Wonder Woman Trailer

In addition to Justice League, DC released a trailer for Wonder Woman, or, as I like to call it, "Wonder Woman: The First Justice Leaguer." Like, come on, this is totally Captain America: The First Avenger of the DC movies. 

Gal Gadot wasn't terrible in Batman v Superman earlier this year, and the period setting of World War I thoroughly interests me. The trailer itself is fine. There's nothing awful, aside from those poor attempts at humor (DC just cannot be funny), but there isn't anything great. The action is cool. But just like the Justice League trailer, I expect nothing. My favorite part is probably the music at the end, because it uses the same theme from BvS. Overall, this is not the worst trailer ever. It's fine. So, what do you think? Please comment below and let me know!

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Justice League Trailer

Wow, just wow; I don't hate this trailer. It isn't great or anything, but it is not complete garbage. Jason Momoa as Aquaman is convincing and at least looks cool. Ezra Miller as The Flash works for me from the little we can see. He's funny and quirky. While Grant Gustin over on the CW will be the definitive for me and most others, I will give Miller a chance. But that new Flash costume is garbage, absolutely hysterical, at least at first glance. However, Ray Fisher as Cyborg is barely shown.

Here's the thing. After Batman v Superman, my expectations for DC are literally nonexistent. I cannot be disappointed by anything DC delivers because being disappointed requires expectations. So, I will just take whatever DC throws at us. The trailer's song, "Icky Thump" by The White Stripes, sets a fun tone, and the humor almost kind of works. Sure, even if DC is trying to copy Marvel, a second rate Marvel knock-off is better than first rate DC any day. The humor somewhat works, although I can see some hating it. Ben Affleck proved to be the only truly great part of BvS earlier this year, and he looks quite good in Justice League as well. The lack of Superman is probably the best thing to happen to this movie. He will probably appear at some point, but if the formation of the Justice League is without Henry Cavill's Superman, this movie might just work. But Zack Sndyer is the director, and that's never a good thing if you enjoy, you know, character development, color, fun, quality performances, and practical effects. Who knows? Maybe Snyder can finally make a great DC movie. Stranger things have happened.

What do you think of the trailer? Please comment below and let me know!

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Supergirl Trailer

Supergirl, the romantic comedy of superheroes? Supergirl is the latest TV adaptation of a DC posterity, and as the trailer explains, Supergirl is the cousin of Superman. Well, this trailer is certainly divisive. Some people absolutely hate it, while others actually kind of like it. My first thought is that it could be a fun, albeit goofy, superhero romcom, which is not necessarily a bad thing. Unfortunately, Supergirl is airing on CBS, and therefore is not connected to the spectacular CW-verse with Arrow and The Flash. If it was connected, I would be 100% onboard with this series. Despite dropping Gotham due to it being painfully mediocre (and from the reviews, I did not miss anything), I am skeptically optimistic about Supergirl because it looks like it trying to be a classic superhero story with a romcom on the side. The superhero parts look fun, but the other parts look generic. There is potential for an epic fail here, so I am curious if the creators can make it work.

Since DC is apparently incapable of getting their stuff together, Supergirl is not likely to be connected with any other DC series or movie. It uses a lot of Superman references, so I wonder if Superman can ever become a part of the series, but that is also unlikely. Even if he does, it will be an entirely different Superman than the movie version.

What do you think? Please comment below and let me know.

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DC's Legends of Tomorrow - Trailer

DC's Legends of Tomorrow, the upcoming spinoff series that will bring together DC's heroes from the CW's DC universe into one series, and honestly, I could not be more excited! However, I would say that if you have not seen Arrow or The Flash, there are some mild spoilers. 

In short, I am extremely hyped for this! Arrow and The Flash, flawed as they may be, are two of my favorites TV series, as they are perfect examples of DC adaptations done right (reviews of each coming soon). Legends of Tomorrow appears to be the CW-verse's version of the Justice League meets Suicide Squad. I do question some of the choices made for the team, and the placement within the series' timeline is utterly confusing, but this looks like it is going to be SO much fun. Arthur Darvill, of Doctor Who and Broadchurch fame, will be playing the time-traveling Rip Hunter among a team of new and old faces. Using the immortal Vandal Savage as the antagonist is a brilliant idea for a fun time-travel story, and the team dynamic will be rather interesting. I am curious as to how there is so much of this filmed when it is not even premiering until next year! One would assume that another season Arrow and The Flash will begin airing first later this year, so I wonder where it fits into that timeline. 

