HAPPY NEW YEARS EVE! Here are my highlights of the year from 2014...

So another year has gone by. A much busier year, a lot less posts than I would like. What will happen in the year to come I can't say but I here are my highlights of the year from comics, to movies, tv and more! I hope you all have a wonderful New Year!

My favourite writer of 2014: Sam Humphries

Why? If your not reading Legendary Star-Lord then you should be!

My favourite artist of 2014: Jacob Wyatt

Why? Did you see those issues of Ms Marvel and Edge of Spider-Verse #5? Well go and check your local comic stores back issues, now, if they have any left!

My favourite colorist of 2014: Matt Wilson

Why? The new Thor just looks incredible and thats partly because of the beautiful colours done by this guy, and many other titles he colours! For example The Wicked + The Divine!

My Favourite Publisher of 2014: Image Comics

Why? "Well sometimes superheroes just get boring and Image do a great job of offering more diverse titles and filling in that gap, The Wicked + The Divine, Southern Bastards, I could go on listing for quite some time."

My favourite single issue of 2014: Edge of Spider-Verse #2 (That Spider-Gwen issue)

Why? "This is when superheroes don't get boring!"

My favourite event of 2014: Spider-Verse

Why? "Every Spider-Man EVER! Need I say more"

My favourite cover artist of 2014: Julian Totino Tedesco

Why? "His covers for the Marvel Event Original Sin were the best thing about the series! And now he's lending his fantastuc to S.H.I.E.L.D.!"

My favourite title of 2014: Thor God of Thunder/ Thor (Avengers NOW!)

Why? "By far the most consistent title this year. Aaron and Ribic have done a brilliant job on this title, King Thor is the stand out for me though. Then they throw in the curve ball of a new Thor, I was a doubter, and now believer... go on what are you waiting for? Go pick it up!"

My favourite collection of 2014: Ms Marvel Volume 1
Why? "This is one of my big highlights of the year. This book proves why Marvel are as successful and influencial as they are. Kamala Khan is the breakout character of the year! Well done to G. Willow Wilson and Adrian Alphona"

My favourite independent collection of 2014: By Chance and Provedence (Becky Cloonan)
Why? "Becky Cloonan is by far one of my favourite artists, I have each issue of her self published comics, more than once, so when she collected these in to white neatly package Tome I had to get my hands on a copy!"

My favourite up and coming writer of 2014: Noelle Stephenson
Why? "Have you been reading Lumberjanes from BOOM! Box? Well you should be! Noelle Stephenson is the creator and writer of this wonderful little comic, she has also completed her online comic Nimona which will soon be coming to print. Check out her stuff you'll dig it!"

My favourite up and coming artist of 2014: Babs Tarr/ Russell Dauterman
Why? "Well I just couldn't decide. Babs Tarr is the exceptional find now illustrating the newly rejuvenated Batgirl title for DC Comics! Russell Dauterman is the new star of the Thor comic working alongside Jason Aaron to create a truly wonderful new take on the character! Look out for more from these two next year!"

 My favourite up and coming colorist of 2014: Ruth Redmond

Why? "Ruth Redmond started of as coloring extraordinaire Jordie Bellaire's intern. Now she is covering several titles from different publishers. You may have seen her work in All New Warriors! Keep an eye out for more from her next year!"

My favourite film of 2014: GUARDIANS OF THE GALAXY!!!!
Why? "I Am Groot"

My favourite video game of 2014: Game of Thrones Episode 1: Iron from Ice (Telltale Games)
Why? "I've read the books. I watch the TV programme! And now there is a game worth playing. A year in the waiting and TellTale have finally released their first episode of  there Game of Thrones series based on the TV programme and it did not dissapoint!"

My favourite TV programme of 2014: Star Wars Rebels/ Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. Season 2
Why? "There are only 2 programmes I make sure I watch at the moment and that is Star Wars Rebels and Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. Season 2. They are both currently on mid-season breaks. I miss them so."

Just a few Honourable Mentions;

The Wicked + The Divine

"Kieran Gillen and Jamie McKelvie along with Matt Wilson, continue there indredible form from last years Young Avengers with there new independent creator owned title The Wicked + The Divine you should check it out!"

Jason Latour/ Robbi Rodriquez/ Rico Renzi

"They are only the creators of the break out character of the year for me, Spider-Gwen, and because of the huge fan response we will be getting a Spider-Gwen title in the new year! I'm not excited about this... much"

Declan Shalvey/ Jordie Bellaire

"I couldn't do a highlight of the year list without including these two. They continue to create fanatstic covers and were instrumental in the revival of Moon Knight alongside Warren Ellis earlier in the year. Bring on Injection from Image comics next year!"

TellTale Games

"They developed my Game of the Year. They continue to develop my favourite games. Walking Dead and Wolf Among Us (Fables) are all done so far. Borderlands just out with Game of Thrones, and now a Minecraft game just announced being produced. This studio is only on the up and up! And I for one hope it continues, there episodic gameplay is something I love and can't wait for more!"

