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Five Things We'll Miss About Sam Raimi & Tobey Maguire's 'Spider-Man' Franchise

Posted 1/12/10 9:01 am EST by in Commentary, Marvel


DESC"Spider-Man 4" is no longer. The franchise that was defined by star Tobey Maguire and director Sam Raimi is in for a dramatic overhaul now that the two creative forces are no longer involved in the Marvel Comics property.

Some fans might point towards continuity deviations, an overabundance of villains and excessive dance sequences as reasons to look forward to the new direction of "Spider-Man." But if we're being honest with each other — was it really all bad?

I have a lot of fondness for the original "Spider-Man" trilogy, and I doubt that I'm alone. While I'm certainly curious about the franchise's future, I can't help feeling some nostalgia for the old movies as they're on their way out. Here are a few of the things that I'll miss the most. Read More...

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'Condorman' In MTV's Sick Day Stash: Great Superhero Movie Or GREATEST Superhero Movie?

Posted 11/18/09 7:04 pm EST by in Commentary


CondormanOver on MTV Movies Blog, they have a nifty little weekly feature called "Sick Day Stash," in which they highlight a lesser-known, older film that our writers hold near and dear to their hearts. While they're always a fun read, this week's author is regular Splash Page writer Josh Wigler, who managed to earn himself even more geek cred (in my mind) by choosing one of my all-time favorite films: Disney's 1981 film about a comic book creator who becomes a real-life superhero, "Condorman."

Calling the film "cinematic gold" (a description I can't really argue with), Wigler explains exactly why it's his "favorite superhero of all time" (again, no argument here). Here's a short excerpt:

Crawford's overeager and frantic performance as Woody might be cringe-worthy by today's standards, but that was part of the charm for me as a kid: this unspecial man turning himself into a slightly more special gadget-driven hero spoke to me in a way that Batman never could. Sure, Batman builds himself from the ground up and has no superpowers to speak of, but he's fantastically cool in every facet of his life.

For the full report on "Condorman" and why it's great for your Sick Day Stash, head over to MoviesBlog.MTV.com.

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What Does 'Paranormal Activity' Director's 'Area 51' Movie Mean For Grant Morrison's 'Area 51'?

Posted 11/16/09 12:16 pm EST by in Commentary


Grant MorrisonWith Oren Peli's found-footage horror film "Paranormal Activity" making a big box-office splash, it's only natural that everyone's wondering about his next project. An alien-themed scare flick titled "Area 51," the Paramount film has been shrouded in secrecy—but details recently emerged about Peli's plans for the film. One thing the spoilery report didn't mention, however, is what the forward movement on Peli's "Area 51" means for another Paramount project with the same name: Grant Morrison's long-gestating "Area 51" movie based on the Midway video game.

We last reported on Morrison's "Area 51" script more than a year ago, with the comics scribe promising that his script offered "a new take on the mythology." Details regarding Morrison's take on "Area 51" are even more scarce than details about Peli's closely guarded script, but from what we can tell, the scripts' similarities end at the theme, title and studio backing them. Read More...

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What Can Zatanna's 'Smallville' Episode Teach Us About 'Justice League' & 'The Avengers' Movie Team-Ups?

Posted 11/13/09 9:16 am EST by in Commentary, DC Comics, Marvel


SmallvilleCan Jon Favreau's reality-based "Iron Man" share the same universe as Kenneth Branagh's fantasy-focused "Thor"? What about the space-faring "Green Lantern" film and Christopher Nolan's gritty take on Batman?

These are valid concerns both for fans and movie executives as Marvel Studios and DC Entertainment plan live-action adaptations of "The Avengers" and "Justice League," respectively.

While they're difficult questions to tackle, some hint at the answers could lie in an installment of the television series "Smallville" (titled "Hex") which debuted last season. In "Hex," the powerful magician Zatanna interacts not only with the super-powerful Clark Kent, but also with Green Arrow, a street-level vigilante with no superpowers to speak of.

MTV News spoke with "Hex" writer Bryan Q. Miller (the new writer of DC's "Batgirl" series) to get his take on how to integrate magically-gifted characters into a live-action comic book world. Read More...

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'Spider-Man 4' Villain Rumor Mill: It's The Lizard. Wait, It's Black Cat! No, It's...

Posted 11/10/09 1:01 pm EST by in Commentary, Marvel, News


Spider-ManThese days, it's hard to tell which movie has a larger rumor mill churning around it: "Spider-Man 4" or "Batman 3." Both record-breaking franchises have seen their upcoming installments surrounded by casting and story rumors since the moment the last film wrapped, and with both projects, the focus of much of that speculation has been on the potential villains.

While we try to limit our reporting on the various unsourced, anonymous rumors percolating around the 'Net to responses we receive from the relevant filmmakers and actors, every now and then it's worth collecting them for the sake of discussion. So, consider this your "Spider-Man 4" rumor roundup, folks—the villain edition.

