My Favorite Stan Lee Cameos

Many creators in the comic book industry can leave their mark in the business, but none have done it in such a way as Stanley Lieber, better known as Stan "the Man" Lee. In the 1960's, he helped spearhead the Marvel universe we know today with the creation of many popular characters and teams, from the Fantastic Four to Spider-Man, Avengers, X-Men, and even Groot. Even those who don't read comics would know Stan from his numerous appearances in adaptations of his works through movies, cartoons, and video games. Stan passed away on November 12, 2018, with his final filmed cameo featured in "Avengers: Endgame." But today, on what would have been Stan's 97th birthday, I'd like to share some of my favorite Stan Lee cameos through his illustrious career.

SPIDER-MAN: THE ANIMATED SERIES (1998)

You never forget your first. I think for a lot of Marvel fans who grew up in the 90's, self included, the final episode of the Spider-Man animated series was their introduction to Stan Lee.

After saving all of reality from Spider-Carnage with his multiversal counterparts, the main Spidey of the series journeys to the world of the powerless Spidey (who I'd like to call Tobey), where he learns of his status as a popular fictional character and meets the man responsible for it. Basically it's our world, and Stan Lee coming face to face with his greatest creation is equivalent to that of Walt Disney meeting Mickey Mouse. The meeting means as much to Spidey as it does to Stan, finally looking forward to a bright future after all the hardships he's faced over the course of the series.

There's also the nice touch of Madame Web, who I would find out long after the series' conclusion that she was voiced by Stan's wife, Joan. Stan and Web's compliments about each other made a lot more sense after that.

THE SIMPSONS (2002)

What, you thought this was going to focus squarely on Marvel? We all know Stan is bigger than that. Of the dozens of celebrity guest appearances the Simpsons has had in its decades spanning history, Stan Lee's appearance in the season 13 episode "I am Furious (Yellow)" surely ranks among the best (and it's one of my favorite episodes of the series in general).

It starts out simple enough with Stan Lee randomly showing up at the Android's Dungeon and giving Bart some creative advice (while also promoting Marvel over DC). You think that would be all, but we cut to some time later and Stan has apparently not left the comic book store, taking the "Marvel over DC" campaign further by crushing Database's toy Batmobile trying to force a Thing action figure to fit. Then you have the cherry on top with one more scene. After Homer is painted green due to one of Bart's pranks and ends up resembling the Hulk, an angry Stan claims he himself is the Hulk and attempts to transform. Comic Book Guy pities Stan but quickly comforts him after he fails. Honestly, the funny part about this scene is Comic Book Guy leads Stan back into the store after saying he wish he could get him to leave. But hey, it's Stan. Who wouldn't want his company?

Stan Lee would make a few more appearances on The Simpsons, including officiating Comic Book Guy's wedding in 2014's "Married to the Blob", but they don't quite top the first time he rolled into Springfield.

FANTASTIC FOUR: RISE OF THE SILVER SURFER (2007)

With the boom of Marvel movies in the 2000's, Stan Lee cameos became a staple no matter which studio they came from. If a Marvel movie was coming out, there was a 95% chance Stan would make an appearance. I think his cameo as a guest at Reed and Sue's wedding in the Fantastic Four sequel, "Rise of the Silver Surfer", is where they started to actually have more fun with his appearances. Stan Lee, as himself, getting kicked out of a wedding of characters he created is just hilarious. This one still goes down as one of my favorite cameos and I smile every time I watch it.

THE AMAZING SPIDER-MAN (2012)

It's Stan Lee as a librarian apparently wearing ridiculously loud headphones listening to music oblivious to the destructive battle between Spider-Man and the Lizard. Whether you like the "Amazing" reboot or not, how can you not love this cameo? Also, bonus points for Spidey saving him from being hit by a thrown table.

THE BIG HERO 6 FRANCHISE (2014-2019)

Not many know that Big Hero 6 is based on comics published by Marvel. So as tradition usually allows with Marvel films, Stan Lee does make an appearance. While a portrait of Fred's father uses Stan's likeness, the true cameo comes in the post-credits scene when Fred discovers his father's secret superhero cache and then his father (voiced by Stan) discovers his son's discovery (discoverception?). That alone probably wouldn't have made my list, but the subsequent animated series kept this cameo from being just for laughs.

In the animated series, we learned that Fred's dad is a semi-retired superhero known as Boss Awesome with a regular rogues gallery, some of whom appear to fight the next generation team of Big Hero 6. Stan would voice Fred's dad several times throughout the series' first two seasons. I love the fact that Stan got his own superhero life and I enjoyed it every time he showed up.

The last episode Stan recorded for before his death was "Supersonic Sue", which was dedicated to him. With a third season ordered, I'm kind of hoping Big Hero 6 has an episode that pays tribute to Stan and Fred's dad in some way.

AVENGERS: AGE OF ULTRON (2015)

For the most part, Stan's cameos are usually as some sort of civilian. That's why I feel his appearance in "Age of Ultron" is a special one. At a celebration party the Avengers are holding with many of their friends in attendance, we see Stan as one of Cap's old war buddies hanging with both him and Thor. It's made even better when he dares to drink a strong Asgardian elixir, messing him up so bad that he has to be escorted out while slurring one of his signature catchphrases, "Excelsior!" Excelsior indeed, Stan. Excelsior indeed.

CAPTAIN AMERICA: CIVIL WAR (2016)

So after the emotional turmoil of watching Steve and Tony nearly killing each other, we needed someone to help lighten the mood. Enter Stan "the Federal Express Man" Lee! The combination of Stan's delivery (no pun intended) of "Tony Stank?" and Rhodey's reaction to it make this cameo comedic gold. And Rhodey's right; this is one we won't be forgetting any time soon.

GUARDIANS OF THE GALAXY VOL. 2 (2017)

This cameo not only officially introduced the Watchers into the MCU, but it also gave credence to a long running fan theory about Stan's cameos. That theory is that Stan is a Watcher himself, witnessing events across time, space, and the multiverse. Of course, this excludes the times he appears as himself or a specific character. But whether it be MCU, the X-Men films, either Spider-Man series, etc., all Marvel movies/universes he appears in are connected in some way. His cameo in Guardians 2 is basically him on break with his fellow Watchers. There's also the fact that he directly refers to his "Civil War" cameo, despite the fact that delivery man and space man have literally nothing to do with each other and that Guardians 2 takes place two years before that.

SPIDER-MAN (2018)

I didn't play the Spider-Man PS4 game until after Stan's death so his cameo in the game would be the first one I'd see since then. As you'd expect, I got a little emotional when he popped up since it was nice to see him again. Another reason I enjoy this cameo, and I may be reading too much into it, is because it cements Peter and Mary Jane as Stan's favorite Marvel couple. Coincidentally, 2018 also saw Peter and Mary Jane finally get back together in the comics after splitting up way back in "One More Day". So yeah, it was a good year for those two.

VENOM (2018)

When it comes to Sony's 2018 Venom movie, while it still felt unnecessary, it honestly wasn't as bad as I thought it would be. It's not on the level of the MCU of course, but I still found it entertaining. One of the best parts in my opinion was Stan's cameo where he stops Eddie on the street to give him (and Venom) encouragement on his love life. I also didn't see this until after Stan's death, so it kind of felt like Stan talking to Eddie from beyond the grave to me.

It's a very blatant Stan Lee cameo, but it's one that's so meta that I have to bring up the Watcher theory again. Stan observing the events of the movie is the only way this makes sense. I mean, how does he know about Eddie's love troubles when he was nowhere near him and Anne during their conversation or that Eddie has a symbiote? Hell, it's such a strange interaction even Venom has to point it out by questioning "who was that guy?" A legend, Venom. A legend. It's still a memorable cameo though, even if it does lack some logic from a certain view.

SPIDER-MAN: INTO THE SPIDER-VERSE (2018)

The makers of "Into the Spider-Verse" sprinkled Stan Lee cameos throughout the whole movie like some kind of game of "hide and seek", but his most prominent cameo in the film is always hard for me to get through. Since this was the first of Stan's posthumous cameos, the context of the scene added much more meaning than it intended to. As the city mourns the loss of Spider-Man, fans feel it even more when Stan appears and says "I'm going to miss him." It's like a double punch to the heart.

CAPTAIN MARVEL (2019)

For the final cameo on my list, "Captain Marvel" marked the first MCU film Stan appeared in posthumously. The loss was still fresh and the film even had a special Marvel Studios intro dedicated to Stan and his cameos. It's a very simple cameo with Stan rehearsing for his part in "Mallrats" when Carol, searching for a Skrull, comes up and pulls it down. Stan smiles and Carol smiles back. Personally, I see Carol's smile as a way of saying "We miss you, Stan." While that wasn't the intention, that's the way I'll always look at it.

In conclusion, happy birthday Stan. We'll never stop missing you.

