Spider-Man: Brand New Day

Spider-Man: Brand New Day

What’s the special sauce w/ the MCU Spider-Man movies?  How do they consistently stand out from the rest of the pack?  Let’s list the ways:

1. Tom Holland.  He continues to shine.  This go around, he plays the reluctant loner, forced to work alone to keep his friends safe.  It’s a well-worn trope, but he pulls it off well in a way that doesn’t make you want to smack him upside the back of his head.  (See the end of Tobey Maguire’s first Spider-Man.)  

Yet through all of the depression, Peter’s innate joy for life still comes through.  His “That is so cool” when the Hand strike a kickass fight pose, while he’s getting his ass kicked, is his character in a nutshell.

2. Zendaya.  So perfect in this role.  The scene where she kisses/fools Spider-Man pulled all my emotional strings.  Phenomenal.

3. Sadie Sink as Jean Grey.  Was anyone surprised by the reveal?  Regardless, she’ll be just fine as the MCU’s first X-Man.  Particularly loved her scene with Marisa Tomei (yay!).  This movie did a great job of hitting all the feels for me.

4. There are some gorgeous camera shots from director Destin Daniel Cretton and cinematographer Brett Pawlak.  There’s one where the camera spins around during a fight/chase sequence that I just loved.

5. I’m a sucker for the “hero shares a silent moment with a kid” thing (See: Cap with the kid in the museum, Andrew Garfield at the end of Amazing Spider-Man 2.)  Also, Peter getting a chance to see what he means to the city was sweet.

6. I liked that Scorpion was a misdirect as the main villain of the film.  And that the finale didn’t fallback to a generic battle with huge explosions.  

7. Peter’s last scene with Ned.  There may not be a magical kiss, but there’s a magical handshake.  (And I still think the kiss will work, just like it did at the end of Chuck.  MJ was possessed the first time, didn’t count.)

8. It’s always a pleasure to see Florence Pugh as Yelena.  

9. Heh, Naomi Watts voiced EV, Spidey’s AI.  Excellent.  

What didn’t work as well

1. I don’t buy evil Jean Grey.  Before the reveal, her actions, especially when torturing Peter, evince a cruelty that doesn’t fit with her character, even within the context of her single-minded quest.  Also, her plan really doesn’t make any sense at all.  With her powers, jumping into Director Metzger’s mind from the get go would have been much cleaner w/ a far greater chance of success.  But then there wouldn’t have been a movie.  

2. Peter develops organic webshooters and there’s no reference to Tobey from the last movie?

3. I’m on the fence with funny Punisher.  Jon Bernthal plays it well, and Garth Ennis has put to rest the notion that Frank can’t be both grim and hilarious, but it didn’t quite sit right with me.  

4. Good to see Mark Ruffalo, and the Hulk fight scenes was pretty good.  But he still felt shoehorned in.  

5. Not enough Ned, not nearly enough MJ.  These movies ultimately sing because of the relationship between the three.  The too-few scenes we get with them only reinforce that truth.

6. Rarely a fan of “whipping up next-gen tech in the back of my garage” gimmicks.  He may be a genius, but Peter’s no Tony Stark.

7. Cretton did a superb job with this film, but it also means this is time not spent on Shang-Chi 2.  Where the hell is that movie??????????????????

This is the kind of Marvel movie I know and love.  Nice to see it can still be done.  Really hoping the Russos can bring more of the same in December.  Also can’t wait for Peter and MJ to get back together.  

Regret watching: No

Would watch again: Yes

Would buy on DVD: Yes

Rating: Good

Updated MCU rankings

1. Avengers: Endgame

2. Captain America: Civil War

3. Captain America: Winter Soldier

4. Spider-Man: No Way Home

5. Avengers: Infinity War

6. Shang-Chi

7. Avengers: Age of Ultron

8. Ant-Man/Wasp

9. Avengers

10. Spider-Man: Brand New Day

11. Spider-Man: Homecoming

12. Captain America

13. Dr Strange 2

14. Thunderbolts

15. Thor: Love and Thunder

16. Spider-Man: Far From Home

17. Iron Man 2

18. Black Widow

19. Fantastic Four: First Steps

20. Black Panther

21. Iron Man

22. Ant-Man

23. Dr Strange

24. Deadpool & Wolverine

25. Iron Man 3

26. Thor 3

27. Captain Marvel

28. Thor

29. Thor 2

30. Black Panther: Wakanda Forever

31. Guardians of the Galaxy

32. Guardians of the Galaxy 2

33. Guardians of the Galaxy 3

34. Hulk

35. Eternals

36. Captain America: Brave New World

37. Ant-Man/Wasp: Quantumania

Supergirl

Supergirl

The second film in James Gunn’s new DCU.  I went into this not expecting it to reach the quality of the source material, Tom King and Bilquis Evely’s phenomenal Supergirl: Woman of Tomorrow.  I mean, that’s an insanely high bar to rise to.  But would it come anywhere close?

