Showing posts with label film. Show all posts
Showing posts with label film. Show all posts

Thursday 1 March 2018

Comics Wrap-Up - You're Gonna Hear Me Roar


Comics wrap-up title image with manga-style girl handing her shadow a flower






Firstly, my dearest nerdlets, Happy St. David's Day/Dydd Gŵyl Dewi Sant Hapus! You can check out some Welsh-language music in a blogpost I wrote on Sunday to celebrate.


Yes, I have now seen Black Panther! It was totally awesome-ful! XD (And most of what I have for you this week is Black Panther-related!)


And this week is one of those weeks where everything I have for you comes under the 'other stuff' category. Blame Loki. #AlwaysBlameLoki





Thursday 22 February 2018

Thursday 15 February 2018

Comics Wrap-Up - If This Is What You Want Then Fire At Will

comics wrap-up title image with manga-style woman handing a flower to her child-like shadow








I'm writing this week's wrap-up with the flu. So if I say things that don't make any sense, just smile and pat me on the head, k? 😉






Friday 9 February 2018

Friday Fics Fix - Dumbledore is Gay. Dumbledore is Gay. Dumbledore. Is. Gay. Deal With It.

You may or may not know that the chance has once again been lost to allow the Harry Potter universe's Albus Dumbledore to BE gay on-screen.





Friday Fics Fix title image with purple background and white lightning bolt






Why is that important when J K Rowling has already said (over ten years ago,) that Prof. Dumbledore is a gay dude? Because word-of-God/author is not the same as on-screen canonisation (official-ness.) It comes across as queer-baiting. At best.





Friday 12 January 2018

Friday Fics Fix - Combined Forces

Here we are then, in 2018! And it's time for the first Friday Fics Fix of the year!




Friday Fics Fix title image



In case you don't know (because the internet has a short memory, and also you might be new to Dora Reads - in which case, welcome! Please stay! Lol,) Friday Fics Fix is a weekly post where I recommend (or 'rec') a piece of fanfiction.

Basically, I started this post series because fanfiction totally counts as reading! And it should be completely counted as such! #EffTheSnobs





So with that established, let's take a look at this week's rec!

OK, I have some Star Wars for you this week - which I haven't done before, because while I like Star Wars, it's not like my be-all-and-end-all. And I know people take Star Wars pretty seriously!




Friday 29 September 2017

Friday Fics Fix - B-A-B-Y Baby

Something a li'l different for you this week my nerdlets!

This week I've got a fic based on the awesome film Baby Driver - if you haven't seen it, it's pretty damned cool!




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For those not in the know (or in need of a reminder,) Baby Driver is about a getaway driver called Baby who plays music (LOUD) on a semi-permanent basis to drown out his tinnitus (and the whiny bank robbers he works with.)



Thursday 17 August 2017

Comics Wrap-Up - Miss Atomic Bomb

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Film Trailers and Films

I'm actually gonna give you some slightly older trailers for two based-on-comics films I've seen over the past two weeks*

*Yes, two films in two weeks. I bought a year cinema pass, so I literally go there every week; after the first 20 films, it's paid for itself.

And I've seen like 24 or 25 now. If you're a movie fan, maybe look at similar deals where you are? #BudgetTipsWithCee - lol! ;)





Thursday 8 June 2017

Comics Wrap-Up - Where Were You When All of the Embers Fell?

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Graphic Novels




This week, I read Doom Patrol, Volume 1: Brick by Brick, one of the DC Young Animal/Gerard Way titles.

And yes, I bl**dy loved it!





(Amazon: UK - US)




It's already out in the US and will be out in the UK on the 13th - so my review will be appearing sometime on or around the UK release date (I haven't decided precisely when yet.)

If you're a fan of surreal-ness and/or any of Gerard Way's other comics, you're gonna love it.


Friday 31 March 2017

Friday Fics Fix - Mr Scamander

Once again, my nerdlets, I bring you a great piece of #ownvoices fanfiction.

Fanfiction is often the place where diverse stories can find a voice - which isn't always possible in mainstream media.




