Graphic Novel review: Ultimate Spider-Man Vol 1. (sorta)

Alright, blog updates have dived from consistent to sporadic, this is probably due to the fact that Summer is my busiest time of the year. So busy that my time for reading longer forms of fiction is eaten up, but you know what I can read? Comics. I have just enough time for comics.
    So you, my faithful blog reader, are going to be getting (if I don't change my mind) some reviews pertaining to some comic book collections/graphic novels! We'll start with the Ultimate Spider-Man Ultimate Collection Volume 1 which ULTIMATELY! collects the first thirteen issues of Ultimate Spider-Man, which can also be found in the less ULTIMATE and more normal volumes 1 & 2

     Before we begin, I suppose I should explain the "Ultimate" Marvel Universe for those who aren't familiar with the concept. I shall also now warn you that I'm just going to say "ULTIMATE!" from here on when that word comes up? Clear? Clear.
     When the first few modern superhero films came out, such as Blade, X-Men, and the first Sam Raimi Spider-Man film, people's interest in comic books were rekindled. They had just seen these awesome stories unfold on the big screen with this fascinating group of characters, and they wanted more. These new found fans of freedom fighting do-gooders ran into a problem, though. An ugly problem called... continuity.
     You see, at the point of history we're talking about here, Marvel Entertainment had been publishing comics for around SIXTY years. Even with some ret-cons here and there, that's a LOT of back story to be familiar with. So when fans of the X-Men opened up the ongoing comics of the time, they were probably confused by mentions of a dark phoenix, or a multitude of various characters they didn't recognize, such as Gambit, or Psylocke. Similar problems faced people wanting to jump on board the main Spider-Man comics, there was simply too much back-story in play. You might be reading a book, only to have Gwen Stacey mentioned, and that name carried a lot of weight when it was mentioned, but as far as people who were only familiar with the movies were concerned, she never existed.
      Marvel, apparently, came prepared. Starting in the year 2000 with Ultimate Spider-Man, Marvel began publishing a line of comics unconnected with the "main" continuity, and instead, formed a new ULTIMATE! universe where things could unfold differently, with more modern and ULTIMATE! takes on their beloved characters.

And so, in this ULTIMATE! universe, we find one Peter Parker, unaware of his destiny, unknowing of his calling. Whatever dimension you look into, though the details may vary, it all boils down to an unsuspecting boy, having an average day... when along came a Spider.....

WHAT I LIKED
     As far as beginnings go, Spider-Man's is pretty famous. Nerdy kid is nerdy. Kid is bitten by special spider. Spider gives kid super powers. Kid takes advantage of powers and becomes selfish. Uncle dies, and the kid learns that with great power, there must also come great responsibility. Kid gets red and blue tights and fights crime while trying to win over the girl of his dreams. What is interesting about this particular take on the origin is how little they tinker with that core story. I mean, sure, the Spider is updated from a random spider that just so happened to be exposed radioactive materials and is instead a genetically altered spider. And instead of Gwen Stacey being the first girl Peter ever had eyes for, it's Mary Jane Watson, who is here a bit more of a nerd here, and bonds with Peter a bit even pre-spider bite. And of course the most important update, Uncle Ben now has a pony tail.
     Besides that, though the first half of this volume is mainly concerned with fleshing out all those character beats. After Pete gets his powers, we see him slowly come to terms with his new gifts, because at first, they really freak him out. Then we witness as he abuses those powers in some pretty understandable ways. And then we see him called out on it, just before his uncle is tragically murdered, and watch him slowly piece together exactly how he needs to use these powers for the benefit of others.
     The other part of the "origin" arc deals with Norman Osbourn's reaction to someone getting  Super Spider-Powers, especially since he realizes it was through his genetically altered spiders. While not every point of this arc is my thing, I do like the basic concept, for the most part.
       The next arc included in this volume features the classic Spider-Man/Daredevil villain, Kingpin. This arc is pretty well put together, and resolves in a satisfying way, with Spider-Man getting his butt kicked before realizing that he needs to learn to work smarter, not harder. It also features hands down one of the funniest Spider-Man moments ever in Spider-Man's second encounter with Kingpin. I shan't spoil it, it must be seen to be believed. And finally, I like that Pete admits to someone that he's Spider-Man so he can have a confidant. As much as I really admire the fact that Pete does what he does selflessly, it's also nice to have someone who has your back when you have to vanish out of class, or come home late to dinner.