No, not really.  I enjoyed the first two-thirds of the movie enough, but the final third lost me with a bunch of movie silliness.  The usual list:

What I liked:

1. I’ll put Milly Alcock on this list, but I’m actually still mixed in my feelings.  She’s got a very non-traditional look.  (She really does look like Will Poulter.  Apparently I’m not the first person to say so, but I swear I came to that conclusion on my own.)  But I wanted to reserve judgment until I saw her on screen.  I ultimately liked her performance and her attitude, and I’d happily watch her in this role in future movies.

2. I liked the film’s take on Supergirl’s character.  “You don’t have to be nice, but you have to be good.”  It’s a very clear articulation of a way of thinking that you don’t see with many superheroes.  Well, I suppose you do - Wolverine, Hitman, etc.  But this is a new spin on Supergirl in particular that’s  necessary in order to set her apart from the DCU Superman.  (It’s very different from King’s interpretation, but I’ll allow it.)

3. The VFX of Supergirl flying.  Flying may be my favorite visual effect to see on screen when it’s done well.  I love the exhilaration that I feel when watching it.  

4. The comic did a much better job of conveying the horror of Kara’s time in Argo City, but the film’s version was pretty good too.  

What I didn’t like

1. Krem was meh.  Boring villain.  At least the comic knew not to make him such a focus of the story.  And why would he carry the antidote as a necklace.  Bringing it back further, where did he even get the poison arrow from?  Didn’t his ship and all his belongings get blown up by Ruthye’s father at the beginning?

2. Lobo was completely unnecessary.  Jason Momoa did as good a job as he could have, but it’s a thankless role.  The only time I’ve ever liked him is when Garth Ennis wrote him

3. So when Ruthye brought Supergirl’s costume along, she brought the boots along as well?  Also, when did she find it again?  

4. Was the point at the end that Supergirl already killed people so it was okay for her to do it to Krem?  Her soul was already tainted with the burden of murder?

What this movie really accomplished was to inspire me to read the comic again, which I did today.  God, it’s so freaking good and beautiful to look at.  Run don’t walk to your local comic store and pick up a copy now.

Regret watching: No

Would watch again: No

Would buy on DVD: No

Rating: Nice

Persepolis

Borrowed from the library.

Persepolis

The first volume.  I gave this a shot after reading that Marjane Satrapi had passed away.  I’d heard all the praise and accolades for Persepolis, but it never really tickled my interest.  Turns out my instincts were right.  This didn’t work for me on either an emotional or artistic level.  I intellectually appreciate her sharing a world that I knew little about, but it didn’t reach me on any level. 

New comics

New comics!

Fantastic Four 13

No Humberto Ramos, but Andrea Sorrentino proves to be surprisingly adept at drawing the funny.  He draws a hilarious out-of-his-depth Johnny Storm, whose hare-brained Ghost Rider goes wonderfully awry.  One of Ryan North’s better FF issues.  

Supergirl: Survive 2

I said last issue that this could go in any number of directions.  I didn’t expect either the Rainbow Lantern Corps or the Lobo Bunch to show up, but I wholeheartedly approve the decision by Ethan S Parker and Griffin Sheridan.  It’s lots of fun and makes for a colorful issue, and I totally didn’t see the totally obvious turn on the last page.  Once again, anything can happen in the next issue, and I’m looking forward to it.  

Absolute Martian Manhunter 12

At the end of it all, do I regret buying all twelve issues of this?  Only the reread will tell, but I suspect yes.  Even Javier Rodriguez’s art isn’t enough, as the shine’s finally come off of that apple.  And Deniz Camp’s story stopped being enjoyable or even coherent about six issues ago.  I’m glad that I don’t have to debate whether or not to buy this anymore.

Batman 11

Like Tom Taylor’s Detective, Matt Fraction’s Batman is just good, clean, superhero fun.  Love The Ojo’s visual design.  (By Jorge Jimenez?)

100 Bullets: The US of Anger 1

Didn’t expect to ever see more 100 Bullets, but the original team of Brian Azzarello and Eduardo Risso are back at it again.  I might be buying this just out of habit, but it’s still entertaining enough.

New comics

New comics!

Supergirl: Survive 1

An iFanboy recommendation.  What if Kara and Kal-El crashed on an alien planet moments after escaping Krypton’s destruction?  A good start by Ethan S Parker, Griffin Sheridan, and Rod Reis.  This can go in any number of directions.  

Doomquest 2

Doom Groundhog Days his way through the Titanic disaster.  Ryan North captures his voice perfectly.  A great issue, and next month looks to be just as fun.  (Doom is George Washington.)

Powers 25 10

More of the excellent same.

Battle Beast 10

Yessss.  More fighting!  That’s all the title needs.  None of that talking crap.

Flash 34

More Ryan North, and he’s definitely picking up his game on Flash.  There’s a delightful choose your own adventure two-page spread involving a massive gorilla invasion.  I still don’t quite buy the “flashes of insight” (intentional ugh), but North is barely managing to make it work.

