Check out the first teaser trailer for Fantastic Four: First Steps!:
They absolutely nailed Ben Grimm. Pitch perfect. Flawlessly done. Straight outta the comics!
Those GALACTUS teases! This was a great teaser trailer. They didn’t show too much, but just enough. I can’t wait!
The shadow of GALACTUS over New York was amazing!
Thanks for reading! Follow us on Twitter @PJWrightWBM, Instagram @worldsbestmedia2017, and our Facebook Page, Worlds Best Media. Those likes and follows, as well as iTunes reviews for the podcast, go a long way to supporting World’s Best Media. We really appreciate the loyalty and support shown to us by our fans, so thanks again! Stay healthy and stay safe!
A new trailer for Marvel’s THUNDERBOLTS* has dropped. Not much to say here, this is pretty similar to the trailer from D23 that leaked online, with some pretty cool new additions. I’m really excited for this one and I really dig the new poster, too. Anyway, check out the new trailer here:
Marvel’s THUNDERBOLTS* hits theaters May 2nd, 2025.
Thanks for reading! Follow us on Twitter @PJWrightWBM, Instagram @worldsbestmedia2017, and our Facebook Page, Worlds Best Media. Those likes and follows, as well as iTunes reviews for the podcast, go a long way to supporting World’s Best Media. We really appreciate the loyalty and support shown to us by our fans, so thanks again! Stay healthy and stay safe!
DC ALL IN: A new initiative at DC Comics. A huge part of DC ALL IN is the launch of The Absolute DC Universe
Beginning in October, DC Comics will be launching an ambitious new, two pronged, publishing initiative called DC ALL IN. There are two major components of the DC ALL IN Initiative. The first part is all about reinvigorating the main DCU, encouraging their artists to “take big creative swings”. However, this isn’t a universe wide reboot, like The New 52 Era. The main, classic, Earth-1 DC Universe will continue, with some of the industry’s best creators, and a new publishing mandate to take chances, try new ideas, and as said before, “take big creative swings”. The goal is to create jumping on points for fans, new and old, while also getting people excited about comic books again. Across both parts of DC ALL IN, there seems to be something tailored to every kind of fan.
For example, some of DC’s flagship books will be debuting exciting new creative teams, writer Tom Taylor and artist Mikel Janín jumping onboard Detective Comics. Fantastic comics like Wonder Woman written by Tom King with art by Daniel Sampere, will continue on with the same creative teams, while launching major new story arcs. We can also expect to see few brand new titles, like Justice League Unlimited by Mark Waid and Dan Mora, and The New Gods by Ram V and Evan Cagle.
However, it’s the second part of this initiative has been really excited: ABSOLUTE DC. Basically, this is the DC version of Marvel’s Ultimate Universe, but I don’t mean that like it’s a bad thing. In this new Absolute Universe, all of the typical, iconic, external elements associated with these characters are gone, but the fundamental essence of who they are remains.
DC ALL IN is spearheaded by writers Joshua Williamson and Scott Snyder. If I had to choose, I’d say Scott Snyder is probably my favorite working comic book writer, so his involvement here is a huge plus for me. This quote from Snyder puts it well…
“The creation of the Absolute Universe is how I always imagined coming back to DC, and DC All In will be a great jumping-on point for new readers as well as lapsed fans to discover new stories to love and the chance to explore the new directions in store for DC’s core series lineup,”
DC put out the video below, featuring Williamson and Snyder officially revealing the details of the DC ALL IN and Absolute DC. It’s extremely interesting and they explain everything I’m discussing in this article much better than I could, so I highly recommend giving this a watch;
However, it’s the second part of this initiative has been really excited: ABSOLUTE DC. Basically, this is the DC version of Marvel’s Ultimate Universe, but I don’t mean that like it’s a bad thing. In this new Absolute Universe, all of the typical, iconic, external elements associated with these characters are gone, but the fundamental essence of who they are remains. Complete, top to bottom reimaginings of DC’s most iconic characters, starting with Batman, Superman, and Wonder Woman. This is a Bruce Wayne without the fortune, the mansion, the butler, and high tech arsenal. Superman doesn’t have The Kents or Lois Lane. The only thing we know for sure is that Krypton exploded. Wonder Woman isn’t from Themyscira. These are some pretty drastic departures from your average stories about DC’s Holy Trinity of Heroes. The Absolute line is keeping the core of who these characters are, but anything else is fair game. These are some really wild changes that I’m sure some people hate and some people will love. Anyway, I’ll get into a little bit more of the details about each of these book, along with some of the cool art that’s been released.
