James Gunn made the following tweet in response to his re-hiring as director for Guardians Of The Galaxy Vol. 3.
Gunn was famously fired last summer over controversial tweets he made in 2009. The cast of the previous two films petitioned to have him reinstated. Warner Bros. then hired Gunn to helm Suicide Squad 2 for rival DC Comics movie universe. Disney Chairman Alan Horn met with Gunn and officially re-hired him this week.
Nearly eight months after being fired by Disney, James Gunn has reportedly been rehired to direct the third installment of the Guardians Of The Galaxy film series.
Deadline reports that Disney chairman Alan Horn met with Gunn to discuss his return to the franchise. Gunn was of course fired last summer over controversial tweets he made a decade previously.
According to the Deadline report, it was Gunn’s public apology and the way he’s handled himself since that persuaded Disney to rehire him.
The social media messages were indefensible, but the filmmaker never did anything but blame himself for poor judgment displayed at a time when he was emerging from the Troma film factory and attempting to be a provocateur.
-Deadline Report
Since Gunn has committed to writing and directing Suicide Squad 2, Guardians 3 will likely have to wait until that project has finished before production can begin. All of the main cast will likely return, as they were very vocal in their support of Gunn during the controversy.
Avengers: Endgame will release next month, which will wrap up Phase Three in the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU). Guardians Of The Galaxy Vol. 3 will be part of Phase Four, which will include Spider-Man: Far From Home, Doctor Strange 2, and a standalone Black Widow film for Scarlett Johansson.
Marvel unleashed the latest, and probably final, trailer for Avengers: Endgame. Several classic moments from all the characters’ past are recapped. Including Steve Rogers carrying Peggy Carter’s casket, Tony Stark falling for Pepper, and Clint Barton training his daughter archery. It’s a very emotional recap of the last decade in Marvel movies.
That of course brings us to the imminent final battle with Thanos. And new costumes…
Avengers: Endgame opens on April 26th and will wrap up Phase Three in the Marvel Cinematic Universe.
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The last film on the MCU docket before Avengers: Endgame has finally come. Of course, it has not come without controversy.
Captain Marvel opened nationwide this past weekend to the tune of $153 million dollars nationwide, and $450 million internationally. This amidst the attention comments made by star Brie Larsen have gotten to certain fans. You can listen to our previous episode for a rundown on that story.
As for reviews, it is currently sitting at 79% on Rotten Tomatoes, with a 63% audience approval. So it may not be the highest ranking entry in the MCU family, but it has been overall well-received.
So does Captain Marvel live up to expectations and continue the near flawless record of MCU films? Short answer, yes. Captain Marvel may not be the most must-see adventure in the MCU family, but it is an entertaining, if not a little predictable, superhero origin story.
But the biggest news may be how the movie retconned the history of the previous films. More specifically, the acquisition of The Infinity Stones that Thanos eventually got possession of.
Seth “Zandrax” Zillmann and “Crazy Train” Jonathan Bolick give a more through (that means SPOILERS) review of the film.
Oh, and according to the person who designed it, Carol’s Nine Inch Nails shirt is a bootleg…
For 35 years, fans have enjoyed the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles adventures in various incarnations. In 2015, the heroes in a half shell crossed paths with The Dark Knight himself, Batman, in a limited series by DC Comics and IDW.
Now that story has been adapted for an animated release entitled Batman vs. The Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, which hits shelves at the end of the month. Check out the trailer below.
While the art in the comic book version seems to pay homage to the original Eastman & Laird artwork, the movie looks more like the Batman: Brave And The Bold format. The cast consists of Troy Baker taking on the roles of both Batman and The Joker (a first for the same release), Tara Strong as Harley Quinn and Poison Ivy, John DiMaggio (Futurama) as Mr. Freeze, Darren Criss (Glee) as Raphael, Kyle Mooney (Saturday Night Live) as Michelangelo, and Tom Kenny (SpongeBob Squarepants) as The Penguin.