Telltale Games: Game of Thrones Episode 1 Premiering Soon

That's right, today Telltale released the below image, confirming that the new Game of Thrones title will be a 6 episode series and will premier soon, I can not wait for this!!

Marvel's Agent Carter January 2015 an 8 Part Television Event

The TV spot during last nights episode of Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. has been doing the rounds and for those of us who did not know already, it will be appearing on our screens on Tuesdays beginning January next year, and is a 8 Part Television Event!

 

Get a Special Look at Marvel's "Avengers: Age of Ultron"

So we have the announcement of every Marvel film of phase 3. More news and a date for Marvel's Agent Carter TV series and now Marvel Entertainment have posted the extra footage shown during Tuesdays episode of Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. Check it out below;

Marvel Studios: Marvel Cinematic Universe Phase 3!

Squeeeee!! Well I stayed late at work to watch the event unfold on twitter and live blog and I wasn't disappointed! Quite frankly I was bouncing around the room at each announcement and my cinema trips for the next 5 years are already in the calendar.

Also those of you who may have been wondering like I had Ant Man is the final film in the Marvel Cinematic Universe Phase 2.

So to make this easier I will put the announcements into date order below.

May 6th 2016: Captain America: Civil War;

This sees Robert Downey Jnr join Cap in the film that will be based around the popular Marvel comics event created by Mark Millar and Steve McNiven, and in my opinion is the best event in a long time but I am biased as this is what got me into comics. But obviously this is the Marvel Cinematic Universe take on the Civil War and unless certain agreements come about much as has been rumoured, Spider-Man and the X-Men will not be involved.

November 4th 2016: Doctor Strange;

So far all that is confirmed for this is the director Scott Derrickson. No confirmation was made regarding Benedict Cumberbatch having been given the role. But as always this doesn't mean it isn't true, but to be fair Marvel gave us all of this, can we really be upset they haven't announced the leading man for this film yet.

May 5th 2017: Guardians of the Galaxy 2;

Well this has been moved forward by a couple of months. Which is great news as it means I have a little less time to wait for my favourite Marvel film yet! I have a feeling this may get a new title before it is released like the previous sequels to the Marvel Cinematic Universe have received. We already know that James Gunn is directing again and he has confirmed he is happily working on the script right now!

July 28th 2017: Thor: Ragnarok;

Taking the original slot that was originally filled with the Guardians sequel. Christopher Hemsworth and Tom Hiddleston have been confirmed to be returning to their roles of Thor and Loki. And for those who may not be familiar, and I will try not to go on for to long as this is one of my favourite mythologies, that Ragnarok is the end of the world scenario. So this has the potential to really be the best Thor film yet. Thor The Dark World was definitely a step up from the previous and I look forward to when we start to get more news regarding this third installment.

November 3rd 2017: Black Panther;

This title has been rumoured for a long while now, and has apparently been planned for some time and has been seeded with the universe prior to this announcement. There is certainly a few elements regarding Age of Ultron that people feel links with the Black Panther. Also the leading man of the film was announced and introduced to the crowd at the event, Chadwick Boseman, for me a relatively unknown actor.

May 4th 2018: Avengers: Infinity War Part I;

Well the film we all knew would be coming and also involving a certain item and obvious character, the Infinity Gauntlet and Thanos; and considering the films announced to this point then I can't wait to see which team will be lining up for this film. Maybe running up to Avengers Age of Ultron I'll take a look and the currect and prospective rosters by the time this film is released. Joss Whedon will be returning as Director and I am fairly certain we will be seeing the return of several actor/ actresses so far. Plus Downey Jnr has already been confirmed for Avengers 3 right? Or was that 2? I'll look that up.

July 6th 2018: Captain Marvel;

The biggest surprise for me was the announcement of the Captain Marvel film to be led by the female take on the character Carol Danvers. I for one hope this takes inspiration from the Jamie McKelvie redesign, the obvious casting choice is Katee Sackhoff but I have a feeling they may go for someone less known and not from a previous Sci Fi franchise, but hopefully I'm wrong. This is an exciting announcement and I look forward to finding out more regarding the character and will be intrigued as to how the announcement or first appearance of the character will take place.

November 2nd 2018: Inhumans;

Many believe this is Marvel's answer to the fact they do not own the X-Men franchise. But take a look at the Marvel Cinematic Universe so far has there been any requirement for the X-Men, NO! Considering the galactic nature that many of the films are moving too do the Inhumans make more sense? In my opinion yes! But being the Marvel fanboy that I am I am of course slightly biased. It will be interesting to see how things are set up for this film beforehand, Guardians of the Galaxy? Infinity War Part I? Its also heavily believed that the Inhumans are being set up in Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. Well theres plenty more to look forward until we hear more about this film.

May 3rd 2019: Avengers: Infinity War Part II;

Marvel's Avengers Age of Ultron Trailer!!

NYCC 2014: Marvel announce Secret Wars coming May 2015

Well they certainly managed to keep that one quiet. It's been a week for surprises the end of Batman #35 and now the announcement of Marvel's Secret Wars with no teasers running up to NYCC 2014. I must admit that I am not that familiar with Marvels previous Secret Wars event, other than it was the birth of event books and also had a huge commercial push through other avenues, plus I have an issue in my collection with the first appearance of Spidey's black suit.

