Anyway, comics! Five pulled this week, mostly solid. One new title in the mix. Here we go!

DC Comics

Justice League #20 
Writer: Geoff Johns
Artists: Gene Ha, Joe Prado (Cover by Ivan Reis), Gary Frank (Shazam backup)

I am super excited for Trinity War, you guys. This issue of Justice League continues the prologue, and it ends on a really awesome note. In a related statement, I love the new 52 Atom, Rhonda Pineda. There have been some missteps with “casting” (or lack thereof) in the new 52, but she is absolutely not one of them. Also Element Woman reminds me a little of Delirium from Sandman, and that’s a really good thing in my book.

There were some revelations, some foreshadowing, and some action. Overall, a pretty strong issue for anyone who’s invested in any of the Justice League storylines.

The Shazam backup is rolling towards its conclusion. I’m a little mixed on the idea of a 21-issue origin story, but since it’s getting less page space than a main issue would, I’ll let it slide. It’s also been pretty good, but I’ve been a fan of Shazam since I was a kid. These last two have been more about Black Adam than Billy Batson, but that’s okay. They’re linked. The next issue is allegedly the conclusion, so I hope that means we’ll start to see the Marvel family getting involved with some of the other DC titles.

Favorite panel:

Superman #20
Writer:Scott Lobdell
Artist: Aaron Kuder

Hector Hammond invades Superman’s mind and hides out in all his hopes and dreams for happiness and peace. This sounds crazy, but it sort of works. But more importantly, Orion and Diana have a non-thing that makes Clark’s speech bubbles look frosty. I’m not even kidding, and it’s awesome. I really like the Clark/Diana relationship, which I’ve said a billion times before, because it’s a chance to tell some new stories for the characters. This felt like a bit of a filler issue, finishing off the one-on-one fight between Superman and Orion, and setting up some weird zombie!Lana (yep) something for the next issue. But it had some of the best comic book onomatopoeia I’ve seen in a long time.

Favorite panel(s):

The Green Team: Teen Trillionaires #1
Writers: Alt Balazer, Franco
Artist: Ig Guara (Cover by Amanda Conner)

With most TV shows, I give them 3 episodes to catch me before I drop. I have basically the same rule for comics, unless they’re really bad or really expensive. I’m giving The Green Team two more comics (to be fair, I feel the same way about The Movement).  I’m kind of wary of this whole “socioeconomic privlieged vs. downtrodden” thing they’re doing, which I’ve said before. But I get that rich people who use cool technology to fight crime and do justice are popular now (right, Tony?) so DC is giving it a shot. You know, besides the 50 Batman titles and stuff.

I don’t know enough about the characters to care about them yet, but I’m already intrigued by the villain(s). We’ll see how the next couple of issues go.

Favorite panel: 

Marvel Comics

Journey Into Mystery #652
Writer: Kathryn Immonen
Artist: Valerio Schiti

Um, I love this book. I’d never been a big Asgardian reader, but I started reading JIM when it started focusing on Sif, and I haven’t regretted a single moment. The art is awesome, the writing is awesomer still, and the book is just a lot of fun to read. The first arc was one of the best action stories I’d read in a long time, and since Sif dealt with her berserkerness, the story has settled into a really enjoyable tone and pace. This month’s issue had appearances by Jane Foster (yay!) and Tony Stark (he’s cool too, I guess). Also Beta Ray Bill showed up, and if you don’t like Beta Ray Bill, well. I guess we’re all entitled to our opinions.

Favorite panel:

Young Avengers Vol. 2 #5
Writer: Matt Fraction
Artists: Jamie McKelvie, Mike Norton

This was a nice end to the first arc of the new Young Avengers title. I like this team – the characters (for the most part) and the creators (totally) – and it’s been a solid title since it launched. It blends action, pop culture references, humor, and heart, which is a great way to become one of my favorite comics. This wasn’t my favorite issue, but it was still good, and I’m absolutely excited to see what this group gets up to in their next arc.

Favorite panel:

Book of the Week: Journey Into Myster #652 (Though Justice League #20 was a close one.)

See you next week!

The following analysis contains many spoilers for the film Star Trek Into Darkness.

Kirk, Spock and Uhura are the new Kirk, Spock and McCoy.

• The posters that feature multiple characters feature the villain, Kirk, Spock and Uhura.
• The intersecting relationships between these three take up the most screen time and are the most developed in the dialogue and story.
• They go together on the away mission to Kronos and have a heart to heart, that starts with bickering, on the way down. That’s a classic Kirk, Spock and McCoy move.
• When Spock dies in Wrath of Khan, Scotty and McCoy are there to support Kirk; when Kirk dies in Into Darkness, Scotty and Uhura are there to support Spock.
• Uhura tells Spock to give into his rage and go after Khan.
• Uhura beams down to assist Spock in capturing Khan and convey the message that Kirk could be saved.
• During Kirk’s speech at the end the camera pans to Spock, then Uhura, then everyone else in a group shot.
• In nearly the last shot of the film, when Kirk asks Spock where they should go first, Uhura steps into the shot just long enough to be framed as The Trinity.
• Zoë Saldaña has third billing in the cast list.

Kirk, Spock and Uhura are the new Kirk, Spock and McCoy and it’s awesome. It’s also important. It’s important because Nyota Uhura is a woman of color. If that sounds simplistic or insignificant to you, you are probably not a woman or an underrepresented minority (which in Hollywood is basically everyone who is not a straight, white male).

Uhura is a character who has had quantifiable importance to our society. She has fans in the space program, the entertainment industry, and the White House. She is more than a character, more even than an inspiration, she is a symbol of how far we can go. This is the next logical step.

Kirk and Spock

The rebooted Star Trek universe revolves around the love story of James Kirk and his Vulcan first officer. In the 2009 film the villain has a vendetta against Spock which results in the total destruction of his planet but Spock Prime puts the ghost of his friendship with Kirk ahead of any other agenda. Both Kirk and Spock tell Spock Prime that his word would have set Spock on the course of action they wanted him to take without necessitating an emotional breakdown but that wasn’t good enough for Spock Prime. From a vulcan point of view, it was not the most logical decision. But from a human point of view it’s easy to understand. Spock Prime lost everything; he failed his mission, he lost his family and his timeline, and then his planet blew up in front of him. He lost everything and he couldn’t fix it. But the universe sent him Jim Kirk and he could fix that. And in fixing it, he fixed himself, too, because their relationship was the most defining of his life.

