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Random Thoughts on The Amazing Spider-Man (Not a Review!)

Comic-book nerds around the world were polarized going into The Amazing Spider-Man. Some felt that it was too soon to reboot the franchise. Others were excited by the potential of a new cast and crew. Last week, I attended a Spider-Man screening thanks to my pal at Marvel. I enjoyed the movie, but wanted a little time to put it in perspective. After some thought, I feel that it’s a very good superhero movie that’s not quite great. Compared to recent spandex adventures, it’s not as good as The Avengers or the Iron Man movies. Compared to the three previous Spidey movies, I’d say it’s better than all of them save for Spider-Man 2. The rebooted Spider-Man is off to a great start, but the movie had one major weak point. Here are some random thoughts (not a review!) on The Amazing Spider-Man.

Andrew Garfield Kicks Tobey Maguire’s Ass: For the most part, Andrew Garfield was wonderful as Peter Parker/Spider-Man. His version of the wall-crawler felt fresh and current. Tobey Maguire is a fine actor, but I never really loved him as Spider-Man. After getting past the whole Facebook thing, I really enjoyed Garfield’s performance. He did a great job at displaying a wide range of emotions — vulnerability, strength, uncertainty, etc. He was a hero that was easy to identify with (and he went on to be a founder of Facebook!).

That’s not to say he was perfect. One of my favorite aspects of Spider-Man is his overuse of humor to deal with threatening situations. There was only one scene where I got a good sense of that. There were a few Peter Parker scenes where Garfield was over-emoting and shaking his head to the point of being distracting. Like the movie in general, Garfield is off to a very good start and has room for improvement. Also like the movie in general, he was better than his predecessor.

Emma Stone Kicks Kirsten Dunst’s Ass: This one was tough for me to admit. I adored Kirsten Dunst in Bring it On. I interviewed her once and found her to be very charming. I just didn’t like her as Mary Jane Watson — not enough of an edge. I’ve been an Emma Stone fan since Superbad. She performed exactly as I expected her too in The Amazing Spider-Man — cool, cute, awkward, and edgy at the same time.

Her character was given aspects that were a bit too convenient, but none of that is her fault. She did a great job with what she was given. Emma Stone was simply charming in this movie.

The Chemistry: Garfield and Stone had great chemistry onscreen…which helps explain why they’re currently boning offscreen. Maguire and Dunst come off as flaccid by comparison. The chemistry helped their scenes come off more powerfully and believably.

CG and Posing: The Spider-Man CG was fantastic, which was to be expected given advancements in technology. There wasn’t much in the way of breathtaking 3D, but the scenes of Spidey swinging around the city and fighting baddies were more than thrilling enough. One of my friends from Sony mentioned that there were a lot of cool Spidey poses. He was on the money with that comment. A lot of poses and moves that are considered Spider-Man’s signatures are found in the movie. Very cool stuff.

The Lizard: Now for the movie’s weak point — the villain. In the comic books, The Lizard was always kind of lame. A giant walking lizard wearing a lab coat?!? I suppose that’s literally scary (lab coats are menacing) but it seems silly by 2012 movie standards. The Lizard in The Amazing Spider-Man had some slick CG, but still came off as ridiculous. Rhys Ifans did a decent job with what he was given, but he was weak compared to Willem Dafoe’s Green Goblin and (especially) Alfred Molina’s Doctor Octopus. In fact, the latter is really the measuring stick. Doc Ock is kind of a silly character, but Molina utterly owned that role. Ifans was merely serviceable.

Part of the problem was that several great Spider-Man baddies were already used. I already mentioned Green Goblin and Doctor Octopus. Venom and Sandman have already appeared in the previous movies. The Vulture is arguably more ridiculous than The Lizard. Do you go with Kraven the Hunter? Personally, I would have preferred the rebooted Spider-Man to battle bank robbers, muggers, etc. That would have left more room for characterization and relationships. Of course there’s pressure to include a super villain to combat the superhero, but the villain was the movie’s biggest weakness.

Conclusion: I enjoyed The Amazing Spider-Man. Admittedly, my expectations weren’t super-high or anything, especially coming off the outstanding Avengers. The cast is more talented than their predecessors and the crew is working with better tech. For the most part, I liked it better than the previous Spider-Man movies, except for Spider-Man 2 with Alfred Molina’s incredible performance.

When you see The Amazing Spider-Man, I’d love to hear your thoughts on the movie. Did you dig it? How do you think it stacks up against Tobey Maguire’s Spider-Man trilogy?