ABSOLUTE DC
Absolute Batman
Writer: Scott Snyder
Artist: Nick Dragotta
Release Date: 10/9/24
The first Absolute DC book to debut, Absolute Batman, alongside artist Nick Dragotta, this series Scott Snyder’s return to The Dark Knight and his world. As I’ve already mentioned, I’m a huge Scott Snyder fan. Snyder came onto the mainstream comic book scene with his incredible series, American Vampire and crafted one the greatest Batman noir, mystery tales with Batman: The Black Mirror. In fact his New 52 Batman title that he wrote alongside artist Greg Capullo is my favorite Batman run in the character’s history. Not to mention his excellent work on Dark Nights: Metal and Dark Knights: Death Metal. Bottom line: this guys knows how to write the hell out of Batman. So his return to the character, with a fresh take, is definitely something to be excited about. Snyder talks more about what we can expect from Absolute Batman in the video below:
A few details we know about the new series, is that Bruce is a city engineer, Alfred is an old guard MI6 spy/assassin, and the first villain is Black Mask. Below are some character designs from Nick Dragotta as well as some preview art from Absolute Batman #1…
Concept Art:
Bruce at his day job as a city engineer
Preview for Absolute Batman #1:
Variant Covers:
Absolute Wonder Woman
Writer: Kelly Thompson
Artist: Hayden Sherman
Release Date: 10/23/24
Thompson has described this Wonder Woman as “lava under rocks”, which is a pretty hardcore description. Absolute Wonder Woman is the last Amazon and literally raised in Hell. She’s also the first publicly recognized “superhero” of the Absolute Universe. Oh, and she’s a witch. Beyond what I’ve already covered, there isn’t much else that we know about Absolute Wonder Woman. I guess we’ll just have to wait for Issue #1 to find out more, but I’m really intrigued about this one! Below is some concept art from artist Hayden Sherman, some art from Issue #1 and the cover for issue #2…
CONCEPT ART:
ABSOLUTE WONDER WOMAN #1 Interiors:
Preview for Absolute Wonder Woman #1 from AIPTcomics.com
VARIANT COVERS:
ABSOLUTE WONDER WOMAN #2 Cover:
Absolute Superman
Writer: Jason Aaron
Artist: Rafa Sandoval
Release Date: 11/6/24
Jason Aaron was behind the definitive modern Thor run, as well as working on books like Avengers and Doctor Strange. His original creator owned work like Southern Bastards, is phenomenal as well. I think he’s perfect for this kind of book. He recently had this to say about the series…
He recently gave an interview, which you can check out below, where he reveals some intriguing new details about this upcoming series. He still managed to dance around anything too specific to preserve the surprise and avoid spoilers, but there were still definitely some cool details that he revealed here. I recommend giving it a watch if you really looking forward to Absolute Superman:
Concept Art:
Variant Covers & More Promo Art:
ABSOLUTE SUPERMAN #2 Cover
Looking ahead, Absolute Green Lantern and Absolute Flash have also been announced, but all we really know about them are the creative teams, some promotional artwork, and few interesting little details.
COMING SOON
Absolute Green Lantern
Writer: Al Ewing
Artist: Unknown
Release Date: TBA
Ewing is another exciting writer, with his killer work on books like Immortal Hulk and various X-Men titles. I’m not 100% certain who the artist is on this book. DC hasn’t revealed a lot about Absolute Green Lantern beyond the creative team, some teaser art, and that it’s a “complete reimagining” of the property. However, DC has also described it as first-contact style in story, that will feature classic Green Lantern characters like Hal Jordan, John Stewart, and relatively new characters like Jo Mullein, who made her first appearance a few years back in the miniseries “Far Sector”.
