San Diego Comic-Con is a convention we look forward to as we get to see all of the cool things Mezco Toyz will be releasing in the future. We get especially excited for their line of One:12 Collective figures and this year the company has revealed a much wanted figure, Bishop! Check out what you’ll be getting in the future.
Three members of Marvel’s Uncanny X-Men Super Hero team have officially been added to MARVEL Future Fight, the popular Super Hero mobile game by Netmarble Corp. Agents can now add these characters to their roster of Super Heroes and undergo new missions to unlock new skills, uniforms, and more.
MARVEL Future Fight players and Uncanny X-Men fans now have the opportunity to save the timeline with fan-favorite X-Men Super Heroes Iceman (Modern), Jubilee (Classic) and Bishop (Disassembled). Agents can also prepare for battle with brand new uniforms to collect, including new X-MEN RED uniforms for Storm and Jean Grey, a new DISASSEMBLED uniform for Psylocke, and a new UNCANNY X-MEN uniform for Beast. MARVEL Future Fight’s new ‘Uniform Ranking’ system allows players to view popular uniforms at a glance, and with the ‘Uniform Dibs’ function, players can quickly identify uniforms they want to buy.
A new S.H.I.E.L.D Academy Mission and guide, along with a shortcut function for players to complete the mission quickly, is now available for players to participate. In addition to X-Men characters Iceman, Jubilee, Bishop, Jean Grey, Storm and Beast now having unlocked the ‘Unleash Potential’ functionality, the Super Hero Jean Grey can now be upgraded to Tier-3, with new ultimate skills to be added once the upgrade is complete. Additional updates to MARVEL Future Fight include:
MARVEL Future Fight recently celebrated its four-year anniversary with 100 million players across the world. The game is currently available worldwide in the App Store and Google Play.
Iceman is back from writer Sina Grace with new series artist Nathan Stockman and colorist Federico Blee. In the first issue of the new series, Grace and Stockman indulge in a little team-up action (and jog down memory lane for X-Men fans of the late 1980s) as Iceman and Bishop work together to prevent a new mutant massacre of the Morlocks. They have a really quirky dynamic with Bishop playing the serious focused on several possible futures, and Iceman being the one with the bad jokes and clunky Kanye references. However, Grace gives Bobby a little more self-awareness than the previous volume where he was just coming into his own as both a gay man and omega level mutant and trying to balance coming out to his parents and his first real boyfriend. In Iceman #1, he’s still developing as a person, but is a little more self-assured, which makes the book a little more fun.
Speaking of fun, Iceman #1 has some seriously action-packed setpieces courtesy of Nathan Stockman and Federico Blee beginning with a literal cold open where Bobby saves an old lady from a homophobic bad guy in Hell’s Kitchen while trying to meet a cute guy. (Oops, I have to put a dollar in the clunky dad joke jar.) One thing I love about heroes like Spider-Man is the intersection between their personal life, especially romance, and superhero action, and Grace and Stockman really get that dynamic with a gay superhero. It’s also seriously empowering to see a queer superhero kick a homophobic bad dude’s ass by completely encasing him in ice. And as a humorous cherry on top, pulling out an ice “glass” slipper on the dance floor made me laugh and cringe. Northstar really needs to give him dating lessons. This opening sequence really sets the tone for the first issue with Grace and Stockman, who seamlessly transition from fight scene to conversation without losing momentum handling everything from a main villain reveal to a text message conversation between Bobby and Kitty with style and grace.
Iceman #1 shows again why having an actual gay writer on an X-Book makes the X-Men as LGBTQ people more nuanced and powerful. In this case, there is the Morlocks. Sina Grace uses them as a metaphor for LGBTQ folks who don’t want to pass as straight or assimilate into a patriarchal, heteronormative society. That’s totally cool as Bobby begins to understand after a short conversation about why they don’t join the revolving door of the Xavier School. I also like how Grace refers to the Morlocks home as a “safe space” instead of creepy tunnels or whatever like previous writers.
