Celebrating Superman The Movie

45 years ago, you could go to a movie theater and believe a man could fly.

That was when Superman the Movie was released to the general public...

...with Christopher Reeve as Superman, looking quite heroic as the title character (and amusing as his alter ego, Clark Kent, mild mannered reporter for the Daily Planet).  

Supported by Margot Kidder as Lois Lane, Marc McClure as Jimmy Olsen and Jackie Cooper as Perry White, and facing Gene Hackman as Lex Luthor, as well as Marlon Brando as Jor-El and Glenn Ford as Pa Kent, this well loved movie, directed by Richard Donner, with music by John Williams, defined the big budget super hero movie for generations.

DC Comics celebrated this release with a special treasury sized comic, the All-New Collectors' Edition #C-62 (March, 1979), with features encapsulating the history of Superman's comic cast, as well as behind the scenes pictures of the movie covering cast as well as locations such as Krypton, the Phantom Zone, Smallville, the Fortress Of Solitude and Metropolis.

One of the most important parts of the movie was how much (especially Christopher Reeve) captured the look of the comic, with his costume...or, to quote a character from the movie: "Say, Jim...That's a bad outfit".

Batman Movie Anniversary

On June 19th, 1989, Batman the movie arrived at a special engagement for a theater, with Michael Keaton as Batman, Jack Nicholson as the Joker, Kim Basinger as Vicki Vale, Pat Hingle as Com. James Gordon and Michael Gough as Alfred Pennyworth directed by Tim Burton (with a general release on June 23rd).


DC produced two adaptations of the movie, one deluxe Baxter paper additions, both with covers by artist Jerry Ordway!




Inside the books were the story of Batman as told in this movie, adapted by writer Denny O'Neil and drawn by Jerry Ordway.

Always odd to see a story from comics, made into a movie, then turned back into a comic!  Still, a very interesting look at what movies can do....as well as what works well in a comic book!

Notable as well, for launching a Batman craze in the comics, with Batman taking a major position at DC (yet also remaining a little distant from the rest of the company's characters), and drawing from the very serious treatment of Batman from Alan Moore and Brian Bolland's The Killing Joke, as well as Frank Miller's work on The Dark Knight Returns with a larger than life Batman/Joker battle and a focus on the psychological ramifications of who created whom, as well as setting up a line of sequels, and ushering in a run of comic book based movies.

Suicide Squad Movie Review

From what people said so quickly about the Suicide Squad movie, you'd think there were major issues with the movie.

Suicide Squad is a comic book movie, it should have issues.

Here's a few to show that the movie did at least follow the comic.

Legends

First up, we saw the team form.  This happened in Legends #3 (January, 1987), and that story (and the previous issues capturing a few members of the team, the introduction of Amanda Waller and her battles with Rick Flag, as well as the situation of a missing Superman and the populace hating heroes) was covered in the 6 issue mini-series, most recently reprinted in the Legends 30th Anniversary Edition, written by Len Wein and John Ostrander, with art by John Byrne and Karl Kesel.


As you can see by the cover, though the Squad members are not on it, they have at least been named, and this release timed to take advantage of the movie.

Nightshade Odyssey

Collecting Suicide Squad #9 to #16, Justice League International #13, Doom Patrol and Suicide Squad #1 and the set up story of Nightshade's origin from Secret Origins #28 (all from 1988, with the main Suicide Squad stories by John Ostrander, Luke McDonnell and Karl Kesel)...this covers the team working together, Firestorm foe Slipknot suffering nearly the same fate he did in the movie thanks to Captain Boomerang, Batman confronting Amanda Waller, then the team coming together to stop the Incubus (Nightshade's brother in the comic, but Enchantress and Nightshade do get their fates entwined here, not unlike June Moone from earlier in the comic series with Enchantress, and Nightshade was drawing closer to Rick Flag; so the movie just eliminated Nightshade from this equation), from expanding out from her home and taking over Earth's dimension.

Plus you get to see the second version of the Doom Patrol working with a doomed Squad, and Speedy and Vixen in action together for the first time (this is cooler more for CW's Arrow fans than for DC movie buffs, but still...).  

Kicked In The Teeth

The Suicide Squad changed over time, adding members like Harley Quinn, Black Spider, Voltaic and El Diablo to the mix during the start of DC's New 52,  as well as old members Deadshot and King Shark (though to be fair, King Shark only joined after the original Squad finished it's 66 issue run, being part of a group to join during a Squad appearance in Superboy's title).  Still manipulated by Amanda Waller, this group was a little looser in these stories by Adam Glass, Federico Dallocchio, Clayton Henry and more....

....but Harley was still haunted by the spectre of the Joker in these stories from Suicide Squad #1 to #7 from the 21st Century.  This series very much highlighted the illegal side of what the Squad was doing, moreso than before, and the slant of having the series tied a little stronger to Batman's foes (the movie even replaced King Shark with Killer Croc; Killer Croc being a Batman foe who started in the 1980s, and helped to make Jason Todd into Robin).

All of which should be helpful to the new Suicide Squad fan who might have gone to see the movie, or for the current comic fan who has heard reports that they might not like the movie as it isn't like the comic.

