Shazam has entered into the DC Cinematic Universe, with good success and minimal criticism from comic fans! To date, the film has generated $325.5 million worldwide and with Rotten Tomatoes rating of 90%, Shazam gains popularity like his cinematic counterparts the Justice League. This 2019 feature by DC Comics is a comedy action adventure, for it emphasizes Captain Marvel’s adolescent behavior to the audience. Billy Batson is a kid with superpowers, that must learn the importance of responsibility and family.

When Shazam was first announced with its release, fans instantly thought Shazam would battle Black Adam. Instead, Shazam’s first rival was with Dr. Thaddeus Sivana, a scientist who studied magic in hopes to achieve what science cannot. In the comics, Thaddeus is responsible for freeing Black Adam from imprisonment, believing he could learn the magical arts from the ancient being. In this film, Thaddeus gained powers from the collective force of the Seven Deadly Sins, making him as powerful as Shazam. DWayne “The Rock” Johnson continuously petitioned that he would love to play the role of Black Adam, instead becoming the executive producer of this film! Even though Black Adam was absent, Dwayne’s involvement leaves the door wide open for a sequel and his awaited appearance as Shazam’s primary nemesis.

Another notable change didn’t resonate with comic fans was casting Djimon Hounson as the Wizard Shazam. This is because Djimon played as the King of the Fishermen in the 2018 AquaMan film, and recently reprising his role as Korath in 2019 Captain Marvel. Was Djimon used to connect the two characters together on screen because of sharing the same name Captain Marvel? And how is it Djimon is playing two characters in the same universe?? The Wizard’s ethnicity changed, much like Samuel Jackson playing Nick Fury or Idris Elba playing Heimdall. Do you think changing the ethnicity of comic characters is necessary for story and character development on screen?

One surprise to the film was the introduction of the Shazam Family. Much like the Family of the comics, Billy passed on the power of Shazam to his adopted brothers and sisters. The Family assisted Billy in defeating, then imprisoning the Seven Deadly Sins. In turn, Billy gained not only an adopted family in human form, but also a super team of his own. Since this is the case, should Shazam even join the Justice League as a recruit? Do you think the Shazam Family is strong enough to overpower the League?

The DC Universe has yet to show a successful cinematic universe with the consistency like The Marvel Cinematic Universe. Shazam could have been a great extension of the Justice League, as mentioned by Bruce Wayne and Diana Prince at the end of the 2018 film, where Bruce would use the old Wayne Manor as the Justice League headquarters.  Henry Cavill and Ben Affleck both dropped from their character roles, once again leaving fans wondering, who will be the next Batman and Superman? Not only that, will the next chosen actors supersede the earlier portrayals?

So, what were your thoughts on the movie? Shazam is a great film that WILL be overshadowed when Avengers: Endgame is released as well as Star Wars: The Rise of SkyWalker later this year. Just between Captain Marvel 2019 and Shazam 2019, Marvel and DC, who do you think had a better movie between the two characters?? Leave your thoughts below!

Akira Toriyama is back with his third anime film Dragonball Super: Broly! Dragonball Super: Broly is the highest-ranking film created around the Z Fighters and this film is a retold story of Broly and Bardock. This story takes place after the Tournament of Power, Goku and Vegeta are at new levels of power and are unaware there is another fighter in their own universe that is strong enough to challenge their refined saiyan God powers……

Broly of the non-canon story, grew up hating Goku because of the internal memory of Goku constantly crying in the saiyan nursery. Broly’s power was so great, it had an adverse effect on his personality and mental stability growing up. Paragus grew fearful of his son to the extent of controlling the saiyan through artificial means. This control later turned on Paragus in the form of hatred, thus losing his life to his son. In the canon story, Broly grew up with a dislike for Vegeta, which was trained in him by Paragus. Just like the non-canon version of Broly, King Vegeta didn’t accept Broly’s extraordinary power because the child was labeled as a lower class saiyan and Broly’s power challenged all those of royal blood. Broly and his father were exiled from the planet instead of going through a failed execution attempt. Paragus vowed to take revenge on the King for his oversight, with the extinction of the saiyan race, Vegeta was the next best option for revenge since Vegeta is the survivor of the Saiyan throne. The story of Bardock was retold as well, thus making Goku’s origin to Earth even more like Superman. In Bardock’s story, fans were also introduced to Goku’s mother Gine, a character never expressed in history until this movie.

