Batman #68 (DC, 1951) Perhaps the definitive Two-Face cover. Harvey Dent appearance. Atomic explosion panels. Win Mortimer cover. Dick Sprang and Bob Kane art.
‘Justice League’: Film Review
Posted: November 15, 2017 Filed under: Cinema, Comics, Entertainment | Tags: Batman, DC Comics, Justice League, Superhero, Superman Leave a comment
Wonder Woman bails out a battle-fatigued Batman and Superman in Warner Bros.’ latest DC Comics-derived extravaganza.
Todd McCarthy writes: The increasingly turgid tales of Batman and Superman — joined, unfortunately for her, by Wonder Woman — trudge along to ever-diminishing returns in Justice League. Garishly unattractive to look at and lacking the spirit that made Wonder Woman, which came out five months ago, the most engaging of Warner Bros.’ DC Comics-derived extravaganzas to date, this hodgepodge throws a bunch of superheroes into a mix that neither congeals nor particularly makes you want to see more of them in future. Plainly put, it’s simply not fun. Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice grossed $872.7 million worldwide last year, apparently about enough to justify its existence, and the significant presence of Gal Gadot as Wonder Woman in this one might boost its returns a bit higher than that.
Fatigue, repetition and a laborious approach to exposition are the keynotes of this affair, which is also notable for how Ben Affleck, donning the bat suit for the second time, looks like he’d rather be almost anywhere else but here; his eyes and body language make it clear that he’s just not into it. For his part, Henry Cavill’s Superman, left for dead and buried in 2016’s Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice (we see the grave of Clark Joseph Kent more than once), isn’t resurrected until the second half, and it takes considerably more time for him to snap into action.
That leaves things mostly in the capable hands of Wonder Woman, who’s just as kick-ass as she was this summer but in a less imaginative, one-note way. The good news is that Jesse Eisenberg’s embarrassingly misguided Lex Luthor from the previous outing is nowhere to be seen.
So what are we left with here? With all the characters that need to be introduced, the virtually humor-free script by Chris Terrio and Joss Whedon (who was brought on to complete directing duties after Zack Snyder had to leave for family reasons) less resembles deft narrative scene-setting than it does the work of a bored casino dealer rotely distributing cards around a table. Everyone is very downcast in the wake of Superman’s unimaginable fate and there’s naturally a new villain threatening to bring the world to an end, a big meanie named Steppenwolf (voiced by Ciaran Hinds). So Bruce Wayne, with Diana Prince’s assistance, must put together a new team to save the world yet again. Read the rest of this entry »
Superman Model Sheets, by Curt Swan
Posted: November 22, 2016 Filed under: Art & Culture, Comics, Entertainment | Tags: Comic Books, design, Illustration, Model Sheets, Superhero, Superman, vintage Leave a commentTMI About Superman & Supergirl
Posted: August 8, 2016 Filed under: Entertainment, Humor, Mediasphere | Tags: CW, DC Comics, Movies, Poster Art, Promotion, Superman, Television 1 Comment
Batman #68, Featuring Harvey Dent: Cover Art by Win Mortimer, DC Comics, 1951
Posted: May 27, 2016 Filed under: Art & Culture, Comics, Entertainment | Tags: American comic book, Batman, Batman (comic book), Brian Bolland, Comic book, DC Comics, DC Universe, Geoff Johns, Harley Quinn, Joker (comics), Superman, Two-Face Leave a comment
Bat-Maybe Man and Super-Ambivalent Man
Posted: April 2, 2016 Filed under: Art & Culture, Entertainment, Humor | Tags: Batman, Ben Affleck, Cinema, Movie Poster, Movies, Parody, satire, Superman Leave a comment
Sure, Superman Has X-Ray Vision. But How Would It Actually Work?
Posted: March 23, 2016 Filed under: Comics, Entertainment, Science & Technology | Tags: Absorption spectroscopy, Albert Einstein, American Institute of Electrical Engineers, Aristotle, Black Hole, Color, Comic Books, Gravitational wave, Light, LIGO, Superhero, Superman, Visible spectrum Leave a comment
Rhett Allain writes: There is a reason Superman is called “super”. He has super-strength and super-speed. He flies, and he is mostly indestructible. He can shoot laser-like things from his eyes. Finally, he has some type of X-ray vision. Although comic book scholars have debated Superman’s vision before, let’s consider how it could work.
