The Week In Geek 1/28/15

So, the trailer for this summer's Fantastic Four reboot film debuted this week and...umm...wow. Now, I'll admit that I have basically maligned the production process of this movie on almost every level. I mean, the studio's elevator pitch sounded pretty bad and far removed enough from the source material that it was a turn off from the start. And the on-set pictures of Doom still look horrible. But then, I thought about a post I wrote a little more than a year ago about how fanboys need to learn to let go a little bit when it comes to movie adaptations. As I mentioned in said post, the thing that fanboys often forget is that over the years, there have been aspects of film adaptations (and television) that are folded into the source material and, at times, heralded as gospel within the lore. Despite my colleague, Jordan Calhoun's disdain for the character's status on Arrow, John Diggle has now been introduced in the current Green Arrow comic due to his notoriety on the show. Phil Coulson, after his becoming so popular, Marvel brought him back from the dead for the express purpose of squeezing a spinoff show out of him...is now a mainstay comic book character that actually doesn't suck in Jeph Loeb's hands (because that shit happens often). In other words, sometimes good things come of movie properties that are SO good, we actually want them to stick around in the comics.

After listening to Josh Trank's commentary about the trailer, getting some insight about his grasp of the source material, it actually sold me on giving this movie an honest shot. I get fandom's perpetual fear of Hollywood gentrifying comics forever, but honestly, I don't think that's the case here. Don't get me wrong. Trailers have deceived me before and for all I know, this movie could very well still be the shitshow I originally predicted. But I am saying the trailer has elevated thinking to a minimum of "Okay, Josh Trank, I'm listening."

Anyway, don't forget to check out my opinion piece on The Nightly Show with Larry Wilmore. Also, my comic reviews for the week are available on Black Nerd Problems for your viewing pleasure. As always, feel free to like, dislike, share and dissect at your leisure. This week, I took a look at....

Thor: Okay, if it's not completely obvious who Lady Thor is at this point, you haven't been reading Jason Aaron's Thor work as closely as you should have been. I've been saying it since the first issue and the evidence is just piling up now. I'm not going to say it anymore. Just remember who was right all along.

Uncanny X-Men: You know, it's amazing how often these X-Men catch all kinds of trouble and turmoil because of time travel and STILL think this shit is a good idea. And they don't even train the new ones to know better. If I were an X-man, the front door would real, "Fair Warning: The Future WILL try to kill you.

Batman Eternal: I love seeing Bluebird in action at last. Even furthermore, I love that her trademark is just having a giant fucking rifle. I love seeing everything from Batman #28 finally coming to pass. I love when a writer promises you a moment in advance and the resulting story is that writer reverse engineering that moment, unraveling the cogs and gears that sum up such a moment.

Batman: I think we can all agree that Scott Snyder is making Endgame into one of the creepiest Joker stories I have ever read.