If “Watchmen” and “Wanted” can work for the big screen – one by being faithful to the source, the other by ignoring it -- what other "unfilmable" comics might be ripe for big-screen adaptation? Yesterday we talked about "Lost Girls," "Sandman" and "It's A Bird." Today we're asking, how about:
Garth Ennis' "Preacher" -- Producer Neal Moritz is shopping this around to studios -- all it takes is one visionary who can see the potential in anti-hero Jesse Custer. He's got the "word of God," which gives him the power to command people to do whatever he wants -- and it ain't pretty ("Eat your gun," for instance). The story gets more blasphemous towards the climax, so don't get skittish -- just adapt the beginning, as he teams up with ex-girlfriend Tulip and vampire Cassidy to set out on his quest to find God.
Gilbert and Jaime Hernandez's "Love and Rockets" -- By two brothers, the "Love and Rockets" stories are some of the best-written stories about female characters in comics. Punk girls -- like mechanic Maggie and her on-again, off-again lover Hopey -- are strong and yet frail, smart yet obsessive, living their lives like real people do. Perhaps the stories are a bit sprawling, but the "Palomar" stories could be condensed for the screen. If not "Palomar," "Lost Women."
Neil Gaiman's "Marvel 1602” -- In all the fuss about the Justice League or the Avengers, Hollywood seems to have forgotten this slightly different take on the superheroes of the Marvel universe, in the wrong place and time. Nick Fury is the head of the Queen's intelligence organization. Dr. Strange, her court physician. Those with unusual powers, who happen to be led by a Charles Xavier, are called "witchbreed." A young man, Peter Parquaqh, who is a bit overly fascinated with spiders, tries to warn them. Focus on the essence of the characters, keeping transformations to a minimum, and budget-wise, it could work. An origin story and a period piece all in one -- and it would make the characters timeless.
Which comics would you like to see adapted for the big or small screen? Which ones do you think are still unfilmable? Let us know below.
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