NIC GAUGE / World Trade Center

MOVIE: World Trade Center

STARRING: Nicolas Cage, Michael Peña, Will Jimeno, Anthony Piccininni, Maggie Gyllenhaal, Maria Bello, Jay Hernandez, Michael Shannon

RELEASE DATE: August 9th, 2006

WHERE TO WATCH: VOD (Amazon Prime, Apple TV)

By Justin Pomerville (2 Broke Geeks)

(L to R) Maggie Gyllenhaal (as Allison Jimeno), Maria Bello (as Donna McLoughlin, Michael Peña (as Will Jimeo) and Nicolas Cage (as John McLoughlin) in Oliver Stone’s World Trade Center.

World Trade Center was a film I wasn’t entirely sure how to approach among the ranks of Nicolas Cage films. This film is nestled in with the group of questionable films that he has made in the 2000s, many of which I still need to get to (if you have been keeping track). This is the only film in the group that involves real-life events and is probably one of the stronger performances of Cage’s career. The film was directed by Oliver Stone, known for directing many films like Platoon, Born on the Fourth of July, JFK, and Natural Born Killers. This film also had input from the real police officers the story revolves around; Will Jimeno and John Mcloughlin. Both officers, along with their wives, were in the writing room as well as took part in the overall production of the film.

The film is about Port Authority Police officers Will Jimeno (played by Micheal Peña) and Sergeant John Mcloughlin (played by Nic Cage). They are part of a group of officers that are responding to the World Trade Center as the North Tower was hit by the plane. As they prepare to enter the building to help with evacuation, the South Tower comes down, trapping them in an elevator shaft under the rubble. Throughout the film, we keep switching from their perspective to that of their wives; Allison Jimeno (played by Maggie Gyllenhaal) and Donna Mcloughlin (played by Maria Bello). The wives are left in the dark about their husband’s lives.

Nicolas Cage as Sergeant John McLoughlin in World Trade Center.

I’m going to keep it short about this film because I’m not comfortable doing a deep dive into a 9/11 film. The film is first rate. It’s a part of American history and felt very much like a time capsule. Seeing the horrific events from the perspective of those who were involved firsthand, painting a picture that I felt was needed. Also, the film has a strong overall narrative of humanity in a time of need. The visuals of firemen, officers, and military from around the U.S. banding together to help the survivors calls attention to that point . There’s not much really to say in terms of what I expected from this film. It’s obvious what you are watching.

On the “Nic Gauge” this sits comfortably on the higher end of “Good”.

COUNT DOWN #45: THE FIRST POST CREDITS

By Brandon T. McClure (@btmcclure @fakenerdpodcast)

The MCU, specifically the Infinity Saga (2008-2019) has meant a great deal to me, as I am sure it has for many people. What first started as a book pitch is now a series of essays of mine that will be (hopefully) published every week. The goal is to pick a specific moment within The Infinity Saga and share with you why I believe it’s a defining moment. To revisit previous posts, visit our site HERE.

Enjoy the ride as we count down from 50 of the most defining moments and share your thoughts in the comments. 

• THE FIRST POST CREDITS •

MOMENT# 45

MOVIE: Iron Man

DIRECTORS: Jon Favreau

WRITERS: Mark Fergus, Hawk Ostby, Art Marcum & Matt Holloway

Nick Fury (Samuel L. Jackson) in Tony Stark’s (Robert Downey Jr) house during the post-credits of Iron Man.

The MCU has expanded to reach heights that fans had only dreamed of. No one knew what the franchise would grow to become when Iron Man came to theaters in 2008. Marvel had sold the rights to some of their more popular characters such as the X-Men and Spider-Man. The newly formed Marvel Studios was limited in what various heroes could form The Avengers. Fans were used to superhero films existing in their own little pocket universes, but that all changed with Iron Man.

Unaware that the landscape of superhero cinema was about to change forever, moviegoers went to see the Marvel film in modest numbers. Audiences fell in love with the new superhero played by Robert Downey Jr. This first MCU film followed the journey of Tony Stark after he gets captured by the Ten Rings terrorist group. They force him to make a weapon but instead he makes a suit of armor to make his escape. Afterwards he moves Stark Industries away from weapons manufacturing. His new objective was making a new suit and taking down his nefarious business partner, Obadiah Stane. He proudly declares to the world that he is Iron Man.

The credits rolled and nearly everyone left the theater, but those who stayed were treated with the first hints that something more was on the way. In a darkened house in Malibu, Samuel L. Jackson is introduced to audiences as Nick Fury. He informs Tony Stark that he’s become part of a larger world, ending with “I'm here to talk to you about the Avenger Initiative.” Since Iron Man, there has been a post credits scene in almost every MCU film, with the exception of The Incredible Hulk and Avengers: Endgame (and technically Avengers: Age of Ultron only has a mid-credits scene). The post-credits became a tool for Marvel Studios to tease up the next film or the next major story. Sitting in the theater waiting for that final scene to show has become a tradition for Marvel fans ever since. 

Nick Fury (Samuel L. Jackson) delivering the line “I’m here to talk to you about the Avenger Initiative” in Iron Man’s post-credits.

Fans had wanted superhero crossovers for years. The closest anyone ever got was a fake poster in I Am Legend. The world of superhero cinema had just changed forever. Kevin Fiege and Marvel Studios had just told the world that they were going to unite the Avengers on the big screen. At the time, no one knew how it would happen or when, but they were going to try, and that was more than enough.

All audiences had to do was sit through the credits.

COUNT DOWN #46: NICK FURY STILL BELIEVES IN HEROES

By Brandon T. McClure (@btmcclure @fakenerdpodcast)

The MCU, specifically the Infinity Saga (2008-2019) has meant a great deal to me, as I am sure it has for many people. What first started as a book pitch is now a series of essays of mine that will be (hopefully) published every week. The goal is to pick a specific moment within The Infinity Saga and share with you why I believe it’s a defining moment. To revisit previous posts, visit our site HERE.

Enjoy the ride as we count down from 50 of the most defining moments and share your thoughts in the comments. 

• NICK FURY STILL BELIEVES IN HEROES •

MOMENT# 46

MOVIE: Marvel’s The Avengers

DIRECTORS: Joss Whedon

WRITERS: Joss Whedon & Zak Penn

Samuel L. Jackson as Nick Fury in Marvel’s The Avengers

The first few years of the MCU were a frenzy of speculation and hype. When word was announced that the first phase of the franchise would come to a close with a massive team-up film, uniting the characters that had already been introduced, people just couldn’t believe it. A collaboration film like this was unheard of at the time and had only existed in the dreams of hardcore fans for decades. Nonetheless, in 2012, The Avengers was released and with it, many defining moments that would pave the way for the MCU for years to come.

The Avengers brought together the heroes introduced in each MCU film since 2008’s Iron Man. They joined to fight a new threat in the form of a Chitauri invasion of Earth led by the god of mischief himself, Loki. Nowadays, Marvel does these types of things in their sleep, but back then it was a juggling act that fans weren’t sure would pay off. In this first Avengers film, Loki is tasked by Thanos to retrieve the Tesseract. He brainwashes Clint Barton/Hawkeye and begins a plan to bring his army to Earth. In response to this, Nick Fury (director of SHIELD) brings together the mightiest heroes the Earth has ever seen, Captain America, Iron Man, Hulk, Thor, and Black Widow, in the hopes to stop Loki before he can bring his army.

Nick Fury (Samuel L. Jackson) and Agent Phil Coulson (Clark Gregg) in Marvel’s The Avengers

In the midst of an escape, Loki kills Phil Coulson, a SHIELD agent who had grown close to the various heroes. Coupled with Loki’s escape, some major psychological and physical damage to the team (as well as the Helicarrier) made the heroes feel like everything was lost. They had failed and Loki was in the wind with no way to find him. In a rare quiet moment in the film, Nick Fury, mourning the loss of his friend and agent, lays everything on the table to Steve and Stark, both mourning Coulson’s death as well. Fury talks about how there was an idea, to bring together a group of remarkable individuals to see if they could be something more. To drive the point home, he says “Phil Coulson died still believing in that idea…in heroes.”

Captain America/Steve Rogers (Chris Evans), Iron Man/Tony Stark (Robert Downey Jr.) and Nick Fury (Samuel L. Jackson) in Marvel’s The Avengers.

Steve Rogers/Captain America, the man out of time, doesn’t know what his place is in this new world. He looks at the bloodied Captain America trading cards laid out in front of him, wondering, is there a place for him in this time period? Tony Stark/Iron Man, coldly looks off into the distance, unsure how to face his emotions for losing his friend. Upon hearing the line about heroes, he storms out of the room. After all, how could he be a hero? All the while, Fury is running one last play that he’s not sure is going to work. He watches Stark leave and says “well, it’s an old-fashioned notion anyway.”

Nick Fury (Samuel L. Jackson) with Coulson’s cards in Marvel’s The Avengers.

This parallels nicely with an early conversation in the film when Coulson speaks to Steve about the new Captain America uniform. Steve is unsure how something so flashy would work in the modern-day and asks whether or not it was too old-fashioned. Coulson just follows up with “people might just need a little old-fashioned.” The callback to the earlier scene is the button on the speech that persuades Steve because that's exactly what the world needs right now. After convincing the others, they converge on New York and prepare for the battle of their lives.

Nick Fury (Samuel L. Jackson) in Marvel’s The Avengers.

Within the film, Fury’s speech gave the Avengers the push they needed to put aside their differences and be the heroes the world needs. This was the button on the first and biggest lesson the soon-to-be Avengers would learn: no matter what happens, you get up because the world is counting on you. Divided they could be beaten but together they were stronger. This was the penultimate moment to them uniting and becoming The Avengers.

Marvel’s The Avengers  (L to R): Hulk (Mark Ruffalo), Hawkeye (Jeremy Renner), Iron Man (Robert Downey Jr.), Nick Fury (Samuel L. Jackson), Black Widow (Scarlett Johansson, Captain America (Chris Evans) and Thor (Chris Hemsworth).

FOUR EYES REVIEW / The Book of Boba Fett - Season 1

Welcome back to another “Four Eyes” review. We take this moment to share 2 opinions on a single geek topic.

Below both Justin and Jenny will each dive into what they thought about Season 1 of The Book of Boba Fett. Join us for an interesting recap.

Let us know your thoughts in the comments or on social media using #foureyesreview

SHOW: The Book of Boba Fett

STARRING: Temuera Morrison, Ming-Na Wen, Jennifer Beals, Sophie Thatcher, Timothy Olyphant, Pedro Pascal, Amy Sedaris

RELEASE DATE: December 29th, 2021

WHERE TO WATCH: Disney+

FROM JUSTIN POMERVILLE (2 Broke Geeks):

So we have come to a close on the first season of The Book of Boba Fett and this series has been polarizing among Star Wars fans. I am in the camp that the series was not very good. I believe the pacing was off and the writing was a mess. I think if given more time and some tweaks, this series could have been even better than The Mandalorian series that came before it.

