Darkseid’s Daughter is Everything Wrong with Comics Today
Since the very beginning of the New 52 at DC Comics, writer Geoff Johns has been teasing the Darkseid War, an epic battle between the villainous Darkseid and the equally villainous Anti-Monitor. They are two of DC’s biggest bad guys, the sorts of villains who could threaten the entire universe, and Johns is going to send them to war against each other — with the Earth and the Justice League likely caught in the middle. As a comic book fan, that sounds incredibly awesome.
But I cannot abide by the utter garbage that is a key player in this war: Darkseid’s daughter. Introduced this past week in Justice League #40 and DC’s Free Comic Book Day prologue, Darkseid’s daughter is everything that’s wrong with comic books today.
Yes, steal all the Justice League weapons, that’s kewl
Prepare yourself, this is definitely going to be an angry geek ranting about comics on the Internet.
Look at her, just look at her! The very sight of this character makes my skin crawl due to annoyance. Has DC learned nothing from their own success? Does the massive fan support of the new Batgirl comic mean nothing to them? I see this new character and I roll my eyes at how much of a colossal step backwards she is for comic books. It’s not 2011 anymore, DC! And it’s definitely not the 1990s!
If their upcoming summer rebranding is a sign that DC actually has learned a few lessons and is going to change for the better, Darkseid’s daughter is their one last hurrah for idiocy.
And if you need further proof that this character is ridiculous, her name is Grail. Yeah, exactly. She is a work of zero creativity.
Join me after the jump so I can actually explain why I’m ranting at you today.
And Just Like That, Here’s the Suicide Squad!
Sunday had a big surprise for everybody: the first cast pic of the Suicide Squad! Everybody’s in costume!
From left, we’ve got Slipknot, Captain Boomerang, Enchantress, Katana, Rick Flagg, Harley Quinn, Deadshot, Killer Croc and El Diablo. They’re also all played by cool actors, but I’ve only got so many fingers for typing.
My initial reaction was shock, because there’s a whole lot to take in when you first see this picture. Then once you start looking it over, there’s a lot to like. Katana, Killer Croc, Boomerang and especially Deadshot look great. Slipknot and Diablo are clearly just there as cannon fodder. And Harley Quinn looks…OK, she looks OK.
Speaking of Deadshot, played by Will Smith, here we have a solo shot with the mask and everything!
I am definitely down for Will Smith to kick all kinds of butt in this movie.
Though I’m disappointed that Joker isn’t in this picture. I’ve been hoping beyond hope that Joker was actually a member of Task Force X and not some Hannibal Lecter guy in a cell. But we’ll see!
—————-
Gamer Girl & Vixen Kickstarter Launches on May 16!
Save the date! Now that the first issue of Gamer Girl & Vixen is complete, we’re taking this party to Kickstarter on Saturday, May 16! We’re going to raise money to make a second issue of our comic, and then get some print copies into everybody’s hands!
This is exciting! We’ve been working on this comic all year so far, and I’ve been reading everything I can about how to run a successful Kickstarter campaign. We’ve got a great page ready to go, some great art to show off to everybody, and some even cooler rewards to hand out to all our backers.
Hopefully I’ll be able to convince some of you fine Henchies to pledge some money towards my comic. Don’t worry, it’s not a requirement to keep reading this old blog! Just keep in mind that I’m probably going to be talking my head off about my comic once the Kickstarter launches!
As if I’m not doing that already!
Remember to mark your calendars! May 16 is the big day!
——————
Saturday Night Live Went Ahead and Made that Black Widow Movie
Major points to Saturday Night Live for being funny and culturally relevant! I’ll admit I haven’t watched them since reruns of the Ferrell Era, but that was pretty funny stuff. Go Age of Ultron!
—————–
Review: Avengers: Age of Ultron
Avengers: Age of Ultron is like a new episode of the biggest, most expensive TV show of all time. It’s not the event that the first movie was, and it might not be as Earth-shattering as I expected, but Age of Ultron is nonetheless a fun, exciting and action-packed movie starring all of our favorite superheroes. And therein lies my biggest complaint, which is really a non-complaint.
There’s a familiarity to Age of Ultron that leads to contentment. The movie doesn’t really give us anything new to get excited about, instead delivering just another solid chapter in this ongoing saga.
Movie Rating: 8/10 – Very Good.
I liken Age of Ultron to a TV show because that’s exactly what it felt like while I was watching. I may have been in a packed movie theater, and it’s been three years since the last episode, but Ultron was definitely the ‘monster-of-the-week’ in the latest episode of The Avengers. All of our favorite characters are back, their friendly, comfortable banter is exactly what we’d expect, and everything is more or less tied up in a nice, tidy bow by the end. Lessons are learned, a little romance is slipped in, and now we just sit back and wait for the next episode.
I don’t think I’ve ever felt this way with any movie sequel before. It’s a weird feeling.
But the episodic feel doesn’t keep the movie from being entertaining. It’s an exciting film from beginning to end. In the big picture sense, the movie is amazing. But when you step back and really think about all the moving parts, it’s not without some flaws. Director Joss Whedon juggles a few too many characters, so that some get a lot of attention — like Hawkeye, in some standout moments — while others are little more than props — like Thor, who spends most of his time dropping hints about future movies.
The new characters are a mixed bag. The titular villain, Ultron, is too entertaining to be menacing. That’s an odd way to describe a super villain, but it’s exactly how actor James Spader pulls it off.
I like Age of Ultron, a lot. It’s not as good at the first Avengers film, largely because the spectacle has worn off, but also for a lot of little reasons. Yet overall, it’s another exciting film in my favorite franchise of all time, despite those little reasons.
Join me after the jump for my full, detailed review. And there will be SPOILERS!
Henchman-4-Hire 