What I didn't Like.

      When you reinterpret stories and characters like this, you're bound to change something in a way that some people don't like. It's just how these things go, and I don't hold it against the creators too much, they went for something, and I respect that... but I just don't care for ULTIMATE! Green Goblin. Too much Hulk/raging monster. Not enough of the plotting trickster version of the character I enjoy. Simple as that.
      The angst and edge of the ULTIMATE! modern day update is also not my thing. Too much of it seems like they're trying to show how "real" all their high school stuff is, but it comes off more like a teen drama aired on WB Network around 2005. (Do I win most specific analogy? is that a prize?) But seriously, I just don't care for that sort of thing, and it did kinda detract from my enjoyment.

Content advisory:
     What's this? a Parental warning? Yeah, for most movies and such, I don't really do this sort of thing for movies, since their are so many places where you can find out whether or not the film is appropriate for little Timmy. Comic books, though? Good luck, far too often have I picked up a random comic book and flipped through it too find either a barely obscured woman in some form of undress (if any dress at all), or surprisingly messy violence. The simple fact is, that while comic books do have boundaries in which to operate, these boundaries are a whole lot looser than your average PG-13 movie or TV show. So whenever I do a comic review, I'll try to let you know what to expect if you pick up a copy.
     As far as this first volume of Ultimate Spidey goes, things are at about the Cable Teen Drama level I just mentioned in the previous section. Light to mild swearing happens on a semi-frequent basis with harsher profanities often alluded to but replaced with various symbols.
     Violence is mostly the standard BIFF POW WHAM stuff of Superhero stories, with a couple of notable exceptions. The first being at the scene of an explosion, where a man is clearly impaled on a piece of metal, though the goriest bit being obscured by the position of his arms, and the second being a scene where a young teen finds the charred remains of his mother, though all we see is a burnt and deformed hand in a blase of fire. The most intense is probably when one man crushes another man's skull with his bare hands. The deed is mostly done off panel, focusing on every one's horrified reactions. But we do see the aftermath, sort of as the man was wearing a Spider-Man style mask at the time, and security footage of the event.
     Sexual content or Nudity is sparse in this volume, but not not absent. A couple of girls dress scantily at a party, Mary Jane is seen in both a towel and a bathrobe, and Pete himself  hangs out in a T-shirt and some briefs. The most awkward moment comes at the end during a scene with Peter and Mary Jane. While nothing happens between the pair, Aunt May walks in and finds them in Peter's Bedroom after hearing a racket. She then has a frank conversation with the pair about " at least I hope you were being safe" and "no shenanigans in the house" It's mostly played for laughs, but not really a conversation you want your eight year old reading.


Summary
This first ULTIMATE! volume of Ultimate Spider-Man (which is a special collection that contains Ultimate Spider-Man Issues 1-13 otherwise contained in Ultimate Spider-Man vol. 1 & 2) was a decent scratch to the Spider-Man itch I had. I might read further volumes, though my local library system where I borrowed this from has quite a few gaps in the series, so I'll have to figure some stuff out on my own. (I've already read ULTIMATE! Volume 3, which collects regular volumes 5 & 6, so I've had some practice) But as for this volume, it gets a rating of ULTIMATELY! just OK.

All pictures used are, of course, property of Marvel. I own nothing but all the words I typed. Those are mine, sorry as they may be.

Some quick thoughts on Edgar Wright and Ant-Man

So my laptop's back and there's gonna be trouble. As in, I have a flipping ton of stuff to write and not really enough time to write it. (I bought this thing for the purpose of playing video games and I've barely touched my Steam account in weeks)  It doesn't help when a bomb like Edgar Wright's departure from his long gestating Marvel project, a film based off the less known Avenger, Ant-Man, is dropped on me on a Friday afternoon. Yeah, thanks Marvel.

