Category: Comic Books

Comics and Comic Book Characters

Who Is Captain Marvel?

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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.

  • The differences between Captain Marvels over the years
  • The different Captain Marvels in Marvel Comics
  • The character of Carol Danvers, and the significance of her big screen appearance

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.

The original Captain Marvel, who would eventually go on to be known as Shazam

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.

When it comes to impressive powers, dismembering ones self ranks low on the scale

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

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

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

Carol Danvers as Ms. Marvel, her previous name before Captain Marvel

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.

  • Rotten Tomatoes “Want To see” ratings have been disabled due to negative reviews
  • While it can’t be proven, it’s a pretty safe bet that some, if not most, of these reviews are “troll” reviews by people without any real narrative
  • A lot of people are making blanketed statements when discussing these reviews
  • A lot of male Marvel fans have been wanting a Black Widow movie for years
  • No large scale boycott of Wonder Woman happened with male fans
  • Alita Battle Angel has been readily praised as a good example of a woman in a sci-fi action lead role
A perfect example of “trolling”.

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

Episode 2: Warriors Of Estrogen
Our second ever episode is still one of our most listened to

As usual, Crazy Train can be found on Twitter, and Lead-Base’s work can be found on Facebook

Sketch of Carol Danvers drawn literally during the show’s recording

Also, check out the project Nic talked about at the end of the show, Comfort & Adam!

The Lesser Known Geek Hall Of Fame #4: Green Hornet

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The Lesser Known Geek Hall Of Fame #4: The Green Hornet

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!

Jessica Jones and Punisher Officially Cancelled By Netflix

It seemed inevitable after Luke Cage and Iron Fist were dropped last year, but the last of the Marvel Netflix series finally got the ax over the weekend. Deadline reports that Netflix cancelled The Punisher and Jessica Jones, with the upcoming third season of Jessica Jones being the last.

This marks the end of all the series that have aired on the streaming network since 2015. Daredevil premiered four years ago to an enthusiastic audience and critical praise. Jessica Jones began the following year, which introduced Luke Cage to the mix. Finally, Iron Fist was released and was quickly followed with the first (and now only) season of The Defenders. Jon Bernthal’s portrayal of The Punisher, aka Frank Castle, proved strong enough for two seasons of a spin-off.

Bernthal posted this on his official Instagram. He was recently announced to be part of a Sopranos prequel, which would imply knowledge that his time as Punisher was over.

https://www.instagram.com/p/BuB1v9eFnKy/

Jeph Loeb, who Executive Produced all the Netflix-run shows, posted this via Marvel’s website.

It had never been done before.

Four separate television series, each with different super-talented showrunners, writers, directors,cast and crew, coming out months apart and then…

…they would meet in a single event series all set in the heart of New York City.

We called them The Defenders.

And together we were thrilled by stories of Daredevil, Jessica Jones, Luke Cage, Iron Fist and even the Punisher joined in!

They said it couldn’t be done.

But Marvel assembled amazing teams to write, produce, direct, edit, and score 13 seasons and 161 one-hour episodes.

Take a moment and go online and look at the dazzling list of actors, writers, directors, and musicians who graced us with the very best of their craft.

We loved each and every minute of it.

And we did it all for you — the fans — who cheered for us around the world and made all the hard work worth it.

So, Thank You!

On behalf of everyone at Marvel Television, we couldn’t be more proud or more grateful to our audience.

Our Network partner may have decided they no longer want to continue telling the tales of these great characters… but you know Marvel better than that.

As Matthew Murdock’s Dad once said, “The measure of a man is not how he gets knocked to the mat, it’s how he gets back up.”

To be continued…!

– Jeph Loeb and all of us at Marvel Television

While no official statement has been made, the chances seem rather slim that the shows would be picked up by Disney’s streaming service. Screenrant reports that, even if it could happen, it wouldn’t happen before 2020. Furthermore Marvel Television is a separate production company from Marvel Studios, who head up the Marvel Cinematic Universe and Agents Of SHIELD.

CONFIRMED: All Arrowverse Shows Renewed

The CW has officially renewed all shows in the fan favorite Arrowverse TV family. Broadcasting Cable reports CW President Mark Pedowitz made the announcements during the TCA  (Television Critics Association) Winter 2019 Press Tour. The shows were among the 10 announced renewals for the 2019-2020 season.

