Movie Throwdown! - The Raid: Redemption vs. Dredd Part 2

Well, here is the rest of my match-up between The Raid: Redemption and Dredd.

SETTING

Next up is a small one: the setting. The Raid takes in present-day Jakarta. We’re pretty much stuck in a 15-story building. We don’t see much of the outside world other than a couple of stuff at the beginning. After Rama’s intro, we’re thrown right into the mission. We also find out that Jakarta has a pretty bad problem with corruption. As for Dredd, it takes place in a post-apocalyptic United States. It’s a wasteland (insert random Trump joke here) and all that’s left is Mega-City One on the Eastern Coast. Since it’s crap, the Judges are there to do what they can. We also got mutants and sometimes they don’t come out pretty like Judge Anderson.

The setting that appealed to me the most was Dredd’s. Even though we don’t get much, a lot of the city is detailed through dialogue. The city itself looks interesting since you got all of these large towers standing everywhere. Even Peach Trees had some interesting stuff in it. The Raid doesn’t get this since the mission is pretty much the thing in the movie. So, this point is going to Dredd.

The Raid – 1

Dredd – 2

Movie Throwdown! - The Raid: Redemption vs. Dredd Part 1

Today’s two post are about something I’ve had my mind on for a while now. In 2011, The Raid: Redemption was released. It’s about an Indonesian SWAT team that’s trapped in a building run by a dangerous gangster. Butts are kicked, shots are fired aplenty, and a lotta folk die. In 2012, Dredd, based off of 2000AD's Judge Dredd, was released in theatres. The movie is about how two law officers (Judges) get trapped in a district (Mega-Block) ran by a dangerous gangster. Shots are fired aplenty and a lotta folk die.

If these two movies sound familiar, then you’re not the only one who thinks that. It’s kind of unclear if the creators got ideas from each other or if it’s just a coincidence. It’s not like the plots for these movies are original, so it doesn’t really matter in the end. Just know that they are both good films in their respective rights. They’re up there with some of the best in their genres. Still, which one is better? I know there are some folk out there that have done this, but I think it’s time to add my voice to “The Raid vs. Dredd” debate.

Before I get to the match-ups, here is a general overview of both movies:

• The Raid: Redemption – The Raid takes place in Jakarta, Indonesia. It follows a Special Forces unit as they are tasked with conducting a raid on an apartment block. Their goal is to take out Tama, the head gangster over the block. Of course, things go bad when Tama finds out they’re coming and unleashes the whole block which is full of a lot of criminals. Rama, a rookie cop, and the rest of the team do their best to survive in the block and meet their objective. Rama also has a personal reason for being there since his brother is in Tama’s gang.
• Dredd – Dredd takes place in a dystopic, futuristic metropolis called Mega City-One. The Judges are the law of the town and enact swift justice on criminals. We end up following Judge Dredd (Karl Urban) and a rookie named Cassandra Anderson (Olivia Thirbly). They’re tasked to find out about a new drug that’s hit the street. When they make it to Peach Trees, a 30-story tower, they run into trouble. Gangster Madeline Mardgril, aka Ma-Ma (Lena Headey), finds out about them, locks down the tower, and sends the lowlifes after them. Dredd and Anderson must use their weapons and abilities (Anderson’s a mutant) in order to survive and enact justice on Ma-Ma.

Blankman v. Meteor Man: Clash of the Black Superhero Parodies Part 2

To anyone out there, 'sup. Here is part 2 of the clash of these movies.

Arsenal/Gadgets/Powers

Next up is whose arsenal was cooler. I’m talking about the powers, the gadgets, and overall look of the heroes. All Meteor Man had was his powers and his costume which was fine. He had the usual superpowers like strength, speed, flight, and x-ray vision. He could also talk to dogs, he had the super green thumb, and he had telekinetic powers. As for Blankman, he created a lot of gadgets to use. He also created a chemical that could make his clothes and costume bulletproof. He even had a hideaway in an abandoned subway. Then, there was J-5, his trusty robot/washing machine. That thing went out with a bang!

