Chain of Thoughts: Most Interesting Details (So Far) About the 'All-New, All-Different' Marvel Universe

Based on the information from the previews that Marvel has officially released, as well as from the recent leaks of the titles shipping in October, we now have a general idea on what the new, post-Secret Wars Marvel Universe will look like.  And I’m really looking forward to it.  Personally, I’m enjoying this Secret Wars mega-event so far, but I really can’t wait for the new status quo to arrive.  Here are what intrigues and/or excites me the most about the “All-New, All-Different” Marvel Universe:

    

 

→ Deadpool finally gets an Avengers gig!

→ There are three Avengers teams.  Now, this isn’t the first time that there are multiple, independent Avengers teams, but I’m nonetheless intrigued by the new Avengers dynamic.

→ A rift seems to have happened between Steve Rogers and Sam Wilson, and I guess their respective teams – Uncanny and All-New, All-Different respectively – will have some sort of rivalry.  And, yet, I think these two teams will nonetheless be allied and/or centralized somewhat since the Avengers lineup featured in Rage of Ultron graphic novel – which was obviously set in the new Marvel Universe – were made up of members of both Avengers teams.

→ Meanwhile, over at the New Avengers lineup, I’m happy that some prominent Young Avengers are finally graduating into Avengers, and that A.I.M. (which Sunspot bought pre-Secret Wars) will seemingly play “support” for this team.

→ Aside from Avengers, an “Ultimates” – which was originally the name of the Ultimate Universe’s version of the Avengers – team is also interestingly existing in the new Marvel Universe.

→ And -- Whoa! Galactus is in this new Ultimates’ line-up????!!!

→ The Justice League is coming to the Marvel Universe… sort of.  This amalgam of the Justice League has been around for quite some time already and has undergone different incarnations (and this new Squadron Supreme team is going to be composed of members from these different incarnations), but, I think, this is the first time that a Squadron Supreme team is having this kind of prominence.  And I approve.
→ All that said, I prefer for Hyperion to stay with the Avengers. 

→ Having an “Ultimates” team and a “Justice League” (a.k.a. Squadron Supreme) team co-existing with the Avengers in the same universe is a funny but fascinating editorial decision.

→ Spider-Woman is pregnant.  Of course, the first question that pops to mind is “Who’s the father?”

→ There’s still no concrete confirmation that Tony Stark is still the person behind the Iron Man armor, but my curiosity about it is minimal compared to my curiosity on the identity of the new Hulk.  I just feel that the reveal about the latter is going to be bigger, more mindblowing than the former (it could still be Tony Stark after all).  And the way Marvel is handling it, it seems that it’s going to be a secret until, at least, a day before the book is released.

→ And why is the left arm hidden along with the face?  Is that a clue to his identity?  Is he someone with an amputated left arm? Bucky Barnes?  Thor Odinson?  Daken? 

→ We know that the Thing will become a member of the Guardians of the Galaxy, and the Human Torch is going to hang around with the Inhumans.  But the Richards family – Mr. Fantastic, Invisible Woman, Valeria, and Franklin – as well as the Future Foundation members seem to be MIA.

→ Other notable MIA characters are the Punisher, Loki, Red Hulk, Moon Knight, Ghost Rider, Luke Cage, Nick Fury, and Black Widow.

→ Gambit is Daredevil’s new sidekick?!  It’s not confirmed yet, but the guy with Daredevil in the preview really looks like Gambit.  If true, Gambit as Daredevil’s apprentice is plain crazy!

→ There will be multiple versions of a character existing simultaneously in the All-New, All-Different Marvel Universe.  The time-displaced original, teenage X-Men are still around, so there should be teenage and adult versions of Cyclops (the elder is confirmed to be MIA eight months post-Secret Wars), Angel, Beast, and Ice Man (adult Jean Grey is, apparently, still dead).  A new female Star-Lord – which some mentioned is going to be Kitty Pryde – is part of the new Rocket Racoon-led Guardians of the Galaxy, but Peter Quill is still around and in a solo series.  There have always been two Hawkeyes and Human Torches.  There will be more than one Wolverine and Spider-Man.  And I believe there are going to be other cases.  It’s no big deal for regular fans, but new and casual readers might find this confusing.

→ Old Man Logan – who will be getting a solo series and be part of an X-Men team – is joining the Marvel Universe, and along with X-23, they will now serve as the Wolverines of the Marvel Universe (after the original was killed off last year).  I’m not yet sure if this concept will work, but I really find it cool and unique.

→ Miles Morales is joining the Marvel Universe.  Hence, there will be now two different Spider-Men runningswinging around.  Three, if Miguel O’Hara remains stranded in the present timeline.

→ The existence of Web Warriors – a new series featuring the Secret Wars’ Spider-Verse line-up – is strong proof that a Marvel multiverse will still exist post-Secret Wars.

→ Also, will we ever know what Peter discovered when he Googled Miles at the end of Spider-Men?

→ “Big Time” was the title given to The Amazing Spider-Man’s run of storylines from 2010-2011 due to the fact that Peter Parker – whose financial woes had been part of the character’s status quo from the start until that point – finally got a high-paying job as a scientist/researcher/inventor for Horizon Labs.  But this post-Secret Wars status quo of Peter Parker is definitely the real moment wherein the character hit “big time.”  He’s now going to be a rich, successful businessman/inventor, and Parker Industries – which came to being while Otto Octavius occupied his body – will become a flourishing multinational company.  Basically, Peter Parker is going to be the new Tony Stark – but more wholesome and light-hearted and awesome.

→ I’m happy about Peter Parker’s good fortune.  Those like me that grew up on Spider-Man – following Peter Parker’s struggling with a continuous barrage of problems – have learned to deeply sympathize with the character.  Yes, this aspect really made the character more relatable and appealing, but we nevertheless wished that he would eventually catch a break as well.  That’s why we rejoiced when he was employed at Horizon Labs, and are now rejoicing about Peter Parker’s post-Secret Wars status quo.  This is something earned after years of struggling with life problems.

→ Besides, though he’s now rich, I’m pretty sure the notorious (but charming) “Parker luck” will continue to come at play to make life difficult for him.

→ Moreover, we have Miles Morales around now to play the part of the classic “dealing with life problems” Spider-Man.
→ In addition, the classic, ludicrous Spider-Mobile is coming back.  Now, I find this silly, but I’m nonetheless very intrigued.  To see this in action is reason enough why I can’t wait for the debut of the All-New, All-Different Marvel Universe.    

