MisterPL

I went to TRU yesterday to get their exclusive 4-pack of "The Expendables." It wasn't in stock so they ordered it online for me and shipping is free to my door. You might want to give that a try, Turtle.

Well, duh, yeah. It'd be criminal to leave that out.

Venom also leaps to mind. But how many of these characters were inspired by a pre-existing character? Plenty of people think Deadpool is a knockoff of DC's Deadshot and that Black Cat's origins are rooted with Catwoman. Tim Drake was simply the next Robin. Harley might be the only one that saved her inspiration from getting an extreme makeover. Can you imagine that conversation in the DC office? "Hey, let's make the Joker a chick! That'd mess with readers' heads!" "Let's just use that character from the cartoon instead.' "Yeah, okay. Never mind." But yes, I agree. It's a lot safer to play with existing characters than try to come up with something more original. That's where legacy characters like Robin and Green Lantern come in handy. Similar roles, different casting.

Yeah, that's why I figured I should ask. I actually don't recall EVER seeing a prototype that was clear (maybe an Iceman?) but it's always been a pleasant surprise when it shows up in production, particularly when it's used this effectively.

Great. Now I'll be thinking of "Lion-O Face" all afternoon. It better not come out during a meeting. :tongue:

Nice bookends, Groundhog! I wouldn't mind more 'mates from this film but as YouBastards points out, I'm also having a tough time figuring out who's missing. I do have to say that I'd REALLY like a Lizard on the 2.5" body because, dayam, that character dwarfed Spidey! Flash, Peter's parents, and maybe Rajit Ratha could be included but you'd really need a strong anchor for a second series or even a boxed set. Is there another Spider-Man variant worth doing that was missed? Hey, what about a "With Great Power..." 4-pack with the thief, the store clerk, a wounded Uncle Ben, and grieving Peter? We've had scene-specific 'mates before and even one who was motally wounded.

I was actually considering "Hulk: Agent of SHIELD" for a moment as I was typing out that last post. Interesting...

Every once in a while I read something so stupid on these interwebs that I have to try it myself. :biggrin: I agree, this is probably much ado about nothing. Like Shane said, so long as they don't mess with the characters (Logan's been a transvestite all this time?!) a change of costume isn't that big of a deal, certainly not for most of these characters. But seriously, Hulk in armor? WTF? They got some 'splainin' to do.

I liked the notion of him running out of web fluid, too, and was wondering how Raimi would handle that organically. I actually liked his "performance anxiety" kind of answer to that classic trope. One of the things that's STILL missing from all the Spider-Man movies is the Spider-Tracer. I'm hoping Webb finds a use for those in a followup.

It wouldn't surpise me if, had there been enough Snarf-fan backlash, they found a way to make him talk in the second season.

It's too risky to create new characters, especially in this ecomony. That's not how we recovered from the Great Depression. We came up with one character that worked – Superman – and just made variations on that theme. Besides, a publisher boasting over 8,000 characters doesn't need new ones, they just need to promote others. Like ones who wear fur instead of Spandex. And has anyone else noticed the giant "O" on Cap's shield? It sure doesn't stand for "Bush." I wish they'd leave politics out of these comics. [/ridiculous internet fanboi rant]

Bat-Mite may not have been an anthropomorphized animal like so many others but, yeah, he was just as irritating. I do have a Bat-Mite figure in my collection but he's from the Silver Age Batwoman/Bat-Girl two-pack DC Direct offered years ago. He has his place but it's VERY restricted. So many elements of Batman back then were inspired by the success of the Superman Family. Some worked, some didn't. I'm not a fan of imps from any dimension.

I liked the organic web-shooters, too. That was more logical than "spider-sense," whatever the hell that is. I know none of the spiders in MY house have spider-sense or there'd be a lot fewer crushed arachnids in the garbage. The biggest problem I had with web-shooters was how bulky they were depicted in comics yet how magically they were concealed under that skin-tight costume, belt and all. The TV series showed them on the outside of the costume and that didn't work either. I did like the web-shooters in the new film much better but I still prefer organic.

As I recall, Snarf was the reason I didn't bother watching the show. Not sure why SO many 'toons back then had to Scrappy-Doo things up but, damn, those comic-relief critters were horrible.

