Tagged: Hero

Young Justice Brings First 4 Episodes to DVD in July

Warner Home Video picked the wrong day to tell eager comic book fans about Young Justice being released on DVD since the fun news was eclipsed by the Star wars on Blu-ray announcement. Still, the excellent series, airing on the Cartoon Network, will have volume one of the debut season available in mid-July. The following is the complete press release:

BURBANK, CA (May 4, 2011) – The newest Warner Bros. Animation–produced hit series on Cartoon Network finally arrives on DVD as Warner Home Video (WHV) unleashes its secret weapon with Young Justice Season 1 Volume 1. These DC Universe teenage super heroes have quickly proven to be a hit as the favorite show among boys 9-14. With non-stop action, Young Justice Season 1 Volume 1 comes to DVD for the first time on July 19, 2011.

In Young Justice, being a teenager means proving yourself over and over — to peers, parents, teachers, mentors and, ultimately, to yourself. But what if you’re not just a normal teenager? What if you’re a teenage super hero? How much harder will it be to prove yourself in a world of super powers, super villains and super secrets? Are you ready to come of age in such a world? Are you ready for life or death rites of passage? Are you ready to join the ranks of the great heroes and prove you’re worthy of the Justice League? That’s exactly what the members of Young Justice — Robin, Aqualad, Kid Flash, Superboy, Miss Martian and Artemis — will find out: whether they have what it takes to be a proven hero. (more…)

Aluna

Paula Garcés Brings Comic Book Character To Video Game

  • News
  • February 28, 2011

AlunaIndependent game maker S2 Games is joining up with  actress and producer Paula Garcés to add a brand new main character, Aluna, to the session-based, multiplayer, action-RPG Heroes of Newerth (HoN). Seen in Clockstoppers, the Harold and Kumar film franchise, and Warehouse 13, Garcés adds her attractiveness and ability to HoN as the personality and voicepowering the  Legion hero Aluna, the character made for Aluna Comics. To watch Aluna come alive fans can visit the Nvidia booth at the Game Developers Conference in San Francisco where Garcés is going to be appearing to sign autographs on March 2nd and 3rd.

Aluna blurs the lines of the entertainment and gaming fields by delivering the look of a Maxim Hot 100 model with the powers of a Latina superhero to life in Newerth. “I wanted to bring the Aluna character to new mediums and HoN is a perfect fit,” said Garcés. “The HoNfans will appreciate Aluna’s unique story and welcome her as a hero inthe game.” Stunning and spirited, Aluna bears within her the essence of Earth itself – the old Earth  long since lost to the decay of ages. Carrying the power of the moon within a magical gem, Aluna attacks  her daemonic enemies with lethal swiftness. Because of her expertise in battle, she’s expected to be a star among the heroes of Newerth, resembling the life of the celebrity behind the hero.

Paula Garcés is known for her part as “Officer Tina Halon” on the FX series The Shield, where the role earned Paula a 2008 Alma Award nomination for Best Supporting Actress. Her tv credits include repeat roles on Law and Order: SVU, CSI Miami, and SyFy’s hit show Warehouse 13. Paula most recently finished her notorious role as “Maria” for the third installment of the Harold and Kumar film franchise, expected to launch Christmas Day 2011. Paula also just announced the season two premiere date for The Look, a style magazine  show she co-created and executive produced. It airs Saturday, March 5th, 2011 at 3 p.m. on mun2 network.

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The Lone Ranger Avenges ‘The Death of Zorro’

The Lone Ranger Avenges ‘The Death of Zorro’

  • News
  • December 14, 2010

Well, we didn’t see this one coming. Check out the press release from Dynamite Entertainment:

NEW YORK, NY (December 14, 2010)-One of comicdom’s first and greatest heroes, Zorro, will have fallen in battle, sacrificing his life to save his people.  Upon learning of this tragedy, it falls unto the future hero of the Wild West, The Lone Ranger®, to avenge the death!