Dragonball Super: Broly satisfied fans this time around with visuals of Vegeta as the super saiyan God. This form was introduced in the film Dragonball Z Battle of the Gods, which was a form attained by absorbing the power of 5 pure hearted saiyans. This is important among DBZ fans because this was the second time Vegeta was observed catching up to Goku in power but not displaying his work to attain each level as Goku did. Then the stage moved to Super Saiyan God Super Saiyan, otherwise known as Super Saiyan Blue. Vegeta amazed fans becoming super saiyan blue in the Resurrection of Frieza, completely skipping over the super saiyan God level. Then Vegeta learned to evolve the super saiyan blue form into a new power level. Dragonball Super Broly has also made Gogeta an official character in the canon series. Not only that, Gogeta is able to become super saiyan God just like his fusion counterpart Vegito. Fusion is an extremely powerful card to play on the battlefield and it was surprising to fans that Broly could withstand the power of the fusion before Gogeta went Blue. If this is the case, would Broly be in fact stronger than all the saiyans in the Tournament of Power?

Comic sites have theories on how the Super Saiyan Four could become canon. Sites such as Comicbookmovie suggest that the road map to Super Saiyan Four is through Broly.  Whis, being a witness to the entire battle, could give Goku and Vegeta new training methods to fully bring out their saiyan potential as Broly did. So far, Whis trained the Vegeta and Goku to master their ki to God levels but never taught the saiyans how to unlock the power aspects their race could wield. Or is it possible Whis already knows the full potential of the saiyan race and could show the saiyans how to use the legendary stage as well…

Even with Broly eliminated in the non-canon Dragonball Z story, that was something anime fans could not accept for the character. Dragonball Super gave fans the idea of Broly with the introduction of Kale. Her outstanding power amazed the Gods in the tournament, and she was ranked among the top 5 strongest fighters. During the seasons of Super, fans can see that Goku, Vegeta, Caulifla and Cabba has similarities that make them parallel with each other.  Now that Broly is made canon, will he apart of surviving saiyans, even becoming a mentor with his parallel counterpart Kale? What was your overall feel for this movie? Do you think this Broly is the best we have seen, or do you think his previous version was better left untouched?

ComicMultiverse fan favorite poster of Dragonball Super: Broly goes to the DeviantArt artist: Limandao! Excellent work!

The Justice League film spawned the solo movie for AquaMan with great success! This feature generated $1.150 billion dollars worldwide to date! Zack Snyder introduced the character to the big screen, but it was James Wan brought out the full details of the character. Jason Momoa turned out to be a perfect choice to portray the AquaMan character because Jason and Arthur both originated from people of the water and of the land. The costume designs were perfect for each character because they closely resemble those seen in the comic publications. Some comic fans find the underwater visuals on par with James Cameron’s Avatar. Even though this film used a lot of CGI, it, along with 2017 Wonder Woman, Man of Steel, and the Batman from Christopher Nolan, are the top-ranking origin films for DC Comics.When it comes down to character development on-screen, what fans loved about this film was how producers took time to explain and show visuals of how AquaMan’s powers work, especially during the training with Vulko. Since Aquaman is half human, he is physically stronger than all Atlantians and he has the unique ability to communicate with the animals of the sea. This telepathic ability help prove Arthur’s worthiness to the Trident.  Once wielded, Arthur’s telekinetic abilities expanded, connecting him to the Life Force of the Seven Seas. Even the vast amount Trench creatures came under control of AquaMan, a task believed to be impossible because of their savagery. When making a worldwide connection to sea animals, this visually looks similar to Professor Xavier using Cerebro in the X-Men films. In magic, the Trident is similar to Mjolnir by way of controlling lightning and weather. So, what Trident was Arthur wielding in Justice League if he had his mother’s Trident in his possession before the Trident of Poseidon?AquaMan 2018 would be Mera‘s second appearance on film, her first being cameo in The Justice League. In this film, Mera stuck closely to Arthur, helping him along the way to realize his importance as King of Atlantis, then later becoming his Queen to be. Mera is hydrokinetic like the Water Tribe of Avatar the Airbender. On film, we’ve seen Mera extract water from Arthur’s body, even turn wine into sharp, deadly projectiles. One question that was raised among fans is what was the reason for Mera to create an air bubble to speak to Arthur in Justice League, but never used that technique in this film? Was that a correction the producers wanted to make in concerns to Atlantean communication underwater? Or is this a different in style between Zack Synder and James Wan?