Personally, I believe that Boba Fett is an overhyped character in Star Wars. He was just the bounty hunter that got shot by a blind Han Solo and fell into the Sarlacc. That was it. Granted, I do acknowledge that he has an elaborate backstory outside of the films, but I have never read any of those and never ventured out to look into them. However, when Boba Fett showed up in The Mandalorian and actually did stuff, I started to get more invested and excited for The Book of Boba Fett.

Boba Fett (Temura Morrison) in Lucasfilm's THE BOOK OF BOBA FETT, exclusively on Disney+. © 2021 Lucasfilm Ltd. & ™. All Rights Reserved.

Where did it go wrong for me? The series was lackluster. The first four episodes are split between two stories. One story being Boba’s past, starting from when he escaped the Sarlacc. The other is present-day where Boba has taken over Jabba’s palace and is working to control the criminal underworld on Tatooine. That was the first problem for me. Throughout those episodes, it felt like they focused more on Boba’s past versus the current timeline. They slowly built up to why the past was important, but I was more interested in the current story. I felt like they didn’t have much invested in the current storyline, so forced to heavily lean into how Boba came back, met Fennec Shand, and got his stuff back.

(L-R): Temura Morrison is Boba Fett and Ming-Na Wen is Fennec Shand in Lucasfilm's THE BOOK OF BOBA FETT, exclusively on Disney+. © 2021 Lucasfilm Ltd. & ™. All Rights Reserved.

Honestly, the next two episodes became the most interesting thing about the show, when we visit the Mandalorian (aka Din Djarin). We follow Mando as he’s missing Grogu, learns to control the dark saber, and is then forced out of the order because he took his helmet off. There wasn’t any jumping of past and present timelines, just a simple story of Din wanting to see Grogu again before he goes to help Boba battle the Pykes for their spice trading.

The finale of this show is also very spiritless as they spend even more time reviewing how they got to their current situation. They have a gunfight, and win the whole thing, forcing the Pykes off-world. They needed more time for this series to make it feel like a big deal. They reintroduced a bounty hunter from the Clone Wars series, and he has one fight scene and then dies by Boba’s hand. Not only that, Boba’s whole character arc just felt wasted. He begins the series with wanting to rule the criminal underworld to keep Tatooine safe, becoming a protector of the people. Being in power for what feels like just a couple of days, he hints that maybe this life was not made for him. He might move back into the life of a bounty hunter because he was told that killing is what he is good for.

Overall, this show just felt very boring and served more as a side story in the big Star Wars universe. It wanted to be the next phase of Boba’s life, but instead fell flat on its face. The episodes involving Din having the only real growth. The unrelated win was by making people excited for the next season of The Mandalorian. I’m sure they will be making a second season, but I don’t foresee it being something Disney will be focusing on, especially with all the other series they have coming down the line. If I had to rate this series on a letter grade, I would give it a C.

FROM JENNY ROBINSON:

Despite the harsh criticism of this show, I actually enjoyed it. I would give it a solid B in the grading system. Now, don’t get me wrong, there are a lot of questionable decisions. For some reason, they didn’t bother me as much as they did others. I do wish they would have done it as either a movie or released all episodes at the same time. The weekly release I feel is the main reason it did not connect well with the audience. There were slow character builds that then forced the audience to wait. It slowed the pace down dramatically and may be the reason why some of the audience lost focus. Those first episodes as we follow Boba Fett into power in the current storyline while also recapping where he has been since Return of the Jedi in the flashbacks was a cool take to expand his personality but also plays out pretty slow.

I have always thought Boba Fett was rad. Despite not having many lines and very few scenes in the original movies, you have to admire anyone that Vader also respects. Boba Fett turns heads when he walks into a room, for sure. Those initial episodes this season develops a character that has empathy for those around him. While captive, he offers to help the other capitative. Instead of wreaking havoc on the Tuscans, he chose to learn from them. When a bully shows up, he goes to battle to bring them down. Those flash backs finally gave him a legit character with a moral compass, and I dug it.

Boba Fett (Temura Morrison) in Lucasfilm's THE BOOK OF BOBA FETT, exclusively on Disney+. © 2021 Lucasfilm Ltd. & ™. All Rights Reserved.

The failure I find in the series was it didn’t know what it wanted to be and tried hard to expand a short story into an extended tale. I loved the idea of Tatooine being ran by crime syndicates. I thought the “old west” take was super cool (especially inspiring the duels with Cad Bane). The show could have wrapped up the flashback/Tuscan Raider thread in half an episode. The final battle could also have been completed in fifteen minutes. I was invested though, so I can deal with the drawn out plot despite going against my “less is best” mantra.

I understand that they needed the Mandalorian in order to persuade Cobb Vanth to join with Boba Fett and Fennec. I was extremely excited (those who know me know why) to see Cobb Vanth’s return. His parts in this series steal the show (in my honest opinion). The showdown between Cad Bane and Cobb Vanth was one of the highlight for me. The Tatooine desert backdrop, assumingely inspired by all those classic Hollywood westerns, sets a great atmosphere. Add in physical expressions of the two gunslingers, you knew you were watching forces to be reckoned with.

Cad Bane in The Book of Boba Fett

I smiled through the entire finale as well. Some of the smiles may have been due to some incredibly ridiculous parts (what was up with biker dude’s spin shot?!?!). I REALLY smiled when Boba Fett came riding in on a freaking Rancor though! Those are the moments in movies/shows that I am a sucker for. So much fun (even though they used the same frame twice)!!! The fight could have been half the time as it was since the shooting became a bit repetitive but again, I still smiled.
AND… the after credits!!!!!!!!!! Sign me up and count me in!!!!

COUNT DOWN #47: STEVE DOESN’T LIKE BULLIES

By Brandon T. McClure (@btmcclure @fakenerdpodcast)

The MCU, specifically the Infinity Saga (2008-2019) has meant a great deal to me, as I am sure it has for many people. What first started as a book pitch is now a series of essays of mine that will be (hopefully) published every week. The goal is to pick a specific moment within The Infinity Saga and share with you why I believe it’s a defining moment. To revisit previous posts, visit our site HERE.

Enjoy the ride as we count down from 50 of the most defining moments and share your thoughts in the comments. 

• STEVE DOESN’T LIKE BULLIES •

MOMENT# 47

MOVIE: Captain America: The First Avenger

DIRECTORS: Joe Johnston

WRITERS: Christopher Marcus & Steven McFeeley

Chris Evans as a young and much smaller soldier in Captain America: The First Avenger

There are many character-defining moments for Steve Rogers in the MCU. Moments that show just what kind of person he strives to be, this is a guy willing to stand up for ideals. One truly personal ideal is his stance on bullies. One moment would define, not just his character, but the people he would go on to fight. Outside of the first two Avengers films (and a brief cameo in Thor: The Dark World and Spider-Man: Homecoming), Christopher Marcus and Steven McFeely have written almost every film Steve Rogers has appeared in. This is a distinction they don’t share with any other writers in the MCU. Because of this, they were able to lay down the character and then build on the foundations over time.

Audiences are introduced to Steve Rogers in Captain America: The First Avenger, the final movie before the hotly anticipated The Avengers. Before Steve Rogers became Captain America, he was a short scrawny guy, who just wanted to do his part. He felt it wasn’t fair that all these other men his age were going off to war and he wasn’t. After an argument with long-time best friend James “Bucky” Barnes (Sebastian Stan), Steve once again attempts to join the Army. He’s so desperate to do his part and fight for his country that he’s willing to risk prison time by lying on his physical form. He’d been trying every recruiter in the state to give him a shot. When it looks like he was found out, Doctor Abraham Erskine (Stanley Tucci) walked into the room and asked Steve a simple question: “Do you want to kill Nazi’s?”

Doctor Abraham Erskine (Stanley Tucci) and Steve Rogers (Chris Evans) in Captain America: The First Avenger.

“I don’t want to kill anyone. But I don’t like bullies, I don’t care where they're from.”

Steve’s response is short and to the point. The future Captain America had spent his entire life being bullied. He learned at a very young age that they would never stop unless he stood up to them. He would later tell Peggy (Haley Atwell) that he knew that if he ran, they would never let him stop. His response to Dr. Erskine in that room was what ultimately convinced Erskine that Steve was the perfect candidate for the super-soldier program. Steve was willing to put his life on the line to fight the most dangerous bullies the world had ever seen, not because of some sadistic desire to kill, but because it was the right thing to do. As far as Erskine was concerned, he’d found his man. 

General Phillips (played by Tommy Lee Jones) and Erskine (Stanley Tucci) in Captain America: The First Avenger.

During basic training for the program, General Phillips (Tommy Lee Jones) would try to push Erskine to pick Gilmore Hodge (Lex Shrapnel), since Hodge was the most capable soldier at that camp. Erskine just replied that Hodge was a bully. In his mind, the serum had to go to a good man, a man who didn’t seek power, but a man whose sole desire was to do right. Erskine had seen firsthand what his serum could do to a man who had power already with the Red Skull (Hugo Weaving). While Hodge might not have turned out to be another Red Skull, giving a bully of any kind the serum was not an option to Erskine.

The moment in that physical room told Erskine and the audience everything they needed to know about Steve Rogers. Standing before Erskine was a good man, the kind of man that will stand up to the bullies of the world. This philosophy would guide Steve throughout his journey in the MCU. When he faced Loki, SHIELD, or his fellow Avengers, he knew what the right course of action would be because he was an incorruptible force and he had to put the bullies in their place.

Captain America Steve Rogers (Chris Evans) with Peggy Carter (Hayley Atwell) in Captain America: The First Avenger.

Steve Rogers is a true hero. A good man, constantly trying to do the right thing and taking a stand against the bullies of the world to protect those who can’t protect themselves. The anti-bullying theme of the MCU may not be the most overt one but it was baked in its DNA from the beginning and given shape and form with Captain America. That one fateful moment in a physical room at the Stark Expo gave the MCU one of its most prestigious heroes and more importantly, one of its defining ideals.

Book Review / Road of Bones by Christopher Golden

ROAD OF BONES by Christopher Golden

Release Date: 01/25/2022

Published by St.Martin’s Press/ Macmillan

By Jenny Robinson

Every once in a while, a story comes along where the environment acts more like a personality rather than a location. Road of Bones by Christopher Golden is that sort of tale. Set in Russia on the historic Kolyma Highway (aka The Road of Bones), the history, myth and atmosphere provides a solid nightmarish backdrop. Like most nightmares, things start off unfamiliar and continue to become more and more grim. Basing a ghost/horror story around an existing location like the Road of Bones also helps the fictitious part of this plot feel more plausible. Add in a small cast of characters who struggle with the supernatural in the coldest inhabitable place on earth, this recipe makes for a riveting read. 

