Tagged: Thor

Marvel Earnings Report Reveals Upcoming Project Details

Marvel Earnings Report Reveals Upcoming Project Details

  • News
  • February 19, 2008

Marvel has released its quarterly company earnings report and according to Comics2Film, many interesting things were revealed in the report, besides how much money Marvel made or didn’t make. According to the site, the report also gives clues about Marvel’s slate of live-action films as well as several new animated titles including a World War Hulk direct-to-video feature and Super Hero Squad TV series.

The Planet Hulk film, planned for a February 2010 release, is being produced by Marvel’s animation partner Lionsgate and joins a roster of upcoming films which already includes Hulk Vs., Next Avengers and Thor: Son of Asgard. However, according to the report, Marvel isn’t just working on direct-to-video animated films, they are also planing several animated TV projects as well.
 
The company is developing a large roster of animated TV series such as Fantastic Four: World’s Greatest Heroes, Spectacular Spider-Man, Wolverine and the X-Men, Iron Man: The Animated Series, Hulk: The Animated Series. They are also working on a show called Super Hero Squad, which is a version of the well-known heroes geared towards a much younger audience. 
 
Finally, the report may also reveal that Matthew Vaughn, who was attached as writer and director of the live-action Thor feature, may have left the project because now its listed as "writer engaged" instead of "writer and director engaged." So, some interesting bits of into there. Who knew you could get so much great stuff from an earnings report? I’ll have to pay attention to those more often I guess.
 
Of course, if the Vaughn info turns out to be true, we’ll bring you all the details right here at ComicMix.

 

Danny Fingeroth on ‘Disguised As Clark Kent’

Danny Fingeroth on ‘Disguised As Clark Kent’

  • News
  • February 11, 2008

Former Spider-Man Group Editor Danny Fingeroth has a new book out titled Disguised As Clark Kent: Jews, Comics, and the Creation of the Superhero, in which he examines the "cultural origins of the superhero" with special attention to the way Jewish creators and their experiences influenced the early years of the industry.

Over at CBR, Fingeroth explains how the book came about and provides a few examples of the Jewish influence in comics that forms the basis for the book:

“My favorite involves Marvel’s Mighty Thor, who I’d never seen in a Jewish light before. And why would I, or anyone? He’s a Norse deity! But in his early stories, covering the first several years of the character’s existence, a recurring subplot–that eventually became a main plot–was Thor’s love for his alter ego Dr. Blake’s nurse, Jane Foster. Odin, ruler of the Norse Gods, and Thor’s father, forbade him to marry her because she was a mortal and he was an immortal god.”

Fingeroth noted there are often prohibitions in Jewish and other ethnic communities against marrying outside the group, and that the modern tension of breaking away from this system can be seen in the story of Marvel’s thunder god.  “Stan Lee and Jack Kirby could arguably be interpreted as having been using Thor and Jane to work out their own feelings about the taboos around intermarriage they had grown up with,” Fingeroth said. “I’m not saying they did this consciously–just the opposite. But in retrospect, I found it fascinating and worthwhile to discuss that kind of topic in ‘Disguised as Clark Kent.’”

 

Matt Fraction on ‘Thor: Ages of Thunder’ and ‘The Order’

Matt Fraction on ‘Thor: Ages of Thunder’ and ‘The Order’

Newsarama has posted an interview with Matt Fraction about Thor: Ages of Thunder, his upcoming peek at the war-torn history of Marvel’s Norse Gods.

Newsarama: Matt, what’s Ages of Thunder about, and how does it tie into the Thor mythos?

Matt Fraction: It’s a Thor graphic novel, told in parts, that plugs the pure Stan-and-Jack interpretation of Thor and the Asgardians into the Norse myth cycle. It sort of exists outside of any current incarnation of Thor – one of my favorite things about the Norse myths is that it’s cyclical; that Ragnarok has survivors and the stories begin again.