When it comes to who had the better arsenal, I’m going for a tie on this one. It’s my list, after all. Most of Blankman’s gadgets were kind of cool. Those automatic nunchukus were kind of cool. Plus, the “Blank Station” looked pretty swanky especially with that motorcycle. As for Jeff, He had the powers of Superman as well as a couple of weird, Silver-Age ones.  I also liked his costume a little better too. Hey, there’s a lot of good to like with both, so it’s a tie for this section.

The Meteor Man – 3

Blankman – 2

Comedy

Next up is one of the most important things a comedy movie must have: good comedy. Do these movies make me laugh or make me cringe? They both go for low-brow humor though Blankman goes for it more. Robert Townsend, the director and star of The Meteor Man, is (or was, is he directing anymore?) known for getting funny moments into his movies. One of my favorite movies from him is actually The Five Heartbeats, a good drama with some pretty funny moments sprinkled in. Also look for a few comedians in different roles like Sinbad and Bill Cosby.  With Blankman, we had two veterans from In Living Color (Damon Wayans and David Alan Grier), Jason Alexander, and other bringing the laughs.

Both movies have their amounts of laugh-out loud moments. Blankman’s is much more over-the-top. The movie is like an overlong spoof from In Living Color at times. All we needed was a couple more Wayans brothers and Jim Carrey to show up! The comedy with The Meteor Man wasn’t as over-the-top. I’m saying that even though the hero can do some pretty wacky stuff with his powers. A lot of the comedy comes from his use of his powers. You’d also get other characters bring the laughs like Jeff’s parents, Sinbad, and Bill Cosby who was playing a vagrant with no lines. Cosby probably wishes he was that vagrant now since… eh, never mind.

I don't know how folk would react to a scene like this today. It's still freakin' hilarious though.

When it comes which comedy I liked better, I got to go with The Meteor Man on this one. A lot of the folk cracked me up in it especially James Earl Jones. Plus, seeing Jeff get into trouble with his powers was pretty funny. You had a couple of places where the comedy didn’t hit but it was only a couple. As for Blankman, there were funny moments. Unfortunately, there were a few places where the humor didn’t work for me.

The Meteor Man – 4

Blankman – 2

Story/Overall film

Finally, it’s time to see how all of those different elements played into the overall story and film. Both films have their pros. They both try to set out to do something interesting. Blankman doesn’t do as much as Meteor Man but it tries to be the ultimate spoof film. I can say that it try to do the best in spoofing its inspiration, the 1960's Batman show. The Meteor Man does that but it also tries to do more. It tries to get a message across about taking a stand for yourself and we see that in Jeff’s character throughout the movie.  Most comic book stories try to teach a moral and Townsend tried to follow suit with that.

Unfortunately, these movies have problems. There’s a reason critics didn’t rate them well and I can’t blame them either.

• The Meteor Man starts out well and sets up certain things well. It does start to get pretty spotty in the middle and towards the end. It kind of felt like the movie was in fast-forward most of the time. I heard that there were a couple of scenes left out of the movie. It also felt like there was too much going on in those 100 minutes especially in the middle part. The ending was also a bit of a weird one for me. It was like they ran out of room for a proper ending.
• Blankman also starts out well but it does get a little spotty in places. It is helped by telling a simpler story but there are times where it can be a bit of a chore to watch. As I said before, there are times where Blankman himself can be a little too much to take. Hey, at least Darryl gets to make out with Robin Givens at the end. It’s unfortunate he had to spaz out or whatever was going on with that. Get a room, man!

Overall, I’m going with The Meteor Man on this one. I just felt that the movie was trying to do more than just spoof Superman. The movie had a message to tell and while it wasn’t all that good, I think the message was clear. At the end of the day, Blankman is just a spoof film that at least has an really inept guy try to do right. If had been just a little better, this battle might have ended differently.

The Meteor Man – 5

Blankman – 2

.......................................

At the end of the day, it’s The Meteor Man that gets the ultimate win for me. That doesn’t mean that I don’t like Blankman. For what it is, Blankman is fine. I just think The Meteor Man just worked better for me. Heck, both movies showed a somewhat original black superhero, so they should be remembered for that even if they aren’t good. At least we are getting better superhero properties these days especially ones involving black superheroes. I’m not one who just looks for race when concerning superheroes but it is cool seeing one of us be the hero. It’s even better when it’s a well-written character. Well, I’m outta here. Peace, God Bless, pick up the pieces, and play that funky music!