Absolute Flash
Writer: Jeff Lemire
Artist: Nick Robles
Release Date: TBA
The fourth ongoing series in DC’s Absolute Universe, Absolute Flash by Jeff Lemire and Nick Robles. Like Absolute Green Lantern, very little is known about the new series except for the creative team and some teaser art. Right off the bat, just from the promo art, we can tell Absolute Flash’s powers work very differently from what we traditionally see. You can see what appear to be faces in the energy coming off of Wally, in agony, as if they’re trying to escape. However, it’s been confirmed that this is Wally West in the teaser image and he’ll be The Flash in this new iteration. On a sidenote, even though DC made the decision to bring back Barry Allen over a decade ago and focus on him in the comics and all other DC media, it doesn’t change the fact that the best, the fastest, the one true Flash IS Wally West. More specifically, in this series, it will be a teenage Wally West according to writer Jeff Lemire.
It’s been reported that 7 or 8 Absolute titles in total, have been planned by DC. Which means they have at least 2 more Absolute books coming that we don’t know anything about. As one of the main voices guiding the DC All In/Absolute DC initiative, Snyder has been clear that we shouldn’t expect any big crossovers anytime soon. Unlike DC’s Earth One, a series of graphic novels that tried to reinvent DC heroes, all of the Absolute DC titles exist in the same universe. Aside from some easter eggs and references, according to Snyder it will be at least 13 issues before we can expect to see any major overlap among the Absolute DC books. It may even be longer, Snyder only referenced 13 issues because that’s how many issues of Absolute Batman he has written and in the can, at the time of this article. So by Absolute Batman #13, the heroes still haven’t had any significant crossovers. Which makes a lot of sense because what they’re trying to establish is a very stripped down version of these characters. They don’t have the support systems around them that we typically associate with these heroes. They’re isolated and alone, in a more dangerous world. So Batman and Wonder Woman popping up in each other’s books in issue 3, would undercut the central themes and ideas in this Absolute line. However, that doesn’t mean we’re never going to see team-ups among the Absolute DC characters. As one the main creative architects, Snyder confirmed that these heroes and villains will definitely crossover, just anytime in the near future.
Absolute DC is all about showing us radical and very different takes on Batman, Superman, and Wonder Woman (and more to come) with some of the best writers and artists in the business. Personally, I love this kind of stuff and was very excited when it was announced. The art immediately captured my imagination and I’m really looking forward finding more when the comics hit the shelves. So, as a huge comic book advocate, this was something that I really wanted to draw peoples attention on. Because if you like superhero movies or TV shows, and thought about picking up a comic book at some point, this will be the perfect time to do it. You’ll find these comics at your local comic book stores, you can read them online through apps like Kindle and Comixology. Even Target of all places will be carrying some of these books.
DC’s new era officially kicks off with DC All In Special #1 on October 2nd!
Thanks for reading! Follow us on Twitter @PJWrightWBM, Instagram @worldsbestmedia2017, and our Facebook Page, Worlds Best Media. Those likes and follows, as well as iTunes reviews for the podcast, go a long way to supporting World’s Best Media. We really appreciate the loyalty and support shown to us by our fans, so thanks again! Stay healthy and stay safe!
Robert Downey Jr. returning to The MCU as Doctor Doom: Brilliant or Desperate? Time will tell…
In the minds of many fans, the eventual return of Robert Downey Jr. to The Marvel Cinematic Universe, as Tony Stark, seemed inevitable. The question wasn’t if, but when? But I don’t think anyone could have predicted that he would be return to play a completely different character, let alone as the iconic villain, Dr. Victor Von Doom. Not only is Doom arguably Marvel’s greatest villain, but one of the greatest villains in the history of the medium. Marvel Studios also announced that the previously untitled Avengers 5, is now officially Avengers: Doomsday hitting theaters in May 2026, followed by Avengers: Secret Wars in May 2027. I suspect that much like how Infinity War was very much Thanos’ film, before the big showdown in Endgame. I think Doomsday will be our grand introduction to Victor Von Doom, where we get to know this legendary villain before the epic Secret Wars film the following year. 
Reactions to this announcement seem to be decidedly mixed (myself included). With some viewing this as a desperate attempt to reinvigorate The MCU with stunt casting. I tend to have more faith in Marvel Studios than that. Especially with directors Joseph and Anthony Russo, returning to helm the next two Avengers films, Avengers: Doomsday and Avengers: Secret Wars. These are the guys who gave us The Winter Soldier, Civil War, Infinity War, and Endgame, which are all counted among the very best MCU movies. That’s an insane track record, and the brothers have been vocal about how, if they were ever to return to The MCU, it would be for a Secret Wars film.
