1.5 Razors

Batman and Two-Face #26

/ / Comics

Batman and Two-Face #26Continuing the “Big Burn” storyline Bruce Wayne attempts to talk some sense into Erin McKillen before the would-be crime boss he broke out of prison (under the guise of Matches Malone) and Two-Face take their vendetta to an entirely new level.

In more flashbacks to the series of events which led McKillen and Two-Face to their present war, Batman and Two-Face #26 offers a look at the death of Erin’s twin-sister Shannon (which has to be, without a shadow of doubt, the dumbest prison escape plan in the history of the written word). Letting her sister commit suicide (because in Gotham where everyone is on the take there was no plan that made a lick of sense), we see the horrifically stupid series of events that ended one sister’s life and has led the other obsessed with Harvey Dent’s death.

Although the comic has some nice moments, especially in the early scenes between Bruce and Erin, the flashbacks are so unbelievably dumb it wouldn’t surprise me if everyone who read this issue lost a couple of IQ points. Pass.

[DC, $2.99]

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Not Exactly Super

/ / Movie Reviews
  • Title: Man of Steel
  • IMDb: link

Man of SteelWith the box office disappointment of last year’s Green Lantern, the end of Christopher Nolan‘s Batman series, and most of the specifics of 2015’s Justice League still to be determined, DC Comics and Warner Bros. have put all their support behind a new Superman franchise helmed by 300 and Watchmen director Zack Snyder. The result is an often puzzling piece of filmmaking that breaks away from both decades of comic history and the ghost of Richard Donner‘s Superman to create a New 52-ish take on the character (i.e. grittier and largely absent of joy or wonder) that, despite its preponderance of extended action scenes, is one of the most boring super-hero films ever made.

Much like Green Lantern (which is in every measurable way a superior film), Man of Steel decides to redesign its leading man for the silver screen. The muted palette and organic earthy feel of Snyder’s version of Superman’s homeworld of Krypton (where the film’s first 25 minutes takes place) may remind you of Green Lantern‘s version of Oa, but it’s just one of many steps in distancing the character from his rich comic history.

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Detective Comics #21

/ / Comics

Detective Comics #21For the past few months Detective Comics has been the strongest of the Batman titles so far, and consistently better than Scott Snyder and Greg Capullo‘s Batman. Sadly, that’s not the case here. Snyder’s regrettable creation of Harper Row, a hipster street kid who DC Editorial seems to be fast-tracking as the next Robin, at least was limited to one Bat-title. That’s not the case anymore as like a virus she has begun to spread to other titles.

Aside from Harper Row’s appearance, the comic also focuses on a odd story about a love from Bruce Wayne’s past who is some kind of shadow assassin named Penumbra. Her introduction is awkward, as is the resolution (or lack of) where she apparently falls to her death a second time only to return home in disgrace. The only part of the story of interest is the suggestion of the person controlling that guild of assassins. It appears the New 52 seems ready to reintroduce Ra’s al Ghul.

The comic also contains a forgettable back-up story involving Kurt Langstrom who believes he may be responsible for a series of grizzly murders. Pass.

[DC, $3.99]

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XIII – Punchout

/ / Television Reviews
  • Title: XIII – Punchout
  • tv.com: link

XIII - Punchout

Following the events of last week’s bizarre episode, XIII (Stuart Townsend) is sent into “The Pit” by Betty (Roxane Mesquida), an underground prison that pits its prisoners in gladiatorial combat to the death, while above ground she and Victor Gong take control of the Xu Corporation. XIII comes across a few familiar faces who Betty has also sentenced to The Pit including Mozambique (Wole Daramola), movie producer Barry Salters (Jason Blicker), Amos (Greg Bryk), Grier (Lisa Berry), and anyone else Betty blames for the hardships of her life. Pitted against each other, not all of them will survive.

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The Internship

/ / Movie Reviews
  • Title: The Internship
  • IMDB: link

The InternshipThere should be a law against two-hour comedies as its extremely difficult to keep one continually afloat for such an extended period of time, especially given such a simple, one might even argue flimsy, premise. It’s not surprising that only half of The Internship works, but it is odd that the second-half is much better than the first. However, given that waterboarding would be a preferable form of torture to The Internship‘s first 45-minutes, anything would be an improvement.

Despite an underutilized charming cast, the script by Vince Vaughn and Jared Stern reeks of desperation. Not only are our two leads desperate for jobs, but everyone in the film from the group’s lame mentor (Josh Brener, who can’t seem to utter a sentence without throwing in the word “zizzle” for all his homies) to the perfunctory mean kid (Max Minghella) all act out of a sense of desperation that’s nearly always far too pathetic to be funny. Throw in enough half-hearted and rushed jokes to get you booed off the stage at an open mike night, and you’ve got the makings for one of the lamest comedies of the year.

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