Hulk Movie - way overboard [Archive]

Cinorjer

13th June 2003, 06:52 PM

The Hulk in the long-running comic book series can not only throw tanks around, he can peel them open like they're an orange. He can jump miles at a time, passing high flying planes in the process. More than that, his particular powers make him stronger the more angry he gets, so in a fight he keeps getting stronger and stronger, while his enemy gets tired.

His appearance and size and intelligence have fluctuated over the years, depending on who was writing the particular story line. Sometimes he's grey, not green. Sometimes he's retarded, sometimes of normal intelligence as the Hulk. One version of the Hulk only appeared at night, and then there's the "you won't like me when I'm angry" version. The current explanation is that he is a multiple personality type, and each version of the Hulk is one personality.

Some of the best and most imaginative writing and artwork is being produced in comic book form today. The average reader is not a kid anymore, but an adult. Shoot, the things cost several dollars each!

EdipisReks

13th June 2003, 10:56 PM

i'm just mad that he is so freaking big. he was never 15 feet tall in the comics. and i don't remember him running 200 mph, either. yes, he could jump, but he wasn't quicksilver.

Cinorjer

14th June 2003, 03:27 AM

He was pretty tall for the brief run when the writer had Doc Sampson merge his personalities and he became a full time, smart Hulk, but I don't think he was 15 feet. More like 8 feet tall, maybe. And he never had super speed. His reaction time seemed to stay normal, and that determines how fast someone can move their legs. I just caught the promo last night on TV, and I really hope they do better on the CGI. So far, even the best efforts of the Dudes at Pixar have never produced a person that wasn't obviously fake.

shanek

14th June 2003, 08:05 AM

Originally posted by Cinorjer
He was pretty tall for the brief run when the writer had Doc Sampson merge his personalities and he became a full time, smart Hulk, but I don't think he was 15 feet. More like 8 feet tall, maybe. And he never had super speed. His reaction time seemed to stay normal, and that determines how fast someone can move their legs. I just caught the promo last night on TV, and I really hope they do better on the CGI. So far, even the best efforts of the Dudes at Pixar have never produced a person that wasn't obviously fake.

I think the closest anyone came was in the Final Fantasy movie. Also the Animatrix short "Final Flight of the Osiris" had pretty good humans, and the humans in Shrek (other than Farquaad) were pretty realistic-looking.

The problem is, in all of those cases, no matter how realistically the humans are visually rendered, they all move artificially. Every time they move, you know they're not real. That's exactly why Pixar has stuck with cartoony-humans. No, they don't look realistic, but it doesn't bother you when they don't move right, either, because they move just right for cartoon characters.

The CGI in Spider-Man was bad for just that purpose. You can easily tell when they move from actors/stuntmen to CGI. He just doesn't move right.

I don't expect them to get it right in the Hulk movie, either.

Mahatma Kane Jeeves

14th June 2003, 08:13 AM

Originally posted by shanek
The problem is, in all of those cases, no matter how realistically the humans are visually rendered, they all move artificially. Every time they move, you know they're not real.

I disagree. Keanu Reeves is pretty realistic, they just need to find another actor to do his voice.

Gideon S

14th June 2003, 09:23 AM

somewhere I have an old "Elseworlds" (I think, it may have been "What If") comic where the Hulk was intelligent, strong, and completely evil. In fact, he was so powerful that he had killed all of the heroes of the Marvel Universe, and wore Wolverine's adamantium skeleton as an arm-band, Doctor Strange's cloak as a sash, and Captain America's shield across his forearm...

No Answers

14th June 2003, 10:02 AM

JesFine

14th June 2003, 12:31 PM

I remember way back when (early 80's?) they used to have Marvel/DC crossovers all the time. Superman vs. Hulk, Batman vs. Hulk, etc. (There was also a Superman vs. Muhammed Ali but I digress). If I remember correctly the Hulk lost to Superman, and it was kind of a stalemate with Batman and by the end of the story they had teamed up to defeat some supervillain. The part I remember was the Hulk grabbing Batman in a bear hug and trying to snap his spine. Batman had a thought blurb over his head that says something like "Unnnh... if he continues to squeeze... he'll... break my spine! Arrrnnggh!" So, the Batman thinks quickly, and boxes the Hulk's ears. Apparently the Hulk's ears were puny and this stuns the Hulk enough to let go. Then Batman runs away or something. The next time he see the Hulk, he knocks him out with some special knockout gas. When the Hulk comes to, he is docile and Batman talks him into teaming up with him.

Anyway, my point was... um... I'm not sure my point. The only part I remember for sure was Batman boxing Hulk's ears and thinking "Come on! The Hulk wouldn't even feel that!" then thinking "Well, Batman certainly does kick A**." So that is my point then. Also, this picture rules:

Cinorjer

14th June 2003, 12:55 PM

So, the Batman thinks quickly, and boxes the Hulk's ears. Apparently the Hulk's ears were puny and this stuns the Hulk enough to let go.

