Messages

My first exposure to The Incredible Hulk's pilot movie was renting the VHS from the kids section of the video. Make no mistake that wasn't misplaced there or that it crossed with the family section. I could tell right away this was no kids show when it opened with Banner's nightmare about his wife being killed in an automobile accident. It's remarkable to me how compelling the story was to me at that age and a credit to Johnston how he elevated the material from the source.

The scene where Nygma declares "I'm Batman" in his padded cell was likely inspired by the ending of The Flash (1990-1991) episodes 'The Trickster' and 'Trial of the Trickster'. The former episode ends with the Trickster ranting in a padded cell, while the latter episode ends with him declaring "I'm the Flash" as he's taken into custody. Both Trickster and Riddler seem to have undergone a form of psychological transference where they now believe they are their arch enemy.

You've got those backwards. The first Trickster episode has him claiming he's The Flash in the back of a police van while the second episode has him in a straight jacket claiming his padded cell is his "polyfoam fortress" with no claims at all being The Flash.

I guess not. Until now, I never even heard of it before.

Is it worth a read?

Yes, by all means! You'll have to say if it reaches your expectations.

https://memory-alpha.fandom.com/wiki/Star_Trek:_Ongoing

The thumbnail there gave me pause.

I want to revisit the idea of Star Trek Into Darkness. Not in terms of rewatching the movie (once was plenty, thanks) but more in terms of how it LOOKED like it was going to turn out.

Call it naive if you want. But based on the set pictures and the trailer that came out, I started wondering that STID would be a feature length remake of Where No Man Has Gone Before, a TOS episode. I adore WNMHGB. And apparently, I love it more than a lot of dedicated Trek fans, who see flaws and problems with it. I see those flaws too. But I also see how WNMHGB absolutely set the tenor for what TOS would become.

So, the idea of revisiting that and fixing those tiny little hiccups that admittedly do exist in the original WNMHGB episode was very appealing to me. And it looked like Benedict Cumberbatch might be playing the role of Gary Mitchell and Alice Eve would play Dr. Dehner. And since it's the Kelvin timeline, there would be opportunities to bring in extra characters, flesh out the story a little bit more, maybe scale the production up from what was possible with Sixties television and essentially tell a grander story using the original WNMHGB as an overall framework.

Obviously, that didn't happen because JJ Abrams has never had an original thought in his life, the hack.

Even so, I maintain that WNMHGB is one of those Trek episodes that sincerely could benefit from a thoughtful, heartfelt remake in the modern era. And considering the "political reboot" that Hollywood appears to be embracing right now, now might not be a bad time for such a thing.

Even so, I do wish that STID had used more or less the same cast and been an extended remake of WNMHGB. I'll always wonder how Pine would've approached that story. Certainly, it would've benefited him more than badly remaking WOK, literally one of the greatest Trek stories ever told (if not THE greatest).

Did you ever read the IDW comics series that included a new adaptation of Where No Man Has Gone Before? I actually didn't mind it where they addressed the insecurities of this incarnation of Kirk. Wish that it was the basis for the sequel instead of all of the obvious deception on the filmmakers' part to not let us know that obviously the villain was Khan. There was also decent adaptations of The Return of the Archons and The Omega Glory in the series.

Don't forget the rack of Marvel Comics that were in the convenience store.

Oswald may exist in this series but for all intents and purposes this woman is The Penguin. Which is foreign to franchise history, thus definitely not "something from the Batman comics." Being 'original', especially these days is more likely to produce alienating slop that is different just for the sake of it. That's how I feel about this Penguin. I'm more inclined to want something more straight down the line with the characters now. Being a Sopranos style gangster is still something new cinematically while not being a huge diversion from the norm. But this is just one character - I've liked the look and sound of the footage I've seen overall. I wasn't expecting to like everything from this. Just as long I like most of it.

Just accept that the name Penguin can be used for anyone. Makes more sense to make certain characters legacy ones than just the same person over and over that often stretch the believability. Admittedly, it's rather unoriginal to go with Oswalda for the character's name but this particular incarnation has interesting qualities than just something lifted from a 80 year old comic. If you want something "down the line," just read that old stuff again. It's easily accessible and it's a backhanded comment to other creators who have contributed to the character's history instead of just doing what was already done. Sure, some of it doesn't stick in the long run but it's still a contribution. One of the chief reasons DeVito wasn't keen on the idea of being The Penguin when he was rumored to be was that he didn't just want to be Burgess Meredith going QUACK QUACK or just a gangster version of Louie from Taxi. Once he was shown what they were getting into, he was convinced. Sometimes it's best to take another interpretation than just rise and repeat. Timm has said on the subject:

"You might think that we're changing something just to change it, but it was never about that; it was more about where will it lead us? Will it lead us to do something new?"

They just can't help themselves

I don't understand the logic of this decision. Kudos to Minnie Driver for going out there and being a good company man about this. But it's kind of an incomprehensible creative choice.

