The Big Honkin’ Demon appears courtesy of Blizzard Entertainment’s Diablo II. I know, I know, it’s an old game, but I thoroughly enjoyed playing it.
The Big Honkin’ Demon appears courtesy of Blizzard Entertainment’s Diablo II. I know, I know, it’s an old game, but I thoroughly enjoyed playing it.
(0 votes, average: 0 out of 5, rated) 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.
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.
(0 votes, average: 0 out of 5, rated) 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.
(0 votes, average: 0 out of 5, rated) As a frequent aficionado of all things geeky --videogames, comics, cartoons, etc.-- one would think that I would have developed a strong outer shell to defend myself from the embarrassment that can often be felt by those with interests such as mine. And for the most part I have. I have a small collection of action figures on display in my office, my videogame collection sits proudly beside my DVD's, and several shelves of my library are devoted purely to graphic novels. They are nothing to be ashamed of. But for all my pride in the things I love --I constantly feel a strong desire to get my friends and family to watch Firefly, or read The Watchmen, or just come over and play a good long round of Boom Blox-- there is still one thing that I'm slightly embarassed about. I'm not sure why I'm so ashamed, just as I'm not sure why I'm sharing this deep dark secret with all of you. But, I suppose I should just come out with it all ready: I read Star Wars novels. There I said it. Whew, it's good to get that off my chest. As a writer who strives for literary excellence, the fact that I absolutely love these pulpy novelizations and extensions of the Star Wars universe is seemingly against my nature. But then again, as someone who has watched all of the films several times and has a Boba Fett action figure staring at him as he types this, it seems quite natural. I guess my guilty pleasure stems from the clashing of these two disparate side of my personality. It does get worse, however. In addition to the more then a dozen Star Wars novels I've enjoyed, I've also read several Hellboy novels, which I love just as much. But still, it gets even worse. In anticipation of the release of the epic role-playing videogame Mass Effect, I read the prequel novel that set the stage for the games expansive universe. That could be considered rock bottom. I find that every time I read one of these books, as much as I enjoy it, my English background forces me to go and read some Oscar Wilde or George Orwell to compensate. I feel somewhat dirty. But acceptance is the first step towards recovery, and so by writing this I guess I'm coming to grips with my problem. But really, it's not a problem, is it? It's not like I read Star Trek novels, now those would be truly embarrassing. Now if you'll excuse me, I'm going to continue to read about the origins of Darth Bane.
(0 votes, average: 0 out of 5, rated) Today is a big day, as the creators of the internet’s biggest webcomic — which just so happens to be about videogames — are releasing their own game based in the world of Penny Arcade.
Penny Arcade Adventures: On the Rain-Slick Precipice of Darkness, Episode One (longest title ever!) is now available to download via Greenhouse for Windows, Mac, and Linux users, and via Xbox Live Arcade for 360 gamers, for US$19.95 or 1600 Microsoft points.
Set in a Victorian, steam-punk version of the PA universe, in a town called New Arcadia, OTRSPOD (longest acronym ever!) lets players create there own character and play alongside Gabe and Tycho as they solve mysteries through their Startling Developments detective agency. The game is a mash-up of different genres, blending traditional turn-based role-playing game elements (think Final Fantasy, Dragon Quest), with classic point-and-click adventure games (think the Sam & Max and Monkey Island series’).
The best part of the game — of course, aside from the amazing art of Mike Krahulik and ingenius writing of Jerry Holkins — is the Episode One at the end of the title. This is just the first in a series of episodic games that will be released periodically throughout the year, each continuing the story of the Startling Developments detective agency. What traditional games are to films, these games are to television.
If you want to get a primer as to what Penny Arcade Adventures is like, check out the Greenhouse site, which features a four-page comic set in the universe as well as a trailer for the game. Meanwhile, I’m going to get back to unraveling the mystery of the terrifying Fruit Fucker.
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Ever wonder what your favorite super-heroes like to do to kick-back and relax? Well so did we, so we caught up with a couple of the biggest names in the crime-fighting industry to find out what they like to play, read, watch, and listen to.
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