Superman lifting a car? Not a big deal in today's comics, but when it's the Man of Steel lifting a car drawn on a "very fine"-rated 10-cent-issue of Action Comics No. 1, the deal is the biggest in comics history: $1 million.

Stephen Fishler, co-owner of the auction site ComicConnect.com, which mediated the deal, told the Associated Press: "It is still a little stunning to see 'a comic book' and '$1 million' in the same sentence."

The buyer remains anonymous, as often happens in these big money deals. The book doesn't reach the record heights of Pablo Picasso's Boy with a Pipe (The Young Apprentice), which sold for $104.1 million at auction in 2004, or a bronze sculpture by Alberto Giacometti that sold for $103.4 million (or $104.3 million,  depending on how you measure it), but comparatively, it's still a wonder.

How have other high-priced comic books fared at auction, you ask?  Well, that's what Hero Complex (and Comic Link, where we got some of the figures) is here for. Most of these books fetched high prices not only because of the issues, but the state that they're in as appraised by the Certified Guaranty Company, or its CGC grade.

Amazing Fantasy #15
Sold for: $227,000.

You-know-who swung into our lives courtesy of this issue, and this specific, near-mint book was part of the noted White Mountain pedigree collection.
 
Fantastic Four #1
Sold for: $52,000

The origin and first appearance of the first family of Marvel Comics takes place here, and Stan Lee and Jack Kirby launch the Silver Age. There are only five graded 8.5 by CGC.

All Star Comics #8
Sold for: $20,000

The introduction of Wonder Woman, the greatest female hero in comics (no debate! unless you want to leave a comment). This 1941 issue is one of only five examples of All Star Comics #8 assigned a grade as high as 7.5 by CGC.

Sensation Comics #1
Sold for: $25,250

The Amazon with the golden lasso made her first cover appearance in Sensation Comics #1. This particular book, at least as far as anyone knows, is one of only six in the world that could be assigned a grade as high as 8.5 by CGC.

Showcase #23
Sold for: $15,928

The Blackest Night saga is currently taking the comics world by storm, and this comic has the second appearance of the Silver Age Green Lantern at the center of it all, Hal Jordan. Apparently, this 1959 issue is extremely hard to come by, and it's even tougher to find one that can match the 9.4 grading that was given.

-- Jevon Phillips

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Photos courtesy of Associated Press, Marvel Comics and DC Comics.

Plenty of of fanboys are anticipating the new Justice League DVD "Crisis on Two Earths," which premieres on Feb. 23, but that disc will also give birth to a new DC must-see home movie when the Dark Knight saga "Batman: Under the Red Hood" launches one of its first promos.

Written by Judd Winick and based on his 2005 Batman comics story line, it's Batman versus another vigilante, Red Hood, who doesn't mind cleaning up Gotham by leaving dead bodies in his wake. Animated guru Bruce Timm exec produces this pretty violent look into crime on the streets, and it's directed by "Superman Doomsday" co-director Brandon Vietti, with a cavalcade of stars as voice talent. It all starts with Bruce Greenwood ("Star Trek") as Batman, then continues with "Supernatural" star Jensen Ackles as Red Hood, Neil Patrick Harris ("How I Met Your Mother") as Nightwing, John DiMaggio ("Futurama") as the Joker and Jason Isaacs (the Harry Potter films) as Ra's Al Ghul.

This was one of the most popular story lines to come out of Batman in recent history. Will you watch?

-- Jevon Phillips

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If you grew up as a comics fan in the 1980s, you probably also grew up a fan of parodist Fred Hembeck (I know I did) and his whimsical interpretations of classic Marvel and DC covers. We've been lucky enough to have Fred share his work with Hero Complex this year and here's the latest, a holiday blast-from-the-past that will bring a smile to your face. Check out more of his latest work at his website, and below you can find a directory of his Hero Complex contributions.

It has been a great year for the blog and we're looking forward to an even more heroic 2010.

-- Geoff Boucher

Fred Hembeck salutes Captain America, Part 1

Fred Hembeck salutes Captain America, Part 2

Fred Hembeck Hulks out, Part 1

Fred Hembeck Hulks out, Part 2

A Marvel-ous holiday tradition

Marvel holiday covers through the years

When Superman met Spider-Man...

These are big-time days for comic-book writers, and right now no one is bigger than Geoff Johns, the scribe who had the surreal experience this year of walking on the same stage as Keith Richards, Johnny Depp and the cast of "The Twilight Saga: New Moon"  at the Scream Awards. The 36-year-old Detroit native picked up the Scream trophy for best comic-book writer. This year, Johns wrote the six-issue miniseries "The Flash: Rebirth," which chronicled the return of Barry Allen, the most famous Flash. Today, DC announced that Johns and artist Francis Manapul would take the mythology further in March with "The Flash: Secret Files and Origins." It's a one-shot that leads up to a creative team taking over "The Flash" series, which already looks like one of the most promising runs of 2010. I caught up with Johns to talk a bit about the Scarlett Speedster.

GB: Tell me about your memories, as a reader, of Barry Allen getting killed off in 1985. It was such a jolting moment for DC readers and a pivotal point in comics history...

GJ: I had just started reading comics when the DC-altering "Crisis on Infinite Earths" came out.  One of the first comics I ever bought was the death of Barry Allen. I had seen the Flash before in animation and had really been drawn to the character, and then he died. Ironically, his death might've even been the trigger that really sucked me into the world of DC Comics. When I got to the end of "Crisis," and Wally West took on the mantle of the new Flash, I followed him into his book.  Barry's death really hit the DC Universe hard, it changed the entire makeup of it, and decades later his return is ushering in a new direction for the DC Universe.

GB: Do you feel restricted by the thicket of mythology that surrounds these characters? Even when it "doesn't count," you have to compete with it in some sense.

