Warning. This podcast contained series and reactions to the new DC Slate, plus grab bag spoilers for various Marvel Comics, Star Wars stuff including and Or and more in our mail bag, so be warned. Hello. My name is Jason Concepcion and I'm Rosey Night, and welcome to extra revision of the Crooked Media podcast, where we dive deep, deep, deep, deep deep into your favorite shows, movies, comics, and pop culture.
In this episode, we are diving deep, deep, deep, deep deep. In the previously on it's that James Gunn new DC. It is wild JBG. It is weird, and we are here to tell you all about it because it is. There is some deep stuff there, you know. We love that.
In the alue, Colonel Sanders, beautiful bastard, you creature, Come on those ways.
This is incredible. In the airlock, it's the mail bag, we got questions about Marvel Comics, what we're looking forward to in twenty twenty three, and more important thing to note here we recorded this before the DC Slate announcement, which is why some of the later answers about DC films don't mention the new projects. But we will be
answering those questions in a future episode. And in that out we have a really awesome segment from Sarah talking about dungeons and dragons, which is very relevant if you've been keeping up with the tabletop gaming news and as always, if you want to jump around, check the show notes for timestamps, folks.
Let's get into it with the huge announcement from James Gunn, co CEO of DC Studios, with the announcement of the DC Slate. James Gunn, the recently appointed co CEO of DC Studios, revealed the upcoming slate of DC comics, movies, and shows, and also did a bunch of interviews for
the big industry publications. And let's get into it. First of all, the We're All strategy is the thing that I think DC fans comic fans have been wanting for a while, which is unify all of these kind of like disparate story spaces and make one coherent, cohesive story in which all the characters are the same characters played
by the same actors. And that includes interestingly, characters who are going to voice characters on the animation side are also going to be the same actors who play them in live action and in cases where things are happening outside of that continuity, like the sequel to Matt Reeves's Batman and the end Matt Reeves Batman itself, like the Joker movie you.
Teen Titans Go. I was so happy that they were. They were like, Teen Titans Go is an Elsewaldz project. Guys, it's not going anyway. And I was like, that's.
God, well, it's funny to me, like like it was, you know it. It kind of made me chuckle a little bit because it was like and then things like you know, matt ings his Batman Joker to the Joker Empty exactly.
I was like, well, at least they know it's valuable. And also I'm happy because I feel like everyone for a lot, we've all been asking for an elseworld's slate, and I actually think it's really clever to use it for stuff that already exists, rather than what we've all kind of assumed, which is you would create your else worlds outside of him already existing DC universe. I thought that was really smart. Also, I just want to say I really like this choice to bring people over from
animation into live action. And also, as Gunn said, he's hoping that that can cross over to gaming, because I think it shows something about Gun that I think hints a really massive promise of success. He already knows what DC does well.
Matt Ryan's who This is part of the lineage of DC is animation to lie.
Exactly because Matt Ryan, who is such a brilliant Constantine who I still believe should get his chance to do his serious R rated Constantine from the CW shows. He voiced Constant in the later animated series and it was such a good continuity and it made people so excited to think it was the same character, and that was just a small kind of niche TV audience. So it's going to be really exciting to see them continue that on.
And even in those CW shows, they tested this idea of introducing a character in animation like Fixen and then bringing them over. So I'm really excited to see that done in a much more expansive way that's not just little YouTube shorts to TV.
I totally feel the same way. Let's get into the slate itself wild starting with the existing project. So Gun was was very praiseful of the Slate. That is kind of like that they that they inherited essentially saying, you know, Peter and I got really lucky with these yeah movies. So we start with Shazam Fury of the Gods. So
obviously bedtime. It was Zachary Levi's recent tweets, which he addressed, but this kind of puts to any idea that that Shazam is outside of the DCEU, And he kind of said, you know, Shazama has always kind of been doing his own thing, like even in the comics, she Sam's kind of like separated from a normal continuity, but will be part of the DCU. Yeah, so that puts threats in any country.
I find this very interesting though, because, like so they said this will lead directly into the Flash, which will then reset the DC universe. So I do think that's a bit of an out for them to get rid of anything they don't want. Everyone knows I'm a big
Shazam movie fan. I'm not a big fan of what Zachary Levy was saying online, but I do think like the Shazamiie, Mary, Marvel, all those other kids, I would love to see them continue in the DC universe, even if that's not necessarily something that we see for the main Billy Batson Shazam character. I mean, who doesn't want Megan Good in the in the DCU I do. So, yeah, that's gonna go directly into the flash, which again me and Jason have been saying for a long time, is
it gonna come out? I still don't believe it.
It really feels like it's gone.
It's gonna come out, Okay.
So important connective tissue here is, you know, Zachary Levi of course came out as strongly ANTIVACS and people were sharing his his Rogan clip in which he is like Jordan Peterson man, that guy gets it.
And he doesn't correct Vergan dead names a Missgender's Elliott page. So there's a law and negative and so a lot.
Of negative stuff and this was getting reshared and people are like, oh my gosh, I believe I'm not good now. James Gunn did address this essentially saying, well, I'll quote him here. Actors filmmakers that I work with are going to say things that I agree with and things that I don't agree with. I can't be changing my plans all the time because the actor says something that I don't agree with, then saying something that is clearly meant
to address any Flash issues and Ezra Miller issues. He continued at the same token, if someone is doing something that is morally reprehensible, that's a different story, and we have to take that into account. So I think a very measured statement. We can disagree. I think, listen, I strongly disagree with everything, exactlyly I but I said at the same time, I'm not married to a movie franchise with millions of dollars of outstanding billings left there and
all the kind of legal contractual bindings that occur. So as the head of the studio, I get it. The change Gun has statement, he has to he has to be like, listen, I can't police every comment that everybody makes.
I personally, I personally believe it's very interesting to say like, if something's morally reprehensible and then lead into the Flash and be like it's the greatest movie ever, because I feel like we clearly.
Know that those things clearly a comment.
So the Flash movie, which is going to become directly off to Shazam, and they say Shazam is going to connect to that's going to reset the entire DC universe. I think, as we know that means that gives them a choice to get rid of Ezra, to introduce a Wally West Flash, to get rid of the parts of the old DCEU that they don't want, and start off with a crisis or a flash point that will lay the groundwork for where the new DCU starts.
That's right, and so the Flash June sixteenth, which Gun referred to in a in a comment, I think to Variety during the scrum, probably one of the greatest superhero movie he's ever made. So listen, there's an element of he has to say that, but he did say it's it.
And also, I feel like Mike dut says, I think at one point the director of The Flash, Annie Mische, who's been working on this movie for years, I think he was probably promised the keys to the dc Kingdom with this movie. This was meant to be the big cohesive restart movie. And I think that people are feeling very generous to him for the work that he has done and the time that he's put into this movie.
And I hope it really is that great, and I person like, I hope that Ezra's just gone at the beginning and then they're like, hey, it's Weally Wes, do you love him? He's great, but yeah, I'm fine. Out to be a very interesting comment I'm hearing. Apparently it did test very well, so that will be interesting. And one of the things that I found very interesting is they then said, well, next movie is Blue Beetle, and that will not be connected to the Flash or any
previous DCU. That is Blue Beetle is where you begin with this new DCU. And he even said that the character Blue Beetle, who I love and I'm really excited to see, you know, the kid from Cobra Kai who's so brilliant, the kid who plays mcguel take on that role. And James said that character Blue Beetle is going to be a big part of the DCU going forward, which makes a lot of sense when we get to one of our new announcements, which is a character who's very heavily connected to Blue Beetle.
And then Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom December twenty fifth, Saffran said in interviews after the announcem meant Jason always saw Aquaman as a trilogy, and which Gun added, I will say, we don't have an actor playing two different roles. This is this is in uh as an answer to the rumor that Momo could play Lobo when he's done playing Aquaman. I'm sure that will probably happen.
