'Worlds of DC' THREAD

[verslibre]

Black Adam is upgraded to full development (unsubstantiated Feige rumor notwithstanding), with The Shallows director Jaume Collet-Serra attached.

https://twitter.com/Luiz_Fernando_J/status/1137086713027878912

Sweet! I'm hoping Johnson stays signed on to star. I have a weird feeling about that. He's been tapped to be Black Adam forever so I hope DC/WB is serious and begins mapping The Rock's film out or risk losing him. Henry, in all likelihood, is out as Superman but if Johnson stays and Black Adam does his part in the Shazam universe then that's where the 1% chance of Henry coming back comes into play.

Since WB is skipping Hall H this year, I figured they'd throw out a few teasers, like Patty's WW84 poster reveal and the announcement of Collet-Serra. Someone did point out that production for Black Adam has always been scheduled for the first part of 2020, and that has not changed. So it's looking good. A movie with DJ as Black Adam that also introduces Hawkman as well as Stargirl? Yes, please.

[verslibre]

One of my favorite books is Superman: And the Legion of Superheros with the team of Johns and Frank. Great book all around. An underrated run that highlights Superman's importance to the past, future and present. A strong characterization.

I loved the eff out of LoSH when Giffen was on it. The Great Darkness Saga is another of my favorite storylines. DARKSEID IS!

[verslibre]

Okay, there's some concern lately about a second season of Swamp Thing, due to a management snafu. I'm not going to worry about that now.

What I am going to say is that the first two episodes of Swamp Thing are FUCKING AWESOME.

R-rated? Check. There's profanity and gore. Profanity's negligible, but it would feel incomplete without the latter.

Faithful to the source material? Affirmative.

VFX? For the most part, spot on. Nothing that's as shaky as some stuff I've seen on Flash or Arrow. Then again, the gloominess of the swamplands yields a huge advantage when coupled with deft cinematography and rich sound editing. But they do the smart thing and combine practical and digital, and Swamp Thing himself looks so page-accurate, it's scary. No solid-plate prosthetics this time. We barely only glimpse what he can do by the end of the second episode, and it's more than enough. Swamp Thing isn't a being so much as a force, and even Batman had to sweet-talk him into reversing his conversion of Gotham into a gargantuan weed patch in Alan Moore's legendary run.

Abby Arcane is played by Crystal Reed, who in my book is a stone fox. But unlike some higher profile stars in theatrical films, Crystal can act.

The second episode introduced Kevin Durand (The Strain) as Jason Woodrue, aka The Floronic Man. Can't wait to see what's in store.

[Monker]

Okay, there's some concern lately about a second season of Swamp Thing, due to a management snafu. I'm not going to worry about that now.

What I am going to say is that the first two episodes of Swamp Thing are FUCKING AWESOME.

R-rated? Check. There's profanity and gore. Profanity's negligible, but it would feel incomplete without the latter.

Faithful to the source material? Affirmative.

VFX? For the most part, spot on. Nothing that's as shaky as some stuff I've seen on Flash or Arrow. Then again, the gloominess of the swamplands yields a huge advantage when coupled with deft cinematography and rich sound editing. But they do the smart thing and combine practical and digital, and Swamp Thing himself looks so page-accurate, it's scary. No solid-plate prosthetics this time. We barely only glimpse what he can do by the end of the second episode, and it's more than enough. Swamp Thing isn't a being so much as a force, and even Batman had to sweet-talk him into reversing his conversion of Gotham into a gargantuan weed patch in Alan Moore's legendary run.

Abby Arcane is played by Crystal Reed, who in my book is a stone fox. But unlike some higher profile stars in theatrical films, Crystal can act.

The second episode introduced Kevin Durand (The Strain) as Jason Woodrue, aka The Floronic Man. Can't wait to see what's in store.

This was supposed to be one of their better shows, and now it's canceled. Is their streaming service even profitable?

[TotoStu]

I haven't gotten around to Swamp Thing yet - but I absolutely hated Teen Titans.

[Monker]

I haven't gotten around to Swamp Thing yet - but I absolutely hated Teen Titans.

And, Titans was the other show that was supposed to carry the streaming service. It seems to me that the DC streaming service was not very well planned or executed. Maybe you all will get lucky and a broader WB streaming service can release some DC shows...But, IMO, the DC streaming service is going to die soon. Too many mistakes (Swamp Thing) and poor decisions (not enough content to get the general public excited about) led to few subscribers and low/no profit.