“This season, we expanded our primetime schedule to six nights with the addition of Sunday — which has been an unqualified success for the network, our affiliates and our advertisers,” said Pedowitz. “In addition to growing our schedule across the week, we also continue to add more year-round programming. The early renewal of these signature CW series gives us a head start on laying out the 2019-2020 season, and this is just the beginning.”

Usually renewals are not announced until early Spring, so this year’s early announcement does show CW’s approval of all the shows’ ratings.

This will put Arrow at Season 8, The Flash at Season 6, Supergirl and Legends Of Tomorrow both at Season 5, and Black Lightning at Season 3. The pilot for Batwoman, which will center around Ruby Rose’s character introduced during last month’s crossover, will presumably air during that season as well.

 

 

2019: The Year In Geek Movies

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2019 certainly has no shortage of geek films. From sequels to reboots, to live action remakes. Even the horror genre looks promising.

Join Seth and Train as they preview many of the upcoming moves in 2019, especially the Marvel and DC entries. Links below are all courtesy IMDB, with trailers attached if available.

FEBRUARY 5th

Lego Movie 2: The Second Part – The long awaited sequel has most of the primary cast returning to deal with the imminent threat of the giant Duplo Block Invasion. In our review of the first film, we were amazed that a $100 million dollar commercial could be so much fun. Everything still looks awesome.

FEBRUARY 14th

Alita: Battle Angel – Manga fans are familiar with this title, based on the series of books from the 1990s. The story is set in a cyberpunk future where a cyborg is awakened and repaired. Once functioning, she sets out to learn her past and how everything came to be. If you’re not familiar with the title, there are some bonafide A-Listers at work. Robert Rodriguez is directing , with the screenplay co-written by James Cameron himself.

Happy Death Day 2U – The first film was a surprise hit with a very original premise. It was almost like a horror version of Groundhog Day. Writer/Director Christopher Landon returns to helm the sequel that will pick up immediately after the original movie ended.

FEBRUARY 22

How to Train Your Dragon: The Hidden World – Seemingly everybody has enjoyed the Dreamworks animation releases. They are arguably the #2 animation studio next to Disney itself. The third and final installment in the movie is set one year after How To Train your Dragon 2 and finds Hiccup searching for a lost dragon world.

MARCH 8th

Captain Marvel – The first Marvel MCU movie of 2019 will introduce Carol Danvers and Skrulls to the MCU. Samuel L Jackson returns as a younger, two-eyed Nick Fury. The film takes place entirely in the 1990s and will presumably show how Fury got his trademark eyepatch.

APRIL 5th

SHAZAM – In a hilarious twist of fate, DC’s Captain Marvel (aka SHAZAM) is brought into the DCEU the month following Marvel’s entry. Teenage Billy Batson is transformed into a fully adult superhero by uttering the word “Shazam”. So Marvel Comics has a Captain Marvel, DC has a Captain Marvel. Everybody got that?  Zachary Levi portrays the title role, while Mark Strong plays the villainous Dr. Sivana. This puts Strong on the interesting list of actors with multiple comic book roles from the same publisher (he portrayed Sinestro in the 2011 Green Lantern film). No other DC Characters listed as appearing according to IMDB. Sorry fans, we have to wait a little longer to get The Rock’s Black Adam.

APRIL 12th

Hellboy – While this is a reboot, this isn’t just an ordinary reboot. Creator Mike Mignola will have a larger creative role in this version. David Harbour (Stranger Things) takes over the title role, while Milla Jovovich portrays the evil Nimue.

APRIL 26th

Avengers: Endgame – Not much can be said that hasn’t already been speculated on already. We had a thorough dissection of the trailer last month. Arguably the most anticipated movie of the year (which is saying something) will finish the story from last year’s Avengers: Infinity War, and usher in Phase Four of the MCU.

MAY 24th

Alladin – 2019 is the year for Disney live action remakes. Alladin was a huge hit in the 1990s, due in no small part to Robin Williams’ epic take on The Genie. Sadly, Robin is no longer with us, or he surely would have reprised the role. Will Smith certainly has some big shoes to fill.