GJ: No. We all have a "thicket of mythology." You meet someone and they have an entire back story. A city they were born in. A best friend they lost touch with. An event that affected their whole family. A first job. Everyone has history. And every character has history. We don't meet characters the day they're born. We meet them years later. To me, it's the same thing. I think people can over-complicate the mythology, but I believe in highlighting the important parts -- that is, the events that affected them emotionally -- and moving on.

GB: Tell me about Barry Allen's voice compared to some of his heroic peers' -- what's his personality and mien?

GJ: Barry is a man who, despite what life throws at him, continues to step forward with a clear purpose and sense of who he is. He believes in justice, sometimes looking at it in black and white. He has no tolerance for those who victimize others. Before he became the Flash, Barry had trouble connecting with people emotionally, he was letting life pass him by. As the Flash, Barry found that excitement in life again and rejoined it with a vengeance. The most frustrating thing for Barry is related to his job as a member of Central City CSI. He investigates crimes that have already happened. Murders he can't stop. No matter how fast he is, that's the past.

GB: What did you want to avoid with this incarnation? In other words, what needed to be left behind for the character to run on?

GJ: Really, I look at something like "The Flash" as a long-term mission. "The Flash: Rebirth" was the knot to untangle in the shoelace before we could run. I wanted to clear the board, reexamine some key elements of Barry Allen and re-introduce a threat that would play throughout the next several years. Much in the same way as Green Lantern, I'm committed to a long-term story with the Flash and the universe around him. There's nothing that really needs to be left behind, so to speak. However, "The Flash" No. 1 that will start in April -- post-"Blackest Night" by Francis Manapul and I -- will be extremely accessible.  It's Barry Allen a.k.a. the Flash, Central City and the Rogues.

GB: Were there any lessons in Lantern experience that you can point to that helped you here?

GJ: Green Lantern is a very different beast, but if I learned anything, it was patience.  As soon as I came up with "Blackest Night," I wanted to get to it as soon as possible. But I knew I wouldn't have the proper buildup to the payoffs unless I rolled it out in the correct way. The same thing goes for "The Flash."  There are so many amazing villains and concepts within the Flash, they all deserve the proper time to explore.

GB: What are the compass points here as far as art? Flash has such a storied history, especially those Carmine Infantino years, how does that affect the present?

GJ: There are a handful of iconic Flash artists to me -- Carmine Infantino, of course, being among the top.  But speaking with Francis about his approach to the Flash and the world, thinking about the layouts, and specifically rethinking how to approach the power of speed and illustrate it in the best way possible is an ongoing conversation we're all having. But I have a very clear idea of showing the true power of super speed in a way we haven't really seen before. The Flash has always been a book at the forefront of where the rest of the superhero universe is going, and Francis Manapul and I intend to do our best to continue that tradition, yet we're starting with a very basic concept -- it's superhero "CSI."  The first arc is entitled "The Dasterdly Death of the Rogues" and it's a murder mystery, Flash-style. Which means it's anything but what it first looks like. He's my favorite character and it's great to be back with him.

-- Geoff Boucher

READ MORE ABOUT "THE FLASH: THE SECRET FILES" AT THE DC COMICS BLOG

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FOR THE RECORD: I referred to Barry Allen as the "original Flash" in an earlier version of this post but, of course, there was Jay Garrick in the Golden Age. I meant the "original guy in the cool all-red suit" but just to make it more precise it nows says "the most famous" Flash.

The vampire world just got a new addition to its clan. Edward Cullen, watch out.

Vertigo is launching a new monthly comic book series from short-story writer Scott Snyder ("Voodoo Heart," "The Goodbye Suit") and artist Rafael Albuquerque.

“American Vampire” hits shelves in March, with a breed of vampire — more brawny and vicious — that has distinctly American characteristics. 

The series’ first story arc, to unfold over the course of five issues, will feature two separate stories; one penned by Snyder, the other by horror novelist Stephen King. 

Marvel has had success adapting King’s preexisting work such as the “Dark Tower” and “The Stand” mini-series. But this new series represents King’s debut in comic book writing.  He’ll provide the origin story of the first American vampire: Skinner Sweet, an outlaw of the 1880s.

“He really made it his own thing,” Snyder said in a phone interview. “It was really inspiring to watch him take these characters and make them and their stories so much better.” Snyder’s tale is set in the Jazz Age and centers on Pearl, who “frequents Hollywood’s speakeasies and dance-halls searching for her first big break, only to find something far more sinister waiting for her.” Hero Complex contributor Yvonne Villarreal spoke with Snyder about his new project. Read this brief Q-and-A as he discusses how the series aims to reinvent the idea of our fang-toothed friends.

YV: When people think of you, ‘comic book writer’ isn’t associated with your name.  What prompted this venture?

Snyder: Well, the idea … I’ve been sort of kicking around for a while. For the last couple of years, I’ve just been thinking of how I would do it.  Would it be through short stories or a book? I actually thought about doing it as a book for a while and then I happened to write a short story for an anthology that was about literary writers writing superhero stories and it caught the attention of an editor at D.C., Mark Doyle. He wound up approaching me at a reading for the book and asked me if I had anything I wanted to pitch for Vertigo DC. So I pitched him this idea and he really fell for it and it went into development pretty quickly. So we hashed it out together. That’s how -- sort of from the production side -- it came together.

YV: There’s no shortage of vampire-themed projects floating around. Did the idea come about pre-vampire craze?

Snyder: It was definitely pre-vampire craze...

I saw Michael Mann's "Public Enemies" a few weeks ago and I have to say I walked out of the screening feeling disappointed.

I'm a big Johnny Depp fan (who isn't?), I love the source material (the brilliant book of the same title by Brian Burroughs) and I consider director Mann to be one of the most gifted filmmakers in Hollywood. But even with all that (or maybe because of all that) I didn't get everything I needed out of this efficient but oddly inert period piece. I'm also thinking that maybe Christian Bale should make fewer movies. Christian, how can we miss you if you won't go away?