Dynamite Entertainment, home to several best-selling comic book titles and properties, and Classic Media, a global media company with a portfolio of some of the world’s leading entertainment franchises, including The Lone Ranger, and Zorro LLC, today announced the publication of the first crossover comic for pop-culture’s most-famous masked heroes, The Lone Ranger and Zorro.

Written by Ande Parks, the first issue will also feature covers by Alex Ross and professional wrestling icon-turned-artist, Jerry “The King” Lawler, as well as Francesco Francavilla and Tom Yeates! The comic is scheduled to arrive in stores in March 2011.

“This series is a really exciting opportunity for me,” says writer Ande Parks.  “Not only do I get to write two truly legendary American heroes, but I get to write a defining moment for one of them… his death. This series isn’t just about the death of Zorro, though. It’s about the enormous legacy that he leaves behind. When a hero dies, he leaves behind a legion of people that have been touched by his deeds. In this case, Zorro’s legacy has touched a young Lone Ranger.  Unfortunately, the bad guys that have ended Zorro’s life are a small but powerful army who plan on continuing to victimize the Native Americans Zorro was trying to help. Zorro’s legacy, even as embodied by The Lone Ranger, may not be enough to defeat this army of renegade Civil War bushwhackers.”

“Zorro and The Lone Ranger were two of the primary icons I had never gotten a chance to paint before, and I was excited to get the chance with such an important crossover,” says Alex Ross.  “Of the designs I conceived, this is more of an intimate portrait-like shot, separating the two men by the subtlest of details.”

“Zorro is one of the most iconic heroes of all time, and it is an incredible honor that Zorro is partnered with another legendary hero, The Lone Ranger,” adds John Gertz, the President & CEO Zorro Productions, Inc.  “This comic is a must-read for fans of both Zorro and The Lone Ranger!”

“We are excited to partner with Dynamite Entertainment and Zorro Productions  to bring together two of the greatest heroes in the comic world,” said Karyn Schneider, VP, Licensing, Classic Media. “The Lone Ranger is America’s favorite hero of the Wild West and has captured the hearts and imaginations of fans for generations.  With the two characters’ enduring legacies, this first crossover comic marks a memorable moment in comic book and pop-culture history, inspiring fans for many years to come.”

Dynamite has had tremendous critical success with our Zorro and The Lone Ranger books, written by Matt Wagner and Brett Matthews respectively, and are honored to be working with Ande Parks to tell this tale,” says Dynamite President Nick Barrucci.  “I am excited to see the responses from fans from both franchises in this crossover of these two renowned heroes!”

The Contest Catch-Up Plus a New Offering

The Contest Catch-Up Plus a New Offering

  • News
  • October 7, 2010

We’ve been remiss in announcing our prize winners and here’s a recap for those of you keeping score at home.

Tommy Williams is the winner of a free digital download of 300 with Extras, courtesy of Warner Digital.

Sean D. Martin is the winner of the free digital download of One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest, courtesy of Warner Digital. The craziest thing he has seen in a comic was turning the page to see Animal Man looking Right. At. Me. and saying
“I can see you!” It actually made me slam the book shut before sanity
returned a split second later and I sheepishly re-opened it.

The winner of the Lord of the Rings on Blu-ray trilogy, courtesy of Warner Home Entertainment, is Shanti Whitesides. She wrote:

Are you asking who is the protagonist, or who is the hero? The protagonist is certainly Frodo. The story opens with him being given the ring, he goes on to choose the burden willingly, and it’s his footsteps in which we follow the story. And it is his act of compassion toward Gollum that allows the quest to end in any sort of triumph.

On the other hand, if you’re asking who is the hero, I would have to say Sam. As I wrote in my essay, “A Fool’s Hope,” the ring-quest is one that can only be completed by a fool, not a traditional hero, and Sam is the epitome of the fool-hero – simple, humble, stout-hearted and loyal, driven by his devotion to Frodo to follow him through the hell of Mordor. It is a testament to Sam’s strength that he is able to heal from the ring quest and go on to live a happy life, where Frodo cannot.

Paul Go wins the LOTR gift set by writing, The lead character is Samwise. He manipulated the Baggins clan to reveal the ring, used Gandalf to research it and create the fellowship, and then made sure that Frodo disposed of it properly. This is his story: everyone else just serves it.