Bad writing. One of Hulk's favorite moves is to clap his hands together hard enough to create a sonic boom, and he doesn't hurt his own ears when he does it. On top of that, Hulk is tough enough to survive without protection at the bottom of the sea or in outer space (although he does need to breathe, eventually). That means pressure on his eardrums wouldn't bother him. He has been gassed many times, though, and a lungful of knockout gas gets him every time.

Regnad Kcin

14th June 2003, 03:46 PM

Originally posted by Cinorjer
One of Hulk's favorite moves is to clap his hands together hard enough to create a sonic boom, and he doesn't hurt his own ears when he does it. I'm not familiar with the minutiae of Hulk or any comic so I can't dispute this. However, wouldn't a sonic boom be caused by the speed of an object moving as opposed to the force of its impact with another?

No big deal (even though this caught my eye). To paraphrase a friend of mine, "It's a cartoon!"

Cinorjer

14th June 2003, 04:25 PM

However, wouldn't a sonic boom be caused by the speed of an object moving as opposed to the force of its impact with another?

Maybe sonic boom isn't the proper term. I suppose the comic book logic goes, you clap your hands and make a sound. The harder you clap your hands, the louder the sound. Clap them really, really, hard, and you make a really, really, loud sound.

But hey, the comic book world might look to have normal rules of physics at a glance, but it's really an alternate reality where our rules don't apply in subtle ways. It's pseudoscience at best, where perpetual motion machines and ESP work because it makes an interesting story.

corplinx

15th June 2003, 12:41 AM

I saw an internet leak of "Hulk" at a party.

the bad parts:
Hulk is made from starfish DNA.
There is zero characterization of the protagonist (Dr. Banner)
It drags for the first 35 minutes.
Cheap editing tricks galore.
Hulk's first fight is against a hulked up french poodle.
At the end of the movie, the antagonist is finally revealed.
The antagonist is his dad who battles him in the form of...... water!
A few plot holes. The kind that reach out and grab you and say "look at me! i dont make sense!".

the good parts:
the Hulk rendering is actually quite good

Any movie reviewer who calls this turd good must be getting a kickback.

15th June 2003, 04:24 AM

Originally posted by Crossbow

Golly, he was slingling around 60, maybe 70 ton tanks around like they were half-empty buckets of water! I know the Hulk is about the most powerful creature in the Marvel universe, but wow! Did Hollywood really have to go that far?

Luckily, I'm now visiting my parents and they still have my old collection of Marvel comics. In particular, they have there "Hulk Erikoisjulkaisu I" (1989) that contains an extract from "The Official Handbook of the Marvel Universe" that states (after a translation sequence English -> Finnish -> English): "Hulk's strength increases as he gets angrier and he has on an occasion lifted more than 100 tons."

Nova Land

15th June 2003, 05:56 AM

Originally posted by thrombus29

I seem to remember that the Silver Surfer or someone gave the hulk his super jump. I think your memory may be playing tricks. I don't recall anything like that. From the very earliest issues, the Hulk was able to jump long distances and used that as his way of traveling. It was simply a consequence of having extremely strong leg muscles.

(Hey, it made more sense than Thor being able to fly by whirling his hammer around above his head, throwing it with all his strengtj, and holding on to it so he would be carried along with it...)

Nova Land

15th June 2003, 06:06 AM

Originally posted by JesFine

I remember way back when (early 80's?) they used to have Marvel/DC crossovers all the time. Superman vs. Hulk, Batman vs. Hulk, etc. ...

The part I remember was the Hulk grabbing Batman in a bear hug and trying to snap his spine. Batman had a thought blurb over his head that says something like "Unnnh... if he continues to squeeze... he'll... break my spine! Arrrnnggh!" So, the Batman thinks quickly, and boxes the Hulk's ears. Apparently the Hulk's ears were puny and this stuns the Hulk enough to let go. Then Batman runs away or something. The next time he see the Hulk, he knocks him out with some special knockout gas. When the Hulk comes to, he is docile and Batman talks him into teaming up with him.I think it's generally agreed by historians that the DC/Marvel crossovers did not take place in either the Marvel or DC universe (with the possible exception of the 1990s DC Vs Marvel mini-series and a couple of follow-up minis featuring Access.)

So the Batman and Hulk in that story were alternate universe versions (or possibly even fictional representations).

In other words, "knocking out the Hulk by clapping his ears" only works in fiction and alternate universes; don't try this if you happen to encounter the genuine article.

Nova Land

15th June 2003, 06:27 AM

Originally posted by Gideon S

somewhere I have an old "Elseworlds" (I think, it may have been "What If") comic where the Hulk was intelligent, strong, and completely evil. In fact, he was so powerful that he had killed all of the heroes of the Marvel Universe, and wore Wolverine's adamantium skeleton as an arm-band, Doctor Strange's cloak as a sash, and Captain America's shield across his forearm... I'm pretty sure the story you are thinking of is Future Imperfect, a 2-issue prestige format story by Peter David and George Perez -- excellent story, well worth reading (and recently reprinted by Marvel as a single-volume trade paperback, if I recall correctly).