There's a different "Public Enemies" on the horizon and it doesn't involve Jack Sparrow and John Connor squaring off with tommy guns. In September, DC will release  "Superman/Batman: Public Enemies," the sixth release in the series of PG-13 animated films that are made for the home video market. Today we have some advance art from the film.

The film is based on the 2003 comics saga by writer Jeph Loeb and artist Ed McGuinness. It was very popular, but I have to say it just wasn't one of my favorites ... maybe I need to lower my standards. Or stop writing about movies with this title. (Looks like there was a 1941 comedy about newspaperman called "Public Enemies" that had William Frawley, Fred from "I Love Lucy," as a co-star ... hmmmm.)  

Here's a blurb from DC: 

In the film, United States President Lex Luthor uses the oncoming trajectory of a Kryptonite asteroid to frame Superman and declare a $1 billion bounty on the heads of the Man of Steel and his “partner in crime,” Batman. Heroes and villains alike launch a relentless pursuit of Superman and Batman, who must unite – and recruit help – to stave off the action-packed onslaught, stop the asteroid, and uncover Luthor’s devious plot to take command of far more than North America.

The movie reunites the lead voices of Superman, Batman and Lex Luthor from the landmark "Superman: The Animated Series" and "Batman: The Animated Series." Tim Daly ("Private Practice"), Kevin Conroy ("Justice League") and Clancy Brown ("The Shawshank Redemption") reprise their roles as Superman, Batman and Lex Luthor, respectively.

There are a lot of extras on the DVD for "Superman\Batman: Public Enemies." Among them are a behind-the-scenes look at the upcoming "Blackest Night" comics event; "A Test of Minds," a featurette with Loeb looking at the relationship between the Man of Steel and the Caped Crusader; and “Dinner with DC: With Special Guest Kevin Conroy,” with the voice actor sitting down with voice director Andrea Romano, DC's Gregory Noveck and the very gifted producer Bruce Timm. There's even more on the Blu-ray, including bonus epsiodes of "Justice League" and "Justice League: Unlimited."

-- Geoff Boucher 

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Artwork courtesy of DC Comics. Jerry Robinson photo by Mel Melcon / Los Angeles Times.

Barry Levine is focused on Hollywood aspirations these days, but he came up in the music world as a photographer for KISS and Mötley Crüe, so he knows a gold rush when he sees one. Crüe was part of the 1980s Sunset Strip metal scene that stirred an industry craze just as Liverpool and San Francisco had done in the 1960s and Seattle would in the 1990s.

“Right now in Hollywood, the rush is on, comic books are the new sensation and they are not going away,” Levine said with an insider’s assured nod at he sat in front of a plate of pasta at a Los Angeles sidewalk café. “What’s happened already is impossible to ignore but what’s happening now and what's going to happen next is even more interesting.”

The past-tense statement was a reference to “The Dark Knight,” “Iron Man,” "Hancock," “Wanted” and other 2008 comic-book films that have been piling up box office receipts that, collectively, are astounding. “The Dark Knight” alone is closing in on a billion dollars in ticket sales and may even end up as the first comic-book movie to fly high at the Oscars.

The interesting future, according to Levine, is on the way because Hollywood players are climbing over each other for comic-book properties, both famous and obscure, like gamblers trying to pump coins into the same slot machine. Levine is taking a different approach –- he’s built his own slot machine.

Levine is co-founder of Radical Publishing, a company that began publishing comics this year with sleek production values and the proud agenda of treating every comic book as if it is a storyboard for a film that’s just waiting to be made. Some people make pitches in Hollywood, Levine hands out comic books.

I have to say, the guy seems to have a pretty good sensibility for the contemporary cinematic version of the fantastic; the comics he is putting out sound like movies. There’s “Caliber,” the tale of King Arthur reimagined as an Old West adventure where the magic sword is replaced with a six-shooter and Merlin is a Native American shaman; the future police-state tale “City of Dust,” a sort of tricked-out “Blade Runner” channeling of George Orwell's thought-crime fears; and a bloody take on “Hercules,” where the embittered man-god runs with an ancient, all-star mercenary group, a sort of “300” version of “The Magnificent Seven.”

Yes, at Radical it’s all high concept, all the time. And Hollywood is paying attention.

Peter Berg, director of “Hancock” and “The Kingdom,” has a deal in place to produce and direct that grim version of “Hercules” for the screen, while Johnny Depp’s production company, Infinitum Nihil, is on board for a “Caliber” adaptation that has John Woo ("Face/Off") attached as director. Bryan Singer, the director of “X-Men” and “The Usual Suspects,” has signed on to produce an adaptation of “Freedom Formula,” a Radical title about racing teams in the wastelands of the far future. For comics fans, too, Radical has brought in notable creators, among them top horror writer Steve Niles ("30 Days of Night" and "Criminal Macabre") and Jim Steranko, one of the more celebrated and influential artists during the Marvel Comics glory days.

“These are very exciting times for us,” Levine said, patting a stack of the comic books Radical has produced in its first year of publishing. Exciting, yes, but then the roulette table is always exciting while the wheel is still spinning.

EXCLUSIVE: This is the third and final part of our interview with Neil Gaiman on the 20th anniversary of "The Sandman." In this installment, the British native talks about the film future of Morpheus, his disappointments with the "Stardust" movie and his anxieties about the upcoming "Coraline" adaptation.

(Read Part One and Part Two)

GB: This seems to be the golden age of comic-book films and your Hollywood profile has risen with "Beowulf," "Stardust" and the upcoming "Coraline." So what can you tell us about the status of "The Sandman" as a Hollywood project?

NG: Back in about 1991 or 1992 I got sent into a meeting with an executive at Warners. He told me, "They're talking about a 'Sandman' movie," and I said. "Please, don't do it." He said, "What?" I told him I'm still writing this thing, it's not done yet, and a movie would throw everything off of its course. He said, "You are the first human being ever to come into my office and beg me not to make a movie." [Laughs] Which was incredibly sweet...

