I grew up in a small town with no little options for Halloween. I lucked out and found a Darth Vader costume and wore it year after year. I was a tall kid so I worked it! Last year I was Green Lantern – Ryan Reynolds, watch out!
DC Comics heroes are icons that will never go away! With the success of The Dark Knight Rises, the Superman reboot on the way and the possibility of a Justice League movie it’s never been a better time to suit up as a member of the Justice League for Halloween!
The newer Batman is always a dark neo-classic and there’s even a nearly $400.00 dollar Dark Knight outfit that might attract the purrfect Catwoman at your holiday party! You could go a little more gosh darn wholesome and for the retro Batman look of the Adam West series.
How did Batman influence the latest James Bond adventure?
Skyfall is already scoring great reviews. Director Sam Mendes tells IndieWire he was “directly inspired” by Christopher Nolan’s Dark Knight Trilogy.
“In terms of what [Nolan] achieved, specifically ‘The Dark Knight,’ the second movie, what it achieved, which is something exceptional. It was a game changer for everybody,” he explained about how it influenced his approach.
“We’re now in an industry where movies are very small or very big and there’s almost nothing in the middle,” he continued. “And it would be a tragedy if all the serious movies were very small and all the popcorn movies were very big and have nothing to say. And what Nolan proved was that you can make a huge movie that is thrilling and entertaining and has a lot to say about the world we live in, even if, in the case with ‘The Dark Knight,’ it’s not even set in our world. If felt like a movie that was about our world post-9/11 and played on our fears and discussed our fears and why they existed and I thought that was incredibly brave and interesting. That did help give me the confidence to take this movie in directions that, without ‘The Dark Knight,’ might not have been possible. Because also, people go, ‘Wow, that’s pretty dark,’ but then you can point to ‘Dark Knight’ and go ‘Look at that – that’s a darker movie, and it took in a gazillion dollars!’ That’s very helpful. There’s also that thing – it’s clearly possible to make a dark movie that people want to see.”
Skyfall hits U.S. theaters November 9th.
Christopher Nolan has expressed how a classic 007 film influenced Inception and his potential involvement with the Bond franchise. You can read that here.
Lady Shiva makes her DC Comics The New 52 debut going up against Dick Grayson this week. Legendary creator Tom DeFalco unleashes the assassin on Gotham City during this two-part story in Nightwing #13 and #14.
“You know, I’m not really sure. I think we had a big discussion — the people I was talking with were Brian Cunningham and Katie Kubert, and the three of us sat around and tossed out all sorts of possibilities and discussed different characters, what would be interesting, which character should we use, this or that. I remembered Brian said at one point, “You know, the character I always loved was Lady Shiva.” And then Katie talked of a different character with a ponytailed weapon. She described it to me and I said, “Wow, that is a really cool weapon!” [Laughs] So Brian made the call to give Shiva that other character’s weapon to make her more a visual threat. Then, I guess Brian discussed it with Mike Marts and the other Bat people and we decided to go with Lady Shiva.”
Lady Shiva was part of Dick’s past. The femme fatale appeared briefly in last month’s origin story in Nightwing #0 and “this Lady Shiva is very different, but has the same traits in this completely new version of the character.”
Artist Andres Guinaldo will join DeFalco on the story.
The Joker returned in Batman #13 and will target all of Bruce Wayne’s allies in the Death of the Family storyline. DC Comics presented a Death Comes to Gotham panel at New York Comic Con will Batman family creators and chilling new art from the titles. Batman writer Scott Snyder revealed the thinking behind the foe’s plot against his rival.
Batgirl #16 courtesy DC Comics
Snyder said the Joker believes he is Batman’s court jester and it’s his job to challenge Batman because “He believes if Batman survives them he comes out stronger, he’s a better king.”
courtesy DC Comics
“A year ago he allowed his face to be cut off…and he also has a secret on Batman that’s going to come out later on,” Snyder said adding, “Joker [says to the Bat allies], ‘You don’t deserve him….I’m going to show you how he loves us more than you and he wishes you dead, and then we’re going to make you dead.’”
