I’ve already expressed to all of you my general dislike of movies based on comic books, but I have to admit that I feel even more trepidation when things are in the reverse direction.
Licensed comic books based on popular movies, games or television shows are almost universally terrible–I mean just look at the World of Warcraft books. There are, of course, a few notable exceptions. And scanning through the list of titles I plan on picking up over the next few months, I realized that there actually happens to be two of these such books that I am very excited about.

Serenity Volume 2: Better Days - Despite the amazingly satisfying ending to the film Serenity, the abrupt cancellation to the TV show that is was based on, Firefly, still left all kinds of unanswered questions for fans. Thankfully, series creator Joss Whedon is a die-hard comic book fan and so decided to continue the story through that medium instead.
The first volume of these comics, Those Left Behind, did a good job of filling in the gaps between the show and the film, and Better Days looks to continue to fill out the backstory of the 9 residents of the starship Serenity. But what’s even more exciting is the planned third volume, A Shepherd’s Tale, which should finally reveal once and for all who Shepherd Book really is.

Phoenix Wright Ace Attorney: Official Casebook Vol. 1 - This title is quite a rarity. Not only is it a licensed comic that I am excited about–being based on Capcom’s cult-hit legal drama Ace Attorney adventure game series–it is also a manga.
Despite my best efforts, I have never fully embraced Japanese comics the way I have more traditional ones, but that has not dampened my excitement for this book one bit. Since the first game came out back in 2005, I have eagerly anticipated each of is subsequent sequels, going so far as to import the third game from Japan in order to play it a few weeks early. And since a great deal of the Ace Attorney gameplay involves lots and lots of reading (it falls squarely in the ‘visual novel’ genre) it seems like the perfect candidate for a comic book spin-off. The book will feature a number of returning characters, including the titular Phoenix, Mia and Maya Fay, and the mysterious Godot. And since the latest entry in the game series focused on a new protagonist, Apollo Justice (though Phoenix had his fair share of screen time as well), it looks like this will be my last opportunity to spend time with the characters I’ve grown to love over the past three years.

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Andrew Webster is a freelance writer based in Toronto who covers comics, movies, videogames, and anything else that will rot out your brain. Check out his personal site to read more of his incoherent ramblings.
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One of the most important characteristics for most super-heroes is their secret identities. As Watchmen and The Incredibles have shown us, super-heroes just can’t live normal lives. And the most common way of hiding these secret identities is with a costume. And like everything in life, these costumes vary in degrees of awesomeness. Today I’ve compiled a list of what are, without a doubt (in my mind at least), the best three outfits ever donned by a crime-fighter (or villain).

Iron Man - Unique among heroes because he has no super powers, Tony Stark more than makes up for his deficiencies with the most technically advanced suit currently on the billion dollar market. He can fly, is crazy strong, and–as demonstrated in the recent Iron Man movie–has a kick-ass navigation system. It also happens to be just about the coolest looking thing you could ever wear. Drawbacks? Well, as the movie also showed us, it can be quite ungainly to put on. Plus, you have to have a hole in your chest to put the batteries in.

Venom & Carnage - These two get bonus points for having suits that are actually alive. The alien symbiotes that attached themselves to Cletus Kasady and Eddie Brock created two of Spider-Man’s greatest adversaries. But who has the better suit? Venom gets points for being the first, but loses them all after being turned into a whiny emo baby in Spider-Man 3. Carnage’s suit, on the other hand, is much more powerful–allowing him to transform his hands into dangerous weapons, among other things–, albeit not as loyal. It is constantly seeking the strongest possible host, at one point even bonding with the already super-powered Silver Surfer to create the incredibly awesome Cosmic Carnage. So it’s a toss-up, loyalty versus power.

Johann Kraus - One of the lesser known members of the Bureau of Paranormal Research and Defense, Johann Kraus is more dependent on his suit then most heroes. In fact, he is his suit. Kraus is nothing more then a spirit, his body having been incinerated years ago. He is able to maintain a physical form by housing his ectoplasmic spirit in a containment suit. And while his suit doesn’t give him any kind of super powers like the others on the list, it does keep him alive, and that’s pretty cool.

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Andrew Webster is a freelance writer based in Toronto who covers comics, movies, videogames, and anything else that will rot out your brain. Check out his personal site to read more of his incoherent ramblings.