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Chain of Thoughts: February's 'Spider-Man' Happenings

Last February was a big Spider-Man month.  First, the epic “Spider-Verse” concluded. Second – and most importantly – Marvel and Sony reached a deal to bring Spider-Man to the Marvel Cinematic Universe!   Here are my musings…

Part 1: Spider-Verse

→ “Spider-Verse” wasn’t perfect.  But it had a lot of good things going for it.  I greatly enjoyed the premise and the story, and I’m mostly satisfied with how everything unfolded.  Seeing all of those Spider-Men (and –Women) banding together was awesome.   However, I don’t believe that it made true to its promise to feature “every Spider-Man” ever.  But I have to give props to Dan Slott and his people, for it was obvious that they truly tried.  There were plenty of delightful surprise participants. 

Example: Supaidāman and Leopardon!

→ I also appreciated a lot the inclusion of the cartoon-y, lighter versions of Spider-Man – like Spider-Ham, the Spider-Man from the Hostess snack ads back in the 70’s and 80’s, the Spider-Man from Spider-Man and His Amazing Friends (there were many deaths among the ranks of alternate Spider-Men but this one was what disturbed me most), the Spider-Man from the campy 60’s animated series version, the lil' Spider-Man from Bullpen Bits/Mini Marvel (just a cameo though), the Spider-Man from the popular Capcom crossover arcade games, the newspaper strip Spider-Man, and the Spider-Man from the Ultimate Spider-Man TV series.

→ Too bad that Marvel’s Sony deal couldn’t have happened earlier (or the Spider-Verse story couldn’t have happened later) for it prevented the use of the Spider-Man from the awesome Spectacular Spider-Man TV series(which, if I understand it right, is co-owned by Sony).  The writers, however, used a clever approach in referencing the cinematic versions of Tobey Maguire and Andrew Garfield.

Along with a mention of the Spider-Man: Turn of the Dark version

→ It seemed that the Spider-Man from the awesome 90’s animated series was not included (if he was, I haven’t caught sight of him).  Even if I’ve always had the skepticism in me of the truthfulness of the claim that all Spider-Men will make an appearance, I was still surprised that that version was not given a part in the story.       

→ I acknowledge that the featured “Spider” characters have been extensive already.  But I was really expecting a Spider-Army of Captain Britain Corps proportions, especially in the climactic battle.  But the mass of the Spider-Army – which I presume were the recruits of Miles Morales’ team (his was the only logical contingent that could have brought all those Spidey cameos in the final battle) – were mere “glimpses” during the chaos.  The ambiguity of the attendance and quantity of the different Spider-Men in the final battle was likely to be Slott’s way of implying that “every Spider-Men ever” were participating in the climactic battle.  It’s kind of disappointing, really.

The best look of the assembled Spider-Army during the final battle was from Spider-Verse #2.       

→ My biggest nitpick with “Spider-Verse”, however, is that my most favorite alternate version of Spider-Man – Spider-Man Noir – was sidelined early in the game.  Bummer. 

→ At the end of “Spider-Verse”, what does Otto’s instruction to his Anna Marie AI mean?  Did Otto Octavius prepare a contingency plan to reclaim Peter Parker’s body?  Will it activate after a hundred days?  Is SpOck or Dr. Octopus set to return?  Will I be compelled to write a series of love-hate blog posts once again?  

Uh-oh.

→ I was hoping that something awesomely creative was intended for Silk.  But being “The Bride” is not enough at all.  I still have the same issues on her as before.  If she would have been a Spider-Woman replacement for Jessica Drew, then that would have been a lot, lot better for the character.  At this point, for me, she just seems to be a gratuitous additional Spider character that made the crowd of present Spider-characters feel more crowded and contributes in the diminishment of the uniqueness of Spider-Man.  Silk, however, is popular enough to receive her own ongoing series.  Hopefully, my opinion for the character might improve during this series’ development.

It was really funny that these two still commit PDI even in the midst of their Spider brethren.

→ The Spider-Woman Gwen Stacy introduced in “Spider-Verse” was also popular enough to receive her own series.  She’s indeed an intriguing character that deserves more exposure so that her character and universe can develop further.   The only bad thing about it?  Spider-Gwen is a stupid, unimaginative title for the series.

→ Spider-Woman rocked in “Spider-Verse”, and she has her costume updated afterwards.  I’m kind of split regarding the change.  I already got used to the original look, but she definitely was in need of a costume upgrade.  Best thing about it was the banter between her and Carol Danvers as they make fun of each other’s past costume choices.

Hahahaha.            

→ In the aftermath of “Spider-Verse”, some of the Spider-Men, led by Spider-UK, decided to continue teaming up, and their adventures are going to be the basis of the Secret Wars’ spin-off series, Spider-Verse, coming later this year.  That’s cool.  I definitely want more team-ups of different Spider-Men from different universes.

Part 2: Spider-Man Joins the MCU
    

→ I got wind of the announcement that Marvel and Sony has agreed to let Spider-Man join the Marvel Cinematic Universe while browsing my Facebook newsfeed on an afternoon, after a tiring work-day.  After reading the headline, I went…

It was a surreal moment for me.  I’ve always wanted for Spidey to be in an Avengers film.  (But, to be honest, I will give this up in a heartbeat for a Spider-Verse movie instead.)

This scene is from the Avengers 2 trailer, and someone edited Spider-Man in.  Cool.

→ I’m very excited for some news on how Spider-Man will be introduced to the MCU.  But I hope that Spidey’s inclusion to Marvel’s Phase 3 plans won’t sacrifice the development schedule and quality of the originally planned Marvel movies. 

→ When announcement that it’s almost definite that the next film version of Spider-Man won’t be white, my elation transformed to horrified distress.  And it’s not a racist thing.  It’s simply an ignorant, bigoted thing for someone to accuse another of racism simply because he prefers Spider-Man to be white.  (Heck, I myself am not even white.)  It’s just that Spider-Man is my most favorite character that has originated from comics, and I just want Spider-Man to be as accurate and genuine as possible when translated into the big screen.  It is imperative that that Spider-Man should be Peter Parker because the qualities that made me love the character is essentially founded in him.   

