Alan Rapp

Coming Soon

/ / Film News & Trailers
  • Title: The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey
  • IMDB: link

It may still be a year away, but we now have our first trailer for director Peter Jackson‘s return to Middle Earth in the first-half of the new movie adaptation of The Hobbit. Martin Freeman stars as Bilbo Baggins who is tricked by Gandalf (Ian McKellen) to join the quest of twelve dwarves (Richard Armitage, Graham McTavish, Ken Stott, Aidan Turner, Dean O’Gorman, Mark Hadlow, Adam Brown, John Callen, William Kircher, Peter Hambleton, James Nesbitt, Stephen Hunter) into the Misty Mountains to retrieve their treasure from the dragon Smaug (Benedict Cumberbatch). Several LoTR alums reprise their roles in the new film including Elijah Wood, Andy Serkis, Hugo Weaving, Orlando Bloom, Christopher Lee, Cate Blanchett, and Ian Holm. The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey opens in theaters on December 14, 2012.

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Buffy the Vampire Slayer Season Nine #4

/ / Comics

btvs-season-nine-4-coverFreefall, the first story arc of Buffy Season Nine, comes to an end as Buffy Summers squares off against the Siphon. In a trend that has continued through four issues (perhaps as a reverse nod to the Star Trek movie franchise?) the odd-numbered issues have been better than the even-numbered ones.

Although issue #4 isn’t bad, it does have a few problems including some sketchy art by Georges Jeanty. Buffy comes out looking like the Slayer we know and love, but many of the supporting characters only vaguely resenble their television counterparts (Xander and Dawn especially).

I’m also very mixed on the comic’s conclusion. Buffy being saved by the police at the last minute might get her out of immediate legal trouble (although there still is that whole “is slaying murder” issue left to be resolved), but it sure comes off anticlimactic when your super-heroine has to be saved by a guy with a gun. Hit-and-Miss.

[Dark Horse, $2.99]

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Batman and Robin #4

/ / Comics

batman-and-robin-new-52-4-coverAlthough I’m still disappointed that Damian has been rebooted back into the little shit he was when he was first introduced (basically erasing all the progress the character had made working with Dick Grayson and Stephanie Brown) I will give writer Peter J. Tomasi credit for finding a way to play on the character’s insecurity and rebellious nature.

One of the things Batman and Robin has done well is to give us a Batman from his son’s perspective. As the reader we know why Batman is protecting and sheilding Damian from certain things, but from his perspective it looks like Batman is a stubborn ass.

I’m less thrilled with Nobody and his connection with Henri Ducard. Although he does offer Damian a tempataion, we know, despite all his flaws, Damian isn’t likely to give into his baser desires this early in the New 52. This means despite being handled with some skill (although the opening diatribe in the drive-in is pretty awful) this arc ultimately has nowhere to go. Worth a look.

[DC, $2.99]

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Coming Soon

/ / Film News & Trailers
  • Title: The Dark Knight Rises
  • IMDB: link

The first trailer for The Dark Knight Rises hit the interwebs earlier this week and left us a bit… underwhelmed. Maybe it’s just me, but don’t you want to see Batman in a trailer for a Batman movie? Christopher Nolan‘s third and final Bat-film introduces Bane (Tom Hardy) and Catwoman (Anne Hathaway) into the mix forcing Batman (Christian Bale) out of retirement eight years after the death of Harvey Dent (Aaron Eckhart). Marion Cotillard, Joseph Gordon-Levitt, Gary Oldman, Morgan Freeman, Michael Caine, Juno Temple, and Josh Pence (as a young Ra’s al Ghul) also star. The Dark Knight Rises on July 20th.

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New Avengers #19

/ / Comics

new-avengers-19-coverAfter teasing us on several fronts for months issue #19 delivers on a number of levels. We get the first public appearance of Norman Osborne‘s new Dark Avengers (although off-panel), Daredevil is finally part of the team, and the first steps to determining whose side Victoria Hand is truly on.

The action is relatively light, but Peter Parker isn’t the only one obsessing with the reemergence of Norman Osborn and Jessica Jones shares her fear with Luke Cage that Osborne will make good on his threat to go after their baby.

New Avengers is always a title that works best dealing with the small character-driven moments rather than big epic battles. An exception to this is the truly dreadful scene (that seems to drag on forever) between Squirrel Girl and Daredevil which is incredibly painful to read. The entire sequence feels clumsier than a production of Shakespeare staring Kevin James and Mandy Moore.

It’s not the best issue of the title we’ve seen this year, but the latest issue of the title does have its moments. Worth a look.

[Marvel, $3.99]

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