[verslibre]

Doom Patrol has gotten way more raves than Titans, actually. Likewise for Swamp Thing's first two episodes.

Swamp Thing's thirteen episodes got trimmed to ten, followed by the trades reporting a second season has been cancelled, with the only reason given being a paltry tax break courtesy of the state of NC. Now NC has said no, they knew what it was going to be. Stargirl is still in production, and so is the second season of Titans, so it's obviously not a money issue.

My guess is AT&T is ordering a restructuring; the trades then reported a comprehensive WarnerMedia streaming platform is being prepared, one that will include HBO and other pay services — including DC Universe.

But that still doesn't explain the situation with Swamp Thing, and even James Wan is in the dark about it, as you can see by his Instagram post yesterday:

[verslibre]

I haven't gotten around to Swamp Thing yet - but I absolutely hated Teen Titans.

And, Titans was the other show that was supposed to carry the streaming service. It seems to me that the DC streaming service was not very well planned or executed. Maybe you all will get lucky and a broader WB streaming service can release some DC shows...But, IMO, the DC streaming service is going to die soon. Too many mistakes (Swamp Thing) and poor decisions (not enough content to get the general public excited about) led to few subscribers and low/no profit.

How exactly is Swamp Thing a mistake? Absolutely one of the characters that most deserved a proper revisit. The first two episodes are excellent.

Here's what I think it is: The DCU shows aren't "bingeable." They're doing them a week at a time, like a network show. This is because not every episode was done when they premiered. Today, people have less patience than ever, and with so many networks and pay services — and FREE content — they should have just completed the shows first and made them bingeable.

[Monker]

How exactly is Swamp Thing a mistake? Absolutely one of the characters that most deserved a proper revisit. The first two episodes are excellent.

Was it not cancelled because the tax advantage from the state was not near what they thought it was going to be? That caused the series to be millions of dollars over budget and too expensive to continue.

[/quote]Here's what I think it is: The DCU shows aren't "bingeable." They're doing them a week at a time, like a network show. This is becuase not every episode was done when they premiered. Today, people have less patience than ever, and with so many networks and pay services — and FREE content — they should have just completed the shows first and made them bingeable.[/quote]

The DCU service has no appeal beyond their comic book fans...and only part of them are going to be interested. Spending $8/month seems ridiculous when they have so little content to offer compared to Netflix or Amazon prime. Bundling these shows with a wb service makes much more sense. I would love to know how many subscribers they have but it seems that is a secret...imo, for obvious reasons.

[verslibre]

How exactly is Swamp Thing a mistake? Absolutely one of the characters that most deserved a proper revisit. The first two episodes are excellent.

Was it not cancelled because the tax advantage from the state was not near what they thought it was going to be? That caused the series to be millions of dollars over budget and too expensive to continue.

That was the initial story, but as I said in my other post, NC replied that WB knew what the [tax break] amount was all along, not that they were getting shortchanged. Finger-point, meet finger-point, and so on.

The DCU service has no appeal beyond their comic book fans...and only part of them are going to be interested. Spending $8/month seems ridiculous when they have so little content to offer compared to Netflix or Amazon prime. Bundling these shows with a wb service makes much more sense. I would love to know how many subscribers they have but it seems that is a secret...imo, for obvious reasons.

That's like saying Disney's forthcoming Marvel shows like WandaVision and Falcon & Winter Soldier have no appeal beyond comics fandom. DCU has added all the other feature movies, vintage shows and animations, along with over 20K comics being added to a growing archive. I signed up a while back to the tune of $5/mo for 15 months. About 17 cents a day. If they want to fold it into WarnerMedia Streaming for another $10, I'm game.

[Monker]

How exactly is Swamp Thing a mistake? Absolutely one of the characters that most deserved a proper revisit. The first two episodes are excellent.

Was it not cancelled because the tax advantage from the state was not near what they thought it was going to be? That caused the series to be millions of dollars over budget and too expensive to continue.

That was the initial story, but as I said in my other post, NC replied that WB knew what the [tax break] amount was all along, not that they were getting shortchanged. Finger-point, meet finger-point, and so on.