Movie Review: "Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker" - Messy yet Satisfying

I've never talked about Star Wars before on the blog, mostly because I haven't had anything worth talking about to warrant a post...until now.
Like many, I became a Star Wars fan when I was very young. My parents got me the original trilogy on VHS in a three pack collection and I got tons of toys of various characters as well. The original trilogy are classics and I appreciate them the more I get older and rewatch them.
The prequel trilogy is a bit of a rough spot, but I think each of the films had something positive to look at. "Phantom Menace" had one of the best lightsaber battles in Qui-Gon Jinn and Obi-Wan Kenobi against Darth Maul. "Attack of the Clones" is what I consider the worst of the series, with poorly aged CGI, too many plotlines going on, and Anakin's whiny and creepy behavior; Yoda's lightsaber battle was pretty awesome though. "Revenge of the Sith" was the best of the lot by a mile and was at a time my favorite of the franchise.
When Disney bought the franchise and announced a sequel trilogy, it took me quite awhile to get on board. "The Force Awakens" would become my all-time favorite Star Wars film, combining what I felt worked best from both of the previous trilogies. "The Last Jedi" divided the fanbase, but I'm of the camp that thought it was good. I enjoyed how it subverted expectations, was more politically topical than what came before, and it featured one of the most badass Luke Skywalker moments ever. The only thing that keeps bugging me about it was Haldo's "don't tell anyone the plan to save them" thought process, because that just caused a ripple effect that got more people killed.
Now we've come to "The Rise of Skywalker", the ninth and final film of the main series...and boy do I have some thoughts on it.

Honestly, the story isn't as strong here as it was in the previous two installments, and I feel it was due to the fan response to "The Last Jedi." If that didn't scare Disney, then the box office failure of the Han Solo spin-off sent them into a panic, with the goal of making sure Episode IX made everyone happy. While I thought "Last Jedi" had a pretty epic set-up for the end of the trilogy, I felt somewhat underwhelmed with what we would end up getting and it can get predictable at times. A lot of elements brought in seem meant to appease fans, but it can come off hollow or too "fan-fic"y, like Finn apparently becoming force sensitive all of sudden. Strangely enough though, it appears to want validate part of "Last Jedi" as Poe also seems a little more dickish in this movie compared to how he's been before, almost like they were trying to justify Haldo's treatment of him in that film. And even though I thought it was genius to bring back Emperor Palpatine (who's looking a bit like Davros from Doctor Who), revealing that he's been pulling strings the whole time and cementing his spot as THE villain of the franchise, it doesn't have as much grandiose as I expected. They revealed his involvement in the trailers, but I at least expected it to be built up instead of bringing him in the first five minutes. Lastly, while I didn't realize the parallels "Force Awakens" had to "A New Hope" until it was pointed out, I was constantly reminded of "Return of the Jedi" throughout "Rise of Skywalker"; hell, even the climax is eerily similar to "Avengers: Endgame". Still, it at least doesn't have any glaring story problems that "Last Jedi" did.
Between Disney and the fans, I think both sides are to blame for the film's problems. Disney didn't have a course plotted for the trilogy (planning one film at a time), fans held on to their fan theories too obsessively, and Disney over-course corrected to the level of "Justice League" trying to please everyone.

What did I like though? Well, for one, we finally have Rey, Finn, and Poe (the trinity of the trilogy) working together for an extended amount of time. As a whole, all the new main characters introduced in the last few years have some pretty good moments in the film, bringing their stories to a close and parallel moments from the beginning of the trilogy to bring things full circle. And of course there are some pretty exciting moments, including the speeder chase in the desert and the fight between Rey and Kylo Ren on Endor.
"Rise of Skywalker" also does a good job at bringing a sense of finality to the decades spanning story and doing so in epic fashion, particularly the climax. From the Resistance rallying and going into battle with the Sith Fleet and Rey and Ben confronting Palpatine, it felt like a true culmination of what came before in both the original and prequel trilogies. There are also some nice callbacks from said trilogies, one of which finally gives some payoff to the story of Darth Plagueis from Episode III. Between being a life long fan and having rewatched all the movies beforehand, despite the problems, I really thought "Rise of Skywalker" as a whole was a satisfying conclusion that can bring all fans together.

Overall, "Rise of Skywalker" leaves more to be desired as a stand-alone film, but it succeeds more as the final chapter to the overall saga. This is really just an initial reaction, and I may look at it a little better on a second viewing or marathoning the entire sequel trilogy; hell, I may have gone into this as a critic opposed to a fan. For now though, I'll just say this: I love Star Wars as a whole, originals, prequels, sequels, and all. Are all the films perfect? No (hell no in some cases), but I can see in each one that the people behind them tried to make the best story they could because they cared as well. In any case, the Skywalker Saga is a story that will stick with me for years to come.

My Ranking of the Star Wars Skywalker Saga:
1. The Force Awakens (VII)
2. Revenge of the Sith (III)
3. The Empire Strikes Back (V)
4. A New Hope (IV)
5. Return of the Jedi (VI)
6. The Rise of Skywalker (IX)
7. The Last Jedi (VIII)
8. The Phantom Menace (I)
9. Attack of the Clones (II)

TV Review: Runaways Season Three - Final Exam

Runaways has been a beloved addition to the Marvel Cinematic Universe and a surprise treat of a show in its own right. All good things must come to an end though as season three marks the show's finale. Unlike all the Netflix shows' petty cancellations, Runaways' early ending is more due to the restructuring of Marvel's TV division to become part of the proper Marvel Studios. Like all the other Marvel shows that have ended though, I still have hope we'll see these characters to some degree in the future. At the moment though, the series' final season does a good job closing the chapter on a group of characters many have become invested in.

To start things off, the beginning episodes of the season actually make me appreciate the latter half of the second season much more than I did before. Now fully being aware of Jonah and his wife and daughter possessing Victor, Stacey, and Tina, respectively, brings a little more clarity to some of weirdness previously seen. As the season begins, the aliens (known as Gibborim) possessing the characters begin to act more like themselves than the people they're pretending to be, and I give props to the actors for their performances. James Marsters, who plays Victor, begins displaying mannerisms similar to Julian McMahon when he played Jonah. The best of the trio though is Brittany Ishibashi, who is playing an older woman (Tina) being possessed by an alien with the personality of teenage girl; it's such a total 180 from how Tina usually acts that it's a scary good performance. There's also the character of Xavin; her development at the beginning of season three makes her a lot more compelling and relatable compared to how she was during the latter of season two that it made it a shame to see her leave half way through.

Like last season, season three feels like it's made up of two smaller ones again, but it's done in a more fluid way with the second threat being built up during the first one. The second half is also just as strong if not stronger than the first.
After the Gibborim threat is finally defeated, the next major adversary is Morgan le Fay, played by Elizabeth Hurley. Much like Brendan Fraser on "Doom Patrol", it's nice to see another actor who faded away for awhile return for such a prominent role. Hurley's performance as Morgan reminds me much of when she played the Devil in "Bedazzled", which makes a lot of sense considering they both have this charming personality and use magic to get what they want. Her relationship with Nico also makes me think of that of Chancellor Palpatine and Anakin Skywalker in Star Wars. Hurley overall does a good job at filling the role of charismatic villain left by Julian McMahon in season two.
What's important about Morgan is that she's a big enough threat that both the Runaways and the PRIDE parents (some of who take on some surprising directions and roles this season) do what they can to stop her, eventually coming together. This truly brings the series full circle, with the relationships between the kids and their parents not totally healed, but at least on the mend.

This season has the strongest connections to the broader MCU than ever before. While hinted at last season, it turns out I was correct that the Dark Dimension from "Doctor Strange" would play a prominent role. The Runaways travel there and unknowingly release Morgan as well, and Morgan's plan is to merge it and Earth and rule over all (partly using the Darkhold spellbook from season 4 of "Agents of SHIELD" to do so). If I had a complaint though, it's that not only is it just the same villain plan from "Doctor Strange", but it's also similar to Neron's plan in season four of "Legends of Tomorrow", enticing people through their phones to power up the spell they need to combine dimensions. However, while I'm not sure if there was any intended social commentary, but it's worth noting that the beings in the Dark Dimension are called the Mindless Ones, and Morgan was using smartphones to take control of people on Earth; make of that what you will.
We also have a cross-show team-up this season with Olivia Holt and Aubrey Joseph reprising their roles of Tandy Bowen and Tyrone Johnson from "Cloak and Dagger". In its own right, "Cloak and Dagger" was another pretty damn good Marvel show and dealt with a lot of mature topics; unfortunately, it too was cancelled for similar reasons Runaways was. For their last hurrah, it was nice to see these characters again and they had some entertaining interactions with the Runaways cast. However, I think people who watched their show will understand and get more from their appearance here than those who didn't, but maybe it'll push the latter group to go back and watch that series (since it's available on Hulu as well). In any case, hopefully we haven't seen the last of Cloak and Dagger either.

The series finale brings in a time travel element, and part of that involves some of the characters travelling all the way back to the first episode. Returning to what I said about "full circle", it was nice to be reminded of how things began and reflect on the changes the characters and their relationships have gone through over the last few years, whether it be for better or worse.
However, the time travel element displays the already glaring disconnect between the Marvel TV and film divisions, despite all the connections I spoke of earlier. Without spoiling much, let's just say that the time travel rules set in "Endgame" are ignored here (not to mention it brings up some blatant problems with the show's own timeline). Despite all the shows we're losing in the restructuring, I'd like to think it will be worth it so that we have a truly connected MCU.