That makes a lot of sense, but it will be when he's done. And something that I was very excited about as number one Aquaman and James Wan and Jason Momoa fan they said something here that I found very interesting. At one point it seemed like Aquaman was going to be like the step child of this this four and this was going to be the outside. But James specifically said that Aquaman will lead directly into their first proper
DCU movie, which is Superman Legacy. So that is incredibly exciting to me that they see Aquaman as a direct line into that decas I guess.
I guess the question then is, you know, with they've cut the cored on all of the kind of legacy projects except for Aquaman, which is going to be the string that kind of leads into this. They're saying, but when the Flash, and we're assuming here that the Flash basically flashpoints and kills everything, it resets the entire universe, does that mean that Moha Moa as Aquaman is reset as well, and then he can then do lower because
it seems pretty something. It seems pretty definitive that Gunn is saying like if you played Aquaman, you cannot then go and play another character. But if that character and continuity is gone wiped away, can it then happen?
Yeah? And clear very interesting, especially as Aquaman comes out at December twenty fifth, so off the flashpoints, so it's going to be very interesting to see. I feel like one of the threads between Aquaman and The Flash had been this Michael Keaton appearance that had been like very heavily rumored that apparently got taken away. Then they brought
in Ben Affleck. Now Ben Afflecks not in it. I feel like a Michael Keaton, uh Batman eighty nine thread between those movies feels very James gunnish and like you could still have that kind of time traveling future past Bruce Wayne to kind of tie these things together. But
I'll be very interested to see how this happens. I'm just really glad that James C's Aquaman as a direct kind of lineage to the Superman movie, which gets us to these kind of what they're calling Chapter one gods and monsters and.
Right, so this is there there phase one in which the introduce our heroes and our villains.
And James said, this is just some but not all of the projects. So this is the first This is the first wave that they got okay to announce basically.
So we start with Creature Commandos, which is James Gunn written animated series, seven episode animated series that will feature the same characters who are playing the characters featured in this and live action voicing the characters in this. Yes, such as Amanda Wa this is like played by.
This is such I will say, I don't think that's the case. I think that I think my understanding is it's going to be that they had a great still from the video of the Creature Commandos and it's basically in the comics. It's like from Weird War and it's a World War two team and it's basically all the Universal monsters scratch out Universal. So you have a Frankenstein,
a Dracula they look like in the new Team. They also have like a bride Frankenstein and a a kind of creature from the backa Zone inspired by Abe Sapien. So I think this is going to be that Monsters fighting nazis really taken directly from their JMD Mitteus and Pat Broderick stuff. That is just one of those weird
deep cut DC things. Interestingly, this is already in production, so I assume that this is a passion project of guns that was probably already in play before this ever came into Also Animated.
You just do the voices and then exactly it's four years to do, so, do the beautiful anima to the cartoons. Yeah, then we go to Waller. This will star Viola Davis. This is a TV series that spins off from a Peacemaker written by Crystal Henry, who was part of the writing team behind Watchmen on HBO Max and Jeremy Carver from Supernatural. And this is essentially going to be Peacemaker season two.
Yeah. So I think originally it had come out saying this is going to kind of be peace Maker season two. But I think what James is saying now is this is going to be the holding pattern between peace Maker two because everybody's really busy. But I think that we can say it's it's spiritually peace Maker season two because it's going to have Team Peacemaker in it. It's going to be Viola playing Waller, which is really exciting, and we're going to see those peace Maker characters come back.
The centering of the stories just going to focus onto Amanda Walla, who I think is one of the most interesting DC characters, and I think they're very smart to kind of focus heavily on her and her legacy as the leader of the Suicide Squad is the kind of person behind Peacemaker, So I think that would be really interesting and I'm sure it will be a huge smash it, just like peace Maker.
Was next up, and this is I would put this under the category of we were right.
Yes.
Now, we've been calling for an all star Superman take on Superman to kind of reset all the gritty like jaw clenching, mass destruction depiction of Superman and Man of Steel and the Snyder verse, and I think this description of Superman legacy, written by James Gunn, is the thing that we'll do that. Saffran says, it's not an Orangin story focuses on Superman balancing his Kryptonian heritage with his human upbringing. He's the embodiment of truth justice in the
American way. He's kindness in a world that thinks kindness as old fashioned. This sounds a lot like All starstr Yeah.
And if you go to this video, which is funny because I read all of this news in the trade because obviously the trades are great. Yeah, and that was where they had the big news, and DC dot Com had some great news. But I will say that if you look at the video, you get a little bit of extra information. And you talked about All Star Superman. The image we get when they show this and when James is talking about this is Frank quietly and it's
Superman sitting up above looking over Metropolis, you know. And I saw another really great quote from Gun that made me really feel like he understands what you need in a Superman story where he said he's just like a big old fashioned galut and like his I love this idea that James said, which was his greatest weaknesses. He will never care somebody, And I just think that is like the best thing you have, the most powerful, godlike person on earth. But their ultimate weakness is they can't
do the thing that every villain will do. That to me.
There's also the symbolism of this announcement coming out on Grant Morrison's birthday.
Feel absolutely not just that, because this is not the only is the This is like the fans saying, oh, it's probably inspired by Grant Morrison and Frank Quietly's All Star.
Superman, but later on we get an announcement where they say this is directly based on Grant Morrison's spoiler alert, which we're talking in a minute. But yeah, I think this is really exciting. I I know it's going to be young Superman, but I really still one of my greatest wishes is that in the else world's like Matt Reeves world, I think you could have such a good Channing Tatum Superman, who is the Superman to Robert Pattinson's Batman, and you make that movie and it is as bright
and cheery and funny as that Batman movie is dark. Like, I feel like Channing Tatum is He's coming up more and more in my superhero casting because I just think he's such a great comedic actor. And obviously I love Magic Mic, but like, yeah, the Mic verse. I can't wait for Magic MIC's Last Dance. Magic Mic XXL one of my all time Ferreite movies. If you haven't seen it, go watch it. It's like an unbelievable treatise on male friendship,
just absolutely wonderful. But yeah, Superman Legacy, it's gonna be a young Superman. And this begins what James says, like, so Waller and Creach Commandos, I think those were in production before, and James says they're kind of the soft launch,
But Superman Legacy is boom. You're in the new DCU now, and that's gonna be in twenty twenty five, so you're kind of getting a scope for where we're headed and when we'll really be seeing that massive boom of DC projects, which will be continued by Lanterns, which they're kind of selling as this huge, massive TV event on HBO Max that's gonna teams John Stewart and How Jordan, which is exciting.
Single actic detectives, space cups on Earth. They're they're saying that it's it's essentially kind of going to be like a true detective relationships story about these two very different Lanterns. Now Listen, I don't love I'm not a fan of space cars yea the.
Exciting version of Green Lantern, But I do like true detective.
I love and I love the fact that how you get Hal and John together, which is really and I.
Would love I want to see a world where they even though I get it it's like Space Cops, it's going to be a great grittier I still think one of the most interesting things about John Stewart is that he was originally like an architect, which is the best power you could ever like, the best life you could ever have before being a green lantern. So I would
love to see some of that brought in. And they I think that if you're wondering what the DCU is going to be about, this is the show that you need to watch, because they say this plays a really big role in leading into the main story we're telling across film and TV when the pair will discover like a terrifying mystery that ties into the kind of larger story. So that's very interesting. I wonder what it would be because True Detective I think of, like the first season Cults.
I think of like this really intimate, gritty serial killer story. So I'm kind of wondering. I mean, look, I did just have a terrible idea. I'm sure there's not what it's gonna be, but in my head, I'm like, when you think about murder mystery, and you think about DC universe, you think about identity crisis, and I mean, I don't think maybe I don't necessarily know if that's what it's gonna be, And if it was, I trust James Suicide Squad.
