Monthly Archives: February 2012

Comics! With Richard and Carter, General

The Walking Dead is BACK!!! (COMICS!)

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HOLY CRAP! THE WALKING DEAD IS BACK ON TELEVISION! AHHHHHH!

Yes! The hit AMC show is back after a long and painful hiatus. Last time this happened to me was with Doctor Who series six. Both shows had mid-season finales that featured cliffhangers that almost killed me! I won’t say what those were because i don’t want to be a spoiler! Anyways, want to know what i thought of the season premiere of part 2? Click on the picture to find out! ALSO! Don’t forget to check out a brand new episode of COMICS! on Channel23hahaha every weekend! 🙂

PS Happy Birthday Dan! Hope its a great one!

Comics! With Richard and Carter

The Amazing Spider-Man Trailer Reactions!

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Hey-o! Carter Friend here. I’m new here, and I’m super excited to be a part of Director’s Cut! Since this is my first article for the site, I thought I’d talk about something pretty big at the moment: the new Amazing Spider-Man trailer! If you watch COMICS!, you probably know my general feelings about the movie, but this trailer actually changed my mind about a few things. Just as an aside, Spider-Man and Spider-Man 2 are two of my favorite comic book movies ever, so I can’t help but having a little bit of resentment towards this whole movie knowing that it could have been Spider-Man 4 (with John Malkovich as the Vulture no less!). But alas, it’s something I’ll just have to get over. Kind of like I had to do about the whole Norton recasting fiasco of 2011. Except I’m still not over that…at all. Anyway, let’s get back on topic. Here are some random thoughts I had while watching the new Spidey trailer. Be sure to let me know if you agree/disagree!

– The chemistry between Andrew Garfield and Emma Stone seems to be pretty perfect. Apparently it’s real too, as they’re dating in real life.

– I am definitely coming around to the new suit. Did not like what I saw in all of those leaked set pictures, but the final on-screen version looks much more polished and slick.

– Andrew certainly looks more like Peter Parker than Tobey did. However, Tobey was the definitive live-action Spider-Man for me, so it’ll be hard to make the adjustment.

– Spidey seems to be more of a prankster in this one than he did in the original trilogy. Love all of the wisecracks, too. Much more like the comic book Spidey.

– What the heck is all of this stuff with Peter’s parents? I do not approve. This is not Batman’s origin story, it’s Spider-Man’s! Ah well, it’s just a trailer – not very fair of me to judge this storyline just yet. Let’s just say I’m skeptical.

– Aunt May needs to be OLDER!

– Yay for Oscorp!

– Love Rhys Ifans as Curt Connors. Do not love the design of the Lizard as much. I much prefer the more cartoony-looking comic version. Granted, that might have been hard to translate well on film, but they cold have at least given him more of a snout and not just made him out to be a human being with scales.

– Definitely like how smart they appear to be making Peter out to be. In the comics, he is actually a former science teacher and inventor of all his own gadgets!

– That beings said about the gadgets…boo web-shooters!

– “I gotta stop him…I created him.” Ugh. Let’s hope the whole movie isn’t filled with cheesy superhero lines like this one.

– Dennis Leary looks like a good guy-you-love-to-hate type of character. He seems to be to Spider-Man what General Ross is to the Hulk.

– Jeez, Peter seems to really not care for this whole secret identity thing. I feel like we seem him doing more tricks without the mask than with it.

– Closing action shot is really cool. Looks like more of a big-budget spectacle than the other Spidey movies.

Overall, the second Amazing Spider-Man trailer was far better than the first and generally got be more excited about the movie than I was before. Still not too happy about no J.K. Simmons as JJJ (and apparently no JJJ at all) and having Gwen Stacy instead of Mary Jane Watson (Emma Stone looked more like Mary Jane in the first place) but I have high hopes for this movie. July can’t get here soon enough!

Russell Pinkston - Middle America Contributor

Reviews of the Week January 29th-Febuary 4th

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review by Russell Pinkston

I seen a few movies this week (thanks to Redbox and my local library)..

