Topic: Comics

Because Paul and I are so wise, we offer our predictions for 2008...
PAUL: The Dark Knight will not be the true-to-the-comics Batman movie everyone has always wanted, but everyone will love it anyway because it'll just be that good.
ARON: I have some concerns about this movie, largely relating to Heath Ledger as The Joker. Still, I am excited about it and have resolved to release creative control of the film.
PAUL: Best book of the year: The Spirit, written by Sergio Aragones and Mark Evanier with art by Mike Ploog .
ARON: You're pushing this SPIRIT thing pretty hard. You're gonna make me read it, aren't you?
PAUL: The Justice League/American Heroes movie will get delayed. George Miller will leave the project.
ARON: Yeah, you don't need a crystal ball for this one.
PAUL: Marvel's Secret Invasion will see the cancellation of Mighty Avengers and Ms. Marvel, at minimum. Probably Thunderbolts, Wolverine: Origins, and Black Panther, also. (though Wolvie Origins will be unrelated to Secret Invasion). Don't be surprised if She-Hulk gets the axe too.ARON: First, you leave Ms. Marvel alone! That's a great book! And I rather like Black Panther, too. I hadn't been reading BP, but I picked up almost the entire run at WWTX and - wow - that's really entertaining. She-Hulk is bound to be cancelled, though. Peter David's writing it. Brother gets no love these days.
PAUL: Mary Jane will reveal the truth to Peter Parker about the deal with Mephisto before year's end.
ARON: This is the only way the story makes sense. In fact, OMD could redeem itself by serving as Act I in a larger story in which *May* finds out about it and corrects the problem returning us to the previous status quo. Wouldn't it be great if they wrote that story?
PAUL: Every Marvel super hero is, or has at one point been, a Skrull. Seriously. Appearances where a character acts out of character, or does something unexpected or stupid, will be explained as a temporary Skrull replacement. It'll be used to explain why Spidey and Wolverine can be in multiple places at the same time. But Secret Invasion won't be horrible. It'll be more of a continuity fixer than an all out change to the Marvel universe (their version of a Crisis).

ARON: I predict SECRET INVASION will be on par with the energy of Civil War, but will have the satisfying ending of SINESTRO CORPS WAR and will set up the next two years of might Marvel madness (I really likes me some Bendis)
PAUL: Final Crisis will suck. But Nightwing will probably die.

PAUL: The Fifth World will probably be explained as the "big seven" being considered the New Gods, but not actually having to die to become them. Except for Hal Jordan, as he will be removed enough from this storyline in order to build up to The Blackest Night, in 2009. Which will be better than Final Crisis.
ARON: Agreed.
PAUL: Mark Millar will write something with Superman or Batman after his exclusive contract with Marvel ends in mid-2008. The sting of literally undoing EVERYTHING he did in Civil War will be his reasoning. Hopefully, it'll be Superman/Batman.
ARON: I think it's SUPERMAN and it's a total reboot.
PAUL: 2009 predictions... The Kuberts' exclusive agreement won't be renewed at DC. Nor will Joe Mad's at Marvel. Jeph Loeb will come back to DC...
ARON: 2009?!?! Oh no you di'n't! Well, I agree with you on all of this but Loeb. He's been integral in developing a lot of the big stories at Marvel. I see him moving to non-exclusives if he doesn't renew at Marvel.
PAUL: GI Joe's license won't be renewed with Devil's Due Entertainment. If it is, there will be a reboot after the current WWIII storyline .
ARON: Dollars to donuts, Marvel gets this one back.
PAUL: We'll never see Young Avengers II by Allan Heinberg and Jim Cheung.
ARON: Oh you'll see it, but it'll be right after ULTIMATE HULK VS WOLVERINE wraps up. Which is to say, some time after hell freezes over.

PAUL: Pretty obvious Bucky will be the new Cap. Still, Steve Rogers will be back, but not as Captain America (does anyone remember when this story was published about Batman and called Knightfall and Prodigy?) .
ARON: Yeah, and it wasn't good! At least Knightfall wasn't. Prodigy was cool... Nightwing was in it. You know him, Paul. He's the guy you want dead!!! Sigh... The only prediction that I'll make about Cap is that I think they will eff it up and then restore Steve Rogers to the shield.
PAUL: There will be one more season of The Batman, but probably re-purposed into a new Justice League show. People will still complain that it's not as good as the Bruce Timm show.
ARON: Well, it's not!
Aron Head
www.EvilBastard.net



There are certain phrases that we men of the married variety long to hear from our wives. 
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Our Christmas tradition starts on Xmas Eve. We start the evening with a tex-mex dinner. This year, we went to Joe T's for supper.
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