Comics in Crisis Yard Sale!

I've never tried anything like this on this blog before, but as I was listing tons of figures on Amazon.com I stopped and thought it would be cool to give my readers the first shot at anything they wanted.

I have a lot of Eaglemoss Classic Figurines (both Marvel and DC) for sale, and they're going to go waaaaay below the list price you can get them for online. If you're familiar with these, you know they are top quality lead sculpts about four or five inches high that are painted in exquisite detail and include a booklet with information about the history of that character. These normally list for $14-$18 a piece, but I need to make some room so I'm letting them go to my readers for $10+$1 for shipping. These are unopened and are mostly duplicates from my collection.

Here's what you've got to choose from:

Doc Samson

Taskmaster

Madrox the Multiple Man (the bag is torn but this hasn't been opened or displayed)

Alan Scott Green Lantern

Union Jack

Banshee

Impossible Man

Blue Beetle 

Deadshot

Deathstroke

Barry Allen Flash

Sentry

Green Arrow
Batgirl
Starfire
Lex Luthor
Catwoman
Shocker
Ra's Al Ghul
Martian Manhunter
Supergirl
Bizarro

Doomsday (Super Special oversized, which will cost you $17 with shipping because of the size and weight of this one)
Gorilla Grodd (Super Special oversized, same price as above)

As an added bonus, I am tossing in a few comic books with each figure sold. Which books? Who cares--they're free! They'll be mainstream DC and Marvel comics relatively recent, so you aren't going to find any lost treasure, but you'll probably find something you haven't read before.

This is a first-come first-served basis sale, so email me at comicsincrisis(at)yahoo.com if see something you want. I can send you an invoice through PayPal if you'd like, or I can hold it until your payment of cash or money order arrives.

This listing is good from today until April 11, 2010, after which anything I have left will be listed on Amazon.com. This is a great way for your to begin a collection or add to one you already have. You can do an online search for any of those listed figures and you're going to see they're gorgeous.

I have a ton of figures I'm selling as well, so if this goes well I might just come back with a discounted list of other DC and Marvel showcase figures I have.

Comics Versus the Movies - Villains Edition Part 2

Last year I looked at how villains had fared in the movies compared to their relatively cool looks in the comics. It's time to update that list with several more who may or may not have been an improvement. Many thanks to Dorian, the reader who suggested many of these.

Two-Face

In the comic books, he's been portrayed over the years as a psycho, a hero, and a tragic figure. He's gone from silly to serious, and there were some great moments in his character's history. In the movies, it's been a toss-up as well. In Batman Forever, Tommy Lee Jones portrayed the character as a weird variation of the Joker. He had this weird purple face that was hard to take seriously, but in all honesty it was the least of the worries for the franchise at that point.

Aaron Eckhart turned around and made the character a tragic hero in The Dark Knight. While having the most gruesome face of all time, he showed us Harvey Dent before Two-Face, which made us sympathize with the character and hope for a good outcome. It didn't happen, but that just added to the gravity of the whole situation. Batman had to become a fugitive to protect Dent's pre-crazy reputation, and while we may never see a sequel to find out the repercussions of that decision, it was a strong move.

Kingpin

In the comics he is one huge, bald-headed white guy. In the Daredevil movie, he was one huge, bald-headed black guy. In the comic books it was hard to imagine him being fast enough to be a serious threat (especially if you've ever had to walk behind a fat guy in the mall). In the movie, we saw enough muscle in there to see what he was capable of.

The Daredevil movie wasn't that great, and I'm honestly not out there pushing for a sequel (a reboot, yes) but I wasn't really impressed with either villain in that film...or even the hero for that matter. Could have been worse though, I suppose.

Iron Monger

This character was radically different in many ways. In the Iron Man movie, he was old and worked for Tony Stark. In the comics he wasn't that old and had his own rival company taking on Stark Industries. Still, you have to admit the final armor in the movie was a nice challenge for Iron Man. He was one big dude.

