Forgot to mention, Hush came out as two books originally, don't know if they ever did a collected edition

I own but haven't read the most recent Hush book yet, and I just want to say that you should only read the original arc mentioned above; everything else so far has been rubbish

More Jim Lee news (found it looking for a Batman 3 update ):



Quite a team there, and the story could be brilliant

It's not the first time Bats has been infected with a deadly virus though

How many comics are you buying? Or are you just buying the graphic novels?

Anderson a rookie? Surely not. What about Judge Beeny, or Rico (Dredd's younger clone)?

I just buy Batman Legends, Superman Legends (soon to become DC something or other) and CLiNT (Mark Millar who wrote Kick-Ass and various other well known stories, Wossy, and Frankie Boyle).

All the above are under monthly review as they're £3+, and the story quality varies wildly sometimes (There were too many Marvel comics with crossover storylines to keep that up). If Grant Morrison is in any way involved with the first two, you might as well not bother. You'll just get a great premise at the start and a load of convoluted sh1te from a few pages in, right until the end

Consequently I'm more prone to buying graphic novels in nearly every genre you can think of

I know what you mean about a monthly review; there were times when I was buying 10 a week though that didn't last long and that didn't include the main drain on a fan's finances: back issues! I've got decent runs of Alan Moore's Swamp Thing, Hellblazer, etc, and used to have loads of British reprints of Marvel comics but they were never worth much. I also have a lot of early Image Comics product such as Spawn, Wildcats, Maxx and so on. I liked the computerised colouring and stunning artwork though the stories left a lot to be desired at times.

These days I only really look at Graphic Novels. Hellboy has always been very good though Mike Mignola doesn't single-handle it anymore so I'm not that interested. I will always have a look at anything with art by Jim Lee or Travis Charest or that has been written by Alan Moore. His Top 10 comic was very good and I'd recommend you have a look at it.

The only comics I have really are the ones mentioned above (probably have their entire runs!), everything else is graphic novels and collections I think.

You wouldn't believe some of the gn bundles I got off eBay I've barely touched - Swamp Thing, Preacher, Spawn... It doesn't bear thinking about

And I know that sounds ridiculous, but you have to remember I've read damn near every Batman, Punisher and Garth Ennis-associated book going, inbetween the monthly comics and other books

In terms of artists, I generally don't pay attention. In fact, it's the same with writers for me (Morrison excepted), as I find some writers are hit and miss anyway

I'm pretty sure I got the Top 10 gn in a bundle but just haven't gotten round to it... I certainly love Moore's other stuff

For goodness sakes, pick up Preacher and don't read anything else until you've finished them all.
It's awesome.
I'm amazed you're still not bored with The Punisher - it dawned on me after about 3 years that every story was more or less 'Frank shoots the bad guys, mourns family, is gritty, likes guns'. I'm amazed the title's still going, tbh.

I know, I know, I'm just so easily distracted

On The Punisher front, most of the recent stuff is Garth Ennis or Ennis-inspired, so I'm happy enough. Dark comedy FTW!

Oh, and where else would you get Nick Fury having a foursome with hookers!

Idris Elba for Luke Cage



Idris Elba is one of Total Film's favourite people, and the star was in great spirits when we caught up on Friday night.

Not content with spilling the beans on Cross, the actor also spoke about Thor, a film in which he has a supporting role as Heimdall, Guardian of Asgard.

'It was great to work with Kenneth (Director Kennth Branagh) and the Marvel team, very dedicated guys, amazingly detailed, very clever.'

'It's going to be a big film for Marvel next year, and Kenneth Branagh has definitely put his stamp on it.'

When asked whether his relationship with Marvel will extend beyond Thor, Elba offered up some very interesting information;

'I have a picture deal with them (Marvel). I can't tell you much about that, but I can tell you I'll be back.'

A Marvel picture deal is very interesting. Samuel L. Jackson famously has a 9-picture deal with Marvel to appear as Nick Fury.

That Elba also has a deal means that Marvel could be grooming him for something big... but he can't talk about it. Not directly at least.

After pushing the issue a little more, we asked which Marvel character he'd most like to play, given the choice.

