The dislike for Dan DiDio is so strong that now film industry people are reporting on it!

The problem isn’t just that, under DiDio’s leadership, fanboys are disappointed with the directions of Batman, Superman, Wonder Woman and other characters. (How dopey of DiDio to come out with a new series Decisions this September where the superheroes take political stands timed to the election.) Little wonder that fanboys are selling “Dan DiDio Must Die” t-shirts. But also average sales of the DCU line are down more than 20% from a year ago, and DiDio has lost a big chunk of existing readers in a year while deliberately failing to reach out to new ones.

Finally got some time to play “Penny Arcade: On the Rain-Slick Precipice of Darkness.” Basically the game has two major problems. The first is that it is way too simple for an RPG and lacks no depth. I mean second to story, depth/customization is the most important part of an RPG. I’m shocked this was so basic.

The second problem is that if you are normal and don’t own an HD TV then the font is too small/blurry to read. This problem has basically made the game unplayable. I can’t read the dialog or narration boxes and as a result I’m missing all the humor (which is the best part of the game).

Click this link to see the first quick glimpse of Two-Face from “Dark Knight.”

Saw “The Incredible Hulk” and I enjoyed it a lot more than I thought it would. The best way to describe it is just sub out Jason Borne for Bruce Banner and then add in an occasional green monster who smashes things. What surprised me most about the movie was just how close my plot guessing based off the trailers was. I got several key points wrong (partially because the scenes in the trailers weren’t even in the movie) but I got the majority of it right.

This clip alone shows just how hilarious and great of an actor Edward Norton is.

Apparently there have been internet roomers that Marvel has been lowballing Jon Favreau in regards to “Iron Man 2” but Nikki Finke says that’s not true:

I learned this morning that Marvel Studios boss David Maisel very recently put out an offer to Jon Favreau to direct the sequel and that the offer is “definitely” richer than what the helmer received for the original.  Even so, the negotiation has only just begun. So all that Internet blather about how Marvel doesn’t want to bring back Favreau because the studio is lowballing him is just b.s. As an insider told me, “They’re not paying him the same wage. They’re definitely paying him a higher fee to direct this one. What, do people think Marvel is stupid? Of course, the movie was successful, so they’re offering him more.”

“Iron Man 2″ was announced for May 2010, but apparently John Favreau isn’t too happy about that. He did a brief rant on his myspace page explained that neither he nor Robert Downey Jr. were

I am concerned, however, about the announced release date of April 2010. Neither Robert nor I were consulted about this and we are both concerned about how realistic the date is in light of the fact that we have no script, story or even writers hired yet. This genre of movie is best when it is done thoughtfully and with plenty of preparation.

In this new trailer for “Hulk” you can see Tony Stark at the very beginning.

I’m sure by now EVERYONE has seen the overhaul at Newsarama. In terms of aesthetics its definitely a vast improvement but in functionality I’m not so sure. It’s harder to find what you are looking for and yeah its nice to have a pretty site but its never good to have a complex or confusing structure. Not that it really matters because the Marvel and DC fanboys will never stop going there.

I just saw James Kochalka’s strip for yesterday (the first two panels appear above) and it completely clicked with me. His view on his art/storytelling is exactly the same way I see writing. Being a writing isn’t about being published or collecting a paycheck (though those things are very nice). A writer is someone who writes because they have to.

What happens is you get like a bazillion ideas, most of them really bad or really silly. But then out of nowhere you get a good idea and it kinda makes a nest in your brain. The idea lives in that nests and grows and grows and grows. It starts to drive you crazy and eats up all your other thoughts so that sometimes its hard to focus on anything but that idea.

So the only way to get rid of the idea is to write it out. Of course it’s a vicious cycle because right around the time you nearly clear the idea out of your head, another good idea forms a nest and festers until you sit down and write it out too.

Metropolitan Museum of Art’s new exhibit: “Superheroes: Fashion and Fantasy” opens tomorrow and runs till September 1st. It has costumes wore by actors in movies as well as “real” costumes made by designers like Versace, Armani, and Docle & Gabbana.

The exhibition features approximately 60 ensembles including movie costumes, avant-garde haute couture, and high-performance sportswear to reveal how the superhero serves as the ultimate metaphor for fashion and its ability to empower and transform the human body.

Marvel announced this morning that “The Avengers” will hit the big screen in July 2011 as will “Captain America” in May 2011. Other previously announced films still in the works include “Punisher: War Zone” (Dec. 2008), “X-Men Origins: Wolverine” (May 2009), Iron Man 2 (2010), Thor (2010), and Ant-Man (2010).

