THE DARK KNIGHT RISES – 2012 – A FITTING FINALE

 "Scene for scene, The Dark Knight Rises is by far the most exciting and visually stimulating of the three Nolan Batman films and definitely my favorite."

Superhero and Action

Starring - Christian Bale as Bruce Wayne / Batman, Michael Caine as Alfred Pennyworth, Gary Oldman as Commissioner James Gordon, Anne Hathaway as Selina Kyle, Tom Hardy as Bane, Marion Cotillard as Talia al Ghul / Miranda Tate, Joseph Gordon-Levitt as John Blake and Morgan Freeman as Lucius Fox.

Director – Christopher Nolan

Writer(s) – Christopher and Jonathan Nolan

Rated PG-13 for intense sequences of violence and action, some sensuality and language.

Runtime - 165 min.

I am not a huge fan of the comic book Batman. My first exposure to the character, like many children who grew up in the 1960’s was the TV show that ran from January 12, 1966 to March 14, 1968. I do remember collecting bubble gum cards that featured photographs from the show and later painted artwork of the comic book characters, but for whatever reason the TV show never inspired the then 8 to 10 year old me to buy the comic book.

I have since as an adult bought many different runs of the The Batman, Detective Comics and even the The Dark Knight, but I have never bought it for more than a year or two at a time. For reasons that are too deep to go into here, I have always felt more connected to the superheroes of the Marvel universe than those of the DC universe. Therefore, I am not an expert on Batman the comic book character, but merely a fairly educated fan.

I loved the 1960’s TV show as a child, but have not been able to enjoy it much as an adult. I did find out that the show was based on the 1940’s serials Batman (1943) and Batman and Robin (1949), more so than on the comic book, which explains the serialized nature of the show.  The Batman films of the late ‘80’s and 90’s were also somewhat of a disappointment to me as well. While I thought Tim Burtorn’s first film, Batman (1989), captured the mood of the character, I didn't like it for much more than Nicholson’s inspired portrayal of The Joker. Burton’s second film, Batman Returns (1992), was a self-indulgent mess that had more to do with Burton’s demented world view, than with the character of Batman. Joel Schumacher’s Batman Forever (1995) was slick and slightly more super-heroic, but was already bordering on the ridiculous that would be his disastrous follow up Batman & Robin (1997).

With a fair amount of time to get the fowl taste of those films out of my mental palette, I approached Christopher Nolan’s first film, Batman Begins (2005), with reserved optimism. While I think Nolan got the tone of Gotham and all the supporting characters just right, Christian Bale’s Batman still seemed too grim and one-dimensional. However, this was definitely the best film version of the character and I looked forward to the sequel. The Dark Knight (2008) was an immense success, both critically and financially, but I disliked Heath Ledger’s portrayal of The Joker as an insane serial killer and that ruined the film for me. I was still hopeful that that the next – and last for Nolan – Batman film would be a good solid finish to Nolan’s vision of the character. For the most part, I wasn't disappointed.

I’m sure anyone who cares enough about Nolan’s Batman trilogy has already seen it (perhaps multiple times) at the theater, so I won’t reiterate the details of the plot here. I waited to rent The Dark Knight Rises for the simple reason that I wasn’t sure if I would like it enough to sit for two-hours and forty-five minutes in a theater to watch it. I was glad I did watch it at home, because much of the middle portion of the film is weighed down by a complete lack of Batman. I understand that Bane wanted to make Bruce Wayne suffer as he had in the inescapable pit-like prison, but this part really does slow that film down to a crawl.

I did like the set up to the film and didn't have too much of a problem with how Bane converts Wayne Enterprise’s reactor core into a nuclear bomb to put Gotham under his control. While Bane’s plan seems ridiculously over-complicated  it did make for some intense drama. I particularly liked the sequence where Gordon has rounded up as many of the Gotham police as he can, to push a frontal assault on Bane and his mercenaries, while he attempts to place a device on the reactor core that will disable the remote control trigger.

The last act of The Dark Knight Rises is filled with fantastic sequences of action and character drama. I love the way that Bruce/Batman manages to keep coaxing Selina/Catwoman into helping him thwart Bane’s plan to destroy Gotham City. In fact, Selina basically becomes The Robin to Batman in this film and I think she was one of the most enjoyable aspects of the film.

