The LXG Cinematic Universe

Ok, this one will be something of a "broad strokes" approach, as The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen is already a bricolage of other works loosely held together with narrative, so it doesn't really need any help in that regard. Since writing about both the divisive Sean Connery film and and the cult Alan Moore comics on this blog, I have been surprised to learn just how devoted some fans are to the film and how genuine the regret that it never spawned a sequel is. Whilst I'm not enthused to the same level as some, I do regard the LXG film in a more positive light than most and perfectly understand the desire for that bit more of a media that you love, so here's my short list of suggestions to get you going in that direction. For the sake of brevity, I'll be looking at film and television that features the main cast of LXG, rather than branching out into the broader world presented by the comics, but by all means check out some classic Fireball XL5 or The Avengers (the British television version) if you are so inclined.

So we're all pretty much agreed that the 1992 Bram Stoker's Dracula is about the best film version of the story, right? Yes both versions of Nosferatu are also excellent, but as far as a straight adaptation goes, Francis Ford Coppola got it bang on, with the right amount of sex and gore to slide into LXG with minimal effort. Personally, I have fond memories of the 1997 Mini-Series of 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea starring Michael Caine as Captain Nemo, but that could be down to a particular scene in which Caine beats Brian Brown savagely. Certainly, Caine bears little resemblance to an exiled Indian prince, but most adaptations of the original text have this issue. In the 1980s, Richard Chamberlain did a couple of Alan Quartermain films that are about as good as one may expect, but still lean heavily on Colonial assumptions and can be a little uncomfortable to watch in these, somewhat more enlightened, times. '90s Kids will remember Jonathan Taylor Thomas, well he did a Mark Twain adaptation entitled Tom and Huck, which I haven't seen, but honestly looks pretty pedestrian. 

Ok, who's left? Well, Henry Jekyll and Edward Hyde have been adapted only less frequently than Sherlock Holmes and Dracula, but there hasn't really been a good modern version, and the 1931 film tends to still be the best option, if it is a little hokey by today's standards. Similarly, Claude Rains  is about as good an Invisible Man that you're likely to find in the correct cultural milieu, even if the character isn't quite the same. There is a 2009 film, Dorian Grey which is, honestly, a train wreck, but I feel that suits the tone of the version presented in LXG? Shall we not bother with Moriarty? I mean, for tone the Guy Ritchie Sherlock Holmes series is appropriate, but he's such a non-entity in LXG that I bet you can't even remember who kills him in the finale. Alright, enough of this nonsense, on to the regular nonsense we concern ourselves with around here. 

Superhero Media: Black Panther

Something I am never likely do to on this blog is a "Top 10" list of superhero films. There are a few reasons for this; the years-long backlog (I'm writing this in August 2020), the constant cycle of new superhero films and the fact I would have to justify many things not being on the list being just a few. However, one film that would certainly be in one of the top three spots would be Black Panther, the most important, if not the greatest, superhero film in cinema history. You may not personally like Black Panther, some people don't, but there is no denying the impact it had, or that it was masterfully assembled, acted and directed. Ryan Coogler had only directed two feature films before putting this together, that's hugely impressive in it's own right, but add to that star-making turns for Chadwick Boseman, Michael B Jordan and Letitia Wright and you have a damn masterpiece. Oh yeah, while we're at it, let's have career highlight performances from Danai Gurira, Winston Duke and Andy Serkis, a banging soundtrack by Ludwig Goransson and the first use of the Afro-futurist aesthetic in a major motion picture, and you have a movement. 

Thing is, if Black Panther was just a groundbreaking, glass-ceiling shattering, genre defining film as wasn't all that good, it would still be amazing on merit of intention alone. However, the film is also transcendent on a narrative level, even if it does borrow heavily from Hamlet, but it's called the monomyth for a reason, people. While I think of it, Killmonger is an excellent villain, but please stop trying to tell me "he was right", it just makes it clear you didn't understand the film. The contrast between T'Challa and Killmonger is that T'Challa is king for his people and Killmonger wants the throne for personal revenge on a world that has wronged him. Want proof? When T'Challa imbibes the Heart Shaped Herb, he sees the spiritual plane and the line of kings before him, whereas Killmonger sees his father and the apartment he grew up in. Even though T'Challa decides that the isolationist policies of the past are wrong in light of Killmonger's actions, he wants to help the world, not conquer it. Killmonger actually appropriates the language of the colonisers, "the sun will never set", as he advocates for the wholesale murder of billions of women and children. By Bast, this is a great film. 

People do get that Wakanda isn't meant to be some big, anti-White People statement, right? The characters accept Everett Ross as soon as he demonstrates his humanity, but despise Klaw because he murdered for profit. Wakanda is an ideal, a post-needs society like the Federation in Star Trek, not perfect, but having perfected government for the benefit of the people. It's not explicitly said, but Wakanda doesn't seem to have money, and all of the industry is publicly owned, is the country a Socialist Monarchy? That would be really interesting, if a tad odd, I hope it gets explored at some stage. I actually like the introduction of Vibrainium as being some kind of "Handwaveium" fix-all, because I can see how that will come in handy as the Marvel Cinematic Universe matures and requires some leaps in logic to get things done. Like how Iron Man and Rocket can make an ersatz Infinity Gauntlet in Avengers Endgame or how space travel doesn't have any discernible "rules". Black Panther is always going to be important, but I hope it becomes only part of a broader series of equally "important" MCU films, eventually incorporating Queer, Trans and any and all rights movements that toxic individuals try to exclude from Superhero fandom. RIP Chadwick.  Wakanda forever!

