Comics and Superhero movies

[EvilDuncan]

What We Do In the Shadows is great at what it does. The important part here is it's the same style of writing and dialogue in Love and Thunder, which I thought did not fit the characters or the movie as a whole. Ragnarok was a good amount of Taika, since he was just the director. Here he was also the writer, so if you like the Korg-style dialogue in Ragnarok and wanted an entire movie of it, this this is your movie.

I also thought they were going to do more with the 80's theme, but aside from a couple songs, Thor's sleeveless outfit, and the title/credits, I didn't really see it.

I don't want to deter anyone from seeing this, as I would like to hear other's thoughts as well.

I just realized you might be asking if people who liked Ragnarok would like What We Do In the Shadows, and to that I say I have no idea. I've seen one episode and it wasn't really for me, but I thought it was still a good show. To me, Taika's biggest influence is not his directing, it's his writing.

[rousselle]

Well, last week I'd secured reserved seating for me and my boys at a nearby IMAX theater for this weekend. Looking forward to the visuals. We'll see how much the boys and I like the rest tomorrow!

[Eric Lee]

Will only be watching it much later as Disney is punishing Malaysia by pushing the release date of Thor to July 21st instead of 7th. A lot of us believe it's for asking to censor the lesbian kissing scene in Buzz Lightyear. So Buzz is not going to be shown at all in the cinemas here.

My wife is a Chris Hemsworth fan and I bet she's eagerly waiting to see his "big" scene!

[Harvonsgard]

Flashback Tuesday: WW84 was half as bad as people on the internet make it to be imho.
Black Widow felt kinda worse than WW84.

[rousselle]

So, interestingly, I was just talking with the Internet the other day, and we both agreed that you're wrong on both counts.

Admittedly, BW had issues of its own. But, it still wasn't as bad as WW84.

[Harvonsgard]

I don't see any points backing that claim.

[EvilDuncan]

It's been a while since I saw WW84 but I remember it was hot garbage.

I really didn't have any issues with BW. I actually quite enjoyed it. Just a normal MCU film. In fact I'd say it was good. Not great by any means, but a somewhat solid movie.
I think if it came out before Infinity War, then it would have been better received. Still better than Thor L&T.

[Harvonsgard]

I actually wanted to watch Thor, haha. It was down though so I though I check on the other two, just because I like some Lego sets related to these two.
I could barely make out a difference about the level of cringe I felt watching both. WW84 felt more silly so, I think that's why I liked it a tiny bit more. WW84 didn't felt like it took itself serious an is aware of how it is. Emphasis on felt like, I can see the creators taking it serious. Black Widow felt like it's unaware of its cringe. For me both are in the same realm like the second Suicide Squad - without the level of LSD, which seems to have been involved in that production.

In general most Marvel movies that aren't direct Infinity War or bigger names like Spider-Man, feel like RS decks to me - all cooked with the same recipe. Maybe that's just me not comic nerd bias though.

[Eric Lee]

I'll have to wait for Thor to stream on Disney + . it's been postponed indefinitely. No reasons given, but 2 biggest suspects are either the Korg gay statement and/or Gorr's statements about gods. Probably stemming from the whole Buzz lightyear banning and now neither side wants to budge.

Sigh... things weren't this bad until they got a new CEO last year. Most of the time, a decent compromise could be found. Woke agenda vs my country being in an election year. Joy.

[Harvonsgard]

Can you elaborate? The both suspects and Lightyear banning that is.

[rousselle]

Eric, you're living in China, yes?

I didn't realize Disney+ was available in China. This is simultaneously cool and... concerning.

I doubt China will budge any time soon. And, to the extent censorship is the issue, I'm glad Disney isn't budging (even though I'm indifferent to the message being censored.) I'm tired of Chinese censors determining what I get to see at the box office and who gets to work in major Hollywood productions these days.

[hsbc]

Eric, you're living in China, yes?

I thought Malaysia

[rousselle]

Eric, you're living in China, yes?

I thought Malaysia

Same issues as China, then?

[Eric Lee]

I'm in Malaysia. Muslim is the national religion and 2/3 of the country are muslim. Sadly, been slipping towards fundamentalist islam rather than progressive over the last 30 yrs. So I do get Disney + without censorship since it's not widely accesible to all. My brother is working in China.

In China, the foreign film imports are limited to 34 a year and the foreign studios are only allowed to keep 25% of the Chinese box office revenue. They are very sensitive to how China is portrayed , Taiwan and Tibet issues and other possible moral issues. But mostly politics.

https://www.cbr.com/why-eternals-wont-release-china/

As for the reasons, no one actually knows for sure, but these 2 are probably the likely reasons for the National Censorship board to ban the movie

The most likely one is the LGBTQ parts in Thor as Buzz also had a kiss between a gay couple. Disney didn't allow the cuts so the show was banned. Now what frustrates some of us is that Eternals was release last year with just cuts of the kissing and sex scenes. Why can't we have the same thing applied to Buzz and Thor? It's not like those movies are Schindler's List importance or a film that talks explicitly about gay issues like Milk, Brokeback mtn, etc.

https://variety.com/2022/film/asia/thor ... 235316702/
https://www.deseret.com/entertainment/2 ... ay-florida

As for Gorr , well the Board had banned Ultraman in the past due to them using the word Allah in the translation, so having Gorr accusing and killing gods.
https://says.com/my/news/malaysians-rea ... l%20morals.