It doesn't matter if it was the states fault or WB's fault. It was still a mistake that caused Swamp Thing to be way over-budget and cancelled. It is also WB's RESPONSIBILITY to ensure their shows are not over budgeted.

That's like saying Disney's forthcoming Marvel shows like WandaVision and Falcon & Winter Soldier have no appeal beyond comics fandom. DCU has added all the other feature movies, vintage shows and animations, along with over 20K comics being added to a growing archive. I signed up a while back to the tune of $5/mo for 15 months. About 17 cents a day. If they want to fold it into WarnerMedia Streaming for another $10, I'm game.

Not really. Everything you mention about the DCU is stuff for comic fans. I am not interested in 20,000 online comic books. I am not interested in a bunch of "vintage" shows and animations (which should probably be on Netflix anyway). The only recent movies I would be interested in seeing are WW and AM...which also should be on Netflix or Amazon Prime. The only thing that would get me interested is a lot of QUALITY original programming...and they barely have that...not even worth the $5 you paid, and definitely not worth the $8/month.

The Marvel shows you mention are tied directly into the MCU, with the same actors. The potential audience for that service is anybody who saw "Endgame". That success is what they are obviously trying to capitalize on. Not sure if it is worth it and I'm not jumping on that bandwagon right away.

BUT, WB and Disney are huge media companies. Tying all of these CBM series into the bigger streaming service just makes sense, IMO, for both Marvel and especially DC. Right now, I would much rather spend my money on Netflix for what offer, and Stranger Things, Witcher, Lost In Space, and various other things. Same with Amazon Prime...all of the prime benefits pluss recent releases like the GotG movies, Ragnorok, etc. Old series that I am glad I could rewatch like Lexx, Andromeda, and now Farscape. And, new original programming like "Good Omens", which was fantastic...and I "own" some streaming movies on Amazon. I feel no "need" to spend more money on EITHER a DC or Marvel streaming service. IMO, there are a lot of people who feel the same.

[verslibre]

I guess it's safe to say we agree on something: We both watch stuff the other guy wouldn't bother with. Sorry that 17 cents a day sounds excessive to you.

FFS, I'm more excited about MeTV airing the '80s Twilight Zone episodes every night instead of Lost in Space and Good Omens.

Also free: Killing Eve and Luther on BBC America. Now those are fuckin' good shows.

But don't worry. The day Army of the Dead drops is the day I sign up for Netflix.

And yes, I'll subscribe to WarnerMedia Streaming Service. One word: Watchmen.

[Monker]

I guess it's safe to say we agree on something: We both watch stuff the other guy wouldn't bother with. Sorry that 17 cents a day sounds excessive to you.

FFS, I'm more excited about MeTV airing the '80s Twilight Zone episodes every night instead of Lost in Space and Good Omens.

The new LiS was very well received. It is much better than you are implying...especially for anybody who likes scifi. Some of the scenes are so well done they should be in a movie on the big screen. The new Dr. Smith is no goofy whiner like the old series, but is flat out evil. It is nothing like the original, or the awful movie.

The "Good Omens" book was written by two of the most popular and successful fantasy writers ever and is a classic. Prior to Harry Patter, Terry Pratchet was the most successful writer in England. And, I would watch anything Neil Gaiman has a hand in...including things like Coraline and Stardust...I wish he would release an updated version of Neverwhere. Gaiman cowrote the Good Omens book with Pratchet before either was well known. Gaiman said being asked to cowrite by Pratchet was like being asked by Michelangelo to help paint a ceiling. Gaiman wrote and produced the series for Amazon. It is also being very well received. Hopefully it will lead to Amazon doing more such shows.

Also free: Killing Eve and Luther on BBC America. Now those are fuckin' good shows.

Meh. Haven't watched either.

But don't worry. The day Army of the Dead drops is the day I sign up for Netflix.

You don't want to watch Superman become the Witcher? Another classic series of fantasy books. It has the POTENTIAL to become Netflix version of GoT.

And yes, I'll subscribe to WarnerMedia Streaming Service. One word: Watchmen.

Yes, but that is also on HBO...where you can also get Bill Maher and John Oliver

[verslibre]

Also free: Killing Eve and Luther on BBC America. Now those are fuckin' good shows.

Meh. Haven't watched either.

No, they aren't SF/fantasy. Doesn't matter. Idris Elba's a genuine badass. Looks like he's going to be in Gunn's The Suicide Squad, so you can't pretend you don't like him.