The main antagonist of this film was no other than Orm, Arthur’s half-brother. This family rival is similar to Thor and Loki or T’Challa and N’Jadaka. What’s common with these rivals is that the tensions begin for the rights of the throne. The unworthy King would use deception to become ruler but later become defeated by the rightful heir. Justice League: Throne of Atlantis was similar to this film, with the theme that a new King is needed in the underwater kingdom and to stop an impending war on the surface world. There were key differences in the films, but both were considered great origins stories of the AquaMan. Orm is imprisoned for his crimes but like most popular villains, it’s only a matter of time until he returns…

This film was big enough to feature another of AquaMan’s primary villains, The Black Manta. This Black Manta is quite different from the one in the comics. This film showed Manta as a pirate who has a strong relationship with his father. Arthur allowed Manta’s father die while they were on their hijacking mission, and this started the war between these two characters. In comic publications, during his youth, Black Manta was a victim of human trafficking. While at sea, Manta saw AquaMan and signaled for help to escape his kidnappers, but the King didn’t see this signal. Just as depicted in the comics, Black Manta is Orm’s human soldier who helped set up the stage for Atlantis and the surface to engage in war. Orm shared weapon technology with Manta so he could destroy Arthur but was defeated in the process. End credit scenes predict Manta’s return, but this time he may become a bigger threat than he was before….

What are your thoughts on this film? If we are to receive sequels to this film, how will they be incorporated in any future Justice League films? Rumors suggest Ben Affleck will not have his solo movie for Batman, and Henry Cavill is no longer playing Superman. DC Comics is down to two characters on-screen: Wonder Woman and AquaMan. Let’s hope the Shazam movie is just as outstanding as AquaMan 2018 to keep DC cinematic universe alive for the comic fans. Also make sure to Check out these amazing statues provided by SideShow Collectibles!!

Kate Beckinsale returns as Selene in Underworld: Blood Wars. To date Blood Wars grossed 81.1 million worldwide, pulling in negative reviews from The New York Times and Rotten Tomatoes. Underworld is a horror story of the greatest supernatural creatures battling through the centuries for dominance and survival. Van Helsing is another film Kate Beckinsale worked on in which vampire and werewolves share the same script. Let’s review each film leading up to Blood Wars, for this is the fifth film in the series…

The first Underworld was released in 2003, in the action/horror category as Blade was closing his film series in 2004. Underworld’s impact was big enough to become a solid foundation for the future films. Selene is a death dealer on the hunt for werewolves, in belief that they killed her family centuries ago. In this film, the Lycans/werewolves, are searching for a human with a unique strain of DNA that will allow the two supernatural species to blend successfully. This union will create a new hybrid immortal, stronger than both the vampires and werewolves. The wanted human is Michael Corvin, who is a direct descendant of the immortal gene. Michael is eventually bitten by both species. He takes on a dark blue appearance with the vampire dominance compared to the next film where his face takes on more of the Lycan species.