While the Batman / Hulk encounter was indeed an Elseworlds/What If story, Future Imperfect is not. It is part of the Hulk's actual continuity. Historians place its events between issues somewhere in the early 400s of the Hulk's comics series (something like between 410 and 420) if memory serves.

In the story, the Hulk winds up in the future (or a future) and encounters "the Maestro", who is as you have described. (As we know, there is more than one possible future -- see X-Men: Days of Future Past, etc., for more of the published scientific research on this.)

Events from Future Imperfect later had effects on the Hulk after he had returned to the present (as detailed in his monthly comic) (but I have no recollection of which issues).

What is open to dispute is whether the events in the Hulk novel What Savage Beast are real or fictitious. The Maestro plays a major role in that book. It's written by Peter David, so whether or not it's historically accurate it's still a very enjoyable novel, well worth searching for.

(As I recall, Peter David intended for the novel to be part of official continuity. It features a major event in the Hulk's life, which probably would have had major repercussions on the Hulk in his comic book if Marvel had not replaced actual accounts of the Hulk with fictional ones during the Heroes Reborn year.)

To sum up: Batman knocking out Hulk, not real. Hulk becoming evil, wiping out all the heroes and taking over the world, real (at least in one possible future). See? Truth is as strange as fiction!

corplinx

15th June 2003, 09:09 AM

The studio is already in damage control mode trying to shape impressions of the movie. I see these articles saying Hulk is "darker" movie than SpiderMan.

Its not darker, its just boring in parts and doesn't have a single laugh.

I think this studio spin on a bad movie is insulting to "darker" films. The last dark film I saw was Narc. Hulk is no Narc.

Crossbow

16th June 2003, 11:33 AM

Originally posted by LW

Luckily, I'm now visiting my parents and they still have my old collection of Marvel comics. In particular, they have there "Hulk Erikoisjulkaisu I" (1989) that contains an extract from "The Official Handbook of the Marvel Universe" that states (after a translation sequence English -> Finnish -> English): "Hulk's strength increases as he gets angrier and he has on an occasion lifted more than 100 tons."

Thanks LW! That data is most helpful.

I was not a serious Hulk reader, but the few I did read and the other comics he appeared in (Spiderman and X-Men) showed him lifting cars and trucks without too much trouble. But these were in the 5 to 10 ton range.

However, if he can huff around 100 tons if he really wants to, then a 70 ton tank should be no problem for the big guy.

Thought Harvester

16th June 2003, 11:45 AM

I have the English version of the Marvel Universe Handbook that I still thumb through when I'm home visiting my parents. The Hulk does indeed have "class 100 strength enabling him the lift / press 100 tonnes". There is an aside noting that while this is typical, The Hulk becomes stronger the angrier he gets allowing for, theoretically, limitless strength.

Ok, I just geeked out way more than I wanted to there.

Another thing I like about the entry is how The Hulks extra mass comes from "an unknown extra-dimensional source". Nice little attempt to stall disbelief from a physics standpoint... ;)

Regnad Kcin

16th June 2003, 01:37 PM

Originally posted by Thought Harvester
Another thing I like about the entry is how The Hulks extra mass comes from "an unknown extra-dimensional source". Nice little attempt to stall disbelief from a physics standpoint... ;) Yes.

It's not unlike when you see Superman lifting, say, an ocean liner over his head. I don't have a problem with his being able to do so (!) as much as the simple fact that trying to support such massive weight on two palm-sized points would surely cause the thing to collapse inward.

NoZed Avenger

16th June 2003, 02:57 PM

Originally posted by Regnad Kcin
Yes.

It's not unlike when you see Superman lifting, say, an ocean liner over his head. I don't have a problem with his being able to do so (!) as much as the simple fact that trying to support such massive weight on two palm-sized points would surely cause the thing to collapse inward.

Ah, but that is why he was re-written during the "Crisis" timeline so that his powers were re-explained (or at least heavily inferred) as psionic. He can see into a safe without light because its mental; likewise, old storylines where he looked at distant planets with his "Super Vision"(tm), but where he was supposed to be seeing the present-day plant (i.e., forgetting that the planet was light-years distant and he would be seeing events from the distant past if he relied on light). Similarly, the writers indicated that he was essentially holding the building or ship or whatever together with mentally, but processed his power through what appeared to be physical feats.

Out-Geek THAT.

NA

Nova Land

17th June 2003, 08:36 AM

Originally posted by NoZed Avenger

Out-Geek THAT.
...Or like when Superman would push entire planets out of their orbit.

In one story, Superman appeared to be simply standing on his head in a picture of what was supposed to be one of his greatest feats, and people asked, "What's so great about that? My 6-year-old can do that!" It turned out Superman was actually pushing the entire planet to a different location. This raises interesting physics questions.