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Captain Marvel is a character that has a lot of history, not the least of which has been that there have been multiple publishers laying claim to the name. This episode of Geekville Radio hopes to clear up several things about the character.
Seth “Zandrax” Zillmann, “Crazy Train” Jonathan Bolick, and special guest “Leadbase” Nic Feutz try to bring any new fans up to speed on who Captain Marvel/Carol Danvers is.
First, a history lesson!
Captain Marvel (no, the OTHER Captain Marvel…)
Back in 1939, Fawcett Comics created a character called Captain Marvel, who had superpowers such as flight, super speed, and super strength. DC Comics sued Fawcett, claiming copyright infringement on Superman, who also had many similar abilities. The legal proceedings lasted YEARS, but the courts eventually sided with Fawcett, stating DC did not properly maintain their copyright claims.
One of the fundamental differences between Superman and Captain Marvel was that Superman’s powers were based on him being an alien, whereas Marvel’s powers were magic based. All Billy Batson had to do was yell the word “Shazam!” and he became Captain Marvel.
Fawcett, tired of years of legal proceedings, stopped publishing Captain Marvel titles and got out of the comics business entirely in the 1950s.
DC eventually bought out Fawcett’s comic properties, meaning they gained control of all the Fawcett characters. This of course included Billy Batson and Captain Marvel.
But wait, it gets better…
Yet ANOTHER company, MF Enterprises, started publishing their own Captain Marvel title in 1966. Unlike Fawcett, MF’s Captain Marvel was an android who looked nothing like a superhero. This version was nowhere near as popular, and was canned after a few issues.
By the 1970s, DC was all ready to produce stories about their Captain Marvel. Except there’s one problem. Marvel Comics had registered the actual term Captain Marvel. That’s right, the name “Captain Marvel” had not, up to this point, gone through the proper copyright procedures.
This is the part of the real life story that many comic fans know. In the end, DC agreed to not refer to their character as Captain Marvel as long as Marvel published stories with their Captain Marvel. Since the word “Shazam” was so closely linked to DC’s property, DC’s version would start regularly being referred to as Shazam.
Marvel’s Captain Marvel
So that brings us to Marvel’s Captain Marvel, and the character about to be introduced to the masses in the latest blockbuster MCU film of the same name. What do people need to know about Captain Marvel?
The Kree
First and foremost, Captain Marvel is closely associated with the alien race The Kree. Fans of the ABC series Agents Of SHIELD have seen the story develop about The Kree. As we’ll see in the film, The Kree are a militaristic race that have been at war with another race, The Skrulls, for millennia. While Skrulls are generally looked at as the villains, the war has been going on so long that neither race is truly considered “good” anymore.
The Kree have cosmic abilities, which means any Captain Marvel will as well. The Skrulls aren’t nearly as cosmically powered, but they do have the ability to shapeshift. This has lead to stories where famous characters have been revealed to have been Skrulls for years. These stories have lead to mixed receptions from fans.
Mar-Vell: The first Captain Marvel was, incidentally enough, named Mar-Vell. This is the only incarnation to have Stan Lee’s name connected to it. He and Gene Colan created the character in the mid 1960s.
Monica Rambeau: The second Captain Marvel was Monica Rambeau, created by Roger Stern and John Romita Jr. This was the Captain throughout the 1980s.
Genis-Vell: The son of Mar-Vell took over the mantle in 1993. Created by Ron Marz and Ron Lim, this is the look that a lot of fans probably remember.
Phyla-Vell: Genis’s sister, created by Peter David and Paul Azaceta
Khn’nr: A skrull posing as Mar-Vell during the Secret Invasion storyline. This may or may not be what will happen with Jude Law in the movie. Khn’nr was created by Paul Jenkins and Tom Raney.
Noh-Varr: The last Captain before Carol, and was one of the Dark Avengers. Created by Grant Morrison and JG Jones.
And that brings us to Carol Danvers
Carol Danvers may be like the seventh Captain Marvel to come along, but she was a fixture in the Marvel Universe long before that. In fact, the character is over 50 years old.
