Jefferson Pierce will be joining the heroes of the Arrowverse for the upcoming crossover, Crisis on Infinite Earths. However, Black Lightning's (Cress Williams) inclusion was not set from the start.
The decision to bring him in happened“very late in the game,” according to crossover executive producer Marc Guggenheim. Speaking to Entertainment Weekly, Guggenheim explained that the vast distance between Vancouver (where the Arrowverse shows are shot) and Black Lightning's Atlanta-based production created quite the obstacle for getting Cress Williams involved. However, despite the pitfalls in their path, Guggenheim and Black Lightning showrunner Salim Akil worked together to bring Jefferson Pierce into the crossover.
“Once we did that, it felt like we had elevated the crossover to another level,” said Guggenheim. “Black Lightning’s in it much more than we ever anticipated, and he’s in it in a very significant way. That’s something we worked very closely with the team at Black Lightning because the attitude among all of us, but I don’t want to speak for Black Lightning folks, was if we’re going to bring Black Lightning into the crossover, it can’t just be for a cameo. It has to be in a way that feels significant while still of course dealing with our time and space limitations.”
Williams had quite the time during his week-long work on the Crisis set, expressing interest in teaming up more often with his fellow CW heroes. “I hope it’s not a one-off thing. [Actors] wanted to come to Freeland, and I definitely wanted to come back to them,” he said.
"Crisis on Infinite Earths" begins Sunday, Dec. 8 at 8 p.m. ET/PT on Supergirl, then continues in Batwoman on Monday, Dec. 9 at 8 p.m. ET/PT and in The Flash on Tuesday, Dec. 10 at 8 p.m. ET/PT. After the winter hiatus, the crossover will conclude on Tuesday, Jan. 14 in Arrow at 8 p.m. ET/PT and in DC's Legends of Tomorrow at 9 p.m. ET/PT.
Upon their passings from this plane, many artistic geniuses are lauded for their body of work, and occasionally for their temperament. Howard Cruse, whose work spanned six decades of publication in and around the comic book industry, will be lauded — and rightfully so — for his genius work with the graphic semi-memoir Stuck Rubber Baby and for his collections of Wendel cartoons and other stories, but his temperament was as clear as his work was detailed. Despite the battles he faced as the first openly gay male in underground comix in the 1970s, Cruse never lost his temper without first resorting to wit, and his wisdom and cool demeanor led those who met him to see him as a wise mentor. Cruse charmed everyone; even on the internet, it would be hard to find anyone with a negative thing to say about him or his talent. The talent was prodigious, ranging from stories he wrote and drew with bold thick-lined cartoonish art to heavily cross-hatched, intensely-detailed realistic art.
Born in Springville, Alabama in 1944, Howard Russell Cruse was the son of a preacher. He loved Little Lulu comics as a child, and began drawing comics himself as a young child, including the adventures of an elf named Landie Lucker. Although he read other humor and funny animal comics, Cruse subscribed to Little Lulu until his college years, His first published work was when he was 13, writing and drawing a strip called "Calvin" in the weekly St. Clain County Reporter, and later the strip "Reuben" for a student newspaper from 1960-62. Through the sixties, he drew for theatrical programs, did editorial cartoons, and continued trying to sell newspaper strips to the syndication market. He also grew enamored of a different kind of comic: Mad Magazine, under the editorship of Al Feldstein.
By 1971, Cruse has debuted a strip titled "Barefootz" for a college newspaper, and he began exploring the open-minded world of underground comics. He also tried to have a heterosexual relationship with a girl in college, resulting in the pregnancy he would later recount in Stuck Rubber Baby. His baby daughter was given up for adoption by her mother. Experimentation with LSD led to more surrealism in Cruse's work, and he began submitting work to Kitchen Sink Press, the underground publisher. Kitchen Sink eventually published his first Barefootz collection (in 1975), and Howard dabbled in playwriting, television production, and even puppetry over the next several years. Further underground comix work continued as well.
In 1976, Cruse devoted part of an issue of Barefootz Funnies to a story, "Gravy On Gay," which was the cartoonist's first venture into gay topics. He was inspired by Mary Wings' Come Out Comix in 1973, and the erotic anthology Gay Heart Throbs and Roberta Gregory's Dynamite Damsels, both also in 1976. Cruse didn't yet fully commit to being "out" in an industry that had nobody willing to create gay content under their own names, but he didn't hide it either. Publisher Denis Kitchen asked Cruse if he would be willing to edit a new Gay Comix anthology for Kitchen Sink, and Cruse agreed. In September 1980, the first issue of Gay Comix appeared, featuring Lesbian and Gay cartoonists creating comics specifically for their community. Cruse edited the first four issues, then turned editorship over to Robert Triptow (who edited #5-13, from 1984-1991, including a move to new publisher Bob Ross). Andy Mangels took over Gay Comix, changing the name to Gay Comics with issue #14, and ran it from 1991-1998's issue #25 (plus one Special).
Throughout the 1970s and 1980s, Cruse's work was not only seen in the undergrounds, but by a diverse number of fans. He illustrated Topps' Bazooka Joe Bubble Gum Comics inside the wrappers. He illustrated David Gerrold's columns and art-directed for Starlog magazine, and created Count Fangor and spot illustrations for early issues of Fangoria magazine. He also wrote and illustrated the "Loose Cruse" column for Comics Scene magazine, and created the Doctor Duck strip for Bananas magazine. He drew for Playboy, Heavy Metal, ArtForum International, and The Village Voice. And in the gay world, even once he had left Gay Comix, he drew the regular Wendel strip for The Advocate newsmagazine (from Jan 20, 1983 to 1985 and 1986-1989), wherein he tackled long-term characters who lived in a realistic up-to-date gay world, including homophobia from Republican President Ronald Reagan, and the AIDS crisis.
In 1986, Renegade Press released Barefootz: The Comic Book Stories, the first collection of Cruse's work. Dancin' Nekkid With The Angels collected many short stories from Gay Comix and other sources in 1987, from St. Martin's Press.
The same publisher released Wendel On The Rebound in 1989, and Kitchen Sink released Wendel Comix in 1990, while Fantagraphics released Early Barefootz the same year. In 2001, Olmstead Press released Wendel All Together, while in 2009, Nifty Kitsch Press brought out From Headrack to Claude: Collected Gay Comix. In 2011, Universe published The Complete Wendel, and in 2012, Boom! released The Other Side of Howard Cruse collection.
Cruse recently self-published a book called Felix's Friends, a "story for Grown-Ups and Unpleasant Children."
For many years, Cruse worked on the semi-autobiographical graphic novel Stuck Rubber Baby for Paradox Press, an imprint of DC Comics.
