Comic book odd: Batman tickles Joker

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tickle joker

This one doesn’t require much explanation.

Or maybe it does.

This installment of our occasional series of odd and inappropriate comic book panels comes from Batman Volume 1 Number 49, released by DC in October 1948.

The story is “Batman’s Arabian Nights,” and the action finds the Caped Crusaders up against the Joker. Kinda.

Bruce and Dick find a 1,000-year-old rug with the Joker’s face on it. To investigate, they go back in time (!) through hypnotism to ancient Baghdad and find a duplicate for the Joker …  only this one sobs all the time.

Before long, Batman tickles him to make him laugh and … I kind of lost the thread of the story there.

But it’s a good panel.

RIP Tom Laughlin

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billy jack born losers

Tom Laughlin is not as well known as Peter O’Toole, certainly, but Laughlin made his own mark on the movie business. He died today at 82.

Laughlin was probably best known for creating the character of Billy Jack, a pacifist who unleashed his deadly martial arts moves when he was pushed … too … far.

Laughlin played Billy Jack in four movies: “The Born Losers” in 1967, “Billy Jack” in 1971, “The Trial of Billy Jack” in 1974 and “Billy Jack Goes to Washington” in 1977. He was ultra-recognizable with his close-cropped hair and blue jean jacket. He was also the guy usually laying waste to a bunch of heavies.

Although the movies were pretty straightforward vigilante fantasies, Laughlin, who also directed, was credited with pioneering modern-day marketing techniques and releasing some of his films himself when big studios spurned them.

Laughlin ran for president – yes, president – in 1992, 2004 and 2008.

Last year I wrote about going to see “The Born Losers” at the drive-in. Here’s that entry.

RIP Peter O’Toole

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Peter O'Toole in My Favorite Year

One of our favorite actors has died. Peter O’Toole has died at age 81, according to early online reports.

O’Toole was best known, of course, for essaying the title role in David Lean’s 1962 epic “Lawrence of Arabia.”

O’Toole was famously a carouser and hellraiser. Here’s a quote from an obituary by The Guardian:

“We heralded the ’60s,” he once said. “Me, [Richard] Burton, Richard Harris; we did in public what everyone else did in private then, and does for show now. We drank in public, we knew about pot.”

Although he’s justifiably famous for “Lawrence of Arabia,” I think most fondly of O’Toole in “My Favorite Year.” the 1982 comedy classic about the early days of American live TV sketch shows and the chaos that arose when a great Brit actor – by that time better known for his drinking and womanizing – appears as a guest star.

I’m startled to realize now that O’Toole was younger at the time he was playing a nearly washed-up actor for “My Favorite Year” than I am now.

We’ll miss him.

‘Three Ghosts’ elevates ‘Arrow’ even more

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arrow three ghosts mask

Just a few days ago, I was arguing here that “Arrow,” the current CW show about the early days of the DC Comics hero Green Arrow, might be the best superhero TV show of all time.

Last night’s “mid-season finale” episode of “Arrow” really backed up my argument.

(A word about mid-season finales or winter finales or whatever the networks are calling them: Shows like “Mad Men” and “The Walking Dead” take very deliberate breaks in the middle of their 14 or 16-episode seasons – mostly to avoid periods when networks think no one is watching, like the holidays, even though they’re wrong – and build to a strong climax for the final episode before that break. Although it would sound a little overblown on a sitcom, for example, mid-season finale seems appropriate for hour-long serialized shows that have built to a dramatic temporary stopping point. Like “Arrow.”)

“Three Ghosts,” last night’s “Arrow,” has as many dramatic elements as some season finales. And if you missed the significance of the title, it’s a reference to Dickens’ “A Christmas Carol.” During the course of the episode, Oliver is haunted by three figures from his past. Thankfully, the Dickensian undertones were decidedly undertones.

Arrow_Three_Ghosts three

“Three Ghosts” had a lot on its plate:

Although the flashbacks to five years earlier on the island aren’t likely to be done, last night’s episode went a long way toward tying those events into the Arrow’s present-day Starling City action.

We learned the fate of a couple of characters. Maybe.