     I'm really bothered by this despite the fact that I've only ever seen one Edgar Wright film and thought it was just okay. (Scott Pilgrim vs The World, for the record) So why am I bothered? Because he's been working on this film for eight flipping years. Seriously, Since about 2006, Edgar Wright was totally telling anyone who would listen that he was totally making an Ant-Man film after he did a couple other things. He was gonna make a cool heist movie thing, he ended up filming a small bit of test footage to properly visualize what style he was going for, and he showed up at comic-con a few times to chat about it, so I'm puzzled by how exactly you put that much effort into a film, and still end up walking away entirely.
     The same goes for Marvel, for that matter, they've been promoting this and working on this and approving this and giving it prime post-Avengers 2 real estate, and yet they let Mr. Wright walk.
    This is all probably way more complicated than any of that, but let's talk for a moment about something I like about Marvel movies. Every Marvel film will, of course, fit certain parameters as a PG-13 action adventure Superhero movie with comedic undertones, but besides that, these movies can go through a variety of change of tones and settings. Compare the Joe Johnston directed WWII-era Captain America: The First Avenger, which is a retro pulpy adventure, with the Russo brothers slick, smart political conspiracy thriller, Captain America: Winter Soldier. They're part of the same franchise, and heck, star the same character, but the two films are so drastically different it's insane. And a lot more of the Marvel movies are like that than you think.
    Compare Thor and Thor: The Dark World. The first Thor, by Kenneth Branagh, is more Shakespearean and more intimate in several ways, the highlights of the film aren't necessarily it's admittedly kinda fun action scenes, but the meaty family drama or Thor's character development throughout the story . Meanwhile, The Dark World, directed by Game of Thrones alum Alan Taylor, is a grander, more fantastic, more gritty take on the same universe. With better action, I'll admit. And while not everyone may like Iron Man 3, I found it fascinating, not least of all because it was an Iron Man film with a Shane Black flavor. If Marvel makes another Iron Man film after the inevitable recasting of Tony Stark, I admit that I'll be interested to see how the new guy does, but imagine if they were to let someone like Martin Cambell take a shot at doing an Iron Man film, or Brad Bird, or Christopher McQuarrie, or pick a name, any name. (I'm personally hoping someone goes completely crazy and lets Guy Ritchie make an Iron Man, I know it makes no sense, but I got the idea into my head due to my initial confusion of who was signed on to direct Iron Man 3, and now I'm stuck convinced that it would be the weirdest/coolest thing ever) Getting something you know in a flavor you don't is fun, which is why I'll be kinda bummed when Edgar Wright's name isn't after the words "directed by" during the end credits in July of '15.
    In short, I don't actually really blame Marvel for this, as with Guardians of the Galaxy, it's clear that they're willing to take a risk, and nor do I blame Mr. Wright,  I understand that, sometimes things fall apart. (though seriously, WHAT HAPPENED?) I just hope, that as Marvel Studios moves forward, we continue to explore things through different perspectives.





And come on, admit it, now you want to see a Guy Ritchie Iron Man film.

Would a Title by any other name be as boring?

Exceptionally quick post today, guys, as my laptop is in the shop, and I kinda wanted to do a different post, but for the moment that's out of my hands. Anyway, let's talk about a pressing issue in Hollywood that's kinda been driving me nuts for awhile: Why do people suck at naming movies?

      Seriously, guys, a movie was just released called "The Amazing Spider-Man 2" just 10 short years after a film called "Spider-Man 2" And Don't think I've forgotten about "The Fast and The Furious" and it's third "oh-so-cleverly-named" sequel "Fast and Furious" This extends to the video game world as well, what was the latest installment in the Tomb Raider franchise dubbed? Simply "Tomb Raider" Thanks, guys, I get it was a reboot, but even lame names like "Tomb Raider: Reborn" or "Tomb Raider: The Island of the Sun Queen" would have been improvements.
      What about it guys? Am I alone on wanting movies to have more thought put in the name and/or coming up with an unforgettable title*? or are you totally content with titles like "Jack Reacher" or "Alex Cross"?  And, bonus question, what makes a good title, in your opinion?