The book was finally published in 1995 to immense critical acclaim. Mainstream press, librarians, teachers, and comic readers alike all praised Cruse's work for its raw emotional honest and insanely detailed art even as he wove a story about racism and homophobia in the south, and the intersection of the Civil Rights movement with personal coming-of-age. Stuck Rubber Baby would be awarded both the prestigious Harvey Award and Eisner Award and United Kingdom Comic Art Award for Best Graphic Album, and the work would be republished in 1995 by Harper Perennial, and Vertigo in 2010.
In the time since Stuck Rubber Baby, Cruse has not produced any long-form comic work, though he has continued to draw for comics, political and humor magazines, newspapers, CD covers, Broadway posters, erotic magazines, and more. Comic-Con International awarded Cruse their prestigious Inkpot Award in 1989. Cruse has curated art shows for LGBTQ cartoonists, and has been the subject of art exhibits of his work worldwide, including a recent summer 2019 show in Brussels. He has spoken at colleges and high schools, at symposiums and comic cons, and at the biannual Queers and Comics educational conferences (in New York and San Francisco).
In between all of the creativity, Howard met Eddie Sedarbaum around 1979 in New York and the two have been inseparable since; they were finally legally wed in summer 2004. Cruse and Sedarbaum have been active politically in New York and in their home area of northwestern Massachusetts. Their relationship was discussed by Sedarbaum in the 2002 TwoMorrows book by Blake Bell, I Have To Live With This Guy.
Cruse's final published comic work is in Northwest Press's horror anthology Theater of Terror: Revenge of the Queers, released in 2019 He is extensively profiled in the upcoming 2020 documentary feature film No Straight Lines, alongside other LGBTQ creators. Meanwhile, Stuck Rubber Baby is about to have a new 25th Anniversary Edition, from First Second on May 12, 2020. Cruse is survived by husband Eddie Sedarbaum, older brother Allan, and daughter Kimberly Kolze.
The afore-written tells you much about the legacy of Cruse's work and career, but little about his mentorship and temperament. I was 13 or 14 when I first saw Gay Comix #1 on the stands at a store in Long Beach, California. I could only afford a furtive glance or two at it then, but it told me that not only were there Gay Comics, but there were also gay people creating comics. In April 1987, I came out, and saw no one like me in the comics themselves, at the comic store in which I worked (Pegasus Books in Beaverton, OR, also the literal birthplace of Dark Horse Comics), or in the magazine for which I wrote (Fantagraphics' Amazing Heroes). Through Fantagraphics, I got hold of Howard Cruse, and he gave the young 20-year-old proto-gay all the attention and advice over the phone that time would allow. When I proposed — and wrote — the massive two-part article "Gays In Comics: The Creators and the Creations" for Amazing Heroes in the summer of 1988, not only was Howard the ONLY person in the industry that I interviewed who would identify as gay, but he also provided a lovely illustration for the article. He later gifted me the artwork, which hung in my office for over decades.
In the 1988 article, Cruse noted, "Controversial cartoonists like myself don't get turned to by people who want drawings for their commercial products. There are certain kinds of advertising which, just by my raw skills, I would be perfect to do; yet, I don’t get those assignments. There's an awareness that things that happen to cartoonists who are not controversial, don't happen to me. I think that is partially because I'm gay, and partially because I'm an underground cartoonist." Despite this, and perhaps like a guardian angel, Cruse stood behind me every step of the way as I began my journey as the first openly gay comic creator in the mainstream comic world (as opposed to underground). He was there every time I called with fear, with questions, with triumphs. He helped mend fences in battles, and stepped aside when the fight wasn't his. And he was always, ALWAYS, unfailingly polite, even-tempered, and just a little bit sly.
Although we talked on the phone (and later emailed) often since 1987, Howard and I only got to see each other a few times in person. In 1989, I got to host him on the second Gays In Comics panel, and in 1996, I got to host him on the ninth year of the panel.
He also appeared in 2010 on the 23rd year for the panel, and sent a video for 2012's 25th anniversary. We were at the Boston Outwrite conference in 1992, and I believe that he was part of a particularly crazy Gay Comics signing at the national March On Washington in 1993. Most recently, Howard reunited with Robert Triptow and I as guests of honor at the first Queers and Comics academic conference in 2015 in New York (Howard also did a keynote speech).
Of late, Howard, Robert and I have been doing preliminary work on putting together The Complete Gay Comix/Comics for a publisher, to collect all the issues. We had collectively been tracking down contributors, and enjoying the solidarity of each others' company, even as we complained some of the "historians" that have recently come along to present skewed views of history. As "eldest statesman" and "interview subject #1," Howard had always been quick to credit Robert and I for our extensive and groundbreaking work in the field, and for the opportunities we created for LGBTQ creators worldwide. We, in turn, bowed down to Howard's history and birthing of "openly" gay cartooning.
And now, days before Thanksgiving, Howard Cruse is no longer here. To say that this news devastated me — and many professionals and fans in the comics world who had loved the man and his work — is a vast understatement. In one of his strips, "Death" (which appeared in Dancin' Nekkid With The Angels) he presaged his own death. "After I'm gone, I like to think somebody might pick up my comic books and have a chuckle! Fat chance, you say — but permit me my illusions!" He also promised that his soul would be up in heaven, "Rockin'-and-Rollin' and Dancin' Nekkid with the angels!"
If there is any justice in this world for a talent as great as Howard Cruse's, and a soul as forthright, readers will go pick up his books and have a chuckle, and his soul really will be dancin' nekkid with the angels.
— Andy Mangels, November 27, 2019
For some great Cruse reference:
Comic Book Creator #12 (TwoMorrows, ) 46-page cover story interview
The Comics Journal #111 (Fantagraphics Sept 1986) 32-page cover story interview
The Comics Journal #182 (Fantagraphics, Nov 1995) interview
Though the film has seemed to be in a state of uncertainty, Warner Bros.' The Flashsolo film is still on the horizon, according to insiders.
"Warners and DC also still have faith in Ezra Miller’s smart-ass interpretation of the Flash and are proceeding with development on a standalone film based on the character," Variety reported. The report also confirmed thatAndy Muschietti, director of It and It: Chapter Two, will serve as director on The Flash.
The Flash will have Ezra Miller reprising his role as Barry Allen, who first appeared in a cameo in 2016's Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice and played a much larger role in 2017's Justice League. Miller also recently confirmed that The Flash movie is still happening.
Production on The Flash is estimated to begin sometime in 2021, giving Miller time to finish production on the next Fantastic Beasts installment. There is not currently a release date for The Flash. The film is slated to be written by Christina Hodson, who wrote the screenplay for Bumblebee. Hodson also wrote the script for DC's upcoming Birds of Prey film.
Birds of Prey (And the Fantabulous Emancipation of One Harley Quinn) is the next DC film set to hit theaters. It was directed by Cathy Yan and stars Margot Robbie, Jurnee Smollett-Bell, Mary Elizabeth Winstead, Rosie Perez and Ewan McGregor. Birds of Prey debuts on Feb. 7, 2020.