I found this on DeviantArt. Looked nice.

Blankman v. Meteor Man: Clash of the Black Superhero Parodies Part 1

When it comes to black superheroes in live-action, it’s been a mixed bag. I still haven’t seen 2003’s Catwoman and I won't go through that torture. Recently, it’s been going well with Marvel Studios doing good things and DC (movie and TV divisions) putting different superheroes and characters out there. Before the 2000’s, it wasn’t looking too good. Yeah, there was Blade but other than that, we had Steel and Spawn. Y’all already know what I think of Steel. Where these two movies end on that wagon is a matter for debate. Today, it’ll be 1993’s The Meteor Man vs. 1994’s Blankman.

It’s been a while since I’ve done a face-off between two things. The last time I tried this was between the two live-action Hulk movies. These two movies are at least on similar footing quality-wise and theme-wise. They’re both parodies of the superhero genre. The Meteor Man parodies Superman as well Spider-Man while Blankman is pretty much a parody of the 1960’s Batman show. Not only do they feature black superheroes, they also came out around the same era. For a while, I wondered which of these movies were better and I found them over time. Since it’s Black History Month, I’m going to see what the better movie was.

First, here’s a general overview of the movies:

• In The Meteor Man, Robert Townsend plays as Jefferson Reed (I almost want to call him Jefferson Pierce), a mild-mannered teacher from Washington D.C. He stays in a neighborhood which is being terrorized by a gang called the Golden Lords. One night, Jeff is hit by a green meteor and is given super powers. He has the usual stuff like super strength and x-ray vision. He can also talk to his dog and can retain the knowledge of any book for 30 seconds by touching it. When the Golden Lords go too far, Jeff becomes Meteor Man and heads out to stop crime in the neighborhood and city. Things get worrisome when the Golden Lords find out his identity and he begins to lose his powers.
• In Blankman, Damon Wayans plays as Darryl Walker, an overly nerdy repairman who lives in a city (probably Detroit) which is undergoing a cop strike. When his grandmother is killed by robbers sent by the film’s villain, he sets out to be come a superhero like Batman. Through the use of different gadgets, his bulletproof suit (not the face), and his trusty robot/washing machine, he becomes Blankman. He even gets his more rational brother, Kevin, roped into the whole thing. He even gets a pretty fine reporter chasing after him.

The Hero

First off, it’s our main protagonists. I already went through their backstories above. Both guys are pretty much the downtrodden guy though Darryl is much more over-the-top. They both come from bad neighborhoods and try their best to put things right as superheroes. They also have valid reasons for doing what they do. With Darryl, it’s the death of his grandmother. For Jeff, it’s the constant terror his family and friends get put through by the Golden Lords. They also have to overcome obstacles with the crime-fighting and it comes from mostly everywhere even those close to them.

I do like both characters and the actors do fine in the roles.  I do think Damon Wayans goes over-the-top at times but it is a spoof, after all. I think he read “The Abridged Book of Nerdness” or something for his portrayal. Townsend’s character is much more straight-laced but he has times where he does get silly. He also actually has a bit of an arc in the movie. His powers and stature cause him to build a backbone and stand up for himself. As for their costumes, they’re alright. I’d have to give it to Meteor Man’s costume though. Blankman’s costume is a little too much for me and yes, I know I’m not supposed to take it seriously.

At the end of the day, it’s kind of tough to choose who the better character is. Darryl is incredibly smart and brave but he is kind of annoying at times and a bit dim-witted for my tastes. Jeff is good as the hero but sometimes on the bland side. In the end, I’m going with Jeff on this one. Not only was he not annoying at times, he also had a nice character arc. Darryl had his nice moments but his weirdness could be a bit of a turn off.

The Meteor Man – 1

Blankman – 0

The Villains

Next up is the villains. On Meteor Man’s side, there are the Golden Lords led by Simon (Roy Fegan). They aren’t the only villains of the movie though. The Golden Lords answer to an organization of criminals led by a boss played by Frank Gorshin. On Blankman’s side, there’s Mafia boss Mike Minelli (Joe Polatio). The Golden Lords and Minelli put some terror into their respective heroes’ cities though it’s actually Minelli who take s a more lethal approach. Of course, they all get taken down in embarrassing ways toward the end. They are villains in a parody after all.