I still I will tell you, guys, if you're not sure about this James Gun universe, go and watch that movie. It is so subversive and cool and the performances that he gets out of this unbelievable cast. There's a Tiger Why two minute cameo that will break your heart, like it's so good, and I would I would trust the person who made Suicide Squad to oversee an identity crisis that is not so as problematic as the original.
So for those for those who are not versed in identity crisis, it's on the most basic level, it's about a mind a memory wiping scheme that causes various characters, villains and heroes to maybe not actually know who they are and the things that did the various characters go through to uncover you know what's at the bottom of this Yeah, And.
It centers around like a what appears to be like a murder mystery. And it's written by Brad Meltzer, who is a murder mystery writer, and Rags Morales did the art. When this book came out, I actually, like, really did love it. I was very young, and I loved the murder mysteries. It has some less than appealing treatment of
women and depictions of men health. But I do wonder if some kind of multiversal or superheroic murder mystery that changes the way superhero see themselves could potentially be at the core of what they're doing. I think there's a chance that we could see a version of that. And then we talked about identity crisis, which seems wild if you know it, but we're about to say the wildest thing that got announced, Oh.
The wildest, truly, the wildest kind of a storm of wildness, could say. So they're bringing in they're bringing the DC imprint wild Storm story and team the Authority into DC continuity proper. Here's Saffarn on the Authority. They're kind of like Jack Nicholson and a few good men. They know what you want, They want you on that wall, or
at least they believe that. So the Authority was kind of like a very a very very late nineties, early two thousands take on superheroes, super violent superhero those who will. It was kind of like a bid to bring a kind of Justice League pastiche into the kind of like into modern pop storytelling, much like you know Marvel's Ultimate Universe and the Ultimates. It's very kind of kind of a similar kind of vein.
It's really good that you bring up the Ultimates. So I would say the Authority, I'm gonna I'm gonna put it out there because this is the kind of stuff we talk about. It was so I love Jim Lee. Jim Ley founded this imprint, Wild Storm, part of Image Comics, one of the original six studios it had. It was called Wildstorm. This is like the sweetest thing. I think about it all the time because the two main books
were wild Cats and Stormwatch. Very cute, Jimly. I love that storm Watch basically evolved into the Authority under the authorship of Warren Ellis who recently, over the last few years, a lot of people within the comics community came out on a website called so Many of Us that you could read and talked about how they had experienced I will say alleged for legal reasons, like alleged abusive and manipulative relationships with Ellis.
So I think that's really.
Important because to bring up just because the Authority put him on the map, and this was really the book that gave him the celebrity status that would later lead to those conversations. But what I will say is you bore the Ultimate Universe. This book was created by Warren
Ellis and Brian Hitch. The second volume was made by Mark Miller, and this gritty, grounded, violent take was then taken by Miller and Brian Hitch and they created the Automate Universe, and the Automate Universe went on to create and inspire the MCU as we know it. So the Authority has like a massive, massive impact and legacy, but it is so it's not as grotesque as the Boys, but it's definitely in that Ven diagram of edge violent. These superheroes will kill you.
I mean that was the mission statement was push the envelope on what superheroes are. Yeah, and I'll say this, I think that they're the bad guys.
I think so, I think they're the bad guys.
I think that they're going to be the bad guys. And I think this is I think the Authority and the way the Authority go about their business. Who knows where they come from, maybe they come from another dimension, they show up here and then they're just like, oh, great, perfect, this world needs superheroes. And I think that this is going to be the reason that the JLA and our heroes come together in a team to fight them.
I love that. I think that's a brilliant idea because also the original there's multiple different versions of the Authority throughout history, So like you probably wouldn't know most of the characters because who is Jenny Sparks. Nobody knows that's
one of the original leaders. But I will tell you two characters that you will know who if they come into this show, which I believe they will, will probably be the breakoff team who become the roguish anti heroic heroes rather than being part of the villains, which is Midnight to Ann Apollo, who are two of comics first gay characters. They're married, they're in love. They actually end up adopting a younger version of the Leader of the Authority later on, and they have become huge, huge cult
fans in the DC universe. With you know, Steve Orlando did like a Midnight series, and there was a Midnight in Apollo spinoff, and I think that we could see those characters kind of break off. But I think you're right the way they describe these characters. James Gunn is a huge Wildstorm fan. He said he loves wild Story and he wants to bring all of the characters into the DCU so we could see, like you know, Wildcats, we could see I think people like Griff.
And stuff, Wildcats are the dec I believe it.
I'm already hearing I'm already hearing rumblings about Jim Lee's involvement and stuff, which would make me really excited. So I think this is really interesting. But the way they're talking about it, they're saying they think they're the good guys. They believe what they're doing is right. That is very different from the other kinds of stories that gun likes. Tell a story like Suicide Squad, who are the bad guys who think they're the bad guys, but then actually
they do something good. I love this idea of a team who truly believes, and that is the point of the authority. They believe they are a higher authority. They believe that they should be outside the realm of the government.
Superman in the in the like German philosophic exactly, you even know that.
And they were created some of them like Midnight ran Apollo. They were essentially created by like an evil scientist. Then you have you know, Jenny Sparks is essentially like somebody who lives for a century, who represents the spirit of the twenty first century and the twentieth century. I will say that sounds like a Grant Morrison I did to me. I feel like this was very inspired by the Morrisons look,
but comes with like a less hopeful vibe. But yeah, Mark Miller worked on it, Dustin Wehm worked on it. Frank quietly worked on it. Grant Morrison wrote two issues of the third volume, which were illustrated by Gen Harh, then disappeared around the time him and Mark Miller fell out. So this is like the absolute roster of famous creators who got their start or were involved on this book.
Ed Brubaker wrote some of this like this, This was a kind of hub for comic book create a talent that would establish a lot of people.
Late nineties early two thousands were a great time in comics creatively, because the entire industry's back was against the exactly.
That's when you got some of the wildest Marvel stuff. Jok Asada comes in at Marvel. Yeah, you got frankincastle Let's punisher, who's a Frankenstein like Sure. I love that idea. It was such a creative time, and I think it makes a lot of sense for Gunn. I was rereading a lot of these comics. A lot of the stuff, even for nineteen ninety nine was age. But you know what we've seen in both Marvel and Y, We've seen great reconsiderations and reimaginings, So I think this could be
one of them. And I think in a post boys world, this is an incredibly smart choice. What I would love to see when Avid Deverney adapted DMZ, which was written by Brian Wood, who was a creator who had also had alleged abuse and manipulation kind of wheel like accusations, Ava went out of her way to hire one of the women who had first broken the silence on Brian
Wood as a writer. I would love to see the authority become a space for that too, where some of these women who had had relationships with Warren Ellis are allowed to be part of deciding how this story is going to be told. If it's part of it, I always I thought that was really cool that Avid did that, and I'd be very interesting to see something similar.
Happen next Paradise Lost. This is going to be a Game of Thrones political st I'll take on Semyscira to me in the Amazon's birthplace of wonder Woman kind of. It seems like a wonder Woman kind of origin story.
I think what they're saying is it's going to be a generation before Diana, so I think we can assume that Diana will be a baby, probably because a generation before the Amazons could be thousands of years. And the coolest thing about this that I think has a lot of potential to go both great or terrible, but I'm going for great. I'm staying optimistic because I want to see I want to see a Game of Thrones Greek mythology, political intrigue show. The idea is this is going to
show why there are no men on Themyscerra. This is why I would assume that we'll get something around aries trying to conquer them. I hope they go for more of that kind of a war theme than the Brian Azarello style kind of like kind of leaning more into like the creepy rape kind of aspect of why men wouldn't be invited. But I would be very interested. I think this could be so and I love the idea that this is going to be a prestige HBO Max show.