WARNING: The following contains minor spoilers for The Mandalorian, now streaming on Disney+.
There is a huge consistency problem surrounding Star Wars. No, we’re not referring to plot holes or the quality from film to film, yet there are discussions to be had regarding either issue. The consistency problem happens to rest on the shoulders of some vocal fans in their criticism of Rey in the sequel trilogy, specifically in how her use of the Force is deemed unwarranted. That "Baby Yoda" and his precocious Force antics on The Mandalorian have not fallen to the same level of scrutiny exposes further hypocrisy within the aforementioned faction of fans.
Before anyone takes to the comments section with pitchforks and torches, let it be known we love Baby Yoda. In fact, questioning whether you love your own children as much as the tiny green tyke seems to be a common reaction. Baby Yoda is a neutral playing field for Star Wars fans. There is a unifying “the tribe has spoken” mentality when it comes to shoveling tons of praise on the Force-sensitive toddler. Railing against Baby Yoda on social media would be the Internet equivalent to kicking a puppy (please do not do either). So if Baby Yoda is so perfect, why make a comparison between it and a divisive heroine like Rey?
The claim as to why Rey irks some fans is often centered on the idea of the young Jedi-in-training being too good at space magic too quickly. Some critics of Rey have referred to her as a “Mary Sue,” citing her intuitive relationship with the Force as being contrived. Now, this would be a valid point if previous young protagonists from the prior trilogies didn’t exhibit similar feats of Force strength. “But Rey Jedi Mind-Tricked James Bond, and beat a Sith Lord with zero training,” you might say, and you’d be right. There is no denying what has been committed to film, but pretending as if the idea of “the chosen one” hasn’t bees Star Wars’ bread and butter since the start is simply ridiculous. Rey’s journey is no more contrived than that of the Skywalker lads.
The same can be said for how The Mandalorian portrays Baby Yoda’s use of the Force. If we’re going to scrutinize a character for being untrained or too young to be more powerful than characters who came before them, then Baby Yoda should be the gold standard for this perceived narrative transgression. In the second episode of The Mandalorian, “The Child,” we see the green toddler use the Force to stop a two-ton Mud Horn from pulverizing our hero. Sure, Baby Yoda is 50 years old, but as IG-11 pointed out, species age differently. So unless Baby Yoda has been training in a secret Jedi preschool for the last half-century (we’d totally be on board for this, by the way), his sudden display of power is even more contrived than Rey tricking a Stormtrooper or taking down Kylo Ren (who had just been shot in the stomach moments before).
Again, this is all par for the course in Star Wars. Luke underwent one blind-folded lightsaber session and got a few cryptic New Age teachings from a guy he’d just met, and was able to make a one-in-a-million shot to destroy the Death Star long before he met Master Yoda. Sure, what Luke pulls off is by no means as ostentatious as the displays of power we see from Rey, but to pretend like there isn’t a precedent for it is really splitting hairs. It’s trying to quantify something which, up until the Prequel Trilogy, was always portrayed as being mystical. This sort of quantification leads to straw man arguments. Seeing amazing displays of mystic abilities should be something to marvel at. To say Luke has more “Force Points,” or whatever metric we’re measuring an invisible energy field with, than Rey is goofy. It’s a line of thinking that leads us down the dark path of Midi-chlorians.
Ultimately, trying to apply too much logic to the mysticism of Star Wars is a fool’s errand. The fact some fans rely on an arbitrary scale to deem which Force users are more “worthy” than others kind of defeats the whole idea of what makes being a Jedi such a compelling fantasy in the first place. Every single main protagonists from the Skywalker Saga thus far has been a child living in less-than-ideal circumstances. Anakin was a in a terrible human trafficking situation; Luke was a bored and seemingly-impoverished farm boy and Rey was an orphan who resorted to working for food while living in a memento of the wars which came before the First Order tormented the galaxy.
As for Baby Yoda, the green youngling is a McGuffin who has spent an undetermined amount of time being hunted by the remnants of the Empire for nefarious reasons. This string of characters having shared the experience of having a harsh upbringing on a desert planet makes for a far more intriguing theme of character consistency than what feats of Force strength they display. Look, we don’t want to resort to using Midi-chlorians when talking about a franchise so many of us hold dear in hearts. So ask yourself, do you? Is the Force something that can be quantifiable, or is embracing it's unpredictable power just a leap of faith?
Created by Jon Favreau, The Mandalorian stars Pedro Pascal, Gina Carano, Carl Weathers, Giancarlo Esposito, Emily Swallow, Omid Abtahi, Werner Herzog and Nick Nolte. The first three episodes are streaming now on Disney+.
In news you thought you would never need to know but absolutely do, it seems famed director and producer Quentin Tarantino has a very specific preference when it comes to Disney princesses. The expectant father drew a clear line in the Disney sand, declaring he is a Tangled -- not a Frozen -- kind of guy.
"I'm a Tangled guy, so I'm going to really try to steer her away from Frozen on to Tangled," Tarantino told Deadline when asked about all the Frozen-content he'll have to consume after his and Arianne Phillips' baby is born. "But it's the same group of people so they should be okay with it."
However, with all the retirement talk, Tarantino might have more time on his hands to make a more informed decision. After all, he'll have lots of time to peruse the Disney+ offerings for a potential new favorite and to add to his binge list.
Quentin Tarantino's most recent film, Once Upon a Time in Hollywood, stars Brad Pitt, Leonardo DiCaprio, Margot Robbie, Bruce Dern, Al Pacino, Tim Roth, Zoe Bell, Michael Madsen, Timothy Olyphant, Damian Lewis, Luke Perry, Emile Hirsch and Dakota Fanning.
As one of the most enduring, fan-favorite characters published by DC on a variety of imprints, John Constantine was never going to stay away for long. And while there is a considerably more family-friendly incarnation -- if such a thing can exist for John -- active in the DC Universe alongside its colorful superheroes, the real appeal and truth of the character has always lined up with more mature sensibilities and subject matter. That stems from Constantine's celebrated, long-running Vertigo series that saw the occult detective explore the dark, uglier aspects of the supernatural.
That timeless, world-weary version of the character has been reintroduced through Neil Gaiman's recently launched imprint The Sandman Universe. This incarnation of Constantine reflects his classic sensibilities and sees the damaged occultist return, relatively unchanged, in a more grounded, gritty world full of the usual paranormal threats. After last month's special by Simon Spurrier and Marcio Takara placing the character in Gaiman's world, Spurrier has teamed with acclaimed artist Aaron Campbell for a new ongoing Hellblazer series as part of DC Black Label in an accessible return to form for John Constantine.
