The top 10 shows that NEED to be on the Marvel/Star Wars channel

Revealed at a recent investors conference call, Disney CEO suggested that there might be a Disney Marvel or Star Wars streaming channel in the near future. He's his quote directly:

"We have said that with these channels and these brands — ESPN, ABC, Disney, maybe even down the road something related to Star Wars and Marvel — we do have an ability as a company to take product, specifically filmed entertainment, television, movies, directly to consumers."

Most of us knew that this was just a matter of time, and something that a lot of HOPED for. The only thing that makes me a little concerned is what the content of those channels might feature. I mean, I LOVE the current Marvel cinematic universe, but it would be cool to have something from before these movies debuted. In fact, I think it would be really important to. As far as a Star Wars channel-YIKES! Yes, there's 6 movies, soon to be 7, The Clone Wars cartoon, Rebels, and....um.... some stuff from 30 years ago. Is there enough content for a Star Wars channel? Yes, Disney will have TONS of people subscribe because it's Star Wars, but if every time I turn it on, Attack of the Clones is on, I'm not turning it on very often. So, here's the top 5; Marvel shows and the top 5 Star Wars shows that I want to see on each channel, that probably won't be (naturally, this list does NOT include new content created for the either network). Let's start with Star Wars:

5)Star Wars: The Clone Wars:
No, not the one that went on for 6 seasons, the micro-series from cartoon network that was INCREDIBLE!!

4)Documentaries
Again, there's not a lot of Star Wars TV or movies, but there's been a TON of documentaries made, both official and unofficial about the movies. Here's one that I love watching:

3)Indiana Jones
YOU HEARD ME!

2)Ewoks
My second favorite Star Wars cartoon! Hey, it was 1985 and we were DYING for more Star Wars. So, when this came along, anyone who was a Star Wars fan watched no matter what, and some of us were pleasently surprised. Overly sweet? Sure. But, it was the 80's. And it was Star Wars.

1)Droids
The BEST Star Wars cartoon EVER!!!! OK, maybe just in my opinion, but whatever. Before the Prequels were even a thought, THESE were the adventures of C-3PO and R2-D2 before they met up with the Rebellion. Weird, crazy and awesomely fun and hey, Boba Fett even shows up!

Marvel has a bit more to play with. They've had stuff on TV pretty much since the 1960s. Here's the top 5 shows that I want to see streaming on that network:

5)The Thing
I have no clue why this show is even called "The Thing", but it's great in a really cheesy way:

4)The Marvel TV movies
Oh man, these were so bad they were AWESOME! Captain America! Nick Fury! DOCTOR STRANGE!!!

3)Fantastic Four
I used to watch this on Boomerang and LOVED it for some reason. Charming 1960's cartoon WITH The Human Torch!

2)Spider-Man & his Amazing Friends
Bar none, the best Marvel cartoon EVER!

1)The 60's Marvel cartoons
These were cartoons that were they took the issues of a comic and just moved an arm or leg. Classic and awesome at the same time. I could watch these for days:

-There you go. I really hope that one day, we'll have both streaming networks for Star Wars and Marvel Comics. I mean, I know I'd pay for both, wouldn't you? Kind of seems like a no-brainer on Disney's part. As for Indiana Jones........well, that's a topic for another time. Another time and another place.

What I thought of...Captain America #8

Captain America #8: Cap battles Ian for his own life! Zola is headed into our dimension with a huge army! What the hell?!?!??!
The Good: There is only one word for this issue-NAILBITER!!!! OK, that should be two words, but whatever. This issue has to be my favorite one so far of Remender's run. It's got everything. Action, suspense, thrills!!! Wow, I'm starting to sound like Stan Lee. Seriously, though, it's pretty f'n fantastic. And, I know I've said this before, but it REALLY applies here-THE LAST PAGE IS INCREDIBLE!!!
The Bad: Hmmm. Not quite sure what to classify as "bad" here. Sure, I'm still not 100% wrapped up in the Zola-sphere story,but this does a LOT to bring it all around to a nice tidy resolution. And, it's not even a resolution yet.
The Verdict: Pick it up!!! It's great!!

What I thought of...Captain America #7

Captain America #7: Cap is in a pretty bad way. He's beyond exhausted, totally alone and having to take on Zola's army to try and get to his son. Add to that, he's got to fight about a TRILLION Zola genetic monsters and you get quite an action packed story.
The Good: There's a lot of good story here. As much as I like Cap when he's on Earth and being a hero, this off world adventure arc is a nice change of pace. The issue is packed with cliffhangers, with a last page one that you will NOT believe! Some great turns in this issue as well.
The Bad: Hmmmmm. Not really sure about the bad this time around. I'm sure there was something that I didn't like, but the good made me forget it.
The Verdict: Grab it! It's totally fun. And that's what you need in comics sometimes.