MAY 31st

Godzilla: King Of The Monsters – Millie Bobby Brown (also from the Stranger Things cast) makes her big screen debut. This sequel to the 2014 smash hit introduces Mothra, Rodan, and King Gidorah to the American Godzilla franchise. Plus, we know King Kong is also part of this Kaiju Cinematic Universe.

JUNE 7th

X-Men: Dark Phoenix – One of the most popular storylines from the X-Men comic books finally is adapted for the big screen. Some elements were used in X3, but this version looks to be a more in depth take. With this being the likely conclusion to Fox’s X-Men franchise, it wouldn’t be surprising to see a lot of characters bite the big one.

JUNE 14th

Men In Black International – Thor Ragnarok co-stars Chris Hemsworth and Tessa Thompson reunite in this spin-off that also introduces Liam Neeson to the franchise. The trailer looks to carry on the sci-fi comedy that made the first three films so successful.

Shaft – Jessie T Usher stars as JJ Shaft, the third generation of the Shaft family. Richard Roundtree and Samuel L Jackson reprise their respective roles as John Shaft and John Shaft II. In a world of so many reboots, it’s refreshing to see an installment that still recognizes previous movies as part of the story.

JUNE 21st

Child’s Play – Speaking of reboots, MGM has this take on the horror/comedy franchise that rebrands Chucky for a 21st Century audience. It is important not confuse this with the upcoming TV series of the same name. This film will be a new continuity and will not involve creator Don Mancini or actor Brad Dourif, who will be part of the TV series.

Toy Story 4 – Ironic that a horror franchise dealing with an evil doll drops on the same day as the beloved family franchise about dolls and toys. Toy Story 3 had a very emotional ending, so it will be interesting to see what is in store for the cast in this new installment.

JULY 5th

Spider-Man: Far From Home – We speculated on when the sequel to Spider-Man: Homecoming would take place in this post Infinity War world. We now know that it’s set right after Endgame. The second solo outing has Peter Parker on a school trip to Europe where he battles Mysterio (Jake Gyllennhal).

JULY 19th

Lion King – Another live action adaption (if you want to call it that) of a Disney franchise. This trailer looks almost shot by shot like the 1994 smash hit. James Earl Jones is the lone cast returning. He will reprise the role of Muphasa, while Donald Glover steps in as Simba.

AUGUST 2nd

The New Mutants – With the exit of one mutant franchise from Fox, another one debuts. As the name implies, the film is inspired by the 1980s Marvel title which brought a new generation into the fold. Though the trailer seems to heavily hint a much more horror focus than simply sci-fi action. In this post-Deadpool and Logan world, could an R-Rating be in store?

SEPTEMBER 9th

It Chapter 2 – We knew when the first film hit that this would be a two part story. Thankfully, that gamble paid off as It became a worldwide smash and became the highest grossing horror film of all time.

OCTOBER 4th

Joker – The much examined Joaquin Phoenix standalone film will be also star the legendary Robert De Niro. Not much is truly known about the film, and there is the underlying rumor that Phoenix may not even be the title character after all.

OCTOBER 11th

Addams Family – The classic comedic family is returning to the big screen, this time in animated form. Oscar Isaac voices Gomez, Charlize Theron voices Morticia, and Finn Wolfhard (another cast from Stranger Things) takes on Pugsley. An animated take may seem a bit odd to some, but it may actually be more faithful to the original comic strip that existed before the TV show.

NOVEMBER 1st

Untitled Terminator Film – Creator James Cameron is returning to the franchise that made him a household name. Linda Hamilton is returning to the role of Sarah Connor and Arnold Schwarzenegger is once again portraying a Terminator. Like Halloween before it, this film will ignore most of the previous films, and will be a direct sequel to 1991’s Terminator 2.

DECEMBER 20th

Star Wars Episode IX – Much like Avengers Endgame, there isn’t much to talk about that hasn’t already been said. Disney has confirmed that this will be the final episode of “The Skywalker Saga”. This implies that any future films will be unrelated, and may not have the classic scrolling text introduction. That said, what on Earth could possibly be the final shot of the nine episode saga?