However, in the context of the story, the Morlocks’ separatism and non-conformity leads to them being targeted by Mr. Sinister and the Marauders, who think they are hampering upward mutant mobility. At best, they’re the Marvel Universe version of Log Cabin Republicans, and at worse, they’re the “no fats, no femmes” guys on Grindr. To give them a little more real world relevance, Grace even makes the new look Marauders organize via the not so nice parts of the Internet like real hate groups. And Mr. Sinister is kind of a perfect villain for Bobby because he’s all about finding the perfect genetic potential, which Bobby kind of is as an ice golem creating omega level mutant.
Just like its protagonist at times, Iceman #1 is a highly confident start to Sina Grace, Nathan Stockman, and Federico Blee’s new series. It gives Bobby both a personal life as well as integrating him into the X-Men as a team, has well laid out action, and the most groan-worthy of dad jokes plus quirky banter between him and Bishop. As an added bonus, Grace writes the Morlocks with respect and empathy transforming them into badasses, who fight for their home and friends and won’t conform to society’s standards instead of empty cannon fodder like in the original “Mutant Massacre” story.
Story: Sina Grace Art: Nathan Stockman
Colors: Federico Blee Letters: Joe Sabino
Story: 8.8 Art: 8.2 Overall: 8.5 Recommendation: Buy
Marvel Comics provided Graphic Policy with a FREE copy for review
Bryan Singer continues to build buzz for X-Men: Days of Future Past. In a quick Vine video posted to Twitter, the director has released that both Bishop and Warpath will be appearing in the movie.
No official word as to who will be playing those roles, but Omar Sy and Booboo Stewart are both listed as cast members on IMDB with no roles associated and both might fit the parts. Series newcomer Bingbing Fan will be playing Blink.
The first two issues of this series have been chock full of action, so with good reason it’s easy to anticipate the book slowing down a bit. It didn’t slow down without a fight though, if you catch my meaning. Psylocke is once again taking the lead and, given she’s the main reason I picked up this title, I was very pleased to see her shine.
Someone get that girl a bar of soap! Psylocke has shown that one of her mutant abilities may be cursing. No, not in the form of putting a hex on someone, but having a mouth that would make a sailor blush. I like it though. It really sets her apart from the other people in this book and is in line with her “I don’t care” attitude regarding everyone’s opinions. There is a lot of back and forth emphasis in the dialogue and someone is being a little liberal with the ability to use bold print. It’s almost the norm in some spots so there are either a lot of very important words, or everyone is just yelling sans exclamation points. Bishop offers the most profound dialogue as he shows he’s fluent in speaking zombie with complex phrases such as “Grrr” and “Arggh”.
Not very colorful, but highly effective. There are a lot of monochromatic themes going on here in this issue, which is fine because it’s done during some important moments of the book. We are brought a full range of colors during the breaks in action and I’m enjoying this type of style. There are a few panels where there is so much going on with the backgrounds that it gets a bit difficult to sort through everything. On the other hand there were plenty of panels that had no backgrounds at all so one could say it was a book of extremes. A little hard on the eyes and if it was consistent one way or another, it would have been a bit more appealing visually.
Betsy is a bad-ass and this title has done a great job sticking to that. I’m not sure if Psylocke is a leader, so much as she’s taking charge. Because of her personality, she’s doing things her way and letting Storm and Puck decide if they want to keep up with her. Bishop seems to be raging mindlessly in an effort to obtain Ginny, the little girl whose mutant ability seems to put people in a state of euphoria. We aren’t sure what his motive is yet as his only dialogue has been a series of grunts and growls, but the end of this issue leads us to believe that he may not entirely be in control.