We saw the origins, I’m thinking, of at least two more. Cyrus Gold, one of Brother Blood’s “super soldiers,” might have bigger (and deader) things ahead for him. As the poem that Diggle discovered goes, “Solomon Grundy, born on a Monday …”

The Scientist

Although it was a surprise, we saw the origin of the Flash, the DC hero who’s getting his own CW series (most likely) next fall. Grant Gustin has been guest-starring the past couple of episodes as Barry Allen, a CSI from Central City. The network had said Allen would appear in only these two episodes before moving on to his own series pilot. I didn’t expect to see the accident – true to the comics – that turns Allen into the Scarlet Speedster at the end of this episode, but I was glad they did it.

I guess you could argue that we saw the origin of Green Arrow, too, since Allen’s parting gift to Oliver Queen was a green mask that he could wear in place of camo makeup. As the episode closed, Ollie donned the mask. Is he still Arrow? Or is he Green Arrow? He’s sure not “the Hood” or “the Vigilante” anymore.

The episode had something for every cast member to do and emphasized, with one exception, what a strong ensemble this show is built around.

By the end of the episode, the series has set up a much more compelling “Big Bad” than Brother Blood. I won’t spoil it here if you haven’t watched it yet, but it’s not surprising to anyone with some comics history under their utility belt.

Here’s looking forward to the back half of the season.

 

Cult classic: ‘D.E.B.S.’

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debs

The first time I was channel-surfing and went past “D.E.B.S.” I thought it must be some TV show I hadn’t heard of.

Maybe it was some syndicated or cable TV show – which might explain why I’d never heard of it – featuring Michael Clarke Duncan, the actor from “Daredevil,” as the supervisor of a bunch of young female spies, living in a dormitory – and hey, are those two young women flirting and kissing?

It was only later, after a cursory Internet search, that I determined I had stumbled upon a cult movie.

“DEBS” – as I’m going to call it from here forward, omitting the periods just like I do with “Agents of SHIELD” – isn’t a TV show, although it would be a natural fit on a progressive cable channel like Bravo or Logo. It’s a 2004 film written and directed by Angela Robinson.

It’s a lightweight and silly movie that’s become something of a cult classic within the lesbian community for three reasons:

It presents a light-hearted flirtation and romance between two young women without a lot of the heartache and tragedy of earlier movies like “Desert Hearts” and “Personal Best.”

debs jordana brewster

There are some “oh my god I can’t believe you’re kissing another girl” moments, but mostly because the romantic leads are young women at the opposite end of the crime and punishment spectrum: Amy (Sara Foster) is one of the DEBS, a government spy recruited right out of school and Lucy Diamond (Jordana Brewster, more recently Elena of the “Dallas” reboot) is a criminal, prone to robbing banks and threatening the world with high-tech weapons. Lucy is kind of like Dr. Evil if he was a woman, weighed 100 pounds, had great cheekbones and to-die-for hair. And Lucy has better taste in assistants: Scud (Jimmi Simpson) is funnier and more understanding than Mini Me.

And thirdly, Amy and Lucy get – spoiler – a happy ending.

There’s no doubt there’s some intent to appeal to horny guys here. After all, the movie features the DEBS agents running around in school girl outfits and high heels.

But the movie doesn’t treat Amy and Lucy like pieces of eye candy – at least not solely for men in the audience. Judging by the online outpourings of love for “DEBS,” the movie has a cult following among the lesbian community. There are not only fan sites but fan fiction out there. That’s a sure sign of a cult movie.

An added bonus if you watch “DEBS” is Duncan and Holland Taylor in supporting roles and Brewster and Simpson (who more recently appeared in movies like “White House Down”) in early roles.

If you want to know more about “DEBS,” check out the fan site debsmovie.com.

‘Godzilla’ remake has beautiful images

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godzilla trailer screen cap

I’ve not been the biggest fan of the “Godzilla” movies made by Toho in the 1950s, 1960s, 1980s and beyond.

Let’s say I like the kitschy concept more than the execution.

I’ll be interested in seeing how the new version, starring Aaron Taylor Johnson, Bryan Cranston and others, comes out.

In the meantime, there’s a new trailer that has some very cool imagery. The screencap above is of soldiers parachuting into a city under siege.

Here’s the trailer.

The Warner Bros. movie opens May 16.

Unsung actors: Kenneth Tobey

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kenneth tobey the thing from another world

Kenneth Tobey was one of those actors who, when he appeared on screen in anything from the classic sci-fi horror film “The Thing from Another World” to the TV series “I Spy,” you just felt like everything was under control.

