Ups and downs and various trials to overcome, but generally I'm doing all right. I hope the same or better goes for you!




I've put a more lengthy post above with spoilers in it for anyone who is interested.

I, too, have been very much out of the Marvel comics loop... I happened to pick these two issues up while Christmas shopping and finding myself passing the mall's comic book store. While there I saw a poster advertising the "Korvac Saga", only it seemed to be all new artwork of the classic Guardians of the Galaxy along with the Vision and Jocasta, while looming over all of them was a menacing, bubbly-blue, Ionic-energy version of Wonder Man... so I have no idea what that was. A new Korvac Saga? Are they recycling that storyline now?

I'm around 90% sure that I really saw it though, and it wasn't just some odd fever dream brought on by crowds and shopping fatigue.




Well, minus the last 10 years or so of publishing. Something important might have happened in all that. Maybe.




Actually, I think the existence of Movie Vision allows me to approach weird takes on the character with a more Zen-like peace, because I approved of him, by and large, and feel he is thus safely cemented into pop culture to a reassuring degree. For a while, it seemed like he was destined to be a cast-off and fade away, and every botched attempt at him just reinforced the idea in current readers that the character wasn't worth using. Now that he's a player in one of the biggest franchises to ever exist, I think he'll keep coming back around regardless of what is done to him.

I found the movie costume to overly busy, as movie costumes tend to be for whatever reason. (I suspect that costume designers resent having their work already done for them by mere comic book artists and so overcompensate.) I don't really get the cut-out nature of it in places (especially the back of his head) and I miss the suggestion of a collar of some sort (hell, it could have been a holographic halo like effect around him.) I also think that he looks better with darker eyes, and wish that the merchandise of him could decide what his color scheme actually was.

All that aside, I quite like Paul Bettany's portrayal of him... I think he nailed the soulful, thoughtful take on him. I of course would like to see him get angry sometime... I don't know if that's in the cards. It seems like there is probably something going on with the character and the Scarlet Witch in "Civil War", and if so I would approve of that.

His origin was kind of a mess, which I suppose is appropriately reflecting of his comics origin, which is likewise albeit with very different details. I fully expect him to have that Infinity Gem taken out of his head, and then for Paul Rudd's Ant-man to travel inside him and repair him in time for the final showdown with Thanos. Should that fail to happen and he is left sidelined, I will be supremely disappointed.

The one major complaint I have is that they have so far done absolutely nothing interesting with his phasing powers. I don't think the general audience even realizes that it is something he can do at this point. I saw a deleted, alternate take on his "birth" scene where he at least he lets Cap's shield pass through him. Hopefully in the next film they can use that ability for some interesting action sequences.