Both sets of villains are pretty cheesy. Just take one look at the Golden Lords and you’ll see what I mean. Just look out for a younger Don Cheadle in the role of Goldilocks (yeah, that’s his name). Simon even gains powers toward the end from a spare meteor rock but his battle with Jeff is more funny than epic. The organization led by the Riddler is not really a factor until the end and even then, they’re just there. Minelli seemed a bit more straight-laced in Blankman but he still feels like he came out of Golden Age comic book. He even had a big painting of himself at his hideout.

As for which villains are better, I’m a little stuck. They’re not particularly great villains but they bring the laughs and they also do villainous deeds. I did think it was strange that the Golden Lords never killed anyone in the movie. There’s really no reason given on why that is. On the other hand, Minelli and his guys bring up the death count. Not only does Darryl’s grandmother get killed, the city’s mayor gets blown up in a bank! I have to say that’s some legitimate street cred! Overall, I’m going with Minelli on this one. The Golden Lords were funny but felt a little tame for their movie.

The Meteor Man – 1

Blankman – 1

Side Characters

Then we get to the side characters:

• Blankman has Kevin Walker (Darryl’s brother) who is a cameraman at the station where Kimberly Jonz (Robin Givens) works at.  He's also Other Guy, Blankman's more competent sidekick. As for Kimberly, she’s pretty much the Lois Lane of the story. We get Kevin’s boss, Larry Stone, who’s played by Jason Alexander. Then, we have Darryl’s grandmother played by Lynne Thigpen and the city’s mayor.
•  The Meteor Man has quite a few. We got Jeff’s friend and confidant, Michael (Eddie Griffin). We have Jeff’s parents played by Marla Gibbs and Robert Guillaume. Then, there’s Jeff neighbors. The ones who we really get to know anything about is Mr. Moses (James Earl Jones!!!) and his landlord, Mrs. Walker. Then, you have smaller roles for folk like Sinbad, Bill Cosby, and rap groups Naughty by Nature and Cypress Hill. Luther Vandross even makes an appearance. Also, let’s not forget Ellington, Jeff’s talking dog.

On Blankman’s side, we have Kevin who is pretty much the rational one in the family. He’s also the butt-kicker since Darryl’s read-through of “The Abridged Book of Ninja-Fighting” never took form. As I said before, Kimberly’s the Lois Lane (or Vicki Vale) of the story. She sets out to get the scoop on Blankman and falls for him. Jason Alexander’s character is really only there for the laughs. I didn’t know men in wheelchairs could generate many laughs back then.

As for Meteor Man’s side characters, they also have plenty to do. Michael is pretty much the guy who figures out how Jeff’s powers work since he’s a school scientist. Just roll with it. He also tries to capitalize on the popularity of Meteor Man at one point. Jeff’s parents and neighbors are pretty much the ones who get Jeff in the suit. When he first uses his powers in public against the Golden Lords, they expect him to do some butt-kicking. His parents are also there to kind of guide him. His mother even creates the suit. Unlike Darryl, Jeff doesn’t have a love interest but there is an ex-girlfriend around who plays no role in the story. That’s were Sinbad’s character comes in to be a hoot.

At the end of the day, I thought both sets of side characters were fine. Some were better than others though. In this case, I’m giving this point to Meteor Man and not because it has a lot of cool black folk in it either. They helped make the movie a little better since Jeff was pretty much the straight man for the most part. They were funny, sometimes insightful, and added stuff to the story. That doesn’t mean I don’t like Blankman’s side characters. Kevin was cool, Kimberly was cool (and hot!), and I liked the grandmother even though she doesn’t get much time to be around. Still, Meteor Man gets this round.

The Meteor Man – 2

Blankman – 1

Well, I'm cutting it off here for now. Tomorrow, I'll finish this little battle.

The Battle of the Hulk Movies - Part 2

So, this is post #401... wow. I didn't know I would go that far with this. Maybe I can make it to 500. Anyway, here is Part 2 of "The Battle of the Hulk Movies." So, I might as well start off with a man who tends to have a good mustache... no, I'm not talking about Thomas Magnum.

