Hulk Vs.

I've been meaning to write this review for awhile now.

So I saw Hulk Vs. about a month ago, it was interesting. It's kind of hard to review because there were two separate stories and each one had it's own look/problems/successes.

I guess I'll start off with Hulk Vs. Thor, which is the first one I watched. This one took awhile to get started, and to be honest, I was kind of bored for most of the movie. There are a couple of good action sequences, but then it's broken up into exposition pieces and it just gets tedious. I liked the use of the spells and magic, especially how they were expressed on the screen.

Hulk Vs. Wolverine was next, and I would say this was the better movie, but it's not by a very wide margin. It's better, it's just not head-and-shoulders above the Thor movie. It's a little more interesting because it goes into more of Wolverine's past and it kind of changes the Weapon X history (as every media version that Marvel puts out tends to do). I thought it had better guest appearances, as I am a fan of Deadpool and to a lesser extent, Sabertooth. I could have done without Omega Red, but he's pretty much a standard enemy for Wolvie now, so I understand why they put him in there.

As far as the main character goes, I like how he was portrayed in the Wolverine story a lot more; he looks a lot more like the classic Hulk than in the Thor story. They took a bunch of liberties (at least I thought) with the character design in the Thor story, and I just thought he looked better in the Wolverine story.

I rented the Blu Ray version, and, I've gotta say, the quality was pretty impressive. The animation is great, but I'm kind of glad I didn't buy it; I think one viewing was enough. Overall I thought it was pretty good, and I hope Marvel keeps developing and releasing these animated movies, they're pretty fun.

X-Men Origins: Wolverine. Review #2.

Like Chris said, I thought the movie was good, not great, but it was entertaining. They did change A LOT of his backstory, but it wasn't anything major or substantial enough to get anyone riled up about it.

It was kind of disappointing that they did not include the Weapon-X training after the adamantium-bonding session, because I always liked the way the gear Wolvie wore for that was designed. And it would have explained that they were developing it to use on Wade later.

There were some annoying plot holes though. #1 - Gambit comes back during the alley scene (and runs on top of the rooftops for some strange reason) to fight Wolvie so Sabretooth could get away. Then they join forces to go to "the island". It was such an obvious set-up for the end of the movie. #2 - When he escapes from the Weapon X facility and shacks up with that old couple, then they are killed by Agent Zero. Again, it was just an obvious sequence where they needed to move the movie along to the next major plot point and the old couple was just discarded when they weren't needed anymore. In fact, a lot of characters were just discarded when they weren't needed, like John Wraith. I hate will.i.am, but at least they could have kept the character in the movie a little longer.

Something that always bugs me in movies is when they are in one part of the country and then they need to get to another part of the country, so they just drive there and they just cut it to when they arrive. It's just lazy writing. Like Wolvie was obviously in the Mid-west where he gets the motorcycle from the old couple, but then drives to Vegas, and he doesn't have any money on him mind you, and then he and John Wraith drive to New Orleans. Right.

Something that also slightly annoyed me was including Cyclops in the movie. Was that really even necessary? I mean, I thought it was cool and all, and having it set up that the Professor picked him up was nice, but it really didn't serve any kind of purpose, just a cheap way to get the fan-boys excited.

I know I listed a lot of negatives, but it was entertaining, I didn't look at my watch once, so it does keep your attention on the screen. I would give it a slightly above-average rating though, I don't know if that's because I was expecting a lot more than they delivered, but that's what I though; good not great.

X-Men Origins: Wolverine.

Okay, first things first - did they really need to title this movie X-Men Origins: Wolverine? Does anyone not know who Wolverine after three X-Men movies grossed over $600 million? I guess they did so you kind of get the sense that this doesn't pick up where X-Men: The Last Stand left off, which it definitely doesn't. In fact, it doesn't even make it into the 1980s but we'll get to that. Spoilers ahead!

Overall, I thought the film was good but not great. Some of the love story stuff with Silver Fox seemed to drag on, and some of the new characters they introduced didn't enhance anything, like Bolt and Blob. They were just kind of there but I guess they had to set up the whole black ops team storyline. The introduction of Gambit was nice, and I think Ryan Reynolds did a great job of Deadpool. I didn't really like how he kinda came back in the end but whatever.

Apparently there are two different post credits scenes depending on whichever one they show.

Overall, I give the movie 4 out of 5 stars. A good ride but left me wishing for something a little more.

Wolverine Art Appreciation Month.

I know people complain all the time that Wolverine is everywhere and Marvel over saturates the market with his presence, but I think it's cool that they're doing a Wolverine Cover Month next month.

I personally love the Warhol version of X-Men Legacy #223 which is a take-off of the cover to Wolverine #1. I loved that series as a kid and tried to draw that cover many times. The Van Gogh version of X-Men #508 is pretty rad too. It's too bad they're all variants, because no one will be able to get them and they'll sell for $50 on eBay. Still a cool idea in my opinion.

Wolverine and the X-Men: First Impressions.

I've watched the first four or five episodes of Wolverine and the X-Men and it's pretty decent. It's kind of cross between the X-Men series on FOX in the '90s and the X-Men: Evolution series from a couple of years ago, in that it's faithful to a lot of elements of the comic book, but they have also made a lot of the characters younger and they are trying to develop their own stories.

Yes, it is strange to see Wolverine in a leadership position, and there is at least one episode so far where his is the only "X-Man" featured (Gambit was also in that episode, but he hasn't officially joined the team yet). There is an attack targeted against telepaths, and Professor X and Jean Grey go missing. Cyke is despondent after losing Jean, so he really isn't in the frame of mind to pull the team together, and after a visit from Professor X from the future, he tells Wolverine he has to put the team back together.