The Riddler

The comic book version of this villain has been a pest, a private eye, and now a psycho again. He's a complex villain who may make some deep statements but always keeps himself presentable.

Jim Carrey, on the other hand, took the guy up about 18 notches and turned him into a really funny villain you had trouble seeing as a serious threat. He made the TV version of Riddler seem calm! To Jim's credit, however, he was the first Batman villain to actually make it through one of his movies alive. Unfortunately (or fortunately, I guess) we'll never see him in a sequel. I still think Michael Emerson would make a great Riddler for the next Batman movie.

Ra's Al Ghul

This one is hard to score. The comic book version is a tough guy with a lot of issues. He has a daughter madly in love with Batman (and even had his son). The movie version was the guy from "Taken", which remains one of my favorite movies of all time.

While I wasn't overly impressed with Liam's overall take of the character, it did make for a rather nice plot twist in the "Batman Begins" movie. I liked how he was Bruce's mentor before becoming his enemy.

Scarecrow

 This one was actually pretty good. Despite having a lot of leeway in this, they stayed fairly close to the character. The costume was exact, but they were close enough to see where it was coming from. Cillian Murphy did a good job of having that "trust me" look that turned into a "HA! GOTCHA!" moment later.

I wish he'd gotten more of the costume besides just the hood though. It sort of made him look like he'd done his costume shopping at the Thrift Store.

Mystique

Lots to complain about here and lots to love. On the one hand, they took this rather cool character from the comics and turned her into this weird freak for the movie. I can understand the need to make her seem more motivated to hate people, but it could have been done differently.

On the other hand, there was no need for her to have to constantly change clothes when she changed identities in the movie. That was an interesting touch, though it could have been overlooked or explained with a costume, I guess.

Lady Deathstrike

Another one that kept the essence of the character while changing the overall look (and origin), this one made for a pretty cool fight in the second X-Men movie. While the outcome was never in doubt, you have to admit it was kind of touch and go there for a while.

Personally, this is one time I'm glad they didn't go with the comic book costume. To me, it would have been a bad choice and almost impossible to pull off. It would have made the character seem far too comic book and not threatening. The way she was set up, the Wolverine fight in the end was two sleek adamantium warriors going at it.

Doomsday (Smallville)

While this isn't a movie character, I wanted to give him a mention. When we heard that Doomsday was coming to "Smallville", we knew it was going to be a hard thing for them to do. For one, we knew he wouldn't kill Clark like he did in the comic books, so the overall threat was gone. Second, we knew Lex was gone, so his origin would be in question. 

As far as appearance goes, they did their best to stay faithful to the comic character while still making it work for the series. I wasn't that impressed with the human turning into Doomsday rather than him being created as a monster from scratch, but in the end it made for a pretty cool episode.

Fight Night!

I've talked about dream fights before, but let's look at some match-ups that would win their own awards.

Most Pompous Fight: Darkseid vs. Thanos

These two would spend the entire time talking about how regal they were, and how they were feared on their homeworld, and how they would not tolerate rebellion, and such. 

It would be a fairly even match, but I think it would be filled with so many word balloons it would seem like an issue of "Ultimate Spider-Man" during the Bendis years.

Most Confusing Fight to Narrate: Captain Marvel vs. Captain Marvel

Think about it: "Captain Marvel throws a punch and sends Captain Marvel flying. Cap flies into Cap, but Cap is too fast and speeds out of his way..." It would go like this indefinitely.

But then again, if you think about it, this might be a pretty cool battle. I'm talking the original Marvel Captain Marvel here, not any of the others who have held the title since his death.

Most Egotistical Fight: Lex Luthor vs. Norman Osborn

Both men consider themselves perfect. Both men consider themselves flawless leaders. Both men consider themselves victorious time and again against their enemies. And both men have that one thorn in their flesh: the main hero they can never stop. 

They'd spend a lot of time bragging about how they outsmarted this hero and that, and how they won this political victory or that, and then they'd both get ugly and start screaming "Look, it's Spider-Man" and "Hey, there's Superman" at each other.