Remakes & Reboots

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Seth “Zandrax” Zillmann and “Crazy Train” Jonathan Bolick return for the first full-fledged Geekville Radio episode for 2019!

Black Panther Nabs Best Picture Nomination

Historical news hit this week with Black Panther getting an Academy Award Nomination for Best Picture. It is very rare for a Geek movie, especially a superhero one, to get any consideration outside of technological achievement. While Seth and Train agree that it will likely not win the coveted prize, it is still a huge achievement for such a movie to even get nominated.

You can check out our review of Black Panther back on Episode 192.

Ghostbusters 3 Announced For 2020

Jason Reitman, son of Ivan Reitman, has officially announced a Ghostbusters film for 2020 that will be in continuity to the two 1980s entries.

This has sparked renewed interest from fans.  A tweet from original star and co-writer Dan Aykroyd implied that he would be interested in helping out with the new project.

Leslie Jones, who stared in the 2016 reboot, did not seem as happy. She tweeted her disappointment that her movie will be ignored in this new sequel.

We did review the 2016 reboot, favorably we might add, and chime in on the idea of ignoring the reboot. And whether it is a sensible move or not.

Solo Hits Netflix

Solo: A Star Wars Story, which famously underperformed at the box office last year, made its debut on Netflix. This gave Train a chance to finally catch the film, and compare his thoughts as to why it did poorly compared to Rogue One.

Seth’s review of Solo can be found here for contrast. Our Rogue One review is also still available for reference.

Finally, Seth and Train discuss all these reboots, remakes, and sequels that have been made lately. Why is it some are great while others fall short? And why could some of these movies work then and not work now?

With all this 80s talk, it’s only fitting Train gives a 1980’s One Hit Wonder Spotify playlist.

All this and more in another fun-filled episode of Geekville Radio.

Spider-Man Far From Home Trailer

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At long last, the first trailer for Spider-Man: Far From Home has hit the interwebs. Check it out below, and check out our analysis of the trailer by clicking on the podcast link above.

Is this before or after Infinity War? There are a few clues within. Let us know what you think!

Avengers Endgame Trailer, Elseworlds Review

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It’s a double whammy return to the airwave for Geekville Radio. Join Seth “Zandrax” Zillmann and “Crazy Train” Jonathan Bolick as they talk about the two giant stories in the comic superhero world.

Whammy #1 – The world is still buzzing over the first Avengers Endgame Trailer. What can we expect from some of the nuggets dropped in that teaser? How can Tony get saved? Could we see Rescue? Adam Warlock perhaps? And what about that reveal of Hawkeye as Ronin?

Whammy #2 – The CW did their annual “Arrowverse” crossover Elseworlds. While it was only three parts instead of the usual four, it did finally bring Lois Lane into the show, as well as introduced the CW viewers to Gotham City and Batwoman. With all the hints dropped at famous Batman villains, could we finally be seeing The Caped Crusader on CW Programming?

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=APl1IX34X50

All this and more in another fun-filled Geekville Radio

Marvel and Star Wars Content for Disney, Red Dead Redemption 2

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Geekville Radio #216: Marvel and Star Wars Content for Disney

Thanksgiving may be coming to a close, but that doesn’t stop Geekville Radio from talking some fun news about the news.

Several shows have been announced for the Disney streaming service. In the Star Wars corner, Pedro Pascal (Oberyn Martell in Game Of Thrones) has been cast as one of the main characters in Jon Favreau’s The Mandalorian. Former MMA star Gina Carano (Deadpool and Deadpool 2) has also been cast, presumably as another Mandalorian.

Diego Luna will reprise the role of Cassian Andor in a yet untitled Rogue One prequel series. It is unclear how long before the Rogue One movie the series will take place in, or whether any of the other members of the film’s cast will be part of the show.

This is in addition to a seventh season of the fan favorite Clone Wars series, which will presumably depict the fates of several characters. Disney has already teased a reunion between Ahsoka Tano and Anakin Skywalker. Fans of the series may recall Ahsoka leaving the Jedi order in the final episode of Season Five.

On the Marvel front, a series starring Sebastian Stan as Winter Soldier and Anthony Mackie as Falcon has been greenlit according to Slashfilm. This is in addition to a Scarlet Witch show with Elizabeth Olsen, and (perhaps the most anticipated) a Loki series with non other than Tom Hiddleston.