The idea of family as something we create rather than something we are born to is a main theme in this second film and the relationship between Kirk and Spock takes center stage again. From the near death scene in the volcano to the death scene in Engineering, Kirk’s honest desperation for Spock to understand the depth and complexity — and simplicity — of their relationship bookends the action of the film. Throughout the history of these characters, Spock has embodied the struggle to accept and assert their true feelings. As a vulcan, his emotions are not supposed to be evident. But in this film Kirk has an even greater advantage: he melded with Spock Prime. He knows firsthand how strong those feelings are. Spock Prime told Spock James Kirk was his greatest friend, but Kirk got to feel it. When Spock tells Uhura and Kirk that he suppresses his feelings because they are too strong to feel, Kirk realizes it is the absolute truth.

Spock and Uhura

In the original series, Kirk and McCoy are already friends when we join them on the Enterprise. In the first rebooted film, Spock and Uhura are already a couple when we join them on the Enterprise.

Quite a lot has been written about whether or not her relationship with Spock serves the character of Uhura, or women in the Star Trek universe in general. These are valid questions. The romance takes away from Uhura’s status as an independent woman with no ties to a man or relationship. I do not agree with the opinions that the romance makes her less interesting, less important, more whiny, or too much of a girl (frankly, that last one is just offensive). But I understand the concern behind the complaints.

Regardless, the relationship is established, and it is important to both characters. Clearly, Uhura’s romantic relationship with Spock is different from McCoy’s playfully antagonistic relationship with Spock — however it is based in the same conflict of hidden emotion. Uhura wants clear communication of feelings and Spock was raised to avoid them.

Kirk and Uhura

I absolutely love the relationship that has evolved between Kirk and Uhura. It was cute in the first film, but it was based on Kirk’s conquest of Uhura (which is gross). Now he doesn’t see her as something to win.

After Pike’s death Kirk ordered Spock, McCoy and Scotty out of his sight rather than listen to their concerns about his mission and his state of mind. But he opened up to Uhura. And she was bolstered in turn to pull Spock into a conversation about their relationship with Kirk as witness. They have each other’s back without even realizing it. Like siblings they have organically developed a shared language that allows them to communicate with shrugs and pointed looks and half phrases. They bicker and they flirt and they bond because they love Spock. And they understand, without discussing it, that no one else loves Spock the way they do.

Kirk, Spock and Uhura

Along with the concept of found family, the value of feelings is a central theme of the film. It’s most clear in Spock’s story arc, but many characters struggle with and/or exhibit strong emotions. Harewood’s feelings for his daughter and wife lead to his complicity in Khan’s attack. Pike’s paternal feelings for Kirk lead to Kirk’s second chance. The loss of Pike drives Kirk to push away Spock, Bones, and Scotty in succession; Uhura’s acknowledgement of those feelings prompts him to open up to her. Carol appeals to her father’s feelings in her attempt to save the Enterprise. Tears fall down the cheeks of Kirk, Khan, and Spock. Kirk makes multiple impassioned speeches about trusting his gut feelings over any amount of logic or regulation.

But it’s most clear in Spock’s arc. An arc that starts with his peaceful acceptance of imminent death that requires a complete emotional shutdown and ends with a literal murderous rampage through the streets and skies of San Francisco. Which event best serves Spock and the story? The answer is transparent to anyone who cares to understand Spock: neither suppression nor surrender but balance. And it is through Kirk and Uhura, the two people there at each leg of the journey, that Spock finally accepts that truth.

In the end, three things are required for emotional balance, which is in turn a foundation for love and family: passion (Kirk), restraint (Spock), and communication (Uhura).

McCoy

Kirk, to Spock: You saved me.
McCoy: Uhura and I had something to do with it, too.

I saw Star Trek Into Darkness twice its opening weekend. I came up with this thesis after the first viewing and in the second I realized Dr. McCoy is a part of the Kirk, Spock and X trinity more than I’d thought. Still, my thesis was not derailed since the scenes most directly tied to the themes of the film (found family and the value of feelings) included Uhura, not McCoy — and if I didn’t notice or remember McCoy’s presence in certain instances, clearly those were not the instances of greatest significance.

That’s not to say McCoy is not significant. Certainly his friendship with Kirk is secure and important, and he got to banter with Spock and Sulu and Carol Marcus. His significance to the plot is obvious: he saved Kirk’s life. McCoy has not been tossed aside in favor of Uhura by either the characters or the narrative, but she has claimed the spot at the top, between Kirk and Spock.

Uhura is one third of the central trinity of Star Trek and that is important and that is good. But it is not quite good enough. Women are less than one-third of the central or background characters in Star Trek and by rights they should be half. So keep climbing, Nyota!

Flashback: Who is your favorite animal in comic books?

ALI

Power Girl’s cat. This sums up why…

JESSICA

Does Animal Man count? He fights for animal rights and vegetarianism, and eventually breaks the fourth wall and talks to his own writer. I haven’t actually read that many of his comics, but I love the concept and am forever interested in the comic’s story arcs. Also, Krypto the Super Dog.

MARIE

My favorite animal would have to be Shadowcat’s dragon, Lockheed. Because who wouldn’t want a cat-sized, fire-breathing, highly intelligent extraterrestrial for a companion?

So what about you? Who is your favorite animal in comic books?

This post contains the tiniest bits of spoilers.

I’ll never forget the first time I played Origins.

Granted, if one looks at the game as a whole, it could be said that there’s not much that separates it from other dark fantasy RPGs. In fact, the setup of the first game could be described as your run-of-the-mill Tolkien tale. Instead of Sauron and an army of Orcs, you have the Archdemon and an army of Darkspawn. But while it seems easy enough to draw those parallels, Origins still has that “special something.” You can see it in the enthusiasm of the game’s fans (myself included). Many of whom I’m sure are avid connoisseurs of the fantasy genre—so you know they’ve got good taste!

You can call it an X factor. I prefer call it good writing.

There were many characters from my entourage that will stay with me forever. This isn’t too much of a surprise, considering that Bioware did a good job of making me care about them. Even minor characters made a lasting impression: Knight Templar Cullen, King Cailan, and Duncan the Grey Warden just to name a few. But perhaps the one character I’ll always have a soft spot for is Alistair.