I loved how fast I flew through this book. It solidifies the term “page turner” in my mind. I went in knowing just a touch about the accurate accounts of the highway’s tragic death toll and extreme conditions. Despite that, I could still relate some of the plot to the actual relationship of those historical headlines without them feeling like a recap. Confirmed stories of lost motorists freezing to death in stalled cars on abandoned stretches play out as plausible hurdles our protagonists have to consider. Imagine the simple act of turning off your car or having a flat tire could kill you due to how fast things freeze (including you). With a rough estimate, over a million people have died on this approximately 1200 mile long road in the far east of Russia.  Golden is successful at making you fear (and metaphorically feel) that cold. 

Although Tieg (or Felix Teigland) is our principle character on this journey, he is accompanied by a strong crew. Tieg is a television producer trying to make the next hit reality show. A show about the ghosts stories of the small town of Akhsut on the Road of Bones that will hopefully keep his business a float. He and his partner Prentiss set out with their guide Kaskil. It doesn’t take long for this journey to turn very very wrong when they arrive to town to find everyone but Kaskil’s small niece missing. Not only were the town folk gone, they looked to have left in quite a hurry, leaving their homes forgotten to the elements. Prentiss added the much needed levity to the story which I felt kept the interest in the characters grounded.  The additional characters that Tieg and Prentiss pick up along the way help reinforce the personality of the country and strength of those who call this frozen tundra home.

It was joyfully difficult to determine if the characters were being stalked by supernatural beings or just simply wild animals. The idea that a wolf may be more than just a wolf is left to the reader to determine. Now bare with me,  I am not sure if this would be considered a spoiler so use caution… people being possessed after death and growing antlers from their heads just isn’t the normal haunting experience I am use to. 

While reading, I kept thinking back to movies with similar isolation and terrifying creatures. Movies like John Carpenter’s The Thing and David Slade’s 30 Days of Night came to mind. When you’re in the middle of nowhere, what do you do if your friend get’s eaten or starts to grow horns? The angry ghosts of this story seem to have a slew of similarities with the Slavic creature called the Leshy as well as the Native American’s Wendigo. I really appreciate the related influences, whether intentional or not. The comparisons to the folklore did not distract but added to the intensity of the events that played out.

I read crazy, scary, fiery books to enjoy the anticipation of what may happen next. Road of Bones hit all the marks that I personally can rate with a thumbs up!

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Christopher Golden is the New York Times bestselling and Bram Stoker award-winning author of Ararat, Snowblind, Dead Ringers, and Of Saints and Shadows, among many other novels. With Mike Mignola, he is the co-creator of two cult favorite comic book series, Baltimore and Joe Golem: Occult Detective. Golden is also the editor of such anthologies as Seize the Night, The New Dead, and Dark Cities, and the co-host of the popular podcast "Three Guys with Beards." He lives in Massachusetts.

COUNT DOWN #48: A FIRST DANCE

By Brandon T. McClure (@btmcclure @fakenerdpodcast)

The MCU, specifically the Infinity Saga (2008-2019) has meant a great deal to me, as I am sure it has for many people. What first started as a book pitch is now a series of essays of mine that will be (hopefully) published every week. The goal is to pick a specific moment within The Infinity Saga and share with you why I believe it’s a defining moment. To revisit previous posts, visit our site HERE.

Enjoy the ride as we count down from 50 of the most defining moments and share your thoughts in the comments. 

• A FIRST DANCE •

MOMENT# 48

MOVIE: Avengers: Endgame

DIRECTORS: Joe and Anthony Russo

WRITERS: Christopher Marcus & Stephen McFeeley

Steve Rogers (played by Chris Evans) and Peggy Carter (played by Hayley Atwell) dance in Avengers: Endgame

Steve Rogers has had a rough journey through the course of the MCU. Frozen in time, betrayed by the government he swore to protect, forced to fight his friend to save his other friend, and then half the population of the universe is snapped away. While Steve didn’t constantly struggle with living in the modern world, it was never easy for him. When he had a second chance, knowing the world would be safe, he took it.

One of the major through-lines of Captain America: The First Avenger is that Steve has never danced with a woman. After all, he figured he’d wait for “the right partner”. When he meets Agent Peggy Carter, he realizes that she was that partner he was looking for. The events of Captain America’s origin film also play out as a love story between Peggy and Steve. There’s clearly an unspoken love between them, but they just can’t find the right time. During the climactic moments of the film, they make a date for that first dance. Sadly, Steve never makes it to his 8:00pm date at the Stork Club. When he finally does reunite with Peggy, she’s grown old and is suffering from dementia, but he couldn’t leave his best gal. The doomed romance of Peggy Carter and Steve Rogers is one for the ages.

The time-traveling events of Avengers: Endgame see the Avengers take the Infinity Stones from different points in history so they can bring back the 50% of the universe that Thanos snapped away. Steve and Tony have to retrieve the Tesseract (the Space Stone) from the 1970s, and there, in an old S.H.I.E.L.D. bunker, Steve sees Peggy for the first time since attending her funeral in Captain America: Civil War. When Thanos is defeated and Steve is sure the world will be safe without him, he gives his best friend, Bucky, one final hug and leaves the timeline to return the stones and find that life he’s been missing.

The film ends with their first dance.

Whenever there’s talk about endings within the MCU, most always point to Iron Man. Since Tony was the MCU’s first hero, his ending was a major point of interest for many. Unlike comic books, the characters in the MCU will age and eventually have to be written out. Early on, there was a lot of talk of recasting, much in the same way as Mark Ruffalo replaced Edward Norton. As the franchise went on, recasting became a harder task. Marvel Studios couldn’t just recast Robert Downey Jr. or Chris Evans. Audiences had developed an emotional attachment to these characters, and the actors who played them over the years. Having anyone else in the role would be a hard sell. 

Avengers: Infinity War, already prepared audiences for what Avengers: Endgame was going to bring, but a happy ending seemed like a pipe dream. Giving Steve Rogers a happy ending shows that not every character has to go out in a blaze of glory. Sometimes, they can get everything they want. Steve Rogers was able to have the life he longed for, the life he didn’t feel he could have because of his responsibility to the world. A happy ending was given to a character that was beloved. Steve Rogers was allowed to ride off into the sunset, live the life he was robbed of with the woman he always loved. For Steve, there was no more “what could have been”. Now Captain America didn’t have to disappear, a new timeline could be formed where Steve lived a happy life with Peggy. One can’t help but wonder what that other timeline was like…

COUNT DOWN #49: PETER PARKER

By Brandon T. McClure (@btmcclure @fakenerdpodcast)

The MCU, specifically the Infinity Saga (2008-2019) has meant a great deal to me, as I am sure it has for many people. What first started as a book pitch is now a series of essays of mine that will be (hopefully) published every week. The goal is to pick a specific moment within The Infinity Saga and share with you why I believe it’s a defining moment. To read #50, click HERE.

Enjoy the ride as we count down from 50 of the most defining moments and share your thoughts in the comments. 

• PETER PARKER •

MOMENT# 49

MOVIE: Captain America: Civil War

DIRECTORS: Joe and Anthony Russo

WRITERS: Christopher Marcus & Steven McFeeley

Spider-Man (played by Tom Holland) in Captain America: Civil War

Let’s say you aren’t the kind of person who eats up every piece of news that the 24-hour entertainment circuit throws at you. If that were true, you wouldn’t have known about the deal that Disney struck with Sony to share the rights of Spider-Man. If that were true, you were probably shocked when Tony Stark yelled “UNDEROOS!” in the Captain America: Civil War trailer and none other than Spider-Man swings into frame, stealing Captain America’s shield.

The introduction of Spider-Man into the MCU was something fans had wished for since the start but Marvel (now owned by Disney) had sold the character to Sony in the 90s and it made his inclusion nearly impossible. However, talks of Spider-Man cameos were happening as early as The Incredible Hulk (2008). One most notable case was when the VFX artists on The Avengers let it slip that talks of including The Amazing Spider-Man’s Osborne tower in the MCU skyline were happening. It wasn’t until the infamous “Sony hacks” that Sony decide to enter into negotiations for the character. Coupled with The Amazing Spider-Man 2’s critical failure, Sony was open to work with the MCU.

A deal was struck and history was made.

Thanks to two studios putting aside financial hesitations in favor of creative design, Spider-Man could now interact with the other heroes in the world’s biggest franchise. The events of Captain America: Civil War lead Tony Stark/Iron Man to take on someone who will help him against Captain America. He ends up in Queens where he then flirts with the new Aunt May and recruits Peter Parker. The scene that plays out instantly tells the audience everything they need to know about this new Spider-Man. He’s young and inexperienced but he’s already lost his Uncle Ben and feels the weight of responsibility. Sony and Marvel wisely felt they could skip the origin story this time around.

Aunt May (Marisa Tomei) and Tony Stark (Robert Downey Jr.) in Captain America: Civil War

The character of Spider-Man introduced brand new elements to the MCU. Up until this point, there had been no talk of legacy heroes, secret identities, or even young heroes. Spider-Man brought with him all three. While his solo films would go on to explore these avenues to greater effect, his first appearance made a huge impact and sent ripples throughout MCU Phase 3. Quite literally in one sense as the entire schedule was changed to accommodate two Spider-Man movies (pour one out for Marvel's only canceled film, Inhumans). Now that Sony was willing to work within the MCU, it felt even bigger than it did originally. Marvel could now play with the entire Spider-Man universe that they sold off in the 90s.

Since Captain America: Civil War was filled with great moments between Captain America and Iron Man, the young high school kid from Queens’ debut in the MCU is often overlooked. From the obnoxiously large location text, to Peter’s tender moment with Tony and his fight with Team Cap, Spider-Man’s introduction was a resounding success. A success that created a sense of excitement for the possibilities to come, which was very important for a franchise that had made 13 films in about 8 years.

Sony and the Curious Case of Andrew Garfield

By Brandon T. McClure (@btmcclure @fakenerdpodcast)

Spider-Man: No Way Home is a runaway success, there’s no doubt about it. It’s Sony’s highest-grossing film ever, the highest-grossing film of the pandemic era, and even if there wasn’t a pandemic, over a billion dollars is nothing to scoff at. Fans were enamored with the film and the hype was at an all-time high. Despite what Andrew Garfield had to say, everyone knew he and Toby MacGuire were returning as their various Peter Parkers to help Tom Holland's Spider-Man fend off their previous villains.

The film came, and curiously, Andrew Garfield’s return is the one that’s gained the most hype. It’s no secret that Garfield loves the character, loved playing the character, and was heartbroken when they canceled the third Amazing Spider-Man film. Returning to the role was something that clearly excited him, but is it the last time?

