Fans

Stephanie Horn played the outre party game Cards Against Humanity on Friday night with multiple-Eisner-Award-winning “Fables” artist Mark Buckingham, but the devoted fan isn’t ratting him out. It was “hysterical,” she says, “and that’s all I want to say because I don’t want to get anyone into trouble.” Interactions like hers and Buckingham’s were an aim of the Fabletown and Beyond gathering in snow-white-blanketed Rochester, Minn. Horn, who traveled from Ventura for the show, had enjoyed limited interaction with several of its special guests at larger events, but relished “deeper access than a standard convention,” a common sentiment during the weekend from readers and professionals alike. In addition to the usual signings, artist sketches and comic-book discussions, attendees could see Cthulu dangling his legs over the edge of a pool, a veteran of local theater performing the Bard’s Sonnet 71 […]

“Veronica Mars” star Kristen Bell, and the show’s creator Rob Thomas know you probably have some questions about how their groundbreaking, crowd-funded “Veronica Mars” movie is going to work. And they would like to answer those questions on Thursday by way of a live chat on Twitter, beginning at 11 A.M. PDT. Predictably, they announced the chat on Twitter too: “Attn marshmallows! @RobThomas & I r doin a Live Twitter Chat tmrw @ 11AM PT- use #veronicamarsmovie & we’ll answer ur questions! RT!” Bell wrote, using her pet name for “Veronica Mars” fans. ‘Veronica Mars’ film a go, thanks to a kick from Kickstarter “Abandoned my personal pledge to never join Twitter, just so I can follow your #veronicamarsmovie chat tomorrow,” wrote @LRPeacock, in what did indeed appear to be the user’s first tweet ever. “Guess we better throw a great […]

This weekend, an acclaimed comic-book creator, colleagues and fans will attempt to open a portal between our mundane reality and the worlds of legend. Fabletown and Beyond, “Fables” mastermind Bill Willingham’s convention devoted to “mythic fiction,” becomes a reality this Friday through Sunday at the Mayo Civic Center in Rochester, Minn. But will the gathering itself enter lore? When the creator of the long-running, mature myths-in-modernity Vertigo series spoke with Hero Complex in November about plotting the con, named for the New York neighborhood where many fables reside in his comic, he said he’d learned that “good convention hosts must be just a little bit suicidal” and “this is not something I would wish on anyone.” Willingham was kidding (a little). But the goal of the gathering is to create an environment where fans and creators “talk about the meat […]

“Trance,” the latest film from Oscar-winning director Danny Boyle (“Slumdog Millionaire”), doesn’t open in theaters until April 5, but Hero Complex readers will be able to see the art world-set thriller early — and free — at a special screening March 30. Boyle will be on hand for a Q&A moderated by Hero Complex contributor John Horn following the film. The first feature from Boyle since the 2010 drama “127 Hours,” “Trance” stars James McAvoy as Simon, a fine art auctioneer who becomes mixed up with a criminal (Vincent Cassel) and seeks the help of a hypnotist (Rosario Dawson). There was a sneak preview of the film earlier this month at Austin, Texas’ South by Southwest Film Festival, where Boyle and his longtime musical collaborator Rick Smith from the English techno duo Underworld partnered on a DJ set at a […]

The programming schedule for WonderCon 2013 is out, featuring panels for Guillermo del Toro’s robots-versus-kaiju movie “Pacific Rim,” Joss Whedon’s Shakespearean adaptation “Much Ado About Nothing” and the upcoming reboot of “Evil Dead.” The annual gathering of sci-fi, fantasy and comics professionals and fans — sort of a little sibling to San Diego’s Comic-Con International — runs March 29-31 at the Anaheim Convention Center and offers movie and television panels, previews from comic publishers, a cosplay masquerade (click through the gallery above for a peek at last year’s costumes), autographs and book signings, portfolio review for aspiring professionals and, of course, plenty of geek-friendly shopping. This year’s roster includes panels devoted to several big-budget Hollywood productions. A Warner Bros. and Legendary Pictures panel Saturday at 11:30 a.m. will feature”Pacific Rim” director Del Toro and “The Conjuring” director James Wan. And Sony’s […]