→ The counter-argument is to point out that Peter Parker already had two different cinematic depictions before.  Well, that may be true.  But this is a different thing.  This is the first time Spider-Man will be teaming up with other Marvel heroes in the big screen, and I badly want it to be Peter Parker having this cinematic honor.  Miles Morales has to wait.

→ Of course, none of those qualities that made Peter Parker integral as Spider-Man is because he is white.  So am I good then with a non-white Peter Parker?  Still, a no.   Peter Parker/Spider-Man is such an important, iconic character that accuracy on the race is still a significant part of his individuality as much as what his sex is.  Making Peter Parker black or Hispanic makes me as uncomfortable and upset as making him a girl instead (like “Petra Parker.” Ugh).  In the same way, I will be extremely upset if Sherlock Holmes is depicted as an American woman instead of a British male (heck, I hate “Joan Watson” of Elementary, even though I find the show entertaining).  Sex and race might not be the most important substances of what makes a character special, but they are still a big part of how the character is consciously defined.  Changing the race or sex when depicting a character – especially if it’s an iconic one like Spider-Man – in another medium could take a lot out of the character.

→ So, please, please, Marvel.  Let Peter Parker be the Spider-Man of the MCU.  And white.         

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Chain of Thoughts: I'm a Bit Upset That 'Secret Wars' is Looking to Be Another 'New 52'

To be fair with Marvel, details are still not definite at this point, and it might not turn out to be too “New 52.”  Still, I’m a bit upset, for a couple of reasons:

• There were some cool things about it, but in general, I really hated DC’s “New 52” reboot.  So with what seems to me Marvel’s attempt to “New 52” its own multiverse, it gives me unfavorable vibes. 
• In connection to the previous bullet, I hate the commercial aspect of it.  Is Marvel trying to replicate DC’s commercial success (though brief)?  In fact, it was also announced – in an apparent cash-grab tactic – that Marvel is partnering with Hasbro, Funko, Upperdeck, and others for merchandising tie-ins.  I have no problem with Marvel thinking of ways of making more money, but, to me, it feels like all of this is being done principally out of making money from the hype, with the creative and sensibility aspects not being thoroughly considered.  It’s infinitely worse than NOW!-ing everything.
• Speaking of NOW!, I find it a lack of forethought in conducting significant and innovative status quo changes with Avengers NOW! when everything is going to be reset and changed again anyway by a subsequent reality-altering mega event.               
• One of Marvel’s edges through the years over DC is being able to figure out a way to keep its main universe’s continuity existent and compressed.  Hence, in Marvel’s main universe (Earth-616), no matter what is the “today”, all the things that happened from issue number one to the present issue – regardless of how many years it took in real time – have occurred within a ten to fifteen year period.  Though not perfect, it satisfies every Marvel fan, and – compared to DC’s confusing pre-“New 52” continuity (try researching for Hawkman’s history) – it makes the history of the Marvel Universe comfortably neat.
• The Ultimate Universe used to be awesome.  Then Ultimatum happened.  From then on – with some rare worthwhile instances (like what was done in Ultimate Comics: The Ultimates; I really liked this series) – the Ultimate Universe became garbage.  Cancellation of the Ultimate Universe is long overdue; the opportunity to send off Earth-1610 with a bang has passed already.  Doing it now in “Secret Wars”, with an attempt to salvage some of its facets, makes it pretty anticlimactic and seemingly desperate.   
• From Marvel EIC Axel Alonso: “The Ultimate Universe, the Marvel Universe, they're going to slap together. Imagine two pizzas: They're going to combine toppings, some toppings are going to drop off. And that is the Marvel Universe moving forward. It's more than the Marvel Universe and the Ultimate Universe, it's all the universes you can imagine. That is the Marvel Universe going forward.”  Interesting analogy.  But it’s very likely that I will find some “toppings” dropped off from Earth-616 worth lamenting and griping about.  And, seriously, post-Ultimatum and post-Cataclysm, with the exception of Miles Morales, there are no “toppings” worth saving from Earth-1610.  However, I admit that I find it intriguing what “toppings” from the multiverse will become part of this new Marvel Universe.  By the way, will the “Earth-616” numbering of this new Marvel Universe be retained?    
• Spider-Verse is pretty awesome.  And it’s looking like Secret Wars– with different versions of Marvel characters from different universes instead of just Spider-Men – is merely a bigger version of it.  It’s not really a major nitpick.  But looking at it this way, some of the novelty of the premise of Secret Warsis lessened.
• The train of teasers back in 2014 on Secret Wars, which mostly alluded to notable Marvel events, are revealed to be new comic book series titles that will spin-off from Secret Wars.   More titles and details are to be announced in the next two weeks.  So far, the upcoming series (based on the teasers) then are going to be Civil War, Age of Ultron vs. Marvel Zombies, Years of Future Past, Planet Hulk, Armor Wars, House of M, The Infinity Gauntlet, Old Man Logan, Inhumans Attilan Rising, The End (which appear to be all about the Ultimate Universe’s end), Age of Apocalypse, Future Imperfect, The Amazing Spider-Man Renew Your Vows(which I hope would truly bring Pete and MJ back together), Avengers vs. X-Men, and X-Men ’92 (based on the beloved animated series classic).
• I’ll probably follow-up on this after two weeks.

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Chain of Thoughts: 2014 Highlights

Time for another late annual recap.  I will just copy last year’sformat.

How I will remember 2014 for:

→ The expression “Boom panes!”

→ I could hear John Legend’s “All of Me” everywhere. 

→ ALS Bucket Challenge.  I didn’t find it fun at all.  Still, I hope it did indeed raise money for that cause though.

→ Loombands.  Now, that was a fad that died pretty quick.

This was a unique and ironic game because whoever plays this game will surely be frustrated by it but won't be able to stop playing.

→ Speaking of fads, there was the widespread addiction on Flappy Birds.  Personally, I didn’t get to play this app game, thankfully.  I did play Zombie Tsunami for a while though.   

→ Oh, and speaking of app games, if I had avoided Candy Crush in 2013 because of its addictiveness, it was in the summer of 2014 that I got to be briefly hooked on it. 

→ Tech support ended for Windows XP.  My five-year old netbook is still on XP. 

→ Speaking of my netbook, in early December, its monitor gave out; the damage was unfixable.  To still use it, I had to remove its monitor and attach a desktop monitor on it.  Fun set up actually.  Anyway, I now seldom use it now since my father gave me his laptop (Thank you so much, Papa!).                