Post-crisis, this was deemed to be impossible. Indeed, one reason given for revising his powers was to prevent scenes of Superman pushing entire planets (or stars!) around.

Peter David used this bit of Silver Age lore to hilarious effect in the recent "Return of Kara" storyline in the (recently cancelled) Supergirl series. Linda-Supergirl comes upon Kara-Supergirl standing on her head, and asks what she's doing. It turns out Kara is trying to move the planet, isn't able to, and doesn't understand why her powers aren't working the way they should.

Don't you people know better than to issue a challenge like that here? What on earth were you thinking? "Out-Geek THAT", indeed!

AmateurScientist

17th June 2003, 08:41 AM

Originally posted by shanek

I think the closest anyone came was in the Final Fantasy movie. Also the Animatrix short "Final Flight of the Osiris" had pretty good humans, and the humans in Shrek (other than Farquaad) were pretty realistic-looking.

The problem is, in all of those cases, no matter how realistically the humans are visually rendered, they all move artificially. Every time they move, you know they're not real. That's exactly why Pixar has stuck with cartoony-humans. No, they don't look realistic, but it doesn't bother you when they don't move right, either, because they move just right for cartoon characters.

The CGI in Spider-Man was bad for just that purpose. You can easily tell when they move from actors/stuntmen to CGI. He just doesn't move right.

I don't expect them to get it right in the Hulk movie, either.

Well, they got it mostly right in The Twin Towers. That's because Gollum was a close collaboration betweent the CGI team and a real actor and the motion capture film of him performing the part.

I think that's the way CGI of characters is headed.

AS

Brian

17th June 2003, 11:57 AM

Another thing I like about the entry is how The Hulks extra mass comes from "an unknown extra-dimensional source". Nice little attempt to stall disbelief from a physics standpoint... ;)

Peter David came up with a great idea to explain the extra mass in the MacFarlane days. The issue where Wolverine shoved his claws all the way through the Hulk.
The Hulk is a product of radiation, it's a cancer. He grows like a tumor. Also, he's not indestructable. He just heals (grows new cells) real real fast.

DrMatt

19th June 2003, 07:10 AM

Do any of the ladies think The Hulk is sexy?

specious_reasons

19th June 2003, 07:28 AM

Originally posted by AmateurScientist

Well, they got it mostly right in The Twin Towers. That's because Gollum was a close collaboration betweent the CGI team and a real actor and the motion capture film of him performing the part.

I think that's the way CGI of characters is headed.

Ang Lee provided most of the motion capture data for the Hulk's movement.

I saw parts of the SciFi channel's promotional the other night. I think the Hulk is a mixed bag, It's going to look impressive, but fake in some parts.

However, I don't like the way the Hulk looks. I remember reading the (reprinted) original comics, and I like that look better. Still, they don't show anything for more than a scant few seconds, so it's hard to get a good idea of his looks.

arcticpenguin

19th June 2003, 08:29 AM

http://www.nature.com/nsu/030616/030616-3.html
(subscription required)

Set in San Francisco, the movie follows the enraged outbursts of fictional Berkeley physicist Bruce Banner (played by Eric Bana). The mild-mannered boffin gets bigger, greener and a whole lot meaner after being exposed to gamma rays, extremely powerful radiation, from the lab's Gamma Sphere experiment. Carnage follows as he stomps through the American west tossing cars, tanks and helicopters.

The plot is pure fiction, but the Gamma Sphere is real. "It is the best gamma-ray detector in the world," says I-Yang Lee, the real head of Berkeley's low-energy nuclear physics programme.

19th June 2003, 10:17 AM

ceo_esq

19th June 2003, 10:39 AM

Originally posted by JesFine
I remember way back when (early 80's?) they used to have Marvel/DC crossovers all the time. Superman vs. Hulk, Batman vs. Hulk, etc. (There was also a Superman vs. Muhammed Ali but I digress). If I remember correctly the Hulk lost to Superman, and it was kind of a stalemate with Batman and by the end of the story they had teamed up to defeat some supervillain. The part I remember was the Hulk grabbing Batman in a bear hug and trying to snap his spine. Batman had a thought blurb over his head that says something like "Unnnh... if he continues to squeeze... he'll... break my spine! Arrrnnggh!" So, the Batman thinks quickly, and boxes the Hulk's ears. Apparently the Hulk's ears were puny and this stuns the Hulk enough to let go. Then Batman runs away or something. The next time he see the Hulk, he knocks him out with some special knockout gas. When the Hulk comes to, he is docile and Batman talks him into teaming up with him.

Anyway, my point was... um... I'm not sure my point. The only part I remember for sure was Batman boxing Hulk's ears and thinking "Come on! The Hulk wouldn't even feel that!" then thinking "Well, Batman certainly does kick A**." So that is my point then. Also, this picture rules:
I remember reading this comic (the one the picture comes from), but I think it was a Spider-Man/Superman team up, against Doctor Doom and a villain called the Leech or the Parasite or some such. The Hulk made an appearance but not as a main character.

