Ten Reasons Why Michael Fassbender is The Man

It’s hard to name a young working actor in Hollywood with more credibility than Michael Fassbender. The Irish/German thesp has shot up the Hollywood ladder of late thanks to a series of carefully chosen roles appealing to cinephiles and comic fans alike – and with the recent announcement of his role in the upcoming Assassin’s Creed movie, he’s gaining new attention from legions of gamers. Whether you’re a new or an established Fass Fan, here are ten reasons why Michael Fassbender is The Man.

Minor spoilers ahead.

He's Got Style

One can’t deny Fassbender’s almost insistent suaveness. X-Men: First Class showed us the guy can rock a vintage leather jacket, and his subsequent turn as a wealthy New Yorker in 2011 drama Shame proved he can turn any look into instant cool. For a franchise drenched in as much lavish style as Assassin's Creed, the recent GQ Magazine cover boy couldn't be more suited to don the hood.

He Stood Out in a Tarantino Cast

Fassbender's performance as the extremely British Lt. Archie Hicox in Quentin Tarantino's 2009 Inglorious Basterds is a stand-out amongst a stand-out cast. It's true that Tarantino traditionally enjoys lengthy speeches from his characters, sometimes to a fault, but Fassbender's wordy French tavern scene is so perfectly executed it comes close to stealing the entire movie. Here was an actor teetering on the edge of stardom, and having a hell of a lot of fun while doing it.

He Survived
Jonah Hex

One of Fassbender’s rare career missteps was as a secondary villain opposite Josh Brolin’s hero in the 2010 Western Jonah Hex. After the film was released to fairly terrible reviews, Fassbender shrugged off his involvement in an interview, quipping “Pretty awful, was it? I haven’t seen it myself.” He followed Jonah up with a performance in 2011’s critical darling Jane Eyre, for which he won numerous awards.

Even Charlize Theron Loves Him

In an infamous - brilliantly infamous - case of foot in mouth, Charlize Theron couldn’t help but reference Fassbender’s, uh, assets in Shame at the 2012 Human Rights Campaign Gala. “I have to say that I was truly impressed that you chose to play it big,” said Theron, after accepting an award from Fassbender. “Most other actors would have gone small, trust me. No, I know, because I've worked with them."

He was the Best Part of
Prometheus

Starring in what was, no doubt, the most highly anticipated sci-fi of the year, Michael Fassbender managed to steal the show under the noses of the rest of Prometheus' considerable cast. His android David is a multi-faceted creation, swinging between cool detachment and voracious curiosity like a sinister child, his mimicry of Peter O’ Toole unsettling in its ‘not quite rightness.’ While the unfulfilled ambitions of Prometheus disappointed many, few can argue that Fassbender’s turn wasn’t utterly spellbinding.

He’s Versatile

Fassbender’s starring roles to date have included a sex-addict (Shame), a super-villain (X-Men: First Class), an Irish hunger striker (Hunger) and an android (Prometheus). He's the king of reinvention, in part thanks to an ear for accents, a curiously malleable face and, like contemporary Christian Bale, a commitment to changing his body drastically for a part (he undertook the infamous 300 training regimen, for example, and dropped 40 pounds for his role in Hunger.)  But it’s his ability to turn these roles into something unexpected every time, which makes The Fass more than the sum of his parts.

He’s Unafraid to Tackle Tricky Subjects

Fassbender’s turn as a sex-addicted New Yorker in Shame is one of the more courageous performances by a mainstream actor in recent memory. This is a film where Fassbender (literally) bares everything, his horror-stricken grimaces in some of Shame’s, ahem, more climactic moments painfully intimate. His performance is so accomplished that director Steve McQueen publicly determined America was ‘too scared of sex,’ after Fassbender failed to be nominated for an Academy Award.

He Was a Great Magneto

Fassbender brought just the right amount of steely intensity to Magneto in X-Men: First Class. His Magneto is unassuming and chilling; a man who draws steel fillings out of teeth with a debonair air more evocative of Connery’s Bond than a super-villain. It’s testament to his performance that he beat out Lord Voldemort and Loki in the Favorite Villain category in IGN’s 2011 Summer Movie Awards, described at the time as stealing scenes with ‘savvy understatement, physical grace and brooding menace.’

