Monthly Archives: February 2015
Jyger’s Favourite 6? – 6 Kombatants I’d Like To See Return For Mortal Kombat X
So, Mortal Kombat X is on the way, set to release in a kouple of months (yes, I’m honestly doing the K instead of C at thing for this article, lol). As someone who played the original Mortal Kombat game when it was ported to the SNES, and has checked out additional entries as they’ve kome out for konsoles I own, I’m both excited for this release, as well as more than a bit disappointed that it isn’t koming out for Wii U. But hey, I kan at least watch playthroughs of the story mode to see what’s next for the kharacters, so I’m not lost should another Mortal Kombat game kome out for a system I own.
Speaking of, though, that brings me to something I’ve thought about for a while now. The general konsensus of everyone I’ve asked about the new kombatants or listened to talk about them is that these new kharacters and their designs are vastly superior to the ones kreated for what’s nowadays called the PS2 Trilogy (Deadly Alliance, Deception, and Armageddon), as well as Mortal Kombat 4. Now, while I agree there were more than a few stinkers from that era (Kobra, anyone?), there were still those that would be welcome additions to the new games. Hell, Kenshi already IS back. So, let’s take a look at a few of them. Also, be sure to click on their images to link to the Mortal Kombat wiki and learn more about them. For those hopefully about to Kombat, we salute you!
#1 – Ashrah
Yeah, suppose I’m not surprising anyone by starting with a woman, huh? lol To be fair, though, the reason I picked Ashrah is because she represents a very different kind of kharacter than is normally seen in Mortal Kombat: She’s a demon who seeks purification of the evil in her so she can leave the Netherrealm. She isn’t doing this for explicitly good or noble purposes, rather just for her freedom, but as she gets closer to her goals, she begins to take on a more holy persona. And this story would actually work well in a game that apparently involves a konflict with the Netherrealm, placing her as a possible ally for Raiden in the enemy camp. Plus, while I’m not wholly against the idea of women showing skin, it IS nice to see a woman in Mortal Kombat who isn’t a female ninja/assassin/etc. with a BUNCH of skin showing.
#2 – Kai
Well, seeing as how Liu Kang is either dead or horribly scarred for life following the end of Mortal Kombat 9, it seems like bringing in another Shaolin monk would be a good call. And sure, we’ve got Kung Lao, who looks AWESOME in this game, but one more wouldn’t hurt. And frankly, I just like how Kai’s gameplay makes him similar yet different to Liu, giving him a familiar yet new style for players to use. With all of that said, though, I DO hope Liu at least kameos in this game.
#3 – Havik
…Hear me out. I’m not gonna pretend like having an entire realm of existence dedicated to chaos (which doesn’t get a K, due to the name Chaosrealm) makes the most sense in the world, because it doesn’t. I’m simply suggesting someone like Havik would have some freaking KRAZY and sick fighting styles in this new game. Plus, scaling down the dedication to chaos makes a bit more sense when it’s scaled down to a single kharacter, like Havik. Plus, it was suggested in Noob Saibot’s ending in MK9 of some sort of alliance between Noob and Havik. Now, this ending is likely non-kanon, and is probably done just to reference the fact that Havik was originally an idea for a redesign for Noob, but it could have potential for a story.
#4 – Li Mei
Now, with this, I’d HAVE to insist that Li Mei’s attire be more based on her original appearance, or her alternate appearance from Deception and Armageddon. Again, putting the women in thongs has kinda gotten old. Otherwise, her fighting styles would be very welcome to this game. In addition, her story kan easily be reinterpreted for MKX, given the kurrent power struggle apparently going on in Outworld.
#5 – Mokap
…Again, hear me out. I’m aware of the fact that Mokap is just a silly secret kharacter based off Carlos ‘One Take’ Pesina, who played Raiden in the original Mortal Kombat games. So, why not just go with that? Don’t give him important storylines, don’t make him relevant to the plot, don’t do anything like that. Just have him as a hidden kharacter or DLK (downloadable kontent……Wow, I’m killing this joke dead, lol) for people who want him, and those that don’t want to have no need to do so. Easy-peasy.