So we’re using that as a motivation to look at Thor and his pantheon throughout various different eras of Ragnanroks, with various different visual interpretations. Each time they’re living through these insane and colossal stories that build on top of one another, each chapter presenting us with another way of seeing Asgard as it rages towards its inevitable destruction and rebirth.

Ultimately, these stories present to us with the reasons why Odin saw fit to curse Thor with the humanity of Donald Blake, and who he becomes because of it. That’s the uniting thread that, no matter what apocalypse he’s skyrocketing towards, Thor had this flaw, and this ultimate redemption because of it, told in giant, divine terms. It was danced around back in Thor#159, if you want to get all continuity-guy on it; Ages of Thunder is a kind of explicit play-by-play, where Thor’s lack of humility triggers all of these wonderful, horrible things.

Along with making a passing comparison of Thor to Wu Tang Clan, Fraction shows off a few pieces of art from the series and also weighs in on the "real" reasons his series The Order is coming to an end with issue #10.

Thor: Ages of Thunder hits shelves April 30, 2008.

 

Marvel Comics Greatest Moments in Sports

Marvel Comics Greatest Moments in Sports

  • News
  • February 4, 2008

Never one to miss a promotional tie-in, Marvel.com has posted a rundown of the publisher’s greatest moments in sports.

The "Marvelous Moments in Sports" roundup was clearly written before the big game, because it lacks the sorrowful tone one might expect from a post-game writeup by New England Patriots fan Ben Morse. In fact, it’s a pretty funny trip down memory lane, with bits like this one about a bicoastal game of softball played in the pages of Avengers:

EARTH’S MIGHTIEST SOFTBALL GAME (WEST COAST AVENGERS ANNUAL #2, AVENGERS ANNUAL #16—1987)

Picture the softball game at your annual company picnic between marketing and accounting, but then sub in Thor at cleanup, Captain America at pitcher and Hawkeye on the base paths—that’s what the Avengers and their West Coast branch were going for in the late ’80s during their one and only showdown on the diamond. It’s pretty easy to understand why they never gave it another shot when you consider that the cosmically empowered Grandmaster interrupted the game, killed half of each team and then forced the remainder to compete in battle for his amusement. The GM eventually resurrected the fallen Avengers, and Cap learned a valuable lesson as they resumed the game: Hawkeye cheats.

 

Casting Call posted for Thor film

Casting Call posted for Thor film

  • News
  • January 30, 2008

Hey there, actors – this one’s for you:

Partially disabled medical student Dr. Donald Blake discovers his heretofore unknown alter ego, the Norse warrior, Thor.

That’s the film description posted in a casting call on www.auditions-auditions.com. The film is looking for non-union actors, ages 18-60, any gender, for filming in New York City.

Want to join the Norse God’s posse? Make sure to submit your headshot by Feb. 3!

 

Marvel Studios Settles with WGA

Marvel Studios Settles with WGA

  • News
  • January 25, 2008

United Hollywood, the news blog founded by a group of Writers Guild of America strike captains, is reporting that the WGA has signed an interim agreement with Marvel Studios " that will put writers immediately back to work on the Marvel Studios development slate."

Marvel Studios chairman David Maisel said that they "look forward to resuming work with writers on our future projects including Captain America, Thor, Ant-Man, and The Avengers."

Ant-Man?  Seriously?

The WGA also signed an interim agreement with independent film studio Lionsgate, whose upcoming work includes Rambo,  Tyler Perry’s Meet the Browns, Forbidden Kingdom, Punisher 2, and The Spirit.

Oh God, if there is a god… by John Ostrander

Oh God, if there is a god… by John Ostrander

  • News
  • January 10, 2008
Every once in a while, when I disclose or discuss my agnosticism, I get pointed little messages and jokes along the lines of “Agnostics are atheists who like bingo.” I hear that more often from atheists than theists, interestingly enough. Some folks consider agnostics to be the bisexuals of religion – like we’re trying to have the best of both worlds. “They should stop straddling the Theological fence,” seems to be the attitude. Shit or get off the metaphysical pot. Pick a side, damn it! This is America and we pick sides.
 