Holy cow marshmallows: You sure do love your “Veronica Mars.” On Wednesday morning, the show’s creator Rob Thomas, and its leading lady Kristen Bell launched a Kickstarter campaign to raise $2 million for a “Veronica Mars” feature film that would take place at the acid tongue sleuth’s 10th high school reunion. Devoted fans did not hesitate to reach into their wallets, and in less than 24 hours they had raised the $2 million needed to get the project funded. The project hit the $2-million number around 6 p.m. PDT. “Hallelujah! It’s a green light my friends. I love you all, but particularly the donors among you,” Thomas tweeted Wednesday night. But that doesn’t mean the fundraising will stop. “Okay, here it is! Stretch goal. $3 Million or Logan Echolls doesn’t survive the movie!  #VeronicaMars, #IMKristenBell,” Thomas wrote on his twitter […]

Feld Entertainment Inc., which produces the Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey circus, along with other live shows such as Disney on Ice, is teaming up with Marvel Entertainment to produce a live arena show featuring Marvel characters. It’s the latest in a series of new ventures for the company that created the likes of Spider-Man, the X-Men and the Hulk, including two upcoming animated series, a Web series and a new digital comics platform. An arena or stage show featuring comic-book characters has been done — witness last year’s ‘Batman Live’ and the accident-prone “Spider-Man: Turn Off the Dark” — but Kenneth Feld, CEO of Vienna, Va.-based Feld Entertainment, believes that his company’s experience with these types of acrobatic shows could make the difference. “What [the 'Spider-Man' Broadway show] tried to do was new for them, but it’s the stuff we […]

Whether you fell in love with him in the pages of a comic book 50 years ago, or when Robert Downey Jr. first brought him to the big screen in 2008, Tony Stark and his alter ego Iron Man have managed to charm almost everyone. But how much do you actually know about the billionaire playboy super hero? “Iron Man 3″ opens in theaters on May 3, and we thought now might be a good time to test your Tony Stark/Iron Man knowledge. PHOTOS: ‘Iron Man 3′: Trajectory of a superhero Below you’ll find questions about Pepper Potts’ real name, how Tony Stark’s parents actually died and where the L.A. based super hero is most likely to nurse a hangover after a night of serious drinking. There are questions about the comic book version of Iron Man, and questions about […]

Douglas Adams’ 61st birthday is being marked with a Google Doodle that would make the author of “The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy” proud. But “Don’t Panic” if you looked at the Google Doodle and wondered … “what is that supposed to be?” The interactive doodle draws on several allusions to the late English humorist’s writing, down to the rumpled towel said to be an important part of any trip. There’s a cup of tea, a packed back, a manuscript, the galaxy whizzing by outside the window. You can also see Marvin the robot by clicking on the sliding doors to the left, and you can tap the e-reader’s keyboard for several inside references. Most of it, though, will likely be lost on those unfamiliar with the author, who died at the age of 49 from a heart attack. He […]

International Women’s Day is being honored today with that singular cultural touchstone: a Google Doodle. The doodle drawing of faces of women around the world artistically honors the advancement of women’s rights — one of the chief goals of International Women’s Day — and the fact that a woman’s work, it seems, is never done. Hero Complex is celebrating International Women’s Day in the best way it knows how: with a photo gallery of women from film, TV, games and comic books who embody female empowerment and, let’s face it, kick booty. (Yes, we said “booty,” but only because the L.A. Times censors made us.) Beyoncé as Wonder Woman? Now we know there’s a long list of complaints about women in genre. Chiefly, that they are hyper-sexualized sidekicks who do little more than bust out of their curve-hugging costumes. And, […]