As another exciting Comic Con has come to a close, it is now time to process all of the awesomeness that was announced. Whether you’re a fan of Marvel or DC, a fan of film or TV, or a fan of cosplay, this year’s Comic Con had you covered. Let me start with what made me geek out like I haven’t geeked out since I watched that closing Vader scene in Star Wars: Rogue One – The Avengers: Infinity War teaser. Being a Star Wars fan since birth, this may sound blasphemous, but for me, Infinity War may just be the most anticipated movie ever. The sheer scale of it is unprecedented. Captain America: Civil War was challenging enough introducing new players such as Black Panther and Spiderman, but weaving them seamlessly into an already large and established roster was the real challenge. That challenge was not only met, but surpassed. Civil War was basically Avengers 2.5 because of how many Avengers team members made an appearance. Every character shined and received ample screen time. Somehow the Russo Bothers made it work with masterful storytelling and direction. The Infinity War roster is even larger making the challenge of incorporating all of the characters seemingly impossible. But after watching the leaked Infinity War teaser, I am confident that it will accomplish the same successful storytelling and character development that Civil War achieved. Finally, we get to see all of our favorite Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) characters meet and interact in the same movie starting with Thor running into the Guardians of the Galaxy; Spiderman’s spidey sense kicking in on a school bus; and the rest of the lineup including Ironman, Doctor Strange, Black Panther, a bearded Captain America, and Winter Soldier all kicking into action. But the most important and long awaited character introduced in the teaser was by far the most powerful being in the MCU – Thanos. If there has ever been any concern that Thanos wouldn’t live up to the hype, let me just say this – he throws a planet. A whole damn planet! That was the icing on the cake for me. My excitement level in anticipation for Infinity War is at an all-time high.
As amazing and exciting as the MCU’s next round of films are shaping up to be, the polar opposite can be said about DC’s Justice League. Full disclosure, I am a Marvel guy, especially when it comes to their cinematic universe. However, I am a huge fan of DC and its characters in their respective comic book and TV universes. I’m in a constant state of anticipation waiting for Warner Bros to figure out how to tell these incredible stories on the big screen. They have failed me time and time again for the most part, but I was pleasantly surprised that Wonder Woman was so well done. I had to really dig deep to find things that I didn’t like about it. Batman v Superman is an entirely different story. You really have to go out of your way to mess that one up, but somehow WB found a way. The Batman character was amazing and Wonder Woman’s character was even better, but they’re about the only positive things about that movie. It was awful and even worse forgettable. After watching the latest trailer for Justice League, the only word I can use to express how I feel is MEH. I’m not excited. I’m indifferent. This is the strongest and most popular collection of heroes ever brought together in one movie (yes, even stronger than the Avengers) and I couldn’t wait for the trailer to be over so I could watch the Thor: Ragnarok trailer again. So I will just continue to wait for DC to figure out how to tell a story on the big screen. Aquaman and the Wonder Woman sequel do give me hope, but it just might be too little too late to save the whole DC cinematic universe (DCU).
To further set DC back in the battle with Marvel to reign as the best comic book cinematic universe is Marvel’s future slated releases of Black Panther, Captain Marvel and the Inhumans IMAX premiere. Maybe DC should stick to its strength and put its focus on TV with their CW super hero shows like The Flash, Arrow, Legends of Tomorrow, Supergirl and the newest member of their TV lineup, Black Lightning. Furthermore, DC should also put more focus on their animated series and movies. They kill it when it comes to animation. The fan favorite and highly anticipated, Young Justice is finally back with a Season 3. It really is a great show with some of the best story telling, not just in an animated series, but on TV, period.
While DC is a bit inconsistent with delivering great content, there is a glimmer of hope for DC fans. Recently, a very unfortunate circumstance has led DC’s main captain of their cinematic universe, Zack Snyder, to step down. Not to take away from the sad events that led to his departure, but this situation has left the window wide open for a new vision to emerge for the DCU. That vision lies in the hands of Joss Whedon and Geoff Johns who are now in charge of reshaping the DCU. One can only hope they will finally take the DCU in the right direction and continue in the vein of making movies with great stories like Wonder Woman.
Now for some non-super hero related Comic Con news. The Westworld Season 2 trailer debuted during Comic Con and after seeing it, I cannot wait for the new season to begin. Season 1 was so well done and by the look of it, Season 2 will not disappoint. Speaking of not disappointing, Stranger Things Season 2 trailer premiered at Comic Con as well and as expected, it was mind-blowing. Being a huge fan of The Goonies, E.T., Ghostbusters and 80’s pop culture overall, I am chomping at the bit for Halloween to be here, not only so that I can debut my amazing costume (stay tuned for pictures), but to binge watch Stranger Things Season 2. I have so many questions like what’s happening to Will? Where is Eleven? What character is Sean Austin playing?
To continue the Comic Con trailer premier fest, Game of Thrones and The Walking Dead debuted trailers for their new seasons, but I can’t give my review on them just yet because, with great sorrow, I have to report that I am a couple seasons behind on both shows. With so many incredible shows out now, sacrifices had to be made and sadly for me it’s been those two shows, but I am working on rectifying that soon.
As for new shows and movies, Star Trek: Discovery’s TV show trailer debut was strong and intriguing. I’ll definitely be watching it. And when it comes to upcoming movies, Pacific Rim: Uprising looks decent with John Boyega playing the new lead character, but the trailer didn’t portray anything mind-blowing about the story. Blade Runner 2049, on the other hand, does look mind-blowing. Ryan Gosling steps in perfectly as the new lead character. He is no Harrison Ford, but he fits that role and universe perfectly. Ridley Scott picks up where he left off with the franchise and creates a new movie that looks like it will be filled with stunning visuals and captivating characters.
It’s a great time to be alive as a nerd right now during this renaissance of comic book inspired movies, the best TV shows ever written and finally the technology to create stories with the most fantastical and out of this world visuals into a realistic and grounded final product on the big screen. I’m just grabbing my popcorn and settling in for the incredible lineup of movies and TV ahead of us.
Check out this article published in the Fall 2017 Issue of Flip Magazine HERE.
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