How Do Mere Mortals See?
There is one important aspect of human vision. In order to see an object, light has to go from that object to the eye (light in the visible spectrum). The light from that object can be either reflected light or the object can emit its own light. But either way, the direction of this light is from the object to the eye. This is important.
The eye is only a receiver of light—there isn’t some type of “vision ray” that shoots from the eye. I only point this out because it’s actually an idea that some people have about light. Ask yourself this question:
You are in an absolutely dark room (with zero light sources) for some extended period of time. What do you see after a while?
The answer is that you will see black and nothing but black. Black is the color our brains associate with the lack of light. However, many people will give an answer that you will some some stuff after your eyes adjust.
[Read the full story here, at WIRED]
Perhaps their answer is based on their previous experiences (you rarely get an absolutely dark room) but also on their idea that the eyes do the seeing and can adjust to new situations.
What About X-Ray Vision?
We can make X-ray images. That’s not science fiction. Here’s how it works. If you take high speed electrons and shoot them at a metal surfaces, you can produce X-rays. X-rays are just like visible light except they have a much shorter wavelength (but they are still electromagnetic waves). But since X-rays have a different wavelength (and frequency) they interact with matter differently than visible light. This means that some materials (like human flesh) are partially transparent. You can use this to create an X-ray image by shining X-rays through a human and putting an X-ray detector on the other side. The X-rays don’t pass through bones as much as flesh, so you can get an image.
So, how could this work with Superman’s vision? If his eyes could detect X-rays like humans detect visible light, he would still need an X-ray source. Read the rest of this entry »
‘Batman v Superman’ Reviews: Uh Oh
Posted: March 22, 2016 Filed under: Art & Culture, Entertainment, Mediasphere | Tags: Academy Award, Batman, Ben Affleck, Christian Bale, Christopher Nolan, DC Comics, Leonardo DiCaprio, Michael Fassbender, Superman, The Dark Knight Rises Leave a comment
“Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice” is facing a rocky start ahead of its Friday release. It holds a bleak Rotten Tomatoes percentage.
Maria Cavassuto writes: “Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice” is facing a rocky start ahead of its Friday release. The tentpole has met with lukewarm reviews and holds a bleak Rotten Tomatoes percentage (which continues to change as more reviews roll in). The last installments fared far better for these caped crusaders, with “Man of 
Steel” holding a 56% Fresh rating and “The Dark Knight Rises” holding a Fresh 87%.
“I am gobsmacked by just how dull this movie turned out to be.”
— Mike Ryan of Uproxx
Although there are a few positive reviews for Zack Snyder’s film, most are calling out the film for its messy, less-than-spectacular promised clash of comic-book titans.
Variety‘s Andrew Barker says this epic standoff never develops fully, and instead “the life-or-death battle between the two icons ultimately comes down to a series of misunderstandings.” Barker also believes Henry Cavill’s Superman pales in comparison to “the winningly cranky, charismatic presence even when out of costume” of Ben Affleck’s Batman. Visually, the film is a win. For Variety’s full review, click here.
Eric Kohn of Indiewire echoes some of Barker’s points by calling this messy and “cacophonous” showdown “basically one long teaser for the next installment.” Kohn also pointed out that while the film “doesn’t lack for inspired visuals” because “it’s filled with motion-heavy sequences rich in light and color,” a good deal of the story “reeks of the usual routine.”
[Read the full story here, at Variety]
Peter Travers of Rolling Stone thought this was a step up from “Man of Steel” but nowhere near Christopher Nolan’s “Dark Knight” franchise. However, even though “Batman v Superman” is probably a dream for most comic-book fans, the “kick-ass revelation” is the “wowza of a Wonder Woman,” played by Gal Gadot.