A little more history of the Suicide Squad with Rick, the Enchantress, Deadshot and Captain Boomerang is here, Amanda Waller and the Incubus is here, El Diablo gets the focus at this spot, Outsider (and brief Suicide Squad comic guest star) Katana is here....and Harley Quinn and Killer Croc will likely get tons of coverage coming up!

The movie follows the basic, established in the 1980s idea of the Suicide Squad (that set up in the movie, the Dirty Dozen), that has the government using super-villains under the control (with the threat of death) of Amanda Waller, those villains resisting her control (to the point of being menaces if, or more likely, when, they get out of her control, with perhaps Amanda Waller being the biggest menace of them all....).

Maybe, at some point, people who are at their ends or considered useless by society, finding a little redemption by doing one last brave act as well.

That last bit was the crux of the majority of John Ostrander's Suicide Squad run, and stories would focus a character or two at a time with the rest as background (for those who thought Deadshot and Harley might have had too much time....they were the stars of this story, allowing the main story to unfold around them), and though not as high a death toll among the major characters (to be fair, people did also survive in the comic, too),  and focused on Harley Quinn (a later addition to the Squad after Ostrander's run)....but if you didn't like Margot Robbie as Harley Quinn, you are crazier than that character is!

So, while you may be able to say Suicide Squad isn't your cup of tea...

....you really can't say it didn't follow the comic books.

Guardians of the Galaxy Movie Review

"I'm hooked on a feeling....I'm high on believing..."


These lines from a Blue Swede song is likely where you first heard of the Guardians of the Galaxy in the overpowering marketing blitz by Marvel and Disney for the movie release of their sci-fi epic with Chris Pratt, Zoe Saldana, Dave Bautista, Vin Diesel, Bradley Cooper, Michael Rooker and Karen Gillan....


...but, what do you know about the history of this super-group and the Guardians of the Galaxy movie?

Early Comics

The earliest bits of the Guardians of the Galaxy came in the 1960s...with Tales To Astonish #13 (November, 1960) in a story by Stan Lee and Jack Kirby, about an alien invader Groot who was going to take over the Earth, but his plant form was bested by termites....and in Marvel Super-Heroes #18 (January, 1969) by Arnold Drake and Gene Colan, that dealt with astronaut Major Vance Astro from the 20th Century ending up traveling to Alpha Centauri in suspended animation, and gathering together misfits chrystalline Martinex from Pluto, massive Charlie-27 from Jupiter, and archer Yondu from Alpha Centauri to make a prison break and fight the alien Badoon.

The team then returned in Marvel Two-In-One #4 and 5 (July-September, 1974 by Steve Gerber and Sal Buscema), getting help from the Thing and Captain America against the Badoon in the 31st Century, and returned again in a run of the Defenders (#26-29 in 1975, also by Gerber and Buscema), adding cosmic mystery Starhawk and his wife Aleta to their ranks, and even getting a short run in Marvel Presents (where Mercurian Nikki joined the group...).  After this run, the team popped up again in Thor Annual #6, Avengers #167-177, #181, Ms. Marvel #23, Marvel Team-Up #86 (with Spider-Man) and back to Marvel Two-In-One #61-63, #69, and later, even had their own title for a time (62 issues and 4 annuals in the early 1990s).

But What About Now?

It all started with Annihilation, a 2006 crossover, featuring Galactus herald Silver Surfer, Fantastic Four mimic Super-Skrull, human guardian of Xandar Nova, alien villainess Nebula, alien assassin Gamora and Kree Ronan the Accuser (as well as Drax the Destroyer and Thanos)....all cosmic heroes and villains with odd pasts from various parts of the modern Marvel Universe versus Annihilus, all under the writing of Keith Giffen and Dan Abnett and Andy Lanning, the later two who gathered interstellar heroes again, including Quasar, Star-Lord, the Wraith, Moondragon, Mantis and Rocket Raccoon in Annihilation Conquest, which let to Star-Lord founding the 21st century Guardians of the Galaxy!

For those keeping track, the main movie characters first appearances were in:

Drax the Destroyer and Thanos - Iron Man #55 (February, 1973, created by Jim Starlin)
Star-Lord - Marvel Preview #4 (January, 1976, created by Steve Englehart and Steve Gan)
Rocket Raccoon - Marvel Preview #7 (Summer, 1976, created by Bill Mantlo and Keith Giffen)
Gamora - Strange Tales #180 (June, 1975, created by Jim Starlin)
Nebula - Avengers #257 (July, 1985, created by Roger Stern and John Buscema)
Ronan the Accuser - Fantastic Four #65 (August, 1967, created by Stan Lee and Jack Kirby)

Note that most of the characters didn't appear on their premiere covers!

It's all connected...

Well, the Guardians of the Galaxy movie is a story about a group of misfits and outcasts who gather together and find the better parts of themselves when confronted with the ultimate evil...and end up saving the day (and, well...the galaxy).  This is a constant theme in movies and TV (from the Magnificent Seven and Star Wars to Firefly and Farscape...even Footloose and Raiders of the Lost Ark)  and oh so many more!

It is also the story of comic creation (as you can see by all the people who gathered together over the decades to create the comics....which lead to the movie)...and, a basic plot common to many stories (especially those of Guardians of the Galaxy co-creator, Arnold Drake), that everyone has something to contribute, and we can all be heroes, if given the chance, and have a darn good time doing it...as will you if you go to see the movie!