Fics Fix title image






This fic is awesome. It's heart-wrenching, heart-breaking, but also spirit-lifting.

And it's supremely well-written. Simply put, it's beautiful.







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Simply put, it's beautiful. Click to Tweet.







Thursday 23 March 2017

Comics Wrap-Up - If I Could Save Time In A Bottle

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OK, due to a) a sh**ty cold that makes it hard for me to concentrate, and b) Loki (alwaaays blame Loki guys, 9/10 times, it was him,) everything I have for you today falls under the heading of 'Other Stuff.'

So, on to the Other Stuff!



Saturday 14 January 2017

#DisabilityDiaries2017 | Harry Potter and the Representation of Scarring

(Flashing Images Warning: there are some gifs with flashing images in this blogpost which may cause problems for those with photosensitive conditions such as epilepsy or migraines.)



Let's kick off Disability Diaries 2017 with something a little different. Let's talk about scars.

(The lovely Ely @ Tea and Titles came up with the idea of Disability Diaries - a week long event running from 14th-21st Jan 2017, discussing disability, books, and disability in books. 

Ely, myself, Angel @ Angel Reads, Dina @ Dinasoaur, Jolien @ The Fictional Reader, and Lara @ Another Teen Reader are running it.)












Scars. A physical sign of illness and injury. Not a disability, but often an indication of one, and often made into one by the way society treats them.





I have a lot of scars.




My scars are mundane - sorry, but there's no cool story of danger and adventure, neither is there any trauma you can romanticise.

But I'm covered in lines of silver, purple, and pink.

I scar easily - my skin is 'sensitive,' which is another way of saying 'my skin reacts to numerous substances and allergens, because my immune system treats them as a threat.' But that's not as pithy, I agree.

My skin also takes a long time to heal. So a simple scratch from my cat may leave a reddish purpleish line for 6 months or more.





So, with my variety of permanent, semi-permanent, and temporary scars, I notice the way we portray scars, in books and elsewhere.

Guess what? Society and media is cr*p at representation of scars. And for someone with low self-esteem (hello there! 🙋) it can have a really negative affect on how you view yourself.





Shall we take our most well-known scarred hero as an example?

(And I'd like to just point out that, like most people, I love Harry Potter and simply want to use this as an example to discuss scarring. It's really not an attack on anyone's enjoyment of anything.)















What do we know about Harry Potter's famous scar?
  • it's lightning shaped
  • it's the result of a magical curse that rebounded
  • it's on his forehead
  • it gives him magical Spidey-sense to let him know when Voldemort's faffing about
  • it's permanent




And what does that tell us, my nerdlets, about the representation of scarring here?




His scar might be shaped like a lightning bolt, but it's a clean line.

Scars are often jagged, uneven, and/or unsightly.

Rowling falls into the trope of Good Scars vs Evil Scars - good scars, the kind heroes get, are either attractive or barely noticeable.

They are clean lines, as if made by a precision instrument, and healed evenly.

The villains get to have 'scary' jagged or unsightly scars, to show that they're evil inside and out (*sighs*.)













It gives Harry a dramatic backstory.

It's a sign that he's 'the Chosen One' - it's derring-do and noble-suffering bound into one little line on his head.

And, just to be handy, it never dries out and flakes in the winter, forcing him to use non-heroic moisturiser.






Harry's scar is easily hidden.

Harry wears his hair long to hide his scar. While I would defend the right of anyone with a scar to either hide it, or display it, as they choose, why does Rowling choose to hide Harry's scar?

Is it, perhaps, because society sees facial imperfections and scars as something shameful, some sign of corruption? 

By hiding his scar, he can hide his imperfection. Rowling's hero is flawed, but not where anyone can see it.

But guess what? Scars are ok. They are not a corruption, or a flaw of character. They are simply damaged skin.







Harry's scar 'aches.'

OK, I'm about to blow your mind - SCARS DON'T HURT. Yes, yes, magic and all that. But scars have limited pain receptors.