'I wouldn't mind having a crack at bringing Blade back, personally' He says with a wry smile, echoed with a laugh from his manager.

'But erm, there's a couple of things there that they have... Luke Cage is... very interesting.'

So Idris Elba for Luke Cage? You heard it here first.

Idris Elba was at the Raindance Film Festival to promote his film Legacy. For more info, visit http://www.raindance.co.uk

http://www.totalfilm.com/news/idris-elba-for-luke-cage

He's a big guy, but he'd really need to bulk up for that role:

Ghost Rider 2 casting update



Idris Elba and CSI Miami's Johnny Whitworth are in talks to join the cast of Ghost Rider: Spirit of Vengeance.

Elba will apparently play 'an alcoholic warrior monk tasked with finding Ghost Rider'. Whitworth is in line for the role of a criminal who is recruited by the Devil to find his son, and is later turned into a demonic creature.

The plot sees Nicolas Cage's Johnny Blaze hiding out in remote Eastern Europe and struggling to repress his curse - you know, the flaming skull thing.

Blaze is recruited by a religious sect to take on the Devil (Ciaran Hinds), who wants to take over his mortal son's body.

Already in place are Cage, Ciaran Hinds and Violante Placido, as the mother of the devilspawn/ Cage's love interest.

Earlier this week we exclusively revealed that Idris Elba has a picture deal with Marvel, and is already appearing in next year's Thor, ahead of a possible starring role as another Marvel character.

If Elba is cast in Spirit Of Vengeance, and goes on to star in his own franchise, that will make three appearances in seperate Marvel franchises as three different characters - though film rights to the Ghost Rider character are owned by Columbia Pictures, not Marvel.

Here's hoping he doesn't overstretch himself.

Ghost Rider: Spirit of Vengeance, directed by Crank duo Mark Neveldine and Brian Taylor, is set to commence shooting in Romania next month.

The film is scheduled for release February 17 2012.

http://www.totalfilm.com/news/ghost-rid ... ing-update

Can't believe they're making another one. And it's even harder to believe they're risking bringing Cage back

I'd recommend Preacher to anybody interested in comics. There are often rumours of a movie or, more recently, a TV show but nothing concrete as yet.

Aye, Sam Mendes was involved at some stage...

Rhys Ifans cast as Spider-Man villain

Spider-Man got a girlfriend last week, and this week he’s found himself a villain in the form of Welshman Rhys Ifans.

Sony have confirmed that the actor, who is currently appearing in dope dramedy Mr. Nice, has bagged the role of the film’s main villain – though they’re not revealing which villain that is just yet.

“What sets the Spider-Man villains apart is the complexity of their relationships with Peter Parker,” says director Marc Webb. “ Rhys’ incredible ability to embody both warmth and rage makes him the ideal choice for this character.”

In an official press release, Sony revealed that they were so impressed with how Ifans handled his role in upcoming Roland Emmerich political thriller Anonymous that they asked him to play Spidey’s new adversary. Time to place bets on just who that will be.

Filming on Spider-Man begins in December. It will open in cinemas 3 July, 2012.

http://www.totalfilm.com/news/rhys-ifan ... an-villain

Maybe shouldn't be, but I'm quite by that...

Tom Hardy Reunited With 'Inception' Helmer Chris Nolan On 'Batman'



EXCLUSIVE: While Tom Hardy's plan to play Mad Max in the George Miller-directed Mad Max: Fury Road has hit another delay, the fast-rising Hardy's in the mix for another big film at Warner Bros. I'm told that Hardy has been set by his Inception director Chris Nolan for a lead role in the next Batman film at Warner Bros. Insiders are keeping the role secret and won't even say if he's up for a villain role, but that seems a reasonable assumption. Hardy has followed up Inception with lead roles in the Tomas Alfredson-directed adaptation of the John Le Carre novel Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy, and he's currently starring with Chris Pine and Reese Witherspoon in the McG-directed Fox comedy This Means War. CAA reps Hardy, who's expected to return to Fury Road when it goes.

http://www.deadline.com/2010/10/tom-har ... on-batman/

Nice (if true)

I don't like the fact that this will almost certainly be Nolan's last Batman film though . Then again, maybe that's for the best too...