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  • How ‘Ms. Marvel’ Latest Episode Sets Up ‘She-Hulk’s Supermax Prison

    How ‘Ms. Marvel’ Latest Episode Sets Up ‘She-Hulk’s Supermax Prison

    The fourth episode of Ms. Marvel just dropped and brought with it quite a lot of Kamala’s heritage and family history; not to mention some quality action sequences and Marvel Cinematic Universe world-building. But apart from the gradual exploration of what the series has dubbed the Noor Dimension, Ms. Marvel also debuted a connection to a future MCU project. In fact, it looks like a potentially major element of She-Hulk: Attorney At Law has had the foundation laid for it.

    While the Department of Damage Control’s presence has faded since the first two Ms. Marvel episodes, their role in the story has carried on in a more subtle way. At the end of Episode 3, the DODC took the Clandestines into custody after the wedding fight. In Episode 4, we see the follow-up to that, as the Clandestine escape being brought into the DODC Supermax Prison. While we do not see any main area of the prison, we do see a shot of the outside of it. As it turns out, the DODC Supermax was the prison complex seen in the She-Hulk trailer.

    Marvel Studios’ ‘Ms. Marvel’
    Marvel Studios’ ‘She-Hulk’

    By showing up in multiple projects, the Supermax has essentially been established as being a significant element in the MCU. While we got a taste of the Raft in Captain America: Civil War, that high-security prison has not been used since. The fact that the Supermax is run by the DODC is important for a few reasons. First, it means that, unlike the Raft, there is nothing secretive about it—it appears to be on land and is extremely visible and accessible.

    Second, it means that the DODC is likely here to stay as an ongoing source of law enforcement and a thorn in the sides of superpowered people. This confirms the message in the second episode of Ms. Marvel that Damage Control is on a mission to target and incarcerate enhanced people. To what extent is unclear—surely some supers are allowed to operate, but we may find out more in She-Hulk.

    Jennifer Walters, aka She-Hulk, is an attorney who specializes in superhuman law. We know from the She-Hulk trailer that she will deal with people like Emil Blonsky, otherwise known as Abomination. While we do not know for sure where Blonksy is being held, the DODC Supermax is now the top candidate. Practicing superhuman law requires either representing or suing superhumans. A great place to find clients or targets, then, would be a building where a bunch of superhumans is being held prisoner for alleged crimes.

    So what do we know about the DODC Supermax Prison so far? Not a lot, aside from the fact that it is operated by the DODC. We can assume some relatively high-profile people, like Abomination, are there. If it is a sort of catch-all prison like it seems to be, a wide variety of supervillains should pass through. Despite being a Supermax prison, it clearly has terrible security. The Clandestine essentially walked out of that place. Plus, it is almost a given that prison breaks will pop up at least every now and again.

    The first four episodes of Ms. Marvel are now streaming on Disney+.

  • Glen/Glenda to Return in ‘Chucky’ Season 2

    Glen/Glenda to Return in ‘Chucky’ Season 2

    It looks like an icon will make their return in the second season of Chucky, as SyFy has announced that Lachlan Watson will take on the role of Glen/Glenda in the season. They are the genderfluid child of Chucky and Tiffany that made their debut in Seed of Chucky. While they were briefly referenced in the first season, this will mark their first return since 2004, when Billy Boyd voiced the Chucky offspring. Check out the special message from Watson on taking on the role:

    It’s unclear how they’ll make their return to the franchise, especially given where we last saw the character. They join an already stacked cast that already saw the return of Brad Dourif and Jennifer Tilly. The first season continued where Curse and Cult of Chucky left off, which set up a new direction for the murdering kid’s toy.

    The series was pitched as a new take on the mythos and characters, especially after a remake was put in place that tried to reinvigorate the franchise on the silver screen, but just couldn’t bring the same kind of magic as the original. So, the series offered what everyone was hoping for and continued the franchise with the creative minds that made it an iconic part of everyone’s horror collection.