I could be incredibly biased since he shows up as one your first allies in the game. And I’m not going to lie when I say that he was also one of my favorite romance options. But from a storytelling point of view, Alistair was one character I felt had gone through the most changes.

Which brings me to the comic book series.

“The Silent Grove” and “Those Who Speak” chronicles the story of Alistair as he embarks on a journey to search for his father, King Maric. His companions are the dwarven marksman, Varric and the rogue pirate, Isabela. Incidentally, both characters can be chosen as party members in Dragon Age II. Both series can be purchased as bundles from Dark Horse Digital Comics at an extremely reasonable price (you probably spend more money on Starbucks lattes during the week). Considering the richness of the content, the deal is a steal and I would highly recommend opening an account and subscribing.

Fans will also be glad to know that David Gaider wrote the story for both series. Gaider has shown also his chops with other tie-in work like the novels, Stolen Throne, The Calling, and most recently Asunder. Chad Hardin has done wonderful work as the artist of the series, rendering familiar characters like Varric and Isabela fairly well. To be honest, Alistair looked a little odd to me. But I’ll give Hardin the benefit of the doubt, since we’re dealing with a version of Alistair that’s a little darker, moodier, and frankly a little more jaded. In fact, there are a few panels in which he looks downright menacing.

I also think that Alistair’s face is hard to transfer in other mediums. You even see inklings of that during his cameo in Dragon Age II. Although to be honest, no one who made a cameo in that game got off scot free, except for perhaps Leliana. Whatever the reason, it almost makes you wonder if the face that a million fangirls fell in love with can only exist in all of its adorkable glory in the first game. But really, it doesn’t matter in the end. He still hasn’t lost that sly sense of humor!

Overall, Hardin did an amazing job. The layouts are carefully designed and certain panels with action are set against a backdrop of red. These especially echoed the feeling that you were watching a game unfold. Another perk was to see his rendering of countries like Tevinter and Antiva, which were only mentioned in passing thus far in the games.

In “The Silent Grove”, it becomes pretty apparent that Alistair had hired Varric and Isabela to come along on this seemingly impossible mission (King Maric had disappeared sometime prior to the storyline of Origins when his ship was lost at sea). Perhaps the first question that comes to fans’ minds is, why them of all people? Why not any of the characters from Origins? Or evenThe Awakening expansion? Not that Varric and Isabela don’t bring their own particular brand of fun. Both characters are still remarkably saucy and you could tell that Gaider had a lot of fun writing their dialogue. Anyway, I’ll leave this particular mystery shrouded since it will be more fun unfolding it yourself.

Personally speaking, I’m glad that Varric and Isabela get to be featured in other work. This gives characters like Isabela, for example, to be more fleshed out. In the game, she always seemed tokenized as the ne’er do well tramp. In fact, most of her humorous quips are overtly sexual. At one point, one of your party members asks if sex was the only thing Isabela ever thought about. Only in “Those We Speak” do we get an actual glimpse into her backstory as a child that was sold by her mother to a cruel man. And to titillate you even further, Isabela isn’t even her real name. As far as Varric is concerned, I felt that as the sometimes unreliable narrator of Dragon Age II, his story wasn’t quite over yet. I’ll be excited to see if he makes another appearance in Dragon Age: Inquisition.

But back to the story of Alistair, who seems more determined than ever to find out exactly what happened to his father. The subtext seems to be tied directly to his role as the newly crowned King of Ferelden. Depending on your choices in Origins, Alistair is the very definition of the “reluctant king” due to his origins as a bastard son. Throughout the arcs of “The Silent Grove” and “Those Who Speak”, we see Alistair truly come to terms with this duty.

On a final note, I will have to say that one of the best perks is Alistair’s confrontation with Yavana, the “Witch of the Wilds” of Antiva. So yes, this confirms that Flemeth did indeed have other daughters besides Morrigan. It also presents entirely new questions that complicate Alistair’s journey even further. By the end of the “Silent Grove” we discover that Yavana has been guarding a nest of dragons (which had been hunted to near extinction prior to the game). Exactly what do these dragons have to do with a promise that King Maric made to Flemeth years ago? And how do these dragons relate with Alistair’s heritage?

Subscribe to Dark Horse and find out soon!

DC Comics

Supergirl #20
Writer: Michael Allen Nelson
Artist: Mahmud Asrar

I’ve been reading Supergirl off and on since the relaunch, mostly for the H’El on Earth event. I picked up last month’s issue for the Supergirl/Power Girl team up, and that continues this month. And this month is awesome. The Kara/Kara banter is great, Sanctuary is GLaDOSesque, and the art is soooooooooooooo much better than it used to be. This was a genuinely good Supergirl character story, and I hope this trend of awesome continues in future issues.

Favorite Panel:

He-Man and the Masters of the Universe #2
Writer: Keith Giffen
Artist: Pop Mhan

Okay, issue one I picked up for the nostalgia factor (it’s the same reason I read the surprisingly good Battle Beasts limited last year). But Teela was kind of cool and sassy, and apparently everyone knows Prince Adam is He-Man now, so he’s drawn in a much less annoying, purple-wearing-as-code-for-wimpy way. The big reveal at the end was ruined by the solicit, but I enjoyed the issue.

So I picked up issue 2, and it’s pretty great. I’m pleasantly surprised by how much fun I had with this comic. There are some great jokes, Teela is really awesome, and Adora (She-Ra, to her 80s fans) is, despite being the villain (for now!), kind of butch and badass. This isn’t just an action comic, it’s an action comic with some wit, which is basically my favorite kind of comic. There’s some kind of connection with Teela and Adora, which we’ll find out next month, but naturally that sort of tease will get my brain going.

Naturally, Teela doesn’t wear much. But I have to say that it bothers me less in He-Man than it would elsewhere. Because He-Man doesn’t really wear much, nor do any of the other male heroes. Everyone sort of wears a stupidly small amount of armor on their chest along with chainmail or fur bikini bottoms. And Adora is actually fully clothed. Would I rather her shirt didn’t also act as a push up bra? Yep. But it’s not so bad that it takes me out of the story.