General Thunderbolt Ross

Next up is the battle of the ‘staches as Sam Elliot faces William Hurt. Ross’s role in the films is similar but different. While he wants to keep his daughter away from Bruce, Ross’s motivations are a little different. In Hulk, he knew that Dr. David Banner killed his wife and performed some unsanctioned experiments. That experience plus Bruce’s occupation gives Ross a reason to not like the guy. As for Ross in The Incredible Hulk, he is actually after the Hulk to see if the military could use the Hulk to create super-soldiers. In the MCU, Ross reactivated the Super-Solder program and had Bruce unknowingly doing experiments when the accident happened.

While I consider Ross to be more antagonistic (he’s actually trying to stop the Hulk’s rampages) than villainous, that doesn’t mean he’s a nice guy. I think Marty McFly would have three words to describe him. I will say his douchiness is increased in the 2008 movie. I do think both men were good in the role but one was just better. Ultimately, I have to give this point to Sam Elliott. He just ruled the role in my opinion. It also helped that he actually has an authentic mustache. I liked the fractured relationship between he and Betty and I just liked his no-nonsense attitude.

Hulk (2003) – 2

The Incredible Hulk (2008) – 1

The Battle of the Hulk Movies - Part 1

Welcome to… actually, I don’t know what to call these. I’ll eventually come up with a title for these match-ups, but for now I’ll call this “The Battle of the Hulk Movies.” When I came up with the idea of doing these comparisons, this one was somewhere in my mind. Since the Hulk is coming back to theatres in Avengers: Age of Ultron, I think it’s finally time to see which Hulk movie is truly “incredible.” Today, it’s Ang Lee’s Hulk (2003) vs. Louis Letterrier’s The Incredible Hulk (2008).

I first saw Hulk at my uncle’s house in 2003. It was either Thanksgiving or Christmas, I don’t remember which. I remember that we saw X2: X-Men United before it and I still think X2’s a better movie. It’s got Nightcrawler in it for cryin’ out loud! It was a few years before I decided to rent it at Movie Gallery and watch it again. I think I remember it being better the second time around, I’m not sure. As for The Incredible Hulk, I rented it from Movie Gallery when it came out. Man, I miss Movie Gallery. Anyway, I don’t think I’ve seen it until recently. I might have seen it on FX or something.

For this little project, I decided to re-watch both movies in order to get a better opinion. I have to admit that they aren’t the best of the genre but they aren’t the worst either. They are good movies in their own right. I’ll be looking the heroes, the villains, the supporting characters, the action, and the story. I really won’t touch on the effects all that much. A movie from 2008 is probably going to look better than one from 2003. Still, there are a few things I’ll touch on effects-wise.

Movie Talk - The Last Dragon and No Retreat, No Surrender

Well, I’m in the last week of Martial Arts Month. I have one more post after this and I’ll be done. Today’s post is going to center on a couple of martial arts movies from the 1980’s: The Last Dragon and No Retreat, No Surrender.  I had originally planned this on be a match-up between the two, but I decided against it. I was going to match them up for four reasons: they’re tributes to Bruce Lee, they’re pretty cheesy, they have breakdancing, and they have ridiculous villains. In the end, I realized I couldn’t pair these two up for two reasons: one of them is really bad while the other is somewhat decent. Still, I wanted to talk about them together, so here it is.

I don’t remember when I first saw The Last Dragon, but I know I was pretty young. I remember a lot from it. It just has enough elements that make it a memorable movie. No Retreat, No Surrender is more of a recent watch. I do remember seeing a small bit of it on this video that talked about martial arts actors. In this case, it was talking about Jean-Claude Van Damme and I always wondered what movie those excerpts came from. Internet reviewer Obscurus Lupa (great name) reviewed NRNS a few years ago and that’s how I found out about the movie. I watched this movie a few weeks ago.

Battle of the Origins - Green Lantern Part Four

Well, it's been a treat doing this. Now, it's time to end it with these two last categories.

