Batman: The Killing Joke Review

I received this beautiful masterpiece from Amazon and it came with a nice Joker figurine. Bruce Timm brings the Joker right into your brain making you question everything about the world. Witty one liners and anecdotes setting this story far apart from all other comic adventures. The voice of the Joker, Mark Hamill, is cringy, psychotic, and disturbing. If you haven’t seen this or read the graphic novel *Spoilers Ahead Turn Back Now*.

We start off being introduced to Batgirl (Commissioner Gordon’s daughter) as she is on a  mission by herself, leading to help from Batman. Batgirl gets distracted by a villain who has a thing for her. Leading her on a scavenger hunt that needs Batman to bail her out again. This leads to a questionable scene where she fights Batman ending up on top of him. Pausing for a second she takes her top off, bra showing into a black screen. Moments later she is looking in the mirror questioning her decision to have sex with Batman. Batman and Batgirl have an awkward barrier between them now, and Batgirl (Barbara Gordon) decides to give up the suit and stick to her athlete routine of running and doing yoga as a librarian. The story picks up big time when Batman and a detective come onto a crime scene, where we see a bunch of people in chairs with big smiles and wide eyes, clearly dead. Making their way immediately to Joker’s cell. Finding out Joker has been replaced by an average guy doppelgänger.

While this is happening, Commissioner Gordon is at his daughter’s place making up for their father-daughter date he missed. Putting together a scrap-book of when Joker first met Batman, a knock on the door! Barbara says she is expecting her friend to come by and gingerly opens the door……to a clown with green hair! A gun is quickly dispensed into her waist by the Joker, as he wastes no time and fires a shot into Barbara right through her spine! Joker’s henchmen grab Commissioner Gordon and begin pummeling him, as his daughter lies on the ground in a pool of blood. It is not shown, but the story clearly implies Joker having his way with Barbara in a very sick psychotic imagination of a rape like scene. This is where the story really begins to get dark.

In a few scenes prior, Joker had purchased a carnival and found a set of freaks to put on display. A bearded woman, a wolf man, a huge giant looking man, as well as a two-headed young child, just to name a few. Joker takes the newly captured Commissioner Gordon to his carnival, leaving him naked in cage. He is dragged along by some terrifying midget-like babies, coming to a ride through hell for anybody that is a father. The Joker belts out a show-tune as the ride continues with screens showing his daughter naked, beaten and bloodied. Laughing with a big smile and questioning why more people don’t go crazy like he does. Throughout the movie we are given flashback and tidbits showing how the Joker became this way. Finding out suddenly that the night of his first robbery, his pregnant wife had been killed in a freak accident. Not having much direction, the Joker is given a “Red Hood” outfit to wear during his first robbery. Of course security is on the scene forcing the plan to audible, leading to an iconic fall into some chemicals by the Joker! Pouring out into the back sewers of Gotham. Joker gets up, seeing his reflection in a puddle during a rainy night. A white face and green hair, has altered his appearance, as he begins to laugh and laugh and laugh! Batman is shown in the hospital with Barbara unable to have any feeling in her lower extremities. The doctor says that Barbara will never walk again. Eventually Batman goes on the prowl and finds Joker at his carnival freak show. Taking on all the freaks single-handedly, making his way to freeing Commissioner Gordon, and chasing down the Joker through a vintage “Fun House.” Winding up in an upside down room where Joker smashes Batman with every object he could find.

Batman fights back knocking Joker down causing him to use his last resource, a gun! They fight back and forth struggling, ending up outside the Fun House with Joker grasping the gun, aiming it at Batman, point-blank range! He pulls the trigger……..and a flag reading Click! Click! Click! is displayed with no bullets left. Joker shrugs it off and tells Batman to finish him off. Batman gives him another option and tells the Joker he wants to help him. Joker is baffled by this, so he tells Batman a long joke, which ironically leads to both of them laughing together. Batman puts his hands on Joker’s shoulders laughing and laughing,  ending the movie abruptly! If you wait a minute or two. The post credits scene, show Barbara Gordon in a wheelchair on the phone with her Dad. As she enters into a secret chamber with high-tech computers everywhere, a picture of the Oracle appears on her screen as the scene ends!