Overall, not only does season three bring Runaways to a worthwhile conclusion, but it makes up for the problems from season two. I think season one is still the best of the series though since it was so fresh and original to me. But as a whole, Runaways was an endearing epic and one I'd like Marvel to revisit one day.

Analysis: Spider-Man (2017) Season Two Episodes 14-26

Well that was certainly a long hiatus. The last time I look at this series was August of 2018, and the season has only now just wrapped up. Better late than never I suppose.
So when we last left the series, Doctor Octopus had transferred his mind into Spider-Man's body, leaving Peter Parker's consciousness in the Neuro-Cortex. It was a hell of a cliffhanger to end on, though it kind of sucks there was thirteen month gap between episodes. But I digress. Let's jump back into the series.

Before we pick back up with Ock in Spidey's body, we have an episode focusing on Gwen getting her spider-powers back and now creating the Ghost Spider identity. While it is nice to have Gwen get her powers back, I really hate the Ghost Spider name Marvel's been pushing for the character the last few years. I know she probably needed a unique name aside from being another Spider-Woman and Spider-Gwen doesn't do much for a secret identity, but why Ghost Spider? Even though she wears a white mask and hood, her powers have nothing do with ghosts. At least in the comics, Earth-65 Gwen took on the name as reference to her deceased 616 counterpart. Here, they just think it sounds cool. Still, it's not as bad as Miles being given the codename "Spy-D" later on in the season; suddenly "Kid Arachnid" seems more dignified.

But back to the main plot with Ock, who has retreated to a secret lab he set up in the city, initially calling it an "Octo-Lair" before redubbing it "the Spider's Nest". Ock takes off his mask and his flabbergasted to find out Spider-Man is Peter Parker. What's interesting is that while Ock's inner thoughts are still done by Scott Menville, Robbie Daymond still provides Peter's voice, but now speaking like Menville's Ock would, using his inflections. I'm betting that during recording, Menville would say the line first and Daymond would do his best to mimic him. It sounds a little off at the beginning, which is probably the point, but Daymond as Ock as Peter soon enough sounds natural. It only gets really cringey when he tries to sound hip with his "peers", calling them "dude" or "bro".
While Ock plans to resume his criminal life as Spider-Man, he begins experiencing flashes of Peter's life, including memories of Uncle Ben and reliving the origin story, seeing Peter's inaction lead to Ben's death. This has a profound effect on Ock, who decides to take Ben's mantra of "With great power comes great responsibility" to heart. Otto declares his intent to live by Ben's words and carry on Peter's heroic mission, now as the Superior Spider-Man.

The series adapts many elements from the original Superior run. Otto goes straight into the red/black suit, uses a legion of spider-bots to patrol the city, and begins brutally dismantling the criminal underworld, which earns the suspicion of the Avengers and surprise admiration from J. Jonah Jameson. Also like the comics, it's the moments where he tries to live out Peter's life that get awkward, particularly when his arrogance comes through. Everyone picks up on Peter's bizarre behavior, thinking he's just under stress from having to find a way to pay his tuition and lacking on sleep (so pretty much everything that's happened since the previous Venom two-parter). But things reach a tipping point when "Peter" feels insulted that he has to pay for school and quits Horizon High, feeling it is beneath his intellect. This leads to "Peter" going back to Midtown High. While Otto is at first annoyed by this idea, he tries to make the best of the situation, saying that he can excel in his classes, standing out and securing a bright future for "Peter". It's here that he meets Anna Maria Marconi, a student teacher who hopes to bring Midtown to the level of Horizon High. The two form an immediate connection, with Otto admiring her determination. Otto also begins to form a bond with Flash Thompson. While not fond of Flash's physical affection, Otto does seem to take his opinions on Spider-Man's recent behavior under consideration, that being he feels being a hero is more about heart and not just statistics.

So while Otto's living it up in Peter's body, Peter's mind has been trapped in cyberspace, trying to find a way to reach the outside world and figure out how to get his body back. After getting out of the Neuro-Cortex to the Horizon web network, Peter finds Otto's data storage where he apparently digitized his memories. Peter finds out that he and Otto are quite similar, being kids who loved science but bullied by their peers. The major difference is that while Peter had a nurturing figure like Uncle Ben, Otto had an abusive father who was jealous of his son's intelligence while also belittling him for not being a physical boy. Eventually, Peter is able to transfer into Otto's robotic arms where he's finally able to get a message about the situation to Miles, who was the most suspicious about Peter/Spider-Man's behavior. The two battle with Otto in an attempt to swap minds again, with Peter also trying to appeal to Otto's rational side now understanding him a little better. Otto declares he will never give Peter his body back, nearly destroying the his old arms. Miles saves Peter at the last minute and the two retreat.

Things come to ahead when the Venom symbiote awakens and abandons the comatose body of Eddie Brock, now able to move and speak without requiring a host body, once again bent on destroying Spider-Man. It first goes to Horizon High to find Peter, only to discover he isn't there (at least technically physically), badly injuring Miles in the process. As the symbiote heads to Midtown High, Peter contacts Otto to warn him Venom is coming and that he'll use his weaknesses against him. Otto, however, is not worried, claiming he has no weaknesses. Venom does indeed attack Midtown, outmatching Otto and making quick work of the spider-bots, eventually taking both Anna Maria and Flash hostage. There's a significant character moment for Flash, revealing he has some PTSD from being possessed by the symbiote back in season one, frozen with fear when it arrives. Venom says he'll release them if Spider-Man rebonds with him, but upon beginning to, Venom automatically realizes he tastes off, tossing Otto aside and demanding the real Spider-Man. For the first time, Otto is full of doubt and fear. He's afraid of losing the two people he cares about and has no idea what to do to save them. Suddenly, Peter arrives in Ock's damaged arms to try and help, only to be tossed aside by Venom. Otto follows Peter and begins a mind transference. What happens next would be an injustice to merely describe.

Back in his own body, Peter doesn't waste any time, first saving Flash who promptly escapes. Venom takes note of Spider-Man actually making jokes and after getting a taste  realizes he is finally dealing with Peter Parker, saying his name in front of Anna Maria. The battle ends with Peter overloading Venom with electricity, causing the symbiote to explode (don't worry, Venom is already announced to be the main villain of season three). In the aftermath, Peter has to explain the situation to Anna Maria, officially introducing her to Otto, whose mind is now in the damaged arms. Otto states his sacrifice was worth it knowing that Anna Maria is safe as the circuitry in the arms dies. Peter then realizes there may still be a way to save Otto by transferring his mind back into his comatose body. The transfer is successful, and while Otto's still in a coma, there's more brain activity showing. And with that, Peter Parker returns to the red and blues and reclaims his spot as the original Spider-Man.

The series does a fairly adequate job adapting the Superior Spider-Man storyline. While it doesn't last as long as it did in the comics and may seem to go by quick, it kind of makes sense given it's a different medium. For all intents and purposes, Otto was still the antagonist who took over the protagonist's body, not fully redeeming himself until he relinquished control back to Peter. Since this is a kid's show, they probably wouldn't want to be following the villain for half the season. I really enjoy the ending, as it not only recaptures the emotional moment of Otto's sacrifice, but it offers a happier outcome to Otto and Anna Maria's relationship. Considering their relationship didn't progress as far as it did in the comics, it avoids much of the ethical dilemmas that one could point out. Even though it was Peter's body, Anna Maria was able to get to know Otto and see the good person he was deep down, signaling a more positive future between the two compared to how it would go in the comics.

The rest of the season deals with much of the fallout of Otto's actions as Peter and Spider-Man. As Spider-Man, Peter is able to restore his good public reputation, with his supposed incompetence leading to Jameson hating him again, as well as make amends with the Avengers (since supervillain body takeovers aren't such an outlandish claim in the Marvel universe). Peter's life isn't as easy to fix. As Peter, Otto practically ostracized Max, Gwen, Anya, and everyone at Horizon High, save for Miles. Even if Peter did have some way to pay tuition, he's unwelcome.
Otto would soon awaken from his coma, and while not Spider-Man anymore, he's still inspired by Uncle Ben and seeks to try and do good. Though Peter is initially angry and untrusting of Otto at first, his help in defeating both Regent and Slyde would lead to Otto becoming Spider-Man's "guy in the chair." Anna Maria was also putting plans into motion to bring Otto on as a teacher at Midtown, since the two still hoped to elevate the school's status.