Warner Digital provided us with a copy of Atlantis: The Lost Continent, one of George Pal’s underrated fantasy films. We’re accepting entries until 11:59 p.m. Sunday. All you have to do is give us your best theory of what really happened to Atlantis. Best answers wins the DVD.

‘Superman: Doomsday’ Trivia Winner Revealed

‘Superman: Doomsday’ Trivia Winner Revealed

  • News
  • August 13, 2010

I have no idea how a Superman trivia contest became a discussion over the much-beloved Marx Brothers, but yet it did.

Thanks to our friends at Warner Bros. Digital Distribution, we ran a contest to celebrate the release of Superman: Doomsday on iTunes with Extras.

The goal was to stump me, co-author of the forthcoming The Essential Superman Encyclopedia, with questions related to the Man of Steel. First up was Chuck Williams, who asked, “Clark Kent once asked Ma Kent to make him a second Superboy costume with a different color scheme. What color replaced blue as the primary color of this second costume, and why did it prove to be a mistake?”

A tricky one, but asking me questions of stories written by my pal Bob Rozakis will get you nowhere. Bob told a tale that had Ma make the costume red and yellow only to learn the yellow absorbed the solar radiation, weakening the Teen of Steel.

Mike Weber tried with, “What recent film features a visual reference/homage to the Fleischer animated version’s costume change sequences to introduce the hero?” Okay, Michael, you got me. Name the reference and if I’m convinced, you win the digital download of Superman: Doomsday with Extras.

Kyle Gnepper asked, “What is the mascot for the Smallville High football team?” I presume we’re talking about the television series and their mascot is the crow.

Miles Vorkosigan finally got us back on track with, “Since we’re Supermanning on these questions, I got one for ya, Bob. In the Crisis on Two Earths Justice League movie, what’s the last thing Supes says to Lex before they leave the police station?” My first inclination is to ask, who cares?  By being the second stumper, you get my highest regard or, if Mike’s answer doesn’t please me, you win.

Nebula and Hugo nominated author Michael A. Burstein inquired, “What did red kryptonite do to Superman in its very first appearance in the comic book? (I’m asking this question because I don’t know the answer and I’m curious.)” Well, Michael, the first appearance of Red K was in a Superboy story which saw the hero fall into a delirium,  dreaming that Jor-El, Lara, Ma Kent, and Pa Kent are all alive and well and are taken to a new world. Superboy then watched in horror as a moon crashed into the world, killing his natural and adoptive parents, along with Krypto. The shock woke him up.

SpinTunes Presents Super Song Fight 2010!

SpinTunes Presents Super Song Fight 2010!

  • News
  • June 26, 2010

Frequent commenter and musician extraordinaire, Russ Rogers, gave us a lil’ hat tip towards a funky-cool contest you crazy ComicMixers will dig. The contest? Why it’s SpinTown’s SpinTunes Superhero Song Fight contest for 2010! Asking those out there in the interwebs to submit songs inspired by and written about Superheros and Supervillains… SpinTunes now has created a cool little player where you the adoring public can link up to, crank the volume on your favorite cans, and rock out to some gamma irradiated rock and roll.

The contestants are a swath of indie folk/rock/alt-funky goodness. Contributors like Denise Hudson and Joanne Abbot lend flighty ballads (‘Invisible Woman’ and ‘Why’) to the contest. Russ’s group, Godz Poodlz, released a Genesis twinged ode to DC’s resident Hazmat habit wearing hero, the Human Bomb. Over the pond plunker Danny Blackwell drops a ditty titled “Love Song From Robin to Batman” which is pretty self explanatory. And there’s a ton of others all waiting to tickle the hairs in your inner ears with musical hero goodness.

SpinTunes stems from the blog of SpinTown, as run by a Travis Langworthy, a teacher with a good ear for tunage, and a heart of gold. The SpinTune contest is voted on by a panel of judges, so no need to cram the ballot box, but feel free to head here, and listen to the tunes, and let them know what makes your boogie woogie, woogie woo.