Art

If there is anything I can say about both of these origins, it would be that the art is pretty good. Both Emerald Dawn series were penciled by M.D. Bright, inked by Romeo Thangal, and colored by Anthony Tollin. I think they were on the main Green Lantern book at the time, so they knew what they were doing. Secret Origin was done by the art team on the book at that time. The story was in the main title. The issues were penciled by Ivan Reis, inked by Oclair Albert, and colored by Randy Mayor. I don’t know when they came on but I know that they were on the book around the time of the “The Sinestro Corps” storyline.

Battle of the Origins - Green Lantern Part Three

Today, I'll be looking at the supporting characters of the origins.

Green Lantern Corps

Today’s post will talk about the biggest supporting characters of Hal’s: The Green Lantern Corps (Corps for short). Of course, The Corps is heavily featured in the stories. I mean, this isn’t Alan Scott we’re talking about here. We end up seeing the large scope of the Corps. We get all sorts of aliens as well as characters that are featured in Green Lantern lore. We also get the short, Smurf-like buttheads known as the Guardians, the creators of the rings. So, which origin used the Corps the best?

Battle of the Origins - Green Lantern Part Two

Today, I'll talk about the villains of the stories and Sinestro himself.

Villains

When it comes to villains, Green Lantern doesn’t have the best. Some of them have gotten more play since Geoff Johns has been on the title but I can’t really think of any other than the recent ones. So, which origin has the best villains? I’ll try to figure that out.

Emerald Dawn has one villain: Legion. Deriving its name from the Bible, Legion is actually a collective of what was left of the Tchki-tchki. Years ago, they were a war-like race that the Guardians imprisoned on their home planet. Over the years, they evolved into a gelatinous collective and developed a yellow battlesuit in order to fight the Corps. With the suit, Legion causes a lot of rampage on Earth and Oa. Legion’s the main reason Hal gets the ring since it kills Abin Sur. It also kills Hal’s paralyzed friend on Earth. Hal does get his revenge on Legion at the end.

Uh-oh. Hal's about to get beat up by Big Bird's cousin!

Battle of the Origins - Green Lantern Part One

Well, it’s been two years since I did my “epic” match-up of the four Superman reboots. While it wasn't completely perfect, I thought it was a nice challenge. For those who don’t know, I basically put the four Superman rebooted origins (Man of Steel, Birthright,Secret Origin, and New 52) beside one another to see which origin was the best. It was kind of based off the Nostalgia Critic’s “Old vs. New” segment. It took a while, but I got through it. Afterwards, I tried to think of other things I could do this to. It took a while to come up with some things. Green Lantern’s origins were one of the first things to pop into my mind.

In 1989, DC decided to do a retelling of Hal Jordan’s origins in a miniseries called Green Lantern: Emerald Dawn. Its sequel, Green Lantern: Emerald Dawn 2, actually takes place during towards the end of Emerald Dawn. It was worked on by Jim Owsley (aka Christopher Priest), Gerard Jones, Keith Giffen, M.D. Bright, and Romeo Thangal. I actually talked about both mini-series a long time ago. I still think both stories are pretty good. In 2007, DC decided to do another retelling of Hal’s origins that tied heavily into Geoff Johns’ run on Green Lantern. Instead of a mini-series, the origin was featured in Green Lantern #29-35. Geoff Johns, Ivan Reis, and Oclair Albert reintroduced us to a young Hal. It is also pretty good.

While Hal Jordan isn’t my favorite character (or my favorite GL), he’s still a nice character and is a major part of the Justice League. Plus, his origin stories are pretty good. Still, which one is the best? My plan is to look at the major features of each origin and see what was done better. I only have about eight things to look at, so this won’t take long. I’ll look at things like the heroes, villains, supporting characters, art, and overall story. I’ll now start off with the main man of the origins, Hal Jordan.

Battle of the Super-Origins: The Story/Conclusion

Well, after two freakin’ months, I’ve gotten to the end of this long and arduous battle. It didn’t go too bad. I know I will definitely want to do something like this again I have a few ideas on what things could get matched up against.  When they’ll come out, I don’t know. I got a 3,000+ paper work on.  I do know that it’s not going to take two months to get through it!