In the weeks since the release of Spider-Man: No Way Home, reports have stated that Sony is looking to bring Andrew Garfield back to the role of Spider-Man in some way. Since so many reports have come out, it seems like a safe bet to assume that nothing is set in stone and that discussions are ongoing about what that return could possibly be. Garfield, himself, stated in an interview recently that he would be open to returning.

This is not the first time that Sony has haphazardly put the bull before the horns. Back in the Amazing Spider-Man days, Sony and Amy Pascal had announced various films such as Silver and Black, The Sinister Six, and an Aunt May prequel spy movie. Most of these ideas had directors and writers attached and were going ahead until the infamous Sony leaks lead to a deal with Marvel Studios to put Spider-Man in the MCU. Even then, most of these early projects were still moving forwards, and that’s how we ended up with Venom. Even now Sony is still looking to capitalize on Spider-Man spin-off films such as Morbius and a Kraven the Hunter solo film starring Aaron Taylor Johnson.

Any number of these projects that Sony discusses could just as easily fall through, but it is exciting to think about a possibility that Andrew Garfield could once again return to the role of the wall-crawler that he loves so much. One report states that the next Venom film could be a multiversal adventure that pits him against the Amazing Spider-Man. It’s been a prominent fan theory for some time that Venom and The Amazing Spider-Man exist in the same world, so fans are already primed for this match-up. Since the beginning, Sony has been eager to tie in Venom to the MCU and this might be the best middle ground approach.

Another report states that Emma Stone is being courted to come back as an alternate universe version of Gwen Stacy who becomes the Spider-Women of her timeline. Matching Garfield and Stone up again seems like a no-brainer, their chemistry carried the two Amazing Spider-Man films, and seeing Peter Parker interact with a Gwen Stacy who didn’t die could create some exciting drama for a future project.

Sony seems very interested in trying the multiverse angle again, and why wouldn’t they? It’s made them more money than they’ve ever made before. Maybe a multiversal adventure isn’t even the way they go, perhaps they just go ahead and greenlight The Amazing Spider-Man 3. With everything Sony has announced in the past, no one should put it past them. No matter which way they go after Spider-Man: No Way Home, it’s safe to say they’re excited and they want to bring back Andrew Garfield somehow.

COUNT DOWN #50: LOKI’S FINAL DEATH

By Brandon T. McClure (@btmcclure @fakenerdpodcast)

The MCU, specifically the Infinity Saga (MCU Phase 1) has meant a great deal to me, as I am sure it has for many people. What first started as a book pitch is now a series of essays of mine that will be (hopefully) published every week. The goal is to pick a specific moment within The Infinity Saga and share with you why I believe it’s a defining moment.

Enjoy the ride as we count down from 50 of the most defining moments and share your thoughts in the comments.

• LOKI’S FINAL DEATH •

MOMENT# 50

MOVIE: Avengers: Infinity War

DIRECTORS: Joe and Anthony Russo

WRITERS: Christopher Markus & Stephen McFeely

The hype for Avengers: Infinity War was astronomical. People knew that this was the movie they had been waiting almost a decade for. The creative team behind the last two Captain America films (Captain America: Winter Soldier & Captain America: Civil War) were making the next Avengers movies(?!?!).

It was another world back then (circa 2017-2018). 

Loki (played by Tom Hiddleston) in Avengers: Infinity War.

After the ominous post-credit sting of Thor: Ragnarok, the Sanctuary II had arrived at the Asgardian refugee ship and fans were then eager to see where Avengers: Infinity War may begin. With Thanos and his Black Order having already decimated half of Thor’s remaining people, the opening was bleaker than what we were used to. With every turn of the opening sequence, audiences were kept on the edge of their seats.

Loki (played by Tom Hiddleston) with the Tesseract in Avengers: Infinity War.

The scene plays out after Loki delivers the Tesseract to Thanos (we also discover that Loki had stolen the Tesseract from the Asgard vault before its destruction) in order to save his dying brother. He makes one last play to try and convince Thanos that he can take him to Earth to retrieve the remaining Infinity Stones. Thor and the audience are also led to believe this deception up until Loki turns to Thor and calls himself “son of Odin”. Sadly, knowing what’s about to happen, Loki “the trickster” fatefully tries to stab the mad titan with a knife, only to be killed himself. 

Loki (played by Tom Hiddleston) attempting to kill Thanos (played by Josh Brolin) in Avengers: Infinity War.

“No resurrections this time.”

- Thanos says to Loki’s limp body in his hand.

Loki’s death by Thanos not only sets the stakes for the movie; that anyone you’ve come to love could die, but also completes Loki’s character journey. Throughout the films, Loki has played villain, both primary and secondary to Thor and the Avengers. Thanks to the events of Thor: The Dark World, audiences weren’t sure what to make of this death. Was this permanent? Did we really just see the death of the god of mischief? Even after the film was released, fans were picking apart his death scene to find clues as to how he could have survived.

The death of Loki (Tom Hiddleston/Josh Brolin) in Avengers: Infinity War.

Woefully, not this time. The writers practically went out of their way to tell audiences this was for real. Loki’s death showed how powerful Thanos could be. Thanos was no longer just the foreboding figure in the background. Now he was a real threat that was coming to kill the characters that fans have grown to love. Loki’s death made it so that us onlookers could see a character like Vision get stabbed and be forced to consider if he may be next.

Thor (Chris Hemsworth) witnessing the death of his brother Loki (Tom Hiddleston) in Avengers: Infinity War.

More than coming to terms with mortality, this death proved that the MCU was willing to let characters meet endings in order to wrap up their character arcs. For many years, fans were wondering what would come next. Long-time comic book readers know that character arcs never end and if they do, it doesn’t last. The MCU was different with the death of Loki and wrapping up his story arc was an arguably satisfactory and tragic way for the creators to show the audience that someday, you’ll have to say goodbye to the characters you love. Loki’s final death signaled not only the end of of his story but also those in the coming movies.

YEAR IN REVIEW / Best of 2021

By Jenny Robinson

---

Every year, we see headlines of how bizarre, insane and exciting the passing year has been. Although a bit better than 2020, this 2021 year has also been quite the ride.

We started with hopes for an end to covid with the distribution of vaccines. A mob stormed our capital. It was the year NTF’s took their first baby steps and rich people went to space. We saw plenty of memes of the large cargo ship blocking the Suez Canal and Bernie Sanders mittens. As we leave this wacky year, we said goodbye to Norm MacDonald, Anne Rice, Michael K. Williams, DMX, Ed Asner and sadly more. We are still struggling through the pandemic with the new Omnicron variant but also see the return of Hollywood blockbusters. As with each year, we have ups and downs but there has always been amazing entertainment to keep our head in the clouds (and our feet on the ground).

Atomic Geekdom has been busy this year as well. We have relaunched our website with new articles and reviews. We made it back to the Con and excited to post new videos of all the cosplayers again. Dave and Kyle now do live streams on Twitch, Facebook Live and YouTube that are must-see. We added some amazing guest writers (thank you Brandon, Dave2, Annie, Patrick and Allan) and look forward to working with them again, while also adding some other new voices next year.

We are very proud of our direction and momentum moving into 2022.

---

Now…THE LISTS!

It’s sometimes difficult to remember all the awesome stuff from the past 12 months. I loved going through everyone’s favorite lists of the year. Not only does it show how different we each are but also how very similar we seem to be.

In true Justin fashion, Pig topped his movie list. “Probably one of the best modern performances of Nicolas Cage. If you are a fan of Nic Cage in general, this film solidifies how he doesn't have to go "full Cage" to make a film great.” (check out the review Justin and I did for our Four Eyes Review and stay tuned for more of Justin’s “Nic Guage” articles in 2022).

Image Comic’s Stray Dogs also had quite a few top choice awards in the comic category. Stray Dogs is like Lady and the Tramp meets Silence of the Lambs.

Annie tapped in with a “Hard Tie” for her top series by saying “Yellowjackets! Taken a lifetime to get Juliette Lewis and Christina Ricci in a killer script! The wait has been worth it! A mid 90’s female Lord Of The Flies, with so much more! Can’t recommend enough! But then, CHUCKY!!! FINALLY got the continuation we deserved!! AND Tiffany!! Epic writing and casting. Hoping for Glenn & Glenda to make an appearance in s2!”

Comically, many of us struggled to nail it down to just one.

Spider-Man and Ghostbusters topped most lists for those who have been able to see them. The Green Knight (review HERE) and Heels received multiple mentions. Both myself and Matt still hold Relentless in the #1 book spot (reviews HERE).

Safe to say, it was a good year.

For each of the Atomic Geekdom’s team favorites of 2021:

@robiart

MOVIES: Last Night In Soho

SERIES/SHOW: What We Do In The Shadows S3 (Honorable Mentions: Sweet Tooth & Heels)

BOOK: Relentless by Jonathan Maberry

COMIC: Stray Dogs (Honorable Mentions: Bitter Root & BRZRKR)

GAME: n/a

ALBUM: Crawler by Idles

@djclark21 twitch.tv/djclark21

MOVIE: Ghostbusters: Afterlife

SERIES/SHOW: The Stand, Heels & WandaVision

BOOK: Will by Will Smith

COMIC: Buffy the Last Vampire Slayer

GAME: Resident Evil Village

ALBUM: New Low by We Were Sharks

@kylekrause89 twitch.tv/kkrause89

MOVIE: Shang-Chi, Ghostbusters: Afterlife, Mortal Kombat, Zack Snyder's Justice League, Spider-Man: No Way Home

SERIES/SHOW: Everything Marvel Disney+

BOOKS: n/a

COMICS: n/a

GAMES: Halo Infinite

ALBUM: Welcome to the Horrorwood - The Silver Scream 2 by Ice Nine Kills

@Skids_World

MOVIE: Spider-Man No Way Home, Shang-Chi

SERIES/SHOW: Yellowstone S4, 1883, Heels

BOOK: n/a

COMIC: DCEASED: Unkillables

GAME: PGA 2K21

ALBUM: n/a

@justin.pomerville @jpomergranite @2BGPod

MOVIES: Pig, The Green Knight

SERIES/SHOW: Sweet Tooth, WandaVision

BOOK: Once Upon A Time In Hollywood (Novelization) by Quentin Tarantino

COMIC: Stray Dogs, HaHa

GAME: Guardians of the Galaxy, Pokemon Snap

ALBUM: Songs of Death and Resurrection by Demon Hunter, Servant of the Mind by Volbeat