Guess what, guys, we know HBO can make great Game of Thrones style programming because they made Game of Thrones. So yes, we want to see this. I think this is really cool. Imagine casting, the kind of casting we're going to get for all these brilliant Amazons, and the kind of way we could see them portrayed on screen
and get this time to spend there. So much of the conversation around those Wonder Woman movies, especially Wonder Woman Too, was like I want to stay on Themiscira, like those first twenty minutes on Themiscira, Let's make that the whole thing. So I think this is really cool that they're gonna they're gonna do that.
Up next, a real weirdo deep poll from James Gunn Booster Gold Live action series Booster Gold is this is a very James Gunn template. The thing that you laid out, which is the losers and bad guys who kind of get pulled into being heroes. Booster Gold is like a loser from the future who travels back in time with advanced technology to become a hero.
Yeah, and I think this is really cool. This is gonna be I think a Peacemaker style unexpected hit because in the comics, as James says this in the video, this is a cult fan favorite character. Everyone has been saying why not Booster Gold, Why not Booster Gold? And one of the most popular successful parts of Booster Gold
in the comics is his relationship with Blue Beetle. So I think that we will see that will probably be that crossover between the Blue Beetle movie, which they were so happy with and believed in so much that they moved it from HBO Max the theatrical. I think that is where we will see Blue Beetle come in and crossover. So the interesting thing to wonder is are they going to do a young Booster Gold so that they are contemporaries.
If so, it could be called a castle like the kid who played Hawk in Cobra Kai, So you get that kind of reuniting or I'm going back to it. Channing Tait. He'd be a brilliant boost of gold, and you could have this kind of olda mental younger blue beetle kind of relationship of the real hero of us as this kind of faux hero but who always ends up getting pulled into these kind of heroic schemes. I think this is going to be a really really big deal.
Next up, another another possible entry into we were right. We were talking in the studio and.
Yeah, this is an online so pre probably.
About how much about how we thought the bat family had to be involved in this iteration of the DCU, and that we were hoping to see Damien son of Bruce Wayne, and the Brave and the Bold will do that. The Brave and the Bold will introduce Batman and Robin in this kind of like father Son's story. It's we're going to Bruce is going to discover that he has a child, and then he's going to discover that his child, who will at one point become Robin loves.
To merger, take care out assassin with like Jim describe him a little son of a bitch. That's a good description of Damian Wayne. He is a little son of a bitch, and they very excitingly said, this is based on Grant Morrison's Batman and Robin comics, which, obviously, for obvious reasons, they couldn't name it Batman and Robin because of the incredible Joe Schumacher movie Batman and Robin, which
you know, everyone knows I'm a huge fan of. But the Brave in the Bold is a very exciting title for it, because not only are we going to get Damian Wayne, and James said, this is the beginning of the bat Family, which is very exciting, very exciting, but not only are we going to get Damian Wayne, who I think is such a beloved Robin and people are really excited to see him brought to life, but the fact that they're calling it the Brave in the Bold
makes me think there's going to be team up elements, that we're going to see some of those weirder characters brave in the balls where you'd see like a music meister or like some really weird out there villains, especially if you've watched the cartoon, which is so great and in the comics too, So I think this is a very exciting possibility. And also again Grant Morrison's birthday, thanks for the Grant Morrison love on Grant Morrison's birthday. I'm
a huge fan of this choice. I want to know, how do you introduce Damien and build a bat family from Damien. I love Gotham Academy, so I'd love to see maps like that's one of my favorite characters, and you do the younger bat family. But I think everyone knows the interesting thing here is getting to meet the other previous Robins at some point, and how you build that in from the ground up of Damien. I think that's a really interesting storytelling choice. We've seen Dick's story
many many times, We've seen the original Robin. We've even gotten to see Tim Drake now, you know, in the TV stuff. So I think this is a great choice. And I can't I want to see that little sassy kid that they cast. This could be like a hit girl from kick Ass Chloe Morets.
Never has to be.
Yeah, you need a ten year old who's gonna swear like a sailor, who's gonna chop people's heads off with a Samurai sword and he's just gonna cause Batman. Damian is basically Batman's karma for all the children that he pulled into his rule.
And by the way, is as he becomes a teenager and an older and a younger, a young man, a true young man continues to cause can problems for Bruce Wayne all throughout the years. Then next up this was kind of a surprise.
I think this is the most Tomorrow.
Yeah, this is This is a story that came out like last year.
Literally just Tom King.
Yeah, Tom King and everyone's favorite former CIA agent who is a comic book creator, and bil Quis Evely's.
Bilquises Are I just I cannot tell you read this book.
It's great.
This bil Quis Everly's are is unbelievable, like many other things that Tom kick.
Sci Fi Supergirl, it is what this is.
Tom King pitch DC and he said, what if we did true Grit but with Supergirl? And Supergirl is not the girl asking for help because her family's been killed though we know her family died on Krypton. In fact, Supergirl is the grizzled, older, drunk who this young girl is gonna ask to take on a quest for revenge. And it is basically narratively true Grit. But Matt Lopez the colorist, and Bill Chris Everly create this swirling cosmos.
This absolutely wild space Western, and that to me is what I think appeals to gun It's Guardians of the Galaxy but are rated. It's two women in a Western. It's the Last of Us and the Mandalorian. It's these lone wolf and cub stories, but here we have the centered around two women. And I cannot tell you like there are in this book. You will not believe it. It begins in a high fantasy planet, so everyone speaks
like they're in lad of Rings. There's all these kind of wild monsters and aliens, and Bilkis and Matt bring this visual language to it that is just unlike any other comic. I I tire of the dark twists that Tom King often brings, but I think that Everly and Lopez's art makes this something that made me really excited when this was on there. It's it's a very interesting take. But I will say this is my one thing. I wrote a piece about this vi GM. I'll say it here.
It's not a spoiler because if you don't know what I'm talking about, you won't know. But I'm saying, let the super Pets live, James Gunn, that's my one change. That's one change. That's all I want. Bilkis are and let the super Pets live.
And then finally, this project I thought was by wrote by our own Rosie, who demanded who demanded that it'd be included in the first announcement of the DC Slate folks, swamp Thing is here.
I actually was the outside the Warner Brothers offices every day with a sign I swam. I have to say thank you. This is no joke, like thank you to everyone who messaged me to say congratulations. This was so funny that I actually had to do a post about it because so many of my friends and so many people who listen to the show, and so many people who read my work texted me and they were like and they DM me and they were like, congratulations, you
did it, Like swamp Thing is happening. I did a poster or I was like, thank you for your congratulations. And my sister texted me and was like, did I miss something? And I was like, don't worry. It's just a swamping movie. I'm not writing it, but I feel I feel so close to this movie. I'm very excited. If it was up to me, I would say bring back James One. I love that Swamp Thing show. I
know that's not going to happen. I am hearing. I think James Mangol did a tweet with Swamp Thing, and I think people are thinking that's the way it's going to go. James James says it's going to be a very dark horror film about the origins of Swamp Thing. If you don't know those origins, love it you will, you will understand it's really really brilliant, strange, esoteric stuff. You can start with the original Lemoine stuff, or you can skip straight to Sagara swamp Thing, which is Alan Moore.
There's also a great Current Swamp.
Iconic the Iconic Ale and that's the stuff you saw.
My post that where a lot of the images came from Right of Spring and stuff like that. There's also a great Current Swamp Thing run by Ramby. So I would say, I hope that the horror aspect is there, but I hope it is sprinkled with some of the gothic romance that I believe is the best thing.
That's the heart, that's the emotion, the emotional heart of swamp because like, yeah, monster in the fucking Swamp, we've seen it, but he's there's a human emotional Yeah. The heart of Swamp Thing is this longing of the Swamp Things for the love that he used to have and that he can know.