Green Lantern Alan Scott is Gay

The Associated Press has revealed that Green Lantern Alan Scott will be reintroduced as a gay character in next week’s issue of DC Comics’ Earth 2. Scott was the original “Golden Age” Green Lantern and a member of the Justice Society. His ring was not given to him by the Guardians of the Universe and does not have a weakness to yellow. Instead, his ring’s power is derived from the magical Starheart.

We discussed the issue on the site last week. During a Google+ chat, I believe bsukenyan mentioned Alan Scott. I, rather immaturely, found the prospect of a gay superhero with a weakness to wood rather funny. Here are some mature details from Earth 2 writer James Robinson:

He doesn’t come out. He’s gay when we see him in issue two. He’s fearless and he’s honest to the point where he realized he was gay and he said, “I’m gay.”

What do you think of the DC’s reveal? Big news? Or a stunt that will cause minor waves?

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Coffee Talk #482: DC Comics Gay Superhero Predictions

Welcome to Coffee Talk! Let’s start off the day by discussing whatever is on your (nerd chic) mind. Every morning I’ll kick off a discussion and I’m counting on you to participate in it. If you’re not feelin’ my topic, feel free to start a chat with your fellow readers and see where it takes you. Whether you’re talking about videogames, the power of WGWG, Austin Aries resigning with TNA, or expensive chef’s knives, Coffee Talk is the place to do it.

At the Kapow comic-book convention, DC Comics senior vice president Dan DiDio revealed that the company will rewrite one of its established heroes as gay. Fanboys have been feverishly speculating about the identity of the homosexual hero or heroine. Will it be a man? Will it be a woman? How “major” is the character? Today I’d love to hear your reactions and predictions on DC’s gay superhero. Before you offer your thoughts on the matter, let’s take a look at some modern comic-book characters that are gay.

For a long time, Northstar (Alpha Flight/X-Men) was the only openly gay superhero in mainstream comics. Marvel recently announced — on The View of all places — that Northstar will be getting married. X-Force’s Shatterstar and Rictor were an item back in 2009. The latest version of Batwoman is a lesbian. One of the newest and youngest gay superheroes is Bunker of the Teen Titans. The most badass couple in comics — straight or gay — has to be Apollo and Midnighter from The Authority/Stormwatch.

As you can see, there are a number of gay superheroes in both DC and Marvel. DiDio implied that a major character will be rewritten as gay, but how major are we talking? Several of my nerd friends think that Wonder Woman is most likely. Along with Batman and Superman, she’s one of the three pillars of the DC Universe. It doesn’t get more major than that. A few of my friends pointed out that she grew up on an island of women, so it would be natural for her to be attracted to other women. For various reasons, the mainstream media seems more comfortable with gay women than gay men, so Wonder Woman could be a “safe” choice.

A couple of my friends voted for Aquaman, simply because of his costume. I’m not getting that at all. When did orange become a gay color?!? Besides, dude is married.

As for my pick, I’m going with Red Hood. I have doubts about how big a character DC will go with. With that in mind, I can see the company claiming that Jason Todd is a major character. DC can point to Todd formerly being Robin, as well as being a key part in one of the company’s biggest crossover successes. At the same time, Red Hood is still a relatively new character and safer to play with than someone like Flash or Green Lantern.

How do you feel about DC making one of its major characters gay? Which DC Comics hero or heroine will be rewritten as gay? Please share your thoughts in the comments section!

LEGO Batman 2: DC Super Heroes Renders

Here’s a trio of high-res parody renders Warner Bros. Interactive sent out to promote the upcoming LEGO Batman 2: DC Super Heroes. The LEGO versions of Catwoman, Joker, and Robin are obviously a nod to the outstanding Batman Arkham City. With more than 50 characters rumored to be playable, LEGO Batman 2 is a comic-book nerds dream! The rumored roster includes Batman, Nightwing, Robin, Batgirl, Green Lantern, Superman, Flash, Martian Manhunter, Aquaman, Hawkgirl, Cyborg, Katana, Shazam, Zatanna, and Wonder Woman.

As a Nightwing mark, I get goofy every time he’s featured in a game. How about you? Now’s the time to out yourself as a closet Black Lightning fan! Which DC superhero would you like to play as in LEGO Batman 2?

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Play as Stan Lee in The Amazing Spider-Man

Activision has revealed some sweet pre-order bonuses for The Amazing Spider-Man. If you pre-order the game from GameStop then you get a mode called “The Rhino Challenge”. Here’s the description from the press release: “Take control of the massive, genetically engineered villain Rhino and rampage around Manhattan in an exclusive gameplay challenge of pure destruction! As Rhino, players will be able to unleash his formidable powers to destroy anything and everything that gets in his way in a timed event full of speed, combo streaks, and of course, a ton of things to break!”