He’s Got Cred

At the announcement that Fassbender was donning the Assassin’s Hood, the Internet went wild on a familiar theme: ‘WILL FASSBENDER KILL THE VIDEO GAME TO MOVIE CURSE?” The hysteria is somewhat understandable; Fassbender is an actor of a caliber one rarely sees in video game adaptations. That said, Bob Hoskins starred in Super Mario Bros., and look where that got everyone.

He's Co-producing Assassin’s Creed

While his starring role in Ubisoft’s upcoming Assassin’s Creed movie is an exciting prospect, his investment as a co-producer through his own DMC Film label is more intriguing. Little of the history behind the decision has been made public, but the move suggests a confidence in both the franchise and the creative control behind the film one rarely sees in usual ‘gamer-for-pay’ star turns.

What do you guys think of Michael Fassbender's casting in the Assassin's Creed Movie? Let us know in the comments. 

Lucy O'Brien is Assistant Editor at IGN AU. You should talk to her about games, horror movies and the TV show Freaks & Geeks on IGN here or find her and the rest of the Australian team by joining the IGN Australia Facebook community.

Source : ign[dot]com

Rockstar Expands Max Payne 3 Studio

Rockstar has announced that it will expand its Toronto studio, moving the development team to a new larger, custom-built facility in Ontario thanks to support from the Ontario government. Over the next six months, Rockstar Toronto will be joined by members of Rockstar Vancouver, who will be offered the chance to join Rockstar Toronto or to take positions at other Rockstar studios.

Rockstar Toronto previously worked on Max Payne 3 and the PC version of Grand Theft Auto IV, in addition to Grand Theft Auto: Episodes from Liberty City and prior Rockstar titles The Warriors and Max Payne 2. Rockstar Vancouver also contributed to Max Payne 3 in addition to developing both Bully and Bully: Scholarship Edition. According to Rockstar’s vice president of publishing and operations Jennifer Kolbe, combining the two studios “will make for a powerful creative force on future projects.” Kolbe notes that Rockstar plans to add more than 50 new positions to the expanded Canadian team and credits the Ontario government’s cooperation for the ability to do so.

Financial details on the partnership with Ontario’s government weren’t disclosed, though Ontario minister of economic development and innovation Brad Duguid commented that “By providing financial support and tax incentives to help companies grow, we maximize Ontario's competitiveness in the global economy and support job creation.” It’s currently unknown what the new combined Canadian studio will work on first, though it’s worth noting that Max Payne 3 has several downloadable expansions in the works.

Andrew Goldfarb is IGN’s associate news editor. Keep up with pictures of the latest food he’s been eating by following him on Twitter or IGN.

Source : ign[dot]com

Scott Snyder Talks About the Joker's Brutal Return

The Joker is coming back. Better yet, he’s coming back in the most horrifying way possible, thanks to the superstar duo of Scott Snyder and Greg Capullo, starting in October’s Batman #13. Announced last week, Death of the Family is going to bring back the Clowned Prince of Crime after a year out of the spotlight and, well, faceless.

To get some more dirt on the story, we talked with Snyder about the Joker’s psychology, his unique relationship to the Dark Knight, and how Death of the Family will be tying into other Bat-family titles.

Hero Worship: The Appeal of the Joker

IGN Comics: So last year, Tony Daniel took off Joker’s face in Detective Comics #1. How long has Death of the Family been in the works?

Scott Snyder: I’ve had the beginnings of the idea for a Joker story like this since before the New 52, and then it really came together later on. What happened was DC said they wanted to take Joker away and take some of the classic villains off the table a little bit so there could be room for these new villains in Batman that have been exciting to work with. So I knew that in Detective they were going to take Joker away for a while, and Tony had a couple of different ideas about how to do that. I talked to him about it and began to think about the kind of story I’d eventually want to tell, and [Tony] had a couple of different options; any of them would’ve really worked. But this one I thought would tail perfectly into this, so he really wanted to go with the taking the face off one. It was cool with me, so he did that, and then about six months ago I started talking with Peter Tomasi about a story we could do to bring the Joker back.