    Source: Twitter

  • Kevin Conroy’s “Finding Batman” is a Profound Inspiring Must-Read for Pride

    Kevin Conroy’s “Finding Batman” is a Profound Inspiring Must-Read for Pride

    A couple weeks ago, DC Pride 2022 #1 was released. It had a bunch of different Pride stories to share that featured characters like Superman, Robin, Green Arrow, Batgirl, Aquaman, Harley with Poison Ivy, and many more. At the very end of the issue, though, there were 8 comic book pages that could help gay men feel a lot better about the closeted part of their life.

    Kevin Conroy, the infamous voice actor who played Batman for many people’s entire childhood, wrote Finding Batman, a story about his experience being a gay man in Hollywood. After detailing his upbringing in a dysfunctional religious family, the legendary voice actor explained how he tried to make a name for himself as an actor — it is a specific experience that will still resonate with most gay people. His story provided a deep look into a closeted gay man’s life with how Conroy’s decision to conceal his sexuality was depicted in the panels of this comic. This kind of self-inflicted trauma caused by the stigma around homosexuality forcing gay people into the closet is something we should all try to understand better and prevent.

    As Conroy continues his story, his attempts at getting jobs and being turned down because he’s gay is the same kind of discrimination many gay people still face today. Conroy tells a story of a producer that really liked his work on a film and approached him about being cast as the lead in a pilot, which is a huge deal for any actor. As soon as the producer found out Conroy was gay, though, the producer did a complete 180 and told him the network would “never hire him for a lead.” Being respected and admired by people for having certain talents and then being immediately rejected by those people when they find out our sexuality is an experience a lot of gay people are familiar with.

    One of the hardest parts about reading these pages was how many times people used a single word to completely tear him down — and no, there’s no need to write it here in order for you infer which word. Conroy explains multiple times how others used the slur to dehumanize him. He shows the true meaning of Pride by being courageous enough to describe those experiences because, despite other people’s hatred and fear, he is proud of having overcome all of that to be happy and whole.

    The best part of this piece is how inspiring it is in the end. After all of the hardships and challenges Conroy faced in his real life due to discrimination for being gay, he was able to use those experiences to inspire one of the best portrayals of Batman/Bruce Wayne that has ever existed. The way the panels on the last page show how he connected his life to Bruce’s decision to have both a public life and a private life gives hope that everything we go through is for a good reason, even if we don’t see that right away.

    Thanks so much, Kevin Conroy, for sharing your story! You will help a lot of gay people realize those closeted years may not have been lived completely in vain.

  • ‘Stranger Things’ Millie Bobby Brown Joins Russo Bros. Next Netflix Film

    ‘Stranger Things’ Millie Bobby Brown Joins Russo Bros. Next Netflix Film

    It looks like the Russo Bros. are focused on staying in Netflix’s wheelhouse as while they’re busy promoting The Gray Man, they’ve already set their next project in the form of The Electric State. Millie Bobby Brown, who is hot off of her work on the latest season of Stranger Things, is already set to join the film. Former Avengers co-star, Chris Pratt, is also currently in talks.

    The directing duo will once again team up with writer Christopher Markus and Stephen McFeely, who also worked on the previous Netflix film. It’ll once again be a high-budget project that is likely going to go beyond the 200M mark. Brown will play an orphaned teen that travels the American west to find out what happened to her younger brother. She’ll be accompanied by a mysterious robot and an eccentric driver. It’s unclear who Pratt may end up playing.

    The project is an adaptation of the 2018 illustrated novel. Simon Stalenhag created the original and also worked on the iconic Tales From the Loop. It looks like they are also already eyeing a production start in October in Atlanta. So, we may get some casting announcements in the coming months as the project moves forward. Russo‘s are naturally producing under their AGBO banner.

    Source: The Hollywood Reporter

  • REVIEW: ‘Ms. Marvel’ Episode 4—”Seeing Red”

    REVIEW: ‘Ms. Marvel’ Episode 4—”Seeing Red”

    While Ms. Marvel still has to stick the landing in its final two episodes—something that Marvel Cinematic Universe shows tend to struggle with—its Episode 4 was yet another triumph for Kamala Khan’s series. In fact, it manages to follow the MCU series template for four episodes, but yet surpasses all expectations set by previous Disney+ installments. Ultimately, the conclusion, so far, on Ms. Marvel is that from inception to execution it is the highest quality MCU series to date. And it is not particularly close.