Before I start the final round, here a few interesting facts on these writers:

• All have worked on a Justice League comic of sorts.
• All have done a run on a Superman comic book (except Waid. Come on DC!!!!)
• Waid, Morrision, and Johns worked on the mini-series 52.
• All of these guys at one time or another did work with Marvel.
• Morrison and Byrne are known for having worked on an X-Men book.
• Waid and Johns are known for working on The Flash.

Well, as Batman and Superman tend to say in every DC animated movie, “it ends tonight!”

Battle of the Super-Origins: The Art

Well, I’m finally toward the end of this battle and it’s looking close. Will something come out on top or will a tiebreaker be needed? Personally, I have no freaking clue, but it looks like I’ll be finding out soon. Today’s post is going to look the art and I’m going to try to choose the best one. It’s hard because the artwork in all four origins is more than decent. So, I’m going to do this in a straightforward format: Art team, pros, cons, and the decision.

Battle of the Super-Origins: Superman - Part 3

The Superman

Finally, here is the section about Clark in Metropolis. His reasoning for coming to the city is still the same: he comes to Metropolis to help people in need. They are all determined in fighting for their cause. All the versions also treat everyone the same way. He treats Luthor the same but he ain’t afraid to choke or punch one.  He regards his parents in the same way and he kind of treats Lois the same way. Of course, there are still differences. His friendship with Jimmy in the Nu52 is different and the way he treats his true heritage is different. In MoS, he doesn’t embrace his Kryptonian heritage like he does in all of the others. He’s like “So I’m an alien with knowledge of my home world? Meh, I’ll pass.”

Insert Wayne Brady joke here.

Battle of the Super-Origins: Superman - Part 2

The Reporter

In this section, I’m going to look at the reporting side of Clark. It’s something that has been with the character since the beginning. All of these versions became reporters for a reason. For MoS Clark, he did it get to the first word on trouble. It’s a lot like how it was in the Golden Age. Since technology has stepped up during that time, there had to be another reason. With Birthright Clark and Nu52 Clark, they became reporters because they liked it. It's shown in their respective origins. Secret Origin Clark’s reason is vague and not mentioned, but I can guess it’s because he likes journalism as well. 

Battle of the Super-Origins: Superman - Part 1

And now we have gotten to the main star of these books: Kal-El, the last son of Krypton. We also know him by other names: Clark Kent and Superman. Out of all of these “battles,” this one is probably one of the hardest to do. I mean, it’s Superman! The book revolves around him and he’s actually pretty good in all of them.

Instead of doing what was done before, I going do something different. I’m splitting up this battle into three sections:  Pre-Superman, the Reporter, and Superman.  My decision will be in the final part.

Battle of the Super-Origins: "Clark Kent: Mild-Mannered Reporter"

Today’s post is going to talk about something a little different: “Clark Kent: Mild-mannered Reporter.” Oh yes, I’m talking about the disguise that Clark has to have in order to have some sort of a normal life. Is Superman the real deal and Clark Kent the disguise? I’m not here to answer that question, but I do believe that there is a part of Clark Kent that is a disguise. So with all that being said, let’s get “Swell”.

...Swell. Who even says that? Oh well...

Battle of the Super-Origins: Other Supporting Characters

Today’s post is going to look at the rest of the supporting characters that show up in these books. These are pretty much the friends and co-workers that appeared in some books and didn’t appear in others.

The supporting characters in MoS that are of some sort of importance are Perry White,  Lucy Lane and Lana Lang. Lucy shows up during the fifth issue and you can read more on that HERE. To sum it all up, Lucy was pretty much a damsel in distress. With Lana, it’s much more different and more personal to Clark.  She is pretty much the girl Clark left behind in Smallville. I talked about this in my look at MoS. This, as well as other things that happen in the book, makes Clark wonder about his place in the world and about whether he could have a future with Lois or not. 

Battle of the Super-Origin: Lois Lane

And now it's time to look at one of the most recognized characters in Superman’s universe: Lois Lane. She’s also known as “The Woman Who Can’t Put Two and Two Together.”

Battle of the Super-Origins: Jimmy Olsen

This week's posts are the supporting characters of these books. Here’s a quick one on a character who most people hate for some unknown reason: Jimmy Olsen.