Wolverine again...

[fajrdrako]

So I went to look at the IMDb entry on the Wolverine: Origins movie. A few interesting tidbits:

1. The identity of the woman who seems to turn to ice or diamond: people are theorizing it's Emma Frost, but it doesn't look like the sterotypical Emma, who should have an aura of glamorous sex appeal and big breasts. Besides, Emma Frost isn't listed in the credits. My guess is: it's Silver Fox returned from the dead. Silver Fox is listed in the credits and it makes sense to keep her as the significant female role with a heartwrenching surprise return from the dead as a villainess.
   
   
2. Silver Fox is played by Lynn Collins, whom I fell in love with as Portia in The Merchant of Venice. Cool.
   
   
3. Dominic Monaghan? What's he doing there? He plays Beak - yeah, Beak. What's Beak doing in Wolverine: Origins? Well, why not - ? Seems that they've changed his powers. Huh.
   
   
4. By checking out what Ryan Reynolds looks like (i.e., damn good) and looking at the trailer again, I can figure out who Deadpool is. Waaaitaminnut, Deadpool isn't supposed to be drop-dead gorgeous. But then, Wolverine isn't supposed to be tall. Ahh, the concessions we make to the movie business. A cute Deadpool. Who'd ever have imagined - ? I hope they get his wacky dialogue right.
   
   
5. And Gambit. Taylor Kitsch. Deadpool is cuter than Gambit (a mind-boggling idea) but Gambit is... not objectionable. Oh those playing cards. I assume the guy swinging through the air down a city street is Gambit. Or Deadpool? Damn - it could be either of them. I'll have to wait and see. Seems from this trailer that a cowboy hat means Deadpool, a black hat means Gambit.
   
   
6. There's too much male prettiness in this movie. No, wait... there's no such thing as too much male prettiness. I smile in happy expectation of a huge supply of male prettiness from Jackman, Taylor, and Kitsch, laden with huge quantities of testosterone-fueled banter and a fair amount of sex-substitute physicality.
   
   
7. This movie isn't just full of gorgeous men, but of gorgeous Canadian men. So while a Canadian plays the Cajun from New Orleans, an Australian plays the Canadian Wolverine. Moviemaking is rife with irony.
   
   
8. That's Agent Zero! I thought so! Woo. Another beautiful man: Daniel Henney.
   
   
9. Okay, the Blob and Stryker aren't beautiful. Nor is Sabretooth. Nor should they be: my visual neurons might explode from overuse. I look forward to them anyway.
   
   
10. Why is Christian Clark's name listed without the name of the character he plays? A mystery man.
    
    
11. I still haven't guessed who the guy with the teeth at the end is. Weapon XI, maybe? Is he a character created for the movie? I can't recall him from the comics, but I haven't read Wolverine very consistently, and not at all in the past couple of years.

Comments

Emma Frost

[dewline.livejournal.com]

Do you remember how Byrne originally designed her?

*digs out his Essential X-Men Volume 2...*

Re: Emma Frost

[fajrdrako.livejournal.com]

Do you remember how Byrne originally designed her?

No, I don't. I don't even remember exactly when it was. Trying to remember old Hellfire Club stuff here, which is no hardship, I love the Hellfire Club - and that was when/where we first saw her, wasn't it? Wasn't she White Queen when Magneto was White King?

Re: Emma Frost

[dewline.livejournal.com]

Her membership predated Magneto's by quite a few years, as she was there for Mastermind's "Corruption of Phœnix" story arc. She doesn't seem to have been that filled out. Seemed to me like her wardrobe was intended to exaggerate for effect in that regard.

Whedon was the writer who had her go in for cosmetic surgery - off-camera but confessed to in dialogue - later on, as I recall.

Re: Emma Frost

[fajrdrako.livejournal.com]

she was there for Mastermind's "Corruption of Phœnix" story arc

Really? I loved that. Obviously I don't recall it nearly well enough and ought to reread. Wonder where my old X-Men comics are... this might be incentive to do a little comics-searching and sorting. (Huge job.)

Byrne is one of the few comic books artists who (at least in his early days) didn't tend to make female characters over-buxom. Didn't make male character over-muscled, either. I always liked his artistic style.

Whedon was the writer who had her go in for cosmetic surgery - off-camera but confessed to in dialogue - later on, as I recall.

I found that amusing but plausible.

[atheneunknown.livejournal.com]

I still haven't guessed who the guy with the teeth at the end is. Weapon XI, maybe? Is he a character created for the movie? I can't recall him from the comics, but I haven't read Wolverine very consistently, and not at all in the past couple of years.

^If your talking about the character Leiv Schreiber plays, then that would be Sabertooth, and I like the casting VERY muchly. Like WHOA muchly.

And I'm so excited that they've given me a Gambit finallly, a childhood love, finally come to life. :)

[fajrdrako.livejournal.com]

The guy at the end is Sabretooth? A younger Sabretooth?

Oooh. I like that. Of course - it makes so much sense. Thank you, thank you!

I like the casting VERY muchly. Like WHOA muchly.

Oh yes. Perfect.