This was a lot of fun for me to watch. It really does the story justice, playing out in animation seeing how psychotic the story is. We saw a lot of Batgirl and were introduced to Joker’s back story a little bit. My one complaint was the R-rating! I only remember two curse words, and the implications were R-rated, not what they actually showed. There was some bloody disturbing images but all in all, not R-rated in my view. It is a very dark story, leaving your imagination definitely in question. I absolutely loved it and hope Warner Bros and DC Comics continue to make such wonderful on-screen masterpieces! Let me know what you thought of this great story in a comment below or on twitter @MAK10GATOR !

Beetlejuice! BEETLEJUICE!! BEETL . . . Awww

In a year of long awaited sequels (Independence Day: Resurgence, Jason Bourne, Ghostbusters), why not talk about one of the longest awaited sequels from this particular writers’ childhood . . . Beetlejuice ! The 1988 film stars Michael Keaton (Batman, Mr. Mom, Birdman) as the title character. Keaton recently spoke to Variety about the possibility of returning as the title character in a brand new Beetlejuice movie. When asked if he had heard anything about the production of a new film, Keaton didn’t hesitate to shoot down any rumors . . . and my dreams.

“No. Zero. You always hear things, that this is happening, and people seem to know more about it than I do … it’s possible that ship has sailed.”

Only a few years ago rumors that a new Beetlejuice movie was definitely on its way. Whatever is causing the hold up, one thing is abundantly clear: it has very little (or anything at all) to do with Keaton’s interest in the role. Keaton went on to praise the original film and also made it very clear that he’d rather not do it at all if it meant doing it wrong.

“The only way to do it is to do it right. So much of it was improvised and so much was beautifully handmade by the artist that is Tim Burton. If you can’t get close to that, you leave it alone. There are certain movies that are like Indian burial grounds. You never ride over them. Bad s — happens if you cross that. You don’t touch certain things. They are sacred.”

Would you like to see Batm . . . I mean Michael Keaton make a return as the “ghost with the most”? Sound off in the comments and let’s chat about it!!

 

Will The Flash Appear In Suicide Squad?

The Suicide Squad is made up of some of the greatest villains known to DC and most belong to Batman (honesty, I think the most popular ones everyone knows are Batman villains…) Yet there is one bad guy, Captain Boomerang, that fights mainly our super speedy, red-suited crusader… So you cant help but wonder: does this mean we may see a blur of The Flash in the film like we get to of the Dark Knight? (TINGLES!)

So there were some rumors that The Flash may make a “quick” appearance in the movie, considering one of the villains, and it seems this rumor is true. At the recent San Diego Comic Con, they showed a preview of the movie, showing the origins of Captain Boomerang and there is a scene where he is robbing a bank. In this scene we see a flash of lightning, much like we would see in the TV series when Flash arrives on the scene. OOOOOOH!!!! Also, EZra Miller is rumored to play the roll of the scarlet speedster.

The Flash…maybe???

Goodness, Justice League and The Suicide Squad… Now I know more people love the Marvel universe more than DC. But this girl is more DC than Marvel simply because I grew up being in love with Superman. (My first crush was Christopher Reeve…) No guessing my age guys J So this is so exciting!! And I love crossovers. Being into comics and the like, we see there are infinite possibilities out there with other worlds and interchangeable story lines. GAAAAH luv luv luv. Can’t wait to see what other surprises may be in store for us with the DC universe and movies ^_^

Batman: Arkham Underworld Review

 

Ever wanted to be the villain and create your own gang? Imagine what it would be like to create your own empire, and go after the so-called Super Hero! Turbine Inc. has given us, as gamers, the opportunity to do so in a very addicting mobile game titled, Batman: Arkham Underworld. It is the first Arkham game where Joker is not involved in the plot or storyline. Personally I had to stop my infatuation with the game, just to write this!

This mobile game is an RPG MMO hack and slash strategy game. For those who aren’t gamers, pretty much you can attack other players online and build your own base using a simple press of a button, all at your fingertips. Arkham Underworld even gives your story missions throughout as you rank up and advance meeting the likes of characters such as Catwoman, Deadshot, Killer Croc, Scarecrow, Harley Quinn and much more. The story goes as you are creating your own empire trying to take over Gotham using the villains, I repeat using the villains you unlock during gameplay! Batman does interfere in your process making it extremely difficult to complete tasks. You rob banks, free prisoners and ultimately try to take down a Mob Boss and his henchmen to gain control of that particular territory. It is fun and finally lets us gamers be the bad guys for once. With some missions, you even try and stop Amanda Waller from creating the Suicide Squad!