It’s really meant to be the biggest, craziest, most twisted Joker story I could possibly tell. The more you think about it, one of the things that’s most interesting is that the Joker, as prevalent as he is in Batman mythology, actually isn’t in comics that much when you look back. I mean, he’s in Batman R.I.P. and he was in Batman and Robin in places, and before that he was in No Man’s Land or wherever, but he actually isn’t a central villain in Grant’s [Morrison] stuff. Even though he plays a really great role, he hasn’t been front and center and pitted against Batman in a huge way in a really long time. So even though he’s been in the animated stuff and the movies, there was a realization among us that there hasn’t been a big Joker story in a while and we’re taking him off the table for a year, so this is going to be the opportunity to bring him back in the most vicious way possible.

For me, it became really about writing a love letter or exploration of the Joker that would be my Joker story to end all of my Joker stories. Almost like if I only ever got one chance to write him, this would be it. It’s everything I love and admire and am terrified about in the Joker, all in one place. It’s got a lot of meaning to me personally; a lot of design into his psychology and the symbolism there. Everything from the history of the court jesters and the royal court and tarot cards and everything to this sort of weird Shakespearean stuff to squirting flowers and beyond. It really is an “everything and the kitchen sink Joker” in one place.

“

The Joker is the guy that essentially says, 'I am the jester that serves you, king, in Gotham.'

IGN: That’s crazy. I have a couple of follow-ups to that. The first, well, you mentioned how DC took Joker off the table for a while. I always find he works best when he has been gone for a while and he kind of comes back with a bang. Why do you think he’s become such a classic villain even though he’s a character we only get in doses?

Snyder: I think he embodies all of the most terrifying things to Batman. The Joker is the guy that essentially says, “I am the jester that serves you, king, in Gotham. I bring your worst nightmares to life to make you stronger. And in that, I have a relationship with you that no one else has. I know the darkest corners of your heart and I bring those to life. I celebrate those.” He sees into Batman, saying, “Here are the things that are totally crazy about you and these are the things that I love and that make you wonderful. Let’s celebrate those by you stopping me from doing horrific things in your city.”

And in that way, he represents to me the truest and most frightening form of what a villain can be, because he’s what Batman is most frightened of about himself personified. He could descend into this kind of madness and let his pathologies get the best of him and he is crazy deep down somehow. That’s what the Joker is sort of saying to him all the time; that’s why we have they this special relationship. “All you have to do is give up Bruce Wayne and come live with me.” In that way, I think he’s not just Batman’s greatest villain but he’s such a brilliant villain in general because he represents all of these things that a villain can be to this incredible extreme.

IGN: In the past, in Black Mirror, you wrote Joker a little bit in one of the issues. Is your approach to him this time around any different than what you did in Black Mirror?

Snyder: That is sort of the seed for this Joker, in the way that that Joker seemed to know more than he should about his enemies. I think the fun, the realization there for me was the Joker was just as scary without his conventional grin. He’s wearing a mask throughout that story in the beginning, so Joker can still be Joker even when you just catch a glimpse of his eye or his hair. He can still be himself and be frightening.

So in that way, there’s a connection here but also just in the way how in that one he sees Dick Grayson and he says, “You smell like feathers, little birdie, you’re not my Batman.” So that notion that he has a deep connection and a deep familiarity and knowledge of Bruce as Batman is something that’s hugely important in this story. Joker’s got a big secret and a big axe to grind against the Bat-family, so he’s really built to this point that factors in all of the things that have been happening over the last year. In that way, I feel like it’s a story that really has a big scope but at the same time is extremely personal.

IGN: In terms of the Bat-family, they’re just coming out of the Court of Owls story. What’s different about the threats that they’re facing from the Joker – a villain that they think they know pretty well – as opposed to the Court who was completely new to them?

Snyder: For me, the idea with Court of Owls was that, when the other books played a part, it was about Gotham history. It was about those writers getting to explore a moment in Gotham history and creating a Talon that came from that era to be pitted against their heroes for reasons that were personal to what was happening in their series individually. But here, I think a lot of people have the idea that the Joker has faced off with some of these Bat-family characters before, but he really hasn’t. I mean, when you think about The Killing Joke and you think about Barbara [Gordon], you think, well, he came after Barbara and that. But he didn’t, he was coming after Commissioner Gordon and using Barbara. And similarly, in Death in the Family, he uses Jason [Todd] to get at Batman in as many ways as he’s hurting Jason too. In that way, Joker would make the argument that, “I’ve never faced off with you guys, but now I’m looking you in the eye and I’m coming for you. I will tear down and kill and burn anything in your life to break you.” They’ve never faced a nightmare like the Joker is the idea, and he’s coming for each one of those characters individually.