The season wraps with the four part "Goblin War", an adaptation of the "Goblin Nation" story that ended the initial Superior title; so I was half right about my predictions in the previous analysis.
New York is being overrun by a gang using Harry Osborn's goblin tech, calling themselves the Goblin Nation and doing the bidding of someone named Goblin King. Peter calls Harry about the situation, who immediately comes home to help deal with it. Unfortunately, there's not much of a united front as Harry and Otto don't trust one another, with Harry perplexed why Peter would work with Otto after what he had done to him. Both theorizing that the Goblin King could be Norman, since his body was never recovered, Peter and Harry suit up as Spider-Man and Hobgoblin and travel down a hidden tunnel they discovered in the Osborn family crypt at the cemetery. This leads them to a cache full of goblin tech where they're attacked by the Goblin King and his minions. It is then revealed that the Goblin King is actually Adrian Toomes, the Vulture. Between discovering the cache and taking advantage of the Superior Spider-Man's dismantling of the criminal underworld, it was easy for Toomes to gather an army and equip them with Goblin tech.
Making Toomes the Goblin King is a mixed bag for me. I give them props for being a little original by not making him Norman, but it just seems kind of random to make it Vulture. It reminds me a lot of making the Riddler into Hush, though they used some plot threads in the comics and altered them to fit the narrative. Still, they do give Adrian decent motivation in the identity change, blaming Norman for ruining his life and wanting to use the goblin tech to ruin the Osborn legacy in return. I do wish that they hadn't reveal his identity right away though. One of the best things about the Goblin plotline in the original Superior run was the ambiguity, that we weren't 100% if it was really Norman Osborn until the final issue. I think the Toomes twist would have worked better if they let us think it was Norman for a little longer.

With the major threat growing stronger, Spider-Man organizes Harry, Otto, Gwen/Ghost Spider, Anya/Spider-Girl (the previous two initially working as a duo to fight the goblins), Miles, and Anna Maria to combat the Goblin Nation, saying they need to put aside their differences and mistrust of one another in order to save the city. As Otto and Anna Maria direct from the Spider's Nest and the rest of the spider team deal with goblins across the city, Peter and Harry attempt to prevent Toomes from reaching his true endgame, the Goblin Mech. See, Norman left plans for Harry to build a Goblin Mech, a war machine that could take control of any form of machinery and technology. Harry had intended for the Goblin Mech to be used for police and military purposes, though Peter points out the obvious risk of it falling into the wrong hands. Toomes does acquire the Goblin Mech, also revealing that he was the one who designed the Goblin Mech and that Norman had stolen his plans (and it's here where I think they should have revealed Toomes to be the Goblin King).
The Goblin Mech is a force to be reckoned with, quickly knocking most of the spider team out of commission. Peter's still in the fight, but his costume gets torn up, and you know things are serious when the Spidey suit gets ravaged. As they realize Toomes is controlling the Goblin Mech through a mental interface, Peter and Otto theorize they can use the Neuro-Cortex to send a strong mental blast to override Toomes' control and disable the Mech. Harry does his best to distract Toomes while Spidey heads to Horizon High to get the Neuro-Cortex as Anna Maria calls Max to get him to evacuate the school and prepare for Spider-Man's arrival. However, Otto reveals that the energy output from using the Neuro-Cortex in such a way only has a 2% chance of survival to whoever wields it. Peter is willing to make the sacrifice, but Otto arrives on the scene with his arms and takes the Neuro-Cortex from Peter, using it himself to bring down the Goblin Mech and ends Toomes' rampage. As predicted, the energy from the Neuro-Cortex is too much for Otto's body. In his last moments, Otto reveals that he considered Peter to have become his best friend, and that the world needs Spider-Man more than it needs him. It's a pretty emotional moment, though it's kind of undercut by Otto's body dissipating into pure energy.
Sometime later, Peter, Anna Maria, Max, Gwen, Anya, Miles, and Harry all pay their respects to Otto at his tombstone. With everyone present, Peter uses the opportunity to make amends for "his"/Otto's behavior. They forgive him, with Otto's own change in character inspiring them to give Peter a second chance. Max also reveals that before his death, Otto transferred part of his estate into a scholarship to Horizon High along with a letter of recommendation for Peter. So Max welcomes Peter back to Horizon, while also hinting that he's figured out he's Spider-Man, based on the previous conversation he had with Spider-Man when he came for the Neuro-Cortex (I also think the torn up Spidey mask revealing his eye and mouth may have also played a part in that).

And so wraps the second season of the 2017 Spider-Man animated series. While it had some issues, I think season two as a whole is much better than the first, bringing a lot of dramatic and emotional moments. The standout star of the season is Otto with how much he grows as a character, going from self-centered to self-sacrificing. The best parts are the interaction and growth of his and Peter's relationship as they slowly understand and trust each other. I'm really hoping that the series lets Otto rest, because bringing him back would cheapen his death.
One major issue I do need to bring up though is that Gwen and Anya still don't know Peter is Spider-Man, even after everything that happened in "Goblin War." With all of Peter's friend group now having spider-powers, I think it's kind of crappy behavior from Peter to have Miles be the only one who knows. Hopefully it's rectified in the next season.
Speaking of which, when season three starts up next year, the series will now go by "Spider-Man: Maximum Venom", with Venom and a symbiote invasion incoming. It's a storyline done to death with so many versions, but I'm willing to see how this series handles it.

TV Review: Titans Season Two - Like A Phoenix (SPOILERS)

Sometimes the first of something points out the flaws and problems that need to be worked on when it comes to the next project. While I thought the first season of "Titans" could have been better, the DC Universe shows that followed after, "Doom Patrol" and "Swamp Thing" were absolute wins in my book. That gave me a little hope for season two of "Titans", and the trailer that came out beforehand got me really excited. Now that the finale has come and gone, I can say that while not perfect, season two was a considerable improvement with "Titans" finding its stride.

First and foremost, the season begins with the final resolution to the Trigon storyline in what would have been the season one finale...sort of. From what I've heard, they rewrote and reshot much of what was originally intended, introducing elements of season two's plot in the process and setting up a parallel scene between Rachel/Raven and Gar/Beast Boy that would play out in season two's own finale. I still hate the fact that season ended on such a major cliffhanger without truly finishing off its story, but for what we would eventually got, it was pretty good with Raven using her powers to defeat Trigon in a way that reminded me of how it went in the original animated series.

A lot of what worked in season one is present in season two, particularly the character relationships, including the ones I enjoyed before (Rachel and Gar, Rachel and Kory/Starfire). Speaking of those three, they still don't have super suits yet, but like in season one, the costume designers still do a good job creating looks that resemble their comic appearances. Gar still has the red/white jacket while Kory wears clothes with a darker shade of purple. Rachel gets a little more closer to her comics look, especially with the gem now present on her forehead.
Of course, we do get some characters with some comic accurate looks. Deathstroke's costume is perfect, creating a menacing presence. The finale sees Dick finally suit up as Nightwing and man is the suit gorgeous. Rose's Ravager costume is also pretty faithful to the comics, but to a fault. The mask seems like something you'd wear on Halloween with huge cartoony eyes as lenses; I don't know why they didn't just give her eyes holes like her father's suit.
Areas they greatly improved on are the story pacing and the mature tone. Within the first four episodes, they establish most of the main characters and their relationships with one another going forward. There are two direct threats this season: Deathstroke (bringing in some elements of "The Judas Contract") and CADMUS (which introduces Superboy into the show). It's similar to how the second seasons of Daredevil and Punisher went with two different threats occurring and intersecting; Much like those, I think viewers will prefer one story over the other. For me it's Deathstroke, which is why it's a shame he's taken care of before CADMUS, even though he's supposed to be the season's big bad.
The mature tone is taken down a notch compared to season one. It's still explicit in the language and violence, but it's about on the level of Doom Patrol and Swamp Thing. I.e., not distracting and less immature. F-bombs are still present, but only really said constantly from characters you'd expect (like Hank/Hawk or Jason/Robin) and by other characters in stressful situations.

The show makes a "Rebirth" style retcon in establishing that there was a prior Titans team before the show began made up of Dick as Robin, Donna as Wonder Girl, Hawk, Dawn/Dove and Aqualad. With "Rebirth" in mind, that brings us to the main theme of this season. Much of the focus is about the tragedies inflicted on and mistakes made by the original Titans coming back to haunt them and new team Dick wanted to set up with Gar, Rachel, and Jason. Titans past and present must overcome their troubles in order to forge ahead and create something better than before. This is the "Rebirth" in question for the both the team and the series overall. This can also be seen particularly with Dick in his journey to becoming Nightwing. Plus, the best lesson to be learned from the season is when you're hurting, it's better to reach out to others for help rather than retreating within.