→ The number of TV series titles I’m following significantly bloated in 2014.      

→ I re-discovered the awesomeness of file sharing.  I probably obtained nearly a terabyte worth of games, comics, movies, and TV shows from it.  (One of the probable reasons why I got into – as well as rewatched – a lot of TV series in 2014.)

→ At year end, I had 15 books in “The Pile” – books I bought which I haven’t finished or started reading yet. 

→ I had two trips this year.  In March, we had a mission trip to a leper community in Quezon.   Then in May, we participated in a Youth Camp in Cavite. 

→ I became back-to-back Bible Quiz champion in our church.  It was an awesome feel-good experience.  Best of all, the first prize was a tablet. 

→ I’m not much of an enthusiastic techie, and with a netbook and a smartphone, I found no use with the tab at all for a couple of months.  But then, I realized I could now play Plants vs. Zombies 2 because I now have a tab.  I remembered that I’ve always wanted to play this game ever since its release but wasn’t able to because I had no smartphone or tab.  Later in the year, I would also discover the special delight found in the practicality of an e-book.  So, thanks to the tab, 2014 was the year I finally got into e-book reading.

→ I passed the LET.  Yay. 

→ I had the silver anniversary of my journey towards Eternity (or I had my 25^th birthday, if you didn’t get that).

→ I actually only learned for the first time that the 1989 Batman movie was released in June 23 – the same date I was born!  (Aside from the movie’s silver anniversary, in 2014, it was also the 75^th anniversary of Batman’s first comic book appearance.)

No big deal, really.  Still, it felt kind of awesome sharing the same birthday with the Batman movie.

→ There were a lot of terrific comic book happenings, but probably the most exciting were the return of Peter Parker and the epic “Spider-Verse” event (which I urge Sony to adapt this into film).

→ In manga, Naruto and Kuroko No Basuke ended.  Both aren’t particularly exciting finales.  I’ve already grown tired of Naruto, but out of nerdy obligations, I still saw it through till the end.  And the finale of Kuroko No Basuke had been disappointingly bland and underwhelming.  Hunter X Hunter, after years of hiatus, finally picked the story again, but after a few chapters, went on another indefinite hiatus.  Boo. 

→ After years of providing our province’s electric needs, ALECO (Albay Electric Cooperative) had been taken over by San Miguel Corporation.  It was renamed APEC (Albay Power Energy Corporation), and, I think, for the first time in history, a private company now controls the power in the province of Albay.  During its first year of operation, APEC had earned the ire of the Albayanos.  Throughout most of the year, parts of the province had been plagued by infuriating sets of brownouts due to APEC’s incompetent management; rumored sabotaging by unhappy laid-off employees of ALECO (that has been fired due to their connections with its corrupt administration); presumed maintenance of its electric distributing system (and, maybe, even some overhauls); and, simply, the lack of power supply (the country will be facing a power crisis this 2015).  There was even a lengthy time during May – which had an awfully hot weather – when we didn’t have electricity for several days because APEC wasn’t able to promptly replace the broken components of a substation.  APEC was incapable of solving the crisis at hand by themselves, and it had to take the active help of our provincial governor for it to be addressed.  And despite of all their faults, they had the gall to overcharge their clients.  All of these exasperating things about APEC prompted me to coin the hashtag #APECfail (a pun for “epic fail”, get it?).          

→ Typhoon Glenda hit my hometown in July.  It was a legit destructive typhoon.  There were a lot of damages.  It even brought down my alma mater’s “Centennial Tree” – an iconic acacia tree that had been more than a hundred years old – which was able to withstand even the infamous “Reming” back in ’06, hence, I was a bit shocked when I learned that it was finally felled by a lesser storm.  Post-Glenda, I was actually expecting that we wouldn’t have electricity for about a month minimum.  But I was delightfully surprised (considering APEC’s problems) that it only took five days.  It was God’s grace, since, in many parts of the city and province, it took several weeks – and even months – before they got their power back.   

→ We were, however, spared from Typhoon Ruby in early December, ensuring an enjoyable Christmas since there would be electricity then.

→ There were some noteworthy airplane crashes.  But the most intriguing was definitely the disappearance of Malaysia Airlines Flight 370 (MH370) back in March 2014.  In the middle of its scheduled flight from Malaysia to China, less than an hour after its takeoff, the plane disappeared from air traffic controllers’ radar screens.  Up until now, nobody knows what happened – whether it was hijacked, or crashed, or whatever.  It just… vanished.  And despite a multinational investigation and the largest and most expensive search-and-recovery venture in aviation history, there is still no answer – its disappearance still wrapped in Amelia Earheart-scale mystery.  Hence, it was inevitable for this to become another subject that conspiracy theorists can eagerly offer insights on.

→ Aside from the missing MH370, the most notable tragedies this year were the sinking of a South Korean ferry which took 304 lives – mostly students; the Ebola epidemic in West Africa; ISIS terrorizing in Syria and Iraq (in a related matter, I learned that the UN actually put hacks like Lt. Gen. Iqbal Singh Singha in charge of their peacekeeping forces… just sayin’); and Kim Kardashian’s terrifying butt-naked pictorial.

→ Robin Williams passed away.  Well, there were a couple of prominent celebrities that died in 2014.  But Williams’ was probably the only thing that mattered to me.

Goodbye, Genie.  Be free.  (sniff)

→ “The Sony Hacks.”  Sony experienced several attacks by hackers named “Guardians of Peace” (GOP).  GOP released in the Internet several secret and critical information regarding Sony’s upcoming projects as well as copies of some unreleased movies.  Then, later, it was revealed that the likely suspect behind the attacks was North Korea because of their displeasure with “The Interview” – Sony’s comedy movie that ridiculed NoKor dictator, Kim Jong-un.  There were threats that a terrorist attack of “9/11” proportions would happen if Sony released the movie.  To my astonishment, despite Fed reports that such threats are unfounded, Sony actually folded and decided not to release the movie (eventually, Sony opted to release the movie but online).  This was really worth noting and being perplexed about since it’s the first time this happened.  Jimmy Kimmel reacted: "An un-American act of cowardice that validates terrorist actions and sets a terrifying precedent."  I totally agree. If it worked this time, it will definitely be tried again and again! What's stopping the bad guys from moving on and anonymously targeting another movie they don't like? 

