Category Archives: Lists of Six!
6 Things Disney Needs To Do With Their Marvel and Star Wars Licenses
As you can probably easily surmise, I am not the CEO of any Fortune 500 companies, nor do I have any sort of business acumen whatsoever. So I have no idea what goes into licensing deals, copyright agreements or ownership of beloved companies and franchises. What I am, however, is some schmuck who manages to string words and sentences together into a pop culture blog enjoyed by dozens every day. So if anyone is in a position to tell the overlords at Disney what to do with their Marvel and Star Wars properties, it’s me. Clearly.
Over the past few years, Disney has been on some kind of tirade, gobbling up several famous and beloved franchises to add to their already sizable pop culture family. Disney now owns The Muppets, Marvel Comics and Star Wars, among others. And while I have no idea what this means in the long run, I at least know that these companies and creations will have the support of the world’s largest entertainment empire. That’s got to mean a lot for longevity, right? We also know that Disney hasn’t rushed to dilute the purity and awesomeness of these brands. They don’t seem to want to interfere unless it’s too help. I can definitely get behind that.
But I can also get behind a greater exploitation of these brands. Because I am a man who built his own toy lightsaber at Disney World and have proudly displayed it on my wall. So here are 6 suggestions from little old me about what Disney should and could do with their Marvel and Star Wars properties.
My 6 Favorite Comic Book Writers
Writing comic books is my dream job. It’s what I want to do with the rest of my life. But like any dream, it requires hard work, sacrifice, blood, sweat and tears; which is why my lazy butt is making due with just a simple comic book blog instead of actually doing it himself. But let’s not dwell on why I’m such a schlub, let’s talk about comic book writers!
Good money if you can get it
I’ve written before that the No. 1 reason why I read comics are the characters. I love following the adventures of my favorite superheroes, and will read my favorite characters even in a bad comic. But I’ve been a comic book geek long enough to learn and appreciate the business. And there are now creators I will follow because I love their work and want to read more. And considering my dream job, I guess these 6 guys and girls would be some of my idols.
6 Comics DC Should Add to the New 52
DC Comics has a comic book problem. Anything that doesn’t have ‘Batman’ in the title isn’t selling, and DC has really been cracking down on comics that aren’t selling. Of the 52 comics that debuted at the start of the reboot in September 2011, more than 20 have since been cancelled in less than 2 years. DC immediately filled the gaps with new comics, but half a dozen of those have also been cancelled. DC’s pool of unique and different comics is dwindling rapidly. We no longer have series like The Savage Hawkman, Firestorm: The Nuclear Man, Blue Beetle, Static Shock, or comics for newer characters like Grifter and Voodoo. And while anyone can argue that Batman sells and Hawkman does not, I contend that there is no such thing as a bad character, only bad writers. And bad editors/publishers, as the case may be.
But for example, Hawkeye is probably the best comic book Marvel is publishing these days, and it stars Hawkeye! Are you telling me the same can’t be done for Hawkman?
How is this guy not more popular?
DC doesn’t seem willing to give their comics a chance to find their voice or improve, and so we’re losing some potentially interesting characters to the back issue bins. DC continue to try new ideas, like Sword of Sorcery or The Movement, but they’re not willing to give new comics more than a handful of issues to be successful. Nowadays, it’s like they’re just throwing ideas against a wall to see what sticks. They’ve also stopped announcing new comics in waves. Now we get random announcements for comics like Harley Quinn or Justice League of Canada. DC is in trouble…so here I come to save the day with six suggestions that I think might sell!
Or maybe they’re just comics I want to read…Join me after the jump!
6 Things I Love That Everybody Else Hates
Wow, people really seem to hate Ben Affleck. When it was announced last week that Affleck had been cast as the new Batman, the Internet exploded! And after that, I think there were more articles about the negative fan reaction than there were articles about the actual announcement. It seems the Internet really, really doesn’t want Ben Affleck to play Batman.
But why not? I like Ben Affleck just fine, and I’m excited to see what he’ll do with the character.
Give him a Boston accent, probably
So that got me thinking, what are other pop culture things that I love but everybody else seems to hate? I know there are more than a few movies on that list, but what else? Being the student of the Internet that I am, keeping track of the various hate rage is just something that comes gradually. We all know that the Internet loves bacon and Joss Whedon, and we also know that everybody hates the Star Wars prequels and, apparently, Ben Affleck. These are just accepted facts of pop culture society these days.
Well I’ve put together a list of six things I absolutely love that everybody else seems to hate. And I’d love to hear some of yours in the comments.
6 Things I Want From Star Wars Episode VII
I am about to say something so shocking that I may be banned from the Internet: I like the Star Wars prequels. Please, put your torches and pitchforks down. I’m not saying they’re good movies, or that they’re filled with exciting new characters; but I will say that the Star Wars prequels are fun entertainment, and they expand the Star Wars universe in brilliant and exciting ways. Nothing will ever be as good as the original trilogy, but I still like them, despite their many flaws.
Which is why I am completely on board with Disney and J.J. Abrams making a whole new trilogy, starting with Episode VII in a few years.
Good thing we all remember Roman numerals
I love Star Wars, but I am by no means a rabid fanboy. I never saw the original trilogy in theaters. The best I could do as a kid was a beat-up copy of Return of the Jedi on VHS. I had seen all the films when I was really young, but it wouldn’t be until well into my teens before I finally saw full, quality versions of all three films. That was more than enough to get me excited for the prequels, and I saw all three movies on their opening weekends, and I remember loving each and every one of them in the theaters.
Heck, I don’t even mind Jar Jar Binks. Uh…was that going too far?
Anyway, I’m excited to see what happens in Star Wars: Episode VII, so I’ve decided to do up a list of six things I want to see in the next Star Wars movie. And I’d love to hear your ideas in the comments blow.
Henchman-4-Hire 