Is Guillermo del Toro Making a DC Supernatural Team-Up Movie?

He is. He isn't. Now maybe he is. Filmmaker Guillermo del Toro has clarified those rumors about him doing a team-up film of DC's supernatural characters, a la the comic book series Justice League Dark.

Del Toro told io9, "I am talking to DC and Warners about tackling the 'Dark universe' characters, but we're not calling it [Heaven Sent]. I don't know where this title came from. We have a very concrete storyline that I'm proposing — but it's still very, very early days."

He said of the alleged lineup including the likes of Deadman, Swamp Thing, Constantine and Spectre, "They're great characters. I relate to them because they are supernatural monsters, first and foremost." But he stressed again that "it's way early days."

So let's just keep our hopes in check for the time being, fellow fanboys.

Source : ign[dot]com

Grand Theft Auto V Details Revealed

The first official details about Grand Theft Auto V have been announced. In the newest digital issue of Game Informer, Rockstar has revealed that the game will have three playable characters -- Michael, Trevor and Franklin. Players will switch between characters “constantly” with a single button press, allowing them to see missions from different perspectives.

Michael is a retired bank robber who is now in the witness protection program, and whose wife has burned through his substantial fortune, causing him to get “back into the game.” His friend Trevor, the second protagonist, is a “drugged out psychopath” who seems prone to violence. The final character, Franklin, is introduced stealing a car. All three come together to perform heists, which are described as “a big theme in the game.”

Game Informer's Cover

Players will experience missions as different combinations of the three, and each will have a different skillset. For example, in one heist mission, Michael rappels down the side of a building while Franklin uses a sniper rifle from afar and Trevor flies in a helicopter above. Players can switch back and forth between Michael grabbing a target inside the building or Franklin trying to snipe enemies inside. Once you escape, everyone meets in the helicopter, and the player can choose to fly it as Trevor, snipe other pilots as Franklin or fire a gun from the back of the vehicle as Michael.

Los Santos will be the biggest open world in Rockstar's history, "bigger than Read Dead Redemption, Grand Theft Auto IV and San Andreas combined." Players will also be able to explore underwater areas of the city.

Rockstar has also changed driving mechanics, noting that cars “hold to the ground a bit better” and have “a little more physics on them,” making driving feel more like a racing game. Shooting and melee combat have also been improved, as have pedestrian models (some pedestrians have now been mapped using motion capture for more realistic movement). Rockstar also hasn’t employed any celebrities to provide voices for the game.

Heists will be a key element, but players will also experience elements similar to Red Dead Redemption’s dynamic encounters, including stopping to check on broken cars and picking up hitchhikers. Players will also be able to chase and catch muggers or rob cash vans.

Characters can be customized by changing clothes, but height and weight customization isn’t included. The phone will also return for obtaining important info, but now allows players to access the internet, among other things. Some items previously only accessible from the phone in Grand Theft Auto IV will simply be accessible on the map.

Each character will have their own social circle -- Michael has his son (Jimmy), Franklin has a "crazy friend" named Lamar and Trevor has a paranoid conspiracy theorist friend named Ron. Separately from missions, players will be able to switch between characters and see them living their daily lives, including some situations that may be "surprising."

Players won't be able to own real-estate, but there will be an economy for players to spend their money. GTA V has non canonical connection to the PS2-era Grand Theft Auto games, so don't expect to encounter C.J. or Tommy.

Grand Theft Auto V was originally announced in October 2011, followed by the first trailer in November. The idea of multiple playable characters was actually rumored early on, first suggested the day after the original announcement.

Rockstar will release the second trailer for Grand Theft Auto V on November 14th. For all the details in the trailer, check out our live Rewind Theater of the trailer that day, plus a ton of additional info throughout next week.

Source: Game Informer

Andrew Goldfarb is IGN’s associate news editor. Keep up with pictures of the latest food he’s been eating by following @garfep on Twitter or garfep on IGN.

Source : ign[dot]com

The Manhattan Projects #7 Review

Jonathan Hickman is known for cramming big ideas into all of his work. But if you want big ideas mixed with sadistic characters, copious bloodshed, and plenty of black humor, The Manhattan Projects is the place to turn. Issue #7 explores both the origins and the fruits of the new American/Soviet super-science partnership. If readers felt bad for poor Helmutt and his perpetual whipping boy status in issue #6, things don't get any better for the Nazi scientist-turned-Soviet science slave this time. With so many sadistic murderers and madmen on the payroll now, it's important that the series retain its focus on the "normal" guys like Helmutt and Richard Feynman. It says something when an ex-Nazi is one of the closest things a book has to a regular protagonist.