Favorite panel:

Marvel Comics

Avengers: The Enemy Within #1
Writer: Kelly Sue DeConnick
Artist: Scott Hepburn

This is the beginning of the well-teased Enemy Within event, focusing on Captain Marvel and involving all of the Avengers. This was a great first issue for the event, pulling in the important backstory from Captain Marvel (but you should be reading Captain Marvel because it’s awesome) without banging us over the head with it. I love Carol’s interactions with her teammates and friends, and I love the way the comic book Avengers feel as a team (if that makes any sense, which it should after the heart-to-heart towards the end of the book).

I love Kelly Sue’s Carol, and I love that Carol is now such a prominent, central part of the Marvel universe.

Favorite panel:

Oni Press

Helheim #3
Writer: Cullen Bunn
Artist: Joelle Jones

This is a bit of a cheat; I read all three issues of Helheim today. This morning I asked twitter how it was, since I’m currently on a Cullen Bunn kick. He retweeted me, and a bunch of people recommended it, so here we are.  I definitely like the book, and the mystical Viking witch-feud story.  But the introduction of Kadlin in this month’s issue has locked me in. She’s super interesting already, and I can’t wait to see her as a sidekick of Death!Rikard.

As an aside, since I’m enjoying the art, something that’s occurred to me throughout has been how strange (in a good way) it seems to read a violent, bloody book that’s drawn by a woman. Does that happen often? I can’t think of any offhand. But Joelle Jones’ art is right up my alley.

So thanks for the recommendation, twitter. I’ll keep tuning in. (And yes, The Sixth Gun. But I have a small comic budget, so there’s too much to catch up with right now.)

Favorite Panel:

Book of the week: Supergirl #20

That’s it for this week. All four of my pulls were really solid, and I enjoyed them all. Weeks like this make me super happy to be a comic reader.

See you next week!

Flashback: What comic-based television series would you like to see?

ANIKA

I thought so when I first saw it and I still think so:

DREDD would make a great television series. It didn’t work as a film for me, but as the pilot for a television series that wasn’t picked up so they said ‘screw it, let’s add a bunch of nonsensical 3D and call it a movie’. . . it worked too well. I just really wish my hypothetical network that passed on “Dredd the Series” actually existed so I could bang on their door and shout WHY!

Seriously, hypothetical television network, make this!

GABBY

Well, one of my answers is already coming to life on the small screen.

As for the others, for a long while I wished Fables would become a TV show, but Once Upon a Time kind of ruined that. Not to say that OUaT isn’t good… it’s just not what I think Fables could have been. I’m also holding out hope for an Alias series, and it seems like the rumor mill agrees with me.

The TV show I would *most* like to see, though, is a Sandman series.

A series centered on the Endless siblings, it could also have an episodic quality. We could see, for example, Death interacting with various humans about to die, or Dream venture into people’s nightmares. I think there is a huge potential to exploit the sibling dynamics between the 7 Ds, and would love to see it unfold on my screen.

Superheroes are great and everything, but The Endless? They kind of rule.

MARIE

My choice has technically already been a television show, but was unfortunately canceled during its prime. Greg Weisman’s Gargoyles was an animated series that debuted in the 90s and was one my favorite shows of all time growing up. The show aged pretty well too. Looking back through the DVDs, you could see that it had plots that were well-rendered, characters with deep inner-conflict, and great dialogue that could be enjoyed by both kids and adults.

Unfortunately, Weisman left the show during the third season due to internal conflicts. By then, the show had taken a completely different direction and most fans agreed that it was non-canonical. The comic series, however, picked up where the second season left off, and answered a lot of those burgeoning questions that the third season so clearly failed at handling.

Still, while I found the comics immensely satisfying I still wish that they had actually been animated. If not Gargoyles, then at least some of the spin-off comics that Weisman had also planned like Gargoyles: Pendragon and Gargoyles: Timedancer .

My runner-up choice? Runaways. Oh my Grod, Runaways.

SAM

Last summer I took a screenwriting workshop, and for my main project I wrote a loose adaptation of Kate Spencer/Manhunter as a sort of pilot episiode teleplay. I think a Manhunter series would be a perfect mix of procedural and ass kicking martial arts bad assery.

There are reasons I think Kate Spencer would make for good TV. Besides her day job as a criminal attorney (I think prosecutor works better than defense attorney, for drama), she’s a single parent with a precocious kid, has an ex-husband who’s still involved in her life, is an on-again-off-again smoker, and has some anger issues. Basically she’s complex and, in the hands of the right actress, that would be pretty great to watch.

Of course, I know it’ll never happen. It would have way too similar a feel to the already-popular, male-driven show Arrow (which I gave up on halfway through the season). And Manhunter is even less well known in the mainstream than Green Arrow and his rogues galleries. Plus we all know how well the Wonder Woman thing went… But in a perfect world, Kate Spencer would be kicking some ass on my TV every week.

So what about you? What comic-based television series would you like to see?

Anika: Today we’re talking Iron Man 3. This conversation contains MANY SPOILERS for the film and franchise.

First, did you like it? How much? What grade might you give it?

Ali: I hate the grading system because… I just do. I always make up arbitraty numbers or letters. Like, I give Iron Man 3 a banana because it’s really good but it’s not my most favorite fruit.

Sara: I really, really enjoyed this movie. It exceeded my expectations and I spent such a long time after the movie ended remembering parts that made me happy or gasp out loud or really appreciate the genre that this movie is a part of. Iron Man was the first to kick off the Marvel Cinematic Universe and RDJ has shouldered a lot of weight since the beginning. He’s risen to the occasion and with Iron Man 3, he gave more depth to a Tony we all know well from the comics. I guess I give it an A- because I loved it, but there were weaknesses. And I am totally not as clever as Ali, forever sad about it.

Ali: Bananas aside, I agree with Sara. This installment gave Tony a LOT of depth. And I liked it for that.

Tony has a special room to display his issues.

Anika: I have to agree, this Tony Stark was my favourite Tony Stark other than the one that exists in my head … because he basically is the one that exists in my head. In every previous encounter, including Avengers, Pepper has been my favourite but in this one it was Tony. And it has a lot, if not everything, to do with his anxiety (you are not surprised) — what did you think of that arc?

Ali: I LOVED the panic attacks.