But Todd McCarthy of the Hollywood Reporter believes the writers threw in the towel on how to integrate Wonder Woman. Read the rest of this entry »
SPOILER ALERT: Superhero Identity Revealed
Posted: November 2, 2015 Filed under: Art & Culture, Breaking News, Comics, Entertainment | Tags: 1930s, Cartoon, Clark Kent, Comic Books, Daily Planet, DC Comics, Illustration, journalism, media, Secret Identity, Spoiler, Superman, vintage Leave a comment
Question: It Came From Where?
Posted: October 22, 2015 Filed under: Art & Culture, Comics, Entertainment | Tags: Action Comics, Comic book, DC Comics, Illustration, Krypton, Superhero, Superman, vintage Leave a comment
Comics: Superman 75th Anniversary/The Creation of Vintage Batman
Posted: September 19, 2015 Filed under: Comics, Entertainment, Mediasphere | Tags: Batman, Bob Finger, Bob Kane, Comic Books, DC Comics, design, Illustration, Jerry Siegel, Superman, vintage Leave a commentWorld’s Finest Comics #33 (1948)
Posted: July 20, 2015 Filed under: Art & Culture, Comics | Tags: Batman, Cartoon, Comic book, DC Comics, design, Illustration, Robin, Superman, vintage, World's Finest Comics Leave a comment
[VIDEO] ‘Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice’ [HD] Comic-Con Trailer
Posted: July 11, 2015 Filed under: Art & Culture, Entertainment, Mediasphere | Tags: Batman, Batman (1989 film), Batman Begins, Ben Affleck, Henry Cavill, Justice (DC Comics), Man of Steel (film), Superman, Warner Bros, Zack Snyder Leave a commentZack Snyder‘s BATMAN V SUPERMAN: DAWN OF JUSTICE is in theaters March 25, 2016.
http://batmanvsupermanmovie.com
http://www.facebook.com/batmanvsuperman
Stephanopoulos: It’s a Bird! It’s a Plane!
Posted: May 19, 2015 Filed under: Comics, Humor, Mediasphere, White House | Tags: Clark Kent, Clinton Foundation, George Stephanopoulos, Media bias, NRO, satire, Superhero, Superman, The Pantsuit Report Leave a comment
Accurate. http://t.co/IDm9EjyPjr pic.twitter.com/qsNxKLYhJ2
— National Review (@NRO) May 19, 2015
Original Cover Art by Brian Bolland from Superman Annual #12, Published by DC Comics, 1986
Posted: May 5, 2015 Filed under: Art & Culture, Comics | Tags: Brian Bolland, Comic Books, DC Comics, design, drawing, Illustration, Superhero, Superman, vintage Leave a comment
Original cover art by Brian Bolland from Superman Annual #12, published by DC Comics, 1986.
3-D Superman
Posted: April 24, 2015 Filed under: Art & Culture, Comics | Tags: 3-D, Comic Books, design, graphics, Illustration, Superman Leave a comment
‘We Must Overcome These Villains or Our Earth Will Be Threatened’
Posted: December 21, 2014 Filed under: Art & Culture, Comics, Global | Tags: Action Comics, Batman, Comic Books, DC Comics, design, Edmond Hamilton, graphics, Illustration, Lettering, Sheldon Moldoff, Superhero, Superman, urt Swan, Villain, World's Finest Comics, WORLD’S FINEST #148 Leave a comment
WORLD’S FINEST #148 (March 1965)
Art by Curt Swan & Sheldon Moldoff
Words by Edmond Hamilton
Trigger Warning: Historic Superhero Spoiler
Posted: December 10, 2014 Filed under: Comics, Entertainment | Tags: Action Comics, All-New X-Men, Associated Press, Benjamin Melniker, Captain America, Clark Kent, Comic book, DC Comics, Jerry Siegel, Joe Shuster, Superman Leave a comment
SUPERMAN NEWSPAPER STRIP (Nov. 12, 1939)
Art by Joe Shuster
Words by Jerry Siegel
Next: Santa Claus, Fact or Fiction?