Tobey, who was born in 1917 and died in 2003, was a character actor in films like “The Howling” who occasionally got to play the lead, as in his 1950s series “Whirlybirds,” about helicopter pilots.

the thing lobby card

Tobey is one of my favorite actors in one of my favorite movies, “The Thing from Another World.”

In the classic 1951 Howard Hawks production, Tobey played Captain Patrick Hendry, who quickly took control of a remote installation in danger from a fearsome alien (James Arness).

Hendry is low-key and no-nonsense and you had the feeling Tobey was likewise.

‘Arrow’ – Best superhero TV of all time?

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Three GhostsHow can you – well, I, really – proclaim anything the best of its kind of all time when it’s still relatively new and hasn’t withstood the test of time?

Beats the heck out of me. But I’m inclined to call “Arrow” the best live-action superhero series of all time. And yes, we’re not quite half-way through the CW network show’s second season.

But the gritty and stylish Greg Berlanti-developed series, featuring Stephen Arnell as millionaire crimefighter and adventurer Oliver Queen, who uses gimmicky arrows and amazing trick shots to fight crime, is tops.

Believe me, I didn’t expect to go into this fall season liking “Arrow,” the DC Comics-based show about a Batman-style vigilante in its second season, better than “Agents of SHIELD,” the TV beachhead for the Marvel movie universe.

And yet …

Crowning “Arrow” might sound like heresy for people who loved the simple pleasures of the 1950s “Adventures of Superman” series or the camp 1960s classic “Batman” or even more recent ventures like “Lois and Clark” or “The Flash” or “Birds of Prey,” all of which have their strong points.

But no, “Arrow” is better than all of them, a truly satisfying experience for comic book fans.

I was a little worried about “Arrow” when it was announced by the CW a couple of years ago. The Green Arrow character had been a nice addition to the network’s “Smallville,” the 10-season show about the growing years of Superman and, for me, marked when the series finally got interesting. The Clark and Lex theme of the show was always good but the writers were just too coy for too long. And I have to say I was kind of ticked off when they never actually showed Clark in the suit, even in the final episode. It all reeked of superhero shame.

But despite some coyness of its own – “Arrow” instead of “Green Arrow” as a title – “Arrow” has the courage of its convictions. The series put millionaire Oliver Queen into a green hood right from the word go and put him on the path to avenging criminal activity. He’s surrounded by an engaging supporting cast.

barry allen on arrow

And the series has aggressively set about building its own universe, adding characters like Black Canary, Slade Wilson, Huntress and, this week, Barry Allen, a young police scientist who’s not yet the Flash. The character, as played by Grant Gustin, is apparently destined for his own CW show. If it’s handled like “Arrow,” we’ll have another classic on our screens.

“Arrow” has some problems, certainly. But it feels like they recognized most of them early.

Chief among them is Katie Cassidy, cast as Oliver’s ex-girlfriend Dinah Laurel Lance, who comic fans know is destined to become Black Canary, a tough-as-nails hero and companion to Green Arrow.

But it’s almost as if the producers decided early on that the character and actress combination was just too … I don’t know, awkward? Cassidy seems like she would never for a moment be believable as a street-fighting gal. The show has introduced a new Black Canary, Dinah’s sister, played by Caity Lotz, and she’s more believable.

The cast is pretty uniformly good, from thinking man’s hunk Arnell to David Ramsey as Dig, Oliver’s cohort, to Emily Bett Richards as Felicity, Oliver’s Gal Friday and tech guru who deserves all the online worship she gets.

The show flips back and forth from Arrow’s exploits fighting crime in present-day Starling City (an inexplicable change from Star City in the comics) to five years earlier, when Oliver was shipwrecked on a not-even-remotely-deserted island and learned his survival skills.

The first season gave us an Oliver on a mission to clean up his city and willing to casually kill bad guys. The second season has Oliver pursuing a less murderous campaign. Heck, he’s apparently even about to start wearing the mask seen in the photo at top here.

All the while, “Arrow” is adding characters and mythology and feeling stronger and stronger.

Comic book odd: A super teeter totter

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superman batman teeter totter

Sometimes you just have to chalk it up to the indisputable silliness of the times.