Sara: Tony was on top of the world at the beginning of the Avengers. He had the girl, the renewable energy source, the Iron Man suit, and a arc reactor that wasn’t turning his insides into sludge. He had nowhere to go but down. I really enjoyed his interactions with reality via the panic attacks.

Anika: Do you think that plotline reached a satisfactory conclusion?

Sara: Um, no. But I don’t think it was supposed to. I think that is best left up to Avengers 2, where Tony is going to have to make the concious decision to join up with the people that put him in the position of being lost in space. (I know nothing for sure, this is my guesstimation about what will happen in that movie)

Ali: I mean, it’s a bit tidy at the end because it’s a movie and it has to be. But I like that he’s having a panic attack on his way to fighting the bad guys. And I like that they show him learning to pull himself out of it.

Anika: I agree with both these points. (1) It has to be tied up for the movie but (2) the MCU is an ongoing drama . . . Just like the comic books it’s based on! Imagine that!

Sara: Word.

Ali: I like that while he’s having he first attack, he refuses to believe that’s what’s happening to him. I love Tony for his confidence and his brashness–he permantently has that youthful “I’m invincibleness”. And in this movie, he’s learning that that’s SO not the case anymore. It’s a very basic and very real lesson of growing up. And that’s really what Tony starts to do in this movie.

Anika: Which is interesting because it’s what he thought he was doing in the first movie but “coming of age” is a long journey.

Ali: It’s like Iron Man is “look at me being responsible and shit! I AM AN ADULT”, Iron Man 2 is “I AM AN ADULT YOU GUYS! I DRINK AND BLOW THINGS UP” and Avengers is “fine, I will work with you because I AM A GROWN UP NOW.” and then Iron Man 3 is “holy shit I’m an adult… this sucks.”

Sara: Yes. This movie was Tony in his late twenties.

Ali: Which I love because he should be well beyond that at this point!

Sara: I feel like Tony was in his “college years” for most of his life.

Anika: That’s what happens when you live without boundaries. Which is a great segue into Tony’s boundaries: Pepper and Rhodey. I want to start with Rhodey because I cannot say enough great things about him.

Ali: I love Rhodey. And I love Don Cheadle. But it’s like when Jim Henson passed away and the Muppets all sounded wrong.

Anika: I sort of felt that way in 2, but not here. Here he owned it.

Sara: What? Why?! I vastly prefer Don Cheadle to Terrence Howard!

Ali: I keep expecting Terrance Howard and Don Cheadle seems to be doig a psuedo impersonation of Howard and it’s weird to me.

Sara: I think Don Cheadle really pulled off the wry and dry comedy that is needed for the role of Rhodey. And the scene with Rhodey and Tony in the resteraunt was everything I ever wanted for a post-Avengers Tony.

Ali: That restuarant scene was perfect.

Anika: I don’t have a preference for Howard or Cheadle — I wasn’t really invested in the character in the first two films. Only in his relationship to Tony. But in this film, well, Rhodey Rox!

Sara: I love how, like Cap, his patriotism and some what old school brand of heroism comes off as sincere and admirable, rather than douchey and two dimensional.

Ali: Yes!

Sara: He’s a perfect foil for the flashy and grandstanding rebel that is Tony and it’s why he works so well in this movie. This narrative was about Tony falling to pieces and needing something to hold onto. Rhodey (and Pepper) is that stability. He is steadfast and true and so very necessary to Tony’s development.

Anika: Now Pepper.

Ali: PEPPER FREAKING POTTS

Sara: Bless GP, that woman is flaw-free.

Ali: At the end? With the fire ninja stuff? She’s just the best ever.

Sara: My precious, kickass Pepperpot.

Anika: Y’all know I love Pepper. Pepper has been my girl since the first movie. But…

Ali: I love how at the start of the movie Tony’s all “I have to protect you because I can’t lose you.” And Pepper’s freaking Pepper. She’s capable and can take care of herself AND Tony. And I love, love, LOVE that they let her save him, in a very physical way, not once but TWICE.

Sara: “Got you.” I think that broke me so many times.

Ali: She is the very opposite of a damsel in distress.

Anika: But but but…. she was already. She was that in the first movie. In both the first and second films she literally runs INTO distress to save the day. Everybody loves kickass fire ninja hardcore Pepper and I’m over here all SHE WAS ALREADY PERFECT.

Sara: That’s the thing. Whether she’s in 4 inch Louboutins or overheating in spandex and sports bras, Pepper has always been HBIC. Because, so unlike Tony, she knows that her emotions (her worries, her grasp of reality) are not something to be avoided or buried. They are there to make you strong and that’s why she’s always been a HBIC and she’s always been Tony’s rock, even while she is tearing up or teetoring over the edge of some building. Pepper Potts is a woman that won’t let anything stop her from doing what needs to be done.

Ali: She was and she did. But I think with the other movies, it’s not as apparent to Tony.

Anika: I disagree, in the first she’s the one he counts on and in the second he gives her his company.

Ali: Like she’s saving the day and putting herself in danger, but she’s helping Tony. In this movie, she’s saving Tony.

Sara: Physically, maybe. But I think Pepper is a huge reason why Tony hasn’t expired in a pool of his own vomit. Or why he got up in the morning and did real people things. Pepper has been saving Tony ever since he met her.

Anika: I do love the ‘Got you’ scene but I didn’t love the end as much. “That was really violent” was maybe my favourite line reading in the whole movie but it WAS really violent which felt kinda off.

Sara: It was terrifying.

Anika: Though it may be all tied up in my general dislike of Killian as a villain. For me, the scene plays better in the rewrite in my head…

Ali: Did anyone notice his dragon tattoos? I was totally distracted by them.

Anika: Yeah, they popped out at the end there. I guess because he’s the real Mandarin??

Sara: Ooooooh, I didn’t get that from before.

This is the best image of the tattoos I could find. To make up for it Caroline sent me Guy Pearce unbuttoned with tiger cubs.

Ali: Like, were they there the whole time? Why don’t they blend in with the general fireness of his skin? Do you think he got them when he was still all pimply? Or did he get them because he got all bad ass?

Sara: I’d guess the latter.

Ali: I think he got them right after the roof-top incident. “I’ll show you Tony Stark! Look at my bad-ass dragons!”

Anika: Ahahaha, that is my headcanon now.

Sara: Same.

Anika: So, how strong did you find the villains? Killian, Maya, “Mandarin”?

