Another batch of great images for Marvel’s 70th Anniversary variant covers have been released over the past few months and I thought it was worth posting an update.  While these covers are really cool, I’ve come to discover that they are incredibly difficult to find since my last post.  At least this seems to be true in Philadelphia as I’ve come across only one shop that regularly has them in stock, Brave New Worlds on 2nd Street.  This is by no means the fault of local shop owners, that blame falls to Marvel for using their ridiculous order minimum system to allocate these books.

Got a great call Saturday morning inviting us to a screening of the new Star Trek.  I have to say, I loved it.  I am not a huge Star Trek fan, but this movie was fantastic.  Solid storytelling, a great cast, and the highest of action came together beautifully.

There are a few things that I could see polarizing the opinions of hardcore Trekkies (pardon me, Trekkers), but I think the high quality of this film will win over even the most critical.  Be there and be square.

So I know I went out to see the Watchmen last week, but I haven’t been able to catch up with the other members of MLD to ask them what THEY thought. What say, folks?

I did read the graphic novel a year or two ago, before I even knew there would be a movie. I read it because of rumors that the storytelling devices Dave Gibbons and Alan Moore employed were how the writers/producers of LOST told their story, at least in the first 3 seasons. Not only was that hugely evident on first reading the book, the complexity with how the lives of all the characters lives, both good and bad, became interconnected became a jumping off point to ask deeper questions, both in terms of the LOST universe and the Watchmen universe. But that is perhaps beyond the scope of what I’m trying to say here.

I liked it, though there were some differences from the graphic novel that were irksome. Overall, though, I think Zach Snyder (of “300” fame) did a respectable job at trying to film a heretofore unfilmable comic book.

No spoilers here, but I’ll join the chorus and say: BEST… OPENING… CREDITS… EVER! Just wish Snyder could have gone a little more in-depth with both Rorschach and Adrian’s stories.

See it, and I reiterate my question to my MLD cohorts… What say, folks?

Much like the other premieres, the return of Lost really delivered.  I honestly can’t believe the complexity of some of the storytelling they use on this show.  I think this is due more to the fact that I assumed a network show wouldn’t go for that level of non-linear delivery.  Regardless, I had a great time getting back into this show.

Update:  I didn’t think I was going to see the third episode of Battlestar Galactica before this published, but it completely changes the equation.  Action-packed with high spots throughout.  Week two seems like a complete aberration in light of this.

It seems like 3D has been everywhere the last few weeks. Some of the biggest news that came out of the Consumer Electronics Show earlier this month was discussion about bringing 3D technology into our homes. Several different companies are pushing new technologies including 3D monitors for video games. Supposedly the industry is already working to avoid a format war similar to the Blu-Ray vs. HD DVD fiasco we all witnessed the last few years. We’ll see if they can pull that off.

But all of the reading I‘ve done lately about 3D being the future of television recently coupled with the way it’s also being heralded as the future savior of the motion picture industry… I admit I got kind of excited to see My Bloody Valentine 3D in a theater. Valentine is exactly what it’s advertised to be. A stupid 80’s inspired horror movie that embraces it’s 3D gimmick and runs with it. Eyeballs and blood seem to pop off the screen. A pickaxe gets thrown at the audience and a shotgun aimed at us. Basically all the horror movie stuff you’d expect. In general, it’s good fun I guess. You know if you like that kind of thing. It’s definitely not scary though and at the same time not funny enough to be a comedy either. The one thing I took from the film is that I’m not sure the 3D sex and nudity lives up to the way it’s advertised in the trailers. Seriously. Who advertises 3D sex anyway?

As fate would have it, Final Crisis: Superman Beyond in 3D (or is it 4D?) shipped the next day. And well… as much as I hate to hear people complain that Grant Morrison’s comics make no sense. This story makes very little sense and was so unnecessary. It basically serves to take Superman off the board during the main action of Final Crisis, but couldn’t he just as easily been in the future for Final Crisis: The Legion of Three Worlds? Oh wait, that’s right… he’s there TOO. How does that work? I dunno. Maybe they’ll explain it eventually or maybe they already did and just I missed it. Maybe I need to reread this two issue series, but I found the whole thing painful the first time. As for the 3D effects, they are kind of fun but it’s still just a gimmick.

So what’s the verdict about 3D in 2009? The glasses may not give people headaches as I hear they used to, but they still make the images slightly blurrier than I’d prefer. It’s a gimmick and unless James Cameron’s Avatar changes the game, I expect it’s always going to be a gimmick. Plus there’s no way the 3D gimmick is worth paying an extra $2 for in the case of MBV or an extra $.50 for Superman Beyond.

And let’s face it. Anyone who saw The Dark Knight knows the real future of the motion picture industry is Imax.