→ In probably the most epic casting news ever, Marvel hired the awesome Benedict Cumberbatch to play Dr. Strange!  I’m just crazy for Cumberbatch right now.  The man is extremely talented and charming.  2014 was the year he jumped past Nathan Fillion as my most favorite actor.
→ Warner Bros./DC revealed how Gal Gadot’s Wonder Woman will look like.

She hasn't won me over yet.  But at least she bulked up.

→ In one of the most idiotic things in, well, ever, Hello Kitty is officially revealed to be actually NOT a cat but a little girl.  Wait, what?             

→ In relation to their involvement with Janet Lim Napoles and the “pork barrel scam”, senators Revilla, Jinggoy, and Enrile were sent to jail.  Prior to getting jailed, in an attempt to win public sympathy, Revilla did some of the most absurd, hilarious, and shameless gimmicks in the already ridiculous history of Philippine politics.     

→ Vice-President Jejomar Binay’s political enemies in the Senate unearthed some of his dark (no pun intended) secrets when he was still the mayor of Makati City.  The senators had actually provided some compelling accusations, and Binay, in return, didn’t provide a compelling defense at all.  He did challenge Sen. Trillanes to a televised debate, but backed down when the senator accepted (Binay was probably bluffing and didn’t expect Trillanes to bite).

One of the strongest arguments that support the senators’ accusations that surfaced in Facebook is this simple infographic that compares the cost of building the Makati City Hall 2 vs. the building of London’s City Hall. 

→ This year’s hottest government corruption scandal (this is like an annual thing already) is tied between Binay and the discovery that crime lords incarcerated in New Bilibid Prison are living luxuriously like, well, crime lords.  They have first-class accommodations, drugs, money, stripper bars, and Jacuzzis.  And one named Herbert Colanga was even able to nurture a musical career while in prison – and actually found success!    

→ Everyone’s favorite senator, Miriam Defensor Santiago, announced that she has cancer.  Despite of this, she still remained the most entertaining and most prolific senator in the Senate.   

→ Back in August, an MRT train got derailed and rammed into a concrete barrier in which around 36 passengers got injured.  This accident renewed attention on the horrible conditions of MRT.  And while I lamented on the fact that the Philippines still doesn’t have a modern rail system yet, MRT management and DOTC just pointed fingers at each other in whose fault it was.

→ The Philippines filed a case against China in the world court regarding the latter’s invasion of the former’s Scarborough Shoal – and beyond.  The Philippines has a strong case against China, but I’m a bit skeptical that anything will really come out of it.  If China is proven in the wrong (which is quite apparent), I doubt the United Nations will really actively enforce the ruling.  Remember Iraq?  Iraq, under Saddam Hussein, had continually violated UN treaties, but the UN never really made any move – only the US did.

China is still pretending that they lack common sense. 

→ What’s great: Pacquiao earned wins over Timothy Bradley (Mommy D was allegedly casting voodoo curses on Bradley throughout the fight) and Chris Algieri in 2014.  What’s not-so-great: he became a coach-player in the Philippine Basketball Association (PBA).

→ After a 27-game losing streak in a span of two years, the UP Fighting Maroons won a game during UAAP 77 (which the NU Bulldogs won in dramatic fashion).  The team was celebrated as if they had actually won the championship.  The university threw a bonfire party, there were TV guestings, and the UP Chancellor was even quoted of saying, “We have proven that we excel not just in academics” (lolwut?).  I really found it hilarious.  This win would serve as UP’s only win this season as they finished with a 1-13 record. 

→ Despite being eliminated in the first round and a 1-4 record, Team Gilas Pilipinas had an impressive performance in the FIBA World Cup.  There was a lot of hype and excitement.  Then, the team fell flat in the Asian Games.  To be fair, overall, the Philippines sucked in the 2014 Asian Games (1 gold, 3 silvers, and 11 bronzes. Ugh).

Kobe looks amazing in black.  He's the Black Mamba after all.

→ Kobe Bryant finally got to wear a black jersey in a game!  I’ve always wanted an official black Laker jersey (which only happened during 2013-2014 season) and I’ve always wanted to see Kobe play in such jersey (Kobe only played six games in the 2013-2014 season and never had a chance to wear it); it had been long overdue.  Ok, this seems pretty petty.  But, as a Laker fan, there’s not much to rejoice about in 2014  The Lakers completed their most horrible season in history (and are now undergoing what looks to be a worse one).  Spurs won the championship, now tying the Lakers with the most championships of this era.  In the offseason, Pau left the Lakers.   There was a slim chance that LeBron would choose to go to the Lakers, but he instead went back to the Cavs.  And the most exciting Laker thing I had in 2014 was probably Linsanity joining the Lakers.  That’s just sad.
→ WWE had its historic Wrestlemania 30.  And Undertaker lost his match with Brock Lesnar  – destroying his perfect Wrestlemania record.  In my opinion, Vince McMahon’s  decision to let Lesnar be the one to beat the Undertaker in Wrestlemania was a big mistake. 

→ Hoverboards have not been invented in 2014, so there will still be no prevalence of commercial hoverboards in 2015 as Back to the Future II had predicted (bummer).  However, there are some intriguing developments in cybernetics.  A guy named Les Baugh, who had lost his two arms, received two mind-controlled cybernetic arms!  They’re not yet permanent add-ons, but the researchers are optimistic that such technology would soon be.

2014 could have been the dawn of cyborgs!

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Chain of Thoughts on Avengers NOW!

Post-AXIS (Marvel’s upcoming mega-event featuring the X-Men and the Avengers), Marvel will be having another relaunching scheme called Avengers NOW!  Basically, it’s another Marvel NOW! – build new and initially intriguing status quos, rebrand many titles with a bunch of issue ones, and, voila!, watch the sales skyrocket – but only this time around, it is, obviously, more centered around the Avengers.  At this point, I’m still cool with another relaunching, but if there is going to be another NOW!-type attempt to boost comic book sales next year – like an X-Men NOW!– then I will be real annoyed.  Sure, it makes business sense, but in a creativity stand-point, it will feel gimmicky and gratuitous – bankrupt of any genuine imagination.             