Ali: I loved the twist with the Mandarin. I thought it was brilliant. Well, I thought Ben Kingsley as Trevor was brilliant.

Anika: I started to suspect something when they were discussing “the Master” but I really enjoyed that, yes.

Sara: This is just the most brillant of analyses and everyone needs to read this at some point. It says anything I want to say about it.

Ali: I was kinda bummed Maya ended up being Team Bad Guy.

Anika: That’s in my rewrite-the-ending too! There is no reason for her to be dead. And she cared about Tony AND Pepper. I wanted and expected her to come back for the final battle.

Ali: I mean, she wasn’t a bad guy-bad guy. And I can see how she ended up there. But still. I had a sad. I think her getting killed goes back to the “really violent” thing. Killian is REALLY violent. Just insanely so. So I guess that went into establishing that?

Anika: I didn’t get Killian. Or I wanted him to be better I guess. I think the drama was that even Killian 2.0 was not a good enough foil for Tony Stark… But I wish that was more explicit or they played with it more or Tony realized it?

Sara: Charisma is a poor substitute for genius and that is what Killian tried to pull over on everyone.

Ali: I’m kind of glad he wasn’t that great a foil. Because I think we got to see and appreciate more of Tony’s struggle with Tony. I think if they developed Killian and Mandarin more it would have competed too much.

Anika: I don’t think I want more development, I just thought the themes that I was drawn to were too vague? So I don’t know if they were intentional? Which usually doesn’t bother me, but it does here.

Sara: I agree. I kept waiting for a bigger plot or bigger bad, I guess. As it was, I never understood what Killian was getting at.

Anika: Yeah, what was he even trying to do?

Ali: He was evil and trying to take over the world, duh.

No one can grasp my evil plan.

Anika: I must assume the VP plot is on the cutting room floor somewhere because it was super random. Also, unrelated, why did this movie come out in May and not for Christmas?

Sara: To sell the DVD for Christmas?

Ali: Ha! I was thinking the same thing – with all the holiday stuff.

Sara: Yeah, Aldrich even kind of rhymes with the Grinch. If I were more clever, I would rewrite the song with appropriate and funny lyrics. But, alas.

Ali: Look, every bad guy can’t be Loki.

Anika: Hey, I’d settle for Justin Hammer.

Sara: Marvel villians aren’t good enough for me.

Anika: There are two more supporting characters to discuss, Happy and Harley. Aside: Everyone in this movie has a crazy name.

From the junior novelization.

Sara: It’s hilarious to me that with Jon Favereau’s demotion from director also had Happy demoted to even less screentime.

Anika: He had more to do though.

Ali: I was gonna say, Happy actually did stuff in this one!

Anika: He was pretty lovable.

Sara: Happy is always lovable and Tony described him as his best friend. Adorbs and totally insulting to Rhodey. Just what Tony strives in life to do.

Anika: And I liked the kid. I liked that Tony basically treated him like one of his robots, which really is more affection than he affords the average person.

Ali: Ha! He did! The kid took the place of the robot!

Harley is the Tin Dog.

Sara: I loved that comic relief. So needed!

Ali: I love how genius that kid was.

Anika: I liked how normal the town was, too. Like it wasn’t dumbed down or full of freaks just because it was small town Tennessee instead of New York or Malibu. I think the crux of it is I really loved all the details in this movie, but the big picture not as much.

How about we wrap up with favourite moments?

Ali: Pepper and Maya being all serious talking about life and real stuff. I saw it and I was like OMG BECHDEL TEST!

Anika: Passed!

Sara: YESSSSSSSSSSSSS

Ali: HURRAH!

Ali: I was so excited!

Sara: It’s sad how excited we get because it almost never happens.

Ali: I think that’s why I was so upset she ended up being a villain because she had this really great moment with Pepper.

Anika: I am convinced she had a change of heart because of Pepper.

Sara: Her death was just so stupid.

Ali: Joss Whedon TOTES would have killed her.

Sara: Yeah, but in a better way!

Ali: I think Maya was totally honest and real in that conversation. She wasn’t just trying to manipulate Pepper.

Anika: Right! And Pepper surprised her by understanding. And then she sees Killian hurting Pepper and using her… it’s not faith in Tony that changes her mind, it’s Pepper.

Near death experiences change a person.

Anika: Also, I ship it.

Sara: Lol, of course.

Anika: I think the rest of her story was cut too. But she can come back. I will start a petition to put her in an Avengers film.

Sara: Where do I sign?

Anika: Other favourite moments:

Ali: Ummmmmmm……giant bunny?

Sara: Barrel of Monkeys.

Ali: Good one! Puppy dog eyes not working?

Anika: When Tony had empty armor walking around and Pepper did not bat one eyelash. She didn’t even look at it.

Ali: Ooh! Ohh! Trevor and the stinky bathroom!

Sara: I was so distracted by Pepper’s abs and Rhodey’s arms for the entirety of that last scene.

Anika: Tony going back for DUM-E. I could cry.

Ali: SCIENCE BROS and the after-credit scene!!!!

Anika’s Rewrite:

Pepper whacks Killian with the pipe.
Tony: I got nothing.
Pepper engages Killian in a debate… “Why are you DOING this? This isn’t YOU?”
Killian: Exactly!
He starts to monologue about his cray idea that anonymity is power and he can be anything and anyone even Tony Stark!
Pepper: You’re nothing like Tony Stark. You chose to be nothing.
Killian: *rage*
Tony: Come on, Pep, he’s not worth our time.
Killian: *RAGE*
Killian goes in for the kill on retreating Tony and Pepper.
Maya appears and blasts him out of the sky.
Pepper: That was really –
Tony: Hot, yes.

Maya Hansen for Avengers 2!

First, I listened to some feedback and I’m going to start listing writer(s), and artist(s) for each title. So please keep feedback coming in, because it helps me make this a better experience for everyone.

Second, I have a pretty small pull list this week.  But since last Saturday was Free Comic Book Day, I’m going to throw in a few of the titles I picked up via Comixology.

That’s it! Here we go.