There are a lot of character developments, moments, and introductions this season, but here are the ones that really stood out to me.
* Bruce Wayne is introduced and portrayed by Iain Glen. I really enjoyed his performance as Bruce, with his voice reminding me somewhat of Kevin Conroy's. It's interesting how between this, the DCEU and Arrowverse, DC seems to be on a kick about making Batman a more seasoned crimefighter, with Glen's depiction being the oldest seen so far. He doesn't suit up as Batman this season, but I hope we get a chance to see this in the future.
* Esai Morales portrays Slade Wilson/Deathstroke and while I greatly enjoyed Manu Bennett's depiction of the character on "Arrow", Morales outdoes him and feels like the character jumped straight from the comic pages. I already mentioned the costume does a good job of creating an air of menace, but it's Morales' performance in and out of the suit that creates an intensity in his actions. Whether he's working on a job or a personal vendetta, he's a man you don't want targeting you. While his exceptional fighting skills are shown against characters like Donna and Dick, the one thing I wished we could have seen was him against all of the original Titans; it may have made him look uber-powerful fighting off a whole team, but I think it would have better established him as such a threat that all the old Titans are worried about his return.
* Ryan Potter shines again as Gar/Beast Boy, quite possibly the most optimistic character on the show. When everything starts falling apart, Gar's the only one trying to keep hope alive and hold on tight to what the Titans represent. Unfortunately he can still only transform into a tiger (save for the one instance where he's a snake during the Trigon situation), and there was even three month time jump. Again, I don't know if it's a budget thing, but can we get a little more variety in season three.
* As mentioned before, Conner/Superboy is introduced, portrayed by Joshua Orpin. While we've seen a brooding Conner in "Young Justice" and a cocky Conner in "Reign of the Supermen", this depiction of Conner is a bit more childlike. Despite the older body, he has the mindset of a child, which can lead to some moments where you kind of feel embarrassed for him. Whether you like this choice or not, it is admittedly unique. The best part with Conner though is his conflict in personality, wanting to be heroic like Superman, but has to fight off the darker tendencies of Lex Luthor's DNA at times.
* Mercy Graves, portrayed by Natalie Gumede, is a freaking sociopath. She has a wife and two daughters, yet shows no remorse for the actions she takes at CADMUS, Seriously, she's responsible for some of the darkest parts of the season, making her a character you can't help but hate.
* The character direction I'm most interested in is Curran Walters' Jason Todd. Like the first season, Jason's an arrogant little brat. There's a real shift in character though after nearly being killed by Deathstroke, showing some PTSD and considering suicide. He's more broken inside than I think any of the characters or viewers fully realized. It leads to him going out on his own, and it's completely understandable. He's already had a rough childhood, but after being passed off to Dick by Bruce, not getting a real chance to prove himself along with Rachel and Gar, being kept in the dark about the old Titans' past with Deathstroke, and being let down by Rose after opening himself up to her, he's just done. Jason's journey is not only once again the opposite of Dick's, but the Titans and the season's overall message. He's cutting himself off from everyone, I assume even giving up the Robin role. I can easily see him donning the Red Hood identity in the future, and he didn't even have to die to do so; and hey, that could also leave it open for Tim Drake to be introduced.

One of the biggest missteps of the season comes in the finale, with the death of Donna Troy. It kind of comes out of nowhere and occurs after both Deathstroke and CADMUS are dealt with. What happens is she prevents a transmission tower that had been damaged in battle from falling on Dove and some civilians, getting electrocuted in the process. On one hand, she does go out as a hero, but it seems like such a lackluster way to do it, especially when it's from collateral damage from a villain and not the villain themselves. There may be some hope for her return, with Rachel's belief that her ever growing powers may the key to bringing her back. Still, if that's the case, just have her be gravely injured and having to return to Themyscira for treatment with Rachel going to help.

Overall, season two of Titans learns from the mistakes of the past to bring some engaging story and character moments. There's still some areas that need some work, but they're on the right track.

Comics Review: "Superior Spider-Man: Otto-Matic" - That's All, Folks

So a couple things I said back in my last Superior Spider-Man review five months ago didn't really age well. The first was my belief that this volume would have significant longevity. As it turns out, this story is the conclusion to the series. The second was my thoughts on Mephisto's presence, and ooh boy, does he come back into play.
Issues seven and eight of the series are tie-ins to "War of the Realms", a Thor-centered event written by Jason Aaron that was occurring at the time. Said issues featured Otto teaming up with both the West Coast Avengers and the Fantastic Four as they dealt with the Ice Giants roaming across the United States. I'm skipping these issues given the broader scope of the event itself and me wanting to keep focused on Otto's own stories. On a side note, I will say though that I found "War of the Realms" the best Marvel event I've read since "AXIS". It's easily accessible, features a wide cast from many corners of the Marvel universe, and it's just plain fun. With that said, it's time to look the final four issues of the Superior Spider-Man.

Issue nine begins with Otto as Spider-Man being presented the key to the city by the mayor of San Francisco for all his heroic accomplishments. As Otto begins his acceptance speech, he seems at a loss of words and then claims that an emergency is in progress that he must attend to. This turns out to be a lie though as we see Otto returned to his lab at Horizon University, claiming that such a ceremony was a waste of time he could be using for more important things. Anna Maria finds this behavior odd since Otto usually wants recognition for his work. Said behavior is also shown when Otto runs into Emma. With some time passing since their disastrous first date and realizing the good work he's done, Emma asks Otto if he wants to give it another try. Otto rudely declines, saying it's not best for either of them and that she should question her mental state to ask such a question.
The next day, Otto has to deal with a supervillain terrorizing the citizens of San Francisco: a Z-lister named Turner D. Century, a villain obsessed with the 19th century and dresses accordingly, even down to a handlebar moustache. You know, this is one of the things I've loved about Otto having his own series apart from Peter's, which is one of the flagship Marvel books. It allows for the writers to really cut loose and have some fun since this iteration of "Superior Spider-Man" isn't that high a priority. Hell, Turner reveals his intentions are to kill all hipsters. It's so ludicrous and yet I love it. Anyway, Turner reveals his Time Horn, which blasts a frequency that is lethal to the nervous systems of anyone below middle aged. Otto is unaffected considering his mind is much older than his current body is. Otto then begins wailing on Turner until he's stopped by the arrival of the one true Spider-Man, Peter Parker.
After webbing up Turner for the cops, the two swing off heading to the roof of Horizon University, and the art does a good job at contrasting the two Spider-Man. Aside from the black and blue, the red in Otto's costume is a darker shade, and while the lenses in Otto's mask are white like Peter's, they're more like slits compared to the more rounded ones Peter has. Peter reveals that Anna had called him, worried about how Otto was acting. Peter says he should be happy since his actions during the War of the Realms lead to San Francisco suffering no casualties. Otto then finally lets loose, talking about the casualties the Ice Giants had caused in other towns across the United States. Mask off and tears in his eyes, he admits he feels undeserving of the recognition in his own city, thinking he should have done more to help others elsewhere. Peter tells him that while Otto's still new to the hero thing that the way he's feeling right now "means [he's] doing it right" and that he shouldn't be so hard on himself. Peter then leaves on telling Otto he "might just have a future at this". Knowing how this story goes, rereading that line kind of hurt.
Emma then comes up to the roof, believing correctly that she saw him swing up there. Otto tries to brush her off. When she doesn't leave, Otto lashes out with tears still in his eyes: "What did I look like? Weak? As if I need help? AS IF I NEED A DAMN THING FROM ANYONE?" Otto then falls down to his knees, letting it all out as Emma embraces him. This is another moment that shows this version of Otto had much potential to be an even better Superior Spider-Man compared to the previous one.
The two later get coffee at a café and it goes well, with Emma helping Otto with his trouble mind and the two inevitably kiss. But unbeknownst to them, they are being watched by a spider on the side of a building. This is no ordinary spider, however, as it belongs to a swarm of spiders that compose Spiders-Man. Spiders-Man is alternate reality Peter Parker who fell into a radioactive colony of spiders that ate him, absorbing his consciousness in the process and becoming a hive-mind. Basically think of Million Ants from that episode of "Rick and Morty", except somewhat crazy and enjoys eating people. Spiders-Man is acting on the orders of an alternate reality Norman Osborn who had become the Spider-Man of his world, and just because he has spider powers doesn't makes this version of Norman less of a jerk. For a little backstory, these two characters were introduced in the "Spider-Geddon" event as part of the Spider-Army to fight the Inheritors until they were kicked out by Otto for their selfish behavior. In retaliation, they destroyed the Web of Life and Destiny (which is used by spider characters to travel across the multiverse), intending to trap the Spider-Army and the Inheritors on the prime Marvel Earth together, while Norman took a piece for himself for his own means. So to sum it up, Spider-Norman plans to have his revenge on the Superior Spider-Man.