Marvel veterans Joe and Anthony Russo return to The MCU to direct Avengers: Doomsday and Avengers: Secret Wars
Right off the bat, I think it’s very clear that there’s no way Robert Downey Jr. will be appearing as Tony Stark/Iron Man in any of these films, as certain rumors before this announcement have suggested. Marvel Studios also officially confirmed at SDCC, that the new Fantastic Four, will be appearing in both Doomsday and Secret Wars as well. So let’s dive in to this casting news! Is it a brilliant idea or an act of desperation? How exactly is this going to work on screen? I’ll also offer up some important background and context, regarding the characters and stories, that these films will be exploring.
First off, for those of you who aren’t familiar with Doctor Doom (shown above), especially because his live-action/big screen portrayals so far, have had about as much in common with his comic book counterpart as Big Bird from Sesame Street. Here’s a summary of the man, the myth, the legend… Victor Von Doom, courtesy of the Marvel Database:
Dr. Victor von Doom,Ph.D a.k.a. Doctor Doom is a Latverian politician who serves as the Monarch and Supreme Leader for The Kingdom of Latverian. He was scarred from an accident and wears an iron mask and armor to hide his true face. He is considered one of the most brilliant minds and scientists on the planet Earth. He is also a sorcerer with skills in magic matching the most powerful beings in the Universe, making him a potential candidate for Sorcerer Supreme. He hopes to bring order and betterment to humanity through world conquest. Unequalled in ability, ego, and will power, he has come into conflict with both superhumans and cosmic beings. He is best known as the rival of Reed Richards and archenemy of the Fantastic Four.
Our official look at Marvel’s First Family, The Fantastic Four
L. Joseph Quinn as Johnny Storm/ The Human Torch by artist Boss Logic
R. Pedro Pascal as Reed Richards, wielding The Infinity Gauntlet and The Ultimate Nullifier (I wish I knew the name of this artist, because this great stuff)
In another confirmation that the movies will be adapting the 2015 version of Secret Wars, Marvel recently revealed that Battleworld will be a major part of the film. For those of you unfamiliar with Battleworld and the source material, in the Secret Wars comic book, the multiverse is rapidly collapsing due to “Incursions”. There’s more to the story, but it’s too complicated to get into here. With help of Stephen Strange, Doom confronts the beings who set these events in motion: The Beyonders. Nearly omnipotent cosmic beings of untold power. Doom destroys The Beyonders and takes their god-like power for himself.
With most of the multiverse having been destroyed at this point in the story. Doom, using his new powers, saves what little pieces of the multiverse that are left and combines those fragments to create a new reality called Battleworld. As its creator, Victor declares dominion over this new world as God Emperor Doom.
When Victor became God Emperor Doom and created Battleworld, he stole the family of his lifelong rival, Reed Richards. In this reality Sue Storm is Doom’s wife, and Franklin and Valeria are their children, with no knowledge of Reed or their lives before Battleworld.
As was explained, Doom’s archenemies may be Reed Richards and The Fantastic Four, but he’s also a major Avengers antagonist, and the premiere villain of The Marvel Universe. Adding another interesting wrinkle to all of this, is the complicated nature of Victor and Tony’s relationship. As Victor would put it, of all the so-called “heroes” in The Marvel Universe, Doom always harbored a quiet respect for Iron Man. In fact, when Tony was badly injured and left in a coma that he may not have woken up from, Doom turned over a new leaf and became a full blown superhero. Leaving villainy behind and taking up Tony’s mantle as The INFAMOUS Iron Man (one of my personal favorite Victor Von Doom stories). Victor played this role in the comics for a few years as he attempted to make up for his sins. Doom often straddle the line between hero and villain, which is one of the many reasons why he’s so interesting.
Victor Von Doom: The Infamous Iron Man
Another concern is that Doom is a character that I want to see stick around The MCU for awhile. A post-credits scene in Fantastic Four, as well as starring as The Big Bad in Doomsday and Secret Wars isn’t enough for this iconic character. For example, imagine if Magneto’s only appearances in The X-Men franchise were in X-Men and X2. Think about how much great stuff we would have missed. The X-Men movies run the gamut in quality from classic to fucking terrible, but no matter the film, whether it’s McKellen or Fassbender, Magneto was always fucking awesome.