My feeling today is that I would so much rather there be no movie than there be a bad movie. We're getting closer and closer to the point where you could make a Sandman movie just because the world is changing. The thing that has really made it practical for the superhero movies to exist is the simple fact that you can put it on screen now. With trying to make superhero movies over the years, it has always been that you simply couldn't do it. They would say, "You will believe a man can fly," but you really wouldn't.

Now, you pretty much can. And now you have an era of cheap special effects and people who have grown up reading and respecting comics. Fifteen years ago, when I would go in for meetings at studios, the people who had the power to greenlight things and make things happen, they didn't really know who I was. They weren't sure what Sandman was. Their assistants weren't sure what Sandman was. But the guy who would bring you the bottle of water, the interns, the assistants to the assistants, the bottom-rung people -- they knew who I was. These were the guys who would sidle up to me in the corridors and say, "I love what you do." The interesting thing is now, 15 years on, those guys are running studios.

The people making the decisions now, they know who I am, they know who Alan Moore is, these are the people looking forward to a "Watchmen" movie for 20 years. So a Sandman movie is an inevitability, sooner or later.

GB: And what would be your most important compass point in moving forward with a Sandman film?

NG: The only thing I hope for is that whoever it goes to has the same amount of passion for it that Peter Jackson brought to "Lord of the Rings." I want someone who will make the film because he loved it and he cared about it and if anybody was going to screw it up, it was going to be him. That's what Jackson did and it seems like the same position Zack Snyder is in with "Watchmen," from the interviews. He was scared somebody else wouldn't get it right. I hope when "Sandmen" gets made it's by somebody like that. Guillermo del Toro has his "Hellboy" as his thing that he loves that is important and personal, that's what "Sandman" needs. There is someone out there. Or there will be someone out there in five or 10 years.

EXCLUSIVE: The first of a three-part interview with Neil Gaiman on the 20th anniversary of his signature comics work, "The Sandman." The writer says it's like awakening from a dream. "It is has been wonderful and baffling and inspiring."

In late 1988, a strange new comic book written by a British newcomer named Neil Gaiman hit the shelves with a singular style and rhythm. The protagonist of "The Sandman" was no superhero at all; he was the Lord of Dreams, a tall, willowy and haunted figure, both magical and deeply flawed, who for the next 75 months would challenge the ambitions and limitations of a monthly comics series. This is the first of a three-part interview with Gaiman reflecting on that 20th anniversary as well some of his other key works in comics and beyond, among them "American Gods," "Coraline" and "Stardust." 

GB: It's great to get to finally talk to you. I've been enjoying and admiring your work for many years now.

NG: You know it's funny, you don't think you've been doing it for very long and then you get e-mails from people who say, "I've been reading you since I was in school," and they have real jobs. It's at that point where you find myself in lines signing things for people who weren't born when you wrote them. And they are waiting in line and holding their babies. It is very strange.

GB: I'm sure the 20th anniversary of "Sandman" is another one of those things that has you looking back with some amazement and, I'm sure, some measure of pride.

NG: It really does. And certain amount of bafflement as well. People have such amazing 20/20 hindsight and a lot of the questions. I've been asked by people who seem to always pre-suppose that I knew exactly where we would be now. And it gets to the point where you're having to explain to them, "No, no, I didn't know it would be like this." For example: Graphic novels these days, the collections of comics tends to harbor around eight issues.

That was something that began really with "The Sandman" No. 1. When I explain to people that the reason that the first story, "Preludes and Nocturnes" was eight issues long was because back in those days DC Comics didn't like canceling things before they gave them a year because it made them look bad. So they used to give things a year -- which meant that I was pretty sure that I would be getting my phone call at issue eight letting me know, "No, we aren't going to be doing this, the book is canceled."

GB: Was there a particular reason you expected the ax so early?

NG: If you were a betting man, up until that point in ongoing comics, critical success was completely synonymous with commercial failure. The two were so utterly hand-in-hand. With "Sandman," we were getting the critical success but we weren't getting the commercial failure. At issue No. 8 we were selling more than anything comparable had sold for 25 years before that. At that point, I let myself starting dreaming of this world, in which I was actually going to tell this whole story.

It was another six or seven years before I could get DC Comics to agree that it would stop the "Sandman" monthly comic book when I stopped. Again, it simply wasn't heard of. Batman didn't stop when Bob Kane or Bill Finger stopped doing it. "Fantastic Four" didn't stop when Stan Lee stopped writing it. That simply wasn't how comic books worked. There were so many ways that I was wandering around as a guinea pig. I was also very, very pragmatic about existing in a world in which everything was disposable. That was the joy of comics, wasn't it? Nobody was doing their PhD on me back then. Nobody was publishing books on symbolism in "The Sandman." All of this, it has been wonderful and baffling and inspiring.

EXCLUSIVE: Dan DiDio explains why the confused history of Aquaman put him in danger of being "neither fish nor fowl."

This is the second part of my interview in New York with Dan DiDio, the high-energy executive who came to DC Comics in early 2002 from a background in television. He is now senior vice president and executive editor of the DC Universe, meaning he is the guiding hand for the comic books that chronicle the exploits of all the gaudy icons that define DC and its long history. In the first part of the interview, DiDio talked about major new plans for Superman and Batman as well as the resurrection of "Adventure Comics" as a title. This time he talks about a venerable but troubled property from the briny deep...

GB: Tell me about the state of the union, so to speak, when it comes to the top-tier DC characters.

DD: When you look at it, really, we have what we deem to be five key franchises. You have Batman, Superman, Wonder Woman, Green Lantern and Flash...

GB: Just five? Dan, somewhere, right now, Aquaman is crying saltwater tears...

