X-Men and The Atom (Part Two)

 

Continued from yesterday's cover, we see who has been tormenting the Mighty Mite.  I guess he is action figure sized, so perhaps Arcade just couldn't resist creating game time around him.

Iron Man and King Kong

 

We may see them from time to time, but for the most part, gorgeously painted movie posters are a thing of the past.  It's too bad, some of them were truly iconic.  Just like album covers, somewhere along the line, artistry took a back seat to more commercial advertising.

Iron Man and Magnus: Robot Fighter

 

I wonder if these two would get along or not.  Sure, they are both heroes with an interest in technology and robots, but I still sense there might be some friction.  Tony Stark is all about creating mechanical wonders and Magnus' specialty is destroying them, after all.

Swamp Thing and Storm

 

This is not a team-up that I would instantly think of, but when I decided on the hook, the story potential really appealed to me.  It would be interesting to see Ororo enter this new stage in her evolution.

I was happy to use the artwork of the amazing Steve Bissette here.  I was lucky enough to pick up a sketch by him many years ago:

Fantastic Four and The Spectre in: "The Judgment of Reed Richards!"

 

I loves the series of issues in Fantastic Four by John Byrne where after a mid-town battle with Galactus, Reed Richards decides to save the World Devourer from death.  This act is not appreciated by some and Reed is hauled off to face an intergalactic trial.  Just a great run of stories, and something that I think would be ripe for a movie adaptation.

The FF previously crossed paths with The Spectre back in STF # 1046...

Aliens Vs. ROM

 Looking over various comics to find images, I have been struck by the gorgeous work of Jean Frisano.  Frisano illustrated the covers to many Marvel foreign reprints, and he had a unique painterly style.  I am surprised that I never saw him get some mainstream comics work, I would have been interested to see his interior artwork as well.

Stingray Vs. Black Manta

 

I thought that Black Manta was the coolest looking member of  The Legion of Doom when I watched Super Friends as a kid, so it was a thrill to finally see him realized in live action in Aquaman.  My only complaint was that I wanted more!  He promises to have a larger role in Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom, and I am looking forward to seeing how he has leveled up for the sequel.

Black Goliath Vs. Godzilla

 

We've seen flashbacks of the original Ant-Man and The Wasp in action in the MCU, but what about Bill Foster?  I don't think I have seen Laurence Fishburne listed in the Quantumania cast, so it looks like we will have to keep waiting.  He was last seen promising not to abandon The Ghost, who is rumored to possibly be a part of either The Thunderbolts or Dark Avengers, so maybe there's another place that he could show up again.

Iron Man Meets R2D2 and C3PO

 

We finally see the reason Shellhead has been spending some time in the Star Wars era.  Iron Man previously met Han Solo, and later on, Chewbacca, but that was with his original armor.  We see him here in my personal favorite suit - one can only imagine what kind of tech Tony Stark would come up with after having some time to examine droids!

Iron Man and Space Ghost

Lately when Chemo is featured in the comics, he has some kind of robotic appendages attached to him.  He still looks cool, but I still favor the more simple classic design, as used on this cover.  A giant sentient container of bubbling toxic waste is a terrifying concept and his appearances always excited me as a kid.

Kingpin Vs. Deathstroke

Bad guys killing of their own henchmen is a staple of heroic fiction, and The Kingpin is no exception to that rule.  It might be interesting to see him try and pull that move on an assassin for hire that doesn't go down that easily.  Deathstroke's skill set against The Kingpin's vast resources could make for an exciting battle.

Deadman and Captain Marvel

There was lots of talk of Nanda Parbat on Arrow a few seasons back, so I was hoping they were planting the seeds for a Deadman appearance. Alas, it did not happen, nor did the proposed Deadman solo TV series that was proposed.  Boston Brand is usually mentioned as being a member of the on-again, off-again Justice League Dark movie... which seems to be off again these days, I haven't heard much news about that lately.  Hopefully comics greatest undead hero will finally end the curse and break through to live action soon.

ROM & Star Trek Vs. Aliens

I watched Alien: Covenant recently, and while it was well made and acted, it felt kind of unnecessary.  Almost every big scene seemed to be recreating a moment from one either Ridley Scott's original Alien or James Cameron's sequel, Aliens.  The result just seemed bloated and derivative to me.  I liked a lot of the action, I just felt as though I had seen it all before.

Thank you to Tom Zilla, a patron of this blog, for suggesting this 3-way encounter!

Deadman and Iron Man

With all the starts and stops in the DC movie plans, it was good to hear that Justice League Dark is still on the roster from news out of Comicon.  It will be great - and long overdue - to see Deadman in live action.  Meanwhile, on the Marvel side, the villains of the upcoming Captain Marvel will be The Skrulls, which opens up lots of possibilities.  Could one of the heroes in the Marvel Cinematic Universe secretly be a Skrull in disguise?  This might be a way to replace someone like Robert Downey Jr. or Chris Evans if they leave their roles.

Ant-Man and The Atom in " The Pym-Palmer Protocol!"

The Atom and Ant-Man had to deal with Kang and Chronos once before, in one of the back up stories featured in the epic STF #1000 (Which inspired this 2-parter)... They also found themselves in a sticky situation in STF #65...  and were at odds while Pym was in his Yellowjacket Persona in STF #29...

As I mentioned, this is only Part One of a Two-Part Thriller, so be sure to come back tomorrow for the stirring conclusion!

Han Solo and Star Trek

Filming on the Han Solo film has begun.  I still think it's a tall order to try and recapture Harrison Ford's iconic character with a new actor in the role, but after being so pleasantly surprised with Rogue One, I am willing to keep an open mind.

Kirk probably still has a grudge against Solo after how their partnership ended... and Chewbacca will continue to get involved with The Federation right into the Next Generation...

He-Man Vs. ROM

My first encounter with Masters of the Universe was seeing He-Man showing up in DC Comics Presents and being annoyed that an issue of one of my favorite comics seemed to be devoted to a toy advertisement.  I never really got into the cartoons back then for that reason.   I will say I did check out some of the more recent animated episodes and they were a lot of fun, I can see the appeal of the characters now.

Batman and Spider-Man in "Rigged Rides!"

I just picked up the entire run of Batman: The Brave and the Bold on Blu-Ray and I am having a blast re-visiting the episodes.  The love for DC comics history is very evident, and I keep noticing new references and easter eggs that I missed the first (or second) time around.

Batman and Spider-Man have a bit of history on STF: The Lost Issues...

The Batman/Spidey movie premiered in STF #1014
Spidey and JJJ joined forces against Batman in Issue #937...
They were joined by some Amazing Friends in back in October 2011...
The shared a Golden Age adventure in September 2011...
Spidey wore his black outfit for their  July 2010 meeting...
And here is where they first crossed paths.

This isn't the only time The Spider-Buggy has seen action, either...

Dazzler and Elvis

 There are a few characters that are based (visually at least) on real life singers.  Wesley from Wanted (Eminem) and John Constantine (Sting) come to mind.  Then there's Captain Marvel Jr. who inspired the legendary Elvis Presley to adopt his look, first with a hairstyle and later on with full stage costumes complete with cape.  I like that DC Comics returned the favor by having Freddy Freeman mention being a big Presley fan himself.

Iron Fist and The Metal Men

Attempts have been made from time to time to modernize the Metal Men.  We've seen darker takes, incarnations where Doc himself becomes a robot, and clunky visual redesigns.  Give me the sleek appearance of the originals with their personalities and whimsical adventures intact any day.  This is one property works best when it stays true to its classic design.