While recruiting your favorite DC Comic super villains to take over Gotham dominance, you are able to train your gang members, earn respect and build a customizable lair. Your gang as a whole will level up as you build more items in your base which in turn, gains you money and respect. Use this wisely because you also can customize your super villains move-set! I have leveled up Harley Quinn so far, she is now followed around by a pack of dogs helping you kill enemies. My Riddler character has a hologram to take the damage away from him, distracting the police, making it easier to complete your mission. It is a strategy game, which gives you an opportunity to think before you attack. Many missions can be completed fast and easy, if properly thought out. Be careful as certain rooms you cross into can trigger more police incoming or even the Batman himself! Below is a picture of my personal hideout and progress……. Please Don’t Attack Me!!

I can’t rave enough about this game considering I haven’t stop playing it for the past two weeks. Rumor has it if you get far enough, you may be able to eliminate the Dark Knight! A dream many comic lovers have wished for, for a loooooong time! This visually stunning mobile game was released in May 2016 and is set to be worldwide come October 2016. You can download it right now in the majority of countries by Clicking Here! I wish I created this game, I wish I wrote it, and I wish I was part of the amazing team at Turbine Entertainment Studios, who I can not thank enough for creating such a wonderful masterpiece!

How fast can you level up? Who is your favorite villain to use? Let me know in a comment or tweet me @MAK10GATOR !! P.S. I think they approve of me playing the game considering they liked my tweet yesterday!

Arkham Asylum Rumoured To Be Setting for Ben Affleck’s “Batman” Movie

With Suicide Squad gaining massive traction and excitement, and the Justice League having an incredible showcase at SDCC this weekend, it’s no wonder that Ben Affleck‘s (Good Will Hunting, Shakespeare in Love, Argo) Batman movie is stirring up some traction.

Rumours have already begun across the internet that Affleck’s standalone movie will take place in Arkham Asylum.

Arkham Asylum is one of the most infamously known places in Gotham, housing the criminally insane residents, including villain favourites such as Poison Ivy, Killer Croc, The Scarecrow and of course, Batman’s favourite, The Joker.

Also the setting of the incredibly popular first installment of the Batman video game franchise from Rocksteady, and a large focus during the television series Gotham staring Ben KcKenzie (The O.C., Southland, Goodbye World), Arkham Asylum has always been a huge point of interest for the Batman franchise and fans, mostly because it plays host to some of the most interesting and terrifying DC villains of all time.

With the Asylum and its guests being so hugely popular, and with the release of Suicide Squad aiding to the debut of a handful of the inmates, it wouldn’t surprise fans at all if this incredibly wonderful rumour was true.

The untitled Batman reboot currently has no release date – however, if you can’t wait to see Ben Affleck’s interpretation of the Dark Knight, you can see Batman V Superman: Dawn of Justice. And if you want more, you wait to see him in either Suicide Squad August 5th 2016, or the Justice League movie, due for release November 2017.

Justice League Movie Teaser Trailer Released, And Boy, It’s Glorious!

Yes, today is Christmas for DC fans.

Warner Bros. has released a teaser for the much anticipated Justice League movie was  after a DC panel ended in Hall H at San Diego Comic Con. It features a lot of footage as Bruce Wayne travels around the world recruiting heroes to unite against a major threat which is believed to be Steppenwolf. A much lighter tone is apparent from the teaser with Ezra Miller being the comic relief. To sum it up, this 2 and half minute trailer has got more jokes than the entire 3 hours of Batman V Superman: Dawn Of Justice.

After the major backlash from fans and critics alike with Batman V Superman, Warner Bros. clearly is trying to turn things around and make people forget about the second instalment of the DC Extended Universe. Know what Warner Bros.? You freaking succeeded. It’s amazing how much footage this teaser has and Justice League has only been shooting for a few months. People will definitely stop making fish jokes about Aquaman, gosh, he looks so badass. Wonder Woman is fierce. Bruce Wayne is snarky. And Cyborg looks majestic. The only hero missing from this teaser is Superman, who is still presumed dead. If this doesn’t excite you about Justice League, I don’t know what will. Look at the awesome teaser below.

