going to see J.J. Abrams give a presentation on "Star Trek" and show some footage from the huge event release of next summer. So it’s going to be a bit sparse today, sorry to say, but we have a few major posts yesterday about "Wonder Woman" and "South Park" so check them out if you haven’t already. In the meantime, for those of you here in Southern California, if you get a chance tonight drop by the special event over at the Barnes & Noble at The Grove. the guest of honor is Sam Sarkar, who will be signing copies of "Caliber: First Canon of Justice," the Radical Publishing comic-book series that takes the ...

Today’s edition of Everyday Hero, your handpicked headlines from the fanboy universe … "Twilight" heartbreak: Remember the stories about the record labels that rejected the Beatles? Or how the makers of M&M’s passed on product-placement opportunity in "E.T.: The Extra-Terrestrial," allowing Reese’s Pieces a dream opportunity? Now here’s the tale of the Hollywood executive who thought that "Twilight" sounded like a lame idea for a movie, brought to you by blogger Patrick Goldstein: "Long before "Twilight" hit the bookstores in 2005, MTV Films chief David Gale had read the novel in manuscript form and optioned the movie rights. MTV was always looking for teen-friendly film properties and Gale felt the book had a great mix of genre elements — notably the vampire angle — and a surprisingly sweet take on teen romance. ‘This is one of those projects we were ...

EXCLUSIVE In late February, Wonder Woman will get her own feature-length animated film — her biggest solo spotlight since the cancellation of the Lynda Carter television series in 1979 — and today we’re bringing you the very first glimpse of it. Keri Russell, the Golden Globe-winning star of "Felicity" and Edward Norton’s co-star in the upcoming film "Leaves of Grass," gives voice to the Amazon princess in the straight-to-DVD release that will tell the origin tale of the most iconic female character in comic book history. Russell leads a cast that includes Nathan Fillion ("Desperate Housewives") as Col. Steve Trevor; Alfred Molina ("Spider-Man 2") as Ares, the god of war; Virginia Madsen ("Sideways") as Hippolyta, the queen of the Amazons; David McCallum ("NCIS") as Zeus, king of the gods; Rosario Dawson ("Sin City") as Artemis, daughter of Zeus; and Oliver ...

EXCLUSIVE: Trey Parker talks about the "South Park" movie that almost was, and the end of the TV series. "South Park" co-creator and executive producer Trey Parker says they’ve been discussing how to end the Comedy Central flagship series, which has been on the air for more than a decade. But you won’t hear Cartman say, "Screw you guys! I’m going home," just yet. Parker and co-creator Matt Stone are signed on to continue producing episodes until 2011, and whether that contract will be their last is anyone’s guess. But what we can bet on is that when it does come time to pull the plug, it will be a full-length "South Park" film that sends off Stan, Kyle, Kenny, Cartman and the rest of the foul-mouthed Colorado fourth graders. "We talked about maybe some day doing a movie to ...

On Sci Fi, the network renowned for "Battlestar Galactica" and the now-canceled "Stargate Atlantis," the new show "Sanctuary" has been chugging along successfully since its premiere a little over a month ago. The show has been renewed for a second season after getting a fair amount of press attention (like on David Strick’s Hollywood Backlot), but not a lot of it has been regarding the premise ("Even things that go bump in the night need protection…") or even the cast (Amanda Tapping, Robin Dunne, etc.). The main attention had been on the production approach: The series is pushing the envelope by shooting extensively on green screen with virtual sets. The general perception is that effects cost money, which would make this an expensive show.  But that perception may be off.  Hero Complex contributor Jevon Phillips had a quick phone chat ...

The Nov. 17, 2008, edition of Everyday Hero, your one-stop spot for handpicked headlines from the fanboy universe… Asgard, animated: This is turning out to be a unprecedented boom era for superhero animation projects, between all of the straight-to-DVD productions and a flurry of announcements about television projects for Marvel and DC characters. The latest is a certain Norse god, according to a Borys Kit story in the trades today: “Marvel Animation is developing and self-producing a 26 half-hour-episode series based on its long-running comic book, with the series targeted to launch in fall 2010, following Marvel’s live-action feature ‘Thor.” … The animated series will follow Thor, the Norse god of thunder, as he defends his mythical home of Asgard against fantastical villains, fiendish hordes, winged creatures and angry giants. The show will take place in various worlds — from ...