The Silver State Chronicles

Everything but the kitchen sink?

Just got word that actor Ty Burrell will portray Doc Samson in the upcoming ‘Incredible Hulk’ film. The Mail Tribune up in the pacific northwest reports…

He managed to get time away from the show recently for shooting on Louis Leterrier’s upcoming movie “The Incredible Hulk,” with Edward Norton, Liv Tyler and Tim Roth. Burrell plays Doc Sampson. The picture is due for release in June.

I’m starting to think the production is being dominated by fanboys who want to shoehorn as much of the Hulk mythos as they can into a 2 hour film.

Ty Burrell	Doc Samson

I just don’t see it, sorry.

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Always nice to hear what Stan has to say!

On October 8tn, 2007, Dennis Miller did a quick interview with Stan Lee on his relatively new radio show. Dennis has a great sense of humor and his radio show is really taking off. Last week, a caller just casually suggested that he invite Stan on the show, and Dennis’s people got on it quickly and made it happen just a few days later!

Stan discusses some memories of Nick Fury, flatters Jack Kirby and Steve Ditko, covers the 1960s Marvel Comics creative process, and manages to mention the new Iron Man and Hulk films.

Dennis is a genuine fan of Stan and Silver Age Marvel Comics, so it’s clear that this interview is a genuine treat for him. Enjoy!

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The Sky Rider of the Spaceways!

The original run of the Silver Surfer comic book (1968-1970) is a true classic. The first spin-off of The Fantastic Four comic, it featured one of the most original characters in the Marvel Universe.

The run boasted several great covers, but my personal favorite is the cover to Silver Surfer #4. It features SS and The Mighty Thor about to clash in battle. Indeed, this is one of my alltime favorite comic covers! They just don’t make them like this anymore!

Kudos to the giants of the Marvel Age of Comics to give us great stories like this one, as well as one of the greatest covers of all time! Special thanks to the talented John Buscema for drawing this memorable, fantastic cover!

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Iron Man Looking Good – May 2, 2008

I can’t say I was ever much of an Iron Man fan growing up. Definitely a second-tier character in the rough & rugged Marvel Universe. In fact, I didn’t know anyone who read Iron Man comics regularly, though now and then I would pick one up just to see what was going on.

Well, after the wild success of the X-Men and Spider-Man films, Marvel has fast tracked many of their properties. Iron Man, of course, is getting the big screen, big budget treatment. Well, a teaser trailer is finally out, and I gotta say, this one is looking good.

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Oldschool Galactus is in FF2 after all?

While I enjoyed Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer for its escapist fun, I was a bit down that the traditional depiction of Galactus from the original comics didn’t make an appearance. I kind of expected he wouldn’t, but I missed it nonetheless.

Well, like most kids on my block I picked up my own copy of the DVD of FF:RotSS on Tuesday and watched the film again. It’s about 90 minutes long so it’s no big chore!

I had heard that a homage to the oldschool Galactus did indeed appear in the film, but didn’t really catch it in the theaters. Well, I think there is something to this argument. Some screen captures follow.

One very compelling image happens around 1:05:48 of the film – Galactus’s shadow is seen on Saturn as he crosses our Solar System. That’s one big guy to cast a shadow like that!

That sure looks like his helmet to me! WOW!

At around 1:21:25 or so, there is another scene. This time a close-up of the outline of his head and helmet.

That’s Galactus’s head and helmet alright – it’s the right shape. DOUBLE WOW!

Only a few moments later, at around 1:21:49, we catch another peek at Galactus’s head & helmet:

There is the oldschool Galactus’s head once again – you can see the outline of his helmet and especially the distinctive protrusions from the sides.

Yes, this is just circumstantial evidence, I know, but looking back, it’s clearly deliberate and a nice touch. So looks like the Galactus we know and love was in FF2 after all!

Excelsior!

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Excelsior!

Looks like our friends at the USPS have decided to follow up on last year’s DC Comics stamp series with a Marvel Comics stamp series!

Looks like a nice set! Some great comic images – in fact, they remind me of the early 70s ‘clip & save’ coupons in Marvel Comics – many comics of that era were mutilated because of that stunt! Haha!

The standouts here include Spider-Man, Captain America & The Silver Surfer. I question the inclusion of Spider-Woman and Electra, but I suppose they wanted to include a couple of Marvel Women, and lets face it True Believer, the field is fairly thin! An Invisible Woman stamp could have been inspired – just a stamp with no image on it!

Also, Wolverine is a fan-favorite but they chose the cover of X-Men #1, which came out about a decade before Wolverine first appeared! Strange…

Still, I’ll be picking up a sheet of these great stamps!

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Sentinel of the Spaceways!

The LA Times reports that SF fan-favorite J. Michael Straczynski, the creative force behind Babylon 5, will be writing the Silver Surfer spinoff film.