Sadly from the promo image released I begin to realise my lack of knowledge of the expanded Marvel Universe, reminding me that I've only been collecting comics for the past 6 years, only managing to name the core 616 universe characters and Miles Morales, it certainly seems like I have some catching up to do.

But from what has been released, the fact this is the culmination of what Hickman has been working towards since taking over the Avengers core titles, leaves me excited, add the fact that super star artist Assad Ribic is on art duties, and come May next year we are certainly going to have a book to look forward to.

It has been confirmed that this event will span a year, so 12 issues in total plus cross over. I'm sure we will learn more as May gets closer, in the press and the comics where we get a month closer in each issue of the Avengers with Time Runs Out.

Now I'm off to the book store to buy myself the Marvel Encyclopaedia to work out who these other characters are on the promo image. To take a closer look at the promo check out the link below for a super size image.

http://www.newsarama.com/images/i/000/136/368/original/Secret-Wars.jpg

In 4 Months Past... Time Ran Out

So there has been a long absence since I last posted something on here. The incredible thing for me was that I didn't even get anything SDCC related onto the blog through July, life has just been far to busy and quite frankly my chrome book doesn't stand up to my previous laptop and can be annoyingly frustrating at times.

But back to the blogging, I'm not going to make any promises of this being my return, it may well even be another 4 months from this post that I finally post something else again, but we will just have to wait and see.

It has been a busy 4 months for the comic world and film and here is a quick well actually fairly long look at what caught my eye and I had hoped to post about.

Image Expo (Tokyo Ghost, Drifter, Injection, Southern Cross)

To begin, and to my surprise it is not Marvel related. The Image Expo that tagged itself to to the beginning of SDCC this year had some of the most exciting announcements of the convention. Image continue to produce some of the best independent comics out there, there philosophy is luring and attracting some of brightest and most promising talents in the business and the titles announced at this expo were testament to that. I am only going to write about the ones which caught my eye but there are plenty of titles to keep an eye out for in the Image solicitations as they are released month by month.

Injection #1 (Source Comic Book Resources)

The two which shouted out at me the moment they were announced while I was keeping up with the live blog of the event were Injection from the creative team of Warren Ellis, Declan Shalvey and Jordie Bellaire, who just finished their run on probably one of the best arcs of Moon Knight I have read. The creative team alone has gotten me really excited for this one. The other title that screamed manically at me is Southern Cross from Becky Cloonan and Andy Belanger, if any of you have read my previous posts you will be well aware of my love for Cloonan's comics. Andy Belanger is a creator I am not particularly familiar with but I look forward to seeing his artistic talents in this creator owned voyage.

Other titles that grabbed my attentions were Tokyo Ghost from Rick Remender and Sean Gordon Murphy, Drifter from Ivan Brandon and Nic Klein. For all the other exciting titles keep your eyes peeled to the Image Solicitations as and when they are released.

DC Bat Universe (Gotham Academy, Batgirl, Gotham by Midnight, Arkham Manor)

Next, and still not Marvel, DC have suddenly and surprisingly announced a new group of Bat-centric titles from creators that have mainly had a independent background. In order of my favourites, Gotham Academy with the incredibly exciting creative team of Becky Cloonan, Brendan Fletcher and Karl Kerschl who will be taking us into the halls of a school funded by Bruce Wayne and being Gotham this will not be your run of the mill highschool. Then there is the re-vamp of Batgirl which sees the long standing fan favourite writer Gail Simone handing the character over to Brendan Fletcher, Cameron Stuart and newcomer Babs Tarr, this is yet another exciting line up and the preview work and what has been revealed so far has already gathered quite the online following including it's own tumblr by the creators for the flurry of fan art. Finally not to be forgotten from the hype of the previous two announcements there will also be Arkham Manor from Gerry Duggan and Shaun Crystal along with Gotham by Midnight from Ray Fawkes and Ben Templesmith. Arkham Manor sees Bruce Wayne's home become the new Arkham Asylum and Gotham by Midnight sees a group of detectives that investigate the mysterious in Gotham led by Spectre.

Gotham By Midnight

Spider-Verse (Spider-Gwen)

Okay now it's time for some Marvel news. Spider-Verse begins this month well the run up to with the Edge of Spider-Verse titles beginning to roll out. These being 5 one shot issues focusing on alternative universe Spider-Men or Women. From the known to the new, Spider-Man Noir, Spider-Gwen which I am most excited for and already hope will receive her own stand alone title, Dustin Weaver creates is own alterate universe Spider-Man, there looks to be a sort of pulp horror Spider-Man and the second favourite of the 5 I'm looking forward to is the team-up of Gerard Way and Jake Wyatt for there interpretation of a alternate universe Spider-Man.