Fueled by his restored faith in humanity and inspired by Superman’s selfless act, Bruce Wayne enlists the help of his newfound ally, Diana Prince, to face an even greater enemy. Together, Batman and Wonder Woman work quickly to find and recruit a team of metahumans to stand against this newly awakened threat. But despite the formation of this unprecedented league of heroes—Batman, Wonder Woman, Aquaman, Cyborg and The Flash—it may already be too late to save the planet from an assault of catastrophic proportions.

Justice League lands in theaters in November 17 2017.

Batman Vs. Superman: Ultimate Edition – An Ultimate Review

I’m going to go out on a limb and say that I really enjoyed the theatrical release of Batman vs Superman. I’ll go further out on that limb and say that it’s one of the best comic book movies so far. And sure you can go on and say how it’s inferior to Marvel movies and so on and so forth, but the only thing I will comment on the whole Marvel vs. DC thing is this. Marvel is doing action movies based on comic book characters while DC with BvS did an actual comic book movie.

So they are two very different animals and I’m not going to say that one is better than the other. Although I did enjoy the actual comic book movie than the ones that have been based on comic book characters. To support my point I would like someone to name a story arc or even a single issue of a Marvel comic that has been used in the MCU, and Civil War doesn’t count because they only used the name of that story arc. While DC used at least by my count 4 different comic book story arcs in one movie, and almost a direct comic panel to screen transition.

Now on to the Ultimate Edition of BvS. This cut of the movie made a good movie into a better movie. Most of the additional scenes added a lot to defining character motives and to strengthening the plot as well. You can take the UE version of this film and edit it down to a 2 1/2 maybe even a 2 hour and 45 minute run time and keep the relevant scenes that would have made the movie more coherent and also maintain the PG-13 rating.

So whoever did the editing on the theatrical release needs to be fired if they had all this good material to work with and yet still ended up releasing an unevenly paced movie. Another head scratcher is the R rating the UE receives. The only thing I noticed was that in the action sequences that involved guns you could see blood spurt out of the bodies and Wally, the guy who loses his legs in the battle of Metropolis, uses the F word when he finds Lex in his apartment. The added “gore” of the gun battles and the F word could be easily edited out and presto you retain your PG-13 rating.

Although in the new X-Men movies they’ve so far used the one free F bomb a PG-13 movie is allotted and Wolverine’s battle scenes have been pretty bloody as well and yet they get a PG-13 tag. I think this can be blamed on trying to ride the coat tails of Deadpool. When Deadpool blew the roof and expectations on what a success an R rated comic book movie can be there were several moves made to try to make comic book movies look even more edgy by slapping an R rating on them. The next and possibly last, with Hugh Jackman at least, Wolverine movie is reportedly going to be rated R. And the UE cut of BvS was announced around that time with, shocker, an R rating as well.

Aside from the added “gore” and “language” the UE gives you a bigger and clearer picture of the going ons of the major players, especially Lex Luthor. The theatrical release just tells you that Lex is behind everything because he pretty much says so towards the end of the movie when he’s pitting Superman against Batman and also you have to assume that he’s behind everything because it’s Lex Luthor. The UE shows you just how much Lex was pulling the strings to turn the public and Batmans opinion against Superman. It even hints at the possibility that the reason he was able to do all this is because he was possessed by another villain.

Unless my eyes deceived me there is a scene where he’s examining Zod’s body and his eyes go completely black. It could be that something or someone was pulling Lex’s strings as well to get rid of the man of steel. Which would also explain his slow descent into madness as the movie progresses until he’s ding dinging in a jail cell. But also the physical and mental abuse he suffered as a child by his father didn’t help his psyche either.

You also get a clear definition as to why Clark has such a hard on for Batman. The theatrical release just jumped from Superman doing super stuff to Clark having an argument with Perry about the Batman being a menace. You get to see Clark actually doing his job, which I got to say I enjoy seeing him do some investigative journalism just as much as I like to see him flying in his cape. And by doing his job of being a reporter, because really in the theatrical release you got the feeling that he never does his job since Perry is always hounding him for not doing his articles, he finds out how Batman has been terrorizing criminals. Although there is one scene that I found a little too on the nose when Clark talks to the girlfriend of the dead gangbanger that Batman branded. She tells Clark that words don’t work on someone who brands people, only fists do. I don’t think you can even call that foreshadowing. She might as well have said that Superman needs to fight Batman so justice can prevail because you know the movie is called Batman Vs. Superman: Dawn of Justice, in case you had forgotten.