She first appeared in 1968 as an Air Force security officer, and was an ally of the original Captain Mar-Vell. In the 1970s, she became Ms. Marvel. This is the name most associated with her throughout her run. The pilot aspect comes from the Ultimate Universe
She is a Human/Kree hybrid, which allows her to have the Kree abilities, while still keeping her human appearance. In the 2000s, she was also known as Warbird, and as Binary.
Her main powers include super strength, flight, and the ability to survive in space without air. Over time, she developed a “seventh sense” ability to see into the near future. As Binary, she also gained an energy absorption power. Simply put, she can absorb energy and dissipate it back out.
Boycott Controversy
Seth, Train, and Leadbase dive into the controversial news surrounding the film’s release. They do not take political stances when we talk about things like this, but there are things that are pretty hard to ignore.
One other thing worth mentioning, we had this poll on our Facebook page asking people if they were planning on seeing Captain Marvel this weekend. After approximately 150 votes, it was still 57% to 43% in favor.
In the last segment of the show, Nic gives a detailed (SPOILERS!) review of Alita: Battle Angel, and gives comparisons to the Captain Marvel controversy regarding content
If you want to hear more about the “Strong Female Character” types, check out our second episode entitled “Warriors Of Estrogen” linked below
As usual, Crazy Train can be found on Twitter, and Lead-Base’s work can be found on Facebook
Also, check out the project Nic talked about at the end of the show, Comfort & Adam!
Stephen Amell surprised the Arrow fanbase when he tweeted out that his run as Oliver Queen will come to an end come Fall this year.
But how will this affect the other shows in the fan-dubbed “Flarrowverse”? If the next crossover is any indication, they will be affected quite heavily.
Ardent DC fans noticed this headline in the series premiere of The Flash. It was the first clue that hinted of a major story arc in the future.
Ever since then, fans wondered if such an epic event would ever see the the light of day in live action. After all, the original Crisis reshaped the entire DC comic line. An event not seen again until recent years in DC. Marvel is another story, but that’s for another time…
For those who may not be familiar with the event, Crisis On Infinite Earths was a massive storyline that involved practically the entire DC Comics line. Much like the current CW shows, DC had a multiverse which had the same or similar characters in different universes. Eventually, DC decided to reboot their entire universe and start with a clean slate. To do this, they started a massive story arc that would streamline all these different realities into one.
And that, in a nutshell, was Crisis On Infinite Earths. Now, onto the SPOILERS for a 35 year old comic story.
The most widely known fact about Crisis, is the event resulted in the deaths of some pretty major names. Namely Supergirl and The Flash.
The original Supergirl, Kara Zor-El, died approximately halfway through the series. The image of Superman openly weeping while holding her body is considered one of the most iconic images in DC’s history.
The Barry Allen Flash sacrificed himself to save the universe. Shortly thereafter, DC promoted Kid Flash (Wally West) to take his uncle’s place.
Now just because a live action adaption shares the name doesn’t necessarily mean that all details have to be followed. But those two moments are vividly remembered to this day. It’s a pretty safe bet that at least one of them will happen.
OK, but what about Ollie?
Green Arrow did appear in Crisis, but it was the Earth 2 (Golden Age) version that kicks the bucket. Arrowverse fans may recall that Ollie is already dead in the televised version of Earth 2. It’s what spurned the Earth 2 Laurel into becoming Black Siren instead of Black Canary.
One of the major plot points in Season 7 is an adult William in the future trying to find out what happened to his father. It’s pretty well established that Ollie has not been heard from for some time. But if Ollie died during a massive battle, it probably would be something of legend. So what the heck happened?
Well, we know the Earth 2 Ollie is dead. And we know the Earth 2 Ollie also died in the comics. But the main Ollie also bit the big one in the comics, when he sacrificed himself to prevent a bomb from destroying Metropolis.
Could this be what happens to our beloved Stephen Amell onscreen version of Ollie? It’s way too early to speculate fully, as Season 7 hasn’t even finished yet. There is still a long way to go before December 2019. And even if Ollie does bite the big one, it’s not like death has stopped characters before.