Speaking of Robin, the character, the young police officer John Blake becomes an integral part of the film, where he sort of fills in for Batman; working with Commissioner Gordon while Bruce is recovering from his broken back in the hell hole prison. I liked the character, but he seemed rather forced into the story and I’m not sure I buy his explanation of how he figured out Wayne was Batman. I also don’t understand why Nolan felt compelled to end the film with Blake quitting the force and going off in search of the Batcave.

Nolan’s subsequent Batman films each attempt to “up the ante” in scope. Rise features a new flying machine for the Batman to use against Bane’s militia that its inventor Lucius Fox dubs “The Bat”, for reasons I’m not sure of because it looks nothing like a bat. Still, it does present Batman with some cool action sequences; particularly at the end of the film when Batman is shooting at the several Batmoblie prototypes that Bane’s mercenaries have stolen to help with protecting the truck transporting the reactor core.

I liked enough of the positives of the film, so that the negatives didn’t deter from my enjoyment of it. Christopher Nolan’s strengths as a director and storyteller are in creating mood and character drama and The Dark Knight Rises has both in abundance! While the plot contrivances and outright illogical narrative events in this film could ruin it, I decided early on while watching this film that I would not let these things spoil my pleasure in watching it.

Scene for scene, The Dark Knight Rises is by far the most exciting and visually stimulating of the three Nolan Batman films and definitely my favorite. It will be interesting to see where Warner films take the character of Batman next. With a JLA film reportedly in the works for a release in the summer of 2015, I can only assume that there will be another Batman film, with a new and younger actor playing the part, coming in the near future as well.

TECHNICAL: Acting – 9 Directing – 9 Cinematography – 9 Script – 8 Special Effects – 10

VISCERAL: Visual – 10 Auditory – 9 Intellectual – 8 Emotional – 9 Involvement – 9

TOTAL - 90

THE AMAZING SPIDER-MAN – 2012 – AMAZINGLY, MY SPIDER-MAN!

“This version of Spider-man offers enough new insights into the character’s past that the first film didn't,  that I think it will keep you interested enough to get to the good stuff.”

Superhero, Fantasy and Action

Starring - Andrew Garfield as Peter Parker/Spider-Man, Emma Stone as Gwen Stacy, Rhys Ifans as Dr. Curt Connors/Lizard, Denis Leary as Captain George Stacy, Martin Sheen as Ben Parker, Sally Field as May Parker, Irrfan Khan as Dr. Rajit Ratha and Chris Zylka as Flash Thompson

Director - Marc Webb

Writer(s) - James Vanderbilt, Alvin Sargent and Steve Kloves

Rated PG-13 for sequences of action and violence

Runtime: 136 min.

I bought my first issue of The Amazing Spider-man from the magazine rack of my local drug store in the summer of 1971 at the age of thirteen. I had been buying and reading several different comics sporadically before then (most notably JLA, The Flash and a few others I’ve forgotten), but the cover of The Amazing Spider-man #100 with the John Romita drawn image of Spider-man wall-crawling over a chalkboard-like background of the portraits of all the supporting characters from the past just set my young imaginative mind afire! Most of all, in typical Marvel fashion, the cover blurb announced “At last! The long-awaited 100^th anniversary issue! With the wildest shock-ending of all time!” I had to read this comic! I never missed an issue of The Amazing Spider-man after that for many years to come and even when I was a Marvel Maniac throughout the ‘70s – buying almost every Marvel superhero title - Spidy was always my favorite Marvel character!

I bring up my historical relationship with Spider-man, because I think it helps to explain why I was not a fan of the three previous Sam Raimi directed films and why I enjoyed the latest Marc Webb directed film so much. I don’t want to waste time comparing Spider-Man (2002), Spider-Man 2 (2004) and Spider-Man 3 (2007) to The Amazing Spider-Man (2012). I’ll just say that I never liked Tobey Maguire as Peter Parker and I didn’t like the many stylistic changes to the character that director Sam Raimi and writer David Koepp made; the worst being making Spider-man’s webs biologically shoot out of his hands (yuck!).