Sad to report that the creative types have turned their brains off at the door and suggest that a Silver Surfer film take a ‘darker route.’

That’s not to say a SS film can’t be ‘mature.’ I just get the sense that the film industry (and the comic industry) instinctively believes that ‘mature’ means ‘darker,’ and ‘darker’ means ‘mature.’ Neither is the case, of course. But given the junk both industries crank out, I expect no more from them.

Wait and see.

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Star Studded ‘The Hulk 2′

Yahoo news reports that the cast for Hulk 2 now includes William Hurt as General Thunderbolt Ross! The cast is looking pretty good!

The good word is that filiming will be starting soon for the follow up to the underachieving Ang Lee ‘Hulk’ film.

William Hurt has joined the all-star cast of “The Incredible Hulk,” which is slated to begin shooting this summer in Toronto.

The action sees Bruce Banner/Hulk (Edward Norton) on the run, trying to avoid capture long enough to cure the condition that turns him into a monster. Hurt will play Gen. Thaddeus “Thunderbolt” Ross, the man who has dedicated his life to capturing the Hulk — and who also is the father of Banner’s love interest, Betty Ross (Liv Tyler). Also on board is Tim Roth as villain Emil Blonsky/the Abomination.

French filmmaker Louis Leterrier (the “Transporter” movies) is directing the project for Marvel Studios.

Here’s hoping for the best, since The Hulk deserves better than the Ang Lee film!

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The Power Cosmic – All In Color For A Quarter

I’ve been following the story of 20th Century Fox’s publicity stunt, in cahoots with The Franklin Mint, to put 40,000 altered quarters into the stream of commerce to promote the upcoming film “Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer.’

When I first read about this a few days ago, it struck me as strange since defacing US currency for such a stunt is a crime. I figured they weren’t real quarters but rather commemorative coins or something like that.

Turns out that they are real quarters that the grapchics wizards at The Franklin Mint doctored up. MSNBC reports…

The U.S. Mint said
in a news release Friday …

“The promotion is in no way approved, authorized, endorsed, or sponsored by
the United States Mint, nor is it in any way associated or affiliated with the United States Mint,” according to the release. The federal mint did not say whether the studio or the private Franklin Mint would face a penalty.

The altered coins are quarters honoring the state of California that entered circulation in 2005. They feature George Washington on the front, as usual, but a colorized version of the character on the back. All 40,000 are slated to be in circulation throughout the country by the end of Memorial Day weekend, and about 800 were released in each state.

The coins appear to be fetching a high price on ebay, with winning bids over $100 common. I’ll just be happy if the movie is good! :-)

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…And Four will be Fantastic

Our friends at Apple have posted the new full-length trailer for Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer, which is supposed to run with Spider-Man 3 this weekend! Some storyline elements are revealed in the trailer, some expected and some not. Read on, True Believer!

US Military satellites have captured images of a strange, silver skinned man riding a surfboard and causing all sorts of havoc around the Earth. The military honchos do exactly what we expect when confronted with something they know nothing about: seek out the expertise of Dr. Reed Richards and The Fantastic Four!

At some point, the mysterious Silver Surfer appears to have an appointment to meet with another Doctor we’re familiar with – Victor Von Doom, Lord of Latveria!

It also seems that Johnny Storm’s initial encounter with The Silver Surfer has had an unexpected effect – he can now temporarily ‘swap’ superhuman powers with whoever he comes into physical contact with. Leave it to the ever lovin’ blue eyed Thing to test this out!

With the fate of the world in the balance, the only thing that stands in the way of planetary destruction at the hands of Galactus is The Fantastic Four!!!

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Well, FF2 looks pretty good, though you can’t tell all that much from movie trailers these days! A little speculation:

1. Looks like this film borrows a bit from some classic FF storylines – the original Galactus Trilogy in FF 48-50, and I’d bet a slice of pizza that before the movie is over, Dr. Doom will wind up stealing The Silver Surfer’s Power Cosmic for a brief while, just as he has done in the comics. I hope we see ‘The Ultimate Nullifier,’ too!
2. The principals have assumed their familiar roles – Reed & Sue as paternal figures, and Ben & Johnny as combative siblings, all bound by loyalty and familial love. Good to see – the FF aren’t just a superhero team, exactly. I have always seen them as a group of adventurers and a family, who take on more science fiction themed adventures than simply traditional superhero antics. Of course, the FF have strong elements of the traditional superhero archetype, but their best and most memorable stories often have a broader scope and significance!
3. Looks like they are having some fun with the ‘power-swapping’ phenomenon. Works for me – very Kirby & Lee! Thing is, this pretty much is The Super Skrull’s gimmick, so since we will pretty much see it done in FF2, odds are that a Super Skrull FF movie won’t happen. I know, it was a long shot anyway!

Overall I get the sense that FF2 will be some cool, escapist fun with a sense of humor and a comic book & science fiction flavor – in other words, exactly what the FF should be!

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