I saw Ironman the other day and LOVED it. Marvel, like Tolkien, translate beautifully into films with the help of good script writing and great CGI. It has the wonderful effect of making me feel like a young unripe tomato all over again.
I was a huge Comic collector as a kid. there was a small mom and pop shop called Westside Comics down the block from where i grew up. My sister and I religiously went there knowing full well the exact days our favorite comics were due in the store and we loved to blow our entire allowances in one visit. I was particularly fond of the X-men and some random ones, like Teen Titans and Elfquest. I had thousands of dollars worth of them, which to my chagrin, were recently thrown out when new owners took over the building next door, where my stuff was in storage. Now they are all in some pile in a landfill in queens. Ehh, water under the queens bridge. At least i have Hollywood.
To be completely honest, i wasn't reading them anymore. Either my imagination has lost it's ability to make these inked pictures come to life, or i just don't have the time to kill anymore. After all, a guy who reads comics all day is probably going to end up alone and in debt. I try not to be a gamer for the same reason. i work on computers and its silly to get on them after work unless it has something to do with picture albums, friends i don't see regularly, or this oh-so-therapeutic blog. But, my love for super powers and fantasy fiction hasn't changed. My dreams are often a place full of these comic book powers and fantasy fiction adventures. Thankfully that hasn't fully abandoned me in this mundane reality.
Now my generation's turn to run shit. We are the driving force in Hollywood these days. Clearly, the movers and shakers are starting to be like minded individuals to me and mine. A quick scan through the movie channels on cable and i see, Lord of the Rings, Hulk, Spiderman, Star Wars, X-Men, yada yada, you get the picture. This is an incredible development for me. Besides the fact that i am technically in the industry of making these kinds of movies, it's also allowing me to enjoy my Comics again without needing to read them and then put them safely back in those annoying plastic bags for protection. Now they are moving pictures on the big screen. And they are so well done that my imagination can be put aside and i can just watch the magic with open mouth. So far i haven't been at all disappointed. not even with Tim Burton and Joel Schumaker's silly Batman movies over 10-15 years ago.
I know EXACTLY how its done and i probably detect flaws a little too quickly, but that doesn't negate my suspension of disbelief. I can still believe its actually happening and i go "oooo" and "awww" just as loud as the next person. I am super excited for a year full of comics. Captain America, Hulk2, the Avengers, Batman, and Thor to name a sampling. Of course there's DC on the scene too with Superman.
Ironman was the latest bundle of joy for me. Tony Stark was dead on, a highly flawed genius who had everything until he was thrust into the world of terror by a business partner. He uses his unbelievable grasp on tech to create an iron suit to escape from Afghanistan. A man saves his life twice, the second time giving up his own life. this clears Tony Stark's playboy mind and shows him the error of his ways. its almost flawless character development, laden with meaning because he shows how putting his mind and his resources into creating energy and defensive technology, rather then weapons, is a much smarter and more successful way to succeed. aww, thanks Marvel. love that one to grow on stuff spattered in between AWESOME flying sequences and fight scenes. Marvel is like "hey, Bush, science is what made us great, not the bible." and it proves it's point when the Gold Titanium Alloy suit tears over to Afghanistan and takes out the bad guy in short order. Osama, say hello to Arclight Reactor numero uno, beeyotch.
That a regular man with a developed grasp of technology can fly faster then f-22's and quickly level terrorism where our military has failed so heinously is a FANTASTIC thing to see at this point in history. it's what we used to call, droppin' science.
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