So what is it about The Amazing Spider-man that made me think it was the best film version of the character yet? The most important part of Spider-man’s characterization is that he is a high-school geek, a loner, a quietly angry teenager who has never gotten over the loss of his parents. When he is bitten by the radioactive spider and acquires the proportional strength and agility of a spider, Peter is elated and revels in his new found powers. The Amazing Spider-man establishes all this characterization in the first forty minutes of the film. We see Peter riding his skate board in school, belligerent to school rules. We see Peter being bored in Physics class, because it’s obvious that he already knows more than the teacher. We see Peter watching Gwen Stacy from afar, wishing for a way to meet this beautiful girl. We see Peter being beaten by Flash, despite his best efforts to try and avoid the confrontation. We see Peter’s warm relationship with his Uncle Ben and Aunt May in the form of quiet moment between he and Ben, when Peter attempts to hide the beating from his Aunt.

The performance of Andrew Garfield is amazing – especially when you consider he is a 29-year old, who grew up in England – is playing a 17/18-year old Manhattan high-schooler. Before and after he becomes Spider-man, Garfield plays Parker with just the right balance of darkness and inner strength. He plays Peter as the awkward geek and Spidy as the quippy jerk; making both likeable and identifiable. I can’t say enough good things about Emma Stone’s portrayal of Gwen Stacy. She plays her as a beautiful and smart teenage girl, who still is self-conscious and quiet around Peter, who she clearly likes before he becomes Spider-man. This relationship between Peter and Gwen is very important in making Peter and Spidy the man he needs to become.

I haven’t even mentioned the special effects, because at this point, I expect high quality digital effects in a film of this enormous budget (estimated at $230 million!). There are wonderful scenes of Spidy web-slinging through downtown Manhattan and I really loved how much Spider-man uses his webbing as both a defensive and offensive weapon. One of my favorite scenes is where Spidy is hunting down The Lizard in the massive sewer system of NYC and he sits in a web sling at a central hub after shooting web strands down all the adjoining tunnels. The design of the Lizard is not completely faithful to the comic book version; especially in the area of his facial structure. The Lizard was never one of my favorite Spidy villains, as I always thought he just looked like a giant lizard in a lab coat – and don’t get me started on those magenta pants! So, the redesign of The Lizard didn't bother me and as a CGI-only character, I thought he was fairly effective.

The story of Spider-man is well told, even if we do get his “origin” story again only ten-years removed from Spider-man (2002). I liked the fact that the filmmakers didn't rush to get Peter out of high school, just so we could get to him shooting “pics” for The Daley Bugle and working for his public nemesis James Jonah Jameson. Captain Stacy filled in nicely as Spidy’s new public menace, without feeling too forced. The ending, which I won’t ruin here, did feel a little hokey, but of all the Marvel superhero characters, Spider-man is one character that can pull off hokey.

For anyone who didn't go to the theater to see The Amazing Spider-man because they didn't want to see another re-telling of his origin, I recommend giving it a rent. This version of Spider-man offers enough new insights into the character’s past that the first film didn't  that I think it will keep you interested enough to get to the good stuff. The good stuff, by-the-way, is very good indeed!

TECHNICAL: Acting – 10 Directing – 9 Cinematography – 9 Script – 9 Special Effects – 10

VISCERAL: Visual – 10 Auditory – 9 Intellectual – 9 Emotional – 10 Involvement – 10

TOTAL - 95

PODCAST OF THE MONTH! THE COMIC BOOK PODCAST|TALKING COMICS!

Podcast of the Month for August 2012 is:

The Comic Book Podcast|Talking Comics!

I listen to several different comic book podcasts every week. I enjoy listening to these – for the most part – comic book fans discuss the latest comic book news and  - more importantly – their latest favorite comic books from that week. The Comic Book Podcast posted weekly by the folks at Talking Comics is not the oldest of comic book podcasts. In fact, they have only been podcasting since October 12^th of 2011. However, they very quickly found their format, their niche, and most importantly their personality and for me that makes them one of the best comic book podcasts.