What do you think? Should Ollie die in the series finale?
Actor Topher Grace and editor Jeff Yorkes assembled this five minute trailer utilizing scenes from all 10 existing Star Wars films, including some rough cut scenes from the Blu-Ray releases. The result is a five minute summary that hits all the best parts of the trilogies and spin-offs.
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The latest entry in Geekville Radio’s Lesser Known Geek Hall Of Fame is The Green Hornet. Many fans remember the 1966 TV show with Van Williams and Bruce Lee, but did you know that the character had existed for 30 years before that TV show? Join Seth and Crazy Train as they discuss the long storied history of the character, and the surprising lineage back to the fictional Old West.
The Green Hornet was created in 1936 by George W. Trendle and Fran Striker, the same creators as The Lone Ranger. Like before, the character was originally conceived for radio serials. We previously discussed both men in our previous episode about The Lone Ranger.
Radio Origins
After the success of The Lone Ranger, Trendle and Striker looked to create another hero to add to their radio drama lineup. They opted for a contemporary hero, as The Lone Ranger was a Western.
Enter The Green Hornet.
The Green Hornet first aired on Jan 31st, 1936 for WXYZ radio. The origins of the character remain in line with many of the characters we’ve discussed so far. A wealthy individual who had a secret identity as a crimefighter. In this case, it was newspaper publisher Britt Reid, who donned a mask and took on crime lords as The Green Hornet.
Much like The Lone Ranger, Green Hornet had a partner who knew his identity and complimented his style. The Ranger had Tonto, The Hornet had Kato. Also, the show used actual classical pieces for theme and incidental music. In this case, the music was “Flight Of The Bumblebee” by Russian composer Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov .
Britt Reid’s father Dan had inherited a silver mine, which was used to fund a newspaper called The Daily Sentinel. If you listened to the last show, you will know the significance of that silver mine. That’s right, Dan Reid’s uncle was John Reid, aka The Lone Ranger. Which makes Britt The Ranger’s grand nephew.
While traveling in The Orient, Britt Reid saved the life of a man named Kato. Kato would go on to be Britt’s partner in crimefighting. He was also a master engineer and a martial artist. This complimented Britt’s intellect and detective skills. Plus, Britt used guns that would stun opponents, as his fighting skills were inferior to Kato’s.
During the 1940s, Kato’s nationality was quietly changed from Japanese to Korean due to fear that a Japanese hero during World War II would cause a backlash. We’ll touch more on that later when discussing the comic book titles.
Kato and Britt tricked out Britt’s limo, and dubbed it Black Beauty. While no model of car was given for the radio show, it likely was a very large automobile since it was a limousine.
When he first started fighting crime, Britt had no gimmick and no mask. He and Kato were out in The Black Beauty when a gunfight broke out between rival gangs, ending in a fatal shooting. The Police noticed The Black Beauty speeding away. Since the car was at the scene of the crime, Britt was concerned that if he kept using it, he would be linked to the crime. This is when he donned the mask and became The Green Hornet.
In an interesting twist, Hornet did not overtly fight crime. He built a reputation as a criminal, using the connections he would get to secretly bring the criminals to justice. Only Kato and the District Attorney knew that Hornet was a crime fighter and not a criminal himself.
After 15 years of crime fighting, Britt retired in the early 1950s
When NOW comics got the licensing in 1989, they retconned the character’s history to fit different generations. More on that later.
Movie Serials
Much like The Lone Ranger, The Green Hornet was adapted to movie serials. Trendle did not like the treatments The Ranger got, so he went to Universal Pictures for Hornet. Two serials were produced, The Green Hornet in 1940, and The Green Hornet Strikes Again in 1941.
TV Show
After the success of the classic 1960s Adam West Batman series, a Green Hornet series was produced, which ran for a single season in 1966. Van Williams was cast in the lead role of Britt Reid. Unlike Batman, which was designed to be comedic in nature, The Green Hornet was played for drama. As a result, it wasn’t remembered as fondly as The Caped Crusader’s show
The series is probably now best known for being Bruce Lee’s first major acting role as Kato. But it also had a crossover episode with Batman, where the two heroes met onscreen.