This opening issue is completely new and reader-friendly; last month's special is not at all required to understand the character and story Spurrier and Campbell are telling. The issue places John back in his usual stomping ground of London. He's a man that's a bit out of time and out of step with the modern British capital, with his usual caustic wit and acerbic personality instantly getting him off to a characteristically rough start. Meanwhile an insidious, supernatural horror that's surely on a collision course with the Hellblazer cuts a bloody path in the shadows.
Spurrier's approach to John Constantine and the character's distinct voice is unapologetically, and quite appropriately, British. This extends to much of the issue's supporting cast, with Spurrier taking full advantage of juxtaposing Constantine against a modern vision of his hometown. About half of the issue has Constantine playing off various figures he meets across London to great effect before blending in the paranormal and getting John back to doing what he does best. Spurrier uses the greater creative freedom granted by DC Black Label to enhance and enrich the story, not lean into mature content for the sake of it.
Bringing this all to visual life is Aaron Campbell, the artist and co-creator of the Image Comics horror miniseries Infidel. Campbell is perfectly suited to bring his signature style to the Black Label title. Here, Campbell not only has to capture the real-world grit and shadow of a London perpetually depicted at night but also the surreal, sinister psychedelics of the supernatural, flesh-hungry threat that festers over the course of the entire issue. That Campbell, along with colorist Jordie Bellaire, is able to do both gorgeously and seamlessly sets the timelessly classic mood of the issue while forging new ground.
Spurrier and Campbell's new Hellblazer ongoing series stands wholly on its own, separate from the characters in the DCU and even from the Sandman Universe special, as part of the Vertigo Comics title. Having said that, the new series is immediately familiar to longtime fans of the character while completely accessible to those not as well-versed in the misadventures of its eponymous magician. As rough around the edges as ever, John Constantine is back like no time has passed at all, ready to delve into the shadows at the expense of those around him because, like the resilience of the character's appeal to his fans, he just can't help himself. And, honestly, we wouldn't have him any other way.
In "Reason to be Excited," I spotlight things from modern comics that I think are worth getting excited about. I mean stuff more specific than "this comic is good," ya know? More like a specific bit from a writer or artist that impressed me.
Today, as G.I. Joe: A Real American Hero is a third of the way through its current epic crossover, "Snake Hunt," I thought it would be nice to pay tribute to the strong work that writer Larry Hama has been doing in solidifying Snake Eyes' legacy in the series after killing off the G.I. Joe icon four years ago (I'm regurgitating myself a bit in the recap, as I wrote about some of this stuff when it first happened).
It all started with a storyline appropriately titled "The Death of Snake Eyes." Snake Eyes sacrificed his life to defeat a resurrected Serpentor in G.I. Joe: A Real American Hero #213.
In the same storyline, a new member of the G.I. Joe squad, Throwdown, was badly disfigured. Throwdown's real name was Sean Collins. He was born as Sean Broca, the son of a former Cobra Crimson Guardsman. After his father died, his father was replaced by a new Crimson Guardsman, Wade Collins, who had fought alongside Snake Eyes in Vietnam. In the final issue of the Marvel version of G.I. Joe, Sean wrote a letter to Snake Eyes, asking if he should join the Army. Snake Eyes wrote back with his own thoughts on military service. That was significant since we rarely got to hear Snake Eyes' thoughts on any topic, as he was mute. Obviously, Sean eventually did enlist and ended up a member of the G.I. Joes.
After Snake Eyes died while also killing Serpentor, the Joes needed a new Snake Eyes. They could not admit to their enemies that Snake Eyes was dead. Throwdown's disfigurement also badly damaged his vocal cords. He was the perfect choice to take over as Snake Eyes. Sean had to fake his own death, however, to take on the new role. He could not even tell the truth to his own family. So Sean was now, for all intents and purposes, Snake Eyes.
Sean and the Collins family lived in Springfield, which was a town that Cobra owned and operated. Everyone there worked for Cobra in some capacity. In G.I. Joe: A Real American Hero #226 (by Hama, S.L. Gallant and Ryan Shearer), we met a teen girl who lived in Springfield. Her name was Dawn Moreno and she quickly proved herself to be a gifted athlete when she defeated an entire lacrosse team.
Her strong physical abilities brought her to the attention of Cobra Commander. He quickly adopted her as his own bodyguard. She was trained by a number of Cobra stalwarts. The citizens of Springfield were routinely given treatments in the Brainwave Scanner. The Brainwave Scanner was a machine invented by early Cobra operative, Doctor Venom. It could be used to interrogate people and also brainwash them. Cobra Commander had his current chief scientist, Doctor Mindbender, use it to brainwash the Springfield citizens into loyalty to Cobra. Venom had used it to interrogate Snake Eyes in an early issue of the series (so, practically 40 years ago).
In G.I. Joe #229, Baroness decided to use the brainwave scanner to re-affirm Dawn's allegiance to Cobra. However, something went wrong. As it turned out, when Venom had put Snake Eyes into the brainwave scanner, a copy was made of Snake Eyes' mind. That copy was now transferred into Dawn's mind.
She escaped Cobra custody and went on the run. She struggled with these new thoughts in her mind. In G.I. Joe #232, she met Snake Eyes' best friend, Storm Shadow, and he brought her into his Arashikage ninja clan.
In G.I. Joe #244, she finally gained her new ninja attire and she more or less officially became the new Snake Eyes.
This takes us to the current storyline, "Snake Hunt," where Cobra Commander has decided that he wants to capture Snake Eyes and brainwash him into a Cobra agent. Cobra Commander just doesn't realize that the Snake Eyes that he plans on turning is not the original Snake Eyes, but Sean Collins (who the Joes still refer to as Throwdown when they're by themselves and only call him Snake Eyes when they're around Cobra).
In G.I. Joe: A Real American Hero #267 (by Hama, Robert Atkins, Brian Atkins and J. Brown), Cobra attacks the Joes at their base and both Snake Eyes see some awesome action in a bloody battle...
Cobra succeeds in capturing Sean, but at the cost of a high body count.
In an epic piece of action in the following issue (art by Netho Diaz, Thiago Gomes and J. Brown), Sean actually gets loose from his restraints in the Cobra plane carrying him (as the Joe squad follows in hot pursuit with their own aircrafts)...
In an awesome sequence, he takes control of the Cobra HISS tank that the plane is carrying and unloads on the other Cobra planes before he is knocked out...
With Sean now in Cobra control, we will undoubtedly be seeing Dawn pressed into action into hunting for her fellow Snake Eyes and perhaps, due to some brainwashing, we might see some Snake Eyes on Snake Eyes fighting!
It's amazing how well Hama has been able to succeed with his Snake Eyes characters after killing off the main guy almost FIVE years ago!
Okay, this feature is a bit less of a reader-interactive one, as I'm just spotlight stuff in modern comics that specifically impressed ME, but heck, if you'd like to send in some suggestions anyways, maybe you and I have the same taste! It's certainly not improbably that something you found cool would be something that I found cool, too, so feel free to send ideas to me at brianc@cbr.com!
