It has finally arrived. The climax of the entire MCU over the last 11 years and 20-something movies is here. Avengers Endgame broke the expected numbers, and unseated The Force Awakens as the #1 opening night of all time.
If you don’t want spoilers, STOP NOW! Go watch Avengers Endgame, and come back. Don’t worry, we can wait.
Still here? Or welcome back, depending on your course of action. Join Seth “Zandrax” Zillmann and “Crazy Train” Jonathan Bolick as the size up what predictions were right, and which weren’t.
What is the state of The MCU? Where do they go from here? Can characters killed off still return? And how does this stack up to the original story from the comics?
All these questions and more are answered in another fun-filled Geekville Radio!
We did predict on Episode 225 that this would happen, because it’s common sense. Though it will likely be several years before we get the MCU Proper X-Men film.
The creation of Batman has its roots in the pulp crime magazines of the 30s. Several of the panelists mentioned the characters of The Shadow, The Phantom, and Green Hornet as pre-Batman inspirations.
Well, who are three out of the first four entrants in our Lesser Known Geek Hall Of Fame? The Shadow, The Phantom, and Green Hornet
Is there a favorite incarnation of Batman?
All this and more in another fun-filled edition of Geekville Radio!
Science Fiction icon Mark Hamill is allegedly back in negotiations to appear in Guardians Of The Galaxy Vol 3. It was widely reported last year that Hamill had talks with director James Gunn, but what role they had discussed remained under wraps.
Of course, Gunn was famously fired by Disney last year over controversial tweets made a decade previously. Gunn was re-hired earlier this month, but no major casting news came about in the interim.
Now the site We Got This Covered is reporting that Hamill may in fact be in talks to play Rocket Raccoon’s creator. This could easily be an original character, or a take on secondary or tertiary characters from the Marvel Universe.
To be clear, these are all speculative possibilities based on Rocket’s history. The true role Hamill will play, if hired, has not been publicly discussed.
It’s a mega-sized collection of news on this episode of Geekville Radio. Seth “Zandrax” Zillmann and “Crazy Train” Jonathan Bolick return to talk some of the major headlines
Perhaps the biggest news, possibly even bigger than the obvious Star Wars distribution rights, is the Fox owned Marvel properties that can now be incorporated into the MCU.
The most obvious addition would be that of The X-Men. One of fans’ biggest complaints about the MCU is it never incorporated Marvel’s famous mutants. Now, that plethora of of characters can be introduced in Phase Four.
The other Fox owned Marvel property is The Fantastic Four. While the three movies may not have been as successful as most MCU movies, two characters linked to that specific brand could easily become major players as villains in future films. Those are of course Doctor Doom and Galactus.
While many fans are understandably thrilled about this, it is very possible there may be some major changes in store for the franchise.
First off, it is not a given that the existing X-Men actors will carry over into The MCU. And yes, that includes Hugh Jackman as Wolverine. Despite already having five films’ worth of Spider-Man films, Marvel still recast Tom Holland in the role.
There is also the possibility that, by using the same actors, continuity just would be less sensical. After all, if the X-Men movies are considered part of the MCU, why didn’t The Avengers assist with any of those world-threatening situations.
Deadpool may stay according to reports, though as Train points out, the studio change may legally be a recasting of the role to Ryan Reynolds, just under a new company.
Disney/Fox Merger and Star Wars (19:20)
Another fan friendly wish that may become a reality is the re-release of the Original Trilogy, aka “Non-Special Editions”, Star Wars films. As discussed before, Fox owned the distribution rights to Star Wars. Thus, any theater or home video release could only be through Fox, unless some deal was worked out with Disney. That of course is no longer an obstacle.
Disney Rehires James Gunn (32:10)
Disney announced the return of director James Gunn to Guardians Of The Galaxy vol. 3. Was the reaction to past controversial tweets overblown? Did Disney cave? Was it just trolls? Or did they have this planned all along? There is evidence for all of these possibilities.
Gunn will still be writing and directing Suicide Squad 2, so Guardians 3 will have to wait for that project to finish before it starts filming.
Oliver Queen himself revealing that Arrow is coming to an end
We already know that Crisis on Infinite Earthswill be next years crossover. We also know they’ve been teasing Crisis since the pilot episode of Flash.
In the comics, Flash and Supergirl die during Crisis. Does this mean their respective TV shows will end as well?
Speaking of deaths, Oliver Queen did die in the DC Universe, but was brought back by Hal Jordan as Spectre. So it is very possible that Ollie may bite the big one, and be brought back in some capacity later on.
Bill And Ted 3 (52:40)
The last segment off the show is devoted to the long-awaited confirmation that a third Bill An Ted movie, now titled Bill And Ted Face The Music, has begun filming. Could a sequel to a 30 year old cult classic work in mainstream 2019?
As always, we welcome your thoughts on all these stories. Let us know in the comments section or on our social media
Variety reports, as expected, that Disney shareholders are happy with the news. Meanwhile, Fox shareholders are less enthusiastic.
The good news is, of course, that movie distribution rights for previous Marvel and Star Wars properties are now all under one roof. This means that The X-Men can be formally introduced into the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU). Fox also had rights to Fantastic Four, which means A-Listers like Doctor Doom and Galactus could be part of the next MCU phases as well.
And, as classic trilogy fans have wanted for 20 years, it could conceivably mean that Disney could release “Non-Special Editions” of the original three Star Wars films. It also means the 3D releases, hyped a number of years ago before LucasFilm sold to Disney, could become a reality as well.
Conceivably, Disney could do crossovers with the properties. Could we see a Guardians Of The Galaxy crossover with Star Wars? Or The Deadpool Goofy Movie?
Like with many mergers, there is a downside. In this case, as many as 4,000 people could be laid off. No major business deal goes without losses.
Do you have any hopes for the new Disney/Fox era? Let us know in the comments.
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.
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…
The latest Avengers trailer really brings The Feels
Avengers: Endgame opens on April 26th and will wrap up Phase Three in the Marvel Cinematic Universe.
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.
The latest Marvel MCU movie is here with Ant-Man And The Wasp. Seth and Crazy Train give a near 60 minute discussion (including SPOILERS) about the film, and where it fits in the Infinity War story. The review begins at about 25:30.
It’s one of the reasons we’ve expanded to three films a year, is so that we could do the sequels to films that people have responded to — because we love to make continuing stories with characters people have responded to — but also keep doing the stuff that nobody’s ever heard of, and people go, ‘Why are you doing that?’ That’s fun.