#6 – Frost
Talk about a HUGE missed opportunity of a kharacter. I know that Frost has an interesting relationship with the fans, with some people loving her and others hating her. Me personally, I would love to see NetherRealm Studios take another krack at doing her right. And apparently, she’s even in the prequel komics released by DC Comics, so who knows, maybe they’ll do just that? We’ll just have to wait and see if those Frost fansites get any kind of love in the future. Plus, again, she’s a ninja, but she does NOT wear a thong!…..In her default costume. 😛
Anyway, that’s it for me. Got any past kombatants you’d like to see return for a future Mortal Kombat? Lemme know who they are, and we’ll see what happens in the future. Ja né!………..And please don’t ever let me do the K instead of C thing ever again. lol
Batman #39 Preview
It seems the Court of Owls might be a little resistant to helping Batman out…Yeah, let’s see how well that works out for them. lol
“Endgame” part 5. The Joker is back! The penultimate issue of the Clown Prince of Crime’s horrifying return! Plus, in the backup story, the inmates and Mahreen finally learn the truth about The Joker!
http://www.newsarama.com/23605-batman-courts-help-from-the-owls-to-defeat-the-joker.html
Spider-Gwen #1 Preview
…Screw it, I’m linking to previews of the comics I get from now on. lol Well, I don’t really have time to do full reviews for new comics, since I go get them on the same night I go to play Dungeons & Dragons at Heroes’ Beacon (Oh yeah, I’m finally getting into D&D, thank goodness, lol), and I wanna encourage people to read comics, so here we are. This is the preview for Gwen Stacy: The Insert-Cool-Sounding-Adjective-Here Spider-Woman#1………..Oh, sorry, Spider-Gwen #1. 😛
SPIDER-GWEN SPINS INTO HER OWN SERIES!
• BECAUSE YOU DEMANDED IT! The breakout hit of the biggest Spider-Event of the century is taking comic shops by storm this winter with her own new ongoing series – SPIDER-GWEN!
• Gwen Stacy is Spider-Woman, but you knew that already. What you DON’T know is what friends and foes are waiting for her in the aftermath of Spider-Verse!
• From the fan-favorite creative team that brought you Spider-Gwen’s origin story in EDGE OF SPIDER-VERSE, Jason Latour and Robbie Rodriguez!
How To Drop The Ball In Comics: Worlds’ Finest
Hello, and welcome to a new spot on the blog I like to call ‘How To Drop The Ball In Comics’. This is where I take a look at what I thought was a legitimately GOOD idea in comics, why I felt that way, and how it eventually kinda fell on its ass. With that said, let’s take a look at Worlds’ Finest.
No, not that one. THIS ONE:
What Is It?: Created for The New 52 as part of a branching-out to tell stories involving characters from Earth 2, Worlds’ Finest specifically looked at Huntress (Helena Wayne), daughter of Batman and Catwoman, and Power Girl (Kara Zor-L/Karen Starr), cousin of Superman. However, the twist was that, after surviving the final battle of a war that claimed the lives of their respective families, the two found themselves accidentally exiled to Earth 0, the primary Earth of the DC Multiverse since the Multiverse’s rebirth in Infinite Crisis. As such, we had cases where, in this and other books, they’d encounter other-dimensional relatives, like Robin, Batman, and Superman, and even Power Girl’s alternate universe self, Kara Zor-El, many of which were pretty awesome. As another twist, it was revealed that, in this continuity, Power Girl and Huntress started their crime fighting careers as their world’s Supergirl and Robin (bringing the female Robin count up by one). So, let’s take a look at what I liked about it.
How Did It Have Potential?: Well, for starters, it was a book about two badass superheroines. Second, Power Girl and Huntress’ history, given certain reboots and retoolings to the DC Universe and its history, can be…confusing. For example, most people that started reading comics after Crisis On Infinite Earths, or have watched Justice League Unlimited, are probably more familiar with the Earth 0 version of Huntress, Helena Bertinelli. This was a good way to bring in Helena Wayne and distinguish her from her counterpart. Mind you, this led to some confusion as well, given that Hel apparently passed herself off as Bertinelli for five years, except that in the New 52, Helena Bertinelli is black, but whatever. This helped explain a few things about the characters for people that weren’t in the know about them. Also, as I’ve established before, the initial arc ended with them and the military fighting a giant villain in a Japanese harbour. If Godzilla and Megazord had shown up at that moment, I would’ve squeed so hard, you could’ve probably heard it IN JAPAN! lol And as much as some people got ticked about Karen’s new costume, I actually kinda liked it…until it proceeded to get torn and burnt up over and over, to where Power Girl was actually more decent in the old boob window costume, which is part of the reason why I was glad she switched back to it.