After recent box office successes like Shazam! and Joker, new details have been revealed regarding Warner Bros.' plans for the future, including who may be in line to produce the Green Lantern Corps movie.
According to Variety, DC Films is eager to revisit properties previously attempted in live-action that underperformed. Green Lantern Corps is a top priority after the box office failure of 2011's Green Lantern, with the two frontrunners for the role of producer being J.J. Abrams and Greg Berlanti.
Abrams and his production company Bad Robot may be approached for the project, while Berlanti has been confirmed to team with Geoff Johns on a Green Lantern show on HBO Max. However, it's believed this partnership could lead to Berlanti's involvement in the film. Johns, meanwhile, will be delivering a script by the end of the year.
Green Lantern Corps was first announced by Warner Bros. in 2014 as a part of its initial slate of movies for a 2020 release. In 2017, it was reported that the film would be written by David Goyer and Justin Rhodes, with a story provided by Goyer and Johns. The following year, Johns was brought on to pen a rewrite of the script, and earlier this year, director Christopher McQuarrie confirmed that he had submitted a pitch for the film, but ultimately moved on to other projects.
In a world filled with so many different Spider-people, it's hard to narrow down what the best suits are. One that typically falls into the elite category of Spidey suits is that of the futuristic Miguel O'Hara, more commonly known as Spider-Man 2099.
We've had plenty of recent interactions with the 2099 suit, including his late-game appearance in Spider-Man: Into The Spider-Verseand even its playable version in Marvel's Spider-Man PS4 game. Even though we can all agree that his suit is one of the most stunning in the Spider-Verse, how much do we really know about it? Well, these 10 details are all things that any Marvel fan should know about Miguel's suit.
10 Originally Made For Day Of The Dead Festival
The Spider-Man 2099 costume has one of the more unique origin stories of any Spidey suit we've seen before. Originally, Miguel O'Hara bought the costume for the famous Day of the Dead Festival celebrated annually throughout Mexico. That's the main reason the spider on the front of the suit features an easily recognizable skull design, a symbol typically corrolated with the celebration. Once he was called to action, Miguel effortlessly transformed it into his very own Spider-Man suit.
9 Unstable Molecule Fabric
According to Miguel, the Day of the Dead Festival can actually get pretty rough, so he wanted his suit to hold up. Taking some inspiration from Reed Richards and the Fantastic Four, he chose a suit made out of unstable molecule fabric. This type of fabric is wildly popular throughout the Marvel Universe and is the key substance in plenty of superhero costumes.
The fabric has incredible durability, making it nearly impossible to destroy. Due to the fabric's insane strength, it could explain why the 2099 suit looks almost metallic upon first glance. The unstable molecule fabric actually plays a much more important role in the suit specifically for Miguel, but we'll get to that later.
8 It Doesn't Make The Webs, Miguel Does
In a majority of Spider-Man suits, the web-shooters are a key element of what makes the costume either most effective or tech-infused. However, that's pretty much the exact opposite in the case of Miguel O'Hara.
Much like Tobey Maguire's version of Spider-Man, Spider-Man 2099 actually creates his webs organically. After the experiment gone awry genetically altered Miguel's DNA to be spliced with a spider, he developed a myriad of special and enhanced abilities. Thanks to that he can create a web-like substance that is released out of his wrist, entirely separate from his suit.
7 No Actual Eye Lenses
There seems to be a pattern with Spider-Man 2099's suit in the sense that it differs from most other Spider-people's suit in a number of major ways. On most Spidey suits, there's a clear presence of eye lenses that interact with the wearer's actual eyes. Again, that's completely different in the case of Miguel's suit. If you look close enough, you can see that there's not actually any kind of lense, but instead just an outline of one created by the suit's red detail. It also probably has to do with the fact that Miguel doesn't have any type of Spidey sense, but instead just enhanced vision.
6 Web Cape
"Spider-Man doesn't wear a cape." Well, that's at least what Peter B. Parker said. Clearly, he hasn't yet visited the year 2099 and met Miguel O'Hara's Spider-Man. After taking up the mantle of Spider-Man, Miguel added a patch of light byte material he got from a Thor worshiper to fashion his very own cape.
This cape essentially acts as a glider for Miguel, allowing him to sail above buildings using wind currents to fly. The functionality of the cape is strikingly similar to the under-arm wing flaps of many other Spidey suits. So, contrary to popular belief, Spider-Man actually does wear a cape.
5 There Are Multiple Versions
Since the creation of the multiverse within the Marvel Universe, the crossover of Spider-people has become a normal occurrence. That's allowed us to explore the massive number of different versions of Earth that exists, as well as all of the Spider-Men of each of those Earths.
Throughout these different Earths, we've seen various remakes of Miguel O'Hara's original suit. For example, on Earth-TRN461, Peter Parker created the 2099 suit using S.H.I.E.L.D technology for the Miguel O'Hara of Earth TRN389. While this multiverse of suits showcases plenty of different technological advancements, they do stay true to the original suit design we've come to know.
4 The Second Edition
The Peter Parker-made suit is typically considered the second version of the Spider-Man 2099 costume. Like the original, this suit utilizes unstable molecule fabric to increase durability. However, it actually blends that fabric with Kevlar to make it even stronger. Across the board, the second version of the 2099 suit is far more advanced and laced with technological elements.
This suit also features boot jets similar to the ones on Tony Stark's armor, creating no real need for the web cape anymore. It's also fit with arachnid-shaped explosives that shoot from the wrist, along with optic sensors that cater to Miguel's enhanced vision and hearing. This new-and-improved "White" suit has all the gadgets that the first version lacked, but it does lose some of the classic shine and appeal of the original suit.
3 Conforms To Miguel's Abilities
Earlier, we mentioned that the unstable molecule fabric played a critical role specifically for Miguel's suit beyond its unbelievable strength and durability. When the accident changed his DNA, he developed both fangs and talons. Those talons are razor sharp and effective in combat, but also help him with his climbing ability.
Thanks to the unstable molecule fabrics, those talons actually have a chance to shine without any worry of the suit tearing at the fingers. As he is able to use them while wearing the costume, the talons essentially become part of the suit. Miguel's list of unique traits as Spider-Man continues to get longer and longer.
2 Lyla
Similar to the way Tom Holland's Spider-Man suit was completed with an internal A.I. system which he called "Karen", Miguel O'Hara has a female helper of his own. "Lyla," which appropriately stands for Lyrate Lifeform Approximation, helps Miguel with any problem you might imagine. Also, much like the A.I. systems of Peter Parker and Tony Stark, Lyla has near-unlimited access in her abilities in the sense of accessing worldwide technology and databases. Her many functionalities help Miguel along as he faces problem after problem in his time as Spider-Man.