As mentioned the most exciting title for me from the 5 is Edge if Spider-Verse #2 from Jason Latour and Robbi Rodriguez, who sounds like a Marvel character himself but is part of the creative team from Vertigo comic FBPD. They will be bringing us an alternate universe Gwen Stacy who was in fact bitten by the spider. Rodriguez has killed it on the design and there have already been several Spider-Gwen cosplayers at comic conventions. I have high hopes for this issue and really hope I'm not disappointed, Latour has already stated should there be a demand he would be more than happy to write more Spider-Gwen.

The other Edge of Spider-Verse title that has caught my eye is the offering from Gerard Way and Jacob Wyatt. This has potential on so many levels as Jacob Wyatt is one of the rising stars, having worked on his creator owned title and recently on a couple of Ms Marvel issues and well Gerard Way has been around long enough with Umbrella Academy and Killjoys for us to know he can write a good comic it will be interesting to see what he does with his own take on a Spider-Man origin.

Marvel Star Wars (Star Wars Jason Aaron/ Cassaday, Darth Vader Gillen/ Larocca/ Granov &, Leia Waid/ Dodson)

SDCC saw the a announcement of some long awaited news since Disney acquired Lucasfilm and it was officially announced that Marvel will be taking over the Star Wars franchise when it comes to the comics and so the titles and creative teams were finally announced.

There will be a stand alone Star Wars title written by Jason Aaron and illustrated by John Cassaday. Darth Vader will get his own title written by Kieren Gillen and illustrated by Salvador Larocca and Adi Granov and finally Princess Leia will get her own solo title from Mark Waid and Terry Dodson. I can't help but think a better artist could have been found for Leia that more suited the Princess but Dodson may well prove me wrong. These have been confirmed for 2015 so I imagine in the coming months more info and hopefully preview art will be released.

Avengers NOW! All- New Captain America (FalCap) Thor (Female) Superior Iron Man (Tony Stark Gone Mad Scientist) 

Marvels big SDCC announcement was the upcoming Avengers NOW! initiative much like the Marvel NOW! and All-New Marvel NOW! initiatives this sees many new titles and characters beginning from #1 with creative changes, mainly focusing on the characters within the Avengers team. The 3 big announcements are the upcoming changes to the big three Avengers, Captain America, Superior Iron Man and Thor. The mantle and shield of Captain America will be finding a new wielded in Sam Wilson a.k.a Falcon now dubbed Falcap, Steve Rogers has had the super soldier serum removed from his system and now resembles a man of his proper age so obviously he is required to hand over the mantle to someone he trusts. This will be brought to us in the pages of All-New Captain America from Rick Remender & Stuart Immonen starting in November. 

Tony Stark will be moving to San Francisco and after the major fall out from Original Sin, his antics in New Avengers and the events at the beginning of AXIS see him become the Superior Iron Man, an adjective once again made popular by the successful run of another Marvel heavyweight Spider-Man, this sees Tony go a little mad scientist and he will come head to head with another Marvel character recently moved to the area Daredevil. This take on the character certainly sounds interesting and with a new creative team to Marvel of Tom Taylor & Yilidray Cinar may well be worth checking out.

Thor also gets a major shake up. Thor Odinson no longer being deemed worthy of Mjolnir finds the hammer in someone else's hands, a mysterious female. It has been pointed out that this is not Thorita, Lady Thor. This is Thor and the God of Thunder is now a woman. In Jason Aaron I trust and he will be joined on this new era of Thor by Russell Dauterman, he will certainly need to be giving his A-Game as he will be replacing the critically acclaimed Essad Ribic on art duties for the character. This female character who now holds the hammer is shrouded in mystery and it has been confirmed we will have to wait to find out who it is.

Other new titles announced for Avengers NOW! included Angela: Asgards Assassin from Gillen/ Bennett/ Jimenez and Stephanie Hans, Bucky Barnes: Winger Soldier from Ales Kot and Marco Rudy. Deathlok is getting a new series starting in October from Nathan Edmondson and Mike Perkins. Two Inhumans feature in the image, Medusa and Inferno, this may be a continued push for the Inhumans as a whole or NYCC may see the announcement of a solo Medusa title can't really see a solo series for Inferno. Scarlet Witch features in the image also another character that is currently in Uncanny Avengers I have more on my ideas as to why she is in the image in the AXIS section below. Doctor Strange and Ant-Man both are present in the image and with there solo films confirmed or in production it is likely they will see there own individual titles especially considering they were both heavily involved in Original Sin it's only a matter of time.

AXIS

With Original Sin coming to an end, well ended by the time this is posted, AXIS now known as Avengers & X-Men AXIS has been getting a big promotional push. From Special Edition NYC we learnt about the first arc of 3 issues coming in October "The Red Supremacy" which sees the return of the Red Skull in his Onslught duds. This arc sees both the Avengers and X-Men battling the Red Skull on Genosha where he has turned the once mutant country into his base with enslavement camps and this is where he is spreading his message of hate across the world with his new found Charles Xavier mutant powers.