Agreed. I expected this new series to last much longer. Maybe the franchise just needs that live-action movie.

No love for

For fans of Marvel vs. Capcom, it seems this book is a must-have. Should make a nice companion piece to the Minimates line.

Here's a link to the Batman Cosbabies. This is one thing I like about the Batman license; WBCP allows licensees to revisit past incarnations of the properties. Of course I'd rather see these in Minimate form but it's nice to know that if DST ever acquires the property, they'll be able to offer characters from any incarnation of Batman they like.

I just ordered my sets.

If you think Jameson was "jettisoned" from this film, I disagree. He simply wasn't in it. Plenty of characters weren't in it but I'm confident that they will be in a future film. And personally, Jameson was terribly one-dimensional in Raimi's movies. He was one of the aspects of those films that didn't work for me if only because he seemed like a parody of the comic character rather than an adaptation, similar to the way Burton and Schumacher portrayed Commissioner Gordon as a bloated, inept cop. I thought they did a fine job of explaining the tech behind the web-shooters but I agree, I'd like to know how he acquired the fluid. I thought they did a better job of explaining the costume although there's still a significant leap to be made from the Spandex outfits he saw online to that bodystocking he ended up with. Personally, I liked the crane bit. I get the impression that it was prompted as a 3D gag more than anything else but I still thought it worked even if it had a different emotional impact as Raimi's train scene. I'm not saying the new movie's perfect, no more than Batman Begins. I'm just saying it's moving in a direction that's less silly and more mature than where Raimi seemed to be heading, and for this Spider-fan, that's a welcome change of course.

I think the point is that Spider-Man isn't JUST dark and edgy. Batman's all about dark and edgy. Bruce WITNESSED his parents' murders. He spent the rest of his childhood through half of his twenties dwelling on how to best avenge their deaths. That's certainly not Peter Parker. I'd liken Spider-Man (the character) more to Terry McGinnis in Batman Beyond, much younger and with an outlet for that rage, not unlike Robin. Terry and Dick (and later Jason and Tim) are smartasses, ready with a pun or annoying quip to psyche out their opponents. Same with Peter. But when it comes to the films, Burt-- I mean Raimi's first Spidey movie took one big liberty – the organic web-shooters – much like Batman's vehicles were outfitted with guns and missiles. (Rubber bullets, maybe. Rubber missiles? I think not.) After careful review of the second film, that's where Schum-- I mean Raimi started testing the silly waters; that scene where a powerless Peter struts down the sidewalk without a care in the world to the tune of "Raindrops Keep Fallin' on my Head." (There's even a cheesy freeze frame.) He went full camp with significant portions of the third film and I shudder to think where he might have taken the franchise with a follow-up. The Amazing Spider-Man is no darker or edgier than Raimi's movies, but it does have a maturity, one that probably owes a debt to the experience learned from those earlier films. It keeps the what worked and discards what didn't, adheres to comic lore in spirit though not necessarily by page and panel. Webb delivered a good balance of humor and romance, drama and action, and handled Peter's trademark teen angst remarkably well. This is the first film of the year that I not only want to own but am planning on seeing in theatres again.

I have an affinity for the bottom two myself. Any of these would make fine anchors for a whole 8-figure series, in my opinion. But if it were up to me, a Through the Ages set would include variations like Gotham by Gaslight or Rainbow Batman, figures that probably wouldn't fit in with a wave of their own but still have a decent amount of demand or historical significance themselves. (Okay, maybe not Rainbow Batman.)

Yeah, now that I have a working Batsignal, it demands a decent rooftop to showcase my Batman Family. It's a cool centerpiece.

If DC fans haven't picked up this Batsignal yet, they're missing out! This is a great little piece and totally affordable at $10. I got mine at my LCS through Diamond but it's also available through Amazon if you prefer. Check it out:

Old-timers might recall these Batman concept images I shared back on the Art Asylum boards. I thought I'd put them up here for posterity. There are countless variations on Batman's costumes and that's just a sampling of what I'd hoped for before the C3 line was announced. We got some wacky, in-house designed versions that were actually pretty cool but I prefer to harvest from the source material myself. DC Direct gave us a great Silver Age Batman but there are SO many more that I wish I could add to my collection. Hopefully someday.