@2BGPod

MOVIE: Spider-Man: No Way Home

SERIES/SHOW: The Sex Lives of College Girls

BOOK: Relentless by Jonathan Maberry

COMIC: n/a

GAME: n/a

ALBUM: Servant of the Mind by Volbeat

Twitter: @patrick_nagy1 | Instagram: @patricknagy

MOVE: Dune

SERIES/SHOW: Midnight Mass

BOOK: The Eye of the World - Wheel of Time Book 1 (Prime Video) by Robert Jordan

COMIC: Stray Dogs

GAME: The Walking Dead - No Man’s Land

ALBUM: In These Silent Days by Brandi Carlile

@btmcclure @fakenerdpodcast

MOVIE: The Mitchell’s vs The Machines

SERIES/SHOW: Ducktales Season 3

BOOK: The Autobiography of Katheryn Janeway by Una McCormack

COMIC: Radiant Black, Murder Falcon, Birthright

GAME: Guardian’s of the Galaxy

ALBUM: n/a

Twitter @davepal | Instagram: @davepalamaro

MOVIE: Saint Maud

SERIES/SHOW: Midnight Mass

BOOK: n/a

COMIC: Days of Hate

GAME: Forgotten City

ALBUM: A Billion Little Lights by Wild Pink

@hessian_hellcat

MOVIE: Black Friday

SERIES/SHOW: Yellowjackets, Chucky

BOOK: n/a

COMIC: n/a

GAME: Dead by Daylight

ALBUM: If I Can’t Have Love, I Want Power by Halsey

MOVIE: Pig, Willy’s Wonderland, Spider-Man: No Way Home, The Green Knight

SERIES/SHOW: The Nevers, Hit Monkey, Resident Alien, Only Murders In The Building, Money Heist, Ghosts

BOOK: n/a

COMIC: Save It For Later, Daredevil, Gideon Falls, Something is Killing the Children, Barbalien - Red Planet

GAME: n/a

ALBUM: OK Human by Weezer, Medicine at Midnight by Foo Fighters, Turn Up the Dial by Dropkick Murphys, The Pamphlet by They Might Be Giants

Los Angeles Comic Con 2021

After 2 years of social distancing, Jenny has ventured back to THE CON!

Los Angeles Comic Con - Dec 3rd - 5th, 2021 @ the Los Angeles Convention Center

By Jenny Robinson

It felt so good to be back on the floor at Comic Con! I will admit, I was a bit nervous. I was very impressed by the system LA Comic Con had in place to assure safety as we hopefully are coming out of this pandemic.
The floor was busy and felt very welcoming. Vendors were stocked, and options were plenty. The main stage was a must-see with guests like Bruce Campbell , Frank Miller, Jason David Frank & David Yost from Power Rangers, Kevin Conroy (Batman: The Animated Series), Will Friedle (Batman Beyond), and John Glover (the Riddler) just to name a few. Side panels included the Women of Resident Evil, The cast of The Sandlot, and even a Trek Jeopardy Feud room.

All in all, it was an amazing “re-introduction” to Comic Con after being stuck in the house for close to two years. Everyone was in great spirit and I walked away feeling the love of the geek community strongly.

I truly love the “Con Life”. Thumbs Up LA Comic Con!

Spider-Man: Every Villain, and Where We Left Them

Panels from Marvel® Spider-Man Blue and Spider-Man: Revenge of the Green Goblin (2000 - Issue #3)

By Brandon T. McClure (@btmcclure @fakenerdpodcast)

There has been so much that has come out about Spider-Man: No Way Home over the past few weeks. Rumors began so long ago with the casting of Jamie Foxx as Electro. Even before learning that it was a multiverse adventure, the question on everyone's mind was… what was happening? Alfred Molina let it spill that his Doctor Octopus was pulled out of his universe just before his climactic end. So using that logic here’s a list of every live-action Spider-Man villain that could or is showing up in the latest MCU Spider-Man film and where we last saw them.

GREEN GOBLIN (Spider-Man - 2002 )

ACTOR: Willem DaFoe

STATUS: Dead

For Sam Raimi’s first outing with the web-slinger, he chose arguably, Spider-Man’s greatest villain: The Green Goblin. Portrayed by Willem Dafoe, the character became immediately iconic. Faced with losing a major defense contract, Norman Osborn took the risk experimenting on himself to prove that his formula would work. This only turned him into the deranged killer; the Green Goblin. The film’s climactic battle saw Goblin try and trick Peter into getting stabbed by the Goblin Glider, but Peter’s spidey sense saved him in the nick of time. The glider skewered and pinned Goblin to the wall, killing the villain.

Tobey Maguire as Spider-Man and Willem Dafoe as The Green Goblin in Sam Raimi’s 2002’s Spider-Man

DOC OCK (Spider-Man 2 - 2004)

ACTOR: Alfred Molina

STATUS: Dead

With the success of the first film, it was only natural that a sequel would come. Naturally, another classic Spider-Man foe was picked, this time Doctor Octopus who is played by Alfred Molina. With his hero firmly established, Raimi was able to work on creating a villain that audiences would find endearing and tragic. Fueled with the desire to complete his experiment, but manipulated by his own robotic arms, Doc Ock set about trying to destroy Spider-Man and the city of New York. Although in a turn of events and with the help of Spider-Man, Doc Ock saw clearly and was able to heroically sacrifice himself.He plunged himself and his destructive experiment into the bottom of the ocean, saving the city.

Alfred Molina as Doctor Otto Octavius in Sam Raimi’s 2004’s Spider-Man 2

SANDMAN (Spider-Man 3 - 2007)

ACTOR: Thomas Haden Church

STATUS: Alive?

The first of many new villains introduced in the third Spider-Man film, Flint Marko (played by Thomas Haden Church) escaped from prison, only to find himself in some sort of sand experiment that accidentally turned him into the Sandman. Revealed to be the man who killed Ben Parker, he became the target for Spider-Man’s unresolved revenge. His life of crime ended when, after a failed team-up with Venom, he expressed remorse for the killing of Peter’s uncle and let the wind carry him away. Though that doesn’t mean he’s dead, supposedly he could put himself back together?

Thomas Haden Church as Sandman in Sam Raimi’s 2007 Spider-Man 3

Venom (Spider-Man 3 -2007)

ACTOR: Topher Grace

STATUS: Dead

This was Sony’s first attempt to bring the symbiote to the big screen. Introducing Eddie Brock (played by Topher Grace) as a rival photographer to Peter, the second villain introduced in Spider-Man 3 started life as a black suit that made Peter into… well… a jerk. After Peter rips the costume from his skin, it falls on Eddie and they hatch a plan to stop Spider-Man by teaming up with The Sandman to put Mary Jane in danger. Spider-Man uses sound against Venom to separate the symbiote from Eddie. Spider-Man then throws a New Goblin Pumpkin Bomb to vaporize both Eddie and Venom, leaving their fate sealed. (NOTE: If any Venom shows up in No Way Home it would be the Tom Hardy one)

Topher Grace as Venom in Sam Raimi’s 2007 Spider-Man 3

NEW GOBLIN (Spider-Man 3 - 2007)

ACTOR: James Franco

STATUS: Dead

Five villains in three movies is kind of crazy when you think about it. The final villain introduced in Spider-Man 3 is New Goblin played by James Franco. Admittedly Harry Osborn has been in the franchise since the beginning, but his villain turn was happening in the background of Spider-Man 2 as his hatred for Spider-Man grew. With the help from the spirit (?) of his father, Harry turned himself into New Goblin. His time as a villain was cut short when his first battle with Peter ended with him losing his memory of the last three films. When he regained his memory, he saw the error of his ways. While his time as a villain ended up being relatively short, his turn to a hero helped save Mary Jane and defeat both Venom and Sandman, but not without costing him his own life.

James Franco as Harry Osborne aka New Goblin in Sam Raimi’s 2007 Spider-Man 3

THE LIZARD (The Amazing Spider-Man - 2012)

ACTOR: Rhys Ifans

STATUS: Alive

Due to a fourth Sam Raimi Spider-Man film falling apart, Sony rebooted the franchise with Marc Webb and Andrew Garfield. A new villain was needed to go up against this new Spider-Man, and the Lizard was the villain to kick off this new era of the web-slinger. Doctor Curt Conners, played this time by Rhys Ifans, desires to regrow his arm but in doing so, he turns himself into The Lizard. Conners is cured and sent to prison after Spider-Man thwarts his plan to turn all of New York into Lizard people.

Rhys Ifans as The Lizard in Marc Webb’s 2012 The Amazing Spider-Man

THE RHINO (The Amazing Spider-Man 2 - 2014)

ACTOR: Paul Giamatti

STATUS: Alive

The first villain introduced in The Amazing Spider-Man 2 is Aleksei Sytsevich, played by Paul Giamatti and who will call himself The Rhino by the end of the movie. A goofier villain than others introduced in the previous Spider-Man films, Aleksei was stopped after stealing an Oscorp truck full of chemicals. After going to jail, the mysterious “Gentlemen” (The guy with the Fedora that everyone forgets) gives him the use of a robotic Rhino mech suit that ends the film without any closure to the character.

Paul Giamatti as Rhino in Marc Webb’s 2014’s The Amazing Spider-Man 2

ELECTRO

ACTOR: Jamie Foxx

STATUS: Dead

The main villain of Andrew Garfield’s second turn as the Wall-Crawler was Electro. Electro is introduced as mild-mannered Oscorp worker Maxwell Dillon (played by Jamie Foxx), who is initially saved by Spider-Man and grows an unhealthy obsession with him. After a tumble in a tank filled with electric eels, Max becomes the villain Electro. Electro goes on to fight Spider-Man a number of times, the final time being at a power plant. With the help of Gwen Stacey, Peter is able to kill Electro by overloading him with power, thwarting his plan to control the power grid. 

Jamie Foxx as Electro in Marc Webb’s 2014 The Amazing Spider-Man 2

GREEN GOBLIN

ACTOR: Dane DeHann

STATUS: Alive

Much like Spider-Man 3 before it, The Amazing Spider-Man 2 bit off a bit more than it could chew with the introduction of Harry Osborn, this time played by Dane DeHaan. In this reboot, Harry returns after the death of his father, Norman Osborn, and looks to find a cure for the illness that killed Norman (since that same illness is killing him). He believes this cure lies in Spider-Man’s blood. Spider-Man’s unwillingness to give him the blood leads Harry to take matters into his own hands. Mixing Spider-Man’s DNA with the disease turns him into this film's version of The Green Goblin. Spider-Man does defeat the last-minute villain but at the cost of Gwen Stacey’s life. Harry is sent to prison where the “Gentleman” pays him a visit to end the film.