And you will see him in those books. What’s going to happen in Batman is a thousand percent self-contained; it’s going to be my big Joker story with Greg Capullo in Batman. You will not have to read another book to follow it whatsoever to follow it, I promise you that. It’s from #13-17, with a big, huge finale in 17 with an annual-sized issue – and we’ll be in the back-ups too, so it’ll just be a giant story that’s the equivalent of almost seven issues packed into five. Even though that will be completely self-contained in Batman, you will see Joker in the other series in self-contained ways similar to Night of the Owls, where he goes after those Bat-family members in ways that will give him a chance to completely unleash the most terrifying things you’ve seen in those series up to this point.

Batman #13 Cover

The difference between Night of the Owls and this, I think, is I love Night of the Owls because it gave us all a chance to explore the different layers of Gotham’s past, but this one is really personal. Meaning, when Joker comes after you because he’s angry, he comes after you in the most personal way possible. Even if he doesn’t care that much about you, he’s going to expose the thing he thinks you’re most afraid of about yourself and go for it. And there’s nothing off limits when you use the Joker; nothing gruesome, nothing macabre, nothing violent. In that way, this is a really different storyline than what happened in Night of the Owls because it’s extremely personal for each character.

IGN: It seems to be tempting when writing the Joker to lose focus on Batman himself – is there a trick to making sure you keep that balance?

Snyder: I think the key is that Joker is all about Batman. He exists to be the demon on Batman’s shoulder. Here, we won’t lose focus on Batman because it’s told through Batman’s point of view, and then Joker is haunting him, almost, throughout. The Joker is there to say, “You’ve forgotten important things and I’m going to prove those to you.” So the trick to not losing Batman in a Joker story is that, at least in my interpretation of the Joker, he exists solely to expose the dark truths about Batman. In that way, they’re equal partners on the page.

IGN: Perfect. And obviously they released that teaser earlier this week which was just creepy and awesome – what do you think Greg is bringing to this story?

Snyder: Oh, man. Greg is one of the best partners I’ve ever had on anything. He’s so creative and so exuberant; he’s got so many ideas. From the page turn in Batman #5 to all of these visual things in Court of the Owls that were his idea. Here, he’s really designing a Joker that’s iconic, I think – he looks different because he doesn’t have his face, or he has it in a different way, at least, which I think is going to be really scary and cool – but at the same time we wanted to do something that makes it look like Joker is going to work. Like he’s coming to get you. He’s got his tools. He might be a little bloodstained, but he’s Joker and he’s coming to do what he does best. And the core things about him that you recognize as iconic will be there, even though this will be a scarier, almost horror movie version of the Joker.

So Greg is having a ball with it, his sketches are amazing, and the fun is also to be able to let him interpret the terrors that the Joker brings on the page. So if I say there’s a scene where someone’s in the GCPD and Commissioner Gordon is looking for them with a flashlight, you see a flash of white, a flash of green, you see a white hand trailing along the wall, you hear something slinking past… Greg is just wonderful about creating the most terrifying interpretation of that stuff. All I can say is it’s the scariest thing I’ve ever worked on, I love it. [laughs]

IGN: [laughs] That’s really exciting. You mentioned the back-ups a little bit before, but how are they working in relation to the main story?

Snyder: Well the back-ups are going to tie-in in the way that you’ll see how the Joker approaches the other villains in the rogue’s gallery to either participate or to take them down in different ways, and his relationships to them will be explored in the back-ups in ways that I think will really surprise people and be fun.

IGN: And I guess my last question would have to be, what’s your all-time favorite Joker story aside from your own?

Snyder: Aside from my own? My own is always my favorite. [laughs] Honestly, it’s hard to pick, but it’d probably be The Killing Joke, simply because it really blew me away when I read it in terms of the deep relationship that Batman has to the Joker there, and that moment when they laugh together at the end is one of my favorite moments in all of comics. But also The Dark Knight Returns; the fact that Joker was catatonic until Batman returned. There’s something fascinating to me about that.