This is why DOOM is Marvel’s greatest villain.
Doom should be a major presence in The MCU, even after Secret Wars, like Magneto was in Fox’s X-Men franchise. Is Downey going to want to stick around for who-knows-how-many years playing Doom, after a decade in The MCU playing Tony Stark? Maybe he will. However, a recent rumor may have put this concern to rest. Unconfirmed sources have suggested that Marvel will be casting a different actor as Doctor Doom after Secret Wars. Suggesting that the film is some sort of soft reboot of The MCU, which makes a lot of sense. This rumor also gives credence to the idea that this Doom is a Tony Stark variant, but who really knows? It could be another bullshit internet rumor.
This awesome fan art of RDJ as Doom was posted on instagram by artist spdrmnkyxxii. Check out his other excellent work on instagram.
So the question becomes: How exactly is this going to work? They could go a few different ways. The most obvious one I’ve seen being banded about, is that this Doom will be a variant of Tony Stark. A lot of attention is being given, to how weird and shocking it will be for the other MCU heroes to encounter someone like Doom, only to be shocked to discover he looks just like Tony Stark! Yet any resemblance or connection between Doom and Tony could be handled multiple ways:
It could be shown up front (the least interesting possibility, in my opinion)
It could be hidden from the characters as a story twist/reveal
The movies could ignore that Doom and Tony are being played by the same actor all together.
In the comics, Victor Von Doom’s face becomes horrifically scared and disfigured, the result a college science experiment, gone wrong when he was a young man. An accident that Victor blames on his old classmate, Reed Richards, and is the source of their lifelong rivalry. Outside of moments in private, Doom is always shown clad in his mask and battle armor. Even when he’s alone and outside of his armor, he still wears a mask in private because of his shame and vanity.
Doom is almost never shown without his mask.
The few times we’ve seen Doom’s face, it still bares the scars from that fateful accident years ago. He’s also the ruler of his Eastern European homeland, Latveria. Which means he has an Eastern European accent.
Doom’s true visage.
Taking all of that into account, RDJ could play Doctor Doom as a totally new character, without the story or the other characters referencing any connection to Tony Stark. Personally, this is the way I’d like to see Doom handled in The MCU. Regardless, Doctor Doom deserves, no, NEEDS, a top-tier actor, and Downey certainly fits the bill.
So what do I think about all of this? At the end of the day I need more information. Let’s just say I’m cautiously optimistic about the whole thing. As I’ve said, this is certainly intriguing and interesting, but I can’t make a judgment on the wisdom of this casting until I know more about how they’re going to portray the character.
The Fantastic Four: First Steps will hit theaters on July 25, 2025. Avengers: Doomsday hits heaters May 1, 2026. With Secret Wars following about a year later, on May 7, 2027.
Thanks for reading! Follow us on Twitter @PJWrightWBM, Instagram @worldsbestmedia2017, and our Facebook Page, Worlds Best Media. Those likes and follows, as well as iTunes reviews for the podcast, go a long way to supporting World’s Best Media. We really appreciate the loyalty and support shown to us by our fans, so thanks again! Stay healthy and stay safe!
One of the most highly anticipated upcoming films is undoubtedly James Gunn’s Superman (originally titled Superman: Legacy). Now we have our first official look, at our new Clark Kent/Superman, David Corenswet, in the new Superman suit! Check it out…
On this episode, we analyze the image of the new suit, and what it says about this new version of The Man of Steel (which is a lot more than you might think). We also take some time to sing the praises of the incredible new Disney+ animated series, X-Men ‘97.
A lot of fans have been speculating as to the identity of the seemingly alien entity attacking Metropolis in the background of the photo. Some have suggested it could be Solaris The Tyrant Sun, an evil, sentient, artificial sun, seen in the image below.
The character has appeared in stories like Grant Morrison’s DC One Million and All-Star Superman.
In the podcast, I mentioned a video James Gunn put out last year, going into detail about what to expect from upcoming DC Studios projects. It’s really cool and informative, and must watch if your a DC fan:
The first look at the latest bug screen incarnation of The Last Son of Krypton is always a big deal. Below are the debut images of Brandon Routh as Superman in Bryan Singer’s 2006 film, Superman Returns and Henry Cavill in 2013’s Man of Steel directed by Zack Snyder.