Hope this explains things a little better.

[theCapraAegagrus]

Phase 5 is looking pretty bad, only a handful of things I'm remotely interested in. Phase 6 will have 2 Avengers movies, along with Fantastic Four, so that could be a rebound if Marvel Studios learned anything from Phase Bore.

[hsbc]

Phase 5 is looking pretty bad, only a handful of things I'm remotely interested in. Phase 6 will have 2 Avengers movies, along with Fantastic Four, so that could be a rebound if Marvel Studios learned anything from Phase Bore.

In case others missed the plans

Phase Five

Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania, February 17, 2023
Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3, May 5, 2023
The Marvels, July 28, 2023
Blade, November 3, 2023
Captain America: New World Order, May 3, 2024
Thunderbolts, July 26, 2024

What If...? S2, 2023
Secret Invasion, 2023
Echo, 2023
Loki S2, 2023
Ironheart, 2023
Agatha: Coven of Chaos, 2023/2024
Daredevil: Born Again, 2024

Phase Six

Fantastic Four, November 8, 2024
Avengers: The Kang Dynasty, May 2, 2025
Avengers: Secret Wars, November 7, 2025

[Sir Toddalot]

I’m glad they’re making a daredevil show! I hope it can live up to the Netflix one.

[EvilDuncan]

I'm excited for basically all of this. Daredevil was one of the few highlights from the Netflix stuff. Excited to see him in She-Hulk and DD:BA.

[theCapraAegagrus]

Phase 5 is looking pretty bad, only a handful of things I'm remotely interested in. Phase 6 will have 2 Avengers movies, along with Fantastic Four, so that could be a rebound if Marvel Studios learned anything from Phase Bore.

Having since seen who will comprise the new Avengers lineup, I have very little interest, unless things change.

• Ironheart

• She-Hulk

• Mighty Thor

• Captain Marvel

• Hawkeye (Kate Bishop)

• Ms. Marvel

• The Wasp

[Sir Toddalot]

I'm excited for basically all of this. Daredevil was one of the few highlights from the Netflix stuff. Excited to see him in She-Hulk and DD:BA.

I hadn’t heard Daredevil was in she hulk yet! I guess I might have to watch it.

[EvilDuncan]

Having since seen who will comprise the new Avengers lineup, I have very little interest, unless things change.

• Ironheart

• She-Hulk

• Mighty Thor

• Captain Marvel

• Hawkeye (Kate Bishop)

• Ms. Marvel

• The Wasp

I mean at least one person on that list is wrong, but there's also:

• Thor

• Captain America

• Falcon (Probably)

• Hawkeye (Clint Barton)

• War Machine

• Hulk

• Ant-Man

• Spider-Man

• Daredevil

• Blade?

• Black Knight?

It's not just women on the roster.

[theCapraAegagrus]

I mean at least one person on that list is wrong, but there's also:

• Thor

• Captain America

• Falcon (Probably)

• Hawkeye (Clint Barton)

• War Machine

• Hulk

• Ant-Man

• Spider-Man

• Daredevil

• Blade?

• Black Knight?

It's not just women on the roster.

Things could change, but as of right now the 7 that I listed have been reported to be the new Avengers lineup for The Kang Dynasty. I'm not sure what your list is from, but you have Captain America on there twice, because he's no longer Falcon. Some of the characters you listed have projects prior to those Avengers movies and some others are in a sort of 'limbo' (ex. Spider-Man). I'd be surprised to see War Machine, considering that he's broken, and Ironheart makes him obsolete.

The person informing me used "Mighty Thor" specifically, but that could be erroneous, or there could be a multiversal excuse.

[EvilDuncan]

Things could change, but as of right now the 7 that I listed have been reported to be the new Avengers lineup for The Kang Dynasty.

I don't know where you're getting your information, but there is literally no way that the lineup is all female. I would take this information with a large grain of salt.

I'm not sure what your list is from, but you have Captain America on there twice, because he's no longer Falcon. Some of the characters you listed have projects prior to those Avengers movies and some others are in a sort of 'limbo' (ex. Spider-Man).

No, The new Falcon (if they use him) would be Joaquín Torres, who appeared in Falcon and the Winter Soldier. Sam gave him the old falcon suit before taking the shield. Spider-Man is definitely still an Avenger. It's just that nobody knows his identity. I agree that others like Blade, Daredevil, and Black Knight are maybes, we just don't know anything about at this point. I think Black Knight has a good chance of joining. Anything could happen I guess.

I'd be surprised to see War Machine, considering that he's broken, and Ironheart makes him obsolete.