Brown

19th June 2003, 01:06 PM

Originally posted by specious_reasons
I saw parts of the SciFi channel's promotional the other night. I think the Hulk is a mixed bag, It's going to look impressive, but fake in some parts. I saw the same promotional program, and my assessment is the same. Some of the shots of the green guy looked realistic, but the vast majority of them didn't look quite right. In the scenes that didn't "look right," it would be very hard to articulate exactly what was wrong, even though I recognized immediately that something was wrong.

I had the same reaction when watching movies like "Final Fantasy" and the newest "Star Wars" flicks. (I haven't seen the new and improved Gollum yet.) It's strange how the brain can accept some of the shots as legitimate and scream "That's fake!" at others. The animators are getting better, but they haven't quite mastered the art of capturing how people or animals move.

(The most spectacular sight in the Hulk movie is probably Jennifer Connelly.)

arcticpenguin

19th June 2003, 01:11 PM

Originally posted by Brown
I saw the same promotional program, and my assessment is the same. Some of the shots of the green guy looked realistic, but the vast majority of them didn't look quite right. In the scenes that didn't "look right," it would be very hard to articulate exactly what was wrong, even though I recognized immediately that something was wrong.

I had the same reaction when watching movies like "Final Fantasy" and the newest "Star Wars" flicks. (I haven't seen the new and improved Gollum yet.) It's strange how the brain can accept some of the shots as legitimate and scream "That's fake!" at others. The animators are getting better, but they haven't quite mastered the art of capturing how people or animals move.

(The most spectacular sight in the Hulk movie is probably Jennifer Connelly.)
Could be one of a number of things.

Cartoon physics - impossible things happening. The classic example is Wile E. Coyote running off the cliff, hanging in mid-air for several seconds, and then plummeting.

Lack of motion blur - If you film a moving object with a camera, the object may be blurred in each frame. The moviemakers may not do this, instead accounting for the position of hte moving object, but not the blur caused by movement during hte exposure.

Nova Land

19th June 2003, 04:05 PM

Originally posted by ceo_esq

I remember reading this comic (the one the picture comes from), but I think it was a Spider-Man/Superman team up, against Doctor Doom and a villain called the Leech or the Parasite or some such. The Hulk made an appearance but not as a main character.
Ooh, good, I get to show off my geekine-- ahem, my erudition again.

The first Superman / Spider-Man crossover was in 1976. The idea of a DC Marvel crossover was very exciting back then, but the choice of Spider-Man -- Spider-Man??!! -- to team with Superman was such a mis-match that the book failed to live up to fans' fantasies.

(The companies had obviously simply paired their most popular characters rather than trying to find a more appropriate match-up, which wouldn't have been bad except they had to have the obligatory heroes-mistakenly-fight-each-other and also had to make it come out a draw...)

Anyway, in that one the heroes fought a team of Lex Luthor and Doctor Octopus (since the menaces, likewise, had to be an equal balance of DC and Marvel).

The book was a novelty, but wasn't really that good, and the idea of crossing characters from the 2 universes went back to being the stuff of in-jokes in various series until 1981 when there was a second attempt at a Superman / Spider-Man book. This is probably the one you're thinking of -- villains were Doctor Doom and the Parasite, and there were cameo appearances of other DC and Marvel characters to set up (and whet fan appetites for) the already-planned next crossover, Batman / Hulk (another gross mis-match).

This was followed by the first sensible match-up, X-Men / Teen Titans -- a logical pairing, one the fans were eager for, and published in a more convenient format. Marvel did most of the work on that one, with DC supposed to be responsible for the next one, JLA /Avengers, which was especially eagerly awaited because of the George Perez artwork. Unfortunately squabbling broke out between the two companies, and there were no more attempts at inter-company crossovers between them for about a dozen years.

(In the interest of full disclosure, here's a web site I went to to refresh my memory on some of the details: Fanzing 44, May 2002, DC / Marvel Crossovers (http://www.fanzing.com/mag/fanzing44/feature4.shtml )

JesFine

20th June 2003, 12:25 AM

Just a clarification, I posted that picture because of it's coolness, not because of any connection to what I was posting. I was kind of rambling at the end there, and wanted to dazzle you guys with graphics. Note the subtle motion lines about Superman's head, indicating that despite appearances, Superman is not entirely unmoveable. Cool info though.

I am going to inject my own geekiness in here and describe one of the weirdest "crossover" events in comic book history -- the Superman vs. Muhammed Ali crossover. OK, sadly I am not going to remember all the details, but Ali and Supes had to meet in a boxing match to decide the fate of the world or whatever cliche makes you feel good. To make things fair, a miniature red sun :eek: was hung over the ring, robbing Superman of his powers. Ali kicked his butt. He shouted how he was the greatest the entire time too. As an interesting side story, Ali figured out that Clark Kent was Superman, but promsied to keep it a secret. And as incentive to buy the book, the cover had Ali and Superman in the ring, while everyone in the audience was famous either in real life or in the comic world. Inside was a guide which matched the faces to their names. I can't believe I remember that part.

