Blog #5: Fantastic Four Reboot?

Talks are apparently in place to reboot the 'Fantastic Four' movie franchise. Here are my thoughts on it:

Use Jonathan Hickman, the current scribe for both 'Fantastic Four' and 'FF' comic series as a writer for the film. The lovely Amber Heard (Playboy Club) as Sue Storm. She is both beautiful and I think she could do some serious acting if given a chance.  Charlie Hunnam (Sons Of Anarchy) as Johnny Storm. Hunnam plays a awesome biker dude on 'Sons' and would make for a great Johnny. He could even keep his beard to bring a new level of coolness to the Johnny Storm character. Micheal Chiklis (The Shield) again as The Thing. Chiklis was the best thing about the original 2005, 2007 FF films. I would hope that he would show a little more 'Vic Mackey' in his portrayal of 'Ben Grimm'. Matt Smith (Dr Who) as Reed Richards. This guy is the BEST 'Doctor' in my opinion and he can also play a clueless genius better than anyone. I think him and Amber Heard would be great together.  Alexander Skarsgard (True Blood) as Victor Von Doom, he can play a cool and calculating Vampire and that kind of acting chops is what is need to play Victor Von Doom. And Toby Jones (Captain America/Dr Who) to play the Mole Man. He's a short little dude who in my opinion would make for the best choice to play the 'Mole Man'. He can act too!

If they do re-boot this series having Hickman as writer would be the best choice. The first 2 films were too goofy and not serious enough in my opinion. Also I didn't like that they included Victor Von Doom in the origin story of the FF. I wouldn't mind if they even started this reboot a few years into the FF world, meaning that this new film would not be an origin story but rather a continuation of their lives. With re-boots I feel it is not always necessary to have a re-telling of the origin story. With the new 'Amazing Spider-man' movie coming out this summer I am very skeptical of the retelling of the origin. Also this reboot of the FF needs a serious Director who will not cut corners and do what is necessary to make this movie the way it needs to be made. Perhaps Jon Favreau?

It's going to interesting to see how this plays out. A FF movie could be as great as 'The Avengers' will be, if done right.

 

Amber Heard to play 'Sue Storm'

 

Postcards from me to you!

Hey there friend this is Chris with something to give you, and something you can give back to me. Sounds mysterious but it isn't. Last fall my fellow blogger CT from the 'Nerd Lunch' blog did something awesome for his readers, and I liked it so much I'm doing it for you. It goes like this: I have a book of 'Bone' postcards, 'Bone' being the comic book character created by Jeff Smith. If you would like me to send you a free 'Bone' post card I would be happy to do that. The only thing I ask for in exchange is that after you receive the postcard in the mail take a picture of yourself holding the postcard and e-mail that picture to me so I can post it on my blogs. It's a neat idea for me to connect to my readers, and for them to connect to the blogs. 

So if you are interested send me an e-mail with your name and full mailing address to: chrisloc1701@gmail.com

and after you receive the postcard send me your pic with the card to the same e-mail address, and please specify which of my blogs you prefer to read and I'll post your pic to that blog.  

I'm hoping to have at least 24 people respond to this, because that is all the 'Bone' postcards I have. If this little experiment is a success I'll be doing more of these postcard exchanges in the future. 

Hope to hear from you!

- Chris

Blog #4 : About The Author

As I write these blogs it occurs to me that you the reader may not know too much about me. So I've decided to do a segment called 'About The Author' where I have taken some questions off the internet, and I will will answer them honestly and to the best of my ability. 

 

- WERE YOU NAMED AFTER ANYONE?

'Christopher' I think was just a name my Mom liked. Apparently other names considered for me was 'Christian' and 'Amanda', if i had been a girl.

-. WHEN WAS THE LAST TIME YOU CRIED? 

A few nights ago I watched a news story about soldiers returning from over seas after being gone for almost a year and surprising their kids at school. Talk about heartbreaking and I'll admit a tear came to my eye while watching that story. I am a softy and do cry during sad movies or TV shows, and my Wife laughs at me for being such a suck.

- DO YOU LIKE YOUR HANDWRITING?

I don't. I hated hand writing in school so I learned how to print really fast. I'm like Data from 'Star Trek: TNG' when it comes to the hand printing. But my hands do ache when I print for too long, now i worry about carpal tunnel syndrome in my hands. I do more typing these days.

