Avengers Blooper Gif.

Somedays, even the mighty Thunder God is a little bit clumsy.

The Cost of Being Batman vs. The Cost of Cleaning Up Dirty Laundry...

On Friday, one of the most anticipated movies of the year -- nay, the decade -- will be released.  We will all finally know how Director Christopher Nolan, and his co-writer and brother Jonathon Nolan, will conclude their epic version of Batman's story.  This is, they promise: The End.

I'm a huge Batman movie geek.  The various incarnations of Batman on film reflect their times.  This was the story of Batman for the Post-9/11 world.  It was a complicated, scary, violent, costly, harrowing story.  But it was cathartic for the audience.

But at it's heart, the story weaved all the familiar elements from the Batman comic books into the mix.  Bruce Wayne, billionaire playboy was still the behind the mask; and Batman fought crime with an arsenal of, as a great man once put it, "wonderful toys."

The Gawker blog, io9, posted a summary of one group's calculations about what it would cost to be Batman.  Bottomline?  Well, according to them: $2.8 million.  They also calculate the Wayne fortune at $11.6 billion (yes, that's with a "b").  Which means it ain't cheap to be Batman, but he can afford it.

We could nitpick the cost a bit.  You have to wonder if they figured in the cost of keeping it all secret such as using cut-out companies to buy, manufacture, and ship goods; research and development; hush money for those who must know; routine maintenance; etc.  Being Batman can't possibly be a two or three person operation.  Although I'm sure Wayne goes to certain efforts to keep certain support personnel from knowing what they're really doing. 

But does it really cost that much to clean-up the streets?  I mean, what if you went bargain basement?  Say you had a teeny-tiny budget?  Just what would you get, and how effective would it be?  What if you had a one-person operation?  What if you even had to do your own #Dirtylaundry?

Huh.  That looked like it cost less than $25 a day!  Seems pretty cost effective to me.  Frank even got the locals to pitch in and help.  I have to wonder if the Bodega owner even really charged him for the bottle of Jack.

Marvel Studios: Guardians of the Galaxy

Okay, I've got to admit, I'm a little leery about the marketability of this one...  Marvel Studios announced recently, and then pushed at Comic-Con, they would be making a movie of their Guardians of the Galaxy property.

The what?  Unless you're a major Comic Nerd (and I say that lovingly...) you probably never heard of this team.  That's a potentially brilliant move on Marvel's part.  There's no baggage -- just pure storytelling possibility.  They are banking totally on the brand recognition they've built during what they call "Phase 1" which consisted of Iron Man through The Avengers.  There is no doubt in my mind that people will go see this movie.

But the risk is that the movie is bad.  I mean horribly bad.  It stars a Raccoon for Odin's sake...  But Marvel has made five hits (I'm not counting The Incredible Hulk) that a.) pleased the geeks, and b.) convinced non-fans to put their butts in the seats.  If it is bad, people will probably forgive them.  Especially if Iron Man 3 is satisfying.  (Which is different from saying it's "good" though not necessarily exclusive.)

But I don't think it will be bad.  I think it will be something new that people haven't seen before.  How often do we get that in a movie these days?  New, certainly, but wrapped in the warm familiarity of a Disney/Marvel brand.  Besides, they've made five hits.  Consider the fan buzz about Friday's release of The Dark Knight Rises:

"But what if it's bad?"
"What?  Are you kidding?  This is Christopher Nolan!"
"But it's the third in a trilogy...  What if it's bad?"
"Have you been watching Christopher Nolan's movies?  Name a bad one."
"Ummm..."
"Exactly."
"But what if it's bad?"
"Then I'll be disappointed and wait anxiously for the next Christopher Nolan movie."

I don't think Marvel will make a bad Guardians of the Galaxy movie; this is a calculated move on their part and essential to Phase 2.  (BTW, do you hear geeks grousing too much now about The Incredible Hulk???  No?  Point made: fans get over a miss, especially if the story recovers.)  I think they know what they're doing.

And I remember the Rocket Raccoon mini-series back in the '80's.  It was pretty good and he was a better character than you might think.

Keep Calm and Call Coulson

Modern Super Soldier 1:6 scale

Not one of mine.  But very impressive interpretation.

This features an excellent paint job and weathering.

Countdown to the Avengers: Thor's Day!

Countdown to the Avengers: Wednesday

Countdown to the Avengers: Tuesday

Please don't kill Agent Coulson, Joss!

Countdown to the Avengers: Monday

Hulk Smash!!!

Countdown to the Avengers: Sunday...

God Bless America!

Cap's On A Plane!

Agent Coulson turns out to be just another geeky fanboy like the rest of us in this clip in which he meets Steve Rogers.

And no, Steve, the Stars and Stripes aren't a little "old fashioned," we just bicker a bit about what they really mean.

Disco Avengers!

What if Tony Stark had a really awesome mustache?  What if Thor wore fur?  What if the Hulk was painted green?

Hot Toys Captain America: Modern / Avengers

Oh, Hot Toys...  You mock me.

I did not buy your Captain America: The First Avenger action figure because, although I liked the costume design very much, I liked the Avengers uniform even better.  I looked at your price tag for the WWII Cap -- $169.99 -- and thought, "I can't afford two figures.  I must choose only one.  Choose wisely..."

It certainly looks like waiting for the Avengers figure was the wise choice artistically.  This is a truly amazing figure.  The sculpt is wonderful, the uniform looks tight, and the articulation is up to snuff.  This is a figure that would look awesome posed in my display case.  A fitting tribute to my favorite super hero.

He even comes with a choice of shields, one shiny and new, and one battle-damaged paint job.  (The shield itself is, of course, indestructible.)

But the cost?

$214.99???  Excuse me, but: WTF?

The figure had better be indestructible for that amount!  I should be buying a screen accurate 1/1 scale Cap uniform for that!

Ugh.  Oh, Hot Toys...  You mock me.  You mock me with maniacal laughter...

And you should be made to pay for such arrogance.

Hulk: Smash.

The Avengers: Captain America

Can I tell you how excited I am about this movie?
No, I can't. Words fail me. I may even pass out just thinking about it.

SHIELD kit???

Is this official issue SHIELD kit???

Or just an incredible facsimile?

Maybe it's Airsoft?

Or maybe... It isn't.