The podcast is made up of four comic book fans:

Bobby Shortle is the Editor-In-Chief of the Talking Comics website and is the Podcast Host. Bobby describes himself as having “had plenty of podcasting experience and one might even consider him a podcast guru (like the rest of the Talking Comics podcast crew).” In addition to founding and contributing to the Talking Comics web site and podcast, Bobby works on Fanboy Remix, Doctor Whocast and The Man Cave Podcast.

Stephanie Cooke is the Associate Editor/Community Manager of the Talking Comics website and is a Podcast Co-Host. Stephanie describes herself as “a lover of video games armed with a PS3, Xbox360, Nintendo Wii, PSP, and a DS as my weapons of choice. Additionally, she is an avid reader and lover of all things relating to comic books and books in general. While being a fan of so many of the platforms within the geek culture, she also loves to kick it old school with her rad collection of board games. You can always find her rocking out to her favorite music or devouring movies by the handful. Should you be lucky enough, you can also choose to marvel at her epic collections of comic book figures, movie memorabilia and more.”

Steve Seigh is the Executive Editor and is a Podcast Co-Host. Steve describes himself as “a master of video games and an avid concertgoer. He is quite possibly the male equivalent to a crazy cat lady and lives in a magical world called New York. Steve also enjoys long walks on the beach (with his cat, Moo Moo), cooking exotic pancakes and watching movies. When he’s not writing for Talking Comics, you can find him over at JoBlo.com where Steve writes a bi-weekly column all about animation called Ink & Pixel.

Bob Ryer is the resident Comic Book Historian and a Podcast Co-Host. Bob may not contribute to the web site, or participate in the other social media sites for Talking Comics. However, his comic book reading experiences go back to the early days of Marvel and DC and his ready knowledge of the history of comics is a valuable asset to the podcast.

The format for The Comic Book Podcast|Talking Comics is simple: They begin each cast with each podcaster giving their Comic Book Pick of the Week. Most times these picks consist of the latest superhero releases from Marvel or DC, but they do occasionally delve into comics published by Image, Dark Horse, IDW and comic book companies that publish non-superhero comics. Stephanie Cooke is the most ardent supporter of the “Independent” publishers and also recommends web comics from time to time.

Most often they follow this with Comic Book News, where they discus what the latest comic book stories could mean to their fellow comic book fans. In their latest podcast “Issue #43: Marvel Movie News, Marvel Now Teams and July Sales” they spent over forty-five minutes discussing the writer and artists teams that were announced for the forthcoming Marvel Now books!

They then spend time on the podcast by answering questions from listeners who send in various comics related queries via email, Facebook or Twitter. This often reveals more about the tastes of the podcasters than any other segment on the podcast.

Every podcast ends with Bobby reading all the comic book titles released during that week and his fellow podcasters are encouraged to join in with a  yeah or nay!

They also occasionally veer from their weekly format and do entire shows dedicated to specific topics or feature shows dedicated to interviews with comic book creators. On a special podcast titled “Women in Comics Podcast: Trina Robbins” from July 20, they did both. In fact, during the week of July 16 through July 20, they did four separate podcasts featuring Women in Comics and did interviews with Kelly Sue DeConnick, Fiona Staples, as well as the afore mentioned Trina Robbins.

I like this podcast because like my other favorite podcasts it feels like you are getting together with your fellow comic book fans and discussing what your latest favorite comic books are. They definitely focus on the positive side of the hobby and don’t tend to hate on things they don’t like for too long. If you are a comic book reader like me, you should definitely try The Comic Book Podcast|Talking Comics!

For more information on their podcast: http://talkingcomicbooks.com/

THE AVENGERS - 2012 - ASSEMBLE ASTONISHING AMAZEMENT!

“The Avengers is the first movie in a very long time that as soon as it ended, I wanted to immediately watch it again!”

Superhero, Science Fiction, Fantasy and Action

Staring - Robert Downey Jr./Tony Stark & Iron Man, Chris Evans/Steve Rogers & Captain America, Mark Ruffalo/Bruce Banner & The Hulk, Chris Hemsworth/Thor, Scarlett Johansson/Natasha Romanoff & Black Widow, Jeremy Renner/Clint Barton & Hawkeye, Tom Hiddleston/Loki, Clark Gregg/Agent Phil Coulson, Cobie Smulders/Agent Maria Hill, Stellan Skarsgård/Professor Erik Selvig and Samuel L. Jackson/Nick Fury

Director/Writer – Joss Whedon

Rated PG-13 - intense sequences of sci-fi violence and action and a mild drug reference.