How Did It Drop The Ball?: There’s a few reasons. First…I don’t know if it was an issue with editorial, or if Paul Levitz, the man who frigging CREATED Huntress, forgot how her character worked, but the characterization for Hel and Karen feels off in this book. Hel’s a bit too much of a buzzkill, and at one point called someone a “little bitch”, and Karen is WAY too flirty, and once witnessed a bunch of kids being sucked into a Boom Tube and was pretty much like “…Huh. That was a thing”. Also, in my opinion, they spent WAY too long on Earth 0, only managing to get back to Earth 2 when things were at their darkest, lowest point, and when their place as the rightful heirs to Superman and Batman’s positions had been usurped in their absence by two men: Val-Zod (who I actually don’t mind, save for when he’s Karen’s blatant love interest), and Earth 2 Thomas Wayne (who was revealed to be alive, a frigging bum, a drug addict, and an overall horrible character altogether). And once they made it back to Earth 2, did the story become about how the two worked together as last-minute surprise reinforcements to turn the tide against Apokolips? NOPE, the book instead completely shifted gears to tell a prequel story about Earth 2 Superman and Batman, will apparently be cancelled along with the other Earth 2 books (not counting the one that’ll start post-Convergence), and Huntress and Power Girl were instead treated to World’s End, where Karen flirted with Val, lost Kal-El AGAIN, and got a Superman logo on her suit (completely missing the point of the boob window), while Huntress was subjected to body horror, torture porn, and drugs. If you are a fan of either of these characters, by all means, send your grievances about such decisions to the head-writer of Earth 2: World’s End, Daniel H. Wilson…Seriously, here’s an example of his very lame attempts to justify his decisions regarding Helena.
Anyway, that’s all I have to say about the matter. If you’d like MORE on the subject, as well as the overall mistreatment of Earth 2, women, LGBT characters… … …Really, anyone that’s not a straight white male in The New 52, be sure to check out http://helenawaynehuntress.tumblr.com/ and http://helenawayne.blogspot.ca/. Ja né!
10 Post-Secret Wars Wishes & Expectations
So, Secret Wars is quickly approaching, and with it, the end of the Marvel Universe as we know it, as it will be merged with the Ultimate Universe in a sort of pseudo-reboot. However, it seems that other worlds in the Multiverse are also involved, as are various points in time throughout the mainstream Marvel Earth (Earth 616). It’s pretty clear that the HUGE Multiverse in Marvel Comics is being shrunken down with this. Most people are saying it’ll disappear altogether, but let’s keep this in mind: The Marvel Cinematic Universe is considered part of the Multiverse, and they aren’t ending anytime soon. Same goes with the other movie and television franchises featuring Marvel characters. On top of that, Spider-Gwen is only JUST starting next week, though she has been part of the Spider-Verse event all along, so I doubt it’ll only last as long as it takes to get to the end of Secret Wars. And frankly, doing away with the Multiverse altogether seems like a waste, as it takes away a lot of potential story-telling possibilities.
Either way, though, we can expect the Marvel Universe to be vastly different post-Secret Wars, with Earth 616 and Earth 1610 (the Ultimate Universe) merging together and their histories becoming blended, and with probably a few things being rebooted back to square one and others being retconned out of existence. Now, this prospect is more than a little frightening, especially because we’ve seen something like this done a few times before (mostly by DC). However, one advantage there is that Marvel can look at everything that did and didn’t work with DC’s various reboots and learn from those instances. Plus, this is a good chance for them to bring back old ideas and give them a new twist. So, with that said, here’s a few things I wouldn’t mind seeing post-Secret Wars, as well as some that I expect will happen whether they sound good or not. Let’s start with probably the most obvious thing people expect to happen…
#1 – Wolverine Brought Back
Face it, bub, you KNEW Wolverine wasn’t going to stay dead forever. It was just a matter of the right scenario to come along and justify his re-existence. Well, Secret Wars could prove to be just that. My one concern going into this, though, is that this puts us right back in the same position we had with the character prior to his losing his healing factor, and that’s that, after a while of being shown he’s all but invincible and immortal, it’s hard to get invested in his stories. As such, I’m hoping that some sort of limitation is put on his healing factor so that he’s at least given SOME kind of vulnerability. Also, I wouldn’t try to demote X-23 with his return in any way, and have the two continue to act as equally important characters, but I’ll get back to her in a bit…
#2 – Tony Stark Becomes Good Again
Okay, really, this isn’t even just a matter of me not liking Superior Iron Man. This is a matter of me not liking a LOT of what’s been done with the character for years now, starting with Civil War. If you haven’t noticed, I’m more than a bit concerned about the fact that Captain America 3 is going to be a loose adaptation of that story, and ultimately, it comes down to one point: Tony Stark should not be a villain. Now, they could maybe do something neat where we get good Tony back and Superior Iron Man becomes his own evil character spun off from him, but there HAS to be a good Tony we can root for that isn’t held down by crap like the Superhero Registration Act or having Captain America’s mind wiped. I want THAT Tony Stark back.