Humanity. Yeah, because there's this very brilliant twist on Swamp Thing that you won't see coming when you read the books. Also, I will say I've said it before, I'll say it again. Go and watch the Swamp and Thing TV show that was originally on DC Universe. I believe it is more than likely on HBO Max now. It is just absolute dynamite.
Crystal Read from teen Wolf plays Abby and she is so brilliant and the practical effects are unbelievable and it is just the most wonderful, lovely, romantic, weird, gothic horror show. And I know he only got one season, but I will always hold it close to my heart. So watch that to prepare. But yes, I also really like the way James Gunn was like, this is extremely different in tone from anything else on this slate, but I just had to get it in Mabby and I was like
I'm ready. Yeah, I was like please, I'm ready.
Well, a very exciting announcement. I have to say, you can't be anything but excited about what James is attempting to do exactly, and I think that it's what has been necessary for a long time. And if they can pull this off, I think the comics the storytelling space is going to be all the best or for it totally. It be really fun if he can do it.
I just think it shows the thing we've been saying that's most exciting about James and pet being in charge of this. These are people who love comics, they get they love. This is a lineup of someone who has favorite comics that they wanted to adapt to, which we rarely see. So I can't wait.
Up next to the mailbag, we're stepping out of the airlock and into the X ray vision crypt a KA the mail bag. To answer your questions, here's one from Mike. Mike asks, the MMCU is very global. Currently. You have a shang Chi running around in China. You have Leila in Egypt. You have Cameron and Red Dagger in Pakistan. You have Blade and the Eternals in London and Moonnight all over Europe. What are some other global heroes you'd
like to see in the MCU. I have one that he instantly leaves to mind, but you tell me Rosie who.
Okay, well, this is like my dream question because basically getting onto one of when you talk about global characters in MCU, getting onto one of mine and Jason's favorite topics, aka the X Men. So Colossus, you know, I think that's someone I'd really love to see in the MCU, one of our X Men faves, you know, the Russian kind of legend, the huge hunky boy. I love Colossus. I mean I would love to see Karma. So you're talking about like a Vietnamese character, that would be so wonderful.
I love Chamber. That's one of my favorite characters. And he's from London. I think John Boyeger is my dream Chamber casting because I think, like the only thing you need about Chamber is that they're from that He's from London, so you know, that would be a cool gen X character. Basically all of mine are just X Men characters. He's from Canada. That's global, It's on the globe, you know.
I think there's a I think there's a big space for like for like a reconsideration and like a recontextualization of like Sunfire to introduce like a Japanese hero. Yeah, I would love to see like Money and Penance come in. That would be really cool to have like African characters, and also to have more again, more weird X Men characters. And I do think that I think that's sun Spot, like a real version of sun Spot where you do the Brazilian character whose father is like a wealthy businessman.
It opens up all these really interesting spaces into like corporate espionage, the Hellfire Club. But also he has one of the most interesting origin stories, which is essentially like he is a black character who is targeted by racist bullies and that is when his powers ignite, you know, and his powers are so interesting visually. So yeah, global characters aka the X Men introduce them, how about you.
I mean, all of that is great. I could not I could not avoid thinking about the late eighties nineties era X Men when they were hanging out in Australia with Yes, with the Teleporter Gateway. That's another gree Wow. I would just love that. But I'll tell you one that I think we're gonna I think we're gonna get this is Captain Britain and Excalibur. I think we're going to get it at some point.
Oh yeah, that makes so much sense. I mean with Blade, Yeah, with with with you know Kit Harrington, that Black Knight is going to become a character in the MCU, That's going to be a thing. So I think that makes a lot of sense because you get Captain Britain, you get excalib but you can do some of that with supernatural stuff. Okay, So in the comics at the moment, you know, they have this kind of like Betsy Braddock Captain Britain. Do you think we could see a version
like that? Do you think it's like a more traditional I think it is.
I think that's seeding and of course we can't forget. Also in Eastern Europe, our friend Bova in Mount Wonder Gore.
My Darling, my queen. I'm actually gonna you had it hip fast. He's a cool exclusive. I'm going to get Bova tattoo. Yeah yeah, yeah, so I'll make sure to reveal it first. To the listeners of X ray.
Vision, Blakeney asks what Marvel DC project are you most excited for? I which are you most worried about, whether that's casting, story, or other factors. Mouth start, I'm I'm really excited for the James Gunn era of DC. I think he's done some really wise things early on to kind of cut the cord to, you know, the kind of the more toxic side of the Snyder.
He's talked about the divisive nature of the fandom and how he can't please everyone. I'm excited to see it.
And I think that's a person who has proven that they have a track record and at point of view that works in this space, and I'm really excited to see what he's going to do.
I totally agree. I love that this is somebody who loves comics. It's also someone who had great and public personal growth. I think the Suicide Squad movie that he made is an underrated gem that is just going to age like a fine wine and is one of the most radical superhero movies we've ever seen. I love that he came in really hard supporting the Blue Beetle movie, which I'm very excited about. Let's keep it DC, because
we talk about Marvel lot most worried about. I think I can probably speak for both of us here, but.
It's the Flash that's what I'm most worried about.
I don't mean I want.
To tell the ways we're worried about you.
It's like I'm worried about it. In general, I'm interested in what James is going to how they're going to handle that. I think Peter Saffran has made some of the best and had a hand in making some of the best Warner Brothers movies. I love, as everyone knows, I love Aquaman, the most profitable DC movie of all time, by the way. So I'm very excited. I'm excited to see how they handlell this very tough challenge of the Flash.
Even though I'm worried about the Flash, I think it will be an interesting watermark to see how they're going to approach it. And I'm hoping because as the reporting has been out there is that Ben Affleck is no longer going to be in it as Batman, which was kind of reported he came in because they people didn't understand why Michael Keaton was there. I'm assuming if you're James Gun, You're probably going to be like, put Michael
Keaton back in there. It's Batman, And now that Ben Affleck is out, he's going to be involved in maybe directing a movie or something. I just think there's a lot of interesting options. But I'm really interested because I don't want to see Ezra as a flash. Everyone knows that, but I do I want to. I'm most worried about this inclusive, young version of the Justice League that that that had supposedly been setting up with this, you know,
new Supergirl. I really want to see where that goes, and I hope something positive can come out of it. But I still don't even believe the movie's coming out this year.
That's the rail track. I can't. I don't believe it either. Andrew asks, in the spirit of the Last of Us and other Lone Wolf and Cub style stories, what ex team member would you most trust and least trust to babysit your child, niece, nephew, pets or loved one. Well, this is easy for me. I think I would. First of all, it's Wolverine because he's done it so many times.
Obviously, he is the kid. He's taking the kid.
You can't count how many times he has done this with you know. Power Pack is probably my favorite version of this. Remember that one when he's like when he's on the run from the Reavers and Lady Death Strike and he's like been reduced to his like feral state because of like how injured he is, and then they come across power Pack, and then he helps them, even though because he's just you know, like good to the core,
even though he is a hardened killer. I think it would have to be Wolverine least, trust I don't know. Does mister Sinister count as an X Men right now?
I think you can do it. I think you can do it.
I mean like like like Mutant Nation is really united, and he has been an important.
He would probably do an experiment on your child.
He say what you listen, We've seen he said he would, and listen, mister Sinister is on side. He's been an important part of the Krakoa era x Men obviously, in without him, there would be no resurrection process, you know. So I guess I could count him as an x Men and thus as an x Men. Mister Sinister, no way keeping my pet loved one whoever?
Yeah, okay, so I'm I agree Wolverine was my pick. I'm gonna go controversial, but I believe it is. I do believe it's fat. You know, I never leave my kid with e ever, do not put my child in your baby army. Do not do not send my child to your private school, which I probably pay thousands of dollars for. And then you're gonna put them in the war room. No, thank you. You're not looking after my child. The child's gonna end up in a war. This is
gonna be bad. Maybe I'll maybe, maybe I'll let my child come and play baseball.