In many ways, issue #7 defines the ongoing status quo of the series and what the characters are actually building towards. Where does a secretive cartel of super-scientist go after committing alien genocide, anyway? Hickman answers that questions, and the implication is that these seven issues have only offered a taste of the wacky weirdness to come.

Nick Pitarra's art offers that blend of surreal imagery and distinct but exaggerated character designs the script calls for. Though Pitarra is able to provide some novel new imagery this month, my favorite visual element continues to be his depiction of Joseph Oppenheimer and his split personalities. One area this issue stumbles, however, is in the use of color. Previously, Jordie Bellaire has been able to deftly distinguish between past and present scenes, as well as among Soviet, American, and German characters, through calculated use of blue and red tones. This time, however, the colors change at random and do a poor job of differentiating the various talking heads.

The series looks to be growing ever more wild and gruesome in the coming issues, and that's exactly what I want from my alternate reality tales of science run amuck.

Jesse is a writer for various IGN channels. Allow him to lend a machete to your intellectual thicket by following @jschedeen on Twitter, or Kicksplode on MyIGN.

Source : ign[dot]com

Arrow Exclusive: Farscape and Stargate SG-1's Ben Browder to Play DC Comics Character Ted Gaynor

The producers of Arrow are not being shy when it comes to bringing in characters from DC Comics, with several slated to appear in upcoming episodes – some known for their appearances in Green Arrow comics, some pulled from other DC sources.

IGN has learned that we’ll be meeting another new DC character in the show’s 11th episode, as Ted Gaynor is introduced, played by Ben Browder.

On Arrow, Gaynor is Diggle’s commanding officer from his first tour in Afghanistan, who now works as a bodyguard for Blackhawk Squad Protection Group in Starling City. As a series of armored truck robberies strike the city, Gaynor proves to be a polarizing figure between Oliver (Stephen Amell) and Diggle (David Ramsey).

Ben Browder (during his Stargate days) and the DC version of Ted Gaynor.

Ted Gaynor first appeared in DC Comics in Blackhawk #266 in 1984, while a story arc a couple of years ago in Batman Confidential involved the former member of the Blackhawk Squadron taking on Batman, Blackhawk and Lady Blackhawk. While it doesn’t look like Arrow will be involving the Blackhawk character himself (at least not yet), there is still a big nod to Gaynor’s comic book history via the inclusion of the Blackhawk Squad name.

Browder is well known to sci-fi fans for his roles on both Farscape and Stargate SG-1, and recently, he’s guest starred on series like Chuck and Doctor Who. This will be Browder’s second time playing a DC Comics character – he previously voiced Bartholomew Lash on an episode of the animated Justice League series.

Browder will be seen on Arrow as Ted Gaynor in the episode “Trust But Verify”, airing in early 2013.

Arrow airs Wednesday nights at 8pm on The CW, with a new episode, “Damaged” (featuring Deathstroke), debuting tonight.

Source : ign[dot]com

Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles #15 Review

Tom Waltz and Kevin Eastman have been dragging more and more classic TMNT characters and elements into the new series in recent months. Issue #15 throws Leatherhead into the mix. Though the book hardly needs another villain at the moment, Leatherhead nonetheless enjoys a solid introduction into this new continuity.

The writers briefly establish Leatherhead's origin as another of Baxter Stockman's out-of-control experiments before shifting back to the present. The Turtles are currently searching for a new base of operations, which seems like another unnecessary addition considering how recently they moved into April's antique shop. In any case, issue #15 winds up offering a fun little blend of intrigue, horror, and levity. In the case of the latter quality, Splinter is given the opportunity to stop being so dour all the time and bond with Casey Jones. As far as horror goes, the creators offer up a cool sequence that sees Leatherhead stalk the Turtles in the shadows.

That fight sequence is expertly rendered by Andy Kuhn. While Kuhn's facial work is a bit bland compared to Dan Duncan's, his work is packed with kinetic energy and enough light and shadow to really pop off the page. The series continuously sets a higher visual standard for IDW's licensed comics.

