CBC Quickees: Death, Villains and more…

Just as I decide to drastically cut back my pull list, a slew of great new comics are seemingly coming out every other week now, including a couple of unexpected treats from DC thanks to Brave New World. At this rate, I may have to stop drinking just to keep up!Let's do this...Death Comes to Dillinger #1 (Silent Devil, $2.99)Death Comes to Dillinger came out of left field, completely off my radar until its eye-catching cover, um, caught my eye, and it passed the flip test and got to come home with me a few weeks back. In comics as…

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Crystal Ball: September 2006 Solicitations, Part II

Support GOOD Comics! Pre-order something new EVERY month. Part I featured a look at Marvel, DC, Image and Dark Horse's offerings for September 2006, and now Part II casts the spotlight on the 10 most interesting books being solicited by "independent" publishers. The full solicitations for September can be found at comicsconspiracy.biz. [NOTE: Most of these titles will probably not be available at your local comic book shop (LCBS) if you do not pre-order them. If your LCBS offers a pre-ordering service, download a convenient order form from Diamond and be sure to take advantage of it. If not, find…

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On the Shelves: 7/6/06

Support GOOD Comics! Try something new EVERY month. My weekly look at select comic books being released Thursday, 7/6/06. The full shipping is list available at ComicList. [NOTE: Not all of these titles will actually arrive in all stores. If your LCBS offers a pre-ordering service, be sure to take advantage of it. If not, find another one; or try Khepri.com or MidtownComics.com] PICK OF THE WEEK Second Wave: War of the Worlds #4BALLANTINE BOOKS Flight Vol 3 GN, $24.95 For all the praise the first two volumes of this anthology has received, the second one remains buried in my…

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Say What?: Superman Returns Edition

"Well, it didn't suck... It would take all the combined good parts of Elektra, Batman and Robin, and Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles II: The Secret of the Ooze to equal half of Superman Returns, but Superman Returns would have to be twice as rad to equal The Incredibles or Spider-Man 2."--David Campbell, Off-topic: The Official Dave's Longbox Review of Superman Returns - Like You Care"Screw the fact THE INCREDIBLES is a cartoon, give me a story that's better than that, because animated or not, THE INCREDIBLES is the new gold standard for superhero movies. SUPERMAN RETURNS was in live-action (partially)…

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COMMENT: Does Superman Have Batman’s Legs?

Batman Begins

[Edited to add a conclusion!]

The early numbers are in and Superman Returns has raked in an estimated $84,208,000 at the domestic box office over its first five days in release, $12m ahead of Batman Begins over the same period, but with 2/3rds of that difference coming in over the first two days. Its $52,150,000 during the Friday-Sunday period — which ranks as only the 5th best opening in 2006, 47th overall — is almost tied with Batman Begins’ opening Friday-Sunday haul (June 17-19: $48,745,440) which ended up representing 23.7% of its total $205,343,774 gross.

If the Man of Steel can match the Dark Knight’s pace, Superman Returns should come in around $220 million at the domestic box office, notably short of its well-publicized $260 million production budget, a figure that doesn’t include what is very likely a hefty marketing budget of at least $50 million. Figure a foreign box office total matching Batman Begins’ $166 million, and you have a potential $400+ million blockbuster that in some circles will be considered a disappointment, a la Peter Jackson’s King Kong ($218m domestic BO, $207m budget).

The big question, though, is does Superman have Batman’s legs, and is not reaching the $200m plateau a possibility?

(more…)

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Me, Me, Me Meme

1. What time did you get up this morning?7am 2. Diamonds or Pearls?Silver3. What was the last film you saw at the cinema?X3: The Last Stand4. What is your favorite TV show?Grey's Anatomy5. What did you have for breakfast this morning?Coffee6. What is your middle name?LeCharles7. What is your favorite cuisine?I like a wide range of food, but I got in trouble last time for not saying "Anything my wife cooks." ;-)8. What foods do you dislike?Weird textures, especially mushy stuff.9. Your favorite Potato chip?Pringles10. What is your favorite CD at the moment?The last mix CD I made.11. what kind…

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COMMENT: Ebert on Superman Returns

Like Fantastic Four last summer, I feel no sense of urgency about seeing Superman Returns this weekend, if at all, unimpressed by the various trailers I've seen or glowing (yet often awkwardly vague, and not in the "avoiding spoilers" sense) reviews I've read -- but haven't really been able to put my finger on why, other than never having been a fan of the character and not agreeing with the primary casting choices.I certainly enjoyed the first two movies -- and I have particularly fond memories of the "You'll Believe A Man Can Fly!" angle for the first one, because…

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