We learnt more about the 2nd arc 'Inversion' during SDCC and since. This arc sees heroes becoming 'bad' guys and villains becoming 'good'. The X-Men team up with one of their greatest villains. Tony Stark goes a little mad scientist and moves to San Francisco to become the Superior Iron Man as teased during the Avengers NOW! initiative. With the AXIS of Evil apparently winning where does that lead the Marvel Universe and what can possibly take place in the third arc to rectify this. Marvel are churning out event after event at the moment and it is understandable why many are apprehensive about this but from the solicitation for both the first and second arc this may be just as exciting and successful as the Avengers vs X-Men event from 2 years past.

Theres also several big teases in the solicitations for the issues during the second arc. The formation of the Astonishing Avengers in issue 6, and with the Uncanny Avengers on hiatus during this event and Remender teasing he will be on a new book by the end of this AXIS is it difficult to put two and two together and believe this will be Astonishing Avengers? Looks as though Remender is just working his way through all the pre-fix adjectives that haven't been before the word Avengers. Bleeding Cool certainly seem to think so and they also think Esad Ribic will be on art duties. Also from the solicits that have since been released issue 5 teases a new sorceress supreme, could the Scarlet Witch be gaining the mantel of Sorceress Supreme and with Marvel's big publishing push for female led titles and the character appearing in Avengers: Age of Ultron next year could she be getting her own title, 'Scarlet Witch Sorceress Supreme'? This would certainly answer why she is in the Avengers NOW! promo image.

Guardians of the Galaxy

So the film I had been waiting 3 years for was finally released at the end of July and is now the highest grossing film in America this year, surprised? I'm not. I've seen the film 3 times now and it was everything I expected and some. I'm counting down the days until the release date is confirmed for the Blu-Ray and then I will be counting down the days until the release date. This film take the Marvel Cinematic Universe in a completelt new and exciting direction and with Guardians of the Galaxy 2 confirmed to be directed by James Gunn and already announced to be released in July 2014 I now only have another 3 years to patiently and excitedly await the sequel. If you haven't yet got to see this I stongly recommed you find a cinema that it still showing it and see it NOW!

And so to end this long and wordy post why not a few teaser videos for some TV shows and Video Games I'm looking forward to coming this Fall.

Star Wars Rebels: October

Agents of Shield Season 2:

Star Wars Episode VII: Set pics from Abu Dhabi and a secret UK location.

Well this has been in draft form for some while and since initially writing the below, JJ Abrams himself has got involved in the leaking of set pictures for the upcoming resurgence of this much loved franchise, so I will leave my writing below and add links to the sites with the pictures, which makes me only indirectly involved in helping anyone see the leaked set pics.

http://www.tmz.com/2014/06/02/star-wars-episode-7-photos-from-set-tmz-tv/

http://www.tmz.com/videos/0_ady00hdz/

Photos from sets in Abu Dhabi are showing promising images of  non CGI sets and animatronics much like the original trilogy. I am aware this is something that fans wished was used more in the prequel trilogy which unfortunately ended up being heavily CG dependent.

Also further images have been revealed of a possible Millenium Falcon construction and X-Wing, as Bleeding Cool have noted it looks like the design for what is presumably an X-Wing is closer to the Ralph McQuarrie design that its predecessor in the original trilogy. This seems to be a strong design point across all new Star Wars developments since Disney purchased the franchise. Star Wars Rebel's the CG Animated series is also strongly influenced by the original McQuarrie concept art, bringing in the original design for Chewbacca as a new species and character in the series. Not much can be taken from these set pics other than it is promising that they are sticking with traditional techniques rather than relying on that green screen.

Special Edition NYC: Marvel Panels and more...

This weekend sees the debut of the Special Edition: NYC. New York Comic Con which is held later in the year is growing ever popular and as conventions grow more popular they broaden to more than just focusing on comics. Reed POP! Who are responsible for NYCC have in turn come up with Special Edition NYC which will specifically spotlight Comics, Art and Culture. For a debuting Comic Con it has an incredibly star studded list of creators and has also received a lot of attention from publishers including the Big 2. We are just over a month away from SDCC and to see the publishers giving this convention the credibility it is by turning up certainly proves that Reed POP! and their team of organisers are incredibly good at there jobs.

Marvel will once again be spotlighting there All-New Young Guns with all attending this event, while also having a panel dedicated to themselves, where hopefully we will hear more about there upcoming projects along with current work and how they got into the industry in the first place. Also it would be great to hear what it means to them for Marvel to consider them to be the so called "All-New Young Guns" the previous Young Guns had some incredible names who have become some of the stand out talent in recent years with the likes of Steve McNiven and Olivier Coipel.

                                         

There will also be one of Marvel's more popular panels, "Next Big Thing" where we are sure to learn more about the upcoming event Avengers and X-Men event "AXIS". I also hope there may be more news on titles spiralling out of there current event Original Sin. Although my current list is getting pretty full, it will be interesting to see if anything is announced that I just might have to add to my list. For more info on the panels check out the info below at the bottom of the post.

                                       

MARVEL Panels

MARVEL: All-New Young Guns
Saturday 12:15 PM

Marvel’s newest superstar illustrators – assembled on one stage!  Originally launched in 2004, the Young Guns program has shined a spotlight on the best and brightest in the comic book industry early in their careers. Now, join Marvel’s ALL-NEW YOUNG GUNS as they unveil exclusive imagery, explain their methods and influences, discuss how they got into the industry and more! 