So from this we can conclude that “The Avengers” movie will consist of the cast defined in the first four issues of the series: Captain America, Iron Man, Hulk, Thor, Ant-Man, and Wasp. It should be interesting to see if Hulk, Sub-Mariner, or Loki end up as the main villain of the movie.

Better watch the Jokerized version of the “Dark Knight” trailer before it’s yanked.

According to Nikki Finke’s math, “Iron Man” made over $200 million this weekend!

With this addition, the total estimated box office is $104,250,000. The estimated international box office for the weekend is $96,750,000 from 57 territories. The total combined estimated global box office for Marvel Studios’ Iron Man is $201,000,000.

Not only are those numbers insane (most box office gurus were saying it would only make around $70 million), but its second highest opening for a non-sequel (The first being “Spider-Man” which made over $140 million).

Today is Free Comic Book Day, the day when many comic readers travel to multiple stores just to get free comics. So I plead to you, instead of getting just that reprint of “All Star Superman” or the “Xmen” book, consider picking up a copy of Owly or Amelia Rules and giving it away to a kid who isn’t already a comic reader. Think of today more as “bring in new readers day” and do your best to help create the future generation of readers.

The problem with “The Incredible Hulk” trailers is that they show the whole movie. In fact, based on the two trailers I’ve put together a plot breakdown. Now I don’t know for sure what is going to happen in the movie, so nothing below is an actual spoiler, just speculation based on the trailers. However beware… (Read on …)

Saw an 8p.m. show of “Iron Man” last night. It was really good. What made the movie such a success is that it was funny without dropping down to that campy-tone that made you roll your eyes in X-Men 3, Spider-Man 3, or the Fantastic Four movies.

Robert Downey Jr. does a terrific Tony Stark. Previously, I would have said Harry in “Kiss Kiss Bang Bang” has been his best/funniest role, but he and Tony were meant to be. I mean he does these rapid fire one-liners and makes them WORK. It’s so much fun.

Then the action, pacing, and overall story may not be the greatest thing since slice bread, but they get the job done without lagging. So if you are looking for an entertaining big-summer-movie then definitely go see “Iron Man.”

“Watchmen” is holding a contest that could earn you a cameo in the final film. What they want is for people to make a commercial for Veidt Enterprise and to upload it here (there are also logos and graphics).

To get started, download the standard definition and/or high definition assets from the links below, and then shoot your own original TV commercial that advertises one of the products! Remember, the movie is set in 1985, so TV commercials should be in 4:3 aspect ratio (so it looks like standard TV, not widescreen) and they should be either 15, 30 or 60 seconds in length. The products are all made by “Veidt Enterprises,” and you can download the product logos for your use as well.

At Friday evening’s “CBLDF Presents An Evening with Neil Gaiman,” the guest of honor began the evening with a surprise announcement: the Gordon Lee case has been dismissed.

Look who is listed as exhibiting at SPX… Me!

I don’t have event fatigue. I just wish the big two would incorporate more character driven story telling. At least with Marvel I understand the big mega-plots. DC just confuses me and makes no sense.

Encase you missed these last week, these are still from Frank Miller’s “Will Eisner’s “The Spirit.”

Holy crap! Marvel Boy’s predictions from last week were apparently true. Marvel sent out a press release today announcing that Joe Quesada is no longer the editor and chief of Marvel Comics. NY Times ran the following article:

In a move designed to enhance its existing management team, Marvel Enterprises, Inc. (NYSE:MVL - News) announced a strategic re-alignment of existing management to position the Company for the next phase of growth. Editor and Chief Joe Quesada will be shifting into a non-executive role with the new title of “Chief Marketing Officer.”

I have the full press release after the break, of course no word yet on who will be replacing him. (Read on …)

In a huge huge case, the heirs to Superman co-creator Jerry Siegel were awarded yesterday the rights to Action Comics Vol. 1. Issue 1. This is a big mess and and of course everyone is scratching their heads saying “What does this mean for the Superman” I can’t answer that for you because I’m not a law-guy, but a great FAQ to check out can be found here which states the following:

Do the Siegels have creative control over Superman comics?

A: No. The court explains, quoting an earlier case, that “each co-owner has an independent right to use or license the use of the copyright. . . . A co-owner of a copyright must account to other co-owners for any profits he earns from licensing or use of the copyright.” (p. 66) However, if the Shuster heirs regain copyright in a few years, then the future of Superman comics gets rather complicated, since all domestic copyright in the Action Comics #1 material & its derivative works will vest in the two families.