2 hr., 21 min.

The Avengers is the culmination of four years of Marvel superhero movies! Iron Man arrived in May of 2008 and was immediately followed by The Incredible Hulk in June of 2008. Iron Man 2 soloed in May of 2010. Thor was released in May of 2011 as part of a Marvel double-header with Captain America: The First Avenger following in July of 2011. Each one of these films was tied into the Avengers movie with a very clever linking thread: a post-credits scene. Iron Man had Nick Fury attempting to recruit Tony Stark for the "Avenger Initiative.” The Incredible Hulk’s final scene shows Tony Stark walking into a bar to ask General Ross “What if I told you we’re putting a team together?” Iron Man 2’s post-credits scene shows S.H.I.E.L.D. Agent Coulson observing an impact crater in the New Mexico desert, with Thor’s hammer lying in the crater. Thor’s post-credit’s scene shows Nick Fury talking to Professor Erik Selvig and showing him the Tesseract cube and saying it is, “Unlimited power, Doctor. If we can figure out how to tap it, maybe unlimited power.” Finally, in the Captain America post-credit scene, we see Nick Fury telling Steve Rodgers after he asks if he’s trying to get him back in the world, Fury says, “We’re trying to save it.” This four year cross-film pollination has built up unprecedented anticipation for The Avengers movie and thankfully the film lives up to that extraordinary expectation!

The Avengers opens in a S.H.I.E.L.D. underground base, where they have hidden the Tesseract device to experiment on. The devise activates and Loki steps though a gate created by it and he immediately takes mental control of several agents, including Clint ‘Hawkeye” Barton and Professor Erik Selvig, who aid him in escaping the facility with the Tesseract device.

Nick Fury contacts Agent Natasha “Black Widow” Romanoff and asks her to recruit Dr. Bruce Banner to help find the stolen Tesseract device. Meanwhile Agent Phil Coulson asks Tony Stark to review Selvig's research and to also help retrieve the device. Fury himself works with Steve “Captain America” Rodgers to help coordinate an attack on Loki once he is located. Unbeknownst to anyone, Loki has made a deal with an alien known only as the Other, to recruit an alien race called the Chitauri to help him subjugate Earth.

Banner traces the Tesseract device to Stuttgart, Germany, where Loki battles with Captain America and Iron Man and surrenders to S.H.I.E.L.D. Thor intercepts the plane transporting Loki and takes him away in an attempt to make his brother see reason. Iron Man and Thor fight over Loki, but Captain America intercedes and they agree to imprison Loki in S.H.I.E.L.D.'s flying aircraft carrier, the Helicarrier.

The Helicarrier is attacked by Loki’s possessed agents and they eventually free him after a tremendous battle that results in Banner transforming into the Hulk. Eventually, Thor, the Hulk, Captain America, the Black Widow and Hawkeye, fight Loki and his alien army in a tremendous battle in New York City, where Loki uses the Tesseract device to open a portal that unleashes the full might of the Chitauri military!

The Avengers is the first movie in a very long time that as soon as it ended, I wanted to immediately watch it again! Even films that I’ve truly loved in recent years haven’t motivated me with more than a knowledge that I would be buying it on blu-ray to watch it again. The pure adrenalin thrill that The Avengers produces is rare in films today; especially for someone like me who is old enough to have seen Star Wars in theaters in 1977 when it was the first and only Star Wars film.

What really makes The Avengers such an exhilarating and entertaining cinematic experience is the perfectly executed dynamics between all the characters; particularly the most powerful characters Thor, Iron Man and The Hulk. At a point in the film, each one of these characters has a physical confrontation with each other, that helps to establish not only a mutual respect for each other’s powers, but their powerful personalities as well. An example of this cagey dynamic is demonstrated in the fight between the Hulk and Thor. It is not fully resolved on a physical level, but later in the film when the two of them are standing side by side after having mutually defeated a common foe, the Hulk casually punches Thor in the arm which sends Thor flying off in the air several hundred feet!