The super-cool bonus comes from buying the game through Amazon. You get to play as legendary creator Stan Lee! Here’s the official description: “Players will take on the role of Stan ‘The Man’ Lee in his own special mission across Manhattan, borrowing abilities from his old pal Spider-Man as they help Stan collect pages of his latest script in a spectacular race around Manhattan. Stan’s mission is punctuated with his witty banter that fans have come to know and love, and a special surprise waits for them at the end of the mission — after all, it is Spider-Man’s 50th anniversary this year!”

Both pre-order bonuses are for the PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 versions of the game only.

As a proper comic-book nerd, of course I’m psyched about the Amazon bonus. The Rhino Challenge sounds like fun and all, but playing as the beloved and legendary Stan Lee sounds completely awesome. In fact, I think every game should let you play as Stan Lee. I guarantee that the reviews would better.

Any of you psyched for either of the pre-order bonuses for The Amazing Spider-Man?

Which Avenger Would You Most Like to Drink With?

You’ve read the review. You’ve seen the incredible box office numbers. Now it’s time to take this all-important poll! Which Avenger would you most like to drink with? Would you want to pick the ingenious mind of Tony Stark/Iron Man? Would you want to hear about the good old days from Captain America? For many, the amazingly sexy Black Widow is the obvious choice. As for me, I’m going with Thor. Dude is a chick magnet; I’d gladly take his hand-me-downs. Plus, his godly strength makes him invaluable in a bar fight. Most importantly, his Norse constitution ensures that you always have a safe ride home.

How about you? Which Avenger would you choose as a drinking buddy?

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The Avengers Assembles Record-Breaking Box Office Numbers

Some of you will be shocked by this news: The Avengers movie did well. The movie picked up an estimated $200.3-million over the weekend in Canada and the United States. The global figure is estimated to be $641.8-million. The numbers support what I’ve been saying for decades: Hawkeye brings in the dough. Here’s more The Los Angeles Times:

The Joss Whedon-directed movie, riding stellar reviews and a tsunami of Twitter love, piled up $200.3 million at theaters in the U.S. and Canada, according to an estimate from Disney. That total, which beat the $169.2-million record set during the opening weekend of 2011’s Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows — Part 2, was turbocharged by pricier IMAX and 3-D tickets. About 52% of those who saw the movie opted to shell out a few extra bucks to watch it in 3-D. IMAX theaters even ran out of seats to sell to moviegoers.

The North American box office total added to an already unfolding global success story; playing in 52 international markets, the movie collected $151.5 million this weekend, raising its tally abroad to $441.5 million. That means that after just two weeks in release, The Avengers already has sold $641.8-million worth of tickets, jumping past The Hunger Games on the ranking of top-grossing 2012 releases worldwide.

One interesting side-note is that the one of the reasons for the movie’s tremendous success is that it’s performing well with women. Comic-book nerd movies usually appeal to guys, but some polls show that 40 percent of the peeps that saw The Avengers over the weekend were women. This supports my theory that Hawkeye brings in the ladies. Others believe that a strong female heroine like Scarlett Johansson’s Black Widow and Joss Whedon’s track record with women (Buffy, Angel, etc.) were the main reasons an unusually high percentage of females saw The Avengers. I like my reasoning better.

Any of you surprised by the success of The Avengers?

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Random Thoughts (Not a Review!) on The Avengers Movie

The Avengers is everything a summer movie should be — big and loud and fast and fun. As a comic-book nerd, I was cautiously excited for the movie. Iron Man, Thor, and Captain America were lots of fun. Joss Whedon knows comics and action. That said, team movies are tough to pull off. It’s hard to give multiple characters time to shine while moving a central narrative forward. My fear was that an awesome idea on paper would stumble in execution. I shouldn’t have been worried at all. The Avengers was the most fun I’ve had in a movie theater in a long, long time. Here are some random thoughts (spoilers ahead!) on The Avengers movie.

– Every character had a chance to shine. Tony Stark had the best lines. Captain America had an awesomely dramatic run through Manhattan. Hulk and Thor had amazing power moves. Black Widow and Hawkeye did super-cool spy things. More importantly, each character had a purpose. Stark and Banner had science and tech covered. Thor was the supernatural authority. Black Widow was used for interrogations. Hawkeye called out strategies as the eye in the sky. Naturally, the team was led by Cap. It was a stark contrast to the X-Men movies, which had several characters that made you wonder, “Why are you here exactly?”