The other one that is really important to me that I think maybe gets overlooked sometimes is the animated Joker in Batman Beyond: Return of the Joker. I think that’s one of the best Joker stories ever; it’s so dark and so piercing in terms of the Joker’s psychology and how it relates to Bruce and what would happen if he knew who he was and how far he’s willing to go. All of those things are really well explored there. So I don’t know, there’s a constellation of things that I love. Also, Grant Morrison’s Arkham Asylum for its strange transgender weirdness with him. But at the end of the day, that’s what I love. He’s a character who, at his core, in all of his interpretations, is deeply terrifying, and deeply exciting to use for that reason. He comes at Batman in a way that exposes the greatest nightmares of Batman’s heart, which is incredibly fresh and exciting and horrifying.

IGN: Well, awesome, I’m really excited for it, man. I was instantly pumped when I saw that teaser. [laughs]

Snyder: Thanks man, I can’t wait for you guys to see it. And thanks to IGN, you guys are always great to us, and I appreciate that.

Joey is IGN's Comics Editor and a comic book creator himself. Follow Joey on Twitter, or find him on IGN. He often dances with the devil in the pale moonlight.

Source : ign[dot]com

Comic Book Reviews for 7/4/12

Thanks all for being patient this week while we in the IGN Comics Review Crew enjoyed our firework blastin' holiday.

Only one week until San Diego Comic-Con, folks. It's hard to believe it's already been a year. But that doesn't mean the big releases are slowing down any -- this week saw the release of Batman: Earth One, Avengers vs. X-Men #7, a new He-Man comic, and the next chapter of the big return of the Lizard in The Amazing Spider-Man.

We should note that due to SDCC next week, there will be no comics review round-up. Sorry! We will, however, still be reviewing some of next week's bigger releases. You can follow our coverage of the show here.

DC COMICS

Action Comics #11

Written by Grant Morrison | Art by Various

"Even almost a year after the New 52 relaunch, I hear plenty of readers complaining that they don't like Superman because he isn't relatable. I can only assume those people haven't been reading Action Comics. For whatever problems this series might have, Grant Morrison is able to balance the various sides of Superman into a cohesive whole. The strong characterization drives the book forward even when the plot falters." -Jesse

Click to read the entire review!

Final Score:

7.0

Animal Man #11

Written by Jeff Lemire | Art by Alberto Ponticelli

"It’s the climax you’ve been waiting for that brings several plot threads together for a brawl to remember. One of those gross guys from the Rot is masquerading as Buddy Baker and has his son Cliff while the real Buddy gets a makeover of sorts from two Coneheads in the Red. Jeff Lemire not only provides a satisfying conclusion to his Extinction is Forever arc, but he evolves the character of Animal Man by changing the nature of his abilities for the better." -Joshua

Click to read the entire review!

Final Score:

8.0

Batman: Earth One

Written by Geoff Johns | Art by Gary Frank

"It’s hard to believe that it has been two and a half years since DC Comics announced the Earth One line of graphic novels, which included the reveal of Batman: Earth One. After the massive success of Superman: Earth One (though a critical disappointment), fans waited eagerly for the Dark Knight incarnation. Whether it was a creative delay or simply a marketing effort to wait for the next Batman movie, Geoff Johns and Gary Frank’s Batman: Earth One is here, and best of all, has been worth the wait." -Joey

Click to read the entire review!

Final Score:

9.0

Batwing #11

Written by Judd Winick | Art by Marcus To

"With Batwing, Nightwing, Batman, Penguin, a new villain, and a dragon all figuring into Batwing #11, you’d expect to find some interesting developments. The reality is that the story being told is full of happenings but lacking in impact. As a result, this issue ends up sagging for want of a compelling narrative backbone." -Poet

Click to read the entire review!