It was revealed to Selene that it was not the werewolves who slaughtered her family but her coven vampire elder Viktor. Upon killing Viktor, Selene along with Michael are wanted among the Underworld.

Evolution is the next movie in the series where Marcus, the first and most powerful vampire is awakened. This movie is a mix between the past and the present for we see the beginnings of the vampire and Lycan race. Alexander Corvinus is introduced to the story as the source of the immortal virus. Through the events of the first film, Marcus is mistakenly awakened with Lycan blood thus transforming him into a hybrid. Unlike Michael’s hybrid form, Marcus is able to take on a batlike appearance, making him more powerful than his normal vampire state. Through the blood memory of the of the Lycan and Kraven, Marcus set out to free his brother from centuries of captivity. After witnessing the change Lycan blood did for him, Marcus believed vampire blood could turn his twin brother William into a hybrid as well, with the chance of him transforming back to human form once again. Evolution reveals the importance on why Selene’s family was killed for they built the prison William was held in along with its location. With these key events, Selene, Michael and Marcus was eventually led to Alexander Corvinus. Marcus seemingly kills Michael, then impaled his own father for the key to his brother’s prison. Before dying, Alexander offers his blood to Selene turning her into a carrier of the original immortal virus. Selene’s strength increased pass any elder and gained the ability to survive in sunlight once again. Upon William’s freedom, the brothers were confronted by Selene and Michael. Michael was able to overpower and kill William because of his hybrid state, a form William failed to receive in time. With her new powers, Selene brought Marcus to his death along with his brother. Selene and Michael are now the last two immortals with the original virus, is it possible that Selene could become a hybrid as well? Is it possible, through his blood, Alexander could have resurrected Lucian, Amelia and Viktor when he was examining their bodies?

The Underworld series went into the past with the Rise of the Lycans. This film expanded on the origin of Lucian and the love affair with Viktor’s daughter Sonja. We discovered Lucian was the first Lycan, able to revert back and forth from his animal state, unlike the werewolves William created. With this discovery, Viktor used Lucian to create more Lycans like himself as daytime guardians for the vampires, in the manner like slaves. As Lucian grows up under Viktor, Lucian also grows close to Sonja. They are secretive lovers for some time, up to Sonja becoming pregnant with Lucian’s child. With this, Viktor ordered Sonja’s death in front of Lucian, for he forbade the blending of the species. With the help of the survived Lycans and the werewolf horde, Lucian acted his revenge on Viktor, nearly killing him and destroying his coven. Viktor, the hibernating Marcus and Ameila, and the historian Tanis, were the only survivors of the retreat. One confusing point was Lucian and Sonja is not of the original Corvinus bloodline. Since their blood was mixed within the child, Sonja and the fetus would not have survived either way, right? Also, why wasn’t a sequel made for this film? The sequel could have been a backstory of when Kraven misled the coven into believing he slain Lucian. This backstory would also show Viktor eliminating Selene’s family thus making her a vampire. That story didn’t make it to the big screen and could have been a great addition to the series. Hopefully we will see this film in the future………

Awakening is the next movie to follow Evolution, where the humans became aware of the Lycan/vampire species, declaring termination on sight. Selene and Michael are captured among all the other immortals. The importance of their apprehension was confusing for how would anyone know of their increased powers, when all the witnesses were deceased? Awakening revealed that Selene and Michael had a child named Eve, who was the first born, perfect hybrid. Eve is linked to her parents where they can locate one another with mental eyesight. The Lycans are studying Eve’s genetics to find complete immunity from all forms of silver. Along the way, a new hybrid Lycan is created using the original blood of Corvinus, much like Selene’s transformation to Corvinus blood. Would William have taken on this monstrous hybrid appearance as well if he received blood from his father Alexander? Selene gains a new ally named David, who replaced Michael in the male lead role to Selene. In the ending of the film, the mental link that Selene and Eve saw is believed to be Michael finally escaping his captives.