Most Evenly-Matched Fight: Scarecrow vs. Scarecrow

Let's see, both men dress up in scarecrow outfits. Both men deal with fear, and neither is a trained fighter or anything. As a matter of fact, both men are basically punching bags when the time comes for fisticuffs.

Marvel's version has been beaten down by the Falcon, a c-list hero if that. DC's Scarecrow has been beaten down by...well, just about everyone. The only thing that could possibly turn the tide to his favor would be if he gets to use his fear gas on Marvel's version. Other than that, I predict this one to be a one-punch knockout for whoever gets to throw the first punch.

Most Paranoid Fight: Rorschach vs. The Question

Both men are brutal when it comes to fighting. Neither man would hesitate to do whatever it took to win. Both men would have awesome trenchcoats and hats going for them, and even an artist with horrible drawing skills would be able to do this one.

Both men would probably spend their time spouting government conspiracies and secret society machinations. In the end I think they'd just break down and find enough common ground to go grab a cup of coffee (or a can of beans). Still, you have to admit it would be a really fun read just for the conversations!

Most Boring Fight: Watcher vs. Monitor

In this corner, Uatu the Watcher. In the other corner, the Monitor.

And then, for the next two weeks they just sit and stare at each other until the match is declared a draw.

'Nuff said.

The Dream Team

Sorry it's been a while, but I hit "The Wall" and just ran out of things to talk about for a few weeks, along with work taking a lot of time. Hopefully this will put me back into the swing of things.

We've seen team books for years since the very first issue of Avengers and Justice League, but what about the opportunity to put together a dream team? Never mind publishers, and never mind one-shot issues...what if we could put together a lasting team that would work together for a long time against common foes? Well, let's pick the cream of the crop for all spots:

The Powerhouse: Superman

While there might be other heroes who could fill this role (Hulk, Thor, Sentry, or Captain Marvel all come to mind), Superman is the one who would keep a pure head through it all. 

He doesn't kill, and doesn't try to kill, which would make him an interesting foil for some of the other members of the team who have no problem killing. 

Plus DC knows how to handle this character by making him strong while still giving him stories that challenge him. 

The Tactician: Captain America

I realize a lot of people would argue for Batman here, but Captain America is and always has been a soldier. 

He is the kind of hero who inspires others to follow him and truly is fearless in the battlefield. He's watched more than one friend die under his leadership (even though Hawkeye eventually came back) and that keeps a level head on all his decisions.

While he might not have the technological know-how of Batman or Iron Man, there's no doubt just having him on the team would make all the other heroes feel just a little bit better. 

The Brains: Hank Pym

Considered the smartest man in the Marvel Universe, this guy has something to prove and really is quite the brillian hero. Pym brings a lifetime of mistakes to the team, yes, but he also brings a solid head thanks to the recent death of the Wasp.

I would have to say Hank would serve as a valuable member of the team for other reasons as well. He could fight as himself or any of a half dozen other heroes as the need arose. Also, his recent creation of a multi-dimensional home base for the Avengers (very reminiscent of Doctor Who's Tardis) would help him get the team where they needed to be quickly. 

The Weapons Master: Deathstroke

Not necessarily the man you'd consider for a team player, Deathstroke would have a ruthless edge to him and the ability to back it up. He could easily hold his own against just about any villain the team would face and could keep his cool in an outnumbered situation. 

Of course, there would be clashes. This is the first member of the fantasy team (but not the last) who would kill without second thought. This would lead to numerous clashes with Superman's Boy Scout image. Also, Slade's past would make him a hard man to trust.  The team would never know when he might just be leading them into a trap...and I can easily see where there would be some huge redemption storyline in there somewhere to finally prove himself a team player.

The Stealth: Batman

Come on, you didn't think I'd forget Batman, did you? And I'm talking Bruce Wayne here. While not the heaviest hitter on the team, you'd be hard-pressed to find someone more likely to get into a locked building and grab the bad guy without any of his goons noticing. 