Final Score:

6.5

Before Watchmen: Ozymandias #1

Written by Len Wein | Art by Jae Lee

"Before Watchmen: Ozymandias is the first of these prequel titles to break the desire of plugging itself into the greater Watchmen universe and really hone in on character. That’s not to say there aren’t ties to the greater narrative at large, but Len Wein and Jae Lee’s first priority is delving into the mind and past of Adrian Veidt. Remarkably, the exploration of his background not only supplements the character’s motivations in the original Watchmen, but also makes the reader more sympathetic to them. That said, without the context of the original story, I fear Ozymandias #1 would be less effective." -Joey

Click to read the entire review!

Final Score:

8.0

Detective Comics #11

Written by Tony Daniel | Art by Julio Ferreira & Eduardo Pansic

"Batman has followed Mr. Toxic’s trail to Dr. Marden’s lab in Wayne Tower, but that’s only the beginning of the mystery. Improving on last month’s enjoyable installment of Detective Comics, Tony Daniel has penned one of the best issues of the series to date in issue #11." -Poet

Click to read the entire review!

Final Score:

7.0

Dial H #3

Written by China Mieville | Art by Mateus Santolouco

"If you’ve been reading Dial H, you already know it’s a weird book. It’s a good thing for readers to understand from the outset because writer China Mieville plunges his readers straight into the weirdness in issue #3. Longtime readers of the Dial H property will have an advantage over those who are just learning the ropes; however, it still takes until the last few pages for Mieville’s seemingly disparate clues to coalesce into something that makes sense. That may sound frustrating, but it actually continues the totally unique vibe of the series nicely." -Poet

Click to read the entire review!

Final Score:

8.0

Earth 2 #3

Written by James Robinson | Art by Nicola Scott

"Behold the origin of Earth 2’s Green Lantern. It’s nowhere near as powerful or epic as it tries to be. Instead, it functions as a rite of passage that so many heroes often have to endure: receive the power, put on the costume, and declare the agenda. While the actual proceedings are dry, there’s an unexpected layer of heart to it. Alan Scott lost his would-be fiance in last issue’s fiery train crash, so he pledges to fight in his memory. The only person more upset about this loss is me." -Joshua

Click to read the entire review!

Final Score:

7.0

G.I. Combat #3

Written by Various | Art by Various

"It's hard to complain about a concept as fundamentally sound as soldiers battling dinosaurs in a prehistoric wonderland. And to date, J.T. Krul's update of The War That time Forgot has been the primary draw with G.I. Combat. Unfortunately, even that appeal is beginning to wear thin with issue #3. Krul relies on the same storytelling elements once more in this arc. A brief flashback explores the civilian life of one of the soldiers, and then more dinosaur carnage ensues. What worked well enough for a couple months is becoming played out now." -Jesse

Click to read the entire review!

Final Score:

5.5

He-Man and the Masters of the Universe #1

Written by James Robinson | Art by Philip Tan

"For those of us that grew up that magical time known as the 80s, He-Man is a true icon. He's up there with G.I. Joe and Transformers. His world was filled with some of the most crazy-awesome heroes and villains ever to grace the cartoon world, and don't even get me started on the incredibly cool toys. Yes, He-Man was a big deal, but he has yet to have a proper resurgence -- a full-blown comeback -- like many of his 80s and 90s counter parts. DC Comics is looking to rectify that with a brand new He-Man and the Masters of the Universe comic series, and the good news is that the first issue is pretty decent." -Benjamin

Click to read the entire review!

Final Score:

7.5

Red Lanterns #11

Written by Peter Milligan | Art by Miguel Sepulveda

"Last issue blew me away with the focused story and impressive art, but here the splintered narrative breaks down the story’s strength to a point where Miguel Sepulveda’s spectacular art can do little to save it. The Red Lanterns are on a mission to fix their poisoned power in order to save their lives. While the conflict itself is solid, the way writer Peter Miligan has the different Red Lanterns go about fixing it is curious, making me wonder if their Corps would self destruct due to poor management if Abysmus hadn’t poisoned their central power battery." -Joshua

Click to read the entire review!

Final Score:

5.5

Stormwatch #11

Written by Peter Milligan | Art by Ignacio Calero

"Peter Milligan has a great story for Stormwatch here, but the clunky execution has it buried beneath an unclear plot and forced dialog. The Hidden People, a group of super powered survivor Neanderthals, have hatched a plan to devolve humanity with a powerful cube device. Sounds Stormwatch-y enough for me, but between the truncated history lesson in the beginning, the confusing action sequence in the middle, and the hokey mustache-twirling end, the team has seen better days." -Joshua

Click to read the entire review!