He was broken in Infinity War and Endgame, so I'm not sure what your point is. Also, why would Ironheart make him obsolete? Tony Stark didn't make him obsolete. Heck, we're gonna have three "Marvels". Armor Wars has not been cancelled, so he's likely still around.

The person informing me used "Mighty Thor" specifically, but that could be erroneous, or there could be a multiversal excuse.

If that's the case, then anyone could be joining the roster. I kind of doubt they would bring her back, but that's just me.

I also forgot Dr. Strange, Wong, and Shang-Chi. All could easily join the Avengers for the next two movies.

[hsbc]

... and Shang-Chi. All could easily join the Avengers for the next two movies.

Today they announced that the director of Shang-Chi, Destin Daniel Cretton, is directing Avengers: The Kang Dynasty

[EvilDuncan]

Shang-Chi is a top-tier MCU movie for me so that's exciting.

[theCapraAegagrus]

I'm not going to quote the Wall of Text format, so...

The information is from a reliable source. To claim that, "there's literally no way" is ignorant. The source is not Kevin Feige, so s/he does not have every piece of information regarding projects 3 years out, and I had already mentioned that this could change (rather - I should say - the information is incomplete). That's really all I'll follow-up with on that matter right now.

The Avengers is a rotating roster. Characters being excluded is absolutely nothing new. War Machine was always obsolete to Iron Man. If Iron Man is Gibson, War Machine is the cheap knock-off.

[EvilDuncan]

Then if he was obsolete then what is your point? We got him in like six movies with Iron Man, so why wouldn't we see him in the future?

To claim that, "there's literally no way" is ignorant.

Unless all the men are somehow killed or swept away to fight in the Secret Wars, I really doubt the main Avengers lineup will consist of only men or only women. It just doesn't make sense from a business standpoint. I guess you could have a bunch of men joining them that aren't technically Avengers, but that seems like bordering on semantics.

Now that I think about it, I guess there was some interest/discussion of an all female team after that one shot in Endgame, but Kang Dynasty seems like a bad place to do it. I don't know, we shall see.

[theCapraAegagrus]

Then if he was obsolete then what is your point? We got him in like six movies with Iron Man, so why wouldn't we see him in the future?

To claim that, "there's literally no way" is ignorant.

Unless all the men are somehow killed or swept away to fight in the Secret Wars, I really doubt the main Avengers lineup will consist of only men or only women. It just doesn't make sense from a business standpoint. I guess you could have a bunch of men joining them that aren't technically Avengers, but that seems like bordering on semantics.

Now that I think about it, I guess there was some interest/discussion of an all female team after that one shot in Endgame, but Kang Dynasty seems like a bad place to do it. I don't know, we shall see.

My point is that the MCU is flush with characters. Do you think that they're going to fit 50 heroes in The Kang Dynasty? It would come as no surprise to me if the movie started off with 5-10 characters, expanded throughout (like all of the other Avengers movies), and then Secret Wars brings everyone together (like Endgame).

I think you're forgetting that a lot of characters aren't just sitting around 1 place on Earth waiting for another threat. Strange, for example, leaves to the Dark Dimension with Clea.

My thought after I was told this was, "okay, these are The Avengers for whatever reason, and some other characters are considered a different group, like the Guardians in Infinity War".

Since they're doing Secret Wars, it makes sense that the characters will be plucked from different parts of the main universe, and other parts of the multiverse.

[rousselle]

I have to agree that calling a female-only line-up "The" Avengers would be... fascinating, as business decisions go.

[theCapraAegagrus]

I have to agree that calling a female-only line-up "The" Avengers would be... fascinating, as business decisions go.

There are people in charge who want to change the X-Men to The Mutants. This should really come as no surprise to anyone. Of course, if written well, it could work. However, when you prioritize utilizing a character because of their appearance, you end up handcuffing your storytelling. "What do we want to happen?" is a better creative springboard than "How can we make this person fit?"

I'm only prosing this for argument's sake: When has obvious pandering ever worked? The Endgame scene may have worked for very little, as it was intentionally forced. Do you remember the 'girl power' scene from Infinity War, though? The natural evolution of the Wakanda fight that turned into Black Widow, Scarlet Witch, and Okoye vs Proxima Midnight? Oddly enough, both scenarios were written and directed by the same people. I guess the hype was too little for the latter.

I think that The Wasp is written very well. Ditto for Cassie Lang, but we haven't seen her in action yet. I like She-Hulk as a character, but her show is looking sus-bad to me, from the trailers. Ironheart is TBD, but I simply don't think that the other female characters have been compelling in the MCU. While I enjoy Shuri as a side character, I am extremely skeptical of her being the new Black Panther, because her character has been antithetical to the way that Boseman's BP was portrayed (mature, not quippy, and you can sense his leadership qualities).

In the end, the sex/gender of the heroes doesn't much matter, I am simply concerned with them prioritizing surface-level aesthetics instead of storytelling depth. My hope is that - no matter what - the next 2 Avengers movies are good. Phase Bore has been such a slog, and even though I predicted that this would all happen after the Infinity Saga ended, I still want them to produce enjoyable media for me to consume.