The animation is alright, it is obviously a kids show, because Wolverine doesn't get his costume trashed every time he fights like he does in the comics, even when he gets hit square in the chest with a laser. There was also a car chase involving the Blob that was kind of awkward.

But overall, I like it. It's entertaining, I'm probably not going to go out and buy it on DVD, but I will certainly make sure that my DVR is recording every episode.

Hulk Vs. Update 12/10/08

Marvel released a new trailer for the Hulk Vs. DVD and it's pretty impressive. Sabretooth, Deadpool and Omega Red make appearances.

The Wolverine part looks like it has a pretty decent story to it, whereas the Thor part looks like it's going to be 45 minutes of the Hulk and Thor kicking the crap out of each other. Not that it's necessarily a bad thing, but I am drawn to the Wolverine story more and more each time they reveal more of the story.

I highly suggest viewing the trailer, it's starting to look very promising.

X-Men Origins: Wolverine Photos.

They had some problems with the pictures last week, but Marvel released an article with new pictures of the Wolverine movie. It is starting to look pretty decent.

There are only two problems I see so far, but they already see to have built-in solutions.

1. Gambit it in the movie. BUT, apparently, he's not in it for very long.
2. Ryan Reynolds is Deadpool. BUT, he'll probably be wearing a mask for most of his appearances in the movie, so at least there's that to look forward to. He will probably get some facetime when he's brought to the Weapon X facility though. I really wish they could have offered the role to another actor.

Hulk vs. Wolverine Update 7/29/08.

Another Hulk vs. Wolverine update. Some pretty interesting stuff, especially the part where they say that the Hulk will show up in the Wolverine & the X-Men series. I also like that they've inserted Deadpool, Sabretooth and Omega Red into the story. Can't wait to buy it when it comes out.

Wolverine Origins Update 7/9/08

Marvel posted an article today about the newest still from the Wolverine: Origins movie. The release date is May, 1 2009, which is less than a year away. Pretty cool!

Hulk vs. Wolverine.

Check out this article over at Marvel.com. They partnered with Lionsgate to release some Direct-To-DVD/Blue-Ray animated movies. They're starting off with "Hulk Vs.", which will be available in January of 2009. The first half of the DVD is 45-minutes of Hulk vs. Thor, with the second half as Hulk vs. Wolverine clocking in at 33-minutes. Pretty awesome. I have a reprint of the Hulk #180-181 and I can't wait to see it on DVD. There's a trailer on that page and it's pretty awesome. With this and the two animated TV series (Iron Man and Wolverine & the X-Men) I really think that Marvel is onto something here. I can't wait for that to hit stores. I am pretty stoked.

Update 2/29/08.

Special Leap Year Edition!

Marvel released some promotional pictures for the Wolverine movie. You can see them here and here. I really want this to be a good movie, but as I've written before, it's got several things working against it in my opinion. We'll see how it turns out next year I guess.

More "Who Do You Trust" promotions, this time featuring everyone's favorite; Luke Cage. I love Luke Cage, he better not be a Skrull.

Another interesting article, and I'll admit that I haven't read all of it yet, but it's about the State of the Marvel Universe. I am interested in the King Sized Hulk that they mentioned. There are a ton of previews in that article, especially at the end. Enjoy.

Update 2/27/08 Part 2.

One last thing, which actually has me excited: Marvel released an article about Daniel Way's plans for Deadpool. It's kind of vague in a way, but that's to be expected because it's a new series. Anyways, they released the preview for Wolverine Origins #23 and it looks killer. Lots of smashy-smashy. I mean, Deadpool shoots at Logan with an RPG, how can you go wrong with that? Here are the images:

Mavel Update: 2/20/08

Marvel announced six roles that have been added to the Wolverine movie. You can read that here. Biggest disappointment: Ryan Reynolds as Deadpool and will.i.am (from the Black Eyed Peas) as John Wraith. Suddenly, I am completely turned off by this news. Seriously Marvel, you F'ed up.

Marvel also posted an article ranking the Top 10 "Buddy Teams". You can read that here. Personally, I think the Wolvie/Nightcrawler team-up should have been higher. I guess I should just be happy that the Wolverine/Jubilee team didn't make the cut.

Wolverine Movie Photo.

Marvel released the first promo picture from X-Men Origins: Wolverine. You can see it here. It looks awesome. Too bad it comes out May 1st, 2009. I guess I'll have to wait. ::UPDATE:: I was reading Make Mine Marvel and apparently Lynn Collins has been cast as Silver Fox. You can read the full article here. There's also a whole bunch of Wolverine movie news over at Make Mine Marvel.

Update 2/11/08.

Interesting article about the New X-Men and the transition to Young X-Men. I still don't really understand why they're essentially rebooting and re-titling it, but there are a couple of series that they're doing that with as a result of the end of The Messiah Complex (Cable, X-Force), so I guess they're just on one of those reboot kicks that Marvel goes on from time to time to increase sales by publishing issues with #1 on the cover.

I just discovered the X-Men comic hub over at Marvel. It's kind of nice to have one place to keep you informed about all of the cross-over tie-ins because the way the last couple have gone, it can be daunting to keep track of all that.

Iron Man is getting ANOTHER title. I think we need another Iron Man comic like we need another comic starring Wolverine. Oh, wait a minute, Wolvie IS getting another book (it's a limited series). This is just like the early '90s all over again...

Finally, my Deadpool questions have been answered. He'll be in Wolverine Origins #22 this month and he's set to get his own series again later this year. Anyways, here's a preview of Wolverine Origins #22. Enjoy.