Final Score:

5.5

Source : ign[dot]com

Marvel Universe to Undergo Drastic Changes

Fans have long been speculating about Marvel's plans for their post-Avengers vs. X-Men universe. Thanks to an announcement in the Comic-Con issue of EW, we've got the answers.

Marvel NOW! is the company's latest publishing initiative, the next phase of Marvel ReEvolution, a concept that was unveiled earlier this year. Basically, it's a giant shake-up of Marvel's entire universe -- brand new titles, brand new creative teams, brand new costumes, relaunched titles, new digital incentives, new cover designs and even new secret identities, in some cases. It's a complete overhaul for the Marvel Universe that the publisher promises will leave no major character or series unaffected (jury's still out on where Night Nurse ends up, though).

However, Marvel has made sure to make one thing clear: Marvel NOW! is not a reboot or restart of continuity. This is the next evolution of their characters in a post-AvX world that will be moving things in all-new directions with creators tackling characters they've never really touched before.

Marvel will begin launching new books starting in October, which will included new and long-forgotten titles but also a few re-launches. The new books will continue launching through February 2013. If you're not sold on the idea yet, just take a look at the titles announced so far:

Uncanny Avengers #1 by Rick Remender & John Cassaday (October)

• The book stars a team comprised of both Avengers and X-Men (yes, including Captain America and Wolverine) on a mission to find the Red Skull, who's on a mission to eliminate mutants once and for all.

All New X-Men #1 by Brian Michael Bendis & Stuart Immonen (November)

• The original five X-Men -- from the 60s -- show up in the present and realize that the future they see isn't the one that they want. Bendis made it clear that it wasn't a time travel story that was heavy on the sci-fi element, instead focused on the character drama this situation would create.

Avengers #1 by Jonathan Hickman & Jerome Opena (December)

• Described as an Avengers book for the 21st century, Hickman will expand the roster to "18 or more" members from all walks of the Marvel Universe. Given the style of writing Hickman goes for, expect this book to be huge in scope.

Not bad, eh? Of course, this answers the mystery of what Hickman would be doing after he wraps up his Fantastic Four run and the reason he left Ultimate Comics Ultimates some months back, where he stated that it was for an opportunity that he couldn't pass up. If that opportunity wasn't Avengers #1, I'm not sure what else it could have been. In addition, this answers the question of what Bendis is doing post-Avengers. It's also worth noting that the rumors about Jean Grey's return are likely in reference to All-New X-Men, which states that the original First Class -- of which Jean was a part -- would find themselves in the present.

Uncanny Avengers by Remender and Cassaday is certainly an interesting title, as it suggests a mash-up of the writer's two major titles -- Uncanny X-Force and Secret Avengers. Might the teams be merging? Whatever the case, these line-ups are thrilling and here's hoping whatever else Marvel's got in store for Marvel NOW! is on par with these books.

EW also debuted an exclusive piece of art showcasing some of the new costume changes. All I can really say about it is, Rocket Raccoon FTW:

Aside from the new titles and general newness to the visual look of some characters, Marvel is also continuing their renewed focus on digital comics. The Marvel NOW! branding represents a jump-on point for new readers, and the covers for every new #1 with the branding will make use of Marvel AR to recap the story so far for new readers before they even open the book. Additionally, each book with the Marvel NOW! branding will have a code to download a free digital copy of the purchased issue via the Marvel Comics app.

There's bound to be plenty of speculation from fans in the coming weeks; luckily, San Diego Comic-Con is right around the corner. Surely attendees will have some questions. In the meantime, stay tuned to IGN Comics for a chat with Marvel's Chief Creative Officer Joe Quesada on Thursday to shed some light on the initiative.

Update: In addition to the series listed above, Marvel revealed another new title: New Avengers by Jonathan Hickman and Steve Epting. This will relaunch as a #1 in January.

Joey is IGN's Comics Editor and a comic book creator himself. Follow Joey on Twitter, or find him on IGN. He will love Star Wars until the end of his days.