Overall the portrayals of Clark as well as Superman are handled better in the UE. I know there are complaints that Superman isn’t a beacon of hope like in the comics or the Reeve’s movies. The UE doesn’t fully convey that version of Superman but it does brighten him up a little bit more than the theatrical release.

I do wish there was more Wonder Woman in the UE because she was just awesome and they could not have gone wrong with adding more Diana Prince. The one added scene for Batman that I thought was awesome was a small clip they show of Batman breaking into Lexcorp to steal the Kryptonite. If you’ve played any of the Arkham video games you’ll recognize the swoop down move he does to capture one of Lexcorp’s security guards. I wish they had shown the break in when it was happening, at least like the swoop down clip where they could showcase a couple of stealth moves or takedowns.

There are several scenes that they could have done away with completely. For all the secrecy surrounding Jena Malone’s role her scenes don’t amount to much in terms of plot or character development. Maybe that’s why they were keeping her so under wraps. Other throwaway scenes involve Alfred chopping wood and carry it back to the modern house by the lake for no apparent reason but show that this Alfred can hold his own because he’s chopping wood in an Ascot. And you also get a gratuitous butt shot of Ben Affleck when he’s getting ready for the gala event at Lex’s house. Again for no apparent reason but to show that Ben Affleck is physically capable of filling out the bat suit, maybe. I don’t know. But trust me, after going through Joel Schumacher’s bat suit nipples, this scene isn’t that shocking.

The Ultimate Edition takes a flawed movie and smooths out most of the rough edges. If you enjoyed the theatrical release like I did, it makes you appreciate it even more and it rewards you with a few more comic book references. Which I have to say is a real treat when you’ve spent many years reading comic books and a movie comes along and not just gives a nod to the source material but actually lifts plot points or lines from the comic stories you have read. If you disliked the theatrical release the UE might change your mind about it but only mildly. I do say give it a watch if only to give you more ammo for your pointless arguments of how bad the movie is. The theatrical release of BvS was a flawed exercise in doing a faithful comic book movie. The Ultimate Edition shows us what could have been if someone at Warner Bros. actually knew how to edit a movie.

Telltale’s Batman Coming August 2nd

Love Telltale? Love Batman? Well, coming August 2nd is the first instalment of their take on the dark knight which will be coming to PC, Mac, iOS, Android, PS4, PS3, Xbox One, and Xbox 360, so there will be plenty of ways for everyone to play. A disc-based version will also be available on September 13th in North America and in Europe on the 16th, which will give access to the first five episodes and then the next four as they become available.

The first episode ‘Realm of shadows’ will cover both aspects of Bruce Wayne, and was announced with a shiny new trailer which featured some well knowns like Carmine Falcone, Harvey Dent, and Catwoman to name a few.

Telltale are well known for getting their players to make tough decisions in a short period of time, and it would be safe to say Batman will follow the same trend, especially when it comes to actually fighting crime.

The game also has a number of big names doing the voice work, including Troy Baker as Bruce Wayne, Erin Yvette as Vicki Vale, Murphy Guyer as James Gordon, and Laura Bailey as Selina Kyle.

Let us know what you’re thoughts are on this game, and if you’ll be downloading the first episode or waiting for the disc based version later on.

SNIKT!

DC Reveals Art For All-Star Batman At SDCC 2016

SDCC preview night has arrived!

DC Comics has just unveiled art for the upcoming All-Star Batman, which will be written by Batman veteran Scott Snyder and drawn by legendary artist John Romita Jr (JRJR).

Scott has called All-Star Batman “his Long Halloween” (The Long Halloween is Batman graphic novel by Jeph Loeb and Tim Sale). His first arc will centre around Harvey Dent aka Two-Face. Scott has planned revolving collaborations with some of the top artists in the industry on this book, including Jock, Sean Gordon Declan Shalvey and Francesco Francavilla. All-Star Batman will be in continuity with the recent Rebirth relaunch that happened to the DC Universe this past spring.