 

- WHAT IS YOUR FAVOURITE LUNCH MEAT?

Sun dried tomato turkey breast is the best!

 

-. DO YOU HAVE KIDS? 

3 wonderful kids. My step-son Bailey is 11, my step-daughter Kayde is 9 and my daughter Shelby is 5. I couldn't imagine my world without them.

- IF YOU WERE ANOTHER PERSON, WOULD YOU BE FRIENDS WITH YOU? 

Absolutely.

 

- DO YOU USE SARCASM A LOT? 

When needed. Especially for laughs.

-  DO YOU STILL HAVE YOUR TONSILS? 

I assume so unless the aliens took them out while I was sleeping.

-  WOULD YOU BUNGEE JUMP?

Never. I've seen the videos of chords breaking. NEVER!!!!


- WHAT IS YOUR FAVOURITE CEREAL?

Cinnamon Toast Crunch.

- DO YOU UNTIE YOUR SHOES WHEN YOU TAKE THEM OFF?

Sometimes.

 

- DO YOU THINK YOU ARE STRONG?

I'm like the Hulk. Don't make me angry, you wouldn't like it when I'm angry.

 

- WHAT IS YOUR FAVOURITE ICE CREAM? 

Cookies & Cream

 

- WHAT IS THE FIRST THING YOU NOTICE ABOUT PEOPLE? 

Their face.

-  RED OR PINK?

Emerald Green

 

- WHAT IS THE LEAST FAVOURITE THING ABOUT YOURSELF? 

My acid reflux.

-  WHO DO YOU MISS THE MOST? 

Star Trek on television. GOOD Star Trek on television. No return of 'Voyager' please!

 

- WHAT IS THE PAUL MCKENNA TECHNIQUE THAT YOU NEED TO WORK ON THE MOST?

Is Paul McKenna a porn star?

 

- WHAT COLOR SHOES ARE YOU WEARING?

Brown

 

- WHAT WAS THE LAST THING YOU ATE?

Peaches & Cream porridge, an apple and an orange. Honest.

 

- WHAT ARE YOU LISTENING TO RIGHT NOW?

Offspring

 

-  IF YOU WERE A CRAYON, WHAT COLOR WOULD YOU BE?

Cool emerald green

- FAVOURITE SMELLS?

Fresh baked bread. Popcorn in a movie theatre. fresh made Cinnamon buns.

 

- WHO WAS THE LAST PERSON YOU TALKED TO ON THE PHONE?

My Dad.

- MOUNTAIN HIDEAWAY OR BEACH HOUSE?

I hate cold and snow so it would most definitely be a beach house.

 

 

 

Anywho that is all for this 'About The Author'. More to come. Check out my other blogs for more questions that get answered by yours truly. And as always let me thank you for taking time out of your day to read this blog. Please leave a comment below. Have a great day!

Blog #3: The Ultimates

Ultimate Comics 'The Ultimates' by Marvel comics. Confused by the title? Me too. Despite the title this is a great series written by Jonathan Hickman. Hickman is probably my favourite comic book writer right now. This comic book takes place in the 'Ultimate' universe within Marvel comics and this group of individuals is basically that Universe's version of 'The Avengers', although there had been an Ultimate Avengers previously. 'Ultimate Spider man' has been getting a lot of attention lately but in my humble opinion this 'Ultimates' series is the best in the ultimate line of comics. I've recently dropped reading the 'Avengers' in the regular Marvel universe because I didn't like what is being done and I feel The Avengers are being over exploited in the MU, but 'Ultimates' is the best alternative. Hickman has a great solid grasp of the characters, and because this takes place outside of the 'proper' Marvel universe Hickman is free to let his creative flag fly as high as he wants. I don't want to spoil too much but I've just finished the first 5 issues and they were fantastic. This book is as good as Hickman's work on FF and Fantastic Four. Check this book out!!