Unless you cut through all the skin layers, they will very rarely actually hurt. The skin around them might ache or hurt, especially if they've dried out and tightened, but the scar itself? Not usually.

Scars are simply the result of collagen healing the skin. Yeah - collagen, that stuff they put in dermal fillers? Very few pain receptors.







And Harry's scar has magical Voldy Spider-sense.

Granted, this is handy plot-wise, and has the added 'oh, poor Harry!' effect that Rowling was clearly going for.

But what is this saying, really?

That scars are a constant reminder of the bad parts of your life and your past? That physical scars and psychological ones are directly linked?

That scars have to be (as Dumbledore says) 'useful' in order to be present on a hero instead of on a villain?













Scars actually change over time, you know that?

They can change vastly for about 2 years after the injury or other damage to the skin, and can change in appearance after that as your body ages.

You wouldn't think that, given that scars in so many books etc. are either healed completely within a week or two, or permanently in a specific state for the rest of the character's life.



If your character ages, their scar should too.

Stretch marks in particular will silver as you get older (and no, stretch marks aren't just from pregnancies - they also occur in growth spurts, and sometimes around injuries where the skin has had to grow more quickly than normal in order to heal the wound.)

I have a small indented scar above my eye from where I had some face-time with a table aged six (it had staples sticking out of it, and accident-prone Cee over here just had to connect with the stapled portion of the table.)

It looks different all the freaking time. If I'm tired, it really stands out. Some days, it's barely there at all. Skin is stretchy and crinkly - especially on your face.






So, there I am as a kid, reading Harry Potter, and wondering why the hell his scar looks the same all the time? Why doesn't it flake? Why is it aching, but never pulling with skin tightness?

Facial skin moves a lot, and you know those lines you get in your forehead when you're making expressions? They should've made Harry's scar look different all the time.





Ms Rowling chose to give Harry a facial scar, yet doesn't seem to know what that entails.

I would've loved it if he wandered down to Madame Pomfrey every now and then in winter to ask for lotion of some kind.

Or maybe a description of the weird feeling of not-feeling when you move a joint or a muscle (like, in your forehead, for example) with a scar overlapping it?





Don't get me wrong, I have nothing against Harry, or against J K Rowling. It just would've been nice if, when writing a kid with a scar, she thought about what that was like.





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Thursday 10 November 2016

Comics Wrap-Up - Something Strange






Film Trailers


A bunch more Doctor Strange trailers/clips for you guys:


















I actually saw Doctor Strange on Monday - it was awesome BUT there are two things which CAN'T be ignored:

Tilda Swinton's character is whitewashed. (I love her, but it's true.)

And this film fails Bechdel.









Get your act together Marvel.




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And there's a new Wonder Woman trailer:





Looks pretty cool, and clears up that this is supposed to be WW1 not WW2.

(The uniforms still look more WW2 in places guys, I know, but *sighs* anachronisms)







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And the trailer for Logan came out last week!





This is the wonderful Hugh Jackman's last film as Wolverine :'O

It looks really awesome, and I always love me an Old Man Logan storyline.

(Oh, and the reason he looks older than Prof X? That's because he is older than Prof X - see X-Men Origins: Wolverine for details ;P )








Single Issues


This week I read Suicide Squad #1 of the 2011-2014 run. (US link)





One thing in particular I liked about this issue? Diablo doesn't speak much English in stressful situations (because why the hell would he?!)








Graphic Novels



This week I reviewed Who Killed Kurt Cobain?: The Story of Boddah by Nicolas Otero (UK - US.)





It's an interesting read, but I did have some issues with it. Check out my review here.










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Tuesday 25 October 2016

5 Spoopy Book-To-Film Adaptations For Halloween

Hello dearest nerdlets! Halloween is coming up (which, if you've spent 5 minutes on social media lately, you've probably noticed,) so I decided to give you a little list of 5 book-to-film adaptations in the Halloween-y spirit!










1. The Crow


The adaptation of James O'Barr's amazing graphic novel is a) violent and b) awesome. Not for kids, this is... rough... but is still, most definitely, worth the watch.

