Guardians of the Galaxy blasts into cinemas this summer but is Marvel already working on a sequel?
An untitled sequel is in the works for 2016 according to JBlo.
Chris Pratt as Star-Lord leads a team of aliens played by Zoe Saldana, Dave Bautista and the voices of Bradley Cooper and Vin Diesel. The James Gunn directed movie will introduce the Nova Corps, the Kree Empire, Nebula the space pirate and the Collector. Ronan the Accuser of the Kree is said to be the main villain. Continue reading GUARDIANS OF THE GALAXY 2?
A HUGE week for Marvel fans as Infinity comes to a showdown between Earth’s Mightiest Heroes and the forces of Thanos!
While the Avengers were saving the Universe from the Builders, Thanos and his Black Order seized control of Earth in order to find the Mad God’s son.
The heroes come home to find their world invaded and Inhumanized! In a failed effort to stop Thanos, Black Bolt unleashed the Terrigen Bomb which triggered dormant genes in everyday people. Now who knows how many humans are now Inhuman. Continue reading INFINITY Finale Week
Tony Stark may be the man who fell to Earth in the latest trailer for Iron Man 3 but in the comic books the Armored Avenger is going into outer space!
Godkiller kicks off this week in Iron Man #6! Tony Stark invented a weapon to contain the Phoenix Force in Avengers vs. X-Men. We know how that turned out! Will Tony pay the ultimate price for this cosmic crime?
Iron Man #7 courtesy Marvel
Marvel shared an ominous preview of next month’s Iron Man #7 by Kieron Gillen and Greg Land. To some aliens the Phoenix is a harbinger of death and rebirth while others worship the entity.
Smasher! Hyperion! Captain Universe! These are some of the new heroes that answered Captain America’s call for help. When a writer with a resume like Jonathan Hickman (Fantastic Four, SHIELD, Manhattan Projects) takes on Earth’s Mightiest Heroes you know they won’t be staying on our big blue marble for long! After a showdown on Mars in the first arc Hickman sends his team across the galaxy.
In this week’s Avengers #5 the team blasts off to battle an invading enemy. What will we learn about Smasher in this issue?
Smasher is the first human member of the Shi’ar Imperial Guard who appear to suffer a major defeat on an alien moon.
The Imperial Guard are a collection of alien warriors from the universe who serve the Shi’ar Empire. The X-Men have clashed and fought with them over the years. Imperial Guard leader Gladiator is now the Emperor and is currently recovering after a beating by the Phoenix Five in AvX.
The hero who takes center stage in the current Astonishing X-Men arc is not a mutant but Warbird is a breakout character to watch! Warbird was introduced in Jason Aaron’s Wolverine and the X-Men as the bodyguard of Kid Gladiator (aka the heir to the Shi’ar Empire.)
When Marjorie Liu took over Astonishing X-Men Warbird joined the roster and now the wayward alien warrior is front and center. Warbird’s flirtation with Iceman has been hilarious and the flashbacks of her tragic past have been haunting. In this week’s Astonishing X-Men #58 Warbird is an enemy of Earth and the Shi’ar Empire. Can the alien artifact she’s discovered save her?
Not since Hepzibah was part of Ed Brubaker’s Uncanny X-Men run have I enjoyed such a great non-mutant hero hanging with the Children of the Atom. I hope Warbird sticks around or perhaps guests in Marvel’s space-based books like Nova or Guardians of the Galaxy.
A Geek can dream: Dwayne Johnson could be playing a Greek demigod or an alien bounty hunter next but I think he was born to play another famous comic book alien. Johnson is in talks to play Hercules based on Radical Publishing’s Hercules The Thracian Wars and Lobo of DC Comics.
After reading Wolverine and the X-Men #13 it came to me how Johnson would be perfect as Gladiator, the ultimate Shi’ar warrior turned Emperor. I don’t want to spoil the ending of that issue so I’ll go back in time.
I was a young geek when I first marveled at Gladiator and the Shi’ar Imperial Guard. Chris Claremont, John Byrne and Terry Austin had already blown my mind with what would become the Dark Phoenix Saga. As I opened Uncanny X-Men #137 to see my favorite heroes on a Shi’ar spacecraft surrounded by Empress Lilandra and her Imperial Guard. This elite squadron of warriors was led by a muscle-bound alien with mohawk. Gladiator (real name Kallark) is a Strontian warrior created by Claremont and Dave Cockrum. Strontians have the capacity for incredible strength and various powers as long as they are completely devoted to a sole purpose. Kind of a Zen Superman.
Wolverine and the X-Men #13 courtesy Marvel.com
Gladiator has fought with and against the X-Men to protect the universe from the Phoenix. Emperor Kallark now leads the Shi’ar Empire and his son is at Wolverine’s school – protected by Warbird. The Phoenix is back on Earth. Gladiator and his Shi’ar army arrived to save his son and take on the Phoenix Five in a cosmic throwdown.
Only the Marvel editors know the final fate of Gladiator after this week’s Avengers vs X-Men tie-in but the Marvel Universe would not be as amazing without him in it.
Fantastic Four #249 courtesy Marvel.com
Given the cosmic direction Marvel movies are going maybe we’ll see the Shi’ar Empire in an Avengers sequel or the Guardians of the Galaxy movie. Dwayne Johnson has the powerhouse body and presence to portray one of the coolest aliens to grace comic books and may be it’s worth considerating a Gladiator series and solo movie. Thanks for reading the casting dream of a devoted geek.
Uncanny X-Men #135 cover courtesy Marvel.com. Art by John Byrne
Marvel’s live press event tomorrow may reveal details about the return of the Phoenix Force after months of teasers.
A friend and fellow comic reader gave me something to think about. In Uncanny X-Men #137 Dark Phoenix flies into Shiar space and consumes the D’Bari star to satisfy her ‘hunger” and kills five billion peaceful aliens living on the fourth planet of that system. Empress Lilandra and the Shiar Empire sought justice and revenge on Jean Grey and the X-Men for their connections to the Phoenix Force on behalf of those aliens.
“What if some aliens from that world destroyed by the Phoenix were off planet during the annihilation? Wouldn’t they seek revenge?” Mitch Cook said.
An interesting thought full of good story potential. It was the motivation driving the Romulan Nero in Star Trek. It’s been decades since the Dark Phoenix Saga and the whole Jean ‘sacrifice’ became a moot point due to a retconning of the storyline. Always fun to speculate with a fellow fan.