Issue ten shows Otto giving Emma a swing across the city before going to visit James Martin, the young boy who lost his mother that Otto consoled back in issue four. James has been staying with his aunt and uncle who are in the process of becoming his legal guardians, and Otto has been making regular visits to the boy. James' therapist says the visits have been helping him cope with his loss, and Otto says it's meant a lot to himself as well. Otto then meets up with Emma back at his apartment as they begin talking about the idea of having children themselves. That seems to be moving pretty fast, which Emma even mentions, but considering Otto revealed his true identity on their first date, maybe that's just the speed of their relationship. She also brings up that her age probably rules out biological kids, but Otto reminds her that he is clearly a master at genetic manipulation.
So things seem to be going well for Otto, with a city and woman who adore him. Well, considering he partly has Peter Parker's DNA, this is the perfect time for him to fall victim to the dreaded "Parker Luck." The conversation Otto and Emma are having is interrupted by a news report on TV with the headline "Is the SF Spider-Man Really Doc Ock?" Uh oh.
This obviously makes the news cycle onto the next day. While the Fantastic Four, Dr. Strange, and even Peter as Spider-Man have vouched for his change in character, things aren't helped when the Brothers Grimm are interviewed as well, revealing that Otto had paid them for their services. If that's not bad enough, Otto then realizes how this news might have an effect on James. Otto suits up and heads to the apartment of James' aunt and uncle, and they're not happy with him either. They tell Otto that they may lose custody of James due to letting him associate with a known criminal. Otto apologizes and plans to provide them a signed notary that they had no idea of his true identity before asking to say goodbye to James. James is clearly hurt by Otto's deception, as Otto does his best to apologize and bid farewell. Before Otto leaves, James asked why he lied to him. Otto responds "I..I wanted you to like me." James then runs up to Otto and the two hug. If that ain't forgiveness, I don't know what is.
Later, Otto, under his new persona of Elliot Tolliver, is met by Max Modell at Horizon University. Max tells "Elliot" that he had received an e-mail about his true identity as Otto Octavius. Max reveals that he already knew the truth based on the new Spider-Man in San Francisco and he had Tolliver's DNA tested (and yet the guy never figured out Peter's double life). But Max believes in second chances, referencing his own work with Michael Morbius, and wanted to give Otto the chance the prove himself. Like his meeting with James, this is another instance of Otto's situation not being all bad. The two then agree to figure out who's trying to sabotage Otto's life.
The two figure out that the e-mail Max received was sent from an internet café and pull up security footage. While Max sees no one there, Otto's lenses enhance the footage enough to see spiders on the keyboard and realizes who's responsible. As it turns out, Spiders-Man was in the building with them. His escape attempt is foiled by Otto trapping his "prime spider" in a energy bubble. Otto makes Spiders-Man reveal that he was working for Spider-Norman, claiming he's back on his own world. Otto and Max are joined by Anna Maria as they head toward a transdimensional viewer they were working on, which Otto intends to modify to allow travel as well. However, they need a massive amount of cosmic energy, to which Anna Maria reveals the cosmic harness she had hidden away after the fight with Terrax. Otto realizes why she hid it, and while hurt, admits it was a logical decision. The Living Brain begins filtering the cosmic energy into the viewer, but it's too much. Otto tells it to stop until it begins talking in Norman's voice, leading to an explosion that takes out a large portion of Horizon University. Otto is ravaged while Anna and Max are unconscious as Spider-Norman makes himself known, revealing that he had been in their universe for weeks. Otto tries to take on Norman but is in no shape. Otto tells him to just kill him and get it over with, but Norman wants him to suffer. Norman reveals his plan to kill anyone Otto cares for even slightly, leaving Otto in the rubble, laughing on his spider-glider as issue ten ends.

Issue eleven picks up with Otto helping coordinate fire and rescue at Horizon University. Anna Maria has no major injuries while Max is stable and headed to the hospital. Otto is able to find Emma unconscious and gets her into an ambulance. Anna tells Otto she'll handle things from there so he can go after Norman. Otto realizes Norman will be going after James next and contacts the Night Shift to meet him at his address. Things don't go well for the Night Shift as they're made short work of by both Spider-Norman and Spiders-Man. Norman chases after James and his family on his spider-glider before being knocked off by a swing-kick from Otto. While Otto does his best, his injuries from the explosion still make him weak, which Norman takes advantage of. Norman then taunts Otto about when he had fought his own world's Norman, he admitted failure and returned Peter's body back to him. So by this point, it was already clear that this volume of "Superior Spider-Man" was ending, and Norman's comments here made me realize why he was the perfect choice for the series' last villain. Norman Osborn was the one villain Otto couldn't beat during his original time as Spider-Man, so him having to face Norman in some fashion was a great way for Otto to make up for his past failure.
Anyway, Norman snatches up James and flies up on his glider. Otto begs him not to hurt the boy and will do anything he asks. Norman, enjoying his groveling, gives Otto an ultimatum: he has two hours to kill three innocent people on camera in front of the whole world, or James dies. Otto accepts, passing out as Norman flies off with the boy.
Otto then awakes in the hospital, greeted by Anna Maria who tells him he had been asleep for an hour and a half. Anna apprises him of the situation, revealing that the Night Shift are alive all things considered and that Emma is in a medically induced coma. After quickly visiting Emma in her room, Otto knows he has to do something with what little time he has left to save James. He knows that Norman will kill James no matter what Otto does, but he does have an idea. Otto puts out a frequency he had picked up during his and Strange's fight with Pandemonium and summons Mephisto.
Otto offers Mephisto a deal: he wishes to be transformed back into his true form of Otto Octavius/Doctor Octopus for one day, believing that he needs to be as ruthless as he used to be to match Osborn. Mephisto declines this but offers a counter-proposal: he'll transform him back into Doc Ock permanently, with no trace of Peter Parker in him. He'll remember the experiences he's had since transferring his mind into Peter's body, but will have none of the memories that turned him into a hero in the first place; Mephisto is basically wanting Otto to prove that he can be a hero in his own right. Anna Maria takes her role as the angel on Otto's shoulder to a whole new level as she tries to talk Otto out of accepting the deal, saying they'll find another way. The two make their arguments as Mephisto tells him it's time to make his choice.
We then cut to the Brothers Grimm hiding out in a hotel room, planning to get out of town before either Otto or Norman come after them, revealing that Norman had paid them to go on TV and talk about Otto. The issue ends with the brothers being attacked not by the Superior Spider-Man, but Doctor Octopus, demanding to know where Osborn is. Yes, Otto is back with the metal arms, green and yellow jumpsuit, and even the Moe Howard mop-top haircut.

The twelfth and final issues begins with Norman in a penthouse where he's keeping James hostage. Into the room enters "Elliot Tolliver" and a homeless looking man with his face obscured by his hoodie and trench coat, claiming Norman would want to witness him kill someone firsthand. Norman agrees and gets the camera drone ready, going up to the man for a closer look. A metal arm comes out of the trench coat and snaps Elliot's neck, revealing himself to be Doctor Octopus and that the Elliot with them was a mindless excess clone being controlled by one of his octobots. Norman radios Spiders-Man for help, but we see he's being vaporized one spider at a time by Ock's legion of octobots and spider-bots. Norman doesn't think Otto having his original body back changes anything, that he's still the villain trying to play hero, and threatens to toss James out the window. Ock does nothing to stop Norman from doing so or even tries to save James after the fact. A shocked Norman turns the cameras on so the world can see him kill Otto himself. Ock has back-up though as he's able to mentally summon and control multiple harnesses for his arms he's used over the years. From what I was able to count, he used four to contain Osborn, as well as a fifth to save James from his fall outside his building. Ock then uses the arms to break Osborn's bones in such a way that he'll never fully recover; Ock claims this isn't brutality, but it seems pretty brutal. He then steals the fragment of the Web of Life and Destiny Norman had in his possession, using it to send him back to his world, as well as intending to find his own use for it. Ock then uses the camera drone to make his declaration to the world that Doctor Octopus is back, and that anyone who threatens him or any of his associates during his time as the Superior Spider-Man will meet a fate even worse than what he just did to Osborn.
As a brief aside, I kind of wish they gave Doc Ock another look for his return. Yes, it's a classic look, but the way Mike Hawthorne draws him makes it seem like they plucked him from the 60's or 70's books; it just seems out of place in today's age in my opinion. I mean, why not the green/yellow armor he wore in the 90's animated series, the trench coat look of the 2000's, or even a mix like on the "Spectacular Spider-Man" animated series? That being said though, I do think Hawthorne does a good job with Ock's face, making it clear that he's as despicable outside as is inside with his original body back. It's almost toad-like, like Dolores Umbridge from Harry Potter.
Later at the hospital, Emma has awakened form her coma and Anna Maria fills her in on what Otto had done. Ock then arrives, revealing that he has no knowledge of Spider-Man's true identity or any of his memories, but does recall some of his time as Elliot Tolliver. Ock claims he came to them to tell them that this chapter in his life was over and say goodbye, but Anna Maria tries to call him out, believing that he wants them to get him to stay. She says Doctor Octopus could be a force for good, and that she, Emma, and Max could help him, if only he gives himself a chance. Ock rebuffs them, telling him to stay away from him as he leaves. However, once out of their sight, we see tears in his eyes. I think this hints at Otto possibly having more memories than he's letting on, but I guess this will be left up to whoever writes Otto whenever he shows up next after this series.
A week later, a funeral is held for Elliot Tolliver. At first I thought this was more of symbolic funeral for the man Otto had been to those at Horizon, but then I realized only Anna, Max, and Emma knew his true identity. For everyone else present, they had no knowledge of this and think Elliot was just a casualty between Doctor Octopus and Spider-Norman. From a distance, Ock is watching. After leaving his Superior Spider-Man suit in the garbage, he walks off, with the final page paying homage to famous "Spider-Man No More" splash page from one of the times Peter had quit way back in Amazing Spider-Man #50.