Anyway, some few thoughts…

 

→ This promo art depicts the characters that will be significantly involved in Avengers NOW!.  I understand that these merely mean that new comic book titles will headline or will include these characters.  Nonetheless, utilizing these characters to promote something called Avengers NOW! gives the implication that ALL these characters in the promo art are going to be members or contributors to an Avengers team or, at least, an Avengers-linked comic book title.     I will be really disappointed if this won’t be so.  Because calling the whole thing Avengers NOW!, and then featuring these characters in its promo but actually not involving them at any form at all with the Avengers is somewhat exploitive and lacks sensibility . 

→ There are massive changes on all three major Avengers: Captain America, Iron Man, and Thor.  And I’m not too excited about these changes.

→ First, there will be a new Captain America.  It seems that 90-something-year-old Steve Rogers will lose the super-soldier serum in his body, retire from superheroing and adopt more of a “strategist” role (same as the time he was “the Captain” – commander of both the Avengers and S.H.I.E.L.D. – while Bucky a.k.a. Winter Soldier was bearing the “Captain America” mantle) in the Avengers, and hand the shield and the “Captain America” name to Sam Wilson a.k.a. the Falcon.

→ Among the changes on the top 3 Avengers, this is the one I don’t like at all, for a couple of reasons. 

→ No, I am not particularly against a black Captain America (that’s silly), but I’m against anybody else aside from Steve Rogers becoming Captain America.  Though I don’t feel strongly about it as much as I feel about somebody replacing Peter Parker as Spider-Man, I am still uncomfortable about someone else other than Steve Rogers as Captain America.  Captain America is one of those superheroes in which many of the reasons that make them lovable are rooted on their alter egos’ characteristics.  Steve Rogers is a magnificent tactician; a moral badass; a charming, gruff old-timer (since he’s from a different time); and an embodiment of many of USA’s perceived quintessential values.  His characterization and character history makes him the perfect “Captain America.” Sam Wilson is indeed a fine superhero, but no other Marvel character’s characterization and character history can match up to the kind of pedigree that Steve Roger has.  Besides, some other heroes – Hawkeye and Winter Soldier – had been “Captain America” before, but the name always comes back to Steve Rogers because no one else is really worthy in the end.  The name is his birthright.

→ I also don’t like the character design of this new Captain America.  Since Sam Wilson is no super-soldier like Steve Rogers, and his only form of “super”-power is probably the ability to communicate and control birds (lol), it makes sense that he would opt to keep his Falcon wings (so he can still fly).  Still, wearing wings and carrying the Captain America shield at the same time awfully looks inelegant, clumsy, and inconvenient.  The best weapons that Sam Wilson can carry while having wings are guns, as awesomely depicted by Anthony Mackie’s Falcon in Captain America: The Winter Soldier. 

→ Also, a “Captain America” should always be the leader.  It feels a bit off for “Captain America” to be just a regular member of the Avengers (though it has been done), merely following orders instead of giving them.  Sam Wilson is a soldier and is smart, but he’s no Steve Rogers (again, Rogers is a magnificent tactician).  He wouldn’t be quite as good as Steve as a field leader for the Avengers.  We don’t know yet if Sam Wilson’s Captain America is going to be a regular member or the leader of the Avengers.   But either way, it’ll be underwhelming.

→ Something will happen that will make the Thor we know no longer worthy to possess Mjolnir.  (It all makes sense now why he is wielding Jarnbjorn instead of Mjolnir in some promo artworks for AXIS.)  There is going to be a new wielder worthy of Mjolnir, and this new wielder is going to be a she!  However, she will not only inherit Mjolnir, but the “Thor” name as well.  Wait, what?  

→ According to Marvel’s press release:

“This is not She-Thor. This is not Lady Thor. This is not Thorita. This is Thor. This is the Thor of the Marvel Universe. But it's unlike any Thor we've ever seen before.”

Hmmm.  I like the character design and the concept of a girl wielding Mjolnir, but I think it is dumb and senseless to suddenly set “Thor” up as a girl just like that.  Come on, Thor is the god – not goddess – of thunder.  It’s not like “Thor” is a mere superhero code name like “Captain Marvel” that can just be adopted by either sex with no problem at all (it actually worked perfectly for Carol Danvers).  “Thor” is the actual name of a male character.  From his mythological origins to the character popularized by Marvel, “Thor” is an established masculine name for an established male fictional character.  Just as it feels absurd to read something like

“This January: Peter Parker loses his powers, which are mysteriously transferred to Carlie Cooper!  With Peter Parker no longer needing and capable to own the ‘Spider-Man’ name, Carlie Cooper will assume the name to herself, to become the all-new ‘Spider-Man’ – not ‘Spider-Woman’ (that’s taken already), not ‘Spider-Girl’ (also taken), and not ‘Lady Spider’; she is Spider-Man from now on!  Don’t miss the relaunched Amazing Spider-Man #1!”

so is what I felt when I encountered this Thor-is-now-a-girl announcement.    

→ We still don’t know much about this new Thor.   But I think she will be introduced at the culmination of the ongoing Thor-Loki-Angela tale in the “Original Sin” event.

    

→ Since the whole SpOck thing is now over, the “Superior” adjective is very much available for the taking.  And the new owner of such obnoxious description is Iron Man, which I think is a character that is actually a better fit for it than Spider-Man.  Unlike the first two Avengers undergoing dramatic changes mentioned above, the man behind the superhero name will remain the same with “Iron Man.”  Still, despite of Tony Stark remaining as Iron Man, the new Superior Iron Manstatus quo change is as dramatic as if a new character is inside the armor. 

→ From Marvel’s EIC, Axel Alonso:

“What you're seeing in Superior Iron Man is a Tony Stark who’s seen both his worst and best impulses all let loose. It is Tony, but he’s going to be in a zone now where he’s never been. He's more ambitious, cunning, egotistical ... all of those quantities are unharnessed. He has a vision for the world. I like to think his position is defensible — controversial, but defensible.”

→ Ooooh… Among the three changes – Captain America, Thor, and Iron Man – this is the development I am fascinated the most.  I’m not saying I approve and am thrilled about it.  Not really.  But it’s legitimately interesting; the premise sounds intriguingly sensible and solid enough.   

→ Considering the fact that Tony Stark behaved very much like a supervillain during the “Civil War” event a couple of years ago, a darker, “mad-genius” rendition of the character, that would readily proceed to call himself “superior” regularly (just as what Doc Ock as Spidey had done), could probably work.  I’m expecting this new Tony Stark to be something like Adrian Veidt a.k.a. Ozymandias (from Watchmen) in terms of methods and rationalization, and be a bigger A-hole than Robert Downey, Jr.’s MCU portrayal. 