DC Comics:

Justice League of America #3
Writer: Geoff Johns
Pencils Brett Booth, Inks: Norm Rapmund

The main reason I started reading JLA was because I’ve been enjoying the Justice League book, really liked the way they handled Steve Trevor, and wanted to follow him to his new title. I haven’t really been disappointed.  I like pretty much everyone on the team (my issues with post-reboot Green Arrow aside), and I like that they’ve been explicitly set up as a counter-Justice League, in case those big scary superheroes ever go rogue… which we kind of know they’re going to do.

This issue was part resolution and part set up, and I like that that set up includes Catwoman (including the focus of the Martian Manhunter backup).  I only read a couple of issues of her post-reboot title, but I always enjoy a good female antihero.  There aren’t enough of them out there. Plus I really like the team dynamics, which they’re continuing to flesh out.  I hope they let Stargirl kick some butt sooner rather than later, at the very least so there’s more than one woman in the “field”. I get setting her up as the face of the JLA, but the face should at least throw a few punches.

Is it weird for me to say I’m surprised by how solid the two Justice League titles are? I expect Marvel to be better on the team books, but JLA remains pretty good in issue 3, and I’m interested in where it’s going.

Favorite panel:

Marvel Comics

Fearless Defenders #4
Writer: Cullen Bunn
Arist: Will Sliney

This will come as absolutely no surprise to anyone who follows me on twitter, but I love Fearless Defenders.  This is another one of those “I didn’t expect to but I love it” titles, and sits pretty firmly in my top five favorite ongoing comics list. I’ve read some critiques of the art, and… yes, it does suffer from a few of the classic, sadly still-used tropes of drawing women in comics, but I really think the story surpasses those occasional lapses.

I had three “laugh out loud” moments in this month’s issue, and I will always appreciate a comic book – or anything else, for that matter – that can balance humor, drama, and action.  I appreciate the revelations about Valkyrie’s past, and that the story didn’t take three or four issues to inform us.  I also appreciate that they seem to be building up whatever’s happening between Annabelle and Valkyrie; it wasn’t a one-off silly crush thing, but it’s also on a slow burn path.  Perfect. The chemistry – romantic, platonic, and rival… ic – between the characters is awesome, and I’m super excited for some of the upcoming cameos (Jess Drew!).

Favorite panel:

Free Comic Book Day!

I didn’t go out on FCBD this year, but I browsed through Comixology’s offerings, on the hunt for something new and different, preferably with a strong female character presence. Of course, I can only judge the book by its cover and brief description, but I think it turned out fairly well.

Aphrodite IX v2 #1
Publisher: Image Comics (Top Cow)
Writer: Matt Hawkins
Artist: Stjepan Sejic

So this is a post-apocalyptic fantasy where there are two warring groups of humans, one that uses cybernetics to enhance themselves and one that uses genetic engineering to enhance themselves.  Naturally they hate each other.  Then one of them stumbles upon a stasis chamber, and Aphrodite IX (who’s genetically engineered and cybernetically enhanced to be an assassin) falls into his lap.

Literally.

I like the art and I really like the idea of this world, but so far… I mean, literally into his lap.  And he’s got a wife who is immediately jealous of her. I’m not sure I like what it’s setting up, at least as far as the female characters go. I may check it out for a few more issues. Hopefully that’ll improve.

Favorite panel:

Molly Danger/Princeless
Publisher: Action Lab
Writers: Jamal Igle/Jeremy Whitley
Artists: Jamal Igle/Emily Martin

This is actually two stories in one, both of them starring girl superheroes. Molly Danger wears a ton of pink, has pigtails, and rides in something called the Mollymobile. Princeless is about Princess Raven Xingtao, who’s been waiting for a prince to rescue her from her tower, but instead Adrienne Ashe and her friend Bedelia show up, because “no girl deserves to be locked in a tower.”

Molly Danger was successfully funded on Kickstarter, I guess. And there’s already a six-issue first volume of Princeless.  Which I will now start reading regularly. I’d never heard of either of these titles before, but now I’m interested.  Success, FCBD!

Favorite panels:

Book of the Week: Fearless Defenders
FCBD Favorite: Molly Danger/Princeless

And that’s it for this week! Yay comics!

Flashback: What comic book characters should go on a road trip together?

ALI

First off: let me just say that I have wanted to answer this question since it was first asked back in Q&A #74. It’s the initial reason I kept coming back to this site and part of why I was so excited to be part of Team Fantastic Fangirls. I love this question so, so, so much.

And now I have to answer it. *gulp*

Right now, my gut-reaction answer is Kid Loki and Miss America Chavez.

I love the dynamic the two of them have: you’ve got the no-nonsense, direct straight-man and the all-nonsense trickster. They’d have this whole Brienne and Jamie thing going. It’d be fantastic! That said, I think the actual travel in this road trip would be from America punching Loki across state lines, as opposed, you know, actual driving.

So. My final answer.

Stephanie Brown and Hope Summers

I very nearly went with Steph and Kara here, because the Batgirl-Supergirl team-up to fight movie Dracula issue is probably my most favorite comic in the history of ever. But I think part of the fun here is to mix and match characters across universes.

Hope Summers has spent the majority of her life traveling across time and space. You’re probably thinking she doesn’t need a road trip. I respectfully and heartily disagree. Hope needs to know what it’s like to travel without being chased by a mutant from an alternative future that’s trying to kill her. She needs, more than anyone I think, to be shown what it’s like to have fun.

SAM

My default answer to any sort of wacky-hijinks-team-up is usually Clint and pre-reboot Ollie. The shenanigans. Oh, the shenanigans.

But in the spirit of creativity – or at least non-repetitiveness – I’m choosing some new people! Feel free to imagine the hilarity of Clint and Ollie driving through the countryside in some flash convertible.

I’d like a Volkswagen Bus full of Asgardians to head out from Asgard-on-Earth and travel around, getting to know Midgard via all the wacky Americana there is to experience, like the world’s biggest ball of rubber bands, or something.

Thor, the Warriors Three, Sif, and, because I’m currently in love with Fearless Defenders, Valkyrie, can all squeeze in. For even more comedic gold, throw in Kid Loki. And for the fish out of water who’s the readers’ connection to the heroes… Annabelle Riggs (did I mention I’m currently in love with Fearless Defenders?). Preferably with her helmet.

SARA

I think the better question for me to answer is which comic book characters shouldn’t go on a roadtrip together and the answer of course is no one because, oh my God, the hilarity of any heros going on a trip together is too priceless to ignore.

