To understand the true duality in the dynamic between the Joker and Batman, you need to understand, they were birthed from the same thing: tragedy. If you read the brilliant Alan Moore masterpiece,  The Killing Joke, and you follow it as the seminal Joker origin story (which most do), than you know, The Joker got dealt just as crappy a hand by fate as Batman did.

Some would even argue, Joker got it worse. Losing your Father and Mother in front of you, especially when you are a child, is a tragedy. But some say having your pregnant wife die and then falling in a vat of acid that scars you for life in a heist gone wrong is even worst. And though both were born from tragedy, most think they turned out wholly different from one another, a yin to the other’s yang. But I would argue that point. Batman is just as fragile and mentally unstable as the Joker. He has just as many toys and is just as keen on playing dress up. He just happens to fight for the good side. But here are five moments that will make you question which one of the two is really the crazier one.

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by Luis Loza

As iconic and recognizable as he is nowadays, there are still lots of stories in Batman’s history that are unknown to the everyday person. While the countless movies, shows, and games that feature the Dark Knight do cover a lot of ground, there’s nothing like the original comics themselves. This list is meant to offer a good starting for the prospective Batman fan to enter the vast world of comics available. While this is by no means a comprehensive list, I did try to make sure that a variety of stories were covered for different tastes. Continue Reading »

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The X-Men have gone through more redesigns than I can count over the years, but this is a new take I haven’t really seen before. i’ts from artist Stefan Tosheff, who is all about cool redesigns of iconic characters on his blog.

His take on the X-Men are interesting. He’s redesigned a lot of the major heroes, but a few of the sub-ones as well. I can’t remember the last time I’ve even THOUGHT about Sunfire or Thunderbird.

Check out the gallery below and see what you think. Cyclops is a bit robocop, Banshee looks the same and Colossus looks like Iceman now that he’s not ribbed for her pleasure. Quite a curious set of character. Continue Reading »

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For as long as I’ve been posting great cosplay galleries, I think this is the first time ever I’ve come across a stand alone Wonder Woman before. For whatever reason, the DC heroine is often overlooked. Perhaps it’s her outdated costume, her stupid lasso or her invisible jet (seriously, just have her fly), but she deserves better.

And better she has, in the form of this truly fantastic series of photos from SuperHero Photography (via GeeksAreSexy). The model is Sarah Scott, who looks like a less butch version of Gina Carano, and the costume(s) are just top notch here. There are a few variants of the traditional get-up, including a sword and shield one I didn’t know existed. These are all so well done, she even makes the original stars and stripes look awesome. Someone should have consulted this costume designer when they were shooting that crappy WW pilot a few months ago. Like, holy crap, how much better are ANY of these costumes than that latex Halloween crap?

Go below to see the full gallery. You’ll be glad you did. Continue Reading »

Every time I find a list about “must read graphic novels” online, they always have the same books on every list. They always shill for Watchmen. Then they get poignant by telling you to read Maus. Killing Joke is often name dropped as the seminal Batman story. And usually as a nod to the amazing Alex Ross’ art,  Kingdom Come  gets a spot. Though the last two spots of the lists always seem to vary between websites and journalists.

Some say Persepolis for its unflinching honesty, while others claim From Hell, for its period piece storytelling, augmented by moments of sheer brutality. And while every one of the above mentioned graphic novels are truly astounding in their own, distinctive ways, this time around, I chose to tackle a list that would focus on some lesser known graphic novels that maybe have not gotten the love or attention they deserve. It was not until I had finished compiling this list, that I realized how truly twisted I was. Just so you guys know,  these are not your typical superhero books. These are far more twisted tales, but compelling reads for just that reason. Here are five graphic novels you guys (and gals) need to read.

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I’m not sure I’ve ever actually covered the phenomenon of Seattle’s Phoenix Jones here on the site. He’s a real-life superhero who patrols the streets of Seattle in a stab-proof costume, and has been the feature of many a local news story out there for his heroics, which include stopping and reporting crimes.

Since his inception, there have been other costumed heroes that have joined him, but not there’s a new development that is putting this into full “Kick-Ass” territory. Even hero needs a villain, and now, Phoenix Jones has one. This surprisingly well-produced video introduces the world to its first proclaimed supervillain, Rex Velvet, a mustachioed troublemaker whose powers seem to include making rather cool videos.

How exactly is he going to mess with Phoenix Jones? I have no idea, but I bet someone is buying the movie rights to this already.

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Wow, move over Avengers, Batman is making a mark with this bit of exceptionally elaborate cosplay that might be the coolest real-world reinterpretation of the hero I’ve ever seen. Batman is literally about to get medieval on everyone’s asses, living up to his namesake in the most literal way possible as the Dark Knight.

I’d watch a whole movie starring this suit of armor. Seriously, it’s that amazing. The chestplate, the helmet, the sword (alright, that does look a bit like something they sell in those creepy fantasy shops, but still), the total package is simply amazing. If I can find out who the man behind the mask is, I’ll hopefully be able to post more pictures. Can someone make an evil sorcerer Joker costume to match?

Possible theories:

- This isn’t real. God I hope that’s washable.

- This was done as a joke that will be funny the first time only and never again.

- It was drawn by his child before he died in a car accident. If it’s a living child, that’s not enough to justify it.

- He has really poor vision and thinks it’s awesome.

- He has good vision and is just an idiot.

Unfortunately, number five would appear to be the likely answer. You should see the Rogue and Magneto he has on his ass. (Joking, but maybe…)

[via Geekologie]

“Just because you can hide your identity with eyeglasses doesn’t mean the rest of us can.”

Mondo, maker of the world’s best movie posters, has turned their sights toward The Avengers, and released a new poster series for each of the six main heroes of the film, even the two who didn’t get their own movie. Though let’s be real, I think if Scarjo got her own Black Widow movie, we’d be a notch or two at best above Elektra and Catwoman.

The poster series is above and below, and though Thor is my favorite, they’re all pretty damn good. As much as I might mock Black Widow, her poster is in fact one of the best. Can you buy these? That’s the question isn’t it. I hate Mondo because they make it freaking impossible to buy their limited edition prints. The Hulk is supposed to go on sale some time today, so check their Twitter for updates if you want to try and pounce on it.

I don’t understand the whole “limited edition print” thing. If they had more than two goddamn posters in their store (they’ve made hundreds), I’d probably have my room wallpapered in them. But no, they’d prefer to make them impossible to purchase, because that’s a great business model.

Anyway, the posters are below: Continue Reading »