1 The Color
Finally, we've reached one of the most common misconceptions across all versions of Spider-Man. While the suit obviously comes off as being blue, it's actually commonly referred to as a black suit. Regardless of the description, it's pretty undeniable that the suit is actually blue.
After years of confusion, descriptions of the suit were eventually changed and it eventually became known as a blue suit. Maybe it was the metallic shine of the suit that made it appear black to some, but most people can agree that the suit is blue. Plus, it was always supposed to be a flipped color scheme of Peter Parker's original suit, which wasn't red and black, but obviously red and blue.
Baby Yoda has undoubtedly captured the hearts of Star Wars fans. In Episode 1 of The Mandalorian, viewers were stunned to discover the important package the eponymous bounty hunter was tasked with acquiring turned out to be a baby from Yoda’s species. However, fans weren't the only ones affected by the creature as Deborah Chow, who directed Episode 3 of the Disney+ series, recalled how enamored Werner Herzog was with the puppet, interacting with it as though it were a "real thing."
"I had a day with one of the weirdest moments I’ve ever had directing," Chow told Vanity Fair. "I was directing Werner with the puppet, and Werner had just fallen in love with the baby. Werner, I think, had forgotten it wasn’t actually a live creature, and started sort of…directing the baby. Werner is talking to the baby as if it was a real thing. And I’m trying to direct Werner. And I’m just like, How did I get here? How did my life end up like this?"
Chow confessed it didn’t take her long to fall in love with the puppet, too. "It was pretty magical," she said. "I worked with the puppeteers and the visual effects [artists], and just worked with it like it was an actor. They’re the ones who gave it humanity, who gave it life. You could feel it on set. You have everybody from Werner Herzog to grips and gaffers getting moved by it. Every time we brought it on set, people would be melting."
Created by Jon Favreau, The Mandalorian stars Pedro Pascal, Gina Carano, Carl Weathers, Giancarlo Esposito, Emily Swallow, Omid Abtahi, Werner Herzog and Nick Nolte. The first three episodes are streaming now on Disney+.
There are somethings that Captain America just won't abide, and tricking fans is one of them. The Cap himself, Chris Evans, spoke out against imposters posing as the Marvel star asking for money, and he is not happy about -- not one bit.
Evans sent a short message to his 13 million followers on Twitter, assuring them that he would, "never, EVER ask any fan for money." He also sent a strongly-worded sentiment to the fakers out there, calling them "garbage," reiterating his strong feelings about the situation.
This is not the first time Evans has taken to Twitter to clear up misinformation. Back in August, he called out another tweet by a fan, claiming they accidentally dialed up Evans as his "neighbor number."
Both instances demonstrate Evans' commitment to his fans while offering them the most truthful and honest information available -- a trait he shares with his on-screen counterpart, Captain America.
Directed by Joe and Anthony Russo, Avengers: Endgame stars Robert Downey Jr. as Iron Man, Chris Evans as Captain America, Mark Ruffalo as Bruce Banner, Chris Hemsworth as Thor, Scarlett Johansson as Black Widow, Jeremy Renner as Hawkeye, Brie Larson as Captain Marvel, Paul Rudd as Ant-Man, Don Cheadle as War Machine, Karen Gillan as Nebula, Danai Gurira as Okoye and Bradley Cooper as Rocket, with Gwyneth Paltrow Pepper Potts, Jon Favreau as Happy Hogan, Benedict Wong as Wong, Tessa Thompson as Valkyrie and Josh Brolin as Thanos. The film is available on Digital HD, Blu-ray and 4K UHD.
WARNING: The following contains spoilers for Shazam! #8 by Geoff Johns, Scott Kolins, Michael Atiyeh and Rob Leigh, on sale now.
The latest volume of Shazam! picked up right where the New 52 story left off. Not long after Billy Batson became the super-powered Shazam, he learned to share his power with his foster siblings and created the Shazam Family. Then, at the start of this new chapter, Billy, Mary, Freddy, Eugene, Pedro and Darla began to explore the Rock of Eternity and discovered a magical train that could take them to other realms: the Magiclands.
As the Shazam Family began to explore these new worlds, new details about the Shazam mythology were revealed. In fact, it's revealed that the exclamation point at the end of the "Shazam!" expression was not just punctuation -- it actually represents the seventh Champion that gives Billy his powers, alongside Solomon, Hercules, Atlas, Zeus, Achilles and Mercury. Since then, it's become clear that there were indeed seven seats on the Council of Eternity, and that the Shazam Family is still short one member.
King Kid, the villainous ruler of the Funlands, attempted to trick Billy into sharing his power with him, something that would have made him the seventh and final member of the Family. However, he was defeated. Now, in Shazam! #8, Billy finally bestows his power upon a seventh Champion -- and it's safe to say it's someone we never saw coming: his biological father.
C.C. Batson made his Rebirth appearance in Geoff Johns and Dale Eaglesham's Shazam! #1. He knocked on the door of Billy's foster parents and introduced himself as his biological father. Although it took a little time for the two to meet, father and son were reunited in Shazam! #6, where C.C. revealed that he had spent the last ten years in prison after committing a robbery that, in his own words, was meant to help Billy and his mother. Now, he is out on parole and wants to put his family back together.
However, things take a drastic turn in Shazam! #8, after C.C. comes to the attention of Doctor Sivana and Black Adam, who are currently working together. After Adam attempts to kill his father, Billy intervenes, knocking the villain away. But the recently-awakened Seven Sins take C.C. into the sky and drop him to his death. Held back by the flying monsters, Billy has no way to reach his father in time. But there is something else he can do to save him. Thinking back on the day the wizard first gave him his powers, Billy recalls his ultimate power: family and his potential to create the family he wants.
As his father falls to the ground, Billy reaches out and shares his power. He implores C.C. to "say the magic word," and spells it out for him. Then, before he hits the pavement, Billy's father speaks the word and transforms into the seventh member of the Shazam Family. Like all the others, C.C. has his own costume, with his very own color scheme: yellow, with red highlights.
Now, the new council is complete. With C.C. as the final Champion, we will finally see what a fully-powered Shazam Family can do. That is if C.C. Batson actually chooses to use his powers for good.
In "Reason to be Excited," I spotlight things from modern comics that I think are worth getting excited about. I mean stuff more specific than "this comic is good," ya know? More like a specific bit from a writer or artist that impressed me.
Today, we look at a particularly impressive recent issue of Ice Cream Man. Last month, as part of my 31 Days of Horror Comics feature, I had some of my favorite horror comic book creators recommend other horror comic books that they enjoyed a lot. The great Andrea Sorrentino recommended Ice Cream Man, by W. Maxwell Prince, Martín Morazzo and Chris O'Halloran.