You don't want to watch Superman become the Witcher? Another classic series of fantasy books. It has the POTENTIAL to become Netflix version of GoT.

I'll be checking that out, too. Not out till December, though.

Yes, but that is also on HBO...where you can also get Bill Maher and John Oliver

Not enough hours in the day, bro. Enjoy on my behalf.

[verslibre]

Looks like you're gonna have to sub to WarnerMedia, dude.

Breaking: DUNE TV series in the works, with Denis Villeneuve directing the pilot. Called DUNE: THE SISTERHOOD.

https://twitter.com/Borys_Kit/status/1138197313388630016

[Monker]

Looks like you're gonna have to sub to WarnerMedia, dude.

Breaking: DUNE TV series in the works, with Denis Villeneuve directing the pilot. Called DUNE: THE SISTERHOOD.

https://twitter.com/Borys_Kit/status/1138197313388630016

It sounds interesting. But, it's a series about the Dune universe told from the Bene Gesserit perspective...all about their breeding programs, and blar, blar, blar....probably ending with Lady Jessica and Duke Leto getting together and conceiving Paul.
And, it is a prequel to his Dune movie. It's not really based on the novels. So, I'm very skeptical on if this thing is going to be any good. Besides, it will eventually be on Netflix anyway.

[verslibre]

Looks like you're gonna have to sub to WarnerMedia, dude.

Breaking: DUNE TV series in the works, with Denis Villeneuve directing the pilot. Called DUNE: THE SISTERHOOD.

https://twitter.com/Borys_Kit/status/1138197313388630016

It sounds interesting. But, it's a series about the Dune universe told from the Bene Gesserit perspective...all about their breeding programs, and blar, blar, blar....probably ending with Lady Jessica and Duke Leto getting together and conceiving Paul.
And, it is a prequel to his Dune movie. It's not really based on the novels. So, I'm very skeptical on if this thing is going to be any good. Besides, it will eventually be on Netflix anyway.

No, it won't. Didn't you see the part about WarnerMedia?

[The_Noble_Cause]

Once Swamp Thing is on YouTube or Netflix, I'll check it out. James Wan is the man and Mark Verheiden's work on Ash vs Evil Dead was very impressive.

[verslibre]

More info has emerged on what happened with Swamp Thing.

The tax break bullshit was a smokescreen, for starters.

The higher-ups watched the first few episodes and were displeased. They expected a more CW-esque flavor to the proceedings. WHY they expected that, I don't know. Titans is a violent, fairly intense show. They knew Swamp Thing would be horror. Or maybe they thought it would be about as horror as Sigmund and the Sea Monsters.

They ordered the episode count trimmed by three, and no second season. They also ordered a bunch of reshoots on four different episodes. The only reason they didn't tear down the sets right after is because HBO and CW (who passed) were thinking of picking it up. Wan and Verheiden appealed and asked them to delay a final decision until mid-June. They decided to not wait and gave it last week. The sets were ordered to be dismantled.

Bunch of dumb fucks. All they want is Marvel money.

[verslibre]

DARKSEID IS.

[YoungJRNYfan]

WB= C**TS.

[verslibre]

RIP Vertigo. DC is folding those titles into the main DC brand, and Black Label (17+).

[verslibre]

Variety, of all places, ran a headline that Ezra's Flash movie is still happening, after he's done with the next Fantastic Beasts movie.

There's literally no echo across any of the other rags or blogs about it, so I'm going to chalk it up to a wildly timed goof.

[Monker]

Ok, a serious question:

In the Superman mythos did Brainiac ever enter another beings mind and have conversations with them like some kinda pooka? Is there any precedence for this?

I like Krypton, I really do. But, what they did with Braniac is sooo unoriginal. I showed it to my kid, and he honestly said, "What the hell, this is Farscape. He's Harvey." Then, of course, Lobo goes about saying "frack" (or 'frak', I'm just old school on that spelling)...which brings up how BSG stole the same concept. Though Lobo is great and you can tell he would be saying Fuck this and fuck that in the comics. But, the entire Farscape rip-off has be called out...and I want to know if Brainiac was ever a pooka in the comics.

[The_Noble_Cause]

RIP Vertigo. DC is folding those titles into the main DC brand, and Black Label (17+).