Brandon Lee played the title role of Eric Draven, and, infamously, was sadly killed on set by a freak set of circumstances which resulted in live ammo being used. He was amazing in this film.





Amazon: UK - US







2. Secret Window


This comes from a Stephen King short story/novella-type-thing called Secret Window, Secret Garden, and stars Johnny Depp.

Book nerds will especially love this one (yes guys, I know my audience dammit!) because it follows a writer, and deals with imagination, the power of stories, and characters/plot.

The denouement (fancy words!) is different in the short story - but, to be honest, I love both (but did find it ironic that a plot obsessed with story endings changed the ending of the story.)





Amazon: UK - US







3. Harry Potter (series)


Yes, this counts! There are witches and wizards and sh**!

And not everyone wants things to be too scary on Halloween - so, to them, I give the notion of a Harry Potter marathon. My gift to you. ;)





Amazon: UK - US







4. Interview With The Vampire


My friends, Lestat started my love affair with all things vamp, and to that I will always thank this film (which I saw before I read the book! Shocking! But I actually do that a lot.)

Tom Cruise and Brad Pitt playing two exceptionally sexy vampires - truly, what more could you want?

And yes, the queer aspects of the story are toned down - but there is no denying* the homoeroticism here. (Fans self.)

*although, someone I went to school with did think they were 'just being friendly' - because, y'know, we all stroke our friends' faces lovingly and breathe lustily in their faces every now and then. (Eye rolls.)





Amazon: UK - US








5. Constantine


The Bestie would kill me if this wasn't on the list.

Therefore I give in to the higher power that is my friend's wrath, and give you this comic-book-based tale of hell and damnation. Plus Keanu Reeves. #JobDone.

Oh, and I've actually reviewed this! (I really need to do more bookish film reviews... I just keep forgetting!) You can check out that review here.





Amazon: UK - US








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Thursday 23 June 2016

Comics Wrap Up - A Town Called Alice

Graphic Novels


This week, I've gone ever-so-slightly head-over-heels for Alice in Wonderland in all its shapes and forms.

I saw Alice Through The Looking Glass (highly recommend!) early in the week, and also read Jun Abe's manga edition of the first film.

This is a release from our beloved Tokyopop, recently resurrected by the grace of a major contract from Disney.







Just to make it clear this manga is made up of two volumes (oddly enough, Vol 1 (US,) and Vol 2 (US,)) and is also available in a collected edition of both volumes (US - UK.)

From what I can make out, here in the UK (and probably a lot of other countries,) it's currently only available in the collected 2-volume edition (in English, anyway.)

Apologies if any of that explanation was a load of cr*p - this is just how I understand things to be.

I read a review-copy of the first volume - and will be reviewing it very soon :)

What I can tell you right now though is that I loved it! XD




Single Issues


Comics marked * are free in Kindle format at the time of writing

I haven't read many single issues in a while, but decided to read a few short ones this week - including yet more Alice in Wonderland-style goings-on (Alice seems to be a favourite of retellings in comics.)





Beyond Wonderland #0 (of 6)* (UK - US) is the prologue to a very interesting looking series about Alice - aka Calie - a young woman who escaped Wonderland once, and is in danger from what she left behind there...













Escape From Wonderland #0 (of 6)* (UK - US) is another prologue - this one to the series that follows Beyond Wonderland.

By the time Escape From Wonderland comes along, our Alice has a very definite no-sh** attitude, and a taste for uncomfortable corsetry.













The Stuff of Legend: The Dark #1 is the first part of Volume One (UK - US) of the series.

Just from this first issue, I'd say that it's kind of like a sepia Toy Story... only with a scary freaking monster who steals children. Intriguing, no?







Other Stuff



twenty one pilots released the official video of their Suicide Squad song, Heathens. I'm actually fairly loving this song.







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Caitlin at Words and Other Beasts wrote a fab review for X-Men: Apocalypse. 