If there’s one thing I’m not enjoying about this series is Fantomex and his clone/lover. They are running around and suddenly can’t stop thinking about Psylocke so they decide to seek her out while avoiding Dark Fantomex (who apparently can stand up quite comfortably on top of a 747 mid-flight). Quite frankly this side plot is a bit distracting and I could do without it.
“What was I supposed to do on this stupid planet? Get a job at In-N-Out Burger? They don’t exactly hire six-armed super villains.” Spiral’s snarky comeback when Puck insults her for how she’s been living her life.
In Conclusion:
There are a lot of characters in this book and it’s pretty good at giving you a snapshot of who they are and why certain things may or may not bother them. That being said, the distracting side plot seems out of place and I’m not entirely sure what Storm and Puck are doing there. They seem like dead weight because the book is driven by Psylocke and she doesn’t much listen to their opinions. Overall it’s a good read but it’s probably not for everyone. If you’re a fan of Psylocke, it’s a must have otherwise you may just want to wait until you can borrow a copy or the digital version drops in price.
Story: 7 Art: 6.5 Overall: 7 Recommendation: Read
Uncanny X-Force #3 Credits:
Writer: Sam Humphries Pencils: Ron Garney Inks: Scott Hanna Colorist: Marte Garcia with Israel Gonzalez Letterer: VC’s Cory Petit Cover Art: Kris Anka Editor in Chief: Axel Alonso Associate Editor: Jordan D. White Editor: Nick Lowe Publisher: Marvel Comics Cover Date: May 2013 Cover Price: $3.99 US Title: “Sweet Virginia”
VANCOUVER (Feb 10, 2012) – Arcana Comics is joining forces with Benderspink, the production company behind smash movies such as The Butterfly Effect, Final Destination, The Hangover, The Ring, and I am Number Four! The publisher and the production company have created a new film friendly comic book line, combining the knowledge of one of the largest graphic novel producers with the film production skills of the team behind the highest grossing comedy of all time (The Hangover).
Under the banner of ArcanaBenderspink Comics, the two will start by producing twenty original titles, crossing genres and enlisting the writing and art skills of some of the most talented creators in the comic book industry.
The two companies first established a bond when Benderspink worked with Arcana Comics to get the book Continuum picked up by New Line. During the process, JC Spink and Arcana CEO Sean Patrick O’Reilly build a strong relationship. Sharing a love of film and comic books, the two’s partnership is a natural progression.
Below is a first look at all of the titles as well as preview artwork. Arcana Comics and Benderspink look forward to sharing more with fans in the coming weeks and months.
Arcana Studios, Inc. Arcana owns one of the world’s largest libraries of graphic novels and comics, with over 200 original intellectual properties, 300 graphic novels, thousands of comic issues and an ever-growing character list. Arcana has begun to adapt this library into live action feature films, animated features and episodic television series. Taking a transmedia approach to brand building and the development of intellectual properties, Arcana publishes graphic novels for North America in print, and now digitally as well. Arcana has been published and distributed in dozens different countries and translated into just as many languages across the globe.
ABOUT BENDERSPINK
Benderspink is a management/production/ip company that has produced or exec-produced movies such as The Ring 1 & 2, The Hangover 1 & 2, Monster-in-Law, Red Eye, Just Friends, A History of Violence, The Butterfly Effect, Cats and Dogs, American Pie 1-3, and I Am Number Four. They are currently in production on Burt Wonderstone at New Line and in development on titles such as Jitters at Paramount, Cities of Refuge at Inferno, Bob the Musical at Disney, Hangover 3 at Warner Bros., Torrente at New Line, and 40,000 Man at NL. They have a first look feature deal at New Line and a first look tv deal at CBS. Clients include Jesse Wigutow, Kaplan & Elfont, Cook & Weisberg, April Blair, Jennifer Weiner, Gregory Hoblit, Mike Bender, and Adam “Tex” Davis. And newer clients such as Allison Schroeder, Brandon Willer, Clay Tweel, Craig Brownrigg, and David Robert Mitchell.