Here’s the cover from World’s Finest 61, from November 1952.

According to the DC Comics database, Win Mortimer was the artist.

‘Agents of SHIELD’ – Five ways to save it

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agents of shield cast

Remember way  back in September, when Marvel’s first modern-era TV production, “Agents of SHIELD,” seemed so exciting?

Sure we were all worried about how Marvel and show creator Joss Whedon (“Buffy the Vampire Slayer,” “The Avengers”) would be able to translate the excitement of the big-screen world onto ABC’s small screen. That ABC was showing it at 8 p.m. Tuesdays was also a concern. Nobody expected tough-and-gritty stories and atmosphere anyway, although we might see that with “Daredevil” and the other shows Marvel is doing for Netflix. An 8 p.m. timeslot all but guaranteed a fairly family-friendly aura.

But we were genuinely excited at the thought of everything that might happen. “SHIELD” would be a weekly dose of the greater Marvel  universe, filled with characters we love, characters that have never been portrayed in live action before. Luke Cage! Moon Knight!

At first, “Agents of SHIELD” seemed like a sure-fire hit. The pilot got very good ratings.

But as the first nine episodes continued to air, audience numbers dropped – and so did our expectations of and faith in the show.

Too many episodes, although they seem “thisclose” to really taking off, somehow fail to. The core team of SHIELD operatives isn’t that interesting. Too much time has been spent teasing the audience about what happened to Phil Coulson after Loki “killed” him. And the roster of comic book characters that have been allowed to make an appearance is lackluster. Graviton? Really?

So here’s what the producers of “Agents of SHIELD” need to do before it’s too late. If it isn’t already too late.

nick fury agents of shield

Give us some well-known characters. When Whedon said a while back that “Agents of SHIELD” gave him a few dozen opportunities to make “The Avengers: Age of Ultron” a little less special when it came out in 2015, he wasn’t joking. Obviously nobody at Marvel or Disney or ABC wants to sate the audience’s interest in Marvel heroes before the movie comes out. And obviously Marvel wants to save some characters for big-screen movies, which is why you won’t see Dr. Strange, I’m guessing. But stop with the one-and-done, wannabes and third-raters. There ware many, many Marvel characters the show could introduce.

Retool the cast. Each of the supporting characters is fine, really, but they’re the type of characters that Clark Gregg’s Agent Coulson was in the Marvel movies. In other words, just that: Supporting. I loved episodes of “Buffy” that revolved around that show’s “supporting” cast. Remember “The Zeppo” and Xander as below-the-radar hero? “Agents of SHIELD” hasn’t, so far, been able to do that kind of thing with Fitz or Simmons or May or Skye.

Resolve Phil Coulson’s status now. Or at least take it to the next level. Remember in the final season of “Buffy” when Buffy would make a different version of the “this is gonna be a tough battle” speech what seemed like every week? Jeez, that got old. It seemed like the series was treading water. “SHIELD” seems to have fallen into the same trap with its near-weekly reminder that something is different with Agent Coulson. A while back I suggested they needed to let Coulson – who is blocked from viewing his own medical records – find out he’s a clone or Life Model Decoy or whatever, break ranks with SHIELD and go at least a little rogue. “The good guys versus SHIELD” angle appears to be at least part of the plot of next April’s “Captain America: The Winter Soldier,” so it wouldn’t be totally out of character for the Marvel universe.

aim

Bring on the bad guys. SHIELD’s adversaries in the show so far have been weak to only mildly intriguing. I’m not sure I care a whit about Centipede unless it morphs into HYDRA. How about AIM? Advanced Idea Mechanics was referenced in “Iron Man 3.” In the comics, they were guys in crazy yellow hazmat/beekkeeper outfits. I’m sure the show could come up with an updated uniform.

iron-man-3-after-credits-scene

Give us some star power. Samuel L. Jackson’s blink-and-you’ll-miss-it appearance in an early episode was fine. But we want more meat. Remember Mark Ruffalo’s appearance at the end of “Iron Man 3?” We want that in “SHIELD,” magnified.

Maybe “Agents of SHIELD” will resolve its problems quickly and, by February, be the kick-ass Marvel TV experience we all want. A couple of upcoming episodes hold promise.

But if not, it’s hard to imagine many of us sticking around.