#3 – Ms. Marvel Sticks Around
Yeah, if you haven’t noticed, I’m a big Ms. Marvel fan. Kamala was easily the best newcomer of last year, and I would HATE to lose her. Now granted, I’ve been told by writer G. Willow Wilson that there’s “nothing to fear”, but at the same time, I’m seeing advertisements for her tie-in to Secret Wars being about how “Kamala has to grapple with the end of everything she knows, and discover what it means to be a hero when your whole world is on the line.” So I guess we’ll just see, but either way, I’m hoping she sticks around, and we have our inevitable Ms. Marvel/Captain Marvel crossover, along with something else I’d like to suggest…
#4 – A New Young Avengers-like Team Book
Let’s face it, folks, there are still plenty of younger heroes out there that could form a new team of heroes. Ms. Marvel, X-23, Miles Morales, Kate Bishop, and who knows how many more? Is Marvel REALLY going to wipe them ALL away post-Secret Wars? And frankly, I don’t care what they call themselves. Young Avengers, Avengers Academy, the Ultimates, whatever works for them. I would just love to see this team. And speaking of one of them in particular…
#5 – Miles Morales Stays
I’ve said it before, and I will continue to say it for as long as it’s the God’s honest truth: The best thing going for the Ultimate Universe (and the only thing nowadays, in fact) is Miles Morales, the Ultimate Spider-Man. The question is immediately brought up, then: What do you do with the character after Secret Wars? Tossed aside? Probably not. Do you have him continue to act as Spider-Man, and just have two of them, having him operate in a team with Peter? Tricky, but doable. Do you perhaps make use of the fact that Kaine recently died in Spider-Verse and make him the Scarlet Spider? Sure, I could see Miles fitting into that role just fine. However, there’s one other avenue they could take…
#6 – One More Day Reversed
Recent info dumps have revealed the existence of a version of Peter Parker on Battleworld that hasn’t made the deal with Mephisto yet. This could be where we finally undo all that nonsense, and have Peter and MJ be brought back together, possibly having Mayday, and hell, Pete could even pass the role of Spider-Man down to Miles, though he’d likely be able to come out of retirement from time to time to help him out. If nothing else, though, Marvel, please, hear my cry, in the name of all Spider-Man fans that know him to be better than the one who made that almost 100% literal deal with the devil, undo this terrible act. And if you need any more incentive to do so, Linkara has gone on record in saying that, if the deal with Mephisto is ever reversed, not even necessarily that Peter and Mary Jane get married again, but that the deal itself is nullified, he will buy every Spider-Man story that’s come out since. That’s 8 years worth of comics he’d be purchasing from you guys. May not seem like a lot of money, but from one person, could you ask for much more?
#7 – A Simpler History
Yyyeeeeaaaaaaaaahhhhh, one problem Marvel has with its LONG history is just how complicated some stories can get. Probably the most notorious of all is Jean Grey’s entire history, as well as that of the Phoenix. In fact, most of the more complex and overly complicated and difficult to follow stories can be traced back to the X-Men. So, if there’s a chance to simplify some of those stories without changing too much or taking too much away, I’d suggest Marvel takes this opportunity to do so now.
#8 – Old Heroes Retaking Their Mantles
For better or worse, I think we all see this coming. Granted, I don’t see Carol Danvers giving up the role of Captain Marvel, since she’s got a movie coming up, but Steve Rogers is probably going to be Captain America again, and Mjolnir will likely find its way back to Thor Odinson. Hopefully, though, their recent replacements aren’t tossed aside, and are instead given whole new leases on life now that they’ve been established as characters deserving of being among Earth’s Mightiest Heroes, particularly the new female Thor (‘cuz somehow I doubt I have to worry too much about Falcon).
#9 – The A-Force
When I first heard about A-Force, I immediately adored the idea, so much so that I’m hoping it sticks around long past Secret Wars. Just the idea of seeing all these kickass Marvel women teaming up, without even really needing a set roster and just being about them all coming together to fight injustice, I just LOVE the idea SO FRAKKING MUCH (seriously, you can’t see me, but I’m fanboying out SO BAD right now, lol).
#10 – Character Histories Merged
Lastly, one thing I kinda expect to happen is that characters that exist on both Earth 616 and Earth 1610 will have their histories and elements of their personalities merged together. Somehow, I suspect that, when the dust settles, there’ll only be one Nick Fury, and he’ll be the one that physically resembles Samuel L. Jackson (‘cuz let’s face it, the movies DO still dictate a lot of what happens in the comics, for better or for worse), unless they plan on revealing him to be Nick Fury, Jr. in said movies. Also, I’m personally kinda hoping that the mainstream Aunt May gets downsized in favour of her more awesome counterpart. Seriously, words cannot describe how much I prefer Ultimate Aunt May to her counterpart.