      *The upcoming Tom Cruise movie "Edge of Tomorrow" was originally named "All You Need is Kill" The new name seems to be fine, and descriptive of the actual movie, and of all the examples, I actually like this name a lot.... but guys, we were this close to getting a movie named something as bonkers as "All You Need is Kill" I didn't know how badly I wanted a movie to be named that until the chance was stolen away from me.

Always Ready to Learn: Jurassic Park: The Game

So, sometimes, I like to take a look at things that I've heard dubious things about, quality-wise, to try to figure out what went wrong. So, when I found out that the Playstation Store was having a 99 cent sale, I picked up a few things, one of which was TellTale Games Jurassic Park: The Game.
     Jurassic Park is one of my all time favorite films, and when I originally heard that Telltale games, who have a reputation as able story tellers, where making a game based on the film series, I was looking forward to it. After about a dozen or so "meh" to "terrible" reviews, I decided to hold off on making the purchase.          Recently, though, I've been interested in studying a Tell Tale game and how it executed their infamous serialized format. (Before this, the only major TellTale game I've played more than one episode of was Strong Bad's Cool Game For Attractive People, which was barely serialized, but hilarious) I figured I could take a look at it through this game, as well, as try to figure out where they went wrong with a property I'm incredibly fond of and confident in its ability to produce interesting and fun thrill rides.... with dinosaurs.
    I just finished all four episodes over the past few days, and, it turns out, the reports of its sub-par quality were pretty accurate. I had a lot of complaints with the game play alone, but that's not what I want to talk about today. Today, we shall go over a few things I think this game needed to make itss story better.

Some signs you may be building a personal library.

     So, maybe you don't suffer from compulsive library building like I do. Maybe you are a normal, well adjusted person who can simply see a film once, enjoy it immensely, and then be content to wait until whenever it comes on TV to watch it again. Or maybe someone loaned you a book, you loved it and consider it one of your favorite books that you ever read, but you waited until you found a beat up copy at a garage sale five years later to actually purchase it. However, maybe you do suffer from this strange condition that often leaves you staring at your bookcase, playing Tetris in your mind and trying to make these books just FIT, DANG IT!
    There are some of us who enjoy having our own personal library. Whether it be of books, movies, or video games, there's something about having a brimming catalog of options to choose from when you want a bit of entertainment. Or maybe you like to think of them as resources on hand for you to learn from and to refer back to when you get in a jam. To find out if you are one of these crazy people, just read on and see if the following points could be applied to you:

You go to a store with a mental list of things to keep an eye out for. 
     Whether it's Gamestop, Best Buy, Barnes & Noble's, Wal-Mart, Books-A-Million, or your favorite used bookstore, whenever you go to one of these establishments for any reason, you have a mental checklist running in your head of things you should be checking for. In a Gamestop you've never been to before? Better double check to see if they have that old PS2 game you missed out on when it was released. Best Buy? Hey, wasn't there an ad that mentioned a few blu-rays were half off? Better check to see if that one film you wanted was there. Used Bookstore? Better check every aisle for a good deal on any books you ever might have possibly considered owning at some point.

You make an actual list online of things you would like to add  to your collection.
     If you don't have at least two or three Wishlists on Amazon full of stuff you intend to get at some point, I'm not sure you're even trying.

You don't purchase an item you like, even if it's on sale, because you want a different edition of it.
     This ever happened to you? You find a copy of a book you love, for dirt cheap, only to loathe the cover of said edition? No, just me? Very well, if you'll need me, I'll be waiting to purchase the Indiana Jones movies on Blu-Ray because I want Steelbook editions of Last Crusade and Raiders.

You purchase an Item you don't like on sale because you consider important to own anyway.
      I briefly considered purchasing Once and Future King at a used bookstore because it was, like, three dollars. I didn't really enjoy that book very much at all, but I would like to own it at some point, so I can refer back to it if I ever were to need it. Obviously, I require serious psychological help.