MARVEL: Next Big Thing
Saturday 2:45 PMWant to start reading Marvel comics?  There’s no better time than Marvel NOW!  And there’s no better place to learn about our thrilling and creatively diverse All-New Marvel NOW series than this panel!   PLUS – What cataclysmic event begins this September in AVENGERS and NEW AVENGERS?  And what exactly is the monumental fall 2014 Avengers and X-Men event, AXIS?  You’ve got questions and we’ve got answers!  Don’t miss exciting discussion of current and future projects as editors & writers spill the beans on all things MARVEL! 

Marvel Unlimited+ MEMBERS ONLY Event

Sunday 11:15 AM
Join Executive Editorial Director of Digital Ryan Penagos as well as Marvel editors and top creators for a private panel discussion of what’s happening inside the Marvel Universe.  Get FREE merchandise (while supplies last), sneak peeks of upcoming comics, Q&A Session to answer all your burning questions and more!  Marvel Unlimited Plus Members ONLY – show your Member Card or confirmation email at the Marvel Booth for event credentials. 

Fan Friday Creator Spotlight: All-New Marvel Young Gun Valerio Schiti (Late again, maybe this should just be called Creator Spotlight?)

We are rapidly approaching the new convention by Reed Pop, Special Edition NYC. Previously announced at C2E2 and receiving a big promotion and spotlight at Special Edition are Marvel's All-New Young Guns, a collection of artists who they see as being the future of their comics. And what an almighty list it is. I decided with Special Edition around the corner and San Diego also not to far away that for the next 5 weeks I will spotlight each of the Marvel All-New Young Guns, what have I read by them? What haven't I read? What everyone should definitely check out.

So first up is Valerio Schiti. I've been a big fan of Valerio Schiti's work since reading Journey into Mystery with Katherine Immonen I've also done a little research so there won't just be the stuff I have read, which in some cases unfortunately is very little so lets begin.

What I've read by Schiti to date;

The first time I came across the work of Valerio Schiti was when reading Journey into Mystery by Kathryn Immonen, himself and the ever popular colorist Jordie Bellaire. This series received good acclaim from many corners of the comic internet, both for the storytelling by Kathryn and visual storytelling by Schiti. He got to work with many characters on this series, including the likes of Superior Spider-Man, Beta Ray Bill and proved that no character was a challenge for him. He brought a great stylization to the character and with Jordie Bellaire's colors the emotions he visualized were truly brought to life. It was sad to hear when this series was ending, and one of my first thoughts was where would Schiti be heading next, this surely can't be his last work at Marvel, and it wasn't, he has gone on to be a fill in artist on certain series, Mighty Avengers, Avengers A.I. and also did some fill in art for an issue of Guardians of the Galaxy with Sara Pichelli, one of his fellow All-New Young Guns. His work on Mighty Avengers, being the only issues I enjoyed, no disrespect intended but Schiti's art work is far more pleasing to the eye that Greg Land's.

What work had he done before;

Dungeons & Dragons

I can't say much at all about Valerio Schiti's earlier work, I personally have not read any of this and the images in this post all come from his back catalogue from the previews pages on the Comic Book Resources website. It is evident thought that Schiti began his work at IDW. Among his list of works are Battle Beasts, Dungeons & Dragons, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, another fan favourite title where he worked on a one shot containing the story of one of the turtles. So if you fancy checking any of his earlier work out here are some of the titles where you could begin.

Battle Beasts

Where can you find him next?

Since being announced as one of the All-New Young Gun's at this years C2E2 Schiti is now working with fan favourite writer, Jonathan Hickman, and the man currently responsible for Marvel's hottest property in the Avengers. The specific title Schiti is currently working on is Hickman's New Avengers which contains the current incarnation of the Illuminati, containing Iron Man, Beast, Mr Fantastic, Dr Strange, Namor, Black Panther, Bruce Banner/ Hulk and Black Bolt, so he has been given the responsibility of working with some of the biggest characters in the Marvel Universe and also one of the biggest on-going storyline's which effects will finally be coming to fruition this September in "8 Months Time Runs Out". I hope that Schiti will become the regular artist on this series, he has already illustrated issue 18 and as you can see from the related images he will be working on issue 19 and the current arc where the Illuminati have come across another Super Hero team during one of the incursions, his style really brings great life to the characters. One thing of note for me is how awesome he draws Dr. Strange and with the film confirmed and an obvious solo title on the way, I hope Schiti may be with in a shot for illustrating that title. This looks to be the current project taking up Schiti's time and although in August Kev Walker is solicited on the issues for New Avengers and Deodato Jnr is back for the September issue I do hope that Schiti will be returning to this title or bigger things.

You can find Valerio Schiti on twitter and Tumblr which I strongly recommend checking out, there are some awesome sketch studies for the characters within the Illuminati which certainly prove why he has been given the chance on this book. I can't wait to pick up this weeks issue of New Avengers to see more of his art work and strongly recommend anyone interested in his work to pick up the trade copies of Journey into Mystery.