Fine, fine, I’ll give a real answer.

While I would truly enjoy any team-up ever on this endeavor, at the moment, my most desired roadtrip would be between the Avengers from MCU. There, I said it. Welcome to my life.

I am apparently not the only one, as this amazing artist graced us with their work last summer and you can find it at their tumblr, ICannotBelieve.

After seeing the Avengers movie last year, the one thing I could not wait for was team storylines. Not fighting for good and justice, but rather coming together to be the amazing personalities that they are under one roof.

So what if it was a car roof?

Like, did we all see the same ending to the movie? I think we did.

And, thank Jeebus for fanfiction, because it gave me what I needed at the moment. Jibralis wrote an amazing, heartwrenching fic called The sky and everything beneath it and you should all read it here and leave kudos and tell me what you think about it!

So what about you? What comic book characters should go on a road trip together?

Cardcaptor Sakura

It is a truth universally acknowledged by TV Tropes that the Magical Girl genre would be incomplete without a discussion of Cardcaptor Sakura. A quick perusal of site would reveal that not only did they choose her as the genre’s banner girl, but also gave her the silver medal for being its second most popular icon following Sailor Moon. And that’s a tough act to follow.

Cardcaptor Sakura is one of the most well known titles from the all-female manga artist group, CLAMP—whom I mentioned in my last post as the creators of Magic Knight Rayearth. Some fun facts include the group’s humble beginnings as a doujinshi circle (doujinshi meaning “self-published” or “amateur” manga). In any case, it seems that you can’t think about CLAMP without thinking of Cardcaptor Sakura either. In fact, those characters have endured so well that they were reincarnated for titles like Tsubasa (see pic below).

Like most adolescents winding down from Pokemon fever, I tuned in to the Kids WB during the weekends to see what other anime was out there (weekdays afterschool were reserved for the Toonami block). Cardcaptor Sakura (renamed Cardcaptors for American audiences) was one of the shows that fit my bill and paid with interest. It was also one of the few instances I had growing up where watching the anime influenced me to read the manga.

As to my opinion on which medium is better, I think that depends on the amount of depth you’re looking for. As TV Tropes is quick to point out, the manga only featured 19 cards while the anime featured 52 (a full deck). This invited roles to have more dimension, storylines to branch further out, and feature anime-exclusive characters like Meiling. However, one could argue that despite the expansion, the anime’s English dub was lacking in depth overall since its ruthless censorship eliminated much of the backstory.

For those of you who are unfamiliar with either the manga or the anime, Cardcaptor Sakura is the story of a young girl who comes across a set of magical items known as Clow Cards. After accidentally releasing the entities that were sealed inside them, it becomes her responsibility to re-capture them before they wreak havoc in the town that she lives in. As I’ve mentioned before, this kind of mystical endowment echoes a lot of Magical Girl titles aside from Sailor Moon. Often, the heroine doesn’t choose to be who she is, but rather she’s “forced” into her role by way of moral obligation.

This kind of moral obligation acts as the inciting incident for other shoujo manga—Fushigu Yuugi, The Vision of Escaflowne, and of course Inuyasha come to mind. Like Revolutionary Girl Utena, these titles tend to be classified as more Action/Adventure genres or Fantasy/Romance versus Magical Girl. To be honest, I’m not sure how the lines for each genre are drawn. But I think it’s safe to say that each of these titles–CardCaptor
Sakura included—add to the shoujo milieu in rich ways that are often overlooked. What other genre, for example, would portray same-sex relationships or transgender identities without the stigma that we would normally see elsewhere?

It’s easy to see why Sakura fits the Magical Girl genre to a tee. In addition to called attacks, glamorous transformation sequences, and an adorable otherworldly companion, she has a wardrobe full of fantastical outfits that predate Lady Gaga. She’s a very young protagonist as well—younger than Sailor Moon since her adventures begin as early as elementary school. Nevertheless, she’s a heroine that’s determined and a friend that’s just as compassionate.

Perhaps what sets Sakura apart from her predecessor was the emphasis on the strength of the individual versus the strength of the whole group. Sure, Sakura had her allies and supporters— but she often could only rely herself to carry out the plot’s major turning points. And that kind of proactive self-confidence (especially in a protagonist that’s so young) is definitely something I can get behind.

W.I.T.C.H.

One of the best things that made Sailor Moon such a fun series was the ability pick which Sailor Scout you were. Each of the Scouts had their own specific personality traits, but they were still universal enough to largely appeal to their demographic. For me, it was always hard to choose. At the time, I think I picked a different Sailor Scout every week.

Obviously, this idiosyncrasy carries over to other Magical Girl titles. In fact, I feel that it plays a major factor in why Magical Girl titles are so popular. W.I.T.C.H., an Italian comic series published by Disney Italia, is definitely a Magical Girl title that has this criterion. I think it’s also a title worth mentioning given that it made in Europe and therefore integrates a lot of shoujo influences.

First published in April 2001, the series was created by Alessandro Barbucci, Barbara Cenpa, and Elisabetta Gnone. The series concluded last year in October. There was an animated adaptation as well, which aired on Jetix. It might be worth noting that the television series varies largely from the comic book series, and the fandom is generally divided on which was better. Personally, I feel that one’s loyalty depends on which medium you were exposed to first.

The story follows five teenage protagonists who are chosen to become the Guardians of Kandrakar (an “ethereal” dimension that exists at the center of our universe). Again, one can note that theme of mystical endowment. These girls are charged with protecting Kandrakar from its enemies and are thus granted the powers of five elements: earth, air, fire, water, and “quintessence” (energy). These elements can be combined or work in tandem to achieve different effects. The full potential of their powers are also affected by whether or not the team is in harmony. Their names Will, Irma, Taranee, Cornelia, and Hay Lin form the acronym W.I.T.C.H.

The comic book series progresses over the course of many different sagas, with each arc featuring the kinds of storylines that are reserved for high fantasy novels. There are other kingdoms, other worlds, and other guardians that have their own intrigues, high stakes, and of course great drama—both in high school and otherwise. That’s another reason why I think Magical Girl genres are so popular: it’s hard not to like a heroine that has to deal with saving the world and then have to study for a Chem final afterwards.

That being said, I think it’s a good series for young fans to get into, especially if they’re still trying to get their feet wet!