The basic concept of Ice Cream Man (from Image Comics, by the way) is that the titular character makes an appearance in each issue, but otherwise, each issue is a standalone story, almost always "traditional" horror style, but sometimes science fiction or fantasy. Since each issue is its own deal, the creative team has tremendous freedom with the content, but that same freedom can almost be a curse, as you're constantly challenging yourself to come up with new, innovative ideas. So far, though, the Ice Cream Man team has come through with flying colors.
In that write-up, though, I mentioned the thirteenth issue of the series briefly, only to note that I didn't think it would be effective demonstrating the concept in an online post, but after thinking about it, I realized that I was mistaken and it actually translates pretty darn well to this format.
Andrea actually had that issue specifically in mind when he recommended the book, so let's take a quick look at Ice Cream Man #13, "Palindromes" (lettering by Good Old Neon).
The concept of the issue is that a man has recently lost his partner to cancer and he questions life and DEATH and decides to go to the underworld to see what's the purpose of it all.
The hook in the issue is that the book can be read forwards and backwards. If you read it forwards, you read it in the traditional panel order, which is top to bottom and then left to right. If you read it backwards, start on the bottom of the pages (and the bottom of each page) and read the panels from right to left.
Got it?
So here is a sample of the story...
That's some impressive stuff, isn't it? What a delicately balanced script with outstanding visuals.
Ice Cream Man is the sort of comic book where every issue is that sort of treat.
Okay, this feature is a bit less of a reader-interactive one, as I'm just spotlight stuff in modern comics that specifically impressed ME, but heck, if you'd like to send in some suggestions anyways, maybe you and I have the same taste! It's certainly not improbably that something you found cool would be something that I found cool, too, so feel free to send ideas to me at brianc@cbr.com!
BatWeek is in full swing at TNT, and the network has gotten All Elite Wrestling in on the action.
This week TNT posted a clip from The Dark Knight of Batman and Joker's epic confrontation in the streets of Gotham to Twitter, with commentary from AEW's own Excalibur, Tony Schiavone and the legendary Jim Ross.
This isn't the first time AEW and DC have teamed up since joining the TNT family. DC released artwork earlier this year featuring a number of AEW's top stars, including Nyla Rose and Jon Moxley illustrated by Ramon Villalobos and Howard Porter, respectively. AEW's weekly show, AEW Dynamite, has also been advertised on numerous DC comics since its premiere.
TNT has been airing films starring or featuring appearances by Batman all week long, and there is still plenty left to watch this week. Wednesday night you can catch Batman Returns at 5:30 pm ET and The Lego Batman Movie at 10 pm ET. The Dark Knight (8 pm ET) and Batman & Robin (11:30 pm ET) will air on Thursday. Finally, end your week on Friday with Wonder Woman at 8 pm ET and Batman Forever at 11 pm ET.
AEW Dynamite will air between Batman Returns and The Lego Batman Movie Wednesday night at 8 pm ET on TNT. AEW World Heavyweight Champion Chris Jericho has promised a Thanksgiving Celebration on this week's show -- perhaps the Caped Crusader will make an appearance?
Since 2015's The Force Awakens, the Star Wars franchise has endured a pocket of toxic fandom lashing out against new characters, subversion of the old lore and feminism. It continued after Rian Johnson's The Last Jedi, and now, the director who restarted it all, J.J. Abrams, has addressed the issue with his final chapter of the sequel trilogy, The Rise of Skywalker, looming.
When asked by Esquire what specifics changed with the property to warrant such a heated response at times, he said, "I think that the bigger question is: How has everything changed? The reaction to Star Wars, the increased attacks, the increased negativity, the Fandom Menace as they call it, you know, that is not unique to Star Wars, obviously."
The director added it's something the creative team should expect across Hollywood in general, and it does speak to being thought-provoking to fans set in their ways. "And I think we live in a time where if you're not being divisive, if you're not creating something that's aversive quick-bait, sometimes you don't quite feel like you’re playing the game," he continued.
Kelly Marie Tran, who plays Rose Tico, was driven off social media by fans, and numerous attacks have been directed to Rey for being a "Mary Sue," but Abrams hopes fans can reach a middle ground. "I always loved Star Wars because it's got a huge heart," he said. "Did I always believe in and agree with every single thing that happened in every movie, whether it was the prequels or the original trilogy? No. But do I love Star Wars? Yes. So, for me, I hope -- and I'm sure naively -- we can return to a time where we give things a bit more latitude."
Directed and co-written by J.J. Abrams, Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalkerstars Daisy Ridley, Adam Driver, John Boyega, Oscar Isaac, Lupita Nyong’o, Domhnall Gleeson, Kelly Marie Tran, Joonas Suotamo, Billie Lourd, Keri Russell, Anthony Daniels, Mark Hamill, Billy Dee Williams, and Carrie Fisher, with Naomi Ackie and Richard E. Grant. The film arrives on Dec. 20.
According to Parrot Analytics -- a leader in data research for television and streaming platforms -- it only took seven days for The Mandalorian to showcase how in-demand it is, while only three episodes into its first season.
Since launching, demand for the show in the United States is 298% ahead of CBS All Access’ Star Trek: Discovery compared to its seventh day rating following its Season 2 premiere; 175% ahead of HBO’s Westworld based on its seven day rating after its Season 2 debut; 72.3% ahead of BBC’s Doctor Who’s Series 11 premiere and 69.8% ahead of Netflix’s Stranger Things on the seventh day after its Season 2 release.
Parrot Analytics also provided information based on four days after The Mandalorian's release. Even compared to eagerly-anticipated Netflix and Amazon Prime shows, The Mandalorian still pulled ahead compared to its competition. It was 58.7% ahead of Amazon Prime’s Good Omens; 35.8% of The Umbrella Academy; 15% ahead of When They See Us and 11.5% in front of The Dark Crystal: Age of Resistance.
Disney+ releases new episodes of The Mandalorian every week, with experts estimating that these numbers will continue to grow as the show continues.
Created by Jon Favreau, The Mandalorian stars Pedro Pascal, Gina Carano, Carl Weathers, Giancarlo Esposito, Emily Swallow, Omid Abtahi, Werner Herzog and Nick Nolte. The first three episodes are streaming now on Disney+
WARNING: The following article contains spoilers for Season 1, Episode 18 of Fire Force, "The Secrets of Pyrokinesis."
Following the smoking hot battle between Shō and Joker in the last episode, Fire Force cools things off considerably in its latest installment; choosing instead to spend some time leveling Shinra and the rest of Company 8 up to better contend with the White Clad and the Knights of Ashen Flame's pint-sized leader.
Ōbi meets with Hibana, Karim and Konro -- the 8th's allies from Companies 5, 1 and 7, respectively -- to go over with they've discovered about the Evangelist. Tamaki brushes up her historical and religious knowledge with Iris, while Vulcan shows Hinawa and Maki the new inventions he's built to earn his keep at the 8th's headquarters while hiding out from the White Clad. These includes a magnetism grenade that puts out fires in mere seconds and two hovering units, "Tekkyo," for Maki's twin flames, Splutter and Flare, to pilot. Meanwhile, rookies Arthur and Shinra are sent, on Konro's advice, back to Benimaru's district to seek the legendary leader of the 7th's help in finessing their combat skills.