DD: [Holds up some artwork on his desk] Look, I'm doing an Aquaman story right now! This is for the Christmas special. I'm actually writing it myself, which is kind of fun. But with the five key franchises you could argue what order they fall in because you see how Green Lantern is growing in leaps and bounds right now. And for me, it was essential to get Green Lantern and Flash to be in premiere status again, to be up there in the echelon of characters where people can't wait to see and read the next story. We can look at the second tier past that, with the Aquamans and the Atoms and the Hawkmans, but the reality is those five characters can support not only their own book but series as well. When you have characters that important, you want to put as much energy into them and, more importantly, the strongest talent possible to keep them up where they belong.

GB: Tell me a character you would like to see revived or rejuvenated.

DD: Well we're constantly tinkering. Here's the thing I try to explain properly but somehow it always gets misinterpreted: Our characters are made of steel, not porcelain. They were here before us and they will be here after us. They will survive well past our lifetimes because of what they are, how they were created and the way they are maintained. So that be said, there's flexibility in trying different things. You have to remember, a lot of our fan base has been reading comics 20 or 30 years now. They've see a lot of stories and a lot of things. We're always trying to find a way to give them something new but also give them exactly what they want. There's a lot of challenges with some of our characters. Like Aquaman. Most of people's memories of Aquaman are actually from cartoons in the 1960s and 1970s than they are from the comics. We do have a small loyal fan base, they are people who enjoy that comic, [but] Aquaman has never been an upper-tier success. The challenge is how to make him that.

GB: I'd say one of the big problems is which Aquaman you're talking about, there have been such dramatically different interpretations in the modern history of the character...

DD: There have been so many twists and turns. It's left the character confused; we try to build a strong foundation for the characters and Aquaman does not have that right now. We have to get him back to a core conceit so we can build him back up again. We need to build on what is recognizable and draw people back in. And everybody wants to try to take on the character. I have a running joke: In all my dinners with the talent at conventions, I get three or four writers who will lean into me and say, 'I know how to fix Aquaman.' Everybody says that. It's become a cause célèbre. It's a running joke but, really, it's not a joke because I know people do love the character. We're going to be very cautious from this point forward because I want to make sure it's perfect. I don't want to add to the confusion when we take another pass at him.

GB: Which way would you lean, the classic Aquaman or the Peter David version, the one-handed, "angry" Aquaman?  Or something in another direction, like when DC gave gave him the blue and purple suit?

DD: That's the problem. That's the Aquaman problem right there. You go to people and the audience is split. It's split by generation gap. A lot of guys want the long hair and the harpoon hand, a lot of guys want the green gloves and the orange vest. It's hard to reconcile the two. And a lot of times if you try to blend, you compromise both. You get something that is, excuse the expression, neither fish nor fowl. We're trying to be judicious. That be said, I do enjoy the character. That's why I'm writing about him for the holiday special...that and the fact that I drew the short straw. [Laughs]

Today's Everyday Hero report, your handpicked headlines from the fanboy universe ...

Mutant possibilities: Remember the "X-Men" films? They sure seem like a looong time ago to Marc Graser, apparently, because he suggests that Fox is dragging its feet in getting its valuable mutant brigade back in theaters. To my mind, after Brett Ratner's lurching, messy finale to the X-trilogy, a bit of a break seemed like a good idea. Anyway, here's an excerpt from Graser's piece: "Studios have turned summer into a playground for superheroes at the box office. But the X-Men have quietly been waiting on the Fox lot for their turn to have some fun at the megaplex again. When the studio releases 'X-Men Origins: Wolverine' next May, it will be three years since its comicbook franchise last appeared in theaters. Fox is looking to change that, reducing the number of years between appearances of its power-possessing mutants by developing spinoffs that lead to a new series of sequels. Those include [1] 'X-Men: First Class': Josh Schwartz, who created the teen-friendly TV shows "Gossip Girl" and "The O.C.," is penning a script, based around the conceit of the 2006 comic of the same name, that focuses on the young mutants enrolled at the Xavier Institute for Higher Learning. Books revolved around the Cyclops, Jean Grey, Angel, Iceman and Beast characters, which already have been featured in the three previous "X-Men" films. [2] "Magneto": "Batman Begins" co-scribe David S. Goyer is attached to direct the origins story of the "X-Men" arch-villain (played by Ian McKellen in the previous pics) and his relationship with Charles Xavier (Patrick Stewart). Both characters would be played by younger actors, given the earlier timeline in which the plot takes place. And [3] "Deadpool," which would revolve around the sarcastic mercenary played by Ryan Reynolds in "Wolverine," should the character in that pic prove popular with auds." [Daily Variety]

Funny books? Funny how?: Here's the latest snapshot of the comics marketplace, pulled from the quite thorough sales report over at ICV2: "Event books remained the bestsellers at the top of the chart, with 'Secret Invasion' #7 (154,675 copies) and 'Final Crisis' #4 (115,666 copies) taking the top two spots. There seemed to be an unusually high percentage of late books among the top sellers, with no September issues for nine of the top 25 titles (six DC and three Marvel). Marvel had a fairly typical seven out of the top ten titles, and 17 of the top 25.  There were no titles not published by the Big Two in the top 25 comics list.  In fact, to find a non-Big Two title you have to look all the way down to #65 and #66, where IDW’s new 'G.I. Joe' comic (two covers, 50/50) and 'Angel: After the Fall' landed, to find anything from another publisher." [ICV2]