What you should buy-5/29/13

It's a 5 Wednesday month, so this week is a little light on releases. But, there's some pretty exciting stuff coming out, though. Let's take a look!

Captain America #7: Great issue! Cap vs the whole damn Zola planet!!! And, some pretty shocking twists and surprises!!

King Conan:The Hour of the Dragon #1: GREAT GREAT first issue featuring an older, wiser Conan who still finds a way to get into trouble. Written by Tim Truman, who really know how to tell a good Conan story.  That, combined with some fantastic art by Tomás Giorello make this book a winner!

GI Joe #4: YO JOE!!! This book just keeps getting better and better! I just got two words for ya-SCRAP. IRON!!!!!

Smallville Season 11 Special #1: In all honesty, I'm really liking this series. This special issues features BATMAN and NIGHTWING!! What's not to love?

Previews #297: Featuring comics & awesome stuff that hit in August!! Do your retailer a favor-buy it and USE IT!!

X-Men #1: Yes, they're all women.

Danger Girl: Trinity #2: I love me some Danger Girl. I'm SO glad this title is back as a series of mini series. It's fun, smart and entertaining. And, it features hot girls. No brainer!

As always, if it's Wednesday, I'll be at Challengers Comics + Conversation. Stop by and buy all these things and more! Next week's got some great stuff, see you then!!

What I thought of...Captain America #6

Captain America #6: This issue's got a LOT going on! Cap vs Phrox! Zola tries to take over Ian's mind! Zola's sexy daughter!
The Good: Man, the art on this issue is KILLER!!! JR, JR. has 3 different inkers, and they all work. REALLY well. Between that and the world that Romita, JR. has created for this story arc, it's just amazing. Add to that, Remender's (who I'm not usually a fan of) stellar writing on this book, and you've got yourself a must read. When I read the previews for this book and his take in general, I was, let's just say, less than impressed. But, I was wrong. This is a great story that I can see myself revisiting more than once in the future.
The Bad: Even though I've been reading this book for 6 months, I still get confused. And having The Phrox speak in gibberish doesn't help either. And there's still a lot about Zola and his powers that I don't understand.
The Verdict: Buy it! Good far outweighs any bad there is.

I CAN'T WAIT FOR WINTER!!!!!!

Winter SOLDIER that is. OK, even I'll admit, that was a bit of a stretch. But who care? Production has begun on Captain America: The Winter Soldier!!!
-First, if you've never READ the Winter Soldier, get your ass to the comic store and pick up the trade. It's one of my all time favorite Captain America stories EVER! I won't go into spoilers, but it's something that NO ONE wanted to happen, made awesome. That being said, he's the press release that Marvel Studios sent out yesterday:


Following in the footsteps of the record-breaking Marvel Studios’ release, “Marvel’s The Avengers,” production on the highly anticipated release, Marvel’s “Captain America: The Winter Soldier” has commenced in Los Angeles, Calif., with production also including locations in Cleveland, Ohio, and Washington D.C. Directing the film is the team of Anthony and Joe Russo (“Welcome to Collinwood”) from a screenplay written by Christopher Markus (“Captain America: The First Avenger”) & Stephen McFeely (“Captain America: The First Avenger”). Marvel’s “Captain America: The Winter Soldier” returns Chris Evans (“Captain America: The First Avenger,” “Marvel’s The Avengers”) as the iconic Super Hero character Steve Rogers/Captain America, along with Scarlett Johansson (“Marvel’s The Avengers,” “Iron Man 2”) as Black Widow and Samuel L. Jackson (“Marvel’s The Avengers,” “Iron Man 2”) as Nick Fury. In addition, film icon Robert Redford has joined the all-star cast as Agent Alexander Pierce, a senior leader within the S.H.I.E.L.D. organization. “Captain America: The Winter Soldier” is set for release in the U.S. on April 4, 2014.

“Captain America: The Winter Soldier” will pick-up where “Marvel’s The Avengers” left off, as Steve Rogers struggles to embrace his role in the modern world and teams up with Natasha Romanoff, aka Black Widow, to battle a powerful yet shadowy enemy in present-day Washington, D.C.

Based on the ever-popular Marvel comic book series, first published in 1941, Marvel’s “Captain America: The Winter Soldier” features an outstanding supporting cast that includes Sebastian Stan (“Captain America: The First Avenger,” “Black Swan”) as Bucky Barnes/Winter Soldier, Anthony Mackie (“The Hurt Locker,” “Million Dollar Baby”) as Sam Wilson/Falcon, Cobie Smulders (“Marvel’s The Avengers,” “How I Met Your Mother”) as Agent Maria Hill, Frank Grillo (“Zero Dark Thirty”) as Brock Rumlow and Georges St-Pierre (“Death Warrior”) as Georges Batroc. Rounding out the talented cast are Hayley Atwell (“Captain America: The First Avenger”) as Peggy Carter, Toby Jones (“Captain America: The First Avenger,” “The Hunger Games”) as Arnim Zola, Emily VanCamp (“The Ring 2,” “Revenge”) as Agent 13 and Maximiliano Hernández (“Marvel’s The Avengers,” “Thor”) as Agent Jasper Sitwell.