Terrain Finished: Craters

A little while ago, I picked up a couple of one of the older Games Workshop craters and just got around to painting them. These are pretty nice if you can find them around, though may be a little on the big side for most 28mm games.

The reason I wanted a set of these for my Superhero gaming ties to an Osprey game called Of Gods and Mortals; a mytho-historical game I was pretty excited about, but never got into because I found the rules clunky and dull. One rule I really liked though was "Awe", which created a radius around two clashing Gods that Mortals would flee from.

So I was thinking about powerful superheroes clashing and causing destruction, like in any Dragon Ball Z fight or Superman Vs Captain Marvel, and how such a fight may affect the "ordinary" people around them.

I'm not sure as to how I'd actually implement it, but I think some kind of "Awe" system would work well in my Ultimate Alliance games, throwing off the rest of the battle when two suitably powerful characters clash. Where I'm stuck is just which characters get to use this rule, obviously Superman and Thor would qualify, but what about Iron Man and Green Lantern? I think I need to borrow a page out of Heroclix and start introducing symbols to represent certain abilities. I really need a visual designer to work with one of these days. 

 

Superhero Media: Incredibles 2

A decades-later sequel to a beloved film, Incredibles 2 is not only another brilliant entry in Brad Bird's filmography, but is a brilliant response to the original and the critical literature resulting thereof. Starting moments before The Incredibles finished, Incredibles 2 gives us the Parr family battling The Underminer, and really not doing very well at all, making mistakes, being out of practice and tripping over one another as they're not yet used to being a team. If I had to pick a single scene that turned people off this film, the opening Underminer fight would likely be it, as it robs the moment of triumph from the first film and injects a more harsh reality. Of course, it all makes perfect sense, as none of the family have done regular hero work recently and have not worked together long enough to get a good team dynamic going. As far as I'm concerned, it's a great place to start both the narrative and the metanarrative, as Incredibles 2 isn't just a sequel, it's a critical response. 

In my review of The Incredibles I mentioned the, sadly still prevalent, Objectivist reading of the film and how Brad Bird's own filmography is the argument against such a take, but it seems Bird was not one to take it lying down himself. The newer "Supers" of Incredibles 2, including Acid Reflux, Brick and Void, are heavily queer-coded, with the villain revealed to be a wealthy and privileged woman with a narrow view of progress and no understanding of heroes as individuals with needs. The contrast between Screenslaver and Elastigirl, especially as the two clash in the final act is easy to read as  a conflict between schools of theoretical feminism, with a mother fighting a "career woman", but Elastigirl's entire character arc, from the opening of The Incredibles, as been that she is who she chooses to be, undefined by anyone but herself. Of course Elastigirl is the best choice to spearhead the "relaunch" of superheroes into the public eye, she's never questioned that saving lives is where she belongs. 

Probably my favourite element of Incredibles 2 is the building of Edna Modes' character, essentially a comic foil in the first film, her encounter with Jak-Jak provides insight into her fixation with superheroes. Supers are Edna's link to eternity and something beyond the temporal world of fashion. Edna is not the ascended fan in the same ways as Phil Coulson, she is more a "Supergods" devotee, or Campbellian realist, inhabiting a world were the gods walk the Earth and she is lucky enough to brush their capes with her fingers. Robert's journey to accepting modern fatherhood is wonderful, unlike much I've seen in recent film, and whilst Dash and Violet don't get to do much, they remain consistent and the times they are prevalent are pretty entertaining. I get that Incredibles 2 may not be the sequel that people wanted, but I really find it hard to fault anywhere, as it answers questions left, engages with criticism and does move on the stories of several of the main characters. Whilst I wouldn't mind seeing more of the Incredibles, I feel that the Big Hero 6 television approach may work better, with Bird overseeing it. Only time will tell where this series goes, but I'm very happy with where it is right now. 

Miniatures Finished: Weird Science

Keeping to loose themes for a while, here are some science-related characters I painted up in-between other projects. 

Baxter Stockman: I wasn't planning on getting this character anytime soon, but I got him in a blister and couldn't resist a Playmates Toys style paintjob. Heroclix 

Weather Wizard: I have a growing collection of Flash's Rogues that I'll have to do something with one day. I love how crummy the colour scheme looks on this guy. Heroclix 

Metallo: A classic Superman foe I've wanted to get on the table for years, but kept forgetting to paint him. This classic Clix isn't a brilliant sculpt, but has plenty of character. Heroclix 

Mister Terrific: I considered painting my copy of this character up after watching Arrow, but never got around to him. I'm tempted to do a couple of "T-Spheres" on separate bases to buzz around him. Heroclix 

Robotman: Different base for this figure as I was using him as a "Plod-Bot" for Judge Dredd miniatures for a while. I guess now I'll have to get the rest of the Doom Patrol. Heroclix. 

Angstrom Levy: How could I not get this awesome antagonist from Invincible onto the table? A classic evil genius with teleporting powers, his knowledge of the multiverse makes him truly dangerous. Heroclix