*Spoilers* My problem is that Sarah is now brought back to life. I know that the Lazarus Pit can bring people back to life, but Sarah has been dead for a while, and I was hoping that she would stay that way (otherwise anyone can come back). Also, Captain Cold and Heat Wave are somewhat strange additions to the team, but it could still work. However, it is fun to see that Palmer, aka the Atom, can become small like the Arrow season finale alluded to. *End Spoilers*

What do you think of the trailer? Please let me know in the comments!

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Arrow Season 1 Review

Arrow, DC's television series that rivals anything they will probably do in the upcoming films. 

With Arrow season three premiering the other day, and two season finally being released on Netflix, it seemed like a good time to look back at season one of DC's semi-hit TV show.

Arrow follows Oliver "Ollie" Queen, son to the billionaire Robert Queen. After being stranded on an island for five years, Oliver is rescued and returns home. During his five years on the island, he discovered that his now dead father left a list of people that Oliver believes to be the scum of the Starling city. To stop these criminals, Oliver suits up as the vigilante Green Arrow, or "The Hood," as the series refers to him as. Despite the simple premise, Arrow is a very solid series with impressive action sequences and cool characters. When the series originally aired on the CW, I missed the first few weeks, so I never had the chance to give it a try.

The Good: Impressive action sequences every episode, Stephen Amell is great as Oliver, Cool villains, Unique flashback scenes, Fun comic book references, Manu Bennett is a bad*ss as Slade Wilson, Great tone, Felicity is cute and hilarious, Mostly strong character development, Epic finale,

The Bad: A few really dumb moments, Inconsistent opinion of killing, Relationship drama gets repetitive, Stormtroopers have better aim than Arrow's villains,

Plot: 7.9/10- Arrow uses a unique storytelling device that I have not seen before, although it is said Lost used it first. In virtually every episode, the series flashbacks to Oliver's time on the island, which shows how he turned from a flamboyant playboy to vigilante killer. 

Showing both timelines actually works to the series advantage, because it cuts out a lot of the downtime in the present day timeline, to allow for more entertaining and streamline stories. As with most network TV series, Arrow is often episodic with various episodes focusing on a name on the list, or a criminal in the city. After the first few episodes, the series throws in some interesting overarching storylines. A lot of the series plays out like a crime drama with cool superhero elements that make it standout from other series.

Unfortunately however, Arrow's writing can be incredibly dumb on occasion. Some things do not make sense, characters' actions are absurdly stupid, and the "Villains Can't Die" cliché gets a little annoying. For example, one of the villains in the series has one of the main characters dead-to-rights, yet he says some dumb line and does not kill the character. Of course killing off a main character is not possible for the TV series, but having the character in that position is just bad writing. Another problem with the series is that the relationship drama gets old and repetitive fast. Sometimes it works, but other times the series comes to a screeching halt because of it. One other thing is that certain elements of Arrow seem to be stolen from Batman Begins' plot. Despite these issues, the series does make up for it with several very strong episodes.

Characterization: 8.3/10- Oliver is the most developed character throughout the series. Seeing what he was like on the island in contrast to what he is like in the present provides layers to the character’s complexity. One strange inconsistency with Oliver's character is his opinion of killing. What sets "The Hood" apart from a somewhat similar DC character, Batman, is that Oliver will kill when necessary, which works great in the series. While he does not always kill, he has no problems with doing so when the time comes for it. Some viewers might be off put by a "hero" killing the bad guys, but that is what you have to do to save the city. However, Oliver seems to have no problem shooting random thugs and bodyguards in the heart with an arrow, yet when it comes time to takedown the next guy on his list, he seems to have a problem killing said person. It makes sense to takedown the guy without killing him to make a point, but he seems to struggle whether or not to kill the main criminals, whereas he literally just shot several bodyguards a minute ago, which becomes incredibly annoying.

The main female protagonist, Laurel Lance, is like Rachel Dawes from the Dark Knight trilogy, if the audience actually gave a crap whether or not Rachel dies. Even though Laurel is not the best character ever, she is a solid romantic interest, and while there is a "love-triangle" of sorts, it is not a big issue. Slade Wilson, a character that is featured heavily on the island segments of the series, is majorly cool and all kinds of bad*ss. He is probably the best aspect of the flashback scenes. Ollie's sidekick of sorts, John Diggle, is probably the second most well developed character in the series behind Oliver. Felicity Smoak, a computer specialist, who works for Queen Consolidated (Oliver's company), is featured later in the season, and she is one of my favorite parts. While some might be annoyed by her, Felicity's awkwardly hilarious remarks are a lot of fun. There are many other characters featured in Arrow, most of which serve their purpose well, especially the villains.