First up….the bad.

Shark Night (not in 3D):  I was kind of excited to see this movie every since I won an autographed movie poster on Twitter.  I kindof like Piranha 3D (especially the T&A) so I thought…this can’t be that bad.   Yeah right.   First off…the movie was PG-13 (so no T&A and no gore).   Second and most importantly it was poorly written and acted.  I wanted to like it but the whole time I felt like I was watching a really back Sy Fy Channel movie.   And what the BEEP was that Shark Bite music video at the end of the credits.  I am glad the cast and crew had fun making the movie but I wanted to have fun watching it….and I didn’t.  I say SKIP THIS MOVIE

The Smurfs (again not in 3D):  I loved the Smurfs as a kid and collected many of the figures (some I still have today) but seriously What a SMURFING piece of SMURFING SMURF this movie was!  The live action actors were bad especally Hank Azaria who played Garamole.  Wow…I can’t put into words how bad his acting and the writing for his character was.  This movie makes me seriously reconsider how bad I thought Alvin and the Chipmonks: Chipwrecked was…cause compared to The Smurfs…Alvin is a masterpiece (of what…you can probably imagine).   I say SKIP THIS MOVIE

Rubber:  My daughter and I seen the previews of this movie along time ago.  And Dan of The Director’s Cut Radio Show ranked it in his Top 10 Movies of 2011.  So my daugher was excited to see it.  I was somewhat interested in the concept of a tire that killed people.    I mean it’s a tire…and it rolls around blowing things up including people’s heads.   Cool idea.   But instantly it lost us when it opens up with people watching the tire from a distant in the desert and with the thought…is it real or is it a movie….is it more than a movie….yeah…it’s big pile of rubber crap.   I say SKIP THIS MOVIE

 

and now The Good:

50/50:   Seth Rogen once again brings humor to a film about someone who is dying (Funny People).  This one stars Joseph Gordon-Levitt as a guy who discovers he has cancer.  His girlfriend bails and he is left with his friend (Rogen) and his therapist (Anna Kendrick).  This movie allows you take a funny look at a not so funny situation.   I like it.  It was a good story and well acted.   I also liked the special features on the making of the movie.   I say SEE THIS MOVIE

Chronicle:   3 high school kids find a mysterious hole in the woods, they go in and make a discovery not of this world….and contact with changes their lives.  They develop telekinetic powers and start off messing with people but one boy takes it too far and decides to use his power for evil and not just for fun.   I like the idea of this movie.  I am not a huge fan of the “found footage” type of filmmaking but it works with this story and the director uses more cameras than just the ones the two characters use in the movie.  I say SEE THIS MOVIE

Featured, Russell Pinkston - Middle America Contributor

The Vow

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Movie review by Russell Pinkston

The Vow is about Paige (Rachel McAdams) and Leo (Channing Tatum), a young newlywed couple madly in love who are involved in an automobile accident.   Leo is not hurt but Paige is thrown through the windshield and suffers memory loss….basically the loss of all memories of being married, in love and nice.   She turns her back on her husband and friends and turns to her parents (Sam Neill and Jessica Lange) who she had not talk to for a very long time (and for good reasons).   Leo is undeterred by her newfound disinterest and anger toward him and sets out to make his wife fall back in love with him.    

The Vow  is yet another romantic drama trying to sucker the American female movie going public.   Husbands and boyfriends who are dragged to this movie are truely the ones who will really suffer.  Despite starring two past successful romantic drama leads (Channing Tatum and Rachel McAdams) this is not the sappy, make you tear up, love story you might expect.  It’s a water down version and really quite boring and sad.   This movie is loosely based on the true story of Kim and Krickitt Carpenter.  In real life they are happily married with kids despite the fact she has never regained her memory.  In the movie world this movie is poorly written.  The actors read their lines but you don’t feel for them.   They are just playing a role and collecting a paycheck.

Jessica Lange who has recently won awards for her role in FX’s American Horror Story (and will be returning for season 2) just looked old and tired….which is how I felt after sitting through this movie.   Rob Roy, Blue Sky and Everybody’s All-American are far better movies of hers.  