    While the mystery of Kamala’s origin continues in Episode 4, it is still developing in more interesting ways in each episode. Quickly, we learn that there is much more depth and nuance to the “Djinn” classification we were introduced to in the previous episode, and we get a hint that the Noor connection may have stronger connections to the more traditional super-aspects of the MCU. What that connection actually is remains the driving energy of the series, and Ms. Marvel expertly stretches the reveal out much like Kamala can stretch out her own hard light energy.

    But one of the most delightfully perplexing aspects of Ms. Marvel is uncovering why exactly this is so well played out. While many substantive aspects of Ms. Marvel are certainly unique from other MCU entries, the actual structure of the series is not. For example, virtually every MCU series has a major cliff-hanging plot twist-type ending to its fourth episode. In WandavIsion’s  Episode 4, Wanda’s sentience in the Hex is formally revealed. In Loki, the titular character wakes up to different variants of himself at the end of time. In Moon Knight, Marc Spector is killed and is awakened in what appears to be a mental asylum. Here, in Ms. Marvel, Kamala seems to have been somewhat transported to the past, as she finds herself engulfed in the scene of the last train to Karachi the night her great-grandmother Aisha disappeared.

    So while this sort of ending was not a true surprise—and the structure of the penultimate episode can likely similarly be guessed to an extent—Ms. Marvel executes it on an absurdly impressive level. The final shots are breathtaking and rely mostly on a realistic reimagining of the past rather than supernatural, magical, or fantastical elements. While the knowledge of Partition and Kamala’s family history has been known to this extent since the second episode, Episode 4 fully opened the door for what Kamala’s very human origin means to the character, and frankly, the world at large. Even Kamala is completely at a loss for words at the tragedy, suffering, and pain she sees around her. 

    Much of the beauty of the series’ focus on Kamala’s mysterious origin is the fact that, as emphasized and written in stone in this episode, Kamala’s origin is as much intertwined with traditional reality as it is with whatever inter-dimensional tie-in is. All superheroes carry the weight and strengths of their non-super past, but Ms. Marvel is unique in truly expressing that Kamala’s foundation is in her family and its history. The bangle is certainly the most important force in her superpowers, but it is every bit as important to Kamala’s character as is her relationship with her mother, her mother’s relationship with her mother, and whatever happened to Aisha during Partition. 

    In the midst of the incredibly rich storyline, even the action sequences of Episode 4 stand out. In particular, the extended chase scene could without a doubt be plopped into a feature film as is and no one would question it. While often in MCU series, even Ms. Marvel, action is rushed and sparing, this scene proved that that is a choice and not a necessity for these shows. 

    So, to go back to the earlier question of why Ms. Marvel seems to be ahead of the curve, there are numerous unique things that the show brings to the table. But it would not be fair to say that the series radically upended the Disney+ MCU model. Not everyone will personally prefer the series over all others, and no one has to. But at the end of the day, in all truthfulness, Ms. Marvel has been written and executed with such quality that it truly stands out. On no level is that an attack on other MCU shows, either—Ms. Marvel is simply that good.

  • ‘Moon Knight’ Head Writer Has Not Yet Heard About a Second Season

    ‘Moon Knight’ Head Writer Has Not Yet Heard About a Second Season

    Ever since Moon Knight completed its first season on Disney+ earlier this year, fans have been hopeful that the series would return for another outing. While the series was initially billed as a limited series, leading up to the show’s finale, Marvel Studios notably changed its promotional wording from “series finale” to “season finale.” This led to plenty of speculation that, unfortunately, has yet to result in an official confirmation that the series has been renewed. In a new interview with head writer Jeremy Slater, he revealed that he has not yet been contacted about a second season.