Action: 9.8/10- Unlike virtually every other series on TV, Arrow is a true action series. Every episode features a fun and mostly well choreographed action sequence. 

While other series feature well executed action scenes, Arrow's tops just about everything else in live-action. Of course, the action scenes are not perfect, but the close-quarters-combat is well done with the series rarely, if ever, using shaky-cam. The only problem with the action scenes is that the bad guy's aim with a gun is often worse than a Stormtrooper. Seriously, when someone shoots at Oliver with an automatic gun, the bullets sometimes encircle him, but never hit their mark, which is absurd and often annoying.

Acting: 8.1/10- Stephen Amell plays the dark and brooding character of Oliver Queen very well. Also, Amell certainly has the physique to make the action scenes believable, although he should really try to wear a shirt more often, because there are not many episodes where he is not shirtless for a period of time. While not perfect, the performances in the series are often consistent and rather good, although Paul Blackthorne takes a bit to grow into his role.

Special effects: 7.1/10- Arrow is not a special effects heavy series, which is certainly for the best. Most episodes do not even feature obvious CGI, but when CGI is necessary; it stands out, and not in a good way. Overall, it is not a determent to the series, even if the lower budget is noticeable.

Soundtrack: 8.3/10- Arrow's soundtrack is one of the best in network television with some very exciting tracks that add to the action and superhero vibe.

Humor: 7.8/10- Arrow has its fair share of comedic moments, most of which are great, especially any scene with Felicity.

Entertainment Value: 9.0/10- Thanks to a plethora of fun comic book references, frequent action scenes, and a tone that maintains a perfect balance between light and dark, Arrow is almost always entertaining.

Overall: 8.2/10- While certainly flawed, season one of Arrow is a strong start for the series that sets the stage for, hopefully, an even better second season.

Closing comments: Except for the Dark Knight Trilogy and the Arkham video games, Arrow is easily the best thing DC has produced in ages.

Recommended for: Action fans, Crime drama fans, Comic Book fans, Superhero fans,

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The Flash TV Series Trailer

The Flash, DC comics' classic speedster is finally getting his own TV series, again. After the relative success of Arrow, The CW is launching another DC comics series set in the same universe as Arrow. Even though I have not seen Arrow yet, this Flash series interests me. The series revolves around Barry Allen, the second and most commonly known character to be the Flash, although in this universe he is obviously the first. The Flash’s powers are somewhat self-explanatory; he can run really, really fast. Grant Gustin plays the Flash, and he reminds me of a discount Andrew Garfield. With the Justice League movie right around the corner, will there be two Flashes? One on TV and another in the movies. According to sources, the likelihood of the Arrow DC universe crossing-over into Sndyer’s Man of Steel DC universe is virtually zero. Also, neither Arrow nor the Flash will have anything to do with Fox's Gotham and NBC's Constantine, which are both based on DC properties. While the special effects are certainly low budget TV effects, they are not that bad, and providing the story is fun enough, I will likely give the series a watch. Also, comic fans should notice the reference to Ferris Aircrafts Company, who is a major part of the Green Lantern comics. For a bit of Flash history, back in the 90s, the Flash had a short lived series that accumulated a cult following, although it only lasted one season. As for Arrow, I hope to get that one free month of Netflix and marathon Arrow, so that I will be caught up with the series by the time season three rolls around. What do you think of this Flash trailer? Please comment below and let me know.

Please do not forget to check out my other post today about Marvel's upcoming Ant-Man film having trouble with its director.

If you want to contact us or have any questions please send an e-mail to johnstarslayer@gmail.com.