Rachel McAdams is known for her romantic movies especially The Notebook and The Time Traveler’s Wife but I actually like her more in Red Eye, The Family Stone and the Sherlock Holmes movies.

Channing Tatum has been in a couple of decent romantic dramas, Dear John and Step Up.  He was great in The Dilemma.   Earlier this year he co-starred in Haywire and later this year will be starring in 21 Jump Street and GI Joe: Retaliation (with The Rock and Bruce Willis).  

Overall this movie didn’t tug at my heartstrings but instead I fought the urge to sleep.   I say Skip this movie and see their earlier and much better movies again instead.

Featured, Russell Pinkston - Middle America Contributor

Journey 2: The Mysterious Island

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Movie review by Russell Pinkston

Journey 2 wastes no time getting to the “action”. Sean Anderson (Josh Hutcherson) is being pursued by police after he broke into a satellite facility to gain access to a message sent by his grandfather (Michael Caine). He is caught but release into the custody of his step-father Hank (Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson). They don’t get along at first but then they team up to solve the cryptic message. They head out on a step-father/son bonding trip to Palau where they meet a tour guide, Gabato (Luis Guzman) and his beautiful daughter Kailani (Vanessa Hudgens) and they travel via helicopter to where they believe The Mysterious Island to be. A freak storm crashes their helicopter and magically transport them to the island where danger and adventure awaits them.  The film is loosely based on the novel by Jules Verne.  It tries to also include elements from Robert Louis Stevenson’s Treasure Islan and Johnathan Swift’s Gulliver’s Travels.
Josh Hutcherson is the sole holdover from 2008’s Journey to the Center of the Earth. Brendan Fraser is replaced in this movie by Dwayne Johnson. Last year The Rock brought new life to the Fast and the Furious franchise when he was added to the Fast Five cast. His addition help that film make over $600 million dollars and a place in my Top 10 Films I Seen in 2011. I like almost everything he has been in but he brought nothing to this film. I don’t fault him….the writing was just really bad. I still look forward to what The Rock can bring to GI Joe: Retaliation…the sequel to a movie I didn’t really like.
Josh Hutcherson is ok….I like him in many of his earlier movies (Zathura, Bridge to Terabithia, Journey to the Center of the Earth and Cirque du Freak: The Vampire’s Assistant) and I really look forward to him playing Peeta Mellark in next month’s The Hunger Games! But he just wasn’t a very interesting character. In fact most of the character’s were shallow and uninteresting (Kristin Davis).
Vanessa Hudgens provided the eye candy….and believe me, seeing her breasts and ass in 3D was definitely a highlight of the movie , she just doesn’t do much else.
Michael Caine plays Sean’s grandfather and tries to be the worldly adventure traveler but basically comes across as an escape nursing home patient. I felt bad for him that his career had come down to movies like this. I grew up watching his movies (Dressed to Kill, The Island, Victory, Deathtrap and Blame it on Rio) and I loved him in The Cider House Rules (although I still feel Haley Joel Osment should have won that Best Supporting Actor Oscar) Mr. Destiny and Harry Brown but recently including last year’s disappointing Cars 2, his roles haven’t been that good.
The sole highlight and comic relief was from Luis Guzman. If it wasn’t for him I would have hated this movie alot. He stole every scene he was in (that Vanessa’s T&A wasn’t in).
Overall I say say Skip This Movie. It’s nothing special and definitely not worth your $’s seeing it in 3D at the theaters.

Comics! With Richard and Carter

The Avengers Super Bowl Spot Review!!! (COMICS!)

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Did you all watch the Super Bowl Sunday night? Is that a stupid question? PROBABLY!