Blog #2: Comic Pull List Review, Part I

As you may have guessed by this blog, I am a comic book fan. I live in a small town in central Alberta, as such we do not have a local comic book store. The nearest one is over an hours drive away, so I don't get there too often. I order my books from a company out of Quebec called 'Comic Pull'. They are a good service, I get my books shipped to me once every month. I save money on the comics themselves rather than buying them in a store, but the problem is the shipping costs. Shipping costs more than the books. I actually only read $30-40 worth of titles in a month, but the shipping is almost double that price. Unless I buy at least $75 worth of books from Comic Pull, then I get FREE shipping. So that is what I do, I order more books than I actually read to save money in the long run. So anyway I decided to break down what I order and give a brief review of what I think of my pull list.

 

- Justice League International: I actually only have read the first issue. I liked it and I have been meaning to read the other 3 issues I have. This was a title I liked in the late 80's, early 90's and it seems to be going back to that style, minus the campy factor.

 

- Action Comics: Grant Morrison is a great writer. I love his take on this rookie man of steel. Wish the art was better, some one like Gary Frank should be on this. Morrison is an excellent writer for Superman. This is one of my favourites and it is awesome that I can actually say that I own Action Comics #1!

 

- Detective Comics: I really like this series. Story is interesting and the art is great.

 

- Stormwatch : I enjoyed the first issue, but this is another series I need to get caught up on. i'm definitely liking what they are doing with this Wildstorm franchise in the new DCU.

 

- Avengers: I like Brian Michael Bendis, but I am seriously considering dropping the Avengers. The interview style of storytelling that Bendis has been using is really starting to wear thin on me. They need to take a Grant Morrison/JLA approach to this series. This should be the flagship book for Marvel, but it is not...

 

- Amazing Spiderman: This is another must read for me. I love reading Dan Slott's take on Spiderman. He has fun with the character and it shows on the page. I even liked the recent 'Spider-Island' storyline. And the art tends to be good as well.

 

- Venom: I like Rick Remenders take on Venom. It is such a cool concept, but the art tends to suck on this title. I also heard a rumour that this series may be cancelled... I hope not.

 

- Hulk: I was a huge fan of Peter David's 'Incredible Hulk' and I thought I would never enjoy a hulk title after he left, but I'm liking this title. this book features the 'Red Hulk', who as it turns out is Thunderbolt Ross. That is a plot twist I love because I have always liked that character.

 

 

Well folks that is all for now. I've just scratched the surface of my Comic Pull List. More reviews and insights to come.

Blog#1: Rick Jones

Blog#1: Rick Jones

 

For this entry on the blog I wanted to discuss my favourite super-hero sidekick, and that has got to be Rick Jones. Especially during the late 80's and early 90's during Peter Davids run on 'The Incredible Hulk'. Now in current Marvel Continuity he can turn into a Hulk-like creature called A-bomb but back in the day he was just a normal dude who hung out with super heroes. For a while he trained with Captain America and was his side kick, but most of his side-kicking career was with the Hulk. I liked him because he was funny, hip and just a normal human with no powers just martial arts training. He was also indirectly responsible for Bruce Banner turning into the Hulk. Bruce Banner rushed out to the Gamma bomb, which Rick was beside playing a harmonica, to save Jones from the test detonation of the Gamma bomb. Banner managed to push Jones into the fall out crater but he himself was blasted with Gamma rays upon detonation of the bomb and he then became the Hulk. Jones felt responsible and stayed with Banner, off and on for many years.

 

Rick Jones was always a fun character to read and see on the comic page. He had a great sense of humour, he was a wannabe rock star, a normal guy who hung out with super people, and he had a way with the ladies. He eventually married the beautiful Marlo Chandler, a stunningly beautiful woman by comic standards.

 

In a memorable Hulk mini-series called 'Future Imperfect' a very elderly Rick Jones from the future leads a band of humans who fight against an evil oppressor called The Maestro, who as it turns out is a twisted evil future version of the Hulk. Jones, who is about 100 years old at this point and confined to a wheelchair, sends his grand-daughter Janis (named after Janis Joplin) back in time using Dr Doom's time machine to find a young Rick Jones, who would in turn convince the Hulk to go with Janis back to the future to stop this evil tyrant. Sounds complicated, but it was one of the greatest comic book stories of all time.

 

I'm not a fan of the current status of Rick Jones, being a gamma behemoth called 'A-bomb', I think what made Jones such a great character was that he was just a normal dude who did incredible things. Giving him super powers just took away from the character and made him less interesting. But all the same, Rick Jones I salute your comic book greatness!

_________________________

 

That's all folks! Talk to you later!