I’ll admit up front that I am a Whedonite! I’ve followed Joss Whedon’s creations all the way from Buffy the Vampire Slayer, to Angel, to Firefly, to Dollhouse, to Dr. Horrible's Sing-Along Blog and liked or loved them all. His first feature film, 2005’s Serenity, which was based on his sci-fi western TV series Firefly, really demonstrated Joss ability to tell a complex story with multiple characters in a two-hour film format, so I was confident that he would also write a similarly intricate and vivid story for The Avengers as well. Joss Whedon’s fingerprints are all over this film, but they particularly stand out in the dialogue between the characters.  When Thor and Black Widow are discussing how to punish Loki Thor explains his reluctance with, “He's my brother.” To which Natasha responds, “He’s killed eighty people in two days!” Thor sheepishly replies, “He’s adopted.” One of the better physical gags is between Loki and the Hulk fighting and an astonished Loki shouts, “I am a God! I am not going to be bullied by a...” and before he can finish the Hulk grabs him by the legs and throws him around like a doll, then simply utters, “Puny God!” These are the types of small breaks in the action that really make The Avengers unique and a very Joss Whedonesque film.

The magnificent battle at the finally of the film in New York City is not only filled with the expected extravagant special effects, but there are quite a few good emotional payoffs as well. My favorite moment - this isn’t a spoiler, because they show it the trailer – is when Tony Stark is falling from the sky to his certain doom, it is the Hulk who catches him and slows his fall. This is significant because throughout the film, Tony Stark is the one person who believes that Bruce Banner will be able to assert his personality after he transforms into the Hulk and this scene is the exclamation point that proves him right. In a way, this scene also demonstrates the essence of The Avengers, which to me is about the sacrifice of self to the mutual benefit of the assembled whole. That is indeed what the saying “Avengers Assemble” is all about!

TECHNICAL: Acting – 10 Directing – 10 Cinematography – 10 Script – 10 Special Effects – 10

VISCERAL: Visual – 10 Auditory – 9 Intellectual – 9 Emotional – 10 Involvement – 10

TOTAL RATING – 98

TRAILER TUESDAY! THE AVENGERS: EARTH'S MIGHTIEST HEROES!

If you’re anything like me and are waiting impatiently for The Avengers movie that is coming to theaters May fourth, I discovered something with which to tide your superhero-team jones over! The Avengers: Earth’s Mightiest Heroes is a half-hour animated TV program that debuted on Disney XD in the fall of 2010. I haven’t watched animated shows with any regularity for many years now, so it comes as no surprise that this show escaped my notice. However, the entire 26-episode run of the first season of The Avengers: EMH is now on Netflix streaming. At 23 minutes per episode, the stories fly by as they are jammed-packed with super-heroic action!

The roster of superheroes for The Avengers: EMH is almost the same as the upcoming Marvel film. However, the series initially features a team based on the roster of the original 1960’s Marvel Comics Avengers, which is comprised of Iron Man, Ant-Man, Hulk, Thor, and the Wasp. Later in the series, they are joined by Captain America, Black Panther, and Hawkeye. As a fan who grew up reading the 1960’s and 1970’s Avengers comics, I really appreciate that the series is based primarily on the original stories by Stan Lee and Jack Kirby. There are a few concessions to the modernization of certain Marvel characters – namely Nick Fury is a black man (oddly with hair in season one) that is clearly based on the Samuel L. Jackson film version of the character. Since S.H.E.I.L.D., like the movies, is largely responsible for gathering together the Avengers, Nick Fury’s character plays a prominent role in the show.

The second season of The Avengers: Earth’s Mightiest Heroes is already running on Disney XD on Sunday mornings at 11:37 Am, right after the new Ultimate Spiderman show (which I’m also watching, but not quite as excited about), so once you get caught up, you can look forward to even more super-heroic adventure of The Avengers: Earth’s Mightiest Heroes!

CAPTAIN AMERICA: THE FIRST AVENGER – 2011 – A FIRST RATE ADVENTURE!