The suggestion seems to be that I haven’t thought this through because, if I had, I’d be one thing or the other. Charlie Brown probably grew up to be an agnostic. Good ol’ wishy washy Charlie Brown. Or maybe it’s Hamlet – forever philosophizing and never really doing until it’s way too late. The thing is, I have thought about. I continue to think about it, to question it all, including my questioning.
 
I don’t usually get into discussions about what I believe/disbelieve. These things almost never end well. However, I need a column for this week and this topic comes to mind so…off we go! We’ll start with the usual caveats that one must issue in this civil discourse-challenged era. When I state my position, I’m not attacking your beliefs or unbeliefs, whatever they may be. I’m not trying to insult you, Jesus, Yahweh, Allah, Buddha, Odin, Jupiter or whatever church you may belong to or shun. I’m not trying to convince, convert, or proselytize. I’m just stating my position.
 

(more…)

Let’s Go Burn Some Books, by Mike Gold

Let’s Go Burn Some Books, by Mike Gold

  • News
  • December 10, 2007

I haven’t seen the movie The Golden Compass, but I will, and soon. I don’t care if it’s a complete piece of crap – I want to see it because the Religious Right told me not to.

They say that sort of thing a lot. Here’s what pissed me off. They said the author of the books upon which the movie is based, Philip Pullman, is an atheist. They’re afraid that if your children like the movie, they might actually pick up the book and read it. Somehow, the book will destroy their belief in the unigod.

Now that seems a little paranoid to me, but even if it happens, well, damn, we sure don’t want kids to make up their own minds – overruling the evidently flimsy influences of their parents, their relatives, their pastors, and their friends just by reading a damned book, right?

This sort of thing frightens me. According to these folks, we live in a Christian nation, founded by good Christian god-fearing men who were really, really stupid when they built religious freedom into our Constitution.

I’ll tell you what scares me even more. Last week, Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney said, and I quote, “Freedom requires religion just as religion requires freedom.”  Say what? Historically, organized religion and its militant outreach has been an astonishingly awesome suppressor of freedom. That’s history, folks, and we’ve had a hell of a lot of wars, crusades, pogroms, inquisitions, cross-burnings, and Jihads to prove it.

“In recent years, the notion of the separation of church and state has been taken by some well beyond its original meaning,” Romney went on to say. “They seek to remove from the public domain any acknowledgment of God. Religion is seen as merely a private affair with no place in public life. It is as if they are intent on establishing a new religion in America – the religion of secularism. They are wrong.”

(more…)

Starman Over Ohio

Direct from the floor of the Mid-Ohio Con in Columbus, we introduce you to a creator who has taken the joy and pain of working in a collectible toy store and made it into a fascinating web comic. Meet David Willis and his creation, Shortpacked!  Plus:

• DC steps up and collects Starman in a great omnibus project

• Thor sells out again — deja vu?

• Terry Moore is back in the world of self publishing — an Echo of future past, as it were.

And you should meet Captain Ohio, so Press The Button!

 

 

Women of Color in Comics and Manga

Women of Color in Comics and Manga

  • News
  • November 9, 2007

Looks like Valerie D’Orazio is starting her new term as President of Friends of Lulu with a bang. Along with the Ormes Society (and the equally wonderful Cheryl Lynn Eaton), the group is sponsorting a panel, "Women of Color in Comics and Manga." On the panel: Alitha Martinez (Iron Man, Thor, Yume and Ever), Jenny Gonzalez (Too Negative), and Rashinda Lewis (Sand Storm), with Moderator Cheryl. It all starts at 7 PM on Monday, November 12, at the Museum of Comic and Cartoon Art (MoCCA) (594 Broadway, Suite 401, SoHo, baby!).

Categories

Archives

Everything you need to make great comics!

comicmix-pro-300x69-2

Nucleus X

Bookshop Zaks