Dane DeHann as The Green Goblin in Marc Webb’s 2014 The Amazing Spider-Man 2

THE VULTURE

ACTOR: Michael Keaton

STATUS: Alive

The first proper villain that audiences saw the MCU Spider-Man fight (and one of the best in the MCU) is Adrian Toomes (played by Michael Keaton). Toomes, known as The Vulture to fans, was a contractor who felt wronged by Tony Stark’s new Department of Damage Control He spent the next “eight” years stealing technology from Avengers battles to sell on the black market. Business was good until Spider-Man got wind. What’s worse is that Spider-Man’s alter-ego, Peter Parker was dating Adrian Toomes’ daughter! Spider-Man had to do what was right and stopped Toomes from pulling off the “big one” and it landed him in jail.

For some reason though, Toomes didn’t give away Parker’s identity to Mac Gargan (the man destined to be Scorpion). So what is Toomes planning? Could he escape from prison to unite the multiversal villains against his Peter Parker?

Michael Keaton as The Vulture in John Watt’s 2017 Spider-Man: Homecoming

THE SHOCKER (Spider-Man: Homecoming - 2017)

ACTOR: Bokeem Woodbine

STATUS: Alive

Both Jackson Brice and Herman Schultz appear as the shocker in Spider-Man: Homecoming. Brice, played by Logan Marshall-Green, plays a small part before being accidentally killed by Toomes and the mantle is passed to Schultz, played by Bokeem Woodbine. In this film, he’s not really a major player, although he does try to distract Spider-Man from coming after Toomes before being defeated and arrested. While it is possible that someday, if the MCU does their own Sinister Six with MCU Spider-Man villains, Shocker could come back. It’s unlikely he’ll be part of this multiversal team-up.

Bokeem Woodbrine as Herman Schultz (aka Shocker) in John Watt’s 2017 Spider-Man: Homecoming

MYSTERIO (Spider-Man: Far from Home - 2019)

ACTOR: Jake Gyllenhall

STATUS: Dead?

Our first tease of the multiverse came from the hero Mysterio… or so he said. In reality, Quentin Beck (played by Jake Gyllenhaal), aka Mysterio, is a disgruntled Stark employee. He originally developed B.A.R.F. and was attempting to get the glasses that Tony bequeathed to Peter so that he can upgrade his holographic technology to solidify himself as an Avengers-level hero. After his betrayal was revealed, Peter set out to stop him which ultimately led to Quentin’s death. At the time of his death, Dr. Riva (played by Peter Billingsley), took a flash drive, seemingly to leek Peter’s identity. What if he showed up as the new Mysterio? Perhaps Mysterio could come back and play a role in uniting these multiversal villains against the MCU’s Spider-Man.

Jake Gyllenhall as Mysterio in John Watt’s 2019 Spider-Man: Far from Home

There’s a lot of questions leading up to Spider-Man: No Way Home. One of the biggest questions about the upcoming film is why these villains are fighting this Spider-man? The Spider-Man films make a point to make sure the villains are emotionally connected to Peter Parker. They aren’t just characters that Peter has to physically overcome but they have their own emotional arcs within the films. In the second trailer, Dr. Strange reveals that all the villains that have invaded the MCU died in their universes and timelines implying that what’s happening in this film would be set after their emotional arcs were over. Obviously the question of “how” is a big one, but Tom Holland’s Peter Parker has some villains in his canon that could offer some insight into why they’ve decided to go after this Spider-Man.

Let’s not forget some other intriguing questions as well:  

• What was the deal with the post-credits sting in Venom: Let There Be Carnage?

• Is Charlie Cox in the movie?

• Why won’t Sony let Andrew Garfield say he’s in the movie?

• What’s going to happen to Tom Hollands Peter Parker?

• Will this finally fulfill Sony’s dream of having a live-action Sinister Six, or will they be one short?

These questions and more will have to wait until the film is released. Until then, speculation continues to ramp up for the hotly anticipated Spider-Man. Regardless of who’s in the movie or not, it’s fun to revisit these villains and their stories because, at this point, who even knows what’s really going to happen.

Spider-Man: Freshman Year - What it Could Mean For his Future in the MCU

By Brandon T. McClure (@btmcclure @fakenerdpodcast)

Disney+ Day has come and gone. As expected, there were tons of announcements (though not as many as people expected). One of the most surprising announcements came in the form of a new Disney+ exclusive animated series called Spider-Man: Freshman Year.  This, in canon series from Marvel Studios will follow the exploits of Peter Parker’s first year as Spider-Man as he learns that with great power comes great responsibility (even though Civil War was meant to be 6 months into his career, but who’s keeping track any more). 

As Spectacular Spider-Man fans will know, Disney holds the animation/television rights to Spider-Man. This is one of the many reasons why that series was cancelled in favor of Disney XD’s Ultimate Spider-Man.  A new animated adventure for the MCU’s Peter Parker was practically inevitable when Marvel Studios began building up their animation division.  There seems to be two potential reasons why Marvel Studios is interested in pursuing this series.

Spider-Man only exists in the MCU thanks to a deal between Sony and Marvel/Disney, effectively giving Kevin Feige creative control of the solo Spider-Man movies. A deal that won’t last forever.  After Spider-Man: No Way Home, the future is unclear for the MCU’s wall crawler. There are conflicting reports if another MCU appearance was part of the deal. Behind the scenes, a deal is no doubt being worked on to continue Tom Holland's Peter Parker, but Spider-Man: Freshman Year could point to Marvel being uncertain what the future could hold for him. Potentially, Marvel Studios would be looking for other mediums to keep telling Spider-Man stories. In the event that a deal isn’t struck, this series could be a way for them to continue telling stories with the MCU Peter Parker without having to go any further into the future. Effectively leaving the door open for Sony to return to the negotiating table someday down the line.

On the other hand, this move could signal Marvel Studios confidence that a new deal will be signed and are already setting up plans for the next few years of the MCU Spider-Man. It would be beneficial for both parties to keep Spider-Man in the MCU, even if Sony insists on making other Spider-Man related films, they’re aware of the fans desire to keep seeing Tom Holland interact with the wider MCU. At this point, continuing Spider-Man’s MCU journey is impossible for Marvel to do without Sony as it’s proven to be a huge success for all parties.

Of course, realistically and optimistically speaking, the second option is far more likely then the first. Fans are not only eagerly anticipating the next Spider-Man film but holding their breath as to what the future for this character could be. By its very nature, Spider-Man: Freshman Year is probably not going to be a long series but it is nice to know that there is more MCU Spider-Man in our future, even if it is a prequel series.

CLASH OF THE MONSTERS - WEEK #4 / THE CONCLUSION

PART 4 of 4 - A Zombie, Werewolf and Vampire walk into a bar…

This month we dove into the love, fascination and strength of some classic monsters. We covered some of the history through the lens of pop culture and tried to wrap our head around the “rules” of each as we determine why each are so nightmarish.

We now discuss the battle’s outcome. Did your monster win?

BATTLE SYNOPSIS:

Its 9pm on a Saturday in October. The full moon is bright. A small corner bar in a hip area of town is super busy. Patrons crowd the bar for a drink. On one side near the entrance sits a vampire. Across the bar you find a werewolf, in the center, a zombie. The fight starts when the zombie turns and takes a fatal bite from a local…and the vampire locks the door.

THE CONCLUSION:

We had a blast hearing everyone’s predictions on who would win our Clash of the Monsters. The scenarios that were shared makes for some really great fight directions.

We also apologize for not including the Energy Vampire. We loved the argument that if Colin Robinson was in the bar, the fight would have never happened in the first place. As we have seen in What We Do in the Shadows, he can drain pretty much anything (co-workers, vampires, even trolls). You would have a very boring bar. 

Mark Proksch as Colin Robinson in What We Do In The Shadows FX

What We Do in the Shadows had a few honorable mentions. One of our favorites was that the vampire would win because it was Laszlo Cravensworth all along. He’ll yell “BAT” and fly up to the ceiling to avoid the action. Once things died out, you’d find him settle behind the bar as “just your average neighborhood bartender Jackie Daytona.” Add in the fact of him being dead, zombies couldn’t detect. Laszlo for the win?

Matt Berry as Laszlo Cravensworth aka Jackie Daytona in What We Do In The Shadows FX

Not so fast, if the ceilings were low, the War Wolf could just knock our pal down.

In the beginning, it seemed Zombies were a guarantee. With the modern zombie being able to spread so quickly, the vampire and werewolf would become overwhelmed. One zombie becomes two, two become four, four becomes eight, and so on. In researching the history of the living dead, I was sure they’d be the winner(s).  Things to think about though… In Shaun of the Dead, Shaun, Ed and team were able to win the zombie fight at the Winchester. Another plus is cue sticks would work against the vampire as well. People win?

Kate Ashfield as Liz, Simon Pegg as Shaun and Nick Frost as Ed in Shaun of the Dead

Then again, a vampire has years of experience and would most likely avoid and out smart them. 

Vampire Clean up at Fangtasia in True Blood (Kristin Bauer van Straten as Vampire Pam, Alexander Skarsgård as Vampire Eric, Stephen Moyer as Vampire Bill and Tara Buck as Ginger)

Werewolves were originally thought to be the big losers. Other than strength, they didn’t bring much to the table. They are still alive so could be detected by zombies but could they actually be infected? Much like vampires, they also have fast healing. Justin decided to go with War Wolves and the predictions started to change yet again.

Underworld: Rise of the Lycans

The conclusion comes down to simple numbers vs brains and strength. 

Zombies have the numbers, werewolves the strength and vampires the strategic knowledge. 

From our poles: 

Zombies: 17%

Werewolves 25%

Vampires: 58%

THE WINNER IS…. VAMPIRES!

CLASH OF THE MONSTERS - WEEK #1 / ZOMBIES

PART 1 of 4 - A Zombie, Werewolf and Vampire walk into a bar…

This month we are diving into the love, fascination and strength of some classic monsters. We’ll cover some of the history through the lens of pop culture and try to wrap our head around the “rules” of each as we determine why each are so nightmarish.

We’ll wrap the month discussing the battle’s outcome. Join the conversation on social media to be included in our final CHAMPION discussion. Which monster would win in the situation noted? You decide.

BATTLE SYNOPSIS:

Its 9pm on a Saturday in October. The full moon is bright. A small corner bar in a hip area of town is super busy. Patrons crowd the bar for a drink. On one side near the entrance sits a vampire. Across the bar you find a werewolf, in the center, a zombie. The fight starts when the zombie turns and takes a fatal bite from a local…and the vampire locks the door.

WEEK 1: Zombies

By Jenny Robinson

There are basically three types of zombies: Voodoo, Romero and Infected (or Running). Each have interesting histories and terrors.