My first exposure to Captain America was in the form of those wonderfully limited animated cartoons from 1966. The cartoons, which were actually photocopied images taken directly from the comics, were terrible animation, but they were my first exposure to the Mighty Marvel Superheroes: Captain America, The Incredible Hulk, The Invincible Iron Man, The Mighty Thor and Prince Namor the Sub-Mariner. In 1967, Spiderman and the Fantastic Four would get their own Saturday morning cartoons and that would eventually lead me to buying my first issues of Spiderman and The Fantastic Four. It would be a few years before I could afford to buy more Marvel comics with my limited allowance money, but I definitely bought the characters that I remembered from those early cartoons: The Incredible Hulk, The Invincible Iron Man, The Mighty Thor and of course Captain America!

Captain America has had a rough time of it in cinema. Cap’s first cinematic incarnation was the 1944 Republic serial and dealt with Captain America trying to thwart the plans of The Scarab in his attempts to acquire the "Dynamic Vibrator" and "Electronic Firebolt" which were devices that could be used as super-weapons. Other than the previously mentioned cartoons, Captain America wouldn’t appear on-screen again until he emerged in two TV movies on CBS: Captain America, which aired January 19, 1979, and Captain America II: Death Too Soon, which aired November 23, 1979.  Both starred Reb Brown in the title role and placed Steve Rogers in then contemporary times with a completely different origin and modus operandi.

Captain America was to make his feature film debut in 1990 starring Matt Salinger as Captain America and Scott Paulin as The Red Skull with direction by Albert Pyun. This film featured Steve Rogers becoming Captain America during World War II to battle the Red Skull and being frozen in ice, to be subsequently revived in 1990 to save the President of the United States from a crime family that dislikes his environmentalist polices. The film was planned for release in the summer of 1990, but after several release dates were announced between fall 1990 and winter 1991 the film still went unreleased for two years before debuting direct to video and on cable television in the United States in the summer of 1992. Of all the screen versions of Captain America, this was the most loyal to the source material, but its limited budget didn’t make it look much better than the 1970’s TV movies.

Finally, this summer saw the release of two of Marvel’s superheroes Thor and Captain America. Marvel Studios has been building up to the upcoming release of The Avengers next year since the first Iron Man film was released in 2008. The Avengers will feature not only Captain America and Thor, but Iron Man and the Hulk as well. I loved the two Iron Man films and enjoyed Thor as well, so my expectations for Captain America: The First Avenger were fairly high. I was not disappointed.

Captain America: The First Avenger is set in 1942, just as America is entering World War II. Steve Rogers is a skinny kid who is determined to enlist in the military. Unfortunately, he is listed as 4F until a mysterious Dr. Erksine sees the kid and ensures that Steve passes his exam, so that he can enter his Project Rebirth program. Proving his intelligence, guts and sheer determination, Dr. Erksine chooses Steve to be subjected to the massive injections of the super soldier serum he created. Steve is transformed into a perfect physical specimen, but just as he is emerging from the lab, Dr. Erksine is murdered by a HYDRA agent and Steve becomes the only super soldier. The government doesn’t want to risk Steve in combat, so he is relegated to performing as “Captain America” in USO shows stateside to sell war bonds. While on a tour overseas, Steve finds out that his old friend James “Bucky” Barnes has been captured by HDYRA during a secret mission to find the headquarters of the Red Skull. The leader of HYDRA, the Red Skull had worked for Hitler as a scientific research division, but on gaining enough military strength on his own, decides to use the war as a means to establishing himself as the absolute ruler of the world! Donning an altered version of his Captain America costume, Steve Rogers races off to face the Red Skull and stop him before it too late!

