Superhero

Mark Millar & Various - 1985

19 Mar 2009

SUPERHERO COMICS Coatbridge’s Mark Millar has been in the upper echelons of comic book superstars since he started writing The Authority in 2000. This was swiftly followed by Ultimate X-Men while memorable subsequent projects have included Civil War…

Superhero

God on their side

21 Aug 2008

Religion and rock music don’t usually mix, but they’ve always been on speaking terms. Elvis himself grew up a good, god-fearing boy, while Bob Dylan, possibly the most famous one-time born-again Christian in music, released two albums of Christian songs…

Marvel Masterworks

Comics

23 Apr 2007

SUPERHERO Spider-Man is Marvel’s mascot, one of the most recognisable superheroes of all time. With the latest huge blockbuster on the horizon there’s bound to be a lot of interest in everyone’s favourite webslinger. Created back in 1962 by comics…

Comic - Jim Krueger, Alex Ross & Doug Braithwaite

Justice (DC/Titan)

22 Nov 2006

SUPERHERO The creators of Earth, Universe and Paradise X reunite (with Braithwaite providing pencil base for Ross’ glorious painted panels) for another heavily religious, wholly apocalyptic adventure involving DC’s greatest heroes and villains. This…

Thor

It’s hammer time! Kenneth Branagh's Thor has a theatrical charm

20 Apr 2011

(12A) 130min Kenneth Branagh may have seemed like an unlikely choice to direct Marvel's Thor but he pulls it off with considerable style to kick-start the summer in fun fashion. By no means perfect, and inferior to both Christopher Nolan's genre…

Mark Millar's Kick-Ass get the big screen superhero treatment

22 Mar 2010

How come no one has ever ‘done a Batman’? In a world full of disenfranchised youth, disillusioned loners and delusional outsiders, where superhero movies top the box office, comics sell by the bucket-load and Spider-Man is one of the biggest pop culture…

Mark Millar & Various - Fantastic Four: World’s Greatest

19 Mar 2009

SUPERHERO COMICS Coatbridge’s Mark Millar has been in the upper echelons of comic book superstars since he started writing The Authority in 2000. This was swiftly followed by Ultimate X-Men while memorable subsequent projects have included Civil War…

Hancock

3 Jul 2008

SUPERHERO/COMEDY (12A) 91min The writers and director of Hancock take a hyper-powered leaf out of the Mystery Men and Return of Captain Invincible school of heroism with Hancock. Will Smith plays a nihilistic superhero who has fallen out of favour…

Kick-Ass

18 Mar 2010

(15) 117min Matthew Vaughn’s adaptation of Mark Millar’s comic book series is a hilarious, hip twist on the superhero genre. Gone are the superpowers, the 100 inch chests and holier than thou attitude. Instead our hero is an awkward teenager, Dave…

The Amazing Spider-Man 600

Dan Slott, John Romita Jr & Various

12 Aug 2009

The 600th issue of any title is cause for celebration, particularly as iconic a character as Marvel’s mascot Spider-Man. The lead story from Dan Slott, with art by John Romita Jr, re-introduces arch villain Doctor Octopus (plus another big return, but…

Paul Cornell & Leonard Kirk - Captain Britain and MI13: Secret Invasion & Hell Comes to Birmingham

23 Jul 2009

The first two compilations of TV-writer Paul Cornell’s new run on Captain Britain kicks off during the huge Secret Invasion. Neatly setting itself in the Marvel universe, Cornell (whose credits include Doctor Who, Robin Hood and Coronation Street) has…

Alan Moore, Stephen Bissette & John Totleben - Saga of the Swamp Thing

16 Apr 2009

COMICS/SUPERHERO There’s no point going over old ground: if you have even the vaguest interest in comics you’ll know of the genius of Alan Moore. Watchmen, V For Vendetta and From Hell are established classics of the medium, as of course is Saga of…