Both images are an interesting contrast to this new “first look” at Superman. They say a picture is worth a thousand words, and the debut pictures for Superman Returns and Man of Steel bring to mind words like: strength, power, classic, godlike, and heroic. It’s no accident that in comparison David Corenswet’s Superman comes across as far more human and down to earth. The 2 images above evoke heroes from Greek mythology. While James Gunn’s Superman looks more like a fireman, putting on his battered gear to answer another emergency call (a far more heroic image in my opinion). But I’d love to hear your thoughts in the comments below!
Lastly, I think everything about this first look at David Corenswet as Supermen, and everything about it, was very carefully chosen. I think it tells us a lot about the kind of Superman film he’s making.
Recently, Gunn posted this comment on Twitter (yes, I know it’s X now, but dammit I’m not calling it that)
He went on post the below images of the Superman stories that were influencing the movie The examples he chose only made more confident in his ability to this a special film…
Screenshot
I certainly like what I see, but at the end of the day we’re painstakingly going over every detail of ONE photo. As fans, we tend to over analyze everything. Especially when it comes to our most beloved figures. Others have said, and I happen to agree, that you can’t get a sense of how well a superhero costume works, until we see it in motion on screen. I think that’s when we can actually judge the latest take on Superman’s iconic uniform. Again, let me know what you think!
Thanks for listening! Follow us on Twitter @PJWrightWBM, Instagram @worldsbestmedia2017, and our Facebook Page, Worlds Best Media. Those likes and follows, as well as iTunes reviews for the podcast, go a long way to supporting World’s Best Media. We really appreciate the loyalty and support shown to us by our fans, so thanks again! Stay healthy and stay safe!
The first full trailer for Deadpool and Wolverine has arrived in all its glory! Arguably the most highly anticipated movie of the year, on this episode of the podcast, we breakdown the new trailer and talk about some cool easter eggs that you might have missed! Watch the full trailer right here and then listen to the podcast below. Thanks for listening and enjoy!
We’re also available on Spreaker, iHeartRadio, and pretty much anywhere else you get you podcasts.
”Let’s Fucking GO!“ -Wade Wilson
There’s the family you’re born with and the family you choose. So it makes a lot of sense that Charles Xavier created his own family with the X-Men, because he has it pretty rough in the biological family department….
(Clockwise, Top left: Prof. Charles Xavier, Top right: Cassandra Nova, Charles’ ultra-powerful evil twin sister, responsible for the genocide of millions of mutants on Genosha. Bottom left: David Haller AKA Legion, Charles’ son with schizophrenia and multiple personality disorder. A Beyond-Omega level mutant with off the scale telepathic, telekinetic, and reality warping powers. Occasionally a villain, sometimes a hero. David could blink reality out existence with an errant thought. Bottom right: Cain Marko AKA The Juggernaut, Charles’ step-brother. Career criminal, one of the most physically powerful meta-humans on Earth. Former member of The Brotherhood, occasional X-Man. In this family, Cain is “the good one”.)
Thanks for listening! Follow us on Twitter @PJWrightWBM, Instagram @worldsbestmedia2017, and our Facebook Page, Worlds Best Media. Those likes and follows, as well as iTunes reviews for the podcast, go a long way to supporting World’s Best Media. We really appreciate the loyalty and support shown to us by our fans, so thanks again! Stay healthy and stay safe!
UPDATED: The first trailer for Joker 2 or JOKER: Folie A Deux has dropped and it’s intriguing to say the least. You can check it out below. We also have the poster for the film, as well as mood setting piece of dialogue from Lady Gaga, as Harley Quinn, on TikTok, which you can check out below.
We’ll have more coverage to come, breaking down and analyzing the trailer, here on the website.
JOKER: Folie A Deux opens 0n 10/4/24
Thanks for reading! Follow us on Twitter @PJWrightWBM, Instagram @worldsbestmedia2017, and our Facebook Page, Worlds Best Media. Those likes and follows, as well as iTunes reviews for the podcast, go a long way to supporting World’s Best Media. We really appreciate the loyalty and support shown to us by our fans, so thanks again! Stay healthy and stay safe!