Blood Wars is next in Underworld timeline where the Lycans have driven the vampires down to extinction. In Awakening, it was believed both species were suffering extinction but really the Lycans had the winning side. Marius is the new Lycan leader, with enhanced Lycan abilities. In the end of Awakening, the audience believed Michael was escaping his icy prison when really, he was being abducted by Marius and his men. Marius gained his new powers by draining the blood from Michael then creating a serum from it. David is revealed to be Amelia’s son, thus making him the heir of the Eastern Coven. Selene gains additional abilities from the Nordiac Coven, in the process killing Marius and avenging Michael. Eve finally is brought in the ending of the film for she was still mentally linked to Selene even though Selene was not linked to Eve. Through all the events of Underworld, Selene becomes a powerful elder. Will Michael ever return to the Underworld franchise? Producer Len Wiseman claimed there is a 6th film in development, what could be the story plot for this film? Will Selene’s powers increase even further? What will become of the Lycans now that two of their most powerful leaders have fallen? Blade was rumored to become a crossover feature for Underworld but was declined. Do you believe Blade could bring back the high interest in the Underworld franchise or would he hurt it even further?

Movie Review!!

Suicide Squad was released on August 5th, with $267 million made on its opening weekend. When first released, Suicide Squad was set to have a R rating. With various scene cuts, the film was level down to PG-13 like Batman V Superman: Dawn of Justice. Why again? Deadpool held no punches back with its R rated release and the film became a huge win for Marvel Comics. Many comic fans have mixed feelings for the film, more negative than positive. Many feel the story or threat for the Suicide Squad could have been better. What was your take on the film?

The Suicide Squad is a group of dangerous criminals collected together by Amanda Waller, to take on assignments designed for no return or assignments to place blame on the criminals if spun out of control. These outlaws are individuals brought down by Batman, for the exception of Captain Boomerang, who is a criminal that commonly battles The Flash. The Flash makes an appearance in this film, but only briefly. Will Smith took the role of Deadshot, which is a change in character ethnicity like Laurence Fishburne taking the role of Perry White in Zack Synder‘s Superman. This movie is the reason Will Smith turned down Independence Day: Resurgence. Do you think Will Smith should have done the Independence Day sequel instead of this movie?

Batman also had a small cameo in this film, which were flashback memories with DeadShot and Harley Quinn. Even Ben Affleck made his small cameo at the mid credit scene, showing Bruce Wayne on his mission to form his super team of heroes. Affleck’s Batman is the first character to cameo in different films other than his own feature film. Is Batman the center piece for future DC films?

This film introduced the third Joker on film, which was portrayed by Jared Leto. This style of Joker is very different from the previous ones. This Joker has more of a rock star element, with the tattoos, silver teeth and jewelry. It was suggested that this Joker is actually Jason Todd, the former Robin, with few hints mentioned in Batman V Superman: Dawn of Justice. What’s unique about this film is the history and developing relationship between the Joker and Harley Quinn. Do you think this was an excellent portrayal of the two lovers? Do you think this is the last we’ll see of the Suicide Squad, or will they return in Batman’s solo film?

Check out some exclusive statues of the Suicide Squad provided by SideShow Collectibles!!!

Movie Review!!

This Movie Review of Star Beyond will also feature Star Trek 2009 and Star Trek: Into Darkness

Paramount Pictures released the third Star Trek film titled Beyond. Its opening weekend brought in $89.6 million, which is higher than the opening weekends of the first two films of 2009 and 2013. To date, Star Trek: Beyond generated 343.5 million worldwide. Many supporters feel Star Trek is very popular as Star Wars in the sci-fiction film category. Coincidentally, J.J. Abrams is the current director behind the two space franchises. Star Trek is set to have a fourth film in later years. How long will this film series continue or will Star Trek be reinvented once more in the future?