You purchase an Item you already have because you found a new edition you like even more.
     Maybe you got a nice little Paperback copy of "Pride & Prejudice" that you can read for fun whenever, but then you walked into Barnes and Noble and saw their hardcover classic edition of it and loved the idea of that sitting on your bookcase, solidifying for all who saw it your love of Jane Austen. Or maybe you loved The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time, so when a portable version for 3DS came out, you grabbed it so you could play Master Quest on your lunch breaks, even though you just got the Wii Virtual Console Edition a couple of years ago. I for one, have repurchased both Inception and The Dark Knight Rises because I found their Steelbook editions for fair prices.

You don't feel too bad when you purchase something and don't like it because it might come in 
handy later.
     So you've got your eye on some book or movie or game or whatever. It looks good, maybe you read a couple of reviews, maybe some friends recommended it, maybe you like he people who made it, whatever. Point is, you really like the look of it, so when you come into some extra cash, you splurge and get yourself a copy. Now comes the problem: you don't actually enjoy it as much as you hoped. Maybe it was different than what you were expecting, maybe you find parts of it offensive, maybe the ending stank, it doesn't matter. A normal person would sit there with Buyer's Remorse and weep for their wasted time and money, not so with you, my friend. Oh, sure maaaaybe you're irked for a little bit, but now you have that work on call whenever you need it! Are you a writer? Maybe you're writing something and you want to ensure what you write doesn't end up like that, so you refer back to it when writing similar stuff. Maybe you know someone who also is interested in taking a look at this "masterpiece." Well, now you can do service to your fellow man and lend him the stupid thing and save him some money! The point is, you'll find some use for it, even if it's just to criticize it better.


     Whatever the case may be, I hope you realize that there is more to life than just stuff, having a "complete" collection of anything won't fulfill you, that said, as long as your priorities are in place, I don't think there's any harm in wanting a vast catalog of resources easily accessible. So how about it folks? any other signs that I'm missing? Got any experiences hat line up with the examples? Let me know!



and seriously, if anyone gets word on Indinana Jones Steelbooks coming out in the States, shoot me a line.

Always Ready to Learn: The Avengers

      So, one thing I've come to learn from all the research I've done and researching the creative people whose work I admire, is that you should always be willing to learn. No one's ever perfect, and no one's ever achieved all the knowledge in skill in the universe, the best master, is still a willing student, always ready to learn. So I figured I'd briefly catalog some stuff I've learned from my research or consumption of media, in this specific case: The Avengers.