I can't remember if there were any other comic to real-life crossovers... but hold on... I just found this: http://www.geocities.com/utherworld/crosscomix.html

Looks like there were a few.

Let me check something... yep, this thread has been completely hijacked.

Nova Land

20th June 2003, 01:30 AM

Originally posted by JesFine
I can't remember if there were any other comic to real-life crossovers... but hold on... I just found this: http://www.geocities.com/utherworld/crosscomix.html

Looks like there were a few.
You know what would be really embarrassing? If there were someone here who were to go to that link, look through the listings, and happen to remember lots and lots of crossovers that aren't listed.

Like, suppose that link included one of Superman's meetings with Hercules, but totally ignored his meetings with Samson. Or failed to mention the time Pat Boone wrote a hit song about Superman, which Superman then secretly tried to sabotage. Or how Superman helped Orson Welles foil a martian invasion? Or how, more than a decade before Superman got beaten to a bloody pulp in the ring by Ali, he got a (somewhat more restrained) drubbing from wrestler Antonina Rocca? Or how Jimmy Olsen met Bob Hope, Boris Karloff, and a passel of other Hollywood stars.

Not to mention more serious things, such as Superman revealing his secret identity to JFK (so Kennedy could impersonate him at a public event and help him preserve his secret identity), or meeting with LBJ to plan a physical fitness program as a tribute to the dead Kennedy.

Or the Legion of Super-Heroes picking up old radio transmissions from the 20th century. (The first time the story was printed, one broadcast announced Kennedy had been re-elected. When it was reprinted, it was changed to read that Bobby Kennedy had been elected. I'm sure even our hypothetical geeky person isn't geeky enough to remember what the broadcast had been changed to the next time the story was reprinted.)

The story in the link takes a recent Supergirl event, the modern Supergirl meeting the Silver Age Supergirl, and makes a deliberate double entendre about Supergirl playing with herself. Can you imagine someone geeky enough to remember the classic cover story with the (presumably) unintentional double entendre title: "The Day Supergirl Exposed Herself!"?

Worse yet, what if they remembered the time Daredevil met Uri Geller, who used his amazing metal-bending powers to help Daredevil foil a gang of international crooks that Geller had been pursuing (because of his unswerving dedication to truth and justice...)

Yes, that would be embarrassing. But it's unlikely there's anyone like that around here, and if there is they'd certainly keep something like that to themselves.

JesFine

20th June 2003, 02:05 AM

Originally posted by Nova Land

You know what would be really embarrassing? If there were someone here who were to go to that link, look through the listings, and happen to remember lots and lots of crossovers that aren't listed.

[All kinds of stuff that no one should possibly know.]

:eek:

Greatest post ever.

Do you know how much crap I took just for being able to point out some of the subtle nuances in the X-Men 2 movie?

My Friend: What is the deal with that metal guy?
JesFine: That is Colossus, he has the ability to convert his body into Organic metal. They must be setting him up for X-Men 3.
Nova Land (from out of nowhere): His real name is Piotr Rasputin, he grew up on a remote farm in the USSR and... (17 other obscure facts).

You win.

Brown

20th June 2003, 06:53 AM

Originally posted by JesFine
I can't remember if there were any other comic to real-life crossovers... One that I remember from my youth was: Jimmy Olson meets Johnny Carson.

Brown

20th June 2003, 07:42 AM

Originally posted by me
One that I remember from my youth was: Jimmy Olson meets Johnny Carson. Upon further reflection, I'm not sure that Jimmy actually ended up meeting Johnny Carson. If memory serves, Jimmy was to be a guest on the Carson show, in order to show off a marvelous robot that had been given to him. The robot was really a guy in a robot suit, and this guy in the robot suit decided to unexpectedly take off his robot mask on the Carson show. The idea was to make Jimmy look like a fool.

After the robot reveled himself to be a fake, the plot took a twist. Jimmy knew about the fake robot all the time! And it turned out there was a real robot on the Carson show, and it was Jimmy himself! Or rather, a robot that looked like Jimmy! As the Jimmy robot revealed himself, the fake robot was the one who looked foolish. (If I remember right, Superman had created robots that looked like Jimmy and Lois and Perry in his spare time, and it was the Jimmy robot that went on the Carson show.)

Brian

20th June 2003, 10:04 AM

Originally posted by Brown
Upon further reflection, I'm not sure that Jimmy actually ended up meeting Johnny Carson. If memory serves, Jimmy was to be a guest on the Carson show, in order to show off a marvelous robot that had been given to him. The robot was really a guy in a robot suit, and this guy in the robot suit decided to unexpectedly take off his robot mask on the Carson show. The idea was to make Jimmy look like a fool.