Ben Affleck may have been my favorite on screen incarnation of The Dark Knight, but 2022’s The Batman directed by Matt Reeves, was definitely my favorite live-action Batman movie. It finally showcased one of the Top 3 most fundamental aspects of the character, that had yet to be the focus of any of his other live-action, big screen counterparts: He’s The World’s Greatest Detective! Maybe he hadn’t quite reached the “World’s Greatest” part yet by the end of The Batman, but Bat-tinson was well on his way, he’s still new at the job! Regardless, we finally had a Batman movie that was a detective story. You know, where Batman’s an actual fucking detective! It’s kind of an important part of the character. Batman should be Sherlock in a cape and cowl. But I digress…
One of the highlights of the film was Colin Farrell, who was fantastic in his supporting role as Oswald Cobblepot, a.k.a. Oz, a.k.a.The Penguin. At the end of 2022’s The Batman, crimeboss Carmine Falcone‘s death, along with several other players in his organization, had left a vacuum in the Gotham underworld. Nature abhors a vacuum, especially in Gotham City. As we wait for The Batman Part II, this fall HBO is premiering The Penguin, a new miniseries focusing on Oz’s rise to power as Kingpin of Gotham, after the events of the first film.
With Robert Pattionson confirmed to make an appearance on the show, the miniseries will directly tie into Matt Reeves’ upcoming The Batman Part II. So you think of The Penguin as almost like The Batman 1.5, if you will. It’ll be interesting to see who else from The Batman mythos will pop up in the series.
Unfortunately, because of The 2023 Actor and Writer strikes, everything has been pushed back, including the series, which should have come out last year. In the wake of the strike, even The Batman Part II doesn’t have a concrete releases date yet. While the film is definitely still happening, it’s much more likely to expect it in the second half of 2025 or Spring/Summer 2026.
Fan made posters for The Batman Part II
In the meantime, it looks like we have a great new series, further fleshing out the world of this Gotham City. I know I’m psyched. Take a look at the trailer below:
The Penguin premieres this Fall on HBO Max
Thanks for reading! Follow us on Twitter @PJWrightWBM, Instagram @worldsbestmedia2017, and our Facebook Page, Worlds Best Media. Those likes and follows, as well as iTunes reviews for the podcast, go a long way to supporting World’s Best Media. We really appreciate the loyalty and support shown to us by our fans, so thanks again! Stay healthy and stay safe!
Director Zack Snyder (300, Man of Steel, Batman V Superman) recently appeared on The Joe Rogan Experience Podcast for a lengthy interview that reignited a longtime debate within fandom: Should Batman Kill? We have our own, very strong opinions on the subject here on The World’s Best Podcast. So what better way to return from our long hiatus? It’s good to be back! Thanks for listening and enjoy!
Below, we have some of the specific moments from Batman comics, video games and film, that show how the character’s “No Kill” Rule is pretty… flexible. We covered some of these on this episode of the podcast. Judge for yourself!
The Dark Knight Returns
This is the much debated sequence from The Dark Knight Returns, that Snyder discusses on JRE, judge for yourself:
While the moment is definitely a little confusing and ambiguous, it is definitely not Batman shooting The Mutant Gang member in the head, as Snyder described it on JRE. At the very least, Batman definitely seems to shoot the guy. However, confusion about this moment doesn’t invalidate the larger points Snyder was making.
Batman Leaves KGBeast For Dead… TWICE!
In Batman #420, rather than test his skills against the formidable KGBeast, Batman traps and seals him abandoned, underground room. Deep in the bowels of Gotham. In a complete cop out from DC, a later issue retconned this moment, at the behest of DC, mentioning that Batman eventually told the police where KGBeast was. However, that doesn’t change the fact that the intentions of the writers and Batman were crystal clear when this comic was published. This was Batman committing a man to a slow and brutal death.
After KGBeast shot Nightwing in the head, causing permanent brain damage, Batman hunts KGBeast to the ends of the Earth. Culminating in a vicious battle in remote Siberia in Batman #57. To end the fight, Batman pulls out his grapple gun sticks it under KG beasts, chin and fires it at point blank range. The tremendous force instantly snaps his neck, paralizing the man. Despite the assassin’s pleas, Batman leaves KGBeast to die in the frozen wilderness. The only question was if he succumbed to his injuries, or to the cold first.