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Technology moves at an amazing pace. During my relatively short time on this planet, I’ve seen it firsthand. From space travel to medicine to high-definition movies, it’s all pretty astounding. But as comics and movies have shown us, we still have a long way to go. Super powered beings also happen to have some super powered imaginations, and this has resulted in some of the coolest and craziest inventions of all time. Below is a list of just a few of my favorites. Scientists and inventors take notes, and get this stuff made already.

UV Grenade - Everyone knows that killing vampires is no easy task. They are strong, fast, quiet, and impervious to most human weapons. Of course they have a few weaknesses, like garlic, silver, a stake through the heart, and sunlight. But what do you do when a new, super-powered strain of vampires starts terrorizing the planet and they are immune to everything except sunlight? Well, the answer is quite simple. In Blade II, the titular hero’s mentor Whistler was able to create a grenade that when detonated, creates a giant flash of ultra violet light. This weapon turns out to be the perfect tool for warding off the Reaper infestation.

The Weapons of The Machine Girl - Japanese horror/action movie The Machine Girl starts out simple enough. In order to avenge the death of her family at the hands of the Yakuza, a young girl replaces her missing left arm with a giant machine gun and goes on a murderous rampage. But gun-arms are way to common to make this list. What puts The Machine Girl up there with the best are two of the greatest weapons ever devised: the flying guillotine and drill bra. Both are exactly what there names imply. The flying guillotine is able to remove human heads with the added bonus of portability, while the drill bra brutally punishes those who try and get too close of a look.

Adamantium - every time I break one of my Hatori Hanzo swords, I wish that adamantium was real. The fictional metal is essentially unbreakable, making it perfect for coating your skeleton or developing a set of killer claws. It’s most well known for doing just that to everyone’s favortie X-Man, Wolverine. Plus, for would be samurai’s, it could save a lot of money otherwise used on shattered swords.

Andrew Webster is a freelance writer based in Toronto who coverscomics, movies, videogames, and anything else that will rot outyour brain. Check out his personal site to read more of his incoherent ramblings.

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Any self-respecting comic book fan also loves animation, an anyone who loves animation knows the genius that is Pixar. Thus, if you are reading this, chances are pretty good that you are as excited as I am for this friday, which will see the theatrical release of Wall-E. The film has a lot going for it, but if, for some odd reason, you don’t want to see it, I’m here to tell you why you should in my typical list format.

Ben Burtt - One of the more unique aspects of Wall-E is that it will have very little dialogue. In fact, the main character doesn’t speak at all. Normally, this would make me more then a little worried. And I was, until I learned who was doing the sound design for the movie: Ben Burtt. Now you may be asking yourself, who is this? Well, Burtt is a legendary sound designer who has created some of the most recognizable sound effects in the history of cinema. Every time you make a ‘thrum’ noise, pretending to swing a lightsaber, Burtt made that. That heavy breathing sound you make when doing your Darth Vader impression, also Burtt. And, the most important part in regards to Wall-E, he was the man responsible for all those beeps and bloops that made R2-D2 such an endearing character. And while it took a total of 800 different sounds to bring R2 to life, Wall-E will use more than 2, 500. Sounds good to me.

The Tone - We all love sci-fi, and what’s great about Wall-E is that it is a fresh take on the genre. As a story about the last robot on Earth who falls in love with a satellite, the tone of Wall-E is decidedly whimsical. But, as it is also a CG animated Pixar movie, it will also look all kinds of awesome. So, really, you get the best of both worlds. A light-hearted cartoon with a healthy dose of sci-fi awesomeness.

It’s Pixar! - Come on now. Finding Nemo. Monsters Inc. The Incredibles. Toy Story. When has Pixar ever let you down? Ok, there was Cars, but even that was ok. Aside from that little snag, the good folks at Pixar have always pulled through, and, from I’ve seen, Wall-E looks to be up with their best. Besides, any film that can be described as ‘R2 D2 the movie’ by its director is all right with me. So go watch it all ready!

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Andrew Webster is a freelance writer based in Toronto who covers comics, movies, videogames, and anything else that will rot out your brain. Check out his personal site to read more of his incoherent ramblings.

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