Anyways, for most people the game ended with the Giants defeating the Patriots. For me? It ended with the premiere of the much anticipated Avengers Super Bowl commercial. I couldn’t believe how awesome it was! What was even cooler, and I’ve done this for the previous Avengers trailer, was spotting all the shots that were film in Cleveland. I live in NE Ohio, and visited the set myself. That was an experience I’ll never forget! Anywho, here is Carter and I’s review of the commercial in question! Click on the picture to watch the video! 🙂

PS If you didn’t see it, Marvel released an extended 60 second version that’s EVEN COOLER!!!

Comics! With Richard and Carter

Top 5 Best Superhero Teams!

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Hello everyone!! My name is Richard Purnell, and I’m the co-host of an awesome show on Youtube called COMICS! If you want to see the work I do with my friend and co-host Carter, be sure to visit www.youtube.com/channel23hahaha. ANYWAYS! Recently, DC Comics announced that they are making 7 comic book mini-series that will act as prequels to the famed graphic novel Watchmen. The series in question is going to be called Before Watchmen. Right when I heard about this, I was pissed off! Why DC? Why would you make a prequel to one of the greatest comics ever written? Are you trying to pull a Phantom Menace? These, and many more, questions were the first to surface in my head.

Little did I know that my anger would turn into excitement in a matter of minutes. Shocking, right? What won me over in the end was the creative teams DC picked to work on these books. Admittedly, I am a bit skeptical still, and I still don’t see the need for a Watchmen prequel. However, I do think it will do well quality wise, but we won’t know that until the books release this summer. In the meantime, this announcement has gotten me thinking all about Superhero teams. There are so many amazing superhero teams in the world. Some more unique then others, and some that are just plain badass. So, inspired by Before Watchmen, I figured I’d make a list of my top 5 favorite superhero teams:

5) The Green Lantern Corp.

Known Members: Hal Jordan, Sinestro, Kilowog, Tomer-Re, John Stewert, Kyle Rayner, Guy Gardner, Etc.

Most of you probably know The Green Lantern as a single superhero character, but the truth is there are lots of Green Lanterns. Each member makes up the Green Lantern Corp. A group of intergalactic police officers, The Green Lantern Corp’s main goal is to protect each and every sector of the universe. You think this is nerdy? Wait until you see whom else made this list!

4) Grant Morrison’s Seven Soldiers of Victory

Known Members: Zatana, The Shining Knight, Frankenstein, The Manhattan Guardian, The Bulletier, Mister Miracle, Klarion The Witch Boy.

This is probably the most unique Superhero team on this list. Its hard to explain in a short paragraph, but basically This superhero team consists of members who all fight the same enemy, but never meet/know each other in the process. Its very interesting how it all works in the comic, and worth your time should you ever see the book when your out shopping!

3) The Avengers

Known Members: Captain America, Thor, Iron Man, The Hulk, Etc.

Consisting of the greatest Marvel comics characters around, The Avengers is one of the greatest superhero teams ever assembled. How could I make one of these lists without adding on The Avengers? I’m totally excited for Joss Whedon’s movie!!!

2) The Justice League

Known Members: Superman, Batman, Wonder Woman, Green Lantern, The Flash, Aquaman, Cyborg, Etc.

The Avengers might have have the best Marvel characters as members, but The Justice League members consist of the best characters EVER! I know, that kind of statement will easily start the DC vs Marvel debate, but this is my opinion so deal with it! If you haven’t yet, each of you should start reading the new JL book from DC Comics RIGHT NOW! you won’t be disappointed.

1) The Umbrella Academy

Known Members: Spaceboy, The Kraken, The Rumor, The Seance, #5, The Horror, The White Violin.

What? You’ve never heard of the Umbrella Academy? Well, your missing out! The Umbrella Academy has got to be my all time favorite Superhero team, and This team doesn’t live in either the Marvel or DC Universes. This team is brought to us by the always amazing comic company, Dark Horse Comics. I don’t want to tell you much more about this team. So, I’ll Just say go read the books and experience the magic for yourselves!

Well, Thats my list of the top 5 best Superhero teams around! In the comment section below, tell what your favorite Superhero team is! When you get the chance, Please go visit my youtube channel, Channel23hahaha, and don’t forget to subscribe!