It can be argued that the voodoo zombie is the “real” zombie but I disagree. In the 1938 movie White Zombie they were just slaves. Bela Lugosi’s "Murder" Legendre character is more a monster than the actual zombies. Those zombies only did what Murder commanded. Mindless dead controlled by a puppet master (or in this case a Voodoo Priest). Don’t get me wrong, I believe that the old Haitian zombies are fascinating and love how the lore dives deep into the real horrors and history of slavery. The idea of curses and enslavement makes for a horrifying story that may play out in actuality. The 1988 movie Serpent of the Rainbow even loosely dove into one of the more fascinating stores of a real life zombie Clairvius Narcisse. With things we know and tangibly have, voodoo zombies feel plausible. I also love the historical narrative. In these older tales, the zombies kill from being possessed and acting on the will of their master. The evil they inflict all comes down to to how evil the master is. So the question is.... wouldn't the master be the monster here (who is NOT a zombie)?

White Zombie - 1938


How do you kill a voodoo zombie? You don't. You kill the master.

Voodoo Zombies made before WW2 were mostly derivative of vampire stories borrowing from Dracula and similar mythology with a romantic overtone (Ouanga -Love Wanga & The Walking Dead both from 1936). During the war you'll find more movies made about Nazi's experimenting with voodoo to create super armies (King of the Zombies - 1941 & Revenge of the Zombies 1943). Movies post WW2 included some form of radiation either by weapons or space (Invisible Invaders & Plan 9 From Outer Space - 1959). There are some overlap in that timeline but I feel noting it does a great job of showing how real life events can effect the zombie lore.

Tor Johnson as Inspector Clay in Ed Wood’s Plan 9 From Outer Space

Moving on...I am just going to say it, George A. Romero’s Night of the Living Dead zombie is the TRUE zombie. On October 1st, 1968 the big screen switched from the old school voodoo slaves to cannibals exposed to radiation from a Venus space probe. This movie makes the nice guy next door into a flesh-eating ghoul. No longer is the need for a master. These "ghouls" function entirely on their own with a simple desire...bite.

George A. Romero & John Russo’s Night of the Living Dead

One similarity Romero zombies have to Voodoo zombies is that they too are borrowed from Vampires. Night of the Living Dead was influenced (and borrowed) from Richard Matheson's I Am Legend. In the book, the lead Neville is in a world where monsters come out at night. Those monsters are his neighbors, his friends. To this day, people confuse I Am Legend as being a zombie story when in actuality it is 100% a vampire tale. The idea that your neighbor can kill you also stands as a strong parallel.

Night of the Living Dead spawned a ton of sequels, remakes and spin offs. Romero was able to dive into new story directions. Moving into the 1970's, the zombie genre also gained speed feeding off of great horror movies like The Exorcist and Texas Chainsaw Massacre. This gave brith to zombie hoards and even "smart" zombies.

The Romero Zombie is pretty simplistic. They are dead. They multiply by biting and killing. They can only be killed by destroying the brain.

BRRRRRAAAAAAINS!!!!!!!

Now we get into the complicated legal stuff. Romero actually co-wrote Night of the Living Dead with John "Jack" Russo. After some legal back-and-forth, Romero lost the rights to "Living Dead" which was awarded to Russo (like Return of the “Living Dead”). As a fan, no one considers Russo's "Living Dead" actually being part of "the dead" series. Romero went on to do the "of the dead" movies. Semantics.


What does that have to do with brains you ask? Russo's director in Return of the Living Dead hinted at the idea that the undead felt the need because it somehow made them feel better by easing their pain. In my honest opinion, I feel that is dumb (sorry!). Romero appears to never be a fan of that idea as well.

The cool part of Romero and his take on the zombie is that he believed that the zombie was not the scariest monster. That title fell on us. This was a huge inspiration for the more recent Robert Kirkman The Walking Dead comic series & AMC show. Kirkman tells a story where the zombies are more incontinent threats over the threat of humans trying to survive. The humans do WAY more damage than a walker ever could. TWD zombie is as close to the old school Romero zombie as you can get. They are not smart. They can't run. They decompose. They have no conscious objective. They just eat. As with all things though, there was some growth. Instead of radiation from space, everyone is already a zombie. Once you die, you always come back. WHOA!

Rick Grimes in The Walking Dead - Issue 24 / Robert Kirkman + Charlie Adler

So what happens if you take a Romero Zombie and apply the world as we know it now? Much like the 1940-1950's movies, zombies continue to adapt to the headlines and now we have RUNNING ZOMBIES!

These may be my absolute favorite. Running Zombies are hybrids of Romero Zombies but more advanced.

I blame Danny Boyle.

In 2002 we were introduced to a new apocalyptic world in 28 Days Later. The premiss is that an experimental drug (again much like the 2007 remake of the vampire movie I Am Legend) that channels the reaction of rage is released. The world becomes INFECTED. That single word is the definition of a Running Zombie. With every bite the contagion spreads. Yet, that is not what makes a new “running” zombie it's own. An infection that acts like a virus and urges the host to spread. When you add Rage to this scenario, we now have fast, running and aggressive zombies…OMG.

Cillian Murphy as Jim in 28 Days Later

28 Days Later has by far done the best job with "Running Zombies” to date but there are some honorable mentions. Zack Snyder's 2004 remake of Dawn of the Dead would make anyone want to stay home and avoid an Orange Julius. The poorly done 2013 World War Z (lame attempt of an awesome Max Brooks novel) also had this mindset but included a hive mind mentality with swarms and CGI walls of running bitters.

Hive attack in World War Z

Whether a zombie has a reason or origin story has become secondary. Sometime it's cool to figure out "what happened" when looking into the world of the dead. When it comes down to it though, the game of survival is way more entertaining and scary.

So what did we learn?

VOODOO ZOMBIES

How to NOT be a zombie: avoid voodoo priests poisons.

How to KILL a zombie: kill the human master

Weakness: the human master

ROMERO ZOMBIES

How to NOT be a zombie: don't get bit.

*Disclaimer: unless we are talking Kirkman's TWD - then you're screwed.

How to KILL a zombie: destroy the brain (double tap when possible)

Weakness: speed, clumsy, decays and may be missing eaten parts

RUNNING ZOMBIES

How to NOT be a zombie: don't get bit or don't get infected

How to KILL a zombie: destroy the brain (double tap when possible)

Weakness: still trying to figure that one out YOUZERS!

Conclusion to "A Zombie, Werewolf and Vampire walk into a bar…"

Zombies have a HUGE advantage: NUMBERS. If that first bite was fatal, you now have 2 zombies who can quickly become 4, then 8 then 16. I don't see the vampire or the werewolf standing a chance if overwhelmed. But then again, can a werewolf be infected? And since the vampire is already dead, does it matter?

Stay tuned for the opposing arguments.

Honorable mentions:

Sean of the Dead 2004 Comedy - Edgar Wright is always right IMHO. This is the classic Romero zombie in a hilarious adventure staring Simon Pegg and Nick Frost. "Take car. Go to Mum's. Kill Phil—"Sorry"—grab Liz, go to the Winchester, have a nice cold pint, and wait for all of this to blow over."

World War Z 2006 Book - Max Brooks does an awesome job of "where were you when the Zombie Apocalypse happened” as he recounts various stories of the zombie war. The book is nothing like the Brad Pitt movie.

Train to Busan 2016 Horror - I have always been a big fan of Korean horror movies. This one takes the Running Zombie idea and amps it up placing you in a claustrophobic environment of a train to watch how fast one infected becomes many.

Dead of Night Series Books - Jonathan Maberry's series show one of the fast spreading zombie plagues through the eyes of interesting spectators. It's a fast page turner that then links into some of his other great series (Joe Ledger and Rot & Ruin).

Slither 2006 - James Gunn has a way of making serious things funny. Not sure how to categorize this one. Technically a gory horror but has laugh out loud moments. Add in a cast including Nathan Fillion and Michael Rooker, you're guaranteed a good time. Plus it revisits that old "Alien" hive mind idea of those earlier Plan 9 From Outer Space plots.

Planet Terror 2007 - Robert Rodriguez did not disappoint us with his vampires in From Dusk Til Dawn and he stays true in this. Part of the Quentin Tarantino Grindhouse movies, this is all the fun you can expect from a zombie movie. Thumbs up to Rose McGowen's character's gun leg. Awesome.


Wyrmwood 2014 - An Atomic Geekdom favorite. This is zombies meets Mad Max. It has an epic female lead Brooke (played by Bianca Bradey).

Evil Dead 1980 - It's Sam Rami with Bruce Campbell about the book of the Dead. If you haven't seen this, you should ask yourself "what have i done with my life?. It's a must.

Analyzing the Daniel Craig James Bond Film

By Brandon T. McClure (@btmcclure @fakenerdpodcast)

“The name’s Bond, James Bond” is one of the most iconic film lines of all time.  First uttered by Sean Connery in Dr. No, it has been said by more than 6 actors, throughout more than 24 films.  Very few characters have had the lasting impact and staying power that James Bond has had in cinema. Each actor has brought a new element to the long running franchise but Daniel Craig may have made the greatest contribution to the franchise since Sean Connery.

Regardless of what fan theories will have you believe, Sean Connery, George Lazenby, Roger Moore, Timothy Dalton and Pierce Brosnan are meant to be the same James Bond.  James Bond isn’t a time lord and the name “James Bond” isn’t meant to be a codename.  While Daniel Craig’s Bond is familiar, he’s not the same man as the others, and in many ways, he can’t be. After Die Another Day was released, and in no small part thanks to the Austin Powers franchise (a very popular James Bond parody), Eon Productions, the production company that owns the rights to Bond, felt that the character should go in another direction. So instead of moving forward with a fifth Pierce Brosnan film, they recast the character and decided to tell the story of how he became 007, with Casino Royale.

Le Chiffree played by Mads Mikkelsen, Felix Leiter played by Jeffrey Wright, Madame Wu played by Tsai Chin and Jame Bond played by Daniel Craig in Casino Royal 2006

Casino Royale was a huge shift for the franchise when it was released in 2006. The film removed much of the tropes that had become a huge staple to the franchise: no over the top gadgets, no over the top action sequences and for the first time since On Her Majesty’s Secret Service, Bond fell in love.  For the first time in a long time, James Bond was a more relatable human character.  The producers wanted the film to be more realistic and bring Bond into a post Jason Bourne world.  Just six months before Die Another Day was released, The Bourne Identity redefined the spy genre that had been dominated by James Bond for many decades. Audiences were clearly hungry for this new take on the spy genre and not all that interested in Bond surfing a tidal wave to escape a space laser.

Sean Connery as James Bond in Thunderball 1965

For many years, the Bond franchise were the spy films to beat.  Tons of spy movies tried to copy the Bond formula to no success (The MCU currently sits in a similar place).  In many ways the Mission: Impossible and Kingsman films owe something to James Bond, but what happens when the student surpasses the master?  Daniel Craig’s tenure as James Bond has been the best received since Sean Connery in the 60s but they have clearly been influenced by other films. For example; The Bourne Trilogy, the last four Mission: Impossible films and, even The Dark Knight.  They all have played a hand in shaping the last four James Bond films.