Superhero Fitness Advice
Posted: December 4, 2014 Filed under: Comics | Tags: Action Comics, Comic book, Jack Burnley, Jerry Siegel, Superman, Superman #6 1 Comment
SUPERMAN #6 (Sept. 1940)
“Super Strength“
Art by Jack Burnley
Words by Jerry Siegel
Action Comics #1: First Superman Comic Book Sells for $3.2 Million
Posted: August 25, 2014 Filed under: Art & Culture, Comics, Entertainment | Tags: Action Comics, Action Comics 1, Auction, Christopher & Dana Reeve Foundation, Comic book, Comics Guaranty, eBay, Superman 1 Comment
A pristine edition of “Action Comics No. 1,” which first introduced Superman, has sold for $3.2 million in an auction conducted on eBay.
[FLASHBACK: First Superman Comic Book Expected to Fetch Millions When it Goes Up for Auction on eBay – punditfromanotherplanet.com]
Bidding ended Sunday evening, with 48 bids received.
A copy of “Action Comics No. 1″ was put up for auction on eBay on Aug. 14, with parts of the final price going to the Christopher & Dana Reeve Foundation. Bidding began at $1 million…(read more) Variety
First Superman Comic Book Expected to Fetch Millions When it Goes Up for Auction on eBay
Posted: July 23, 2014 Filed under: Art & Culture, Comics, Mediasphere, Reading Room | Tags: Action Comics, Action Comics 1, CGC, Comic book, Comics Guaranty, eBay, Holy Grail, Superman 1 CommentA purportedly pristine copy of the first Superman comic book could fetch millions of dollars when it goes up, up and away in an auction at online marketplace eBay.
A copy of Action Comics #1 in which the Kryptonian superhero made his debut in 1938 will be offered in an eBay auction that opens on August 14 and run for ten days.
“The book looks and feels like it just came off the newsstand.”
— CGC primary grader Paul Litch
“This is an extraordinary opportunity to acquire the most valuable comic book in existence and we look forward to sharing a piece of pop culture history with the global eBay community of 149 million buyers,” Gene Cook of eBay marketplaces said in a release.
The issue being put on the Internet auction block by collectibles dealer Darren Adams was touted as the “Holy Grail” of comic books and one of as few as 50 unrestored copies in existence. Read the rest of this entry »
Vintage Photo: Superman & Robot
Posted: April 15, 2014 Filed under: Entertainment, Robotics | Tags: Adventures of Superman, Clark Kent, George Reeves, Krypton, Photography, Robotics, Superman, Television, Television program, vintage Leave a comment
Adventures of Superman (1952–1958) George Reeves
Note: Some good stuff can be found in IMDB’s Trivia page
Super-hero parodies do for porn industry what super-hero blockbusters do for Hollywood
Posted: July 30, 2013 Filed under: Economics, Mediasphere | Tags: Axel Braun, Batman XXX: A Porn Parody, Braun, Clark Kent, Pornographic film, Silver Banshee, Superman, Warner Bros Leave a comment
By Hollie McKay
LOS ANGELES – Super-hero blockbusters have been box office hits for Hollywood for decades. But now Superman, Batman and friends are topping the charts for another industry as well.
The porn industry.
Director Axel Braun has become most in-demand X-rated director in the world by taking popular super heroes and creating super successful porn parodies. The adult film director has directed more than 400 movies since 1990, but it was his work on “Batman XXX: A Porn Parody” in 2010 that cemented his name when it became the best-selling and most-rented title of 2010. Since then, Braun has released everything from “Spiderman XXX: A Porn Parody” to takes on “Star Wars,” “The Avengers” and “Iron Man.”
And get this: he doesn’t even film the sex scenes.
Braun’s latest is “Superman XXX: A Porn Parody,” released to capitalize on Warner Bros’ “Man of Steel.”
“I felt that Superman needed to step away from the dorky, fumbling Clark Kent cliché, and gain some of those elements that made Spider-Man so appealing to me as a kid, some of that vulnerability and not-so-perfect life. I tried to humanize him a little, make him a little more relatable to the general public and at the same time parody without resorting to slapstick,” Braun told FOX411’s Pop Tarts column. “I also used characters that we haven’t been able to see yet in a mainstream big-screen adaptation, like Livewire and Silver Banshee. After all, I am selling a fantasy, and what better way to do so than bringing a bunch of obscure, sexy super-villains to life?”
