The State of the Universe Address

Us comic book fans would like to boast that we have lived through the renaissance of the comic book-based movie, trying desperately to put behind us the humiliating existence of such films as The Punisher starring Dolph Lundgren, Captain America starring Nobody Cares, and Howard the Duck starring Howard the Duck (and Lea Thompson. I'll admit I kinda liked this one as a kid). We are living in a time when Spider-man became the gold standard for comic book superhero movies. 5, maybe 10 years ago, the idea of there being a Spider-man movie was laughable, let alone an X-Men one. (Come one, mutants? Really?) There was an unspeakable longing within the soul of every comic book geek (CBG), one that desperately wanted to see a movie about a man who swings around New York city dressed in red and blue tights, but also deeply feared the injustice and disrespect such a project would garnish or earn. Most of us have grown up with these characters in our lives almost everyday, be it through the page or the small screen. This is our mythology. These are our gods. The past few years have given us two virtually perfect Spider-man films, two X-Men films (which I believe did as well as they did because we all have dealt with discrimination in one form or another at least once in our lives), and the awesome ressurection of the Batman franchise from the desicrated tomb that Joel Schumacher pissed all over. True, they haven't all been gems (Hulk? Elektra? Anyone?), but I have to admit there is a certain awe-inspiring goosebump-raising sensation that grows within the gut of ever CBG when their favorite hero finally gets a theme. (Danny Elfman is a God!) It's also nice to see that lesser known graphic novels are seeing time on the silver screen, and sometimes surpassing preconceived expectations, in some cases even gaining critical acclaim. I'm talking about movies like Hellboy, Constantine, A History of Violence, and American Splendor. This year we have three big budget superhero movies to look forward to: X3 (X-Men 3 for those of you living under a rock), V For Vendetta (starring hottie Natalie Portman), and Superman Returns (starring hottie Brandon Routh). Of the three, I'm most looking forward to Superman Returns. Seeing the awesome job that Brian Singer did with the X-Men franchise, I'm willing to give him the benefit of the doubt, although I fear that the X-Men franchise won't survive much longer without him. I was too young to see Superman fly on screen the first time around, so needless to say that the recent trailer for his triumphant return raised not goose, but ostrich bumps. And the future only looks brighter. Next year we will see Spider-Man 3, which from what I hear will feature Sandman and Electro as the villains (only used to usher in the arrival of Venom in the 4th film, according to some), and Ghost Rider starring Nicholas Cage. Other titles that are currently being considered are Iron Man, Namor the Submariner, The Flash, Wonder Woman, Deathlok, Thor, and a better version of Captain America. And with new titles being created every day, the possibilites are endless. So, my fellow CBG's the state of the Universe is good at the moment, but in the hands of the wrong director, even the next Batman Begins can become Oley Sassone's Fantastic Four. (CBG's know what I'm talking about). Until next time True Believers.