I hate how this ended. I will be clear though, Christos Gage had crafted a well-written story. The ending doesn't exactly suck, but it is disappointing. Apparently someone at Marvel really wanted to bring Doc Ock back to his villainous ways. At least when this seemed to be happening during "The Clone Conspiracy", Otto still had some of his experiences as Spider-Man to build off of. Bringing him back this time, but with his status-quo to pre-Superior Spider-Man, undoes over six years of development.
In a way, this is very similar to the ending of the original Superior Spider-Man run, with Otto sacrificing the life he had in order to save someone he cared about. But comparisons will be more likely made to "One More Day" given Mephisto's involvement. This is handled much better though. Otto had been painted into a corner. He had a very limited timeframe and any attempts to outwit Norman or call in back-up would have resulted in the death of a young boy. Compare that to "One More Day" where so many characters had been written poorly. Of all the examples I can bring up, I think it comes down to this: Peter Parker is supposed to be a hero, while Otto Octavius' villainous history is abundantly clear. Otto making a deal with the devil makes sense given his past nature. Peter is supposed to be above that sort of thing. While he was trying to save his aunt, who had been dying due to his actions, you could see it as a way of him trying to avoid taking responsibility instead of letting her die and accept the consequences. That's why so many people were angry after "One More Day" occurred. At the very least, only Otto's character had been hurt compared to the scale of character assassination that came from Peter's deal. Still, I hate the fact that Mephisto has become a regular part of the Spider-Man mythos.
So for fans of the Superior Spider-Man, if you were there at the beginning, you should at least be there for the end. Then again, we've thought we've seen the last of the Superior Spider-Man before only for him to return. However, this time feels a bit more definite.

Movie Review: "Wonder Woman: Bloodlines" - Wonderful Enough

Much like Superman returning to the spotlight in the DC animated film line with the "Death and Return" two parter, "Bloodlines" marks Wonder Woman's first animated film since 2009 (also her only second one overall). This admittedly most likely came about due to the success of the live action film, but I think we should all just be glad DC is finally doing more than just Justice League and Batman animated films in recent years. Taking place in the DC Animated Movie Universe, this version of Wonder Woman is finally able to have her own adventure separate from the League. What results is a satisfactory endeavor that should please fans of the amazon, but doesn't really bring anything too new.

The film has been marketed as an origin film, but it's only part true. It's really just the first twenty minutes of the film, telling Diana's story prior to "Justice League: War" before jumping to the present day set after the previous Superman two-parter. The first ten minutes go through the basics: Steve crashes on Themyscera and is saved by Diana, who goes with him to help man's world against her mother's wishes. The next ten minutes though show Steve introducing Diana to Greek archaeologist Julia Kapatelis; the two work together to share each other's cultures, so Diana can learn about the modern world while she can give Julia new insights on Greek customs. Diana also meets Julia's daughter Vanessa, who she finds a spiritual connection with, particularly their mother issues. Julia is shown to be more focused on her work than her daughter, much like Hippolyta appeared more dutiful as the queen than a mother. While Diana and Hippolyta are later able to reconcile, the same cannot be said for Julia and Vanessa. Without spoiling too much as to why, Julia is written in a way that makes her very unlikable, at least to me.

Rosario Dawson returns as to voice Wonder Woman from the previous DCAMU films and leads a mostly stellar voice cast. Much like how the Superman two-parter delved into the character's supporting cast within this universe, the same is said for Wonder Woman's. Steve Trevor makes his first appearance in these films since "Throne of Atlantis" while we're also introduced to Etta Candy, Ferdinand, and a good collection of Diana's rogues gallery, including Giganta, Doctors Cyber and Poison, and Medusa. Vanessa also becomes the villain Silver Swan, and while her character is written well, there are moments where the actress playing her sounds off, like her voice broke at times but they didn't want to go back and fix it.

With this film, I realized there's been some parallels between the DCAMU films this year, including the Superman two-parter and "Batman: Hush." As mentioned, Wonder Woman's corner of the universe is more fleshed out like Superman's was. And since the two broke up, Diana's relationship with Steve finally blossoms as Clark and Lois' did. In addition, Wonder Woman also shifts to a new costume that resembles her classic/modern iteration and the live action suit. Between the romance and costume changes for the characters, this is what I would call the Rebirth effect, where the current state of comics have impact on the animated films. The same can be said for Batman to a lesser degree, but that was more about adapting the "Hush" storyline, plus the fact Bruce and Selina broke up at the end. So two out of three isn't too bad on the romance column. Of the three stories though, Superman's was my favorite.

While this film is set within the DCAMU, those following the series will notice a significant change in animation. The character designs seem the same, but the style in animation seems to have gone for a more western approach compared to the anime influence we've seen before. I'm not sure if it was a budgetary issue considering DC has put out four films this year compared to the usual three or if this is going to be the new norm. I'll guess we'll know for sure when "Apokolips War" hits next year.
Nevertheless, the animation style doesn't hinder the fight scenes. They're all entertaining, particularly in how Wonder Woman is able to win. While some of it comes down to strength, we also get to see Diana's ingenuity and strategy at play. She's able to contend with Cheetah's speed by putting her in a more enclosed environment and later blinds herself to combat Medusa's stone-turning gaze. Said final battle with Medusa is my favorite of the film. We see Wonder Woman taking a major beating, from being thrown around and being bitten by the snakes in Medusa's hair, but she never shows any sign of giving up. In general, that's one of the best things the film gets right about Diana: she'll fight an enemy to the end and she won't turn away from friends who lost their way.

One problem I had with this film was the depiction of the amazons. Between this and the live action film, that one did a better job. For one, Hippolyta was shown from the beginning to be a caring mother as well as a inspiring leader. Also, the live action film did a good job at showing the amazons' fighting ability, even against those with advance weaponry like the German soldiers and their guns. Here, they all get jobbed by Medusa.

Overall, "Wonder Woman: Bloodlines" is a mostly satisfying film that's a faithful depiction of the Spirit of Truth with some enjoyable characters and great fight scenes. There isn't much more to it than that, but it should be enough for some.

Comics Review: "Batman: Damned" - Da Hell? (SPOILERS)

While DC has retired the "Elseworlds" imprint, its basic concept, telling unique stories without the hinderence of the main continuity, has gained new life with the "Black Label" series of books. Even DC seems to acknowledge the legacy between imprints with re-releases of past stories such as "Kingdom Come" and "DC: The New Frontier" under the Black Label banner. Much like how Elseworlds unofficially began with Batman stories such as "Dark Knight Returns" and "Gotham by Gaslight", the roots of the Black Label line stem from the success of another out of continuity Batman story, "White Knight". The first official Black Label series would be "Batman: Damned" by the creative team of writer Brian Azzarello and artist Lee Bermejo.
My only experience with Azzarello's work is on Batman stories, such as the "Flashpoint" tie-in series I praised way back in my 2013 review. He also wrote the film script for the Killing Joke adaptation, including the prologue focusing on Batgirl; while I didn't mind said prologue at first, repeated viewings have made me realize how cringe-worthy it really is to the point where I just skip to the actual Killing Joke story from now on. While he's done characters like Superman and Wonder Woman, Azzarello seems more in his element when it comes to gritty crime stories, which makes him perfect for Batman. Said style is emphasized when he works with artist Lee Bermejo, including their 2008 "Joker" graphic novel. Bermejo brings a much realistic take in his art style and the characters. The best examples can be seen with the more tactical elements of Batman's suit, Joker's smile comes from scars much like Heath Ledger's depiction, and Killer Croc is less monstrous, being just a gangster with a skin condition and cannibalistic tendencies. Bermejo would later write and draw the 2011 graphic novel "Batman: Noel", and though Azzarello wasn't involved, you could see his influence in Bermejo's writing.
The two reunite for "Batman: Damned", a story where we see Batman investigating the Joker's murder. Batman worries he may have committed it but is unable to remember doing so and enlists magic-based DC characters to help him. Fear not though, the gritty realism is still present and the supernatural elements don't hurt the tone. Even Superman made an appearance in "Noel"; it is still the DC universe after all.

I'll start by saying the art by Bermejo is spectacular on this book. Bermejo did the coloring himself, though it seems he learned some tricks Barbara Ciardo, the colorist from "Noel", to make "Damned" just as vibrant. Since this is basically a horror book, Bermejo's also able to create some imagery that's unsettling, such as the appearances of Enchantress and an odd instance of a live bat stitched onto a possibly dead human male chest (which admittedly doesn't really add anything to the story). I think Azzarello's direction also influenced the new designs for characters like Deadman and the Spectre. Instead of his circus outfit, the red parts of Deadman's appearance are basically bare human muscles. As for the Spectre, he appears as a homeless man wearing a green jacket with a hood; the Spectre is probably possessing the poor guy, but it really works with the aesthetic of the book.