Javier Bardem and Daniel Craig in Spectre 2015

Much like a long running comic book universe, James Bond had a “sliding scale continuity”, which allowed him to remain the same age for more than 50 years.  Major characters would remain the same (like M or Q), and sometimes they would call back to a previous film adventure. An example like when Roger Moore visited the grave of Bond’s wife who was killed in On Her Majesty’s Secret Service.  While loose, there was a continuity for long-time fans, but each adventure was standalone so newer audiences could always find a way into the franchise. Quantum of Solace was the first film to break that trend, following up a loose end from the end of Casino Royale.  While Skyfall brought Bond “back to basics” in some ways, it’s sequel Spectre decided to run with a “it has all been connected to Spectre” plot-line, leaving Bond in a place where he’s never been before: locked in a set continuity. 

As it stands, the Bond franchise seems to have limited options in regards to moving forward.  It’s unlikely they’ll be able to move on from the Craig era as they have before.  So what could be next for James Bond?  Eon Productions has shown interest in spin-off films before, with Haley Berry’s Jinx from Die Another Day, moving forward with a new 00 agent or even Lashana Lynch continuing as the new 007 is an option.  If they decide not to go that route then another complete reboot would be the next best option.  Recasting Bond is nothing new but continuing in the manner they previously did, went out the window by the time Spectre rolled around.  Casting a young up and coming actor (Henry Golding for Bond) and setting it in a different time period and could give the franchise the fresh perspective they’ve been chasing.

Halle Barry as Jinx & Pierce Brosnan as James bond in Die Another Day 2002

The final option on the table would be to just let the franchise rest.  This is the most unlikely option since Bond is really the only thing that Barbara Broccoli and Eon Productions have, but it might ultimately be their best option.  They’ve just been chasing the success of other spy franchises since 2006, and maybe letting the franchise lie for a few years and waiting for the right idea to come along is what Bond needs.  Bond is a relic of the Cold War and has been struggling to survive in the modern era for more than 20 years (that’s the point of Skyfall), so perhaps it’s time to let it go.

Daniel Craig as James Bond n No Time To Die 2021

FUN FACTS:

• George Lazenby and Timothy Dalton were both attempts to bring the character more in line with his book counterpart, but Craig is the only one to do it successfully.  Guess audiences weren’t ready.

• Lazenby and Dalton were also the second choices to play the character and were only cast because their first choices, Roger Moore and Pierce Brosnan were doing successful TV shows. When Lazenby and Dalton didn’t reprise the role, the TV shows were cancelled and Roger Moore and Pierce Brosnan would go on to play the role anyway

Movie Review / Prisoners of the Ghostland

MOVIE: Prisoners Of The Ghostlands

STARRING: Nicolas Cage, Sofia Boutella, Bill Moseley, Teresa Ruiz, Imogen PottsNick Cassavetes, Takato Yonemoto, Kanon Nawata, Tak Sakaguchi, Lorena Kotô

RELEASE DATE: September 17th, 2021

WHERE TO WATCH: Theaters / VOD Rental ( Amazon Prime, Apple, Google Play )

By Justin Pomerville (2 Broke Geeks)

Nick Cassavetes and Nicolas Cage in PRISONERS OF THE GHOSTLAND, Courtesy of Mongrel Media

Back again with the newest Nic Cage film, Prisoners of the Ghostland. The last two films I have reviewed of his had been 50/50 so far, with Willy's Wonderland being less than great, and Pig being one of the best films he has put out since Mandy. So, where will Prisoners of the Ghostland sit upon Justin's self-made "Nic Gauge"?

The plot of the film is fairly simple when it's described to you; Nic Cage (whose character's name is Hero in the cast list) is imprisoned for robbing a bank and being a part of a shooting in the bank. The Governor (played by Bill Mosely) makes a deal with Cage; go and save The Governor's adopted granddaughter, Bernice (played by Sofia Boutella), from The Ghostland. If so, Cage will be set free. To ensure that she is returned safely and unharmed, Cage has to wear a leather onesie that has bombs attached to each wrist, the neck, and one on each testicle. Yup, you read that right.

Sofia Boutella in PRISONERS OF THE GHOSTLAND, Courtesy of Mongrel Media

The overall package of this movie is interesting. There are two locations within the entire film, Samuari Town and The Ghostland. Both look really interesting, but the story provides extremely little information about the places. Samurai Town is a small town that not only has samurai running around, but also cowboys and geishas. The Ghostland seems to be a wasteland in a junkyard that everyone else lives in. Why do they people live there? I'm not sure.

Scene from PRISONERS OF THE GHOSTLAND, Courtesy of Mongrel Media

This film feels like there is a lot of plot that was cut out for unknown reasons. It felt disjointed and everything kind of just happens too easily for Hero. Even when some of his costume bombs explode (I'll let you guess which ones), they just feel like a minor inconvenience for him. Bernice is supposed to have her own path of redemption when you meet her, but it does not actually come across very well.

I commend this film for being pretty insane. I have not seen any other film from director Sion Sono, but I have heard these violent and bizarre films are his kind of thing. But this film felt very empty in terms of dialogue and character development. Was it better than Willy's Wonderland? Yes, but only by a small margin because of how insane Cage acts in this film. He goes nuts.

So, if you want to hear Cage yell "Hiya" and "My Testicle", then this is the movie for you.

Check out Justin’s other “Cage” reviews at www.atomicgeekdom.com and stay tuned for his next “Nic Gauge”.

Interview / Ken Knudtsen's "My Monkey's Name is Jennifer" Kickstarter

Ken Knudtsen is a recently relocated NY writer/artist (Wolverine) and the creator of My Monkey's Name is Jennifer (SLG Publishing). He has also worked on animation for projects developed by Comedy Central, Robert Reich, and PBS. Feel free to discuss with him the awesomeness of Huey Lewis & the News, Fast Five, John Wick, and Aquaman at your earliest convenience.

CREATOR: Ken Knudtsen @kenknudtsen

LAUNCH DATE: September 13th, 2021

LAUCH TIME: 9am EST

KICKSTARTER: My Monkey’s Name is Jennifer

Jenny and Justin sit down with creator Ken Knudtsen to discuss bringing together over 200 pages of crazy monkey adventures to both new and old fans through his new Kickstarter campaign.

Ken’s humor fits well in our Atomic Geekdom world. After reading a review by Peter David (AQUAMAN, HULK, SPIDER-MAN 2099, STAR TREK) where he is quoted “It's utterly demented”, we wanted in. We love creators who’s passion is influenced by things we too love and are very excited to see the success of this kickstarter.

For highlights from our interview, please check out our youtube coverage below, followed by audio to the full interview.

We hope that you enjoy as much as we have.

“DAMN YOU! I’m a crazy monkey!”

FOUR EYES REVIEW / Pig

Welcome back to another “Four Eyes” review. We take this moment to share 2 opinions on a single geek topic.

Below both Justin and Jenny will each dive into what they thought about Nicolas Cage’s movie Pig. Join us for an interesting recap.

Let us know your thoughts in the comments or on social media using #foureyesreview

MOVIE: Pig

STARRING: Nicolas Cage, Alex Wolff, Adam Arkin

RELEASE DATE: July 16th, 2021

WHERE TO WATCH (as of September 2021): Theaters / VOD Rental on Amazon Prime - slatted for streaming later on Hulu

FROM JUSTIN POMERVILLE:

The last time I talked about Nicolas Cage, it was about how I was not a fan of Willy’s Wonderland and if you are interested in the reasons, please go check out the Four Eyes Review.

This time, I’m here to talk about his latest feature from Neon, Pig.

Directed by Michael Snaroski in what seems to be his first big feature film, Pig is the story of a master chef, Rob (Nicolas Cage), living in the seclusion of the woods with his truffle sniffing pig. One night, men break into Rob’s cabin and take the pig. Rob now must go back into civilization with the reluctant help of Amir, played by Alex Wolff (Hereditary, Jumanji films).

From the trailer, this film felt like it would be an intense action style flick that follows a similar plot like John Wick. On the surface, that is sort of true but his film is so much deeper and meaningful than that. Throughout the hour and a half runtime, you are taken on an emotional journey where Cage hones in on his more serious acting techniques. There is no over-the-top theatrics or crazy Nic Cage moments that people gif into oblivion. 

This is just a story about loss and holding onto the things we love before they're gone. Learning to be happy with yourself and with what you do. Knowing that you are living to your full potential without sacrificing to make everyone else happy. 

This film is an emotional journey and I’m not afraid to admit that I cried when it finished. We are so used to Cage being attached to so many insane films over the years, that we forget how much of an amazing actor he really is. I hope that down the road, he does more projects like these. I highly recommend you see this film if you can.

Nicolas Cage as Rob in Pig

FROM JENNY ROBINSON:

I can safely say that amongst friends, everyone knows I am not the biggest Nick Cage fan. Don’t get me wrong, I think he’s a tremendously talented actor but his choice in roles sometimes leaves me less than excited. He seems to thrive in the SUPER strange and eclectic movies (e.g. Color Out of Space, Mandy, Willy’s Wonderland), yet I enjoy the more direct characters (e.g. Raising Arizona or Leaving Las Vegas). I am not sure where Pig lands in those black and white categories. It may need to be placed within those vast shades of grey that fall in-between. 

As you may have guessed, I did not rush out to see Pig. “Why do I need to see John Wick but with Nicolas Cage and a Pig instead of Keanu and a puppy?” is what went through my mind. It takes a lot to motivate me to jump for Cage and after what felt like a million messages telling me I had to watch this, I finally did.

It was way better than I anticipated. The reason is that instead of a violent crime movie the trailers had me believe, it was more just a sad accumulation of a mysterious man’s life and his beloved pig. The violence almost feels out of place in spots where the determination of the character was a better fit throughout. 

Nicolas Cage has some top notch emotional scenes throughout the movie. Some moments had me (as the audience) relating intensely to his despair. It’s a very sad story about rejection and forgiving ones self even if ultimately leading to tragic heartache. The only happy ending this story left me with was similar to ripping the bandaid off giving a potential chance to heal. This applies for all parties involved. 

That being said, this movie was weird but Cage is weird. 

I also feel that Alex Wolff steals the show. His character Amir is dramatically more relatable and empathetic than Cage’s Robin Feld. Following Amir’s struggle for respect (in his fathers eyes) brought such a secondary layer to the movie. Adam Arkin’s portrayal of Amir’s father Darius also just doubles down on the emotional and unexpected reaction of what deceptively appears to be cookie-cutter characters yet are much more complex. 

So in summary, I give this a thumbs up. It’s not your average Nicolas Cage film. It’s emotional and way more than just about a pig.

Rob played by Nicolas Cage and Amir played by Alex Wolff