Here is Jason Inman of DC All Access interviewing Scott Snyder and John Romita Jr. (plus more art shown)

Scott has also been previewing art on his Twitter feed. Follow him at @Ssnyder1835

All-Star Batman #1 will arrive on shelves (Comixology for digital fans) August 10th 2016.

More SDCC news to come in the coming hours and days. Keep checking in at Skatronixxx.com

An Interview With Cosplayer Toronto Iron Man

Hi Readers

It’s time for another cosplay interview, this time we meet Toronto Iron Man! Toronto Iron Man first caught my attention with his truly stunning Iron Man cosplays it’s  one of ther best Iron Man cosplays I’ve seen, actually it’s one of the best cosplays PERIOD! Let’s find out some more about Toronto Iron Man .

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1) How did you get into cosplaying?

Ever since I was a kid I’ve always loved Halloween. From being a clown, to a skeleton, to Spider-Man, to an inmate, I’ve always loved dressing up. After watching the first Iron Man movie in 2008, I knew I wanted an Iron Man suit. I began researching Iron Man costumes and through that process I ran into “Pepakura“, a program that allows you to unfold 3D models to a printable 2D model. I used that to build my first Iron Man suit. In 2012, I attended the premiere of  “The Avengers” and noticed many people dressing up in costumes and going  to conventions. That was the first time I had ever heard of cosplay.

2) Where do you get your inspiration and ideas to cosplay from? Is it from programs you watch now or childhood programs or both?

Like many kids, I grew up watching cartoons and animated tv series.  From enjoying the shows I began to collect the action figures from the 1990’s animated T.V series such as Iron Man, X-Men, Spider-Man, Batman. My inspiration for my Iron Man suit came from the first Iron Man Movie and “Legacy Effects”, the geniuses behind the suit. This remarkably talented studio specializes in bringing movies to life with realistic movie props, costumes and animatronics. That’s when I saw my childhood hero, Iron Man, come to life. I mean what’s cooler than having an awesome suit of armor that flies, while being a rich genius and getting all the ladies?

3) How do you put your outfits together are they 100% from scratch and if so what’s been your trickiest part to date?

Except for the Pepakura models itself, all my suits are 100% done by myself. I developed a sheet metal/ foam hybrid for my armor which gives me the strength and durability of resin or fibreglass and keeps it lightweight like foam. The hardest part is finding a ratio between comfort/ mobility and movie accuracy/ aesthetics, which is why I can’t sit down in my armor.

4) What’s your favourite cosplay to date?

My favorite cosplay to date is my Iron Man Mark VI. I have rebuilt this armor 3 times, improving it each time. It’s the armor I currently use for all special events and parties I do.

5) If you’ve cosplayed at a convention what was the experience like?

Cosplaying at a convention is an experience like no other. Walking into a crowded room with my Iron Man suit you are automatically the star of the show and everyone goes crazy trying to get a picture with you. Even doing special events I had Justin Bieber ask me for a picture which was pretty crazy.

6) Can we expect to see you at any conventions this year?

I will be attending Fan Expo 2016 this September in Toronto and hoping to debut my new Iron Man Mark XVII “HeartBreaker” armor. Since this will be the last appearance of Stan Lee in Canada I’ll try to get my 3 Iron Man armors together for a picture.

7) If you could cosplay as anyone and budget wasn’t an issue who would it be?

If budget wasn’t an issue, I would still choose Iron Man. It’s already fairly expensive in materials but with an unlimited budget I would have a welded Iron Man suit and fully automated. Maybe even add a washroom inside HAHA.

8) Do you have any words of advice for up and coming cosplayers?

To any up and coming cosplayers I would say cosplay is for everyone, so have fun with it. However, being in costume means you will attract attention, some good and some bad. For all the hundreds of admirers you find you will always have someone critique your work or your character  of choice. It usually helps cosplaying as a character you bear a resemblance to. Since i make my own costumes the criticism is more important to me than the compliments. It lets me know where I can improve or do differently.

9) Where can we find you online?

You can find me on all social media. My preferred platform is Instagram which I keep most updated.

• Instagram – Toronto Iron Man
• Facebook – Toronto Iron Man
•  Official Website – TorontoIronMan.com

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There you go readers Toronto Iron Man! Don’t be shy go say hi and say ‘Skatronixxx sent me!’

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