With J.J. Abrams visionary talent, Star Trek has been rebooted keeping its 50 year essence in tact. New actors resembling the original crew were excellent choices among fans and most importantly the visuals. In each of the films, you notice the progression of Captain Kirk also the rising experience, personality, and family bonding of the crew. With the Enterprise, you will take notice of science theories regarding space travel at light speeds. As you can see, J.J was not shy in having the Enterprise destroyed in each film!

All three movies featured its on unique villain. What so similar between the villains of each movie is that they all have a revenge mission on the Federation. Nero is a Romulan seeking to destroy Earth with a weapon that can create black holes in space. Nero revenge stemmed from the destruction of his homeworld which he believed could be saved. Khan is the second villain who sought to destroy the Federation for being used to create weapons which would start a war between two worlds. Also Khan was threaten with death along with the last of his people. The third villain is Krall, a once human and a captain. His gripe with the Federation is that Earth became unified with her universal enemies thus the Federation. Krall also felt forgotten about when his ship was disabled out on a mission. These villains see the Federation as an armada that has a vision to control the universe. Which of the three films did you like the most?

Sadly, the original Spock Leonard Nimoy, and actor Anton Yelchin have passed away. Leonard passed during the pre-production of Beyond and Anton pass in June, a month before the movie’s release. Star Trek Beyond is dedicated to the memory of both actors. Interestingly, Leonard second marriage was to Susan Bay, who is cousins with the famous film director Michael Bay.

MOVIE REVIEW!!!

Captain America: Civil War is the biggest film among the character’s two films: The First Avenger and The Winter Soldier.This film brought in $678.4 million on its first weekend possibly because Civil War felt more of an Avengers film, with for the exception of Thor and The Hulk. Their absence from the film can only suggest that during this cinematic battle, they were on Asgard, a spoiler for the upcoming film Thor: Ragnarok. This Civil War film is based on the comic book stories leading up to Captain America battling with Iron Man. What makes this year in comic films exciting is iconic characters in battle with each other thus introducing new characters into the cinematic universe. Batman V Superman: Dawn of Justice is another film in which the iconic characters of DC Comics battle on screen, also heavily based upon comic stories. The cinematic version of Civil War shows how a team of heroes can be split apart by governmental influences and personal loyalties to friends. Which side did you choose? Which live battle sequence did you favor between Dawn of Justice and Civil War?

Black Panther‘s feature in this film is his big introduction to the cinematic universe. 17 years ago, Wesley Snipes had set his sights on bringing the Black Panther to the big screen. Since its derailment, Wesley’s success for Marvel Comics came with the Blade film series. Actor Chadwick Boseman portrayed the African Prince of Wakanda. His costume design was superior, able to withstand high-caliber bullets without flinching. Could his costume be much stronger than Iron Man’s? The Black Panther’s fighting style and physical feats brought the warrior in a live action sequence perfectly. Battling both Captain America and Bucky took little effort for the warrior. Black Panther was able to damage Captain’s shield with his Vibranium claws and Thor couldn’t dent the shield with his own hammer. Black Panther has his own solo film, released in November of 2017. Was Civil War a perfect introduction for Black Panther or could fans have waited for his solo film?

Spiderman also made a big appearance in this film. Spiderman is portrayed by Tom Holland this time around and is played as Iron Man’s understudy. Fans were able to see Spiderman in action with other heroes other than himself. His adolescent behavior and physical feats, much like in his other films, were a crowd favorite. Iron Man created a new version of Spiderman’s original costume, but with new enhancements, notably the new mechanical eyes on his mask. In the comics, Iron Man created the Iron Spider Armor for Spiderman and not his famous red and blue outfit. Since we have seen this original version of Spiderman’s costume many times in other films, would Spiderman’s entrance in this film have been even monumental if his armor was create instead? Will Tony Stark appear in Spiderman’s upcoming film? Will Tom Holland take the crown as the new Spiderman?