New Batsuit and Batmobile Revealed

We finally get a look at the new Batman costume and Batmobile, and to my surprise, it actually looks great! Maybe I should not be surprised since Zack Sndyer is good at one thing and one thing only: Visuals. And from a visual standpoint, this new Batsuit looks really cool! Unfortunately, the only picture released is in black and white, so we cannot see the colors, but it looks a lot what I expected from Sndyer, by which I mean exactly like Watchmen's costumes with the use of textures (specifically Night Owl). The new Batsuit is reminiscent of the one from The Dark Knight Returns graphic novel, and it is generally more inspired by the comics than Nolan's version and that is certainly a good thing. Some are complaining about the short Bat-Ears on the cowl, but, again, it is a lot like The Dark Knight Returns graphic novel. As for the Batmobile, it reminds me of the traditional one from the comics. My overall opinion of this picture is that it looks great, and I am all for the more comic book inspired look. Does this look at the new Batman and Batmobile sway my opinion that the new movie is likely going to be mediocre? No, absolutely not! Not until the movie is released to positive reviews will I be swayed, but at least Batman is going to look cool. What do you think of the new Batsuit and Batmobile? Please comment below and let me know, and check back tomorrow for my review of Captain Phillips. 

Below is a close up look at the new Batsuit.

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Justice League Director Officially Announced

Well, Warner Bros. officially announced that Zack Sndyer will direct the upcoming Justice League movie, and that the movie is likely to arrive either 2017 or 2018. Oh DC, why are you under such terrible management? Despite having faith early on that Warner Bros. and DC might actually be able to pull off decent Batman vs. Superman and Justice League movies, ever since they cast Jesse Eisenberg as Lex Luthor and decided to shoehorn Wonder Woman into the next movie, I cannot take Warner Bros. and DC seriously anymore, and choosing Zack Sndyer to direct the Justice League is further decreasing my confidence that DC can make good movies. Sorry DC and DC fanboys, there is nothing except for an awesome trailer or movie that can redeem my hope in the franchise. Maybe there is a small chance that the Batman vs. Superman will either not suck, or big such a giant trainwreck that it is actually entertaining. However, these DC movies have two massive things holding them back: David S. Goyer and Zack Sndyer. For one, Goyer cannot write good screenplays. Aside from being credited with the screenplay for Batman Begins and the "story" (not screenplay) for The Dark Knight and TDKR, which most of the credit obviously goes to the Nolan brothers more so than Goyer, his credits include the disasters, Blade: Trinity, Jumper, Ghost Rider: Spirit of Vengeance, and last year's Man of Steel (aka Meh of Steel). That is not a good track record no matter which way you look at it. While Sndyer may have been the one to blame for the dull and one dimensional characters of Man of Steel, which is a movie that I still enjoyed, Goyer's screenplay is equally to blame for the movie's faults, and I am sure all of that is going to continue in his future projects. In fact, he was the only screenwriter of Man of Steel; therefore, the lack of good creative minds is likely one of the reasons why Man of Steel did not work. Basically, Warner Bros. should fire Goyer; unfortunately, that is not going to happen. 

This is a fan poster obviously

Sndyer can make movies with awesome visual like 300, but he displayed his weaknesses in Man of Steel. In short, Man of Steel's absolute biggest problem is that the characters were dull and flat. The acting helped with this problem, but Sndyer's direction never allowed the audience to connect with the characters, and if you are going to make a franchise based around certain characters, allowing the audience to connect with them is the absolute most important aspect. Sndyer's inability to create good characters is painfully evident in his butchering of one of the best graphic novels of all-time, Watchmen (review here). Regardless, if we are ever going to have a Justice League franchise anywhere close to the quality of Marvel's Cinematic Universe, Goyer and Sndyer will not be apart of it. Maybe Warner Bros. can inject a new creative team that could possibly help Goyer and Sndyer make the movies, but that is still a long shot. 

Right now, all we can do is wait and see, because until a trailer or the movie is released, there is nothing Warner Bros. can do that will give me confidence in the project, and I enjoyed Man of Steel more than most. What are your thoughts on the Warner Bros. Justice League and Superman plans? Are you as pessimistic as me about their future? Or do you somehow have faith that Batman vs. Superman will be more than an entertaining trainwreck? Please comment below and let know.

Side Note: Until Wednesday, I have a few Final Exams to take before my current college semester ends, so, if I am behind on commenting until Wednesdays, sorry about that, I will catch up then. Also, my arm injury that I referenced a while back is worse than ever, and I think I might have torn something in my elbow, so that is slowing me as well. I can still type for certain lengths of time, but not as effectively as I usually do. Despite this, I will hopefully be seeing The Amazing Spider-Man 2 tomorrow night and have at least a first reaction post by Monday, and then a full review whenever finals end. 

If you want to contact us or have any questions please send an e-mail to johnstarslayer@gmail.com.