All-purpose, running Geek thread (formerly Battlestar Galactica thread)

Just spent the last couple of days watching The Amazing Spider-Man 2 on demand cable, and I think we can officially make the call on which superhero franchise is going to flatline first. God damn was it awful -- stupidly derivative of the Raimi-Maguire series --- cliched and unimaginative.

I thought TASM1 was OK, if a little ripped-off from the Raimi series, but this one was shit. Stick a fork in it.

So SONY/Marvel is going to have to reboot Spider-Man from the ground-up for the second time in five years. That isn't going to look good.

 

From what I've read, they are still going forward rather than rebooting, though some things have been at least pushed back.

I didn't think the first Amazing Spider-Man was derivative of the Raimi-Maguire movies so much as rooted in the same source material. I still haven't seen the sequel, but I'm not even that excited to watch it on DVD. As far as I'm concerned, they took the one thing that worked best in the first movie and eliminated it from the series.

 

Very much looking forward to the new Doctor Who series.

It's been almost two years since the show wasn't dealing with some kind of end game; First the departure of the Ponds, then the 50th, then the departure of Matt Smith.

I feel like without that kind of big event hanging over the show, assuming Capaldi and Coleman are in this for at least two series together, this series could be free to just tell stories.

 

What about ANT-MAN?

 

I'm excited for a new Doctor as well.

As for Ant-Man, I'll just have to see it. I don't know anything about the character. I didn't know anything about Iron Man or Thor or Guardians either, but I got on board the Marvel movie bandwagon once I saw them.

 

There are rumors out there that this Christmas will be the final episode for Coleman.

Either way, I'm excited for Capaldi's run. It seems like when he came in, he made it a point to tell Moffat that he'd only sign on if the stories were simpler than they have been in the past few seasons, which would be nice.

 

Give ANT-MAN a chance, dude.
How can anyone ignore a superhero who can penetrate a dome of pure gamma radiation.

 

Speaking of Ant-Man, was anyone here reading comics in the early 90s and picked up a copy of Marvel Year in Review '92?
It's an obscure, but incredibly well-done piece of self-satire. In 1992 and '93, Marvel ditched the tired book-by-book review formula and just went full-on parody. Both issues are littered with stuff like an ad for the Punisher serving as New York City Transit security (the tagline: The Mass Transit Authority. Getting our security wherever we can find it.), a top 10 list of superheroes who should go to jail, another ad for Ghost Rider brand barbecue briquettes, that sort of thing.
The main year in review article is a great riff on early 90s comics. Every few paragraphs, they drop in one sentence -- some variation of "The Punisher killed some people."
If you can find a copy on eBay for a couple of bucks, I highly recommend it. The '92 version is better than '93

Anyway, one of the articles in there is a Q&A with Ant-Man. He gets pissed at Spider-Man for stealing the insect hero gimmick, mad at Stan Lee for making him Giant Man and bemoans an old SNL skit with him.
The best line is when the interviewer asks about making his wife the Wasp and there's an allusion the domestic abuse storyline.
Q: We've often wondered -- when you first teamed up with your former wife Janet Van Dyne, you gave her powers even greater than your own. What possessed you?
HP (Hank Pym): The truth? Most of that stuff was untested. She had been orphaned, so I figured if something went wrong, who'd know?

 

I'll see it. Even if I haven't forgiven Paul Rudd for "Halloween 6."

 

Still don't understand why they didn't go with Hank Pym with Janet Van Dyne as the love interest/potential superhero partner. Instead, Pym will be played as much older with Scott Lang as Ant-Man. That and all of the issues with directors bailing on the project leaves me thinking this could be the first really big flop for Marvel Studios.

 

Always with you it cannot be done.
Marvel has never lured an actor with the resume of Michael Douglas.
That's the kind of strength ANT-MAN has behind it.
This movie is going to rule and prove all the doubters wrong.

 

Robert Redford called. He said he was disappointed in you.