It’s taken decades, but its nice to know that for once a publisher is getting screwed instead of the creators.

Make sure you mark your calendars and plan on attending this year’s SPX! I’ll be there.

Guess who will be attending SPX to premier their first graphic novel.

I was under the impression that comics were either mainstream or borderline mainstream. So I was shocked when I used the term “Graphic Novel” with two different people this past week and neither knew what it was. The first person was 24, smart, very into pop-culture, and she thought “Graphic Novel” was something related to porn. The second person was 25, absolutely loves “Heroes” as well as “Lost” and he thought a “Graphic Novel” was a very gore-filled book.

Both incidents made me very sad.

I’ll be the one to say it. I just don’t like Ben Templesmith’s artwork. It’s always a struggle to see whatever the heck it is he’s drawn because everything is all muted and bleeds together.

Watched “Gremlins” 1 & 2 over the weekend (GREAT movies!) but at the same time they made me sad. In the first film, Billy the main character, is all into drawing and wants to make comics when he grows up. However in the second film he’s all grown up and working as an architect with no mention of his dreams to be a comic book creator.

Ain’t It Cool News is reporting that Thomas Sangster, who you probably recognize from “Doctor Who” or “Love Actually,” has been cast as Tin Tin in the new “Tin Tin” movie.

Today’s Washington Post did a spread on comics in their Book Section. It includes two articles. The first entitled “The Fantastic One” and is a feature about Jack Kirby. The second is called “Horror! Suspense! Censorship!” and is a review about book about an anti-comics movement in the 50’s (The picture above is clickable so you can read the articles that way or click the links which will make you register at the newspapers site before you can read the articles).

It’s always nice to see comics in the mainstream media, but nether article was really about how comics changed America, which is what the front cover of the book sections suggest the articles are about. As a result, I was very disappointed and wish The Washington Post had actually done a feature on the topic it claimed it was featuring.

This is just some random art I came across that I really liked.

I finally got around to watching the new Hulk trailer and I was disappointed. My problem with it was that it felt forced. It tried too hard to make the movie look like a big summer tent pole movie without actually being one. Guess we may end up getting another “Ghost Rider” or “Fantastic Four” with this franchise re-launch as opposed to a “Spider-Man 2″ or “X-men 2.”

I’m really enjoying the new “Spectacular Spider-Man” cartoon. It’s fate is being held in limbo since Kids WB is no more, so we may only get 22 episodes of the show, but I really hope we get more. Not only is it fun and Spider-Man, but they cram soooo much into each episode. You watch it and feel like you’re actually getting story. Plus from the very first episode they started laying foundations for character arcs and future villians and its nice to have a modern cartoon that has continuity.

Encase you missed them, the above pics are the recently released “Watchmen” pictures.

Did you hear about how Edward Norton and Marvel are bashing heads over the final cut of “Incredible Hulk?”

“There’s a lot of posturing going on between Edward’s camp and Marvel over how you edit the final version.” Sources also tell me that, starting last night and continuing at least throughout today, the actor will be holed up with Marvel Studios chairman David Maisel, Marvel Studios president of production Kevin Feige, and director Louis Leterrier to try to “reach an amicable resolution” to this $150+ million film feud.

Looks like “Scott Pilgrim” may be getting the full feature treatment. Edgar Wrigth (“Hot Fuzz” “Sean of the Dead”) is set to direct, while Michael Cera is in talks to star in the big screen adaptation.

Cera and Wright had mutual admiration for each other’s work, which manifested itself when Wright stepped in to act alongside Cera and Jonah Hill in a viral promo for “Superbad”; Wright acted as a snarky interviewer to an exasperated Cera and Hill. The studio is eyeing a fall start.

From a writing standpoint “Scott Pilgrim” is a hard property to adapt because the overall story is being told in seven volumes. On one hand its hard to squeeze all seven volumes into one movie, but at the same time they almost have to do that because there won’t be much of a pay off for a movie audience if Scott Pilgrim only takes on 2 of Ramona’s seven evil boyfriends.

If you’re on the west coast here’s an excellent chance to meet Tim Sale during the San Fransisco Pop Candy meet up.

It’s true. “Bone” my all time favorite comic book series has been optioned by Warner Brothers. Jeff Smith, the comics creator had this to say about it:

The whole thing happened very quickly last Friday night. Warners called and made us a real offer, it was as simple as that.  They stated their seriousness to stay true to the books, and after a couple of back and forths, the whole thing was over in an hour and a half. Vijaya and I had a celebratory drink and went to bed. We woke up Saturday morning to find the internet on fire!