Superman Can Come to Your Home Town

Superman Can Come to Your Home Town

  • News
  • June 23, 2010

As reported this morning in USA Today, DC Comics is hosting a contest tied to the arrival of J. Michael Straczynski as the Man of Steel’s new writer. As Superman walks from coast to coast in his quest to understand America, readers can lobby for the hero to pay their hometown a visit.

This is a stunt reminiscent of a long-running feature in Captain Marvel’s 1940s adventures as he paid visits to towns with prominent newsstand wholesalers, attempting to boost circulation around the country.

Here’s the formal announcement:

New York, June 23, 2010– Starting in July 2010, coinciding with the 700th issue of Superman, DC Comics will be celebrating this remarkable anniversary of America’s greatest hero with a historic journey…not to alien worlds or distant galaxies, but through the streets, roads, highways, homes, farms, suburbs, and inner cities of America. And America itself, in the person of those very real places, is invited to the party.
 
Beginning with the city of Philadelphia, Superman will walk across America, a journey that is expected to take most of a year. He will pass through Illinois, Iowa, Nebraska, Colorado, Utah, Nevada, California, Oregon and Washington. Along the way, Superman will be passing through real towns, real cities, real neighborhoods. And your town, your city, your neighborhood may be among those chosen for his historic journey. Superman will literally pass through your town as visualized in the pages of his book. If your town is within 50 miles of the line marking Superman’s journey, then you are eligible to participate.
 
If your town is chosen, then it will become part of an issue of the Superman comic. For over fifty years, Superman has been America’s greatest hero, and now he is returning to those roots. The series of issues will examine how Superman sees America, and how America sees Superman. And for those towns selected, it will be a once in a lifetime opportunity to be part of his historic journey.

(more…)

Captain Action and The Phantom to finally meet

Captain Action and The Phantom to finally meet

  • News
  • November 14, 2009

We missed posting something about this the other day but it’s still cool enough for us to talk about. The revival of Captain Action now means he can begin meeting the super-heroes his action figure incarnation transformed into. This begin in March with Moonstone’s release of Phantom Action, a crossover between King Feature’s classic comic strip hero, and Captain Action.

According to the official release, the Ghost Who Walks is captured and his wife Diana pleads with Captain Action to help. “It turns out the young Captain Action has had a crush on Diana since his teenage years, so that makes for an interesting dynamic”, said series writer Mike Bullock. The two-issue mini-series is pencilled by Reno and will offer a variety of covers by artists Art Thibert, Mark Sparacio and Michael T. Gilbert.

The Phantom was one of the original set of heroes the figure could become when introduced in the 1960s. When Playing Mantis had the license in the 1990s, they included Lee Falk’s jungle hero as one of the revival figures. Currently, Cast-A-Way has announced plans to release an 8” Mego-sized Captain Action as the Phantom figure complete with long slide Colt .45s, as well as the Phantom’s signature rings. 

 “My dad has always been a big Phantom fan. As a boy, he just loved the Witman 1944 Phantom book and the weekly Sunday strip. I know I was reading too much into it, but as a child I felt there was some sort of father-son legacy when I dressed my original Captain Action as the Phantom”, said Captain Action Enterprises’ Retropreneur, Ed Catto.

“The Phantom set was one I always wished I had for my Captain Action, so it’s fitting we’re able to bring the characters back together again,” said Joe Ahearn of Captain Action Enterprises, LLC. “Recently, Cast-A-Way toys created new Mego-sized Captain Action and Phantom figures. We might soon have some additional announcements about these toys as well.”

Captain Action was revived in comics last year and has been met with mixed reaction, prompting Catto and Ahearn to consider some form of revamp in the coming year. They’ve already introduced a Lady Action to interact with the hero, who is currently portrayed as the son of the original.

Can you pass this supervillian test?

Can you pass this supervillian test?

