Category: Literature & Comics

Lee and Tolkien

“I still think Lord of the Rings is the greatest literary achievement of my lifetime” – Sir Christopher Lee on The Fellowship of The Ring. We were all saddened to hear of the passing of Sir Christopher Lee last week. From Dracula to Scaramanga to Count Dooku, there is no doubt the man was a true legend of cinema, not to mention many other things. Fans of fantasy will remember him as the wizard Saruman, head of the white council, in Peter Jackson’s adaption of The Lord of The Rings and Hobbit. There is more to Sir Lee’s involvement with the Tolkien universe than many may realise. Lee originally auditioned for the role of Gandalf in the trilogy, but is […]

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Too many superhero movies?

The release of Avengers: Age of Ultron over a month ago was met with some criticism in some quarters. There were assertions that comic book movies have become such a dominant force in the box office that they are preventing other smaller movies from being made and getting the attention they rightly deserve from the audience at large. It got to a point that Simon Pegg who makes regular appearances in geek related movies such as “Shaun of the dead” and “Star Trek”, also voiced his dismay which kicked off a round of bickering both for and against his views amongst fans and non-fans alike. The truth of the matter is that comic book movies and geek culture in general […]

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Avengers: Age of Ultron Review

 

 Cast: Chris Evans, Robert Downey Jr. Chris Hemsworth, Jeremy Renner, Scarlett Johannson, Mark Ruffalo, Paul Bettany, Aaron Taylor-Johnson, Kate Olsen, James Spader Director: Joss Whedon This Movie review is rated *S* for *Minor Spoilers* Turn back all ye who do not want to be spoiled. I will come out straight from the get go and say that I enjoyed the movie but not as much as I enjoyed the first one. My main gripe has to do with Ultron as the villain, but I did like it overall. Strap yourself into the Avengers Quinjet, as I give you my take on the Age of Ultron. So this is where everyone is when the movie starts: At the conclusion of Captain […]

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The invasion continues?

I remember when Nickelodeon killed the invasion back in the early 2000’s. It was a day of much sadness and taco poop. Now, as many of you have no doubt heard, the invasion is set to return. This year, Oni Press in alliance with Jhonen Vasquez and Nickelodeon, will be releasing the continuation of Invader Zim. All right, so it’s not coming back as a TV series or webseries, but instead is returning to us as a comic book. Expect the first comic to come out on 1 July. Essentially, I CANNOT WAIT!

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Free Comic Book Day 2015

*yawn* I found myself waking up late, starting with my regular routine and then checking the date.  Why was 2 May important again? *cue light bulb moment* Free comic book day! Time to rush. No! I’m down to my last superhero shirt! That’s pretty much how my Free Comic Book Day began.  Whilst originally I had planned to pull in a group and do my usual trek through all the shops I knew, my plans drastically changed.  I ended up only going to two stores and only with one extra person in tow (not even a comic fan *gasp*). My guest, having just returned from New York from a year long work contract, at least appeared eager to go and was looking forward to […]

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Free comic book days of future past

Well, it’s that time of the year again. Free comic book day is with us again! For those of you who are out of the loop, it’s a day on which you can go to your nearest comic book shop and you will, as its name implies, get a free comic book! You can read all about it how it started.  This year, I thought I would let you know that there are actually two Free comic book day’. The other one is held around October so don’t despair if you miss out this time around, you have another opportunity in October to get free comics. It’s called Halloween Comicfest. To explain the difference between the two free comic book […]

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Avengers: Age of Ultron – Who’s who

“I was designed to save the world. People will look to the sky and see…. hope. I’ll take that from them first.” – Ultron. The first Avengers movie brought together The super soldier – Steve Rodgers, The genius, billionaire, playboy, philanthropist (and Iron man) – Tony stark, The God of Thunder, Thor, The former soviet super spy, Black widow, Hawkeye – the famed marksman and the green goliath, Hulk. The sequel introduces us to new characters and a villain who has plagued the Avengers’ comic book counterparts for decades. Ultron: Ultrons mark 1 was not humanoid. He also had tank tracks instead of legs During the production of the movie, there were some liberties that were taken regarding Ultrons creation. […]

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Shadow’s top 5 Shakespearean films

Today we celebrate the life and times of one of the greatest Englishmen that ever lived. No, not Mr Bean. Today we celebrate that master of letters, William Shakespeare (26 April 1564 – 23 April 1616), and in my less than humble opinion there is only one way to celebrate this man’s work: Film review. And no, you will find no Romeo and Juliet here. I can’t stand that play. Much Ado About Nothing (1993) We shall start with this amazing little film produced by a tiny little indie chap named Kenneth Branagh. Released in 1993, this relatively popular little film starred a plethora of famous actors (Denzel Washington, Keanu Reeves, Emma Thompson) and a number of up-and-coming actors (Kate Beckinsale, […]

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Top 5 Shakespearean actors

Once more… Oh, you should know the rest. Here’s my look at a few of my favourite Shakespearean actors. Sir Patrick Stewart: We start with one of the best. For nearly five decades this legendary Yorkshireman has thrilled and entertained the world through numerous roles and films. Stewart has done it all: small indie films, various stage plays, voice work (Elder Scrolls: Oblivion), Star Trek, X-Men and piles of other performances. Sir Anthony Hopkins: This great Welshman has thrilled and terrified the world with powerful and emotional performances for years, Hannibal Lecter being one that we all remember. Sir Ian McKellen: Before he became Gandalf and Magneto, Sir Ian McKellen had already made a name for himself as one of […]

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