And she agrees that Quicksilver was awesome. Because he was.



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I watched this awesome 'Toon Sandwich' X-Men: Apocalypse trailer parody (and laughed a lot!)

NSFW due to swearing and adult humour, mm'k?






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The awesome comics publishers Dark Horse have launched an adult colouring book line.






The line starts with Avatar: The Last Airbender (Available for Pre-order: US,) and Serenity (Available for Pre-order: US.)






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Thursday 16 June 2016

Comics Wrap Up - Love Like Winter

Graphic Novels



This week I reviewed Klaw, The First Cycle (UK - US).







This is a graphic novel about shape-shifter type-people, and was pretty interesting - particularly in terms of using the Chinese zodiac as the basis for all the shape-shifting-ness.

Check out my review for more info.






Other Stuff









In the course of my Twitter meanderings around the #GiveCaptainAmericaABoyfriend hashtag, I came across this excellent post on Vox dealing with the romantic aspects of Civil War, and how the studios are mistaken in where the romance lies (Warning: Captain America: Civil War spoilers.)




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Continuing on the theme of the lovely Bucky Barnes, a post appeared on Women Write About Comics on 'The Feminization of Bucky Barnes.' (Warning: spoilers for all three Captain America movies.)

I don't agree with everything in this post - but it's a very interesting look at Bucky's role in the films, as well as aspects of his appeal to the female portion of the audience.

(Although, in honesty?

He's a dark, dangerous, troubled, loner with puppy-dog eyes, long hair, leather, and a rugged handsomeness.

Add to that that Steve loves him, and he has a teddy-bear-like vulnerability, and why wouldn't we love him too?)












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Archie Comics have announced a new Josie and the Pussycats series. This could actually turn out pretty cool - as long as they don't fall into too many stereotypes.







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Thursday 12 May 2016

Comics Wrap Up - Ever Since We Met

Film Trailers


Couple more X-men: Apocalypse teaser trailers/clips/whatever you wanna call 'ems for ya this week.




POOR KURT!!!! NIGHTCRAWLER IS SO SWEET AND YOU'RE BEING SO HORRIBLE TO HIM. LEAVE HIM ALONE. NOW.

HE'S A SWEETIE, SO YOU LEAVE HIM THE F**K ALONE!!!!!!!







This one was also pretty cool, despite the fact that I'm not much of a Cyclops fan (he can burn through anything... except his eyelids or red-glass. The logic is missing here.)






Film


Just to let you all know - I finally got to see Captain America: Civil War. And I loved it!

People who follow me on Twitter might have noticed that I wasn't having a great day depression-wise on Monday, so thank whoever invented best friends, pizza, and superheroes, that I got to have all three!





Single Issues


I read Avengers #1 The Heroic Age (UK - US) from the 2010-2012 run.


It was enjoyable - although there was much meddling with the time-stream (because that always goes well, doesn't it...) and references to every weird-a*s big Marvel event of the 00s. Of which there were many.

Plus, it was the Bucky-is-Captain-America period, and also includes Steve Rogers.

Just go with it. Honestly, just go with it. It's easier that way. You question wtf is going on in comics and your head will explode.




Other Stuff


I put my two-pennies in on why superhero movies need to be a force for change, with my post 'Be Brave, Be Bold' yesterday, which was at least partially inspired by me going to see Captain America: Civil War.


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Katie Cunningham @ Women Write About Comics wrote an interesting post about LGBTQ+ superheroines - and how younger characters shouldn't always have to be straight.







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I agree with a lot of the points Desiree Rodriguez makes, but have to argue with her assessment of Agents of Shield's Jaiying in particular, which I think she's over-simplified here.
There are various spoilers in this post for pretty much all of the TV shows/films mentioned, so skip out the bits about ones you haven't seen yet ;)

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I read this post from TV Series Finale (via Forever Young Adult,) explaining that Marvel's Agent Carter is unlikely to be renewed for another series.
Agent Carter is one kick-a*s chick who I truly look up to - and her hair isn't magically OK after a fight.
And now you're telling me that's not 'popular' enough for you?