Gleaming "Twilight": The young, female moviegoers of America have spoken: "Twilight" is, like, to die for. The numbers from Carl DiOrio: "Preliminary estimates show the youthful vampire romance rang up a huge first-day tally of $35.7 million from Friday. The big first day gross — which included a multi-million-dollar haul from midnight Thursday performances — makes a $70 million-plus opening likely for the PG-13 pic. In a highly unusual move, Summit itself on Saturday morning projected a possible three-day tally of $74.3 million. The fledgling producer/distributor also said in a separate press release Saturday that it already has greenlighted a 'Twilight' sequel, 'New Moon.' 'Moon' will be based on the second of a series of best-selling 'Twilight' books by Stephenie Meyer. 'I don't think any other author has had a more positive experience with the makers of her movie adaptation than I have had with Summit Entertainment,' Meyer said. 'I'm thrilled to have the chance to work with them again.' " [Hollywood Reporter]

Spineless, but fun: Gamer Ben Fritz tried out the high-concept "Mortal Kombat vs. DC Universe" and comes away with a smirk and that suspicion that, despite unpolished gameplay, Midway could have a much-needed hit with the rock 'em, sock 'em holiday season release. Here's his smartly written review: "Though the game features 11 of the most popular 'Mortal Kombat' characters, players will likely care more about the equal number of superheroes and villains who have never been in an arcade-style fighter before. Whether it's Superman's freeze breath, Wonder Woman spinning her enemies in a lasso, Green Lantern conjuring a giant hammer or the Joker's electric hand-buzzer, "MK vs. DC" does them right by giving each dozens of satisfying, character-specific moves. Some longtime franchise fans may be disappointed, though, that 'Mortal Kombat's' signature bloody 'fatalities' — the most infamous of which featured a spine ripped out of someone's body — are distinctly less gory here and have been downgraded to heroic brutalities for the DC heroes. (And it's annoying that learning these requires either guesswork or looking them up on the Web.)" [Daily Variety]

More "Twilight" ... Edward, onward: I read that Robert Pattison doesn't own a cellphone, which is probably a good thing because 12-year-old girls get so nervous when they work up the nerve to crank call that they usually just giggle, hang up and text the phone number to their friends. Pattison, who seems charmingly bewildered by the "Twilight" sensation, will be talking to his fans from space this morning: "Robert Pattinson, star of 'Twilight' will sit down for an interview with The Morning Mash Up crew on SIRIUS Hits 1/SIRIUS channel 1 on Monday, November 24.  The 7a.m. ET interview will be rebroadcast on Monday, November 24 at 8:00 am, 9:00 am and 10:00 am ET. For more information and video highlights of the interview (available at 11:00 am ET), please visit:  www.sirius.com/hits1."  [Sirius press release]

"Iron Man 2," the writer's view: Movie blogger Jenna Busch chatted with Justin Theroux the actor (remember him as Evil DJ in "Zoolander"?) turned screenwiter ("Tropic Thunder") who is just back from London where he was working with Marvel Studio's exec Kevin Feige and Robert Downey Jr. on the protean early draft of an "Iron Man 2" script. "We were talking with Robert, who’s out there doing 'Sherlock Holmes,' he was giving his input and his notes. We’re sort of there. It’s just sort of chugging along. The crews, I think, are now starting to see what they need to make, and the places that we might be going and all the rest within the story. That’s sort of one of the more exciting times." The Busch post is mostly about the "Tropic Thunder" release on DVD/BluRay, but Theroux also touched on the arrival of Don Cheadle to the "Iron Man" cast: "I haven’t met Don, and I think I’m going to in a little bit and I think once I get a better sense of his voice and also hear what he has to say about what he likes about the character and just pick his brain a little bit, then we’ll obviously start to tailor it to him. Once he sort of gets more involved in the process then we’ll start tapering the length of his character ... making it fit just right." And who will the villian be in the "Iron Man" sequel? "I think it’s Evil DJ.  He could be the villain in this movie. I don’t know. I mean, I do know but I’m not going to let that cat out." [Ugo]

-- Geoff Boucher

"X-Men First Class" art courtesy of Marvel Comics. "Twlight" photo courtesy of Summit Entertainment. Robert Pattison photo from Getty Images. "Iron Man" image from Marvel Studios and Paramount Pictures.

EXCLUSIVE: Dan DiDio of DC Comics talks about Superman leaving "Action Comics" (and Earth), the revival of "Adventure Comics" and major changes in Gotham City that will mean "a close to the existing lore ... the last rites of Batman."

I was in New York a week ago to work on a long feature about the singer Beyoncé but (just to prove what a hopeless fanboy I really am) I was more excited about making my first visit ever to the offices of DC Comics, which was no disappointment. After a tour, I sat down with Dan DiDio, the senior vice president and executive editor of the DC Universe, which means he oversees the bread-and-butter, ongoing comics titles. He had plenty of scoop to share, including this Andy Kubert cover above, which is the variant for the upcoming landmark Batman tale "Whatever Happened to the Caped Crusader"...

Geoff Boucher: So, Dan, what are you most excited about right now?

Dan DiDio: Oh, gosh, that’s a good one. We’re coming to the end of “Final Crisis” right now and I’m not only excited about people reading the ending of “Final Crisis” but I’m also excited about getting to the end of “Final Crisis.” We did “Countdown to Final Crisis” and “Final Crisis” itself so this has been a long story for us. I feel we’ve accomplished a lot of goals and we created a lot of excitement. But more importantly it’s a point of change for us in DC Universe again. And once you know the ending is coming, it’s in sight, that’s when you start getting worked up about what’s coming up next. That’s what I really get jazzed about. We have two really big events that spin out of “Final Crisis” each in its own way and affecting our key franchises, Superman and Batman. The first thing we’re going to see is called “Battle for the Cowl,” that’s going to be a book that features nearly every member of the Batman family   

GB: Even Ace the Bat-Hound?

DD: [Laughs] Probably. We have a writer-artist team on this right now that’s scouring every book possible to see what they can include in these two-page spreads they want to build of all the characters that inhabit the Batman universe. So it’s a lot of fun for us. I always like those things because it’s a big noisy adventure book. And whenever you do one of those, the level of excitement is always right there on the page. You hopefully have people respond properly to that.

GB: There’s a lot going on with the Batman franchises.