When it comes to Azzarello's writing style, for better or worse, he definitely does a lot to make this story stand out. For example, whenever Lee Bermejo is drawing Batman, and it might be because of the constant scowl, I can't help but feel he's a lot meaner than other depictions. This story might explain why, as we see through flashbacks that much like in the Telltale Games, Bruce's father wasn't exactly ideal. Thomas was having an affair and the young Bruce was constantly listening to his parents arguing; of course the guy's going to have issues...well more than you'd usually expect with Batman. There's also the fact that Enchantress has been haunting Bruce since he was a boy, and partly responsible for his parents' deaths. Normally I'd say this hurts the point of Batman's mission, that no one suffers from a random act of violence as he did. Considering they're aiming to be different though, I don't want to get too bent out of shape about it.
Another idea I liked is how Azzarello depicted Deadman's power of possession, showing that he can only stay in a vessel for so long, as it seems to deteriorate while he's inside.
A lot of characters stick to their traditional appearances like Constantine, Enchantress, Zatanna, and Swamp Thing (who is depicted as much larger than life character than normal; seriously, his head is the size of Batman's whole body). But one character redesign that's really out there is Etrigan's, who is depicted as a free-stylin' rapper going by J Blood (his real name being Jason Blood). When I realized who this character was, I was a bit torn. On one hand, it's definitely a unique take and the rapper gimmick allows the character to keep his penchant for rhyming. I also like how the yellow lighting for his scenes helps add some semblance to the original character along with the red sunglasses. Still, I'm not sure if he's actually a demon like he's supposed to be or just a rapper with a very devoted following willing to kill Batman and each other for him.

If there's a main problem I have with the story, it's the plotting. One big example is the break between issues two and three. Issue two ends with Batman, possessed by the Enchantress, strangling Harley Quinn against the bat-signal. Issue three begins with Batman finding himself buried alive in a pinewood casket before being unearthed by Swamp Thing. What the hell happened between issues? Did Batman kill Harley? Did Constantine stop him and then bury him? Why did he bury him at all? Did he know Batman was possessed? How would he know that? In the words of another Batman:

Then there's the ending, and boy is it head scratching. "Damned" is a follow up to the "Joker" graphic novel as it depicts the end of the battle Batman and Joker had at the end of that book. Throughout "Damned", Batman is unwilling to accept the idea of Joker being dead, waiting until the end to finally go the morgue to see the body. The Spectre, who has been stalking Batman throughout the book, is there waiting to cast judgment. Batman remembers that during their battle, he punched Joker and sent him over the edge of a suspension bridge, hanging on for his life. Batman, who was bleeding out from knife wounds inflicted on him by Joker, reached out his hand only to withdraw it, fearful of Joker's future actions. Batman looks at the Joker's body and, regretful of his inaction, states "I wish he were still alive." Then all of a sudden, Batman is sucked into the Joker's body chamber and the door shuts behind him. We then cut back to the bridge they were fighting on, as we end the story with Joker emerging from the water and coming ashore, with Bermejo paying homage to the Joker creation scene from "The Killing Joke." Once I finished reading, I spent probably about twenty minutes trying to make sense of what happened.
So my best guess as to what this ending means has to do with how this depiction of the Spectre's powers may work. He confronted Batman about his evil act, and because he showed regret, the Spectre set things right by making sure the Joker survived his fall. Otherwise, Batman may have felt the Spectre's vengeance. Again, I am only guessing because the comic does not make it clear.
This has the same problem I had with the ending to the "Joker" graphic novel; it just doesn't have that satisfying an ending. At least "Noel" had a clear-cut conclusion.

To finish up, "Batman: Damned" is a good but flawed story. I cannot praise Lee Bermejo's art enough, with its detailed realism and horror imagery. I wouldn't go so far as to say it's "style over substance" because Brian Azzarello brings a lot of good ideas to the table with this book, with his reinterpretations of the DC characters involved. It just doesn't truly stick the landing or have what I think is a meaningful payoff.
Still, I will say that it is a strong start to the DC Black Label line and worth checking out, especially if you've already read the previous Batman works involving Lee Bermejo. Of the three stories though, "Noel" is still my favorite.

Retro Review: "Gerard Way: Hesitant Alien"

Whenever I come around to My Chemical Romance in the rotation for my car CD player, there's one album I include in that group that I didn't talk about in my MCR retrospective back in March. That would be the solo album of lead singer, Gerard Way: "Hesitant Alien". The album came out six months after the MCR "May Death Never Stop You" greatest hits compilation, and this year marks its fifth anniversary. Considering that and I've talked about Gerard's prior musical works already, I thought I'd give "Hesitant Alien" the same treatment.

In the five years I've had this album since Christmas 2014, it's one that I tend to appreciate the more I listen to it. When a lead singer of an established band goes solo, it's hard not to expect or compare it to their previous work; this is no different. It definitely has a different sound compared to My Chemical Romance, but as I listened to it more, I began to realize Gerard carried over a lot of elements that were present in "Danger Days". As I said in the retrospective, "Danger Days" featured a My Chemical Romance that were more at peace with who they were, no longer full of anger as when they began. Even solo, Gerard brings some of that upbeat sound. This is why I include "Hesitant Alien" whenever I listen to the MCR albums, as it's another step in Gerard's progression as an artist.
The best way to describe the album is "pop grunge". Some of the songs have a clean poppy sound to them, while others can get a bit dirty or have a mix between the two.

Since I'm devoting a whole post to this album, I'll be a little more in depth with my thoughts on the songs compared to my general album analyses from the MCR retrospective. I'll just start out by saying that I don't particularly care for "The Bureau", "No Shows", "Get the Gang Together", and "How It's Going to Be". My main problem with these songs are there being either a filter over Gerard's vocals or he's drowned out by the music, making it hard to really understand him, and in turn making it hard for me to really connect with. Don't get me wrong though, they each have a good sound and I do sing along with the parts where I can understand the words. Plus, "The Bureau" is a nice introductory track for the album as a whole.
With that out of the way, let's take a look at my favorite songs of the album.

* Drugstore Perfume: This is my absolute favorite song from the album. It's beautifully composed in both the music and the lyrics. Gerard apparently wrote this for his wife (who he's been with since 2007), so it's easy to see this as a love song, talking about two people who've found each other after going through many hardships in their lives: "And as these days go by, they'll never change how long we've waited for a love that's more." It reminds me a lot of "Summertime" from "Danger Days."

* Action Cat and Millions: I group these two together because I feel they share the same message. It's about a relationship, either past and present, wanting it to be ideal but realizing/accepting it's not. Considering how fresh MCR's break-up was, it's easy to think of these songs being Gerard's way of expressing his feelings about it.
"Action Cat" is more of an aftermath song, as there's somewhat a sense of hope, emphasized by the stanzas asking or pleading to reciprocate the feeling of loss ("Said I miss you, say 'I miss you too'"). There's also a sense of bargaining with the lines "don't ask a lot and you won't lose a lot", like they're trying to keep whatever they can of the relationship alive. It's these lines that really connect with me.
"Millions" is my second favorite song of the album thanks to a great beat and the vocalizing from Gerard. "Millions" is going through the relationship and coming to the conclusion that it's over ("I think you're sore, I think I'm done") with a bit of blaming from both sides. There's also the sense of hope like "Action Cat" has, but it's not as prominent. They want to keep things together, but they need "a million reasons" and "a million more" on top of that to do so. It's kind of the opposite message of Lady Gaga's "Million Reasons"; one good one isn't enough.
Also, the music video is weird as hell but enjoyable, like an [adult swim] commercial bumper. I do the head side bobbing thing the group does whenever I listen to the song as well.

* Maya the Psychic: The final track of the album closes it out in a real rock fashion. I kind of see it as a "teenage rebellion" song, with an "us against them"/anti-authority attitude to it.

* Brother: This song is definitely about Gerard's brother Mikey, who was the bassist in MCR. Like "Action Cat" and "Millions", I think "Brother" is also a post band break-up song, as Gerard is looking back at the simpler times the two had and how things were then. It immediately hooks you in with the piano in the intro and there's also an outro to the song with a distorted voice saying "Where's Mikey? Where'd he go?" that gets me every time. In general, I think it's a song about brotherly love and sticking by each other through the hardships, as I tend to think of my own brother when I hear this.

* Zero Zero: Honestly, I'm not sure what the real meaning of this song is, but it really kicks ass. The lyrics "Call me zero" and "I am zero" make me think of my second all-time favorite anime "Code Geass" as the main character Lelouch creates the masked identity of Zero to accomplish his goals.

* Juarez: This is the hardest rocking song on the album and the best example of the grunge influence I noticed. I've also come to realize it reminds me a lot of the Queen song "Stone Cold Crazy" with its short runtime and talk about dealing the law.

Overall, it may not be My Chemical Romance, but "Hesitant Alien" shows Gerard Way hasn't lost the music in his heart. If you're a fan but haven't checked out his solo album, I'd say it's worth it, though not all the songs may hit a chord with everyone.
Gerard has yet to follow up on "Hesitant Alien", focusing more on his comics career afterwards, though he did release a number of songs in late 2018 and early 2019. While I'm still waiting/hoping for My Chemical Romance to reunite, I wouldn't mind another solo venture from Gerard at some point as well.