After the robot reveled himself to be a fake, the plot took a twist. Jimmy knew about the fake robot all the time! And it turned out there was a real robot on the Carson show, and it was Jimmy himself! Or rather, a robot that looked like Jimmy! As the Jimmy robot revealed himself, the fake robot was the one who looked foolish. (If I remember right, Superman had created robots that looked like Jimmy and Lois and Perry in his spare time, and it was the Jimmy robot that went on the Carson show.)

As a fan it's plots like these that make me greatful for Alan Moore and Frank Miller. And Stan Lee too, he got the ball rolling as far as putting serious underlying themes in comics.

Regnad Kcin

20th June 2003, 12:12 PM

From "The Hulk:" (sigh)

NoZed Avenger

20th June 2003, 12:53 PM

Originally posted by Regnad Kcin
From "The Hulk:" (sigh)

Hmm. In the comic, the hulk didn't look nearly so petite and attractive -- well, to me, anyway.

Knightmare6

22nd June 2003, 01:02 AM

Golly, he was slingling around 60, maybe 70 ton tanks around like they were half-empty buckets of water!

No idea if it was already answered, but a calm Hulk nowadays can press 100 tons, while getting him completely pissed-off at you, can get him to about 500 tons.

Here's some of his other abilities:
- can leap three miles high and across
- can run at 90 mph
- extreme regeneration (was reduced to a skeleton and regrew flesh back in mere seconds)
- can sense the exact location of where he suffered his accident (in the comics, the gamma bomb)
- can see ethereal/astral spirits and beings
- emits low-levels of radiation
- almost impenetrable skin

In the past he's been able to utilize shockwave attacks from sonics or vibrations, by clapping his hands together or smashing the ground (or landing from a jump even!).

His skin color and personality, as well as size change depending on the personality in control.
- Robert Bruce Banner: human radiologist
- Joe Fixit: gray-skinned, selfish, somewhat -smart criminal
- Bruce Banner Hulk: intelligent, green Hulk
- Brute Hulk: mindless, green-skinned, engine of destruction (pretty much the movie version that was used)
- Savage Hulk: a green-skinned, reptilian-like Hulk
- Maestro: the evil, intellegent, and womanizing persona of Banner's Id

Oh and he's well-endowed, as referenced by the Leader, the Pantheon, Rick Jones, U-Foes, and the Leader's henchmen during this one time... no alcohol was involved...

BroodingSkill

22nd June 2003, 09:05 PM

As all can see of my avatar I did enjoy the movie for the most part, I won't go into any particulars.

Though to be completely trueful I spent most of the movie staring at Jennifer Connely. Especially for some reason that mole she has on the left side of her upper lip.

Maybe I was sitting too close.

a_unique_person

22nd June 2003, 10:10 PM

As they asked on Seinfeld, did Superman have a super sense of humour?

a_unique_person

22nd June 2003, 10:12 PM

Also, no-one has mentioned Eric Bana. He was won a lot of praise for his acting over here. He has gone from standup comedian to actor. If you want to see an interesting film, check him out in "Chopper", the based on fact story of a low-life Melbourne violent criminal. How much is fact, we will never know, because the guy is a pathological liar. Also, some gory violence.

Snide

23rd June 2003, 11:58 AM

My personal preference is for a super hero to be not-so powerful...just well above average (e.g., Spiderman).

That said, maybe Hulk really isn't a super hero, but I'd like him to be. No doubt my having grown up watching the tv show and admiring Ferrigno, before ever reading the comic, has something to do with that.

Still, I could have enjoyed the movie, despite the obvious animation and "too-powerful" Hulk if he would have fought some "bad guys." The story didn't really compel me to be rooting for him like I wanted to.

Marc

23rd June 2003, 12:19 PM

Originally posted by BroodingSkill
As all can see of my avatar I did enjoy the movie for the most part, I won't go into any particulars.

Interesting to see that little picture of the Hulk, and just above it the label 'thinker'.

Nova Land

23rd June 2003, 01:18 PM

Originally posted by a_unique_person
As they asked on Seinfeld, did Superman have a super sense of humour?
Yes, although it was somewhat warped and perverse. He was always pulling practical jokes and hoaxes on people -- enemies, friends, he didn't seem to care which. Whenever something odd happened in Metropolis, odds were good it was Superman pulling a hoax again.

He seemed especially to take delight in lying to people without actually telling a literal untruth.

Of course, that was long ago, in a different reality, and he died and came back to life in between then and now.

BillyTK

26th June 2003, 04:47 AM

Originally posted by Nova Land
This was followed by the first sensible match-up, X-Men / Teen Titans -- a logical pairing, one the fans were eager for, and published in a more convenient format. Marvel did most of the work on that one, with DC supposed to be responsible for the next one, JLA /Avengers, which was especially eagerly awaited because of the George Perez artwork. Unfortunately squabbling broke out between the two companies, and there were no more attempts at inter-company crossovers between them for about a dozen years.