→ Also, since Tony Stark is the one bankrolling the Avengers, how will this development affect the team and his role in it?  Another interesting detail to ponder on.

→ Between these and the whole “Death of Wolverine” thing, some big and controversial shake-ups are happening to Marvel’s most major heroes that long-time fans (at least, Spidey is done with his turn with this stuff… hopefully) might find upsetting.   I’m not much bothered about these developments since nothing is permanent in comics.  After my whole experience with SpOck, I am more confident of this truth.   It’s even probable that everything will be back to normal – Steve Rogers is Captain America once more, Thor has his Mjolnir and “Thor” name back, and Tony Stark is a “good guy” again – sooner than later.  I’m gonna chill, and give these new stuff a look. 

→ Let me take this opportunity to detail some developments I actually want to see in the Avengers books, of which I wish Avenger NOW! is actually all about. 

1. Spider-Man in the Secret Avengers.  Considering Peter Parker’s parentage (Richard and Mary Parker were C.I.A. and then S.H.I.E.L.D. agents), there is an awesome plot to be made from there.  I would love to see some regular espionage-style superheroing from Spider-Man (in his black costume, of course) in a Secret Avengers roster. 
2. The memberships of the characters I’ve enumerated in my “Top 20 Characters I Want to Become Avengers” list. 
3. MORE DOOMBOT!  Seriously, Avengers A.I. was an awesome comic book, and Doombot was the most awesome thing about it.  Definitely would love to see him in a more prominent Avenger role. 
4. Moon Knight and Daredevil back as Avengers.
5. Moon Knight and Hyperion simultaneously in an Avengers team.  And with a lot of exposures for both.  Being analogues for Batman and Superman, respectively, I would find such happening extremely amusing. 
6. Hulk and Red Hulk simultaneously in one Avengers team.  Two Hulks might seem redundant.  But I just feel that it’s going to be awesome.
7. This crazy roster: Captain Marvel (leader), Hyperion, Moon Knight, Doombot, Gambit, Howard the Duck, Hercules (or Hulk and Red Hulk at the same time), Echo (resurrect her!), Falcon (patterned with Anthony Mackie’s Falcon), Scarlet Spider (or Spider-Man 2099), Hank Pym (with yet another new superhero name), Human Torch (as a member of the Avengers and the Fantastic Four at the same time), Starbrand, Emma Frost (seriously, the Avengers should always have a capable telepath among them.  It’s what has been lacking in most of the team’s rosters through the years), Hawkeye (but Emma Bishop instead of Clint Barton), Mr. Immortal, Phil Coulson (serving as an official Avengers member and S.H.I.E.L.D. liaison), and Loki.  You can check out my rationale for some of these names in this line-up in my “Top 20 Characters I Want to Become Avengers” list.  The three main Avengers – Captain America, Iron Man, and Thor – will be in sabbatical from being Avengers during this time.

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Chain of Thoughts on Some "Justice League" Developments

I intended this at first to be all about Justice League: War but my thoughts branched out to other Justice League-related reflections.  Here we go...

→ When I saw the trailer for Justice League: War, I inferred that I won’t like it, that it’s probably going to be the most inferior of all DC animated movies.  So I decided that I won’t watch it.  But, in the end, as soon as it was out, I did watch it.  It merely confirmed my inference.  Now, I haven’t seen all DC animated movies, but I did see most of them.  Justice League: Wardoesn’t necessarily suck – it’s actually exciting and entertaining – but it’s my least favorite DC animate movie so far.      

→ The voice acting was terrible.  There was even one instance that some characters were seemingly just reading off the script. 

→ Most of the costumes were bad. 

→ When the New 52 ditched Superman’s iconic costume, I was against it but was not really mad about it.  To me, I preferred the old look but it was as if the new look was not that bad.  But now seeing it animated and in motion, it really doesn’t look right on Superman.  It was aesthetically awful to me.      

→ Half of the roster displayed different degrees of jerk-assery.  Most annoying of all was Green Lantern.  Ugh. 

→ It’s unfortunate that DC’s attempt of putting more depth on Superman’s character was by making him a bit of a jerk.  I really cringe on some of Superman’s lines here – he sounded like a borderline A-hole.  Also, I hated that JL: War’s depiction of Superman’s approach in fighting is totally like his Man of Steel counterpart: reckless and no regard for collateral damage at all.  Now, I could give that that worked in Man of Steel, because of its “realistic” and cynical context and tone, but that should never define who Superman is.  Hence, between these and the god-awful costume, I totally despised what DC’s “make-over” did to Superman.     

→ The only awesome thing about this movie is Batman.  Because Batman is always awesome.  Jason O’Mara was no Kevin Conroy but he delivered a decent performance. 

→ I probably would have hated Green Lantern less – and might have even completely liked him, even if he was a big A-hole – if it was Nathan Fillion voicing him again.

→ The Flash was fine, too.  Next to Batman, Flash is the most likable character of the movie.  He had some great action sequences.   

→ Third most likable character was Captain Marvel (Yeah, yeah.  He’s solely known as Shazam now.  But he’ll always be a Captain Marvel to me).  Yeah, he had some annoying moments where he came out as a jerk (especially when he was in his Billy Bateson form), but he looked fantastic and had great action moments.  

→ I have no clue why they gave Aquaman’s roster spot to Shazam (in the original New 52 comics, it was Aquaman who founded the Justice League with the others, not Shazam).    DC is still embarrassed by him, I guess, even though New 52 has turned him into a real badass already.       

→ It was an origin story on how the New 52 version of the Justice League started.  So it was important that their bringing together was emphatically done.  However, though they managed to work together and triumph as a team, I did not feel any chemistry developing among them.

* * *

→ A chilling thrill went up my spine when it was announced during last year’s San Diego Comic Con that a Batman/Superman movie is set for 2015 (which is recently moved to 2016).  That’s brilliant!  This was a movie I’ve wanted to happen for a long time.  So excited.  

→ Awesome the Avengers movie might have been, Batman and Superman’s reputation is enough to match the entire Avengers’ movie roster in terms of pop culture weight.  Even if they make this movie just as awesome as the Batman/Superman: Public Enemies animated movie, then that would be more than enough.   