DD: There are a lot of questions about what’s going on with the Batman line of titles. We just recently canceled three of the longtime Batman-related series: "Birds of Prey," "Robin" and "Nightwing." They all end in February. Then in March, “Battle for the Cowl” starts and once it does, you will get to understand how the Batman universe is starting to be realigned.

GB: And what about the Man of Steel?

DD: Simultaneous to “Battle for the Cowl,” we’re going to be making changes in Superman’s world as well. Superman has been the star of "Action Comics" for its entire run, essentially, and he will be leaving it and handing it over to new characters. The only time he hasn’t appeared in the book, I believe, was after “The Death of Superman,” in those years. So this is a lot of fun for us. I think that’s going to get people excited and scratching their heads and wondering what’s going on. In his own book, "Superman," there will be a dramatic turn as the hero leaves Earth and it seems like he’s leaving for good. We’ll follow his adventures in space more so than his adventures on Earth, and that’s a big and exciting thing. We’re also bringing back one of the old-time favorite titles of DC Comics, "Adventure Comics." It will be ...

DC Comics has pulled back tens of thousands of copies of "All-Star Batman and Robin" No. 10 due to a printing error that put two R-rated words into word balloons in the story. Which words? Well, one begins with "F" and the other begins with "C" -- and, yes, it's that C word.

The issue was written by Frank Miller who didn't even know about the dustup until we called him. "This is the first I've heard of it. I have no idea how this awful thing happened. It's just one of those terrible and glorious things that happen time to time in publishing."

Miller, of course, prides himself on being provocative (he is the man that brought the world "Sin City" and "300"), so he let out a cynical chuckle as he mulled over the fact that he has the first true R-rated "Batman" comic book in the 69-year publishing history of the iconic DC character.

That doesn't mean he wanted it to happen. "I didn't, of course, it's a mistake. And my first reaction is simple: I want at least three copies."

Get in line, Frank. The issue was already heating up on EBay on Thursday afternoon.

When I got him on the phone, Miller was headed to Los Angeles International Airport (a busy place today) to catch a flight to Germany to promote his upcoming film "The Spirit." He was just about the only person in comics fandom that hadn't heard about the instantly collectible issues with the potty mouth. How exactly did this publishing mistake happen? It was actually all too easy.

Robert Downey Jr. is having a grand old time these days.

The mercurial actor not only starred in the box-office sensation "Iron Man," he now has a spectacular scene-chewing role in "Tropic Thunder," the new No. 1 film at the box office (and recent Public Enemy No. 1 to protesters). Downey is a wonderful nut, an American treasure as far as I'm concerned, and I can tell you firsthand that interviewing him is a dizzying and exhausting experience. The man is one relentless riff.

Take this tongue-in-cheek rant I just read over at indelicately named website Moviehole.net:

"My whole thing is that that I saw 'The Dark Knight.' I feel like I'm dumb because I feel like I don't get how many things that are so smart. It's like a Ferrari engine of storytelling and script writing and I'm like, 'That's not my idea of what I want to see in a movie.' I loved 'The Prestige' but didn't understand 'The Dark Knight.' Didn't get it, still can't tell you what happened in the movie, what happened to the character and in the end they need him to be a bad guy. I'm like, 'I get it. This is so high brow and so f---ing smart, I clearly need a college education to understand this movie.' You know what? F--- DC comics. That's all I have to say and that's where I'm really coming from."

Was he serious? I doubt that. I know Perez Hilton and his readers are taking this as gospel, but they weren't sitting at the Warren Beatty tribute a few months ago when RDJ wove a long, raunchy, insulting and completely fabricated tale about the guest of honor -- which everyone, including Beatty, loved. I think this rant was every bit as real as "Celebrity Deathmatch."  Read the rest here or, better, check out this extended excerpt from the really excellent profile of Downey by Erik Hedegaard in the latest issue of Rolling Stone. (The newstand version is worth the money, it has interesting stuff on Jon Favreau championing Downey for the "Iron Man" role too, which is not in the abridged online version.)

Zuda Comics (DC Comics' webcomics division) holds a competition monthly where anyone can submit an eight-screen sample. Every month, 10 of these Web comics are picked and put up for a community vote. The monthly vote winners and as many as six "instant winners" each get a year's contract to produce webcomics for Zuda. Pretty fantastic, yes?

Since its official launch last October, Zuda Comics has developed a strong and entertaining online community that provides both creators and comic book fans a place to be themselves and to judge others (welcome to the Internet). The best and also worst part about this competition is most of these strips feel like teasers-- I am dying to know more and while not all of these stories will thrive on, I can at least hope one will. This post is meant to do two things: Get some of you to sign up and be part of the Zuda community and to draw attention to my favorite submission this month, Shock Effect.

Shock Effect is about growing up during an alien invasion. We join Alice and her mom as they await a rescue that could lead to the truth behind the invasion itself. Each panel makes me want to make out with my monitor. That sounded strange, didn't it? Yeah, well, I do, as strange and awkward as it may be. Competitor John Lang's artwork is truly gorgeous. Beautiful, clean and all around solid. Alongside its beauty is its equally enchanting writer, competitor Ian Daffern, whose storytelling brings each panel to life flawlessly. I'm dying to know what happens next and yes, I hope it's picked for truly selfish reasons. 

It takes fewer than 60 seconds to sign up for Zuda and to be a part of monthly Web comics history. Do it for yourself or hey, do it for me. Vote for your favorite Web comic today (or you know, my favorite Web comic) and let's see who wins this month's online publishing contract worth more than $10,000.

A trademark of Marvel Comics in the 1960s was “the crossover”— when one character would pop up in another hero's title (Spider-Man would meet the Fantastic Four, the Silver Surfer would fly into Thor’s book, etc.) and now they’re doing it with their movies with Nick Fury popping up in “Iron Man” and Tony Stark sauntering into “The Incredible Hulk.”