– The issue I had with screen-time distribution was that there was too much Black Widow and not enough Captain America. Yeah, I know it sounds insane to complain about excess Scarlett Johansson scenes, but as a comic-book nerd it just didn’t make sense. I know that Scar is hot and adds sexiness to the movie (and my dream in life is for her to own me), but in the grand scheme of the Marvel Universe, Black Widow isn’t all the important. Captain America, on the other hand, is like the father of all superheroes. I would have liked a few more scenes that established his natural leadership skills and the sense of paternal authority he conveys.

– On the plus side, Cap’s lack of scenes prevented a ridiculous man-out-of-time montage. My friend Paul was afraid that there was going to be a silly sequence of Cap acclimating to modern times. The first thing that popped into my head was Austin Powers trying to play a CD with a record player. Personally, I’d love to see a deleted scene of Steve Rogers doing the same thing. Ha!

– The Hulk was a big unknown going into the movie. Mark Ruffalo had the unenviable task of following Eric Bana and Ed Norton. For the most part, he was very good as Dr. Bruce Banner. He was somewhat believable as a science guy that could carry a high-level conversation with Tony Stark. He was definitely believable as someone struggling with the mother of all anger-management issues. Banner was very good…but the Hulk was outstanding! The CG was fantastic. The Hulk looked powerful and menacing. His fight scenes were extraordinary. He even had two bits of show-stealing comedy. I loved his sucker punch to Thor in Grand Central Station. Watching him beat the crap out of Loki as if the Norse god were a rag doll was hilarious and viscerally thrilling at the same time. It left you thinking, “Yes! That’s how Hulk rolls!!!”

– Speaking of Loki, Tom Hiddleston was a charming bad guy. His version of Loki was cool. You’d want to hang out with him…if you weren’t afraid of his maniacal plots, never ending lies, clever schemes, and immense power. Paul and I agreed that he felt like more of a threat in The Avengers than he did in Thor. With all the cool characters and big names in the movie, Hiddleston is likely to get overlooked. Pay attention to his performance. He was a great baddie in the movie and great heroes need great baddies in order to shine.

– As with most modern, mainstream movies, there was a lot of product placement in The Avengers. Most of it wasn’t bad, but there was one scene in Manhattan where it felt like the camera was focused on an Acura for like ten seconds. Giant-sized battle with aliens in the greatest city in the world?!? Let’s take some time to stare at this Acura as we transition between scenes. *groan*

– Clark Gregg was fantastic in his role as S.H.I.E.L.D. Agent Phil Coulson. This made-for-the-movies character appeared in all the recent Marvel superhero films and served as the galvanizing agent for the team. His deadpan humor was spot-on and his banter with Pepper Potts — with Tony Stark wondering why they’re so familiar with each other — was fantastic.

– The mid-credit teaser totally made me mark out. Frickin’ Thanos?!? I love it!!! That’s definitely one way to go even bigger. The one problem with Thanos is that you need some space-oriented heroes in the mix. Silver Surfer’s rights were tied up with Fox, which is why he wasn’t in the Planet Hulk animated movie. I’m not sure if the Fox deal has expired. I love me some Adam Warlock, but he’s probably too weird for a mainstream movie…and he also has feathered hair. Captain Marvel would make sense and Whedon would be free to kill him off. How about Michael Clarke Duncan as Thanos? He certainly has the voice for it.

– As the credits for The Avengers rolled, I was left totally satisfied. Was it the best superhero movie ever? Probably not, but it’s up there and leaves room for future Avengers adventures. The best thing I can about it is that I’m totally willing to pony up $10 to see it again. Like I said in the intro, The Avengers is big and loud and fast and fun.

The Dark Knight Rises Trailer #3

Here’s the latest trailer for the highly anticipated Batman movie, The Dark Knight Rises. Bane and Joseph Gordon-Levitt stood out to me, but after seeing The Avengers last night, I’m not looking forward to this movie as much (more on the later). Naturally, I want to hear your thoughts on the new trailer for The Dark Knight Rises. Fire away (please)!!!

The Avengers: Iron Man vs. Thor

Here’s a sweet clip from The Avengers that pits the invincible Iron Man against the mighty Thor. It looks like it’ll be completely awesome on the big screen. Highlights include Thor inadvertently super-charging Tony’s armor with a blast of lightning and a cool exchange of head butts. These clips have me more and more excited for The Avengers! How about you?