Source : ign[dot]com

Star Wars: Galaxy of Passion

Imagine The Empire Strikes Back as a Spanish-language telenovela and you end up with Galaxia de Pasion:

Thanks to io9 for the head's-up!

Source : http://www.ign.com/articles/2012/06/05/star-wars-galaxy-of-passion

Mad Men: "Dark Shadows" Review

Hey guys, apologies for this review going up so very late – a full week after the episode aired! Thanks to my time in New York covering Upfronts, I only just was able to watch it.

This was an interesting episode for Don. All season (but it began earlier, of course), he’d been so checked out of work. And here he is, getting back into things, but obviously also very insecure. He was inspired to pitch his own take on the Sno Ball campaign when he snuck a look at Ginsberg’s pages in the first place – but clearly didn’t like the fact that while everyone genuinely liked his devil idea, Ginsberg’s played a bit better.

Don had a great, cold retort to Ginsberg at the end – “I don’t think about you at all” – but it was a lie of course. He’d been thinking about him the whole episode. This is a very interesting new side of Don, as he is trying to prove he’s still got it, and has his (valid) concerns about these young hotshots who may be on their way to surpassing him.

Insecurity was a big theme in "Dark Shadows" (yes it was funny timing to have this air the weekend the Dark Shadows movie opened), as we saw it also explored with Betty. I felt the moment where she saw Megan changing in her bedroom was a bit too convenient – We already understood how uncomfortable it was for Betty to see this oh-so modern new apartment of Don’s and be in the presence of his young, beautiful wife, while she was struggling with her weight. But Betty’s response was oh-so Betty, which is to say, awful.

Betty throwing a bomb into Don’s life by revealing who Anna was to Sally was “Classic Betty.” And while I feel like we have a good handle on who Betty is and how and why she does a lot of the cruel things she does, it still was pretty satisfying to see it ultimately backfire on her. Sally realizing it was true that Betty was trying to sabotage things and calmly telling her mother, “Yes. Daddy showed me pictures and they spoke very fondly of her,” was gratifying. I don’t hate Betty, but I don’t want to see her win this petty battle either, that’s for sure. Betty’s final hollow, boastful Thanksgiving dinner thanks was both amusing and sad, as she struggles to convince herself she is happy "And no one else has anything better."

I wish the story with Roger and Joan had resonated a bit more. I did like the continued look at the “new” Roger, as he said he was over hating Pete and we learned he will not stop bringing up his LSD experience. But we’ve never known Jane well enough to really feel her pain when she told Roger he’d ruined her new apartment by seducing her in it. I guess the question is whether Roger truly learned something from what happened – he obviously was motivated by his jealousy at her semi-flirting with another man – since he’s the character we’re invested in of the two.

Pete didn’t appear a ton in this episode, but when he did, it was all about his continued (and increasingly worrisome) obsession with Beth (Alexis Bledel), despite her having ended things. I find myself very nervous where this is going…

Meanwhile, Lane Pryce continued to be MIA this week – a very odd, long absence from the show. I’m very glad to see him in the previews for the next episode!

Source : http://www.ign.com/articles/2012/05/20/mad-men-dark-shadows-review

Diablo 3 Error Message Blocks Out Game Access Ads By Google » Blog Tags Today's Most Popular Videos »

Diablo 3 is here at last, but the release hasn't gone as smoothly as Blizzard would like thanks to some launch day hiccups in the form of an "Error 37" message. Some players are reporting (via Shacknews) that they're greeted with a message upon launching the game that reads: "The servers are busy at this time. Please try again later. (Error 37)"

An update from the developer on Battle.net confirms that the issue is related to the servers being slammed hard with the influx of new users. "Due to high concurrency the login servers are currently at full capacity. This may cause delays in the login process, account pages and web services. We apologise for any inconvenience this may cause and thank you for your patience while this is being resolved." There are also apparently issues affecting character creation that Blizzard is looking into.

This is a huge launch and issues were to be expected. Kudos to Blizzard for getting out in front of it and commenting quickly. How has your first-time Diablo 3 experience been so far? Is the game working fine? Running into these issues or any others? Let us know!

Source : http://www.g4tv.com/thefeed/blog/post/723780/diablo-3-error-message-blocks-out-game-access/