Batman Begins (2005) “I won’t kill you, but I don’t have to save you”
Well, that’s a fine line, isn’t it Batman?
Batman Mortally Wounds Darkseid
Those are just a few examples, but there are plenty more. Batman may not have outright murdered many people since his early years, but there are plenty of times when his actions knowingly resulted in someone’s death. It’s not much of a rule if Batman’s frequently bending it. Maybe it’s time to get rid of the whole damn “No Kill” Rule altogether?
Thanks for listening! Follow us on Twitter @PJWrightWBM, Instagram @worldsbestmedia2017, and our Facebook Page, Worlds Best Media. Those likes and follows, as well as iTunes reviews for the podcast, go a long way to supporting World’s Best Media. We really appreciate the loyalty and support shown to us by our fans, so thanks again! Stay healthy and stay safe!
Another year, another San Diego COMIC-CON. SDCC is where all the major movie studios, TV networks, publishers debut their most impressive and high profile projects coming down the pipe line. Marvel Studios, Warner Bros., DC Comics, DC Studios, Disney and many more make the sojourn to SDCC to peddle their wares. While the Con has undoubtedly become part of the corporate machine, fan favorite creators, their best in their respective industries, have a huge presence at SDCC as well.
This year was a more modest Con, with less of the trailer debuts, major announcements (like casting news, project debuts, sneak peeks, etc.) that we’ve come to expect at COMIC-CON. This isn’t that surprising because comicon was living in the shadow of the current, Hollywood Writers and Actors Guild strikes. The strikes have been the top story in entertainment news. A lot of the talent we’d normally expect to see at SDCC are picketing with their fellow writers and actors. Also when the Writer’s Guild went on strike, there was a specific deadline when they were supposed to drop everything and completely stop writing for any of the projects they were working on. So maybe some of the studios and creators couldn’t put something together in time to show audiences.
So it may not have been as massive and bombastic, as it has in years past, but COMIC-CON still debuted some very cool stuff to the fans. I’m going to breakdown my favorite stuff to come out of SDCC 2023! Let’s get started!
MOVIES
The Marvels
TV & STREAMING:
INVINCIBLE (Season 2)
Loki (Season 2)
The Walking Dead: The Ones Who Live
Gen V (The Boys Spin-Off)
REDBAND Trailer
Official Teaser
COMIC BOOKS & GRAPHIC NOVELS:
Batman: Gargoyle of Gotham
Godzilla vs Kong vs Justice League
G.O.D.S. (Written by Jonathan Hickman/Art by Valerio Schiti)
Jonathan Hickman is one of my favorite comic book writers of all time. He’s the man behind legendary, character redefining runs on The Fantastic Four, Avengers, and X-Men. Each series is a must read, modern Marvel classic. Set to debut this Fall, G.O.D.S. sounds like the kind of storytelling Hickman does best. Here’s the official word from Marvel on this mysterious new series: “ G.O.D.S. will see two of the industry’s greatest modern visionaries dramatically redefine Marvel’s pantheon of cosmic beings and masterfully deconstruct the forces behind reality. The breathtaking new saga will introduce a host of new characters—all players in a secret conflict at the crossroads of science and magic!”
Though the series will bounce around the entire Marvel Universe, the main cast consists of new characters (Via Marvel):
Wyn, a powerful magic expert who’s operated in secret for thousands of years and is now forced to come out of the shadows.
Aiko Maki, a high-ranking agent brutally loyal to the ways of science and willing to do anything to keep the building blocks of creation in balance.
Dmitri the Science Boy, Wyn’s reckless partner who has a secret mission of his own to discover the dark truth of his past.
Mia the Magic Girl, a young sorcerer struggling to achieve her full potential.
Cubisk Core, a mysterious being of pure corruption seeking to shatter the existing systems.
Take a look at this preview from G.O.D.S. #1…
G.O.D.S. debuts Fall 2023
Captain America by J. Michael Strakzynski
Thanks for reading! Follow us on Twitter @PJWrightWBM, Instagram @worldsbestmedia2017, and our Facebook Page, Worlds Best Media. Those likes and follows, as well as iTunes reviews for the podcast, go a long way to supporting World’s Best Media. We really appreciate the loyalty and support shown to us by our fans, so thanks again! Stay healthy and stay safe!
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