Joe Johnson was the perfect director for Captain America, as he had also directed one of my favorite comic book film adaptations: The Rocketeer. Captain America takes its time to establish the wartime setting, getting all the visual details of New York circa 1942 just right. Chris Evans as the spindly Steve Rogers (done with some fine digital trickery) is just as convincing as when he eventually becomes Captain America. I think because so much effort is put into the pre super-heroic Steve Rogers, that when he eventually dons the Red-white-and-blue uniform, we are really pulling for him on several levels. Hugo Weaving does a fine job of playing the Red Skull with just enough panache that his evil plans seem almost justified. The whole supporting cast, from Haley Atwell as Peggy Carter, Tommy Lee Jones as Colonel Chester Philips, to Sebastian Stan as ‘Bucky’ Barnes, get the most out of their minimal screen time. There are also some cool moments in the film that only a Marvel Comics fan or a comic book historian would notice. When Captain America is doing his USO tour, he is given a badge-shaped shield, instead of the circular shield that the character is most identified with. The "badge" shield is the shield that Captain America only used for the very first issue of the Captain America comic that was published in March of 1941. Among a group of soldiers that Captain America attacks the Red Skull's fortress with are Timothy "Dum Dum" Dugan and Gabe Jones. These are two of the soldiers that appeared in the WWII comic first published by Marvel in 1963 entitled Sgt. Fury and his Howling Commandos.

Once the battle between Captain America and the Red Skull starts, the action is almost nonstop! I particularly liked the retro-high tech weapons used by the Red Skull and his HYDRA minions. From ray-cannon tanks to underwater jets, there is enough gadgetry to keep any super-science geek happy. Captain America, despite his super strength and agility, is still quite believable on screen, as it seems most of the stunts were done live action whenever possible. As good as modern CGI is it is no substitute to for real actors and stunt people doing their thing.

As with all the other recent Marvel films, if you stay to the end of the credits you are treated to a sneak peek of The Avengers film that is being released next summer. This is being directed by Joss Whedon, who also wrote the script and I for one can’t wait for it!

Any fan of the superhero genre, or period action films, should enjoy Captain America: The First Avenger. As a first adventure of Captain America it is indeed first rate!

ALPHAS – SUPER ABILITIES, NOT SUPERPOWERS, ON SYFY

After the recent failed attempts of the superhero shows The Cape and No Ordinary Family, I had very low expectations for SYFY’s new TV program Alphas [Mondays @ 10pm]. The only mistake SYFY has made thus far is labeling Alphas a superhero show in the first place. One of the creators of Alphas, Zak Penn, whose resume includes writing the superhero screenplays for The Incredible Hulk, X-Men: The Last Stand, and Elektra, has made a very conscious effort to make the abilities of each of the Alphas as scientifically believable as possible. As each of the Alphas is introduced, their abilities – not superpowers – are explained and demonstrated, using visual effects to help make the explanation even clearer. Each of the Alphas abilities even has a drawback or weakness, which I think helps add to the realism as well.

Unlike traditional superheroes, the Alphas do belong to a loose knit group, yet they don’t wear any sort of costume or uniform. I also like the fact that although they work in cooperation with the Defense Criminal Investigation Service of the U.S. Department of Defense, they are not officially affiliated with the government. This is reflected in the main character Dr. Lee Rosen, who seems to be a free-spirit scientist, whose hobbies include collecting classic rock on vinyl. Rosen, the tactical and spiritual leader of the Alphas, is not above using the abilities of his Alphas for good, but he is still very protective of them. As a neurologist and psychiatrist, Dr. Rosen is able to not only help the Alphas understand and use their abilities more affectively, but also treat their sometimes fragile emotions and mental states as well.

I like all of the five Alpha characters. Bill Harkin is the least likable of the five, but part of that is because as a former FBI agent, he still needs to be in control and seems to have trouble working with a group of untrained civilians. Gary Bell is the most likable and sympathetic character, but his ability and perceived handicap will restrict this character's physical involvement in future cases. Nina Theroux is the "babe" of the group, but what makes her interesting is her ability makes her able to control every aspect of her life and yet her cool detached exterior appears to be a cover for a deeper unhappiness. Cameron Hicks is interesting because of his complex past, which includes being a former army sniper and minor league baseball pitcher. Unfortunately, the writers have stuck him with the dramatic cliché of being a divorced Dad with an estranged son. Rachel Pirzad's abilities are the least believable but the most useful to the group. Fortunately, her abilities also make her the most vulnerable when she uses them; making her the most dependent on the group for protection.

Surprisingly, I really liked Alphas! I suspect the reason is that I have always liked SF that dealt with human beings that are able to use their minds to extraordinary ends. For me, this has always been the most realistic of science fictional rational for people with "superpowers" and that gives me hope that Alphas could be one “superhero” show that has the ability to last more than one season.