But this is without even like getting into all the times after saying, hey, telepaths, you should, by the way, you shouldn't just go into people's minds, don't do that. He's every one while he's done it to everybody. Also, he's read everybody's minds. He's put mental blocks in everybody's minds. He's invasive fucking memory a million. Yeah, he just as well.
Look, nobody wants to remember this even and this is because understandable. It was a bad choice. Stanley. This was a bad choice. But let's not forget that early in the X Men's original tenure, before the giant size X Men which reimagine them and we all love, Charley Xavier was creepy on Jane Gray. This is child bet.
This is one of those things. This is one of those moments. It's like X Men number six legitimately where it's like.
I know you was like, don't do this that.
This is one of those things that I think we've all just agreed to pretend that that never happened.
He's like, how could I ever tell her that I am in love?
Why did this happened? Oh? God, I think that's going by the way. Uh. While we're on Charles Xavier, do you see I think it's Immortal x Men one of the recent Immortal x men's where there's a really cool uh uh exchange where Charles is like wondering what would have happened had if him and Magnus had like switched power sets, like if he was Magneto and Magneto is Charles Xavier. And he was like, well, i'll tell you what.
One hundred percent what's happened is all humans would be dead because and then he goes into like how he
Charles Xavier could have easily killed on humans. He's like, you know, my power allows me to locate mutants, therefore I can also locate humans, And it would have just been an easy work of about a decade of planting, you know, subliminal messages in people's minds causing them to not eat, kill themselves, whatever, And it would take about ten years and I could kill every single human on Earth.
Yeah, I'm really excited, Like they're doing so much good stuff. So speaking of I'm glad you brought this up, because when you started talking about Mister Sinister, I was thinking Marvel's doing this event called Sins of Sinister and Kiaran Gillan and Paco Medina they're doing a book called Immoral x Men. Yeah, instead of Immortal x Men, and it's like ten years in the future and the X Men are loved and adored instead of you know, hated and feared.
So I'm really excited to see where that goes. It's a great time to be an X Men fan.
It really is. I would argue there's almost been no better time, not in.
Our age that we can really appreciate it. Like I wish if I'd have been this age when you know, New X Men was coming out, I probably would have felt the same way.
But I was like twelve, They're at the peak of their powers. Kyle asks, Hey, Jason and Rosie. With me wanting to get into comics and X Men being my favor from the original tune, what comic book issue series would you recommend? I start with For further clarification, I'm a black gay man, so obviously I am obsessed with Storm and I watched The Phoenix and Dark Phoenix Saga every three months or so. Oh Rosie, what I got it?
So first of all, I'll just say, you love Dark Phoenix Saga. Read it. You can get it in a collection Dark Phoenix Saga. It's great, some of the best stuff ever, one of the most yeah, just absolutely wild stuff. Wasn't the way it was supposed to go, but you know what, some really great X Men storytelling days a future past. I always say that, we always say this is a great way to start because it's a couple of issues.
You can read it early too, it's three issues. For the impact that it has, it flows my mind. Who issued not even like a you couldn't even call it an arc. It's really just like part one Part two, yeah, literally, and.
It's had so much impact. It's so iconic. It's got that unbelievable you know cover, and it's just so cool. In a chat with Louis Simonson and I, I discovered that she was the one who came up with the idea of the dead dead dead, like what. It was really cool stuff. Yeah, and for Storm, this is one of my favorite questions. Basically we talk about it a lot. You want to go to Uncanny x Men. There's a
few different things that I'm gonna lay out here. There's an arc that's just two issues again, one hundred and seventy Shoes one hundred and seventy three called to Have and Have Not, and that's where Storm changes her whole look.
You know where she she she clashed.
Makes friendship, she finds an unexpected friend and just changes her look. And Kitty pride so angry. Kitty used to suck. She was always having a bad oppe duel, which is one of my favorite issues that I actually have, which is X Men Uncanny x Men two hour.
Session.
That's one of the best ever. If you love Storm, that's a great issue.
And then No Powers, Baby, No No Powers, No Powers.
And speaking of No Powers, Uncanny x Men one eighty six, which is Life Death that is kind of the culmination, and it's this really interesting story about Storm and Forge and they're kind of burgeoning relationship, but it has this unbelievably tragic twist to do with Storm losing her powers, so that those would be some great places to start, but as always Uncanny X Men. You can go to Barnes and Nobles and they sell little digests of these
that are really small, like an archie. You can buy these in trades, you can get them online, you can go to your library and read them. But Kyle, I'm so glad you sent this question because we love Storm. I truly believe Storm. I believe she is the way in to the X Men. I think she is your premiere X Men character for twenty twenty three. Mcu kind, I have one more to add do.
Storm is kind of like weirdly sidelined in this one, but she's also like the motivating factor in it. And it's just one of my favorites stories in mutant lore,
certainly of the Claremont era. It's it's collected in a graphic novel edition called The as Guardian Wars, which collects X Men and off of Flight one and two, New Mutants Special Edition and X Men Annual Number nine and the Basic Just as this, the New Mutants get sucked into a conflict in Asgard because of the machinations of Loki and the Enchantress Uh and Storm gets wrapped in a two and then the X Men not knowing what's
happened to their their charges. The new Mutants then has to charge into Asgard to try and get them out, and it's one spuggling. It's like Art Adams at his absolute the bak of his fucking powers. As an incredible super adventure, unbelieva are great story. It's just a great one, one of the all time greats from the x MEO.
Yeah, so Matt is asking question. Matt, I'm going to preempt this question by saying thank you because me and Jason talking about this all the time, and I know it's one of our favorite topics. So yeah, let's lay out in a more concrete way. Matt asks, I know that the MCU has influenced some changes in the comics as far as character art and some storylines, et cetera.
Do you think as the comics and the MCU develop in tandem that comics will start being written in such a way that intends to become part of the MCU. Would there be a world in which a specific storyline or comic art is written with the intent of being the groundwork in which they become MCU Cannon, I'm just going to start quickly by saying, I truly am of the belief that they're already doing this.
Yeah, I think they already do it. I don't think it's a one to one No. I think what they do is they treat I think they treat the comics as a very very active like research development for the movies, seeing what works, what kind of like fun adventures people could go into character characters. Yeah, certainly, Like I think they're very strategic in terms of what characters are going
to appear in the movies. You start seeing one shots and different things happen in the MCU, and we mentioned, we mentioned all the time, uh, the kind of like aborted attempt to raise the inhumans the level of exactly you know, what are in them? That was that was a direct attempt to fill in for the X Men, who at the time Disney didn't own the ip uh and by replacing them within humans. So I think you're
exactly right, they do it already. They do it already, not not not with a direct connection, but I think they they're clearly very strategic about the comics stories they released, the characters who they spotlight, et cetera.
I think they see the comics as almost like a way to introduce ideas and characters back into the mindset of the fans. Think about our wonderful number one best Bud Cody Ziggler and spider Punk. Cody's been absolutely smashing it reintroducing spider Punk to people, and then we find out spider Punk is going to be in the news. It's like, so it's those little things that we can get seeding that's my thing. Yet they are they seeding something in the comics to the MCU Eve viewing another
incredible friend of the pod. Wow, we're so lucky. Eve has a brilliant new Monica Rambo Photon. It's not a coincidence that Monica is highlighted in the book with that title Photon right now before the Marvels. So these things are there now. What I think is interesting is Kevin Feigey is in charge of like publishing operations, I believe now.
So what I will be interested to see is will there be a world where it's less about seeding and hinting, and will there be a world where there's an MCU line of comics or there's a direct, more textual connection. That's what I think the next evolution could be and I'd be very interested to see if that happened.
X Ray Vision will be back and we're back, Jacob asks with James Gunn taking over DC and with a younger Superman. Is it officially New fifty two time? Now? Okay for those not verse contra the DC comics, So both Marvel and DC around the same time, I want to say, like six or seven years ago old.