I'm so excited that they've given me a Gambit finallly

Yes, yes, yes

a childhood love

You young thing, you! He's my grown-up love. Well, one of them.

Suddenly I'm eager for May.

I'm so thrilled that this looks intriguing rather than dopey.

[atheneunknown.livejournal.com]

Its actually him at the beginning of the preivew with Logan in the cell as well. They start friends and end enemys, which is from what I recall, pretty much how things happened.

And my good god, if I didn't have a minicrush on Leiv I would now! He looks amazing in this.

[fajrdrako.livejournal.com]

He does look amazing. Knowing who he is makes a difference - the electricity between him and Wolverine is terrific.

[jadesfire2808.livejournal.com]

Oh good grief. *fans self* He might not be as cute, but it looks like they've at least vaguely left Gambit's powers intact. I love the fact that they're letting him use the bo staff and properly with his powers, and the acrobatics and the cards and the hat and the *starts to reach pitches only dolphins can hear*

Damn. This is going to make me start writing X-men again, isn't it?

Thanks for the links!

[fajrdrako.livejournal.com]

He might not be as cute, but it looks like they've at least vaguely left Gambit's powers intact.

Beautifully so. Including the coat and his personal style. Compared to what it appears they've done to Barnell... Beak, in the comics... whose look and powers have entirely changed: Makes you wonder why they chose that character at all. Why not just call him "George" if they aren't going to use Barnell's personality or attributes at all?

Not a big deal, just a little puzzling. It surely isn't to attract all the Beak fanboys out there.

I love the fact that they're letting him use the bo staff and properly with his powers

Yes, yes, yes

and the acrobatics and the cards and the hat and the *starts to reach pitches only dolphins can hear*

Matching you here with a whale-tone

Damn. This is going to make me start writing X-men again, isn't it?

I wouldn't complain! I haven't written an X-Men story since a bit of Wolverine/Nightcrawler slash back... Not sure when... a while ago. There it is - May 2007.

Thing is, the third X-Men movie sort of dampened my enthusiasm and I haven't been reading X-Men through the last year, for boring reasons, like not being able to afford them.

But looking at how excited I am about a few minutes of trailer - just seeing these characters - I'm excited as hell. And the movie can't possibly live up to the standards I'd want it to have. And it hardly matters because Gambit has his playing cards and his bo staff and his smirk and all's suddenly right with the mutant world, terrible though it is.

Thanks for the links!

[g] Thanks for sharing my glee.

[jadesfire2808.livejournal.com]

Hee. I did some digging and found that I last touched the only X-men story I admit to for fandom_me's Guilty Pleasures fest last year. It's a shame, because someone had started to illustrate it for me, but we never got it finished.

I would *love* to be inspired to write a movie-verse Gambit, though. Or maybe an early comics Gambit. I got cross with the comics, as well as not being able to afford them, so gave up for a while. This might just drive me back.

Considering I just sold off my back-issues, my husband may not be impressed ;)

*sigh*

*goes to watch again*

*happy flailing*

[fajrdrako.livejournal.com]

I did some digging and found that I last touched the only X-men story I admit to for fandom_me's Guilty Pleasures fest last year

I'd forgotten about that - I must go and look.

I would *love* to be inspired to write a movie-verse Gambit, though.

That would be fun.

I got cross with the comics, as well as not being able to afford them

For me it was a bit of a 'last straw' when Gambit became a minion of Apocalypse and then we didn't see him for a while. (The latter problem was more of a handicap than the Apocalypse situation.) I just spent some time reading up on Gambit's more recent situation on Wikipedia; seems he's himself again, and back. Good.

This might just drive me back.

I must say... I'm curious. Tempted to drop into a comics show as soon as possible to see what they have. A TPB of X-Men: Legacy, maybe?

Considering I just sold off my back-issues, my husband may not be impressed ;)

So: convert him. There are worse habits you could have.

(Don't look to me to discourage you here!)

[jadesfire2808.livejournal.com]

I'd forgotten about that - I must go and look.
*embarrassed cough*it'shere (http://jadesfire2808.livejournal.com/144786.html#cutid1)*cough*

I think TPB may be a good approach - I have the memory of a goldfish and the attention span of a stunned duck, so having all the issues together works well for me. They also tend to combine storylines that cross comics, which was another of the reasons I stopped buying. There were just too many titles to keep track of!

I just spent some time reading up on Gambit's more recent situation on Wikipedia; seems he's himself again, and back. Good.
*nods* I read that too. It does make me want to catch up. Maybe once we're living in a flat that's not quite so small. Or, you know. Has a garage or something...

[fajrdrako.livejournal.com]

Thank you for the link. I will go there this evening.

There were just too many titles to keep track of!

Oh, so true. X-Men comics were (are?) the worst. We had regular X-Men, and various variant teams in variant titles in both ongoing comics and miniseries, and an alternate universe (like eXiles), and then the Ultimate universe, and the characters from the X-Men who had comics of their own (like Wolverine), and the mutants who appeared in other teams, like X-Factor, and Wolverine in The New Avengers - wonderful stuff, but I hope they were paying him overtime. And there were stories set in the past (like Wolverine: Origins) and stories set in the future (with generations yet to be born). And you never knew where, or whether, Gambit would turn up. Not that I mean to imply I was just reading the comics for his sake, but I didn't want to miss him if he did appear somewhere.