    When asked by Playlist if he’d heard about a second season of Moon Knight, Slater revealed that hadn’t heard anything. “I haven’t had any conversations with Marvel. I think a lot of those decisions are ultimately going to be in the hands of Kevin Feige because he’s the guy with the master plan,” he told the outlet. “And of course, Oscar Isaac, because he’s not signed up for the sort of traditional seven-film contract or whatever other actors have signed. Oscar has the ability to do as much or as little “Moon Knight” as he wants to. I think he had a great time playing the character, and I think he really enjoyed the process and is happy he did it. But I also think he’s not a guy who’s going to rush in and just sort of churn out a sequel just because the first one was popular.”

    Isaac, of course, stated he would gladly return for a second season, but only if the story under the right circumstances. He’d confirmed back in May that there’d been no official plans to continue the series, however, the right story could get him to return so long as it made sense.

    Moon Knight is currently streaming on Disney+.

    Source: Playlist.

  • Natalie Portman Reveals Entire Planets Cut From ‘Thor: Love and Thunder’

    Natalie Portman Reveals Entire Planets Cut From ‘Thor: Love and Thunder’

    Thor: Love and Thunder will undoubtedly be a big movie, but star Natalie Portman says it could have been even bigger. While speaking with Collider, the former Phantom Menace actress revealed the creative behind the God of Thunder’s next outing had entire sequences axed from the project’s final cut.

    Of course, this isn’t a unique scenario. Films typically go through a multitude of changes during production, and big blockbusters like Thor are often tinkered with right up until the last minute. It likely didn’t help that the upcoming Marvel sequel stems from the wild mind of Taika Waititi, who has probably never been short on ideas in his entire career.

    Worry not, however, as Portman seems confident the movie would have been stellar no matter what did or didn’t make it in. The Mighty Thor performer explained that everything Waititi created for the film was brilliant, even if he did have to cut entire planets from the runtime:

    The joy and the sorrow of a Taika Waititi project is that he creates so much brilliance and so much material that the movie could be like an infinite number of things. And it like inevitably means that incredible, hilarious, moving comedy and drama ends up not there. So, there’s a lot. I mean, there’s full planets that are not there anymore.

    Natalie Portman

    Like any good fan, Portman knows there’s a chance the world could still see these lost scenes one day. She continued to explain that she’s got her hopes up for a jam-packed collection of DVD extras:

    I pray that it’ll end up in like a DVD extra somewhere or that it comes out somewhere. Because I mean, yeah, it’s pretty remarkable stuff.

    Natalie Portman

    While the thought of full planets floating somewhere in the abyss of cut material is enticing, it sounds like fans should really be excited for what they’ll actually get to see on July 8th. If whole alien worlds are considered less important to the story than what’s been included, imagine just how exhilarating the final product could be.

    Source: Collider

  • ‘Percy Jackson and the Olympians’ Series to Use StageCraft Technology

    ‘Percy Jackson and the Olympians’ Series to Use StageCraft Technology

    Percy Jackson and the Olympians is set to continue the trend of Disney affiliated productions to utilize Industrial Light & Magic’s (ILM) StageCraft LED systems. The upcoming Disney+ series will specifically be the first project to be produced on their newly built Vancouver stage. 

    This type of technology came into prominence with The Mandalorian and has risen in notoriety thanks to the ability to digitally create settings that look realistic for both the performers working on them and the fans watching the series. Since then, the StageCraft technology has been used for the productions of Obi-Wan Kenobi, Thor: Love and Thunder, and Ant-Man and The Wasp: Quantumania. The Vancouver stage is the fifth permanent StageCraft volume created by the division of Lucasfilm, with two others in Manhattan Beach, one at Burbank’s Walt Disney Studios, and the other at Pinewood Studios in London.

    Upon the announcement of this technology being used for the Percy Jackson and the Olympians series, novel author Rick Riordan spoke about his excitement for how it will positively impact the show.

    The story of Percy Jackson has such an epic scope. I am over the moon that we have forged such a great relationship [with ILM] to give this show such a cutting-edge look and feel.

    Rick Riordan

    The series is set to star Walker Scobell in the titular role of Percy Jackson. As well, Leah Sava Jeffires and Aryan Simhadri will be in co-leading roles as Annabeth Chase and Grover Underwood, respectively. Production for the series began in early June with director James Bobin helming the pilot episode. It certainly will be interesting to follow how this series progresses with this advanced technology enhancing its visual experience.