Looking forward to the Joe Hill horror series coming out.

[YoungJRNYfan]

Ok, a serious question:

In the Superman mythos did Brainiac ever enter another beings mind and have conversations with them like some kinda pooka? Is there any precedence for this?

Brainiac is a twelfth level intellect and is beyond advanced of having mental powers strong enough to possess, calculate their consciousness and transfer that consciousness at such a rapid and disturbing rate that he process's an enhanced memory that exceeds bio-engineering and physics. Brainiac is one of the most dangerous and intelligent beings of science and alien tech that it is almost impossible to comprehend as an android or cyborg.

As for Lobo, the way he speaks is accurate. Frak this and frak that is on par in his comic book lingo wheelhouse. The one he's known for is "bastich". He has a unique twang and lingo to his vocabulary.

[Monker]

Ok, a serious question:

In the Superman mythos did Brainiac ever enter another beings mind and have conversations with them like some kinda pooka? Is there any precedence for this?

Brainiac is a twelfth level intellect and is beyond advanced of having mental powers strong enough to possess, calculate their consciousness and transfer that consciousness at such a rapid and disturbing rate that he process's an enhanced memory that exceeds bio-engineering and physics. Brainiac is one of the most dangerous and intelligent beings of science and alien tech that it is almost impossible to comprehend as an android or cyborg.

I'm seriously not trying to be argumentative. But, this is not what happened. Brainiac's "body" "died" and his conscious is now inside of Seg's head. His expressed plan is to take over Seg's body because he is impressed by his will power and wants to possess it for himself...and Seg adds on and says Brainiac wants to use his body for parts to repair his own, which was damaged in the Phantom Zone. So, now that Brainiac is inside Seg's head, they have internal conversations with each other...exactly as Crichton had with Harvey in Farscape. I'm seriously waiting for Seg to take control and pick up Harviac and throw him into a dumpster...that is seriously how similar the two shows are becoming.

Did Brainiac ever enter somebody's consciousness and have conversations while in that other person's head?

As for Lobo, the way he speaks is accurate. Frak this and frak that is on par in his comic book lingo wheelhouse. The one he's known for is "bastich". He has a unique twang and lingo to his vocabulary.

I guess they try to get his lingo with Craptown for Krypton and Seagull for Seg El, etc.

Now I read that there may be a series for Lobo...not sure if that would be SyFy or streaming. Could be interesting, but a little bit of Lobo goes a long way....it could burn out very quickly.

[YoungJRNYfan]

I've yet to catch up on Krypton and don't know what's going on with the show. I plan on binging at one point.

There was a storyline called Doomsday Wars where Superman destroys Brainiacs body and Brainiac's consciousness enters Doomsday's body. I'd have to dig into back issues but that sounds like something Brainiac would do but I'm not certain. There's a ton of material.

[verslibre]

https://www.reddit.com/r/DC_Cinematic/comments/ag06uk/bvs_deleted_scenes_not_in_bvs_ue/

Deleted scene of Clark in Kent farm? https://twitter.com/Snydercutshill/status/1084809873290915840

Longer scene of Bruce researching why or how lead blocks supes vision: https://comicbook.com/dc/2018/03/03/batman-v-superman-lead-grenade/

Batman uses a henchman as a shield who had a bulletproof vest on: https://screenrant.com/batman-v-superman-deleted-scene-controversy/

BvS final trailer at 0.27 is a cut scene where Batman throws a henchman into a crate: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eX_iASz1Si8

Superman trying to search for Martha: https://comicbook.com/dc/2018/11/06/batman-v-superman-powers-martha-rescue-zack-syder/

In this pre vis video at 0.17 is a deleted scene of Superman saving the pilot of a helicopter during Doomsday fight: https://www.reddit.com/r/DC_Cinematic/comments/94jtti/video_couple_of_previsualization_shots_from/

BvS original cut is 4 hours long so there must be more unseen footage: https://batman-news.com/2016/04/18/batman-v-superman-4-hour-cut-editing/

[YoungJRNYfan]

"It is a green screen shot. He flies up above the city and hovers. The camera begins to rotate around him as he hears the Cries of citywide crime going on and as we get closer, he is in pain because he knows if he try's to find her this way, he will have to ignore the countless crimes going on in the two cities and the world."

That's some powerful stuff. Shame we'll never see it.