It is worth mentioning that all of these series look to be limited series, and not full seasons. So expect something more along the lines of a 4-8 episode season you might see on Netflix than the usual 22-26 episodes you might see on TV.

Marvel head Kevin Fiege will be directly involved in the series, which is not the case for Agents Of SHIELD on ABC. Coincidentally, Agents Of SHIELD has been renewed for a 7th season. Yes, you read that correctly. a SEVENTH season when the sixth hasn’t even aired yet.

Over in the DC side of things, James Gunn has officially been hired by Warner Bros. in a move that shouldn’t surprise many who have been following the story. Gunn will likely write and possibly direct Suicide Squad 2. Coincidentally, Disney will still be using Gunn’s script for Guardians Of The Galaxy 3.

The title of the long rumored Harley Quinn/Birds Of Prey film has been announced. The current official title is Birds Of Prey: And The Totally Fantabulous Emancipation Of One Harley Quinn.

Ewan McGregor has been cast as Black Mask, who will likely be the film’s central villain. Birds Of Prey has been a title over the years for a street-level female team. The team usually consists of some mixture of Huntress, Black Canary, Batgirl, an Catwoman. Poison Ivy and Harley have been in the series at different times.

In other Harley Quinn news, Alan Tudyk will be voicing The Joker in the animated Harley Quinn series for the DC streaming service. Kaley Cuoco will be Harley, and Diedrich Bader will reprise the role of Batman. He previously voiced Batman in Cartoon Network’s Brave And The Bold series.

In the final segment, Crazy Train reviews Red Dead Redemption 2. The long anticipated title has set a record for its opening weekend. With $725 million, the Western title beats out Avengers: Infinity War in opening weekend grossing.

This review may contain opinions that might not be the norm when talking about this massively popular game. In fact, the amount of realism of the game can be a deterrent at times. Take this headline

https://www.unilad.co.uk/gaming/red-dead-redemption-2-will-have-realistic-horse-testicle-physics/

Realistic? Yes. Fun? Maybe not so much…

All this and more in another fun-filled Geekville Radio!

As always we are on iTunes, Stitcher, and many of your favorite podcasts devices. Let us know what you think. Let us know what you want to hear! Give us a review if you can.

Geekville Radio #215: Tributes To Stan Lee and Roy Clark

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Stan Lee, The Generalissimo of Marvel who taught us to say “EXCELSIOR!” and “‘Nuff Said!”

Sometimes one tribute just isn’t enough, True Believers! Geekville Radio is back with a second tribute to the late great Stan “The Man” Lee. This time, Crazy Train joins to share his thoughts on meeting Stan in the 1970s.

In addition, Seth and Train talk about the creation of the Comics Code in the 1950s, and how that shaped the image of comic books for several years. Then, with the resurgence of superheroes, how Stan was able to both abide by and challenge the Code with some of his stories. Including an anti-drug story that still couldn’t be printed under the Comics Code due to it depicting drug use.

Train also talks the VHS Video series from the early 90s where Stan Lee talked to some of the all time greats, as well as then newcomers like Todd McFarlane.

Seth gives a musical analogy, placing Stan on the level of a Chuck Berry or Carl Perkins, where people practicing guitar today may be playing their riffs without even realizing it. Similar to how a lot of tropes in comic books that are taken for granted now were established by Stan in the first place. The flawed hero, the “shared universe”, and the social commentary are all things Stan brought to the table.

And of course, Stan loved his native New York City. While Train lets Hank Williams Jr. explain a Southerner’s take on New York City.

This will probably be the only podcast you hear this week that makes a McDade’s Catalog reference…

Roy Clark was a fixture on TV for thirty years

The second part of the show is in tribute to Roy Clark, who passed away earlier this week at the age of 85. Roy had been a fixture on TV for almost 30 years as a regular on the musical comedy show Hee Haw. He also had appearances on top TV shows, and had a few hit records in “Thank God And Greyhound” and “Yesterday When I Was Young”.

Train also shares a story of seeing Roy play with BJ Thomas and Sylvia in the 1970s, which gives a unique appreciation for Roy’s amazing ability to entertain on the spot.