Marvel Studios’ President Kevin Feige is producing the film. Executive producers on the project include Alan Fine, Louis D’Esposito, Victoria Alonso, Michael Grillo and Stan Lee. The creative production team on the film includes director of photography Trent Opaloch (“Elysium,” “District 9”), production designer Peter Wenham (“21 Jump Street,” “Fast Five”), editors Jeffrey Ford, A.C.E. and Mary Jo Markey, A.C.E. (“Star Wars: Episode 7,” “The Perks of Being a Wallflower”) and three time Oscar®-nominated costume designer Judianna Makovsky (“The Hunger Games,” “Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone”).

Marvel Studios’ upcoming release schedule includes “Iron Man 3” on May 3, 2013, and “Thor: The Dark World” on November 8, 2013. The studio most recently produced the critically acclaimed “Marvel’s The Avengers,” which set the all-time, domestic 3-day weekend box office record at $207.4 million. The film, which shattered both domestic and international box office records, is Disney’s highest-grossing global and domestic release of all time and marks the studio’s fifth film to gross more than $1 billion worldwide.

In the summer of 2011, Marvel successfully launched two new franchises with “Thor,” starring Chris Hemsworth, and “Captain America: The First Avenger,” starring Chris Evans. Both films opened #1 at the box office and have grossed over $800 million worldwide combined. In 2010 “Iron Man 2,” starring Robert Downey Jr., Gwyneth Paltrow, Don Cheadle, Scarlett Johansson, Sam Rockwell, Mickey Rourke and Samuel L. Jackson as Nick Fury took the #1 spot in its first weekend with a domestic box office gross of $128.1 million.

In the summer of 2008, Marvel produced the summer blockbuster movies “Iron Man” and “The Incredible Hulk.” “Iron Man,” in which Robert Downey Jr. originally dons the Super Hero’s powerful armor and stars alongside co-stars Terrence Howard, Jeff Bridges, Shaun Toub and Gwyneth Paltrow, was released May 2, 2008, and was an immediate box office success. Garnering the number one position for two weeks in a row, the film brought in over $100 million in its opening weekend. On June 13, 2008, Marvel released “The Incredible Hulk,” marking its second number one opener of that summer.

-Beyond being super excited for this movie, there's a couple of things that are extra awesome. First, The Black Widow is featured in the movie. She was in the comic version of this story,so I'm glad to see they're sticking somewhat close to the source material. Second-FALCON!!!!! How awesome is that? And finally...

That's right, boys & girls-BATROC THE LEAPER!!!!!!! I REALLY hope he has the mustache. Seriously.
359 days and counting!!

The List!!!...for Wednesday, January 16th

WOW!!! What an incredible week for awesome comics!!...and, Saga's out this week too. Here's a few that I would HIGHLY recommend....

Bionic Man vs. Bionic Woman #1: Let's start things off with a bang. This first issue is FANTASTIC!!! And, while we don't quite get the battle we all want to see in this first issue, it's a great opening chapter of this mini series.

Mars Attacks The REAL Ghostbusters: Wow. I really can't believe that Sony let IDW do this. But, I'm super glad they did. It's great, buy it!

Savage Wolverine #1: Wolverine by Frank Cho. That pretty much says it all. Oh, and Shanna the She-Devil.

All-New X-Men #6: I can't WAIT to see what happens next!!!

Captain America #3: Old Cap vs. An alien from Jabba the Hutt's Palace!

Batgirl #16: Death of the Family tie-in!! Somebody's getting married!

Avengers Assembled #11: Really loving this book since the creative team shift

The Black Beetle #1: This is a FANTASTIC pulp hero action comic! Loads of fun!!!

Batman #16: Death of the Family!!!

GI Joe #21: NOT a silent issue!!! But, sadly, this is the end of the road for this GI Joe series. But, you can't keep a good counter terrorist unit down, right?

-Again, TONS of good stuff coming out this week. If you're in Chicago, you better stop by Challengers, cause I'll be there selling all these comics and MORE!!! Have a great Wednesday, everybody. Stay Electrifying!

HOLY CAP!!!

NO, that's not a mistake. I meant HOLY CAP!!! As in Captain America! Just announced today, the two 1979 Captain America made for TV movies are being released on DVD on October 18th. As a 6 year old kid watching these, I thought they were the COOLEST thing I'd ever seen(next to the Six Million Dollar Man)and are actually what made me start reading Captain America comics. Will the movies hold up 30 years later? Um.....I'll let you be the judge.