Once there, Benimaru reassesses the boys in a two-on-one sparring match before deciding what they're both lacking is a finishing move that they can pull out to definitively end a battle. For Arthur, who fights with his unique plasma sword, Benimaru simply decides that becoming a better swordsman will give him such a move.
For Shinra, who blasts fire from his feet, a finishing move suggestion comes from an unlikely place: Viktor Licht, the scientist who recently joined Company 8 to handle forensics. As we're reminded by their secret encounter at the start of the episode, Licht is an associate of the mysterious vigilante, Joker, and while this is unbeknownst to those in the Special Fire Force, his known association with Hajima Industries makes him a figure of constant suspicion for Company 8 and their allies, particularly now that the corrupt company have now staged a cover-up for Doctor Giovanni's treachery.
Whether his intentions are good, bad or something in between, the incendiary researcher does offer Shinra some great advice: he suggests Shinra increase the power of his jet propulsion ability by compressing his flames as much as possible, maximizing the emitted firepower. While Benimaru goes through Arthur's fundamentals, Shinra tries desperately to do just that -- with the exertion of his deep concentration etched into his face. His efforts go nowhere, but then he remembers the hand positions that Benimaru adopts when using his own Ignition Ability, and Shinra tries to copy the Special Fire Force's strongest officer.
It isn't until the 7th's Captain catches sight of this and then explains the meaning behind them that Shinra is able to use one of them properly. Benimaru explains that it's a "proto-nationalist martial art" called Tenokata. In Tenokata, different shapes made with your fingers channel ki in different ways. For Shinra, the Tora Hishigi (Tiger Crush) position, which focuses on the feet, would work best. The result is an almost instant improvement and after further practice, Shinra to able to come at Benimaru with almost the same precision and intensity that his younger brother did during their first run-in. In his excitement, he dubs the move "Kicker Man Kick," which Benimaru shoots down straight away.
As the episode's title denotes, knowledge and application of these kinds of advanced techniques are clearly what separates the good from the great in the world of pyrokinetics. Now, it seems, Shinra is truly on his way to competing with the best of the best.
New episodes of Fire Force are released every Friday on Crunchyroll; every Saturday as part of Adult Swim's Toonami block and are available as SimulDubs from FunimationNow.
When director/co-writer J.J. Abrams revealed a script for Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker wound up on eBay after an actor left it tucked under their bed, many fans began to speculate as to who the guilty party was. Now, we finally have an answer.
"All right, all right guys, it was me," Finn actor John Boyega said on Good Morning America. He then went on to explain how the ordeal went down, which falls in line with what Abrams originally stated, and even confessed a second time on Twitter.
"One of our actors, I won’t say which one — I want to, but I won’t — left it under their bed and it was found by someone who was cleaning their place," Abrams said when he first revealed someone attempted to sell the script online. "It was then given to someone else who went to sell it on eBay."
Directed and co-written by J.J. Abrams, Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker stars Daisy Ridley, Adam Driver, John Boyega, Oscar Isaac, Lupita Nyong’o, Domhnall Gleeson, Kelly Marie Tran, Joonas Suotamo, Billie Lourd, Keri Russell, Anthony Daniels, Mark Hamill, Billy Dee Williams, and Carrie Fisher, with Naomi Ackie and Richard E. Grant. The film arrives on Dec. 20.
"Crisis on Infinite Earths," which unfolds over Supergirl, Batwoman, The Flash, Arrow and DC's Legends of Tomorrow, will be a different beast than its predecessors. Past Arrowverse crossovers such as "Crisis on Earth-X" and "Elseworlds" aired their three or four-part storylines uninterrupted over as many nights in the same week.
However, "Crisis on Infinite Earths" will take a break after its third chapter in December and return for a two-part finale in January, and producer Marc Guggenheim has revealed the hiatus will come following a deliberate cliffhanger.
"The story for #CrisisOnInfinteEarths was worked out with this break in mind," Guggenheim told a fan on Twitter. "So Hour 3 ends on a cliffhanger. Sorry not sorry." What's more, it appears the fourth episode will not pick up exactly where the cliffhanger left off, as Guggenheim confirmed "The break is accounted for."
"Crisis on Infinite Earths" begins Sunday, Dec. 8 at 8 p.m. ET/PT on Supergirl, then continues in Batwoman on Monday, Dec. 9 at 8 p.m. ET/PT and in The Flash on Tuesday, Dec. 10 at 8 p.m. ET/PT. After the winter hiatus, the crossover will conclude on Tuesday, Jan. 14 in Arrow at 8 p.m. ET/PT and in DC's Legends of Tomorrow at 9 p.m. ET/PT.
One of the biggest action sequences in Avengers: Infinity War came when Doctor Strange, Iron Man, Spider-Man and the Guardians of the Galaxy cornered Thanos on a depleted Titan. Now, concept art has been revealed indicating the brawl could have gone down way differently with Strange using a famous move from his solo movie against the Mad Titan.
Marvel Studios Head of Visual Development, Ryan Meinerding, shared the art on Instagram, illustrating Strange holding Thanos' head before sending the villain on an astral trip the same way the Ancient One did him when they first met in 2016's Doctor Strange.
"Unused moment from Infinity War where Dr. Strange tries to send Thanos on a magical mystery tour just like the Ancient One did to him. #drstrange #thanos #infinitywar," Meinerding captioned the photo.
It's highly likely this shot would have been in the scene where the heroes restrained Thanos, only for Star-Lord to throw off the plan by getting emotional and inadvertently freeing the villain with a punch. It appears Strange would have pulled this move out to separate Thanos' mind and soul from his body completely, all so they could pull the Infinity Gauntlet off his hand. As we know, they failed on this mission, which allowed the Mad Titan to steal the gem and wipe out half of the universe.
Directed by Joe and Anthony Russo, Avengers: Endgame stars Robert Downey Jr. as Iron Man, Chris Evans as Captain America, Mark Ruffalo as Bruce Banner, Chris Hemsworth as Thor, Scarlett Johansson as Black Widow, Jeremy Renner as Hawkeye, Brie Larson as Captain Marvel, Paul Rudd as Ant-Man, Don Cheadle as War Machine, Karen Gillan as Nebula, Danai Gurira as Okoye and Bradley Cooper as Rocket, with Gwyneth Paltrow Pepper Potts, Jon Favreau as Happy Hogan, Benedict Wong as Wong, Tessa Thompson as Valkyrie and Josh Brolin as Thanos. The film is available on Digital HD, Blu-ray and 4K UHD.