Anyway, that’s all I can think of for right now. Got any I haven’t thought of? Perhaps even a few concerns? Leave in the comments below, and we’ll see what happens when Secret Wars hits. Ja né!
Early Thoughts On Couples I’d Like To Do In The DCIU Fanfics
So, with the reveal in chapter 5 of my fanfic, Justice League Infinite, that Bruce Wayne is bisexual, and because today is Valentine’s Day, I thought I’d take a minute to talk about possible couples that have crossed my mind for the DCIU. Now, keep in mind, these are ALL just ones I’ve THOUGHT about, not necessarily ones I’m going to do, or that are already canon, so obviously, Calvin and Loana are out because they’re already in a relationship, as are Diana and Mera. So, let’s start off with one I’ve actually been considering for some time now:
Robin and Beast Boy
Because honestly, I think it’d be adorable, especially given something I have in mind for Garfield’s character. Plus, there’s more than a few different aspects of the typical teen romance that I’d like to explore with two characters that would have a less-than-typical teen romance. And who better in that scenario than a guy that’s been turned green and can assume the form of any animal, and a girl who spends a lot of her time in a dark cave with a holographic Englishman and a psychologically damaged guy dressed as a bat? (Who would be the one most fucked up for life? YOU MAKE THE CALL! lol)
Batman and Nightwing
This is actually one that HelenaWayneBlog came up with while we were talking about this last night, with the justification that Dick Grayson should really be first in line. And I can see how this could work, and probably should, just to change things up (these two tend to get a LOT of the ladies). Of course, I’d need to change more than a couple of things about his back-story and character. I’ve never minded the idea of Bruce and Dick, save for one important, minor flaw that cannot be overlooked: THE AGE DIFFERENCE. Even once they were both of legal consent, it’s still squicky as hell. So yeah, would definitely need to make them closer in age. Also, I’d need to change the manner in which they first meet, since Carrie in the DCIU is the first Robin (and the ONLY one that I have planned).
The Flash and Doctor Fate
This is one that actually didn’t occur to me until after I’d written their scene in Chapter 5 of JLI. I dunno, I just think there’s a natural connection and chemistry between them due to their circumstances. Plus, Jesse’s the type to not be defined as someone’s girlfriend, but isn’t explicitly against the idea of romance, which makes her probably the best choice of members of the Justice League to be involved with one of her team-mates.
Black Lightning and Vixen
Of course, this one is kinda out of my hands and would depend on whether or not Doctor Sweet wants to do this in Challengers of the Unknown. Still, if he ever chose to do so, I’d be behind it all the way. The two are good friends in the story, and I can easily see them pursuing a romantic relationship, even if it were only on the short term. Although, now that I think of it, probably not short term. After all, as anyone who saw Justice League Unlimited knows, Mari isn’t the type to get out of something before seeing it all the way through.
Anyway, that’s all I can think of for now. Got any you’d like to suggest? Leave a comment below, and we’ll see what happens. Ja né!
Batgirl #39 Preview
No, really, I don’t regularly do this, but this is kinda relevant to something I’ve been talking about for a while now. I’ve made it clear that I’m not exactly a fan of what Cameron Stewart and Brenden Fletcher have done with Black Canary in Batgirl, and hearing that she’s apparently going to be part of a rock band in her new solo book doesn’t really do much to endear me either. However, I will say that, in just a few panels of the preview for the next issue of Batgirl, they at least got CLOSER to what I want out of the character. How much closer? Well, you be the judge.
For months, Batgirl’s been hounded by an unseen threat claiming to be the “real” Batgirl…and the truth of her enemy’s identity will shock her to her very core!
http://www.advocate.com/arts-entertainment/geek/2015/02/13/exclusive-batgirl-39-preview
Ms. Marvel #12 Preview
I don’t normally do this, but because I wanna encourage good reading, I thought I’d go ahead and share the link to the exclusive preview of Ms. Marvel #12.
Love is in Jersey City as Valentine’s Day arrives! Kamala Khan may not be allowed to go to the dance, but Ms. Marvel is! Well sort of – by crashing it attempting to capture Asgard’s most annoying trickster! Yup, it’s a special Valentine’s Day issue featuring Marvel’s favorite charlatan, Loki!
http://www.comicosity.com/exclusive-preview-ms-marvel-12/
Jyger's Rant 