Batman would also bring gadgets to the table. Those moments when stealth wouldn't be enough, he could bring some firepower that would even the odds. Add his aversion to killing people as well, and you have someone to back Superman when things get a little tense in a few encounters. The difference would be that Batman wouldn't be afraid to trade punches with any team member who got out of line (can I get a witness, Guy Gardner?).

The Loose Cannon: Deadshot

Because every team needs someone to keep things interesting, I'd throw Deadshot in there. I know the natural choice would be Wolverine, but he's not on this team anywhere. Deadshot has a death wish, and is completely crazy.

The beauty of this is Lawton's uneasy history with Deathstroke. Both men tried to kill each other before, and you can see where the temptation would always be there in a fight to leave Slade dying or even to shoot him in the back himself. Plus the fact that there's no way on Earth you can tell me it wouldn't be cool seeing him walk solo into a room full of Hydra or A.I.M. goons and throwing down.  

The Heart: Wonder Woman

Every team needs that person that keeps them grounded. She has to be strong enough to hold her own but at the same time human enough to reach out to that person who's been hurt due to a battle and try to help them.

Wonder Woman would bring the advantage of a second powerhouse to the team, while not being an exact copy of Superman.  

She's also got the warrior princess thing going for her, which brings the supernatural element to the team where they can fight demons and mythic creatures galore.  

The Speedster: Barry Allen

Every team needs a speedster, and Barry Allen is the easy choice. Quicksilver is awesome, Wally West is cool, but Barry's the man who has done it all and lived (and died...and lived) to tell about it. 

The Flash does things with his speed powers no other hero had ever done, and his ability to tap into the Speed Force gives him limitless opportunities to "boost" when he needs it.  

The thing that he also adds to the team is brains. He's a scientist, and while he's not on the same level as Hank Pym, he could still contribute a lot by being able to do the equations about 70,000 times faster than Hank. 

The Comedy Relief: Deadpool

Because somebody's got to throw the witty one-liners during a fight, I nominate Deadpool for the job. He's got an incredible healing factor that will keep him going no matter what, and he's a whole lot of crazy. 

He almost qualifies for the "Loose Cannon" spot on the team, but his personality makes him a little too fun for the bad spot. 

Wade would be an interesting foil for Batman's very grim attitude. Seeing the two of them teamed up to sneak into a base would make for a lot of fun, especially as Batman would attempt to sneak past the guards while Wade would just jump into them and start shooting. 

The Archer: Hawkeye

Seems like this position has become a staple in recent teams, so we added an archer here. Hawkeye wins the spot simply because he's one bad dude. He has all the trick arrows of Green Arrow, but he can move beyond that. When his bowstring breaks, Clint has proven he can pick up just about anything handy and beat the tar out of any villain lurking nearby. 

 Clint also has a lot of leadership experience that would make him a good secondary leader. Given his past with the Thunderbolts, he's proven he can even manage villains and turn them into heroes, so the presence of Deadshot and Deathstroke wouldn't phase him. 

One interesting note, archers never fare well in team books. Both Green Arrow and Hawkeye have been killed in explosions (though both have come back thanks to the intervention of supernatural friends).  

The Mysterious Presence: Deadman

Come on, I dare you to name me a better spy for the team? The guy can go just about anywhere without being seen or heard, then report back as needed. 

Of course, he couldn't be seen or heard by his friends either, so that could be awkward at meetings...unless he had a body to possess. For that position, I nominate Rick Jones as permanent Deadman host body. Why not? He's been everyone else's sidekick.

So that's my dream roster. Yes, it would be a fairly large and volatile team, but imagine how this team could build over time. Deadshot and Deathstroke already have bad blood between them, so the constant contact with each other could lead to cool confrontations. How about a Wonder Woman/Captain America love connection (after she rejects Tony Stark's guest appearance in the magazine, of course). Hey, my line up definitely couldn't be worse than the Luke Cage angst-fest we're forced to sit through now in every issue of New Avengers. 

There are a lot of possibilities here, but we'll never know how it would have worked. Who do you think I should have dropped and added?