Nothing is gained with this. It just blemishes what otherwise looks to be a decent show and puts a sizeable segment of the fanbase offside unnecessarily. Instead of creating a new female villain they hijack an existing iconic villain? Harley Quinn wouldn't exist at all if that was the modus operandi back in the 90s. Minnie Driiver says "That's what's so brilliant about what he's reimagined. The expansion of this particular character feels so timely. For such a vintage noir show, it's incredibly modern." No, Minnie. That's exactly what makes this so awful. The 1940s time period doesn't mesh with wokeism. Either go full 1940s or don't do it at all. Thankfully the Colin Farrell Penguin show seems to be giving the character exactly the type of portrayal he deserves.

I'm more intrigued with this notion of character than wanting to reject it. The Penguin has always needed radical reworkings to keep him being just a funny looking character. He was treated pretty eloquently in the Animated Series and this series doesn't simply want to repeat what's already been done.

I believe this Penguin will be more of a Ma Barker type of criminal with her sons, one likely Oswald, being her henchmen. That perfectly fits the whole 30's/40's vibe they're going for and it's a unique visual to see a mama penguin with her chicks in tow. It's certainly no less worthy than Farrell's incarnation of the character that was just a repeat of Pacino's Big Boy Caprice performance. There's also criticisms of the new Max series is more akin like the Bob Hoskins crime movie The Long Good Friday. I'll bet the storyline in Caped Crusader will be like The Godfather with Penguin being a monicker for the gang's leader and she'll be killed with the least likely member of the family will take over the mantle.

This likely wouldn't have gone over well if this was a contemporary set series, but the 30's/40's setting with inspirations from Ma Barker make this acceptable. The initial series bible had a detail about Cobblepot being a Norman Bates mama's boy type and this definitely feels like an extension of that notion.

Just like the 1940s comics

Along with the African American Gordons and Alfred, Asian American Dr. Harleen Quinzel and villains like Natalia Knight and Onomatopoeia. Obviously they're taking some liberties. Despite the creators making an effort to be different and constant criticisms of shows and movies using the same characters over and over, people are still complaining over the lack of familiars like The Joker and others. I've waited so long for a series like this to come to fruition and I'm willing to accept some differentiations as long as it's in good spirts. I want this to go beyond just the two season order totaling just 20 episodes.

What does everyone expect from the Joker/Harley partnership? Is it real, or do you think there'll be a twist at the end where it turns out Arthur imagined it all and she's really just his therapist?

I hope it's not that deceptively easy. Phillips has to know that's the easiest deduction to make for this sequel. Hope we don't hear that as an excuse to why this sequel that nobody planned for got made.

The only ones I haven't seen theatrical screenings of are B66 and B89.

Yesterday I attended a theatrical screening of Walter Hill's The Warriors (1979), which was one of my favourite movies when I was a teenager. Now I have a ticket booked for a theatrical screening of another classic film tomorrow night: Batman: The Movie! I'm finally going to see Batman fight the exploding shark on the big screen!

Please report on how the audience reacts to West's reaction to Batman learning Catwoman's true identity. Have fun!

Laughter, followed by compassionate silence for the Dark Knight's broken heart. There weren't many people at the screening – fewer than a dozen – but the audience were laughing throughout the film. The biggest laughs were during the bomb scene. The 'C for Catwoman' line got a huge laugh as well. It was great seeing it with other fans. I love this movie so much. It's pure joy from start to finish.

Whenever I see a familiar film on the big screen I always spot little details I've not noticed before, and there were a couple of things that caught my eye at this screening. Firstly, when Batman and Robin first board the Bat-boat and speed away from the shore if you look at the top of the screen you can see the rotor of the helicopter on which the camera is mounted.

Secondly, when the heroes are reviewing the data on escaped super criminals in Gordon's office the picture of Catwoman shows her standing in the library at stately Wayne Manor, whereas the other villains are all shown posing in front of a different backdrop.

Meriwether ranks alongside Pfeiffer for sheer beauty. She's a great Catwoman. Definitely among my top three.

Seeing the film on the big screen was a terrific experience. The movie holds up as one of the greatest comedies of the sixties. Now I just need to see Batman '89 on the big screen.

Next month my theatre's hosting an eighties movie season that'll include screenings of RoboCop, Predator and Beverly Hills Cop. All the Spider-Man films are getting re-released as well, but I'm not too bothered about those. But seeing RoboCop and Predator on the big screen? Hell yes!

Thank you very much for reporting back. I definitely wouldn't pass up an opportunity to see this one if I could but I always wondered how the audience would react to that scene. Something like this could easily get too rowdy but that is such a layered and poignant moment that it could be ruined with too much laugher. I saw The NeverEnding Story and someone behind me kept giggling when the oracles were on screen. They were also ruining the emotional crux of the whole thing when the Empresses is pleading to Bastian to give her a name. I had to shush them to not ruin it any further.

Not sure if you were aware, but the screengrabs of the villains were taken from the trailer. Good eye on noticing Catwoman was in Wayne Manor while the others were in front of the United Underworld logo.

Meriwether was certainly great for this incarnation of the character that was deceiving Bruce Wayne. I believe this one of the first times this Dating Catwoman trope was played out. Newmar definitely would have been different. She would have towered in stature over the rest of the villains, even the 6'3 Romeo as Joker. Meriwether returned as love interest for Bruce Wayne who gets kidnapped by King Tut in a second season episode. The chemistry between her and West makes me wish that she had a recurring role as Julie Madison.