I remember the X-Men/Teen Titans book--written by Chris Claremont and drawn by Walt Simonson and Terry Austin, and featured Thanos and Darkseid uniting to destroy the universe. Claremont handled the TTs well and the story was groovy in a fanboy kind of way (it touched on the Dark Phoenix storyline), but it did get me wondering what was the point of pairing up each publishers' versions of the same teams and baddies.

Btw, does anyone remember the New teen Titans/DNAgents team-up, or Superman's apparent appearance in John Byrne's fantastic Four?

Out geek that, Novaland! ;)

LillyThePink

26th June 2003, 05:13 AM

Quite like that Ang Lee hasn't taken the "HULK HATE BANNER" stance, although an alarming lack of chemistry between Bana and Connelly is worrying.

As for the CG - I'll wait and see. If you only looked at the trailer you could be fooled into thinking Matrix Reloaded might be good :p

HarryKeogh

26th June 2003, 04:42 PM

saw it yesterday
liked it alot, very enjoyable and fun
CGI was alot better than i expected, a little "cartoony" but forgivable.
imho, worth a look (and just say to yourself..."it's based on a comic book so i wont take it too seriously")

Nova Land

27th June 2003, 07:22 AM

Originally posted by BillyTK

Btw, does anyone remember the New teen Titans/DNAgents team-up, or Superman's apparent appearance in John Byrne's fantastic Four?

Out geek that, Novaland! ;)
Surely you jest! (Brits do jest sometimes, don't they? Like electing Maggie Thatcher, and then re-electing her -- good one! Although our US joke about electing Reagan was better, and has led to better spin-off jokes.)
In this country, most schools won't let you graduate from first grade without knowing that stuff. Heck, I know day care centers that use that to test kids for eligibility: "Hey, kid, what was Project Youngblood?" Any kid so ignorant they goo-goo something about Rob Liefeld or Image is told not to return. We take education seriously in this country. So yes, of course I know about the DC/Eclipse crossover, where Mark Evanier's DNAgents appeared (under a pseudonym) in Marv Wolfman's Teen Titans, and vice versa and other such kindergarden-level crossovers. (Kindergarden, for you Brits, is our equivalent of your sixth-form.)

Sheesh, what do you take me for, an idiot? "Does anybody remember ..." indeed?

Now I'm not going to insult you with easy stuff that everyone knows, such as when did Roy Thomas first have the "Justice League" fight the Avengers, since any skeptic worth her salt knows about the stories that led to Marvel finally giving the heroes their own minis and graphic novels as Squadron Supreme. Nor will I insult you with the question of when Mike Friedrich had "The Avengers" fight the Justice League, since the question practically answers itself.

Tell you what. Here's one which, while it would be humiliating not to know the answer, is not so humiliating you would have to go out and do something foolish such as commit suicide or vote Tory. When did Aquaman guest-star in Sub-Mariner's comic?

(In case you need your memory jogged, the Sub-Mariner issue in question begins with Aquaman, in silhouette, shown doing something he had done in his own book. The author of the book, who coincidentally had also written the Aquaman story where this action first occurred, then shows the consequences of that action, which he had not been able to do in Aquaman's own book for obvious reasons.)

The reason you need not be too humiliated if you don't know the answer is that, while the Aquaman issue in question is a classic, one that every true comics fan owns at least one copy of (and re-reads at least annually), a comic so great that even Frank Miller shamelessly ripped off the opening sequence (without credit, and not done nearly so well), the Sub-Mariner issue in question is a pedestrian effort, worth owning mainly because of the Aquaman visit. So it's excusable if you don't know or remember the Sub-Mariner story. (Well, not really, but I wanted to give you a face-saving out. "Out-geek that," my @$$! There are some things mature adults -- and even JREFers -- should know better than to say in public.)

Last edited by Nova Land to remove the 10 pages of profanity this insult initially provoked, and the additional 5 pages of profanity provoked by the power here going out last night preventing me from defending my honor sooner

JAR

10th December 2003, 12:44 AM

"The Hulk" was a great movie. I saw the movie a while ago but I couldn't think of much too say until now. It had great performances by Nick Nolte and Sam Elliot. It also starred Jennifer Connelly, who I find very attractive. She is a classic Irish beauty. I don't know if she's Irish in ancestry but she has that beautiful Irish woman look. I first noticed her when I saw her in the movie "Rocketeer" a while back. When I saw her, I was struck by her charismatic looks. She's so picturesque.

Nick Nolte's performance in the movie, in my opinion, was the best of it's type since Jack Nicholson's performance in "The Shining." Nick Nolte's delivery of the speech he gives near the end of the movie was mindblowing. When I heard it, I was thinking, "What's he ranting about." It's hilarious.

He says something like, "They're the soldiers, marching in their uniforms....Oh god!.... We must return to before the age when religion corrupted humanity's soul! I'm gonna go. You just watch me go!"

My younger brother said that when he saw the movie, he was worried that the speech Nick Nolte gives was going to be the moral of the movie.