→ It’s implied that this movie is going to have a “Batman vs. Superman” premise.  I’m cool with that – the two heroes clashing first before teaming-up against a common threat.  But If there’s going to be a fight, it has to be compelling and the stakes believable and exciting, i.e. they have to be in equal standing.  Hence, there’s a need to show Batman’s tactical genius – completely putting together and executing a strategy that will allow him to take on Superman properly and squarely, since obviously, power-wise, Superman will never have any trouble kicking his butt. 

→ The Internet hate has been great on the casting of Ben Afleck as the new Batman.  Though he’s not my choice for the role, I’m willing to give him the benefit of a doubt, giving him a chance.  Who knows, he might turn out great after all.  Just like Michael Keaton.  When Tim Burton casted Keaton as Batman, the intensity of backlash from the fans was unparalleled; great was the hate and disapproval.  There were even letter campaigns (that was the days before the Internet) to remove the role from Keaton.  Fans can’t picture Beetlejuice as Batman (just like how fans now can’t picture Daredevil as Batman).  But look how it turned out?  Michael Keaton probably did the greatest depiction of Batman in the big screen (Yeah, I pick Keaton over Christian Bale as Batman.  But Bale was a better Bruce Wayne).  Same thing happened when Heath Ledger got the role for the Joker, the Internet raged with fan displeasure.  But, again, see how that turned out?  Ledger was able to deliver a powerful, captivating reinvention of Joker.  So Afleck might suck in the end after all, but for now, based on history, I prefer to go on “wait-and-see” mode.

→ The rationale for Afleck’s casting is the story requires an older, tired Batman.  I’m not so sure about this, since I’ve always known Batman and Superman being in the same group.  Still, Afleck is not that “older” looking, so it’s not an issue. 

→ My primary choice for the Batman role has always been for Christian Bale to reprise it.  Sure, Chris Nolan’s Dark Knight Trilogy is over – a concluded story that was never meant to be part of a larger “superhero universe.”  But Bale can play a new Batman by merely never acknowledging the events in the Nolan Batmanverse ever happened.  This would have given us a familiar Batman face, but it would be as if he is a different Batman character entirely.  It also gives the illusion that the Dark Knight Trilogy is loosely connected to the new Man of Steel-spearheaded, shared DC Cinematic Universe.   

→ Then, we learned that Wonder Woman was going to be in this movie and Gal Gadot was cast for the role.  Like with Afleck’s casting, I am not hating with Gadot’s casting.  But, as of this point, I’m not feeling it.  Sure, Gadot has proven to be hot and badass in the Fast and the Furious movies, but Wonder Woman is not only hot and badass.  She also has depth.  Now, I love to see her be brought to life in the big screen.  But I have some doubts that Gadot can pull it off properly.     

I can’t picture the frail-looking, wiry Gadot as the amazon Wonder Woman.

In terms of physique, the “actress” of Axel Braun’s Wonder Woman porn parody is more qualified than Gadot to play the role. 

→ Nonetheless, again, I am not hating.  At this point, I’m just not comfortable of the casting.  But I’ll give Ms. Gadot a chance.  Besides, there is news that she is bulking up for the role.  Good for her.  Moreover, she knows Krav Maga (no surprise there, since she’s from Israel), and that has to count for something for Krav Maga is awesome.    

→ Then rumor began to circulate that a Justice League movie will be shot back-to-back.  Whoa.  It means DC is rushing to catch up with Marvel’s Avengers, and I am not really entirely sold that this is a good idea.  I would definitely love to see a Justice League movie.  But I want it to be epic.  I don’t want the opportunity go to waste.  If DC will rush things, there’s a possibility that the quality might be sacrificed.  Moreover, this could also affect the quality of the Batman/Superman movie.   

→ Another game-changing rumor, which is being fueled by the Internet and the Rock himself, is that Dwayne “the Rock” Johnson will star as the Green Lantern, John Stewart.  I would have infinitely preferred for Marvel to cast him as Luke Cage, but if it happened to be true that DC has already gotten him on board to play John Stewart, then that is a casting I greatly applaud. 

→ My preferred Justice League movie line-up:  Superman, Batman, Wonder Woman, Flash, Cyborg, Green Lantern (John Stewart), Aquaman, Green Arrow, and Martian Manhunter.   

Or they can go with the New 52’s “Super Seven” line-up. I’m also fine with that.

→ I find it practical for DC to connect their TV universe to their movie universe, thus, the Flash and Green Arrow characters that have been portrayed in the Arrow TV show should be cast for the roles

→ Man of Steel has made precedence that the DC shared movie universe is going be more “realistic” and less “comic bookish.”  I’m intrigued on how they are going to make that work.   Will it really be to their advantage by going this route?  The more I think about it, the more I’m convinced that the mood the Man of Steel has set for DC’s cinematic universe might not be proper after all.  But it could still work.  (Maybe.)  I just think it would have been easier for DC if they had gone with the “comic bookish” route.  Now they have to stick with the moody, serious tone they have established, without being too much grim and cynical.  Again, it could still work and might turn out to be the brilliant approach after all.  But they have to be careful.  It won’t be much fun if it gets too serious and angsty – too much negativity.

* * *

              

→ Meanwhile, in the comics…   Lex Luthor and Captain Cold are joining the Justice League!!!  Based on the preview art above, the two are in and their respective archenemies, Superman and Flash, are out.  And it seems that Lex Luthor is going to be the new leader (much to the disgust of Batman)!  In the current “Forever Evil” event – wherein the evil doppelgangers of the Justice League that came from an alternate universe, the Crime Syndicate, have annihilated the Justice League, conquered the world, and obtained the allegiance of many DC supervillains – Luthor is leading a coalition made up of DC supervillains, which includes Captain Cold, that have refused to concur with the Crime Syndicate, along with Batman and Catwoman, to overthrow the Crime Syndicate. So I guess Luthor and Captain Cold are likely going to be significant contributors in defeating the Crime Syndicate, which will oblige their undisputable memberships into the Justice League.  I am not totally sold that this is a brilliant development, but this is nonetheless extremely intriguing.  It seems that this is going to be a lot of fun.  The interactions, pissing matches, and unholy alliance that are going to happen between Batman and Luthor alone make this worthwhile.  

→ Next to Peter Parker’s return, this is the comic book event I’m greatly looking forward to in April.  

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