    Source: The Hollywood Reporter

  • ‘Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes’ Adds Six More to Prequel Cast

    ‘Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes’ Adds Six More to Prequel Cast

    Things are ramping up over at Lionsgate as the Hunger Games prequel continues to add to its ever-expanding cast of tributes and mentors. The project recently added Hunter Schafer, Rachel Zegler, Jason Schwartzman, Josh Andrés Rivera and Laurel Marsden and today announced six more names.

    Deadline is reporting that six new actors have joined the prequel cast: Max Raphael as Festus Creed, Zoe Renee as Lysistrata Vickers, Ayomide Adegun as Pliny “Pup” Harrington, Kaitlyn Akinpelumi as Domita Whimsiwick, and Amélie Hoeferle as Vipsania Sickle, who will all be playing mentors to multiple tributes from different districts. Sofia Sanchez is the only one of the newly added members to the cast who will be playing a tribute, known as Wovey.

    The film will be an adaptation of Suzanne Collins’ novel of the same name, serving as a prequel before the days of Katniss Evergreen. Instead the story will follow future President Coriolanus Snow, played by Tom Blyth, as he struggles to restore his once-proud family’s lineage and serves as a mentor to Lucy Gray Baird, played by Zegler, in the upcoming Hunger Games.

    Francis Lawrence, best for directing the original Hunger Games films, and others such as Constantine and I Am Legend, will return to direct the prequel with a script from writer Michael Lesslie. Nina Jacobson and Brad Simpson are serving as producers on the project alongside Lawrence. The film is currently slated to hit theaters on Nov. 17, 2023.

    SOURCE: Deadline

  • ‘Ms. Marvel’ Episode 4 Primer

    ‘Ms. Marvel’ Episode 4 Primer

    In episode 3 of Ms. Marvel, “Destined”, Kamala finds out more about her heritage and how the power inside of her works. After rescuing her from Damage Control at the end of the second episode, Kamran’s mom, Najma, fills Kamala about the true nature of her great-grandma, Aisha, who is a Djinn from the Noor Dimension. Najma and Aisha believed that a pair of bangles, one of which Kamala now wears, could return them and their exiled family back home. Najma and her family, the Clandestine, seem harmless and and to only want Kamala’s help in using the bangle to open a portal to the Noor Dimension.

    While Kamala learns the truth about her heritage and asks Bruno to help her send the Clandestine home, her brother’s wedding takes center stage. Unfortunately, it turns out that Najma isn’t so trustworthy after all and quickly decides to make Kamala try to send them home, despite a warning from Bruno that it might be very dangerous. After being warned by Kamran that the Clandestine are on their way and that everyone at the wedding is in danger, Kamala pulls the fire alarm, essentially ruining the wedding. She does this to save everyone from getting hurt but it only hurts her relationship with her family. Kamala survives a fight with the Clandestine, which is interrupted when Damage Control shows us and takes them into custody. When she returns home, she is too afraid to tell her family that she is Night Light. At the very end of the episode, her Nani calls Kamala and says that she needs to come to Karachi right away. Nani insists this because she saw the same vision of a train that Kamala saw during her fight with Najma.

    Why her Nani sees the same vision as her is pretty self-explanatory. She probably has the same powers as Kamala and the bangle is connected to them both. Kamala’s mom probably also has this power but she is hiding it from Kamala, just the same way she hid the bangle at first. If her mom does have the same power then we can assume that she has the same visions as well.

    Arlyn’s Assumptions

    In this next episode, I know that Kamala goes to Karachi. In order to get there, Kamala must tell her mom about everything that has happened, including her powers and the visions she is seeing. Either that, or she’s going to be sneaking out for one heck of a trip! It’s also going to be interesting to hear another side of Aisha’s story, this time from someone who seems like a little less of a villain than Najma. Will their stories match up? Almost definitely not, so I’m thinking this episode will reveal the truth about Aisha, the Clandestine and Kamala’s heritage.

    The next episode of Ms. Marvel will stream on Disney+ tomorrow!