  • News
  • November 10, 2009

Came across this brainteaser on BoingBoing from [wu:riddles] —

You’re a super-villain and you want to prepare a
transparency (the kind that goes on an overhead projector) with the key
points of your plan for world domination so you can present them to the
hero/superagent before you attempt to kill him in some ridiculously
novel way. You don’t want this information to fall into the wrong hands
before you’re ready. Smart villain that you are, you know you can share
the information across several slides so that if the enemy agents
capture any two of your slides, they won’t learn even the tiniest bit of
information about your plan. How?

Super-villain transparencies

Give us your answers in comments. Note that your plan should be strong enough to thwart the accursed Richards.

Review: ‘Justice League the Complete Series’

Review: ‘Justice League the Complete Series’

For those who only knew the Justice League of America as the Super Friends must have been in for a rude awakening when they sat to watch the Justice League
animated series with their kids. From 2001 through 2006, the Cartoon Network offered up what has since gone on to be recognized as the greatest comics adaptation of all time.

Super-heroes moving from the printed page to animated film have had a checkered path from Filmation’s 1966 [[[Superman]]] through Ruby-Spears’ 1988 effort with the Man of Steel. In between, there were some highlights such as 1968’s [[[Spider-Man]]] and some really low moments including the 1977 [[[Batman]]] show. The problem is that super-heroes need conflict in which to use their powers and abilities. With every passing year, parents fretted over the amount of violence their children were expose to, coupled with concerns over the kids imitating the exploits in real life and causing themselves harm.

Any super-hero in the 1970s and early 1980s found that they could no longer duke it out with villains and their powers were used instead to stop natural disasters or rescue the proverbial kitten stuck in a tree. Some shows rose above the restrictions and proved entertaining but largely they were weak and short-lived.

That all changed thanks to Tim Burton. His 1989 Batman feature film reminded audiences what was good about comic books and their heroes. It forced everyone to re-examine comic book adaptations and prompted Warner Bros. to try a new Batman animated series. In the hands of producers Bruce Timm and Paul Dini, they rewrote the rule book and produced an amazing series.

That in turn gave us Superman so it was logical to follow with the Justice League. Along with James Tucker, Dan Riba, Dwayne McDuffie and others, the JLA never looked better. Now, all 91 episodes are collected for the first time in a two volume tin boxed set and it’s a joy to behold.

Warner Home Video essentially took the season sets and repackaged them for Justice League: The Complete Series
, so the discs are broken down by season and disc number while the accompanying booklets count the discs from 1-14, so you have to carefully count discs to find a favorite episode. One nice aspect is that all the original extras are therefore included so there’s a rich amount of material to sift through. Unique to this set, on sale Tuesday, is a 15th disc containing “Unlimited Reserve: Exploring the Depths of the DC Universe”, a 16 minute chat with the producers discussing the joys of adapting the comics for a new generation of fans.

The nicest thing about the show, as either [[[Justice League]]] or [[[Justice League Unlimited]]], is the fidelity it paid to the source material. Yes, they altered a great many things, but nothing felt gratuitously done. The heroes and villains looked and acted appropriately plus the comic book conventions of sub-plots and continuity carried over nicely. There was a strong emphasis on characterization, for all the players. As a result, many JLAers had nice arcs, notably [[[Wonder Woman]]] who went from rookie hero to a true Amazon Princess. Hawkgirl’s seeming betrayal and subsequent redemption played well, too.

There far more hits than misses and no doubt everyone has a favorite story or arc. The eight-episode arc of the League versus Cadmus holds up very well and shows many sides to the issue of, ahem, “[[[Who Watches the Watchmen?]]]”  During this, the Question quickly becomes a major player and wonderfully used. Similarly, the League’s rejection of the Huntress or Captain Marvel’s resignation show that not everyone is cut out to be a hero or a team player. All the characters have distinct personalities, which was most welcome.

The show is crammed full of super-heroes drawn from throughout the entire DC Universe from Spy Smasher to Aztek. Just about everyone is superbly voiced from the familiar Kevin Conroy as Batman to Jeffrey Coombs as The Question. Guest voices are also welcome, with some sly winks from the producers such as Jodi Benson’s Aquagirl or The Wonder Years’ Fred Savage and Jason Hervey as Hawk and Dove.

This is most definitely worth owning or finding under your Christmas tree this season.

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