It was in twenty eleven.
Oh my god, it's terrific. Twelve years ago rebooted their entire line. In Marvel, it was called Heroes Reborn. In DC it was called the New fifty two. Basically all the fifty two titles were rebooted and started fresh.
They stripped down everything and really relaunched with only fifty two titles. Look, it is one of the most influential for all its controversy. It's one of the most influential comic book situations of all time, follows the conclusion of Flashpoint, which obviously is now like such an influential thing. Out of it, there are so many books that people love and choices and characters were completely reimagined. But it was very controversial, as all kind of line wide readbooks.
The Markle stuff.
You know, the Marvel opened up Marvel now, which is some of my favorite stuff. Young Avengers miss Marvel, all of that stuff. DC. This was really like it was really a super It's hard to express how much of a big deal it was.
It was a huge deal and it happened, And like many DC events, it was an attempt to kind of streamline the the kind of just very very overgrown overlapping and.
For people, make it easier for people to jump on. It's always about just jumping on point.
And I'll tell you what I did, jump on and I enjoyed it. I thought it was great. I had a good time with it.
Would we now? I'm very interested. This is a great point. I don't necessarily know if Young Superman hints at kind of New fifty two, but James Gunn has recently been
reading Grant Morrison's Batman and Robin. I do think this is an era we Jim Lee is like such a huge icon who is such a big part of the New fifty two kind of era, And I do think we could be seeing people looking back to this almost as like we said, you know, twelve years ago, this is historical now, this is kind of like people in when they were making the two thousand and xt Me movie looking back to the eighties, like we're really you know, I think New fifty two could be a touch point.
I don't ever think they're going to say it's directly inspired by the New fifty two, because I do think it's so controversial, but I do think that already, for example, not necessarily like the greatest example, but the fact to say this is a point in proof that people are looking at it. The version of Black Adam and the comics they were drawing from was very directly from the New fifty two y Shazam, that which I love, and I'm really excited for the next one, that New fifty two.
So we're already seeing characters seeded in the previous DCEU flashpoint New fifty two prior to but around the same time. I think that there's a version where the New fifty two is incredibly influential on this. But I will also say James Gunn is a stone cold weirdo like us, and so I think we're also going to be getting some weirder, more deep cut you know. I could imagine him doing like a Batman inc you know.
That.
Kind of stuff. So yeah, I'm very interested to see where it goes. But will we ever see a movie called New fifty two or an allusion to it? I don't know. It would be a brave It will be a bold move, I will say it.
In terms of broad storylines, it's kind of a natural starting point if you want to, in terms of where to start stories and contemporary stories, contemporary stories that are grounded in today's world, not like with you know, Superman appearing in the fucking sixties or somethhit like that. So
I think it. I think it makes a lot of sense, maybe not as a one to one adaptation, but of kind of spiritual adaptation to say, okay, new ownership, in new creative direction, We're going to New fifty two, this film universe. I think that's why I think.
People within DC, I'm Warner Brothers may be using that phrase as you just used it. Yes, I believe it, Okay, Tyrannosaurus. Greg asks a wonderful, truly wonderful question, would you want a Star Wars what if animated series?
Wow?
And if so, what would you want the first season to be? Like? What would some ideas be of stories that you would want to see.
Anakin kills Palpatine right away and becomes emperor.
Oh I love that. Okay, mine would because one of my first ones is like the it's like the the coin flip of that, which is what if Padme never died?
Oh?
Yeah, I love that.
Those two would be so good. What if what if Anakin killed Palpatine and what if Padme never died? I'd like to see both.
That would be really cool. Yeah, and under in my imagination, Anakin it kills Palpatine, he gets his kids and he raises them as dark sis. I love that while ruling the galaxy that is so hatred and fear in his heart.
I think that's the most exciting thing about what if one imagine if they came at it with the esthetic sensibilities of visions, so it looks different. It's but there's so many options. Like obviously I'm our old school, I'm
like an old head, I'm I'm an old person. So like my first thought was like, what if Layer and hands kids were Jana Solo and Jason Solo and you have like the Legends stuff, and instead of Ben being kind of a Jason, you actually get to see that Legends canon brought to life in a more contemporary way. I would also be like a what if Finn and Poe fell in love? Like why not do it? It's animated, like, let us have fun. I think that's the power of
what if is you can do so much. You could do the smallest little story, and then you could do like the most expansive, huge canon changing moments like this idea of Anakin. I love that him raising the kids, like that, getting see a real dark Luk.
I mean, what if all we Wan didn't die on the desk?
Oh? Imagine you could have a lot of fun? Uh what yeah? No? Another legends what I do? Like what if Luke met Mara Jade just so we could see so we get sad? Yeah? I mean there's so there's so many incredible ones. I love that we if obi Wan didn't die, I mean that you could do ten seasons of Star of Star Wars.
What you really could? You know if there was and there is? Well, I was about to say there is no. I was about to say there's no kind of like multiverse kind of effect in Star Wars, but then I remembered rebels, the world between worlds or oh my god, that one of those, So like, let's put a pin in that maybe there is, but God, that would be really fun. That's a really cool idea to Rennosaurus, Greg.
Yeah, Tynasaurs, Greg, get Disney to pay you for that one, because that's that's primo.
Isabelle Thunderwood asks how much of Marv's funeral procession this is from and or going early was a communal, coordinated effort to support cast rescuing bis did Pegland cast agree to meet the shipyard and set that escape up? Or how much was an expression of how individuals spiritually aligned
will ultimately cross paths and entwine. I think the way I read it was it wasn't a conscious effort on anybody's part, but it was, and I think this is supported by the themes of the story and the things that we saw. I think it was an expression of people were at their breaking point. They were fed up. A beloved member of their community had been had been pounded to her death, you know, and many members of their community had been oppressed in prison. She said, yeah, so
many people. And whether or not it was a conscious effort to cause a distraction for and or to rescue Bicks, which I don't believe. I think what it was was people were just had had enough. People were just had had enough, and they were they were like sticking their chin out hoping that the Empire would take a swim because they had just had enough and they were ready to fight at that point in time.
I love that, And actually Elizabell's like the way that she posed this question actually just made me have a thought as well. We talked a lot about how the Force is not really something we see in action in a way that we understand it. No one's lifting rocks, you know, no one's doing But I kind of love this idea of some kind of almost like unconscious solidarity where everyone the Force was allowing these things to happen in these moments because, like you said, everyone was aligned,
they knew what they wanted. They were at their breaking point, and the right thing to bring balance to the universe, to bring balance to the Force, to bring balance to Pherics, was for this to happen. So I really love that. I love thinking about that kind of stuff because the show seems so grounded, but we know what world it exists in, so I love that idea. It's like, yeah, there was no no one was there with blueprints. No one was like texting each other. This was somebody. This
was that connection of people at their last moment. And maybe there was something a little bit more that allowed every little thing to happen as it did. But yeah, well, what a great question, what a great show. I was just thinking about it.
There's also something Shakespearean about it, you know, like Julius Caesar. How how mark Antony and Brutus make their speeches. And Brutus goes first basically saying, hey, you know, I loved Caesar. He was a great guy, but you know, he got a little too big in the head, and unfortunately we
had to take them down. And then Mark Antony does this emotional appeal appeal at just the right time, pointing out the kind of incongruities between what Brutus said and the way Julius Caesar had acted towards the people who were who he was beloved of. And I think that there's something of that in this funeral procession, in particular, how Marva's speech appears at the perfect time when everybody was at that emotional tenor to go over the edge
and do whatever and just act out. There was no you know, there was no like and then we'll overthrow the empire and then we'll storm. It was just like, fuck these guys, Yeah, we've had enough. And when Marva basically gave them the okay that like, it's okay to fight for freedom, it's okay to do what's right on paraphrasing, you know, And I think that message showed up at just the right time. And yeah, I think to your point,
maybe something else was at play there. Yeah, Sheabugin asks how much of a shot do you give everything everywhere, all at once of taking home Best Picture at the Oscars. I give it like zero chance. But I was delighted to see it. I think it's very clear to me from the movies that were nominated that one of the things the Oscars are trying desperately to do is to elevate movies that were popular movies.