And then I got bored with the long saga set in Lilandra's empire - can't even remember who was writing it, someone I usually think is good, but this story was interminable and something like the last straw.

And I had been reading X-Men comics regularly since X-Men #1. Stopping my monthly X-Men fix was a bit of a shock to the system.

Batman is just as bad for this - both crossovers and multiple storylines - but less tied to continuity and character interaction.

Maybe once we're living in a flat that's not quite so small. Or, you know. Has a garage or something...

I need a closet like the TARDIS. (Bigger on the inside.) The other day a friend of mine was naive enough to think she could hang her coat in my closet, but she was stymied - all my closets are filled to capacity with comic book boxes.

Problem is, I've run out of closets.

[jadesfire2808.livejournal.com]

Not that I mean to imply I was just reading the comics for his sake, but I didn't want to miss him if he did appear somewhere.
Heh. I *was* reading for his sake, most of the time, and got sucked into other storylines along the way. But then I came to the comics and Gambit via the animated series (unlikely but true) so I think that had something to do with it.

I loved Ultimate Gambit, though. Must get the TPB of that, now that I think of it.

Problem is, I've run out of closets.
*giggle* I hope you put a TARDIS on your Christmas list :D

[fajrdrako.livejournal.com]

I came to the comics and Gambit via the animated series (unlikely but true) so I think that had something to do with it.

That makes a lot of sense - he was really good in the animated series, with the voice of Chris Potter. Lovely voice work.

I was a big fan of X-Men from the day I read that first comic. And when Gambit appeared, he became my favourite character, with Magneto a close second. As with any Marvel mutant, they've messed with the character radically over the years - Magneto has fared even worse than Gambit - so they aren't always as I most like them. So much depends on the various writers and artists and editors and storylines. But Gambit? I'd read about him anywhere, and just wish we saw more of him.

I also wish that when his own comic had come out, it had been more interesting, more funny and full of oomph. I think Fabian Nicieza should have written it. Or Warren Ellis.

Ultimate Gambit was great. Nicely drawn, too.

Unlike most Gambit fans, I'm not crazy over his romance with Rogue (especially since it's pretty much unresolvable). I don't dislike it - some of his best scenes have been with her, and they're nicely sparky.

Can't imagine him with the movie version of Rogue, though. He would terrify her!

I hope you put a TARDIS on your Christmas list

Definitely! (Santa Claus, are you listening?)

[sollersuk.livejournal.com]

Would you consider an lj cut so that people don't risk spoilers every time they scroll down their Friends page?

[fajrdrako.livejournal.com]

Oh, sure. Will do!

[maaseru.livejournal.com]

So while a Canadian plays the Cajun from New Orleans

I think it is quite right and proper, as those Cajuns came from Canada in the first place (albeit not exactly willingly).

A weird little "Acadiens in comics" sidebar

[dewline.livejournal.com]

Some few of you may remember that DC had taken two shots at the pot of money once seen to be building in the role-playing games market, licensing out the rights to different companies in each instance. I did some work for the latter of the two, but the first one to try, Mayfair Games, had something that caught my eye.

In their original map of Metropolis - before John Byrne started reworking the Superman mythologies in concert with Marv Wolfman and Andy Helfer in the latter half of the 1980's, including the creation of the Six Boroughs of Metropolis that we all now know - they cribbed somewhat off of the map of Montréal for the general lie of the land, minus the southern shoreline of the mainland. Some other mods as well, and if no one screams "death to fair use/fair dealing in copyright law!" over it, I'll post a scan later.

Most importantly for our discussion, though: they established a neighbourhood called "Lafayette" that was settled mainly by Acadien expulsion victims. So, outside of Maine and Louisiana, Metropolis is apparently the biggest hotspot of Acadien-descended Americans in DC's "New Earth" version of the United States.

I don't think any of the comics writers have used that little detail for anything. If anyone were to do anything once they learned of it, though, my money would be on James Robinson.

Re: A weird little "Acadiens in comics" sidebar

[fajrdrako.livejournal.com]

I'd love to see that map of Metropolis. I always thought of it as being like New York. Montréal is much more fun!

Especially with an Acadian area.

It would be nice to see that idea revisited.

Suddenly picturing Gambit in Metropolis - !

[fajrdrako.livejournal.com]

I think it is quite right and proper, as those Cajuns came from Canada in the first place

Historical time-loop? Literary full circle? Works for me!

[monsieureden.livejournal.com]

I thought of you when I saw the trailer for this and Gambit was flashed oh so quickly.

[fajrdrako.livejournal.com]

[g] You know me too well. I hope we get another trailer soon!

[monsieureden.livejournal.com]

Here watch this: http://i44.tinypic.com/2chwft3.jpg

[topgeargirl2.livejournal.com]

Hugh Jackman is woverine right?

it's been awhile since I've seen Xmen.

[fajrdrako.livejournal.com]

Yes, Hugh Jackman is Wolverine. A very lovely Wolverine.