Another crowd favorite was the return of Ant Man in the cinematic universe. His solo film became a big success for Marvel Comics and his cameo in Civil War help bridge his on screen appearance until his next solo film. In Civil War, Scott learn to manipulate his suit even further thus creating Giant Man. It is confirmed that the Avenger films are leading up to the Infinity War Movies. Ant-Man was not apart of the comic book series Infinity Gauntlet, but will this be one of Marvel’s many changes by including him?

Star Wars: The Force Awakens was a great film! New imagery and vision by a new director brought Star Wars to a new generation. To date, The Force Awakens grossed 2.071 billion dollars, making this film the start of a great trilogy that will last a lifetime. This film has similarities to the New Hope film, let’s begin:

• At the beginning of both films the Empire is searching for information in an invasion type manner against civilians believed to be a part of the Rebellion. In the New Hope, the Empire was searching for plans for the Death Star while in The Force Awakens, the Empire is searching for a map with Luke Skywalker’s location…
• The main character in this film named Rey also originated on a desert type planet like Luke. Both characters are showcased as excellent pilots. Rey became more in tune with the Force way before Luke…
• Finn and Rey escape the desert planet in the Millennium Falcon like Luke and Obi-Wan, but this time, the escapees where the pilots of that ship…
• The ultimate threat of the Empire once again is a planet size weapon capable of destroying other planets. In the Force Awakens, this weapon was the size of an actual planet, with atmosphere and an Earth like landscape. The weapon on A New Hope was the size of a small moon. A In both films, the Empire’s weapon is tested on planetary systems connected to the Resistance, a demonstration of their destructive power……

There were differences that left the movie interesting. Interesting enough to leave fans wanting the following films of this trilogy. Let’s begin:  

• Han Solo is killed by his son, who happens to be the main villain of this film. Rey becomes Chewbacca’s new companion….
• The villain Kylo Ren is the grandson of Darth Vader. His behavior is that of the early Anakin Skywalker…
• Finn was apart of the Empire as a Stormtrooper, then later joined the Resistance…

Is the Sith Order gone or is this a new wave of the dark side? Will we ever see Luke Skywalker in action in the future? What will become of Finn? Star Wars The Force Awakens is a great beginning to a new era of Star Wars and a must see for everyone! 

Marvel Comics received another win with Black Panther: Wakanda Forever! To date this film generated $859.1 million dollars from a budget of $250 million. Ryan Coogler didn’t recast the Black Panther, so this movie was based around Wakanda’s survival after the death of the King from an unspecified illness. In reality, Chadwick Boseman was diagnosed with colon cancer during his first appearance as Black Panther and began undergoing its effects throughout all movie appearances of the character up to Endgame.

The villain chosen for this movie was Namor The Sub Mariner. Namor as we know is very similar to AquaMan in the DC Universe. Both are half Atlantean, with the ability to survive the depths of the oceans and communicate with marine animals. Their primary differences lie within their human parents and the Tridents they wield. Namor’s father has the dormant X gene which creates Namor as half homo superior, explaining his winged feet and ability to fly. Flight is what would give Namor an advantage over AquaMan in battle, but it’s AquaMan Trident of Poseidon and the ability to tap into the Life Force of the oceans that may give AquaMan the win in this matchup. Who is your favorite underwater King between the two?

Namor is introduced cinematically different from the comic origins. Wakanda believed that Vibranium only landed in their country, now to find out the precious metal has also landed in the ocean near the MesoAmerican Region. Over time the meteorite’s radiation gave nourishment to underwater plants, which were consumed by the last Mayan tribe in that area. Namor’s mother was pregnant when she ingested it, causing Namor’s mutation of winged ankles and flight. As for the tribespeople, out of water their pigmentation turns blue from lack of oxygen where when immersed in water, the saturation returns to normal human coloration. Namor and his people have the ability of hypnosis, very similar to mermaids and sirens, sending anyone within earshot to a watery grave. Instead of wielding the magical Trident of Neptune, Namor wields a spear made of pure Vibranium. Without the magical powers of a Trident, do you think this version of Namor can take on Jason Momoa’s AquaMan? Did the director want Namor changed to give the minorities of our society a representation cinematically or was Africans, Latins and Hispanics cultures being displayed as one in the same since Pangaea? This concept was also presented in AVP when explaining cultures with pyramid structures.