Yeah, I mean this is I will say. The thing that's kind of blowing my mind is that this is probably one of the first times where there's two of the biggest movies of the year and of all time in the Best Picture Top Gun and Avatar. Notably not on years when they didn't nominate those on years when it was superhero movies, but you know, they've got a thing about genre. But so I think you're right. I would love to see it take Best Picture. I think it's a long shot, but I do think that Daniels
for Best Director is I think they might. I think they'll probably get that and screenplay, but not Best Picture.
But I hope.
I think they're gonna I think they have a good chance of sweeping the acting norms. And I think Kikwan is a I think that's a shoe in.
I think that's a shoeing too. I think it's gonna be I just can't imagine top Gun Africatic Best Picture, no way.
I think it's going to be the faith Woman's or something.
I think it's gonna be all quiet on the Western front. It's a it's a classic war movie, which the Academy loves, and it's coming. Yeah, it's and you know, I think it'll be that Elvis is too weird. Sharon was good, but I can't imagine it's too small as well.
I think Austin Butler does have a good chance for Elvis. I never expected it, but I think that's your Yeah, it's such a it's such a wild Year, but eleven nominations for everything everywhere, all at once. By the way, much does I have listened to the chat that we had with the Daniels and and and just send them some good vibes because they were freaked out. They deserve a year ago when this movie was a hit, and now it has eleven nominations, and I'm sure they're stressed.
And by the way, shouts to uh Austin Butler of Wizards of Waverley Place fame, Yes would come up by my guy, love that Matt Ces. If you had Amazon level money to throw it the on screen adaptation of your choice be a book series, comic run, or remake of an old movie or show, what would it be? Personally? I choose Robin Hobbes' Realm of the Elderlings books. Oh gosh, what would you what would you do?
This is like such a hard question that for years my answer would have been, uh, you know, Love and Rockets, which everyone knows is one of my all time favorite comic books. But I truly do believes as a grow older, I believe that is in its already in the best form it will ever be in, which is as a comic book. So I'm taking it off. So I'm going to say this is a newer book. I'd love to shout out if you listen to the podcast, you've heard it here before. But there is a manga by Komomi
shia Hama called wich Hat Italia. It's like if the most beautiful, intricate mar story about magic was drawn by somebody who loved Ur Adams, And it's about a young girl who wants to learn magic and uncovers the secret of magic accidentally in a world where only certain people know it and has to go and study it. Is honestly one of the best comics I've ever read in my whole life. There's about nine. I think the tenth
book just came out. I think they are making an anime, but I would love to see like a billion dollar adaptation of that book brought to life in a way that could represent the beauty of the art and the kind of cozy magic of the storytelling. What would yoursby.
Gosh, it's really hard, right, but I gosh, I'm going to pick a book that I just read, The Black Tongue Thief by Christopher Buelman. Now there's only one. The one story was published in twenty twenty one, so there's only the one book, and it's unclear if he will ever go back to the world world. But it is a book that really knocked me out, and it has like such a fully realized fun world involving magic, but
magic that is tightly controlled by guilds. And these guilds are corrupt, and it's unclear how far their influence actually runs and whether they are behind the scenes pulling the strings of different things that are happening. This story takes place in the kind of aftermath of these long running and devastating wars against goblins that ended that devastated humanity basically caused all horses to go extinct, many other had caused various other plagues, and humanity is just kind of
getting on its feet. And as that is happening, one of the cities on the periphery is attacked by giants. Now important fact is this is a city that had kind of ejected the Takers Guild, which is the guild of thieves and the and the Magicians Guild from their territories, meaning it was guild free, so you could be an independent magician or an independent thief working there. But you couldn't. There's no guild activities there, So what does this mean? Who is doing this?
Uh?
And it's all told from the perspective of this thief named Kinschna Shanek, who is just a wonderful, unreliable narrator. It's like just such a it's such a really really gripping and swashbuckling read that is is really really fun and wonderful and some of the best use of magic of that I've read lately.
It's great, sounds amazing. In today's nerd out what you tell us, what you love and why, or a theory that you're excited to share. Sarah pictures us on the beloved tabletop RPG Dungeons and Dragons from Crookedmedia started its own Dungeons and Dragons campaign recently, which includes super producer Soul, which means when the Dungeons and Dragon movie comes out, Soul's gonna have to come on and talk about it.
Hi, I'm Sarah, and I'm here to pitch you on Dungeons and Dragons. It may seem like everyone knows about D and D these days, but I'm a woman in my thirties and it was only in my thirties that I first discovered it. Shout out to my sister if you're unfamiliar with the game. It's a multiplayer role playing
game which focuses on teamwork and storytelling. You play as a singular character with a fantasy race like an Elf, and class like a wizard, who teams up with an unlikely band of heroes and faces challenges from paying the bar tab displaying dragons. You can embody absolutely any character you like, exploring different genders and identities, and form lifelong
bonds with the other players. It's an absolute feast for creativity, allowing you to build genuinely transferable problem solving skills and quick thinking. Empathy, daring, and math are just a few things you can learn at a D and D table. As a woman in my thirties, I've found today's players to be a welcoming and inclusive group, and I'm going to encourage anyone who's sitting on the fence to give
it a try. If you're looking for content to get you into it, The Juggernaut is critical role for good reason, but some other great content is not. Another D and D podcast, The Adventure Zone podcast, Rude Tales of Magic podcast and Dimension twenty. I hope you find boundless excitement and entertainment within the many worlds of D and D.
Thank you, Sarah. If you have theories or passions you want to share, hit us up extra at croocket dot com. Instructions as always are in the show notes.
That's it for us, Rosie any plugs.
Yeah, you can find me Rosie marks on letterbox and Instagram. You will be able to read some of my storm stories about these things that we're talking about. I've written at IGN about a couple of these big DC news. I'm gonna have some other core stuff coming out soon, and obviously ant Man's coming up, baby, so get ready for those anti takes. There's gonna be ants.
Next episode is Wednesday, February eighth for more of the Last of Us, and remember two episodes a week now two episodes week Wednesdays and Fridays. In your ear holes.
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You may even see me and Jason in the studio looking so dashing in our brightly colored clothes and core t shirt. Please follow us at XSRV pod on Twitter, where we're always sharing cool stuff and responding to our wonderful lists. And speaking of wonderful listeners, check out our discord. It is such a cool community. I didn't have Discord before this, but it's lovely. We got all kinds of different cool spaces, lots of funny interactions, theories, thoughts in that, just generally good stuff.
And if you're a fan of the Last of Us and are wondering what we could do to possibly make you join the discord, We're doing really cool giveaway in the discord for Discord members. It's a Last of Us Activation pack, Last of Us branded gear, including a backpack including a car heart jacket and more. Join the Discord to find out about it. We'll be doing the draw for who gets that really cool Last of Us Activation pack next week. Five star ratings, five fives. We need them,
we need them, we gotta have them. Here's caru X five stars only that's right, Caren. It was either that or no stars, Jason said, didn't leave me much of a choice. Listen, thank you to do it, Thank you, We appreciate it. X ray Vision is a crooked media production. The show is produced by Chris Lordon sal Rubin. The show is executive produced by myself and Sandy's Rohard Are Editing in sound design News by the Fascilla's Fatopoulos. Delon
Villanueva and Matt Degroup provide video production support. Alex Rella for to handle social media. Thank you Brian Vasquez for a theme music That's it for us. Bye, next time.