X-Men Origins: Wolverine

16 Apr 2009

(15) 97min Much like Han Solo in the original Star Wars trilogy, Hugh Jackman’s Wolverine provided the vital tough-guy ingredient in the popular X-Men movies. Laconic and individualistic, the appealing Wolverine stood head and shoulders above the…

Alan Moore & Kevin O'Neil - The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen: Century 1910

16 Apr 2009

From one of Moore’s oldest stories to his latest opus, the first part of the third volume of his League of Extraordinary Gentlemen. It’s an unlikely ‘superhero’ team of literary characters; in this case, the likes of Raffles, Orlando and Carnaki the…

Mark Waid, Zeb Wells & Various - The Amazing Spider-Man 583

22 Jan 2009

COMICS/SUPERHERO It’s been in all the papers, President Barack Obama makes a guest appearance in Spider-Man. It’s yet more proof of how succinctly Obama has tapped into the zeitgeist and is as much of a cultural icon as he is a political…

Will Eisner - The Best of The Spirit

8 Jan 2009

SUPERHERO With his domino mask, blue suit, red tie, blue fedora hat and gloves, Denny Colt aka The Spirit was what one newspaper in the 1940s referred to ‘the only real middle-class crimefighter’. Created in 1940 for a strip in a Sunday newspaper…

Avengers: The Sentinels Strike

Roy Thomas, Steve Engleheart & various

30 Oct 2008

More reprints from the Marvel archives as the Avengers go up against the Sentinels, the Beast Brood, Magneto and more in these adventures from 1972-73. The Avengers are Marvel's premiere super team, as famed for their relationships as their daring and…

Marvel Masters: The Tales of Chris Claremont

16 Oct 2008

SUPERHERO Chris Claremont is perhaps the main reason for the international success of the X-Men during the 80s and 90s when they outsold pretty much every other title on the shelves. He wrote Uncanny X-Men for a staggering 16 years (from 1975-1991)…

Kurt Busiek & Alex Ross - Marvels

2 Oct 2008

SUPERHERO Comics are often repackaged and reprinted, sometimes seemingly ad infinitum, but when it’s as gorgeous a package as 1994’s Marvels it’s hard to argue with another opportunity for new readers to discover such a wonderfully rounded work of…

Hellboy II: The Golden Army

21 Aug 2008

Fresh from the critical and commercial success of his Oscar-feted Spanish horror-fantasy Pan’s Labyrinth, Mexican filmmaker Guillermo del Toro returns to Hollywood with a second blockbuster adaptation of Dark Horse Comics’ cult supernatural title. A…

Mike Mignola & John Byrne - Hellboy: Seed of Destruction

21 Aug 2008

Cinema-goers flummoxed by the lack of backstory in the new Hellboy film should take the chance to go back to the supernatural hero’s origins, with this timely re-release of a four-part comic first published in 1993. Without spoiling the plot, it…

The Dark Knight

31 Jul 2008

SUPERHERO/THRILLER (12A) 152min British filmmaker Christopher Nolan’s revamp of the superhero franchise reaches its apotheosis with this sequel to Batman Begins, a well-imagined, perfectly executed film that combines blockbuster spectacle with indie…

Andy Diggle & Jock - Green Arrow: Year One

31 Jul 2008

SUPERHERO (DC/Titan) Former 2000AD editor Andy Diggle is another Brit making a name for himself in the world of US comics with stints on ‘Batman’, ‘Hellblazer’ and ‘Swamp Thing’ under his belt. Once again teaming up with frequent collaborator Jock…

Beyond a Joke - Dark Knight

17 Jul 2008

As the latest Batman adaptation arrives on the silver screen, Alan Bissett explores the colourful history and enduring appeal of the caped crusader’s arch nemesis, the Joker

The Incredible Hulk

19 Jun 2008

SUPERHERO (12A) 112min By general consent, Ang Lee’s 2003 film Hulk was considered a flop. Five years on from its failure to win over fans of the Marvel Comic monster/superhero – and to clean up at the box office – comes this relaunch of the franchise…