Absolute Batman 21

Batman fights the Robins (sitting in massive mechs), Jim Gordon gets his funeral, and Jack Grimm (Absolute Joker) confronts Bruce Wayne.  I wish the fight was better (the Bane fight from a few months back really set high expectations), but this is still a darn good title.  At least, when Nick Dragotta’s drawing it.  

Detective Comics 1110

Man, can Mikel Janin draw.  His Black Canary is particularly good.  It’s a rare title where the artist eclipses the Tom Taylor writing, but this is one of them.  

Wonder Woman 34

Wonder Woman defeats the Matriarch in a very satisfying manner.  I really need to read this full Tom King run.

Absolute Wonder Woman 21

Sigh.  Dunno who Dillon Snook is, and while he doesn’t suck, he’s no Hayden Sherman.  I can’t help but read this wondering how it would have looked under his pen.

Movies

Stuff I’ve been watching

Masters of the Universe

I grew up loving He-Man, had a bunch of the action figures.  But they didn’t stay with me the way Transformers or GI Joe did. They went the way of the Silverhawks, Voltron, Thundercats, M.A.S.K., Robotix, and all the other brilliant toylines of the 80s.  I definitely have a fondness for the characters and the cartoon, but went into this with zero expectations.  

Things I liked:

• Nicholas Galitzine brought a wholesome dorkiness to Adam/He-Man that worked for me.  The character’s the straightman of the film, and he did as well as I could have hoped for.

• Camila Mendes was fine a Teela.  She never had much of a personality in the show beside “token female”, and again, she was perfectly acceptable.

• Jared Leto took a lot of media flak for his crazy-ass off-set behavior.  I haven’t kept up with any of it, but I can say that his Skeletor was delightful.  So over the top, he played the moustache-twirling villain to perfection.  (If a skull could have a moustache.)  No idea if he actual did the body acting (like Pedro Pascal doesn’t for Mandalorian), but I really hope he did.  

• Alison Brie’s even better as Evil-Lyn.  She’s not taking this seriously at all, she’s practically in a different movie.  I’m so here for it.  

• Love the way the filmmakers explained the cheesy character names.  (They were kid-Adam’s names for the heroes he grew up watching but never met.)  Heh.  Fisto.  Ram  Man.

• The recreation of the cartoon group laugh.  Classic.

• Dolph Lundgren cameo.  I never watched the 80s movie, but I still appreciated the nod.

• Orko was in this for just the right amount.

• The She-Ra scene.  Too bad it’ll never happen.

Things I didn’t like:

• Idris Elba plays Eternia Heimdall, and it’s tired.  Drunk past-his-prime hero struggling to regain the respect of his daughter was just done by David Harbour as Red Guardian.  It barely works there, it completely fails here.

• The movie’s way too long.  This should have stayed w/ the 80s vibe and kept it under 90 minutes.  

The movie didn’t reignite my love for the IP, but it didn’t ruin it either.  Couldn’t have expected much more.

Regret watching: No

Would watch again: No

Would buy on DVD: No

Rating: Fine

War Machine

Alan Ritchson jumps on to the Netflix action flick train.  It’s Predator with a massive alien robot.  There are some good action sequences, everyone else dies, and it ends with the potential for sequels.  Not a bad watch-while-working-out movie, but it doesn’t achieve anything beyond that.

Regret watching: No

Would watch again: No

Would buy on DVD: No

Rating: Fine

Books and shows

Library book!

Dungeon Crawler Carl by Matt Dinniman

This was a Brandon Sanderson recommendation on an Insta algorithm reel.  (I’ve never read anything by Sanderson, but he’s pretty fun to listen to.)  

This is the geek version of a Lee Child Reacher novel.  Super readable, goes by in a flash, thoroughly enjoyable, almost certain to never be re-read.  I’ve got a hold on the next book at the library.  

Regret reading: No

Would read again: No

Would buy: No

Rating: Pretty good

Shows!

Rafa

Netflix documentary.  112-4 at the French Open.  It defies comprehension.  Anyway, this was a fun sidewatch while I worked out and played Slay the Spire.  (And I full-watched parts of it as well.)

Regret watching: No

Would watch again: No

Would buy on DVD: No

Rating: Nice

Shoresy

An Insta reel-inspired watch.  This is one of the best shows I’ve seen in a long time.  Jared Keeso, who writes and stars in the show, has created something magical here.  As with the best comedies, it effortlessly mixes hilarity and heartfelt emotion.  Jacob Tierney, director of the first two seasons, isn’t afraid to let the show breathe with extended slo-mo takes that do nothing more than set the mood, accompanied by A-plus needle drops.  

The show is perfectly cast, I love everyone of these characters.  This requires a rewatch very very soon.

Regret watching: No

Would watch again: Yes

Would buy on DVD: Yes

Rating: Pure joy