Doctor Who Returns this August

Marvel: In 8 Months... Time Runs Out

Way back when Marvels Infinity event finished I had to take a good hard look at my monthly pick list and choose what I would drop because I was spending to much and at that time I found I wasn't enjoying Avengers or New Avengers as much as I expected. Well now here I am after having seen the solicitations for September and being a complete sucker for anything Avengers and Marvel and during my weekly trip to my local comic store and there extensive selection of back issues I have now purchased all the Avengers and New Avengers titles to present and will be adding them back to my standing order.

I had initially gotten quite tired of the incursion storyline within the New Avengers title and in turn also decided that Avengers wasn't the must read title for me that it had been earlier in its run. But I have been a fan of Jonathan Hickman's work for a long time. Secret Warriors is probably one of my favourite Marvel titles to date. So why would I drop the title when Hickman is known for long plotted storylines which always pay off, I'm going to go with naivety or just plain stupidity, and the solicits for September even give us a glimpse forward.

The solicits do not give much away other than they are to be written by series regular Jonathan Hickman but will also include art by a couple of Marvel's big guns, Jim Cheung who recently has illustrated the prologues or first issues to Marvel's events and tends to be put onto important issues will be illustrating Avengers. New Avengers will be illustrated by Mike Deodato Jnr who is currently working on Original Sin with Jason Aaron another artist who is given the responsibility to illustrate some of Marvel's big titles.

                                       

What can we take from the cover of Avengers #35, well if this is the Avengers team in 8 Months time that looks to be Havok, Thor wielding Jarnbjorn, Captain America, Hulk and I've been trying to work out who the guy with the cane is, at first I thought Daredevil, but since seeing the Captain America #22 preview it may well be a de-super soldier serumed Steve Rogers so who is the guy dressed as Captain America? Other than the team in the forefront there is not much else to give away what will be taking place there is Stark Tower in the background and a hellicarrier so S.H.I.E.L.D. must be involved in some way.

In New Avengers #24 we get a look at the cover which contains Thanos as his Black Order who appear to be making a return, although I'm fairly certain that is Namor as well as Black Swan who was first captured during one of the original incursions. What brings this motley crew together and also how does Thanos get out of his current prison? I imagine the answers more will be teased in the coming months and its only until September and we will find out.

                                       

Star Wars: Another Stand-Alone film confirmed with announcement of Director Josh Trank

Although we are yet to find out who, what and where these stand-alone films will include. Josh Trank ,the director of Chronicle the critically acclaimed film with its own take on super heroes, has been announced to be working on one of the stand-alone Star Wars movies beyond the core Saga. Trank is currently directing the new Fantastic Four for 20th Century Fox. We are certainly looking at Star Wars films aplenty in our future. For the official press release check it out below;

   

"In addition to the episodes of a new Star Wars trilogy, Lucasfilm and Disney continue development of multiple stand-alone movies that will offer new stories beyond the core Saga. The newest director to come on board is Josh Trank.

"We're thrilled to welcome Josh into the family," says Lucasfilm president Kathleen Kennedy. "He is such an incredible talent and has a great imagination and sense of innovation. That makes him perfectly suited to Star Wars, and for this new slate of movies that reach beyond the core characters and storylines of Episodes I through IX."

Trank states, "The magic of the Star Wars Universe defined my entire childhood. The opportunity to expand on that experience for future generations is the most incredible dream of all time."

Trank captured imaginations worldwide with his critically lauded directorial debut Chronicle, a fresh and engaging take on the superhero genre. Trank is currently at work on The Fantastic Four for 20th Century Fox."

Star Wars Episode VII: New casting announcements Lupita Nyong'o and Gwendoline Christie join the cast.

So you would have all read by now that two more female actress' have been announced to be starring in the upcoming Star Wars Episode VII. Both actress' have there own pedigree, Lupita Nyong'o is a academy award winning actress and many of you will recognise Gwendoline Christie as Brienne of Tarth from the hyper popular and ever more shocking and gruesome Game of Thrones. These are two exciting cast announcements and with production and filming now in full swing I hope we will here more on who this list of cast members will be playing in the film. For more check out the press release below;

                              

"Lupita Nyong'o joins the recently announced cast of Star Wars: Episode VII. This year, her breakthrough performance in 12 Years a Slave earned her an Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress.

Gwendoline Christie, currently starring in the hit television series Game of Thrones as Brienne of Tarth, has also been cast in the production. She can next be seen in The Hunger Games: Mockingjay - Part 2.

"I could not be more excited about Lupita and Gwendoline joining the cast of Episode VII," says Lucasfilm president Kathleen Kennedy. "It's thrilling to see this extraordinarily talented ensemble taking shape."

Actors John Boyega, Daisy Ridley, Adam Driver, Oscar Isaac, Andy Serkis, Domhnall Gleeson, and Max von Sydow will join the original stars of the Saga Harrison Ford, Carrie Fisher, Mark Hamill, Anthony Daniels, Peter Mayhew, and Kenny Baker in the new film.