When are we ever going to be allowed such an utter gem again? Huh?







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Johanna @ Comics Worth Reading gave us her fairly eloquent take on Captain America: Civil War. She makes a lot of uber-relevant points.





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Wednesday 11 May 2016

Be Brave, Be Bold

Imagine the scene: you're sitting in the cinema, with a mate or two.

You chomp on popcorn and slurp at your drink.

You hope beyond hope that the annoying kids behind you will settle down after the trailers (they won't: they will kick your chair, climb over the seats, and talk loudly, but you can hope.)

The film starts. (The kids don't really settle down. Dammit.)

It's a superhero movie - a big one. The big one of the year (although, there are at least four films vying for that title.)





Before long, you're completely engrossed in the story. The bad guys are being bad. The good guys are being good. Stuff blows up. People get hurt, mainly by the good guys.

A dude approaches our hero. They've been fighting, side by side (in a battle which must've cost millions to film.)

The new dude got a bit banged-up in the fight, and title-hero is feeling moodily guilty.

"Hey man," new dude says. "It wasn't your fault."

"It was," title-hero replies, "but thanks..." he sighs heavily.

(The kids behind you are throwing popcorn. You really wish their parents would stop pretending not to notice.)

"Don't," new dude whispers...  and plants a kiss on title-hero's lips.



But the world doesn't end. The kids' parents don't scream. Everyone carries on with their lives.


Could this happen? I mean, really? Could this be a reality some day? (And hopefully someday soon.) Or are the studios too terrified to let one of their main properties be gay?

Because it really gets to something when we're more willing to shoe-horn in a generic blonde female (who deserves to have more character development than she's given, might I add, *cough* Civil War *cough*) than to let a leading man kiss another man in a blockbuster.







As things stand? I really can't see any of the money-making superheroes being permitted to be LGBTQ+ - on page or on screen.

But the amount of fanfiction (yes, I know, I rabbit on about fanfiction a lot, but I have an actual point here, promise) which shows main characters in same-sex relationships shows that there is an interest in change.

You can dismiss this as the wish of a minority of fans if you want - but the amount of fanfiction readers and writers that are out there writing and reading about same-sex relationships and LGBTQ+ issues runs into the millions.

Are the big studios really ready to dismiss the voices of change coming out of fandom? Are the publishers?



Big changes usually start with the comics.

Yes, we now have LGBTQ+ comic-book characters: Mystique, Deadpool, Iceman, Daken, Hulkling, Wiccan, Northstar, Miss America, Loki...

But even Mystique, Deadpool, Loki, and Iceman, are portrayed as straight on film (although there is the possibility of change for Deadpool).

And the others? Great characters, but not ones that even the casual fans will know, let alone the general public.

The lists of LGBT superheroes and villains (although a lot of these 'villains' could be considered anti-heroes,) on Wikipedia are woefully small. Even worse are their scarcity of notable figures.



Would it really be such a shock to have Captain America kiss Bucky Barnes?

...on page or on screen?

Maybe it would be. I'm sure the haters would come out in droves. There are some countries which would probably ban the film.

There would be uproar in several quarters. Free publicity, at the very least. (Moi? Cynical? Pshaw!)

But aren't superheroes supposed to be brave? Aren't they supposed to challenge injustices and support people being themselves (unless yourself wants to take over the world... I suppose.)







So, superheroes, it's time to be brave, and its time to be bold.

It doesn't have to be Cap and Bucky - they're just an example.

But it has to be one of the money-makers, one of the heroes with a following of their own.

It has to be someone on the level of Iron Man, Wolverine, Spider-Man, Thor, et. al. (ooh, look at me with my fancy Latin abbreviations,) or it'll just be the publishers and studios hedging their bets with a less valuable property. That's a cop-out.

Let it be big, and let it be soon. Superheroes are supposed to lead the way forward. And this is the way forward - a brave and bold strike for equality, love, and a shared humanity.

Let's be brave. Let's be bold. Let's change the world.





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