Oh, and keep in mind—most of these rumors end up being just another casting announcement or plot point created out of thin air to stir up traffic. So take 'em all with a mountain-sized grain of salt. Read More...

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'Astro Boy' And The Anime Adaptation Conundrum

Posted 10/23/09 10:01 am EST by in Commentary


Astro BoyBy John Constantine

Given every major film studio's propensity for pumping out big-screen adaptations, whether they be of comic books, novels, musicals, or theme park rides, it's strange that we haven't seen many anime flicks.

Discounting all but forgotten direct-to-video trash like 1991's "The Guyver," there have really only been three Western-made anime adaptations. I'm reluctant to even count last year's practically budget-less "Dragonball: Evolution", so that leaves the Wachowski siblings' hallucinogenic "Speed Racer" and this week's "Astro Boy".

It's fitting that those two are the first anime properties to receive a significant marketing push and budget from their respective studios considering that their cartoon inspirations were among the very first anime to reach America way back in the 1960s. It is, however, a miracle that they were released at all. Read More...

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Five Disney And Marvel Crossovers We Could See Now

Posted 8/31/09 7:33 pm EST by in Commentary, Lists, Marvel


The IncrediblesDisney now owns Marvel Comics, along with its 5,000 characters, and meetings have already occurred between Pixar and Marvel about potential crossovers. Introducing Disney fandom to Marvel fandom must be done delicately, though, as the two companies have some of the most demanding followings in entertainment.

For today at least, fanboy conversations about Batman and Daredevil crossovers have been completely set aside in favor of Mickey and Magneto suggestions. Here are five Disney properties I'd like to see matched up with Marvel counterparts.

The Incredibles meet The Fantastic Four: There's an astonishing amount of cross-pollination that's already taken place between Marvel and Disney over the course of their creative histories. Seeing as how Disney and Pixar modeled their in-house hero family off of Stan Lee and Jack Kirby's boys and girl in in blue, it would be only fitting that they get together for lunch once in a while now that they live under one corporate roof. Read More...

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Jack Kirby: Remembering A Comic Book Legend

Posted 8/28/09 3:31 pm EST by in Commentary, DC Comics, Marvel


Jack KirbyIf you're enjoying the current comic book movie sensation, then you should know that none of it—not "Iron Man," not "The Avengers"—would be possible without the work of legendary comic book creator Jack Kirby, who would have turned 92 years old today.

Kirby co-created almost all of the now-classic comic book characters from Marvel Comics as well as plenty from DC Comics. Without Kirby, the aesthetic of heroes such as Thor and villains like Galactus would be entirely different.

Heck, they probably wouldn't even exist at all. Read More...

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Bryan Singer Directing The 'Wolverine' Sequel? It's More Likely Than You Think!

Posted 8/14/09 11:09 am EST by in Commentary, DC Comics, Marvel


Bryan SingerIt's been a week full of news regarding the sequel to "X-Men Origins: Wolverine," but the stars could be aligning for the biggest announcement yet regarding the next installment of the X-Men film franchise.

As we reported yesterday, Oscar-winning screenwriter Christopher McQuarrie ("The Usual Suspects") has officially signed on to script the second "Wolverine" solo film. McQuarrie has been a frequent collaborator with "X-Men" and "X2: X-Men United" director Bryan Singer, and we speculated that the attachment of the new screenwriter could make the project more attractive to the filmmaker.

However, in light of several other recent (and not-so-recent) announcements, the big-picture look at "Wolverine 2" makes a return for Singer to the "X-Men" franchise even more logical. Read More...

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'Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles' And What Might Have Been

Posted 5/18/09 10:26 am EST by in Commentary


Summer Glau in 'Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles'FROM MTV MOVIES BLOG: On the eve of “Terminator Salvation’s” release this week, Entertainment Weekly’s Michael Ausiello brings word that Fox has officially canceled the struggling “Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles,” which concluded its second season in April with a questions-raising. As a fan of the series, I had hoped Fox would capitalize on the positive buzz surrounding “Salvation” to give the series one last push, but it is not to be.

Television is usually outside of our coverage zone here on MTV Movies Blog, but the “Connor” cancellation is noteworthy because of the larger issues the show addressed with regards to the franchise. Since the “Chronicles” started, fans have understood that Lena Headey’s Sarah and Fred Dekker’s John existed in an alternate timeline. This is all thanks to a plot twisting pilot in which the duo, along with sexy Terminatrix Cameron (Summer Glau), jump a decade forward in time to escape yet another Connor-hunting Skynet initiative.

For more on the cancellation of ‘Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles’, head over to MoviesBlog.MTV.com.

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Cover Artist

Splash Page welcomes Ed Tadem to our cover artist family (our custom-designed theme up top). Currently working on the forthcoming "Avengers" animated series, Tadem's work can also be seen in the "Jackie Karma" issues of Image's "'76," and in "Pop Gun, Volume 1." Ed Tadem can be found online at EdTadem.com.