A Week’s Worth of Rambles and Grumbles

This week I had too many thoughts running through my head.  Not enough to write a column about it, but enough that I have to get them out of my head so I don’t have to keep thinking about them.  So here you have it, this is what keeps me up at night.

The Dark Knight Rises… is just not that great!

So, how did that title grab ya?

It’s the truth.  I don’t think Dark Knight Rises is amazing.  It’s a decent movie, but it’s not a great Batman movie.

The Dark Knight was a great movie.  So it’s understandable that it would be tough to top that movie.  But there are a lot of things I didn’t like about TDKR.

One issue I have with the movie is it is set 8 years after Dark Knight.  During those 8 years, the Batman has disappeared and Bruce Wayne has become a recluse.  Neither of them have been seen by the public.  I don’t find that premise believable.

I don’t see Batman giving up and walking away from his mission.  No matter how many police officers came after him, Batman wouldn’t just give up.  And using Rachel’s death as the excuse to explain why he gave up being Batman doesn’t make sense either.  Bruce Wayne dedicated his life to fighting crime, to avenge the death of his parents.  I don’t think he’d give that up because his girlfriend died.  He’d use that event to give him strength to carry on.

Another problem I had with the movie is the amount of screen time Batman had.  Even Bruce Wayne didn’t have much screen time.  When Batman Begins first came out, we had to wait almost 45 minutes for Batman to show up on screen for the first time.  That is understandable, it was an origin movie.  We don’t get to see Batman much in TDKR.  It felt like Joseph Gordon-Levitt had the most screen time out of anybody in the movie.  The other characters were there to support John Blake.

I didn’t hate the whole movie.  Anne Hathaway was great as Selina Kyle/Catwoman.  She played the character innocent and dangerous at the same time.  Joseph Gordon-Levitt was great as well.  It won’t be long before he is a leading man instead of a supporting actor.

I read somewhere this week (I apologize I can’t remember the source, and I paraphrase) that “If you remove Batman and Bane, The Dark Knight Rises would be a great suspense/action movie”.  I think that is my main issue with the movie.  Christopher Nolan made a suspenseful “Terrorist Takes Over The World” movie, Batman didn’t need to be there to make it good.  All I wanted was a great Batman movie.

SDCC Exclusives Sold Quick

After every San Diego Comic Con the retailers who offer toy exclusives at the show, then offer them online at their web stores.  The two main lines are Hasbro (hasbrotoyshop.com) and Mattel (mattycollector.com).

This week there were many die-hard toy fans anxiously waiting by their computers for the exclusives to come available.

I know my wife was.

The exclusive she had her heart set on was the Monster High Scarah Screams.  At Noon sharp on Monday she was watching her order screen on Matty Collector hoping to get her figure (and she was ordering Zuul for our friend Ryan P).  This doll is a highly sought after figure.  She called me just after she placed her order and I jumped on the website and it was sold out already.  And that was only 16 minutes after the sale started.

Over at Hasbro Toy Shop the exclusives sold very quickly too.  I tried to pick up the G.I. Joe Exclusive Jinx, but by time I got to the computer they were long gone.  The same happened last year when I tried to get the exclusive Zarana figure.  It was gone and I had to resort to eBay to add her to my collection.  I think I’ll pass on Jinx this year.

It would be nice if more of these exclusives were available, but then they wouldn’t be exclusive.  This does leave the door open for people to make money though.  You see it all the time at toy shows.  I’ve seen the price on some SDCC exclusives be triple the original sale price.  But in some cases, after the action figure has sat around for a couple of years, you can pick them up pretty cheap.  One time I picked up the 12″ Baroness figure for my wife’s toy collection from Hasbro Toy Shop.  It was 6 weeks after the San Diego Con and I paid regular price (on the website).  So sometimes you never know, you can find a deal on SDCC Exclusives.

What Happened To Batwoman?

Batwoman: Elegy by Greg Rucka and J.H. William III (JHW3) is one of my favourite comic storylines.  The writing is superb and the art is second to none.  It has everything you want from a comic.

In early 2011 we were offered a teaser issue with Batwoman #0.  I was excited and couldn’t wait to see what was coming next for this great character.  Then the New 52 was announced and Batwoman was pushed back to be released with the relaunch.  I was disappointed but I could wait.

Right now we are 11 issues into Batwoman and I’ve been disappointed with the Batwoman series.  I thought of dropping the title after the first story arc “Hydrology“.  Now with the second story arc, “To Drown The World”, completed I’m even more confused.  At times the story is told on multiple levels and jumps between time frames within the story.  This worked really well with Elegy.  It just gets confusing during “To Drown The World”.

The art is great.  I love JHW3’s artwork, and I think Amy Reeder’s art was great during her issues on the title.  But there is something missing.  The only thing I can think of is the absence of Greg Rucka.  Maybe Elegy was lightning in a bottle, and it could never be recreated.

The very last page of Batwoman #11 had me confused as well.  It said “Batwoman returns in World’s Finest”.  Is Batwoman cancelled?  Is her title being cancelled after two story arcs?

I’ve tried to find the answer on the internet, but to no avail.  I don’t want to drop the title because really love the Batwoman character, but a side of me hopes that the title is being cancelled.  With it cancelled I don’t have the guilt of dropping a title that I feel had so much potential, but never quite hit the mark.

Canadian Collectible Toy Expo 2012

This weekend is the Canadian Collectible Toy Expo in Mississauga.  It is held in conjunction with TF Con (Transformers Convention).

Some of the special guests include Bob Budiansky (comic writer), Scott McNeil (voice actor), Neil Ross (voice actor), the 501st Garrison and Ontario Ghostbusters.

This is a great show to attend.  Especially if you are a Transformers fan.

With this being the first toy show in our area after San Diego Comic Convention, there is a good chance that you’ll be able to grab some of those exclusives that you missed out on, if you couldn’t make it to San Diego or couldn’t get onto the internet in time.

It is located at the Delta Meadowvale Resort and Conference Centre- 6750 Mississauga Road in Mississauga.

 

Ed Campbell
Ed Campbell

Ed Campbell is a collector of comics and action figures, primarily G.I. Joe. He is also a Cosplayer with Thor and Captain America as just a few of the characters in his arsenal. When not fulfilling his Comic Book Daily duties, he's "working for a living", volunteering his time for his local Fall Fair, and spending as much time with his family as possible. Use the links below to get in contact with him.

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Charlie
Charlie
11 years ago

It’s no longer fun if we’re kept up at night… sleep easy my friend.

Bill Angus
Bill Angus
11 years ago

Batwoman is guest-starring in World’s Finest. The title isn’t cancelled.

Laura
Laura
11 years ago

Scarah comes with Hoodude too. I am excite for when mine shows up!

hurm
hurm
11 years ago

Batman didn’t give up fighting crime because his girlfriend died. He gave it up to take the fall for five deaths so that Harvey Dent’s legacy wouldn’t be tainted and so that Gotham would rally around him and be willing to fight crime. And it worked. So he stayed in hiding. You can not like that rationale, but it was the whole point of The Dark Knight and it carried through nicely in The Dark Knight Rises.

Ed Campbell
11 years ago

Laura, did you ever expect anyone to ever talk about Monster High on CBD?