Star Wars: Episode VII is being directed by J.J. Abrams from a screenplay by Lawrence Kasdan and Abrams. Kathleen Kennedy, Abrams, and Bryan Burk are producing and John Williams returns as the composer. The movie opens worldwide on December 18, 2015."

My Pick of The Week 28/05/2014: Southern Bastards #2 (Only 3 days behind schedule)

My Pick of the Week 28/05/2014;

Southern Bastards #2

Publisher: Image Comics

Written by: Jason Aaron
Illustrated by: Jason Latour
Colors by: Jason Latour (Assist. Rico Renzi)
Letters by: Jared K. Fletcher

This had been dropped off my list up until I spoke to one of the guys at my local comic store and he recommended picking it up. I do find myself getting bored of superhero comics every now and then and although I'm a sucker for needing a full "collection" it's hard to drop those titles of the list for another title. But I will certainly be trying to find a spot in my budget for this comic now.

I brought the 1st issue when it came out and I'm always interested in picking up creator owned image titles to see what there like. This issue goes deeper into what was introduced. This comic touches on many things the troubled relationship with ones father, the need to do the right thing, the internal struggle with your own mind both wanting to leave and go back to forgetting this part of your life or staying because you know what's right and what needs to be done. The main protagonist of this comic, although a high school superstar, was always living in the shadow of his father, the hero cop who kept crime of the streets. He never wanted to follow in his fathers foot steps but after having to return after his uncles death to sell the house he finds himself instinctively trying to make things good in the town he used to live.

In the first issue you saw the distinctive weapon that his father carried around with him as he enforced the law, nothing but a stick, and this was buried with him and is what his son believes the tree grew out of. After struggling to hack down the tree at the end of issue one we again find him at the end of this issue having a dramatic monologue with his fathers grave during a storm and by the last page of the issue the tree is struck by lightning and all that is left is a stick. A sign one might feel.

How Jason Aaron finds time to write such fantastic stories with the likes of Thor God of Thunder and now Original Sin is beyond me. But the great thing about this comic is you see a completely different side to his writing, although I know he has done other work previous, that I haven't seen before. Teaming up with Jason Latour for this title was also a stroke of genius, of late Latour has mainly been known for his writing but he has illustrated other comics previously, he manages to bring to life the emotions and the scenes in a illustrative and beautiful way. This will no longer be leaving my list and the first thing I will do this Wednesday is add it back to my standing order. If you want something different to your super hero or sci-fi comics I strongly recommend giving this a go.

Fan Friday Creator Spotlight: Natasha Allegri

A day late on this one, and that's a little frustrating as I had got all the pics and videos set up before hand and all I needed to do was write what I had to say. But here I am now and here I go. Natasha Allegri is the brains behind Bee and Puppycat a new animated TV series coming to Cartoon Hangover on YouTube she is also the creator of Fionna and Cake, gender swapped versions of Finn and Jake in Adventure Time. Not only that she is also a storyboard revisionist for Adventure Time itself. Well if that isn't enough credits to her name she has also dabbled in comics alongside animation but we will go more into that further on. But if you haven't heard of Bee and Puppycat make sure you check out the video for the first Bee and Puppcat animated episode, which spearheaded the new series to come later this year.

Not only did Natasha create the gender swapped characters for Adventure Time she has also written and illustrated a 6 issue limited series, "Adventure Time with Fionna & Cake". This was an incredibly popular book, I have struggled to find and back issue copies of this as unfortunately it wasn't until it had been out some time that I found both Adventure Time and the comics related to the programme. If like me you missed this limited issue run BOOM! Studios will be collecting all six issues into one of the fantastic Mathematical Editions, check out the cover below. I can't wait to get my hands on a copy and be able to read the adventures of Fionna & Cake, unfortunately due to not knowing about the programme until recently, or mainly watching it when it appeared on Netflix and couldn't stop watching,  I have only seen the one episode of the TV show containing these characters as I was able to get my hand on copies of Season 1 to 3 on Blu-Ray. This is Natasha Allegri's first comic work I am aware of and it is only earlier in this month that her new comic for her creator owned Bee and Puppycat came out.

After getting confirmed to be receiving a series on Cartoon Hangover, the same YouTube channel that brings us the brilliant Bravest Warriors, one of the first announcements was that Bee and Puppycat will be getting its own comic alongside other familiar Kaboom! imprints such as Adventure Time and Bravest Warriors. Bee and Puppycat pairs up a young female character who can't hold a steady job and has just been fired by her employer when she comes across this dog, cat thing, Puppycat of course. Now I don't want to say to much more in case you are still yet to check out the video at the beginning of the post. But if you are a fan of Adventure Time and also a fan of the likes of Bravest Warriors and other Cartoon Network, Cartoon Hangover animated works then I strongly suggest you check this out. Natasha brings the same humour and brilliant expressions to the comic as were in the first animated shorts for her characters. This comics also feature a back up that closer link into that first episode. So for me Natasha Allegri is certainly someone to be keeping an eye on, with her creator owned TV series still to come later this year and her comic just starting I can only imagine this is an exciting year for the young creator.