      Now me and Mr. Joss Whedon don't really agree on much politically.... or probably socially.... definitely not religiously. But of the two major film releases he's made thus far (besides Much Ado About Nothing, which I haven't seen yet) I can re-watch both of them almost endlessly without tiring, and they both can make me giggle like a school girl with glee. Both Serenity and Avengers do such a great job of both telling their own story while also paying off stories started elsewhere. Both also weave multiple character arcs all at once into a coherent narrative and still are the most fun you'll have in awhile. One thing specifically I've noticed about Mr. Whedon and his works (I haven't yet seen the majority of his work in television) is his brilliant subversion of the audiences expectations and his management of tension.
     I've always thought of tension as a bow and arrow. As you build tension, it's like an archer stringing the arrow and pulling back slowly. If you release the tension properly, it's like an archer letting the arrow go and hitting his target. That's satisfying because that's what you're anticipating. If you deflate it too slowly with too little fanfare, it's kinda like the archer dropping the arrow, then slowly easing the string back in place before simply picking the arrow up, meandering over to the target and then sticking it in the bulls eye by hand. Which you weren't really anticipating that and it's also kinda in the exact opposite vein of what you wanted to see achieved.
  What Whedon does so well, is get the audience excited for one thing, and then giving them something not only unexpected, but also a little better and that feels true to what you wanted to see. Take lessons, for example from the Hulk/Loki..... "confrontation" from The Avengers. It ratchets up the tension and then pays it off beautifully.
     We start with Black Widow, on a alien space chariot, being chased by Loki, also on a hover space chariot, and calling to Hawkeye for help. Hawkeye, an archer who has a serious grudge with Loki, aims an arrow and lets it fly right. towards. his. face. EXCEPT OH SNAP Loki catches the arrow without missing a beat. He shoots Hawkeye an amused glance as if to say, "Are you kidding me?" EXCEPT OH EVEN MORE SNAPPIER THE ARROW EXPLODES IN HIS FACE. Loki is knocked clear of his hover-chariot doohickey and tumbles onto the balcony for Stark Tower. As he steadies himself, he finds the Incredible Hulk lunging straight at him, knocking both into the interior of the tower. Loki picks himself up again, but before the Hulk can proceed he lets out a commanding shout of "ENOUGH!" Hulk is stunned for a moment as Loki proceeds to lecture him. "You are all of you beneath me, I am a god! and I will NOT be bullied by-" It's at roughly this point that one of the greatest thirty second intervals in film history occurs. Ya see that? it just keeps getting better.
     In my illustration of an archer, what Whedon does here is like the archer pulling back his string, and then being suddenly launched backwards thirty feet in the air, letting go of the arrow, hitting the target anyway, which triggers a net that catches him, then trampolines him into the drivers seat of an awesome convertible.  It just keeps getting better and it plays off the tension established earlier.Of course, just as the archer tries to start the car only to find out the battery is dead, because that's funny, but you get my point.
     Anyway, I really hope to continue learning and also share some of what I've learned with you guys. And I also am really looking forward to Age of Ultron. Though does it have it's work cut out for it OR WHAT?

I mean, it's got to simultaneously got to give Hawkeye a bigger part, and also not kill him off. Because Hawkeye is awesome and needs to be in more stuff.

On Endings, again, and on Captain America: The Winter Soldier

     We have a short post this week because I've been participating in the dress rehearsals for my church's Passion Play this weekend and so most of my time was spent doing that. I do want to mention a couple things, though

     First, a clarification on my previous post, in it I pretty strongly suggested that knowing your ending as soon as possible was key for a story to have a satisfying ending. I have heard it argued that the problem for the finale for How I Met Your Mother (Which I will remind you all is a show that I don't watch but the uproar surrounding it is partially what inspired my post last week) was that the writers planned their ending too far in advance and therefore ignored the developments that occurred later on in the show's run in order to have the ending as originally intended, regardless of what it would do for the character arcs. I would argue, admittedly based more on principle and what little I know of the show as opposed to experience with the series, that their problem was not over preparing their ending, but instead not preparing the audience for said ending properly.
     Regardless, I do want to mention that I admit that my advice was more given to those planning to write fiction of a one and done sort of deal. Ongoing fiction, such as comics or television series, can rarely be properly planned out. You may design a five season plan for your show, only for it to be cancelled halfway into season 3. On the flip side, you might figure that your show would last no more than three or four seasons, and write your stories accordingly, only for the show to take off and run for eight seasons. Predictability, in that case, is out the window, so in a situation like that, endings are a bit tougher to figure. You're on the bubble, do you gamble and go for a jaw dropping cliff-hanger that creates a stunned silence wherever it's seen? or do you wrap up a few  longstanding questions, so that if this is the end, at least there will be some closure to be found? I can't answer that directly, though I usually prefer somewhere in the middle.

Finally, I'll briefly mention that I also took the time to see Captain America: Winter Soldier this weekend. Excellent film for the most part, and thought the titular Winter Soldier was only in a handful of scenes, he did not fall into the trap I've seen far too many other Marvel villains fall into of being disposable, a la Whiplash in Iron Man 2, or Malekith in Thor: The Dark World. The film certainly made a perfect balance of pushing the Marvel universe forward in interesting ways while simultaneously telling a compelling stand-alone story, something I really think more comic book movies should aim for. I still really want to know what Hawkeye's been up to all this time, maybe Marvel will make my idea about him and the Hulk traveling across America and righting various wrongs like the best action shows of the 80's into a movie after all.