A link to the previous radio show was provided through the character of Mike Axford. During the radio show run, Axford worked for The Daily Sentinel. In the TV pilot episode, Axford tells Britt about the old days when he knew Britt’s father. This implied that the TV Britt was the offspring of the radio incarnation.
When the TV show ended, the character faded into relative obscurity for the next two decades. Though the TV version of The Black Beauty, depicted as a Chrysler Crown Imperial, gained a following with car enthusiasts.
Comic Book Adaptions
There were several attempts over the years to publish Green Hornet comics, starting in the 1940s. They did not sell nearly as well as those of The Lone Ranger, and didn’t last more than a year or two at a time.
When NOW comics started publishing Green Hornet comics in 1989, they released a four volume series Tales Of The Green Hornet. This retconned the TV series Britt Reid to be the nephew of the original, and established the new incarnation, Paul Reid, as the son of the TV version. Van Williams, star of the TV show, even wrote a few issues about his character’s run.
The Lone Ranger connection remained intact during the NOW run. However, due to potential legal issues over the likeness, the name was never used.
Kato’s history was also addressed in the NOW series. It was explained that Britt lied about Kato’s heritage out of fear that he’d be sent an internment camp during WWII.
It’s also worth noting that the miniseries killed off the original Britt Reid due to a betrayal by District Attorney Frank Scanlon, who revealed the identity to an enemy.
Like The Lone Ranger, Green Hornet is not the property of any specific comic publisher, it is self owned and licensed out. Currently, Dynamite comics has the publishing license. Recently, Dynamite did their own crossover with DC Comic’s Batman that was written by Kevin Smith
2011 Movie
Seth Rogan co-wrote and starred in a Green Hornet feature film. It was a complete reboot with no real connection to any previous incarnation, sans Black Beauty remaining a 1960s Chrysler. Unlike the TV show and radio serials, it was intended to be a comedic action film.
While the movie did well at the box office, it failed to perform enough to warrant a sequel.
What do you think, readers and listeners? Do you have any Green Hornet opinions? Feel free to share your thoughts below or on our social media pages!
One of the biggest pop culture icons of the 1960s has lost another member. Peter Tork, the onscreen bass player for the made-for-TV pop group The Monkees, passed away this week. He was 77.
The following is taken from our Monkees Tribute Show we did last week.
Born in Washington DC in February 1942, Peter was the oldest of the four. Tork wound up playing the “straight man” of the group, and would often be setting up the jokes rather than making them himself. His father was a college professor, and Peter himself has always been a bit of an intellectual.
He started playing piano at age nine, and went on to learn several other instruments. While he was a young man, Peter befriended then aspiring musician Stephen Stills, mostly known for Buffalo Springfield, and being the Stills in Crosby, Still, Nash, & Young. As luck would have it, Stills had auditioned to be a Monkee before Peter knew about the opportunity. Stills was rejected due to not being photogenic enough for TV. Stills then recommended the creators look at Peter Tork. “And the rest” Tork would say “is a hysterectomy”
In a bit of irony, Tork may have been the one with the greatest amount of musical talent. Yet onscreen he was cast as being a bass player. Plus, his role in the show was more of a straight man who could be fooled, despite being a real life intellectual.
Tork is probabably the one that sang the least often. In fact, only one Monkees song from the original run featured Peter on lead vocals. That being “Your Auntie Grizelda” off the second album More Of The Monkees.
That said, it’s worth noting that Peter did help write a few songs. Most notably “For Pete’s Sake”, which became the TV show’s closing theme music, though it’s commonly misidentified as “In This Generation”.
He also did the music arrangement for arguably their biggest hit, “Daydream Believer”.
We here at Geekville Radio extend are deepest condolences, thoughts, and prayers to Peter Tork’s family and friends in this time of grief.