They are building toward a planned Avengers movie and their longtime rival, DC, has taken note.

We heard a few weeks ago that Warner Bros. executives had decided to look at second- and third-tier characters as movie prospects and for opportunities to have them cross paths on screen (although a previously announced Justice League movie has been put on hold after it lost momentum during the writers strike).

On Thursday, DC Comics President Paul Levitz smiled when asked if DC characters such as Superman and Batman might finally meet on screen. “Keep watching the movies,” Levitz said. “Keep watching.”

It’s a great season for DC with the massive opening of “The Dark Knight” and the critical reception for the trailer for “Watchmen.” “It’s amazing what Christopher Nolan has done with ‘Dark Knight,’ bringing the character into a realistic world, while Zack Snyder looked at ‘Watchmen’ and said, ‘I think I can create this world,’" he said.

In the past week, DC ordered up a new 200,000-copy print run of the "Watchmen" trade paperback because of a flurry of consumer interest after the trailer. “Its all very exciting,” Levitz said. “A graphic novel went to No. 2 on Amazon because of a movie trailer. That’s not something we’ve seen before.”

— Geoff Boucher

Superman drawn by Jim Lee, courtesy of DC Comics.

In two decidedly unrelated panels, the dichotomy of Comic-Con was on display Thursday night.

In the DC Nation panel, DC Comics honcho Dan Didio led a group of writers and editors who talked to and about the core of the convention: comic books and fans.  Didio's sessions engage the crowd by asking them to pick favorites and directions that they think comics and characters should go.  Shouting things like "Who's the best Flash?" (Wally West and Barry Allen got the biggest cheers) and "Who should replace Bruce Wayne as Batman?" (Dick Grayson pretty much won that, though Tim Drake got a cheer), Didio did his usual cheerleading.  And even when someone shouted a criticism ("You want to kill everyone!"), he invited the commenter to come on the stage and sit in as a DC editor, which he gladly did.

In grand style, Didio brought up a secret guest:  Kevin Smith.  Smith remarked on the fact that the comic book convention had DC, one of the largest comics producers in the world, in a much smaller room than the star-seeking crowd assembled in Ballroom 20. The filmmaker/comics guy revealed that he would oversee a three-issue arc for the Dark Knight entitled "Batman: Cacophony," drawn by Walt Flanigan.  The busy mini-mogul joked about not getting his books in on time and wished Didio "good luck" in getting the book out by deadline.  He has started projects before, but occasionally falls off, as he noted by saying, "I'm Mr. Foreplay, but if you need me to thrust, forget it."

And speaking of R-rated ... the "Dexter" panel put on a bit of a show.  The standing-room-only presentation with Michael C. Hall and crew illustrates how shows sans superpowers continue to make their way towards Comic-Con.  The dedicated crowd peppered the assemblage with questions of literary-to-TV plot points, Michael's favorite kill (as Dexter -- "It was satisfying to kill Lil Chino cause he was so big"), and concerns on whether the romance between Rita (Julie Benz) and Dexter could last.  On the relationship, Hall said, "I think it's hard to argue that the relationship, in its own way, works." As for Benz: "I honestly believe that every man needs a hobby."

In an aside, Mark Echo of Mark Echo Productions announced that the new Dexter episodic video game would be released on the iPhone and iPod Touch platforms.

-- Jevon Phillips

If you have been following the DC Universe Online MMORPG development, you know it's been a stop and go project for quite some time.  It now appears that all things have been green lighted and as a result, DC has finally released a few screenshots and some delightful concept art (easy access courtesy of IGN). Oh yes and it's about time too. I for one hope DC Universe Online is a thriving success and I think with Jim Lee onboard it stands a fighting chance. Perhaps by the time it goes into beta, I will be bored to tears with Age of Conan. Unlikely, but surely I can multi-task both. Goodbye, social life. Be sure to watch the promo video for DCU too and please try to ignore the really awful voiceover.

In completely unrelated news, Hasbro will be debuting G.I. Joe: Resolute webisodes written by Warren Ellis next year. Umm, hello Excited much? WHY YES I AM. Supposedly, the five-minute PG-13 shorts are a touch more violent than before and *dun dun dun* “major characters may die.”  My prediction is that Dusty will straight up murder everyone and feed them to Sandstorm. Anyone want to place some bets? It's Internet money, it's not real, what do you got to lose? Except your dignity...*DUN DUN DUN*

-- Christie St. Martin of Funny Pages 2.0

Photo credit: IGN

David S. Goyer is headed to International Comic-Con in two weeks to promote “The Unborn,” the horror film due in 2009 that finds the “Batman Begins” screenwriter back in the director’s chair and working with Meagan Good, Carla Gugino, Jane Alexander and Gary Oldman. Goyer is a familiar name to comics and genre film fans, of course, and he hopes to solidify that stature in the next few years with two more heroic projects: “The Flash” and “Green Arrow.”

Here’s Goyer’s approach on each:

“The Flash”: “To me, Wally West as the Flash has always been the most-Marvel of all the major DC characters. He’s like Peter Parker. He’s screwed up a lot, he’s overwhelmed. He wasn’t born as the last son of Krypton or some Amazonian princess, he’s a person who just ends up with these powers. He’s not even the first Flash, he’s sort of had this costume passed on to him by Barry Allen, he’s had to live up to this other guy who everybody admired. I like all of that. I don’t think we’ve seen a movie like that, where someone is trying to live up to the legacy of someone who came before him.”

“Green Arrow”: “We’re not even going to tell an origin story. The movie starts with Green Arrow framed for a crime and sent to a prison for meta-humans. He has to survive in this special, high-security prison with a lot of people that he put in there. And of course, he has no super powers and he’s always been such a black-and-white, moralist kind of guy, and he has to make certain relationships inside that cause him to reexamine some of his beliefs and assumptions.”