Batman and Robin #16 courtesy DC Comics
The covers were chilling: the Joker wearing parts of the Nightwing, Robin and Batgirl costume like trophies, a Nightwing cover showing Dick in makeup and grinning like the crown prince of crime, Batman and Damian fighting each other while looking like they’ve been possessed by the Joker, Red Hood and Batgirl appearing like they’ve been Jokerized.
Nightwing #16 courtesy DC Comics
Will a major ally be killed by the Joker? Barbara Gordon and Jason Todd have suffered the most at the hands of the villain. Will these heroes be pushed to seek the ultimate payback? Batman doesn’t kill but will Bruce or one of his friends be pushed beyond the moral line by the Joker’s actions?
Teen Titans #16 courtesy DC Comics
Bruce may never be the same after what happens to his closest friend – if you read the shocking ending of Batman #13 you may what I mean.
Will Armie Hammer (The Social Network, The Lone Ranger) play Batman in a potential Justice League movie? Moviehole.net reports that Hammer is a top contender to play the caped crusader in a film about the DC Comics super group.
Hammer was cast as Batman in George Miller’s Justice League of America project that never got off the ground. Hammer’s star was skyrocketed since then and he’s reportedly on the radar to wear the Batsuit.
If this turns out to be true it likely means no potential Dark Knight continuation with Joseph Gordon-Levitt as a new Batman or Nightwing.
This is speculation but Hammer is a good choice for Justice League but I just see him as Aquaman.
Batgirl #13 features a first time meeting and a deadly reunion for Barbara Gordon this week! Batgirl and Catwoman will cross paths for the first time in The New 52! Will Barbara and Selena Kyle connect or clash? Artist Ed Benes joins Gail Simone for the latest chapter.
In Batgirl #9 Gail Simone wrote one of my favorite tie-ins to the Batman: Night of the Owls crossover. The Talon Barbara faced on the Night of the Owls is back with a vengeance in this issue too!
Buffy the Vampire Slayer Season 9 Freefall #14 A new kind of slayer joins the fight against evil in a world without magic. A young gay man proves you don’t have to be chosen to be a hero.
The Massive #5 In a world gone to hell Mary leads the desperate crew to a remote station in Antartica. A supply run goes horribly wrong and becomes a fight for survival.
Uncanny Avengers #1 courtesy Marvel
Uncanny Avengers #1 A brand new kind of team for a dangerous old enemy! Can Captain America, Thor, Wolverine, Rogue, Scarlet Witch and Havok heal the wounds of AvX? The Red Skull is reborn with new powers and a deadly agenda against the mutant race.
X-Men #37 Storm’s team unravels. Colossus challenges her leadership and questions her real intentions. Pixie is on her own trying to find the last living Proto-Mutant.
Batman #13 courtesy DC Comics, a Buzzfeed exclusive
DC Comics, Scott Snyder and Greg Capullo unleash the Joker on Gotham City as Death of the Family kicks off this Wednesday. Buzzfeed has an exclusive first look inside Batman #13 in which the clown prince of crime emerges in the Gotham City Police Department.
The Joker has been missing for a year. The villain’s carved off face was left hanging in Arkham Asylum back in Detective Comics #1. Greg Capullo captures the shock and horror on Jim Gordon’s face as he realizes the foe is back. In the New 52 continuity the Joker shot Barbara (just like in Alan Moore’s classic The Killing Joke) but in the reboot Barbara recovered to become Batgirl again. It’s chilling to see Joker taunt Commissioner Gordon about Barbara.
Batman #13 courtesy DC Comics, a Buzzfeed exclusive
The Joker will target every member of the Batman family (and some enemies) in this new arc. With a title like Death of the Family perhaps the Batman alliance of heroes will be left broken.
I can only imagine the Joker by Snyder and Capullo – the team that gave us that creepy kid in the Owl mask saying “hurt him some more” as Batman was tortured by a Talon.
For more of the preview pages here’s the Buzzfeed link.