Shuri becomes the Black Panther as she does in the comics. Since she failed save her brother’s life and the world’s continual efforts to invade Wakanda for Vibranium, Shuri’s feelings towards society turns negative. After interacting and learning the creation of Talokan, Shuri was able to create a new crop of the heart shaped herb since its destruction by Killmonger’s order. This new herb grants the user a greater healing factor similar to Wolverine’s. This was witnessed from the invulnerable warriors of Talokan and Shuri surviving a stab wound to the midsection, same trauma that took Killmonger’s life. It’s unclear if the herb allows underwater breathing, but if this herb was discovered earlier, T’Challa and Killmonger would have survived their afflictions. Even though Shuri was coaxed into a negative mindset, fueled even more so by the death of the Queen, Shuri used the wisdom of the Black Panther legacy to join the two Vibranium richen nations together as partners…or it seems. Namora was introduced in this film as well and she appears unpleased with Namor’s decision for unity. Do you think this is the beginning of a division within the Talokan nation?

How did you like this film?! What do you think of the changes made to character of Namor? Leave your comments below and check out SideShow Collectibles for Wakanda Forever!

What were your thoughts on this film?? This version of Power Rangers is a reboot story based on The Mighty Morphing Power Rangers television series. The visual effects used for the movie brought the Rangers up to date with the other super teams in cinema. There were some changes made in character profiles, only to separate this film as a new entity to the franchise. To date Power Rangers grossed $142.5 million dollars from a budget of $105 million. There were many mixed reviews about this film, leaning more negative than positive. This could be due to the changes made to the character profiles but besides these alterations, this film was action packed with elements of humor and thriller.

Instead of being the creator of the Power Rangers, Zordan was the original Red Ranger. He died protecting the Zeo Crystal by sending a meteor shower to Earth. This was the incident that wiped out the death dinosaurs. The consciousness of Zordon was preserved within his spaceship, only to be reawaken as a three-dimensional projection of his facial likeness. Uploading his consciousness within a computer interface is a similar method used by Jor-El in Man of Steel or Dr. Will Caster in Transcendence. Once the teenagers open the Morphin Grid, Zordon would be able to be restored in a physical body. The new armor designs were sleek, very reminiscent of the Iron Man armors. We get to see for the first time how the Rangers morph into action, as the armor envelopes the body in an electrical silhouette. The armors worn by these Power Rangers seem to work similar to the armor found in the movie Max Steel.

The Zords were also upgraded in appearance and function. In the original TV series, the Zords are controlled with the Power Crystals of their Ranger and weren’t seen fighting individually. These Zords of the 2017 version, are designed to link with the armor of the Ranger, connecting them as one being. We didn’t see how the Zords combine into the MegaZord exactly like on the television series but the way the Megazord maneuvers in action reminds fans of the Jaegers in Pacific Rim. Do you think the MegaZord would stand a chance against a robotic life form like Megatron?

This film portrayed Rita as the original Green Ranger, who betrayed her team for gain greater power through the Zeo Crystal. Zordon attempted to destroy her with the meteor shower shown in the beginning, but she survived only to continue her mission for power. Goldar is introduced as a giant molten gold behemoth, which served like a MegaZord for Rita.

In the ending credits, its suggested that a new Green Ranger will take Rita’s place. Will the franchise stretch far enough to get a White Ranger as well? Who are the others that Rita spoke of that will come for the crystal as she did? Leave your comments below and let us know what you thought of this film!!