One downside to this issue is a familiar complaint with the series -- it more or less requires readers to have read the April O'Neil micro-series one-shot to fully appreciate the events within. I understand that IDW is paying homage to the classic Mirage series by resurrecting the micro-series format, but in many cases these stories would have been better served by being integrated with the main book. After eight one-shots, maybe it's time to give it a rest and focus squarely on this series.

Jesse is a writer for various IGN channels. Allow him to lend a machete to your intellectual thicket by following @jschedeen on Twitter, or Kicksplode on MyIGN.

Source : ign[dot]com

Nikita: Lyndsy Fonseca on Season 3 and Alex's "Very Different Direction"

Nikita returned last week for Season 3, with a very different new scenario for the characters, as they are back inside Division – albeit a Division under new management.

I spoke to Lyndsy Fonseca about what’s to come this year for Alex, who’s had quite a few dramatic changes occur of late. We discussed Alex’s celebrity status, her dynamic with Sean and Amanda -- and a popular non-relationship with Owen -- and more. We also chatted about this Friday night’s exciting new episode, in which Nikita and Alex discover a young girl who has been taken by a former Division agent and apparently been brainwashed. Plus, will Fonseca be able to reprise her role as Katie in Kick-Ass 2?

IGN: Things have changed for everyone on the show, but for Alex, this is really the first time she is allowed to be herself – she’s not a double agent, she’s not a rogue agent, and everyone knows her true identity. What is this transition like for her?

Fonseca: I think in the bigger picture, her being this kind of public persona has brought a lot of power to her and this maturity. It hasn’t come easily. I don’t think Alex is the kind of person that enjoys dressing up like that and being in that public way. But I think what it does is forces her to grow up a little bit and kind of take charge on her own. As the season continues, we’re not going to be focusing a lot on her public persona, but I think she brings a lot of that to Division to help her deal with being there.

IGN: The premiere used her celebrity in a very fun and funny way, but going forward, how do you deal with someone who’s been trained to be a spy being very publically known? 

Fonseca: Well, Alex is going to go in a very different direction than I think most of the audience is going to expect. We start off this season with her in this really great place and her using her celebrity to benefit the mission. But it’s going to go in a very different direction. She’ll end up really having to deal with certain things that… You know, I think that a lot of things have been cleaned up, like her relationship with her mother, and Nikita and her are on such good terms. It’s like the final thing is her addiction self, and she’s really going to have to struggle with.

IGN: So that's going to be coming back into focus?

Fonseca: I think that's been a little bit buried, because there’s been other things to deal with. Now that she’s in this new place where they’re all agents, they’re all in this together. But she gets hurt and there’s pain and it’s going to really force her to deal with things that she thought she had resolved before.

IGN: I’ve seen the episode airing Friday, with that great young girl…

Fonseca: She was amazing.

IGN: It seems as though this girl brings up a lot of emotions and memories for both Nikita and Alex.

Fonseca: I think that it’s kind of shocking to see a girl her age in Division, because she is the age that Alex was when she was sold into slavery and then a few years later was on the streets, doing drugs. You see this girl who’s just such a shell of herself. You don’t know if it’s Stockholm syndrome. You can’t really figure it out. And the pain in her eyes, everything that she’s dealing with, it’s so similar to Alex’s life and I think she sees a lot of herself. And I think Alex just doesn’t want to go there. What she ends up doing is going to the parents a lot and the mother and I think that is something that she can relate to as well. Because Alex’s mom didn’t know that she was alive and I’m trying to find out all this information, but I can’t tell them that I know that their child is alive. So dealing with the mom really is difficult in a lot of ways for Alex.

IGN: The first episodes this season touch upon a lot of the big emotional points the show has set up in the first two years, but as far as overall mythology goes, they’re more standalone. How is this season mapping out compared to the first two?

Fonseca: Especially at the beginning, it is a little bit more standalone and kind of bad guy of the week or a mission [of the week] at first. But there are going to be recurring storylines that we’re going to be doing that wall continue through all the episodes as well. It’s kind of a little bit of both. But it’s gonna be different, because there’s no Percy, you know? We’re in this together and Amanda is going to come in and out and we’re trying to figure out where she’s coming from and what her plan of action is. But it is a little bit more standalone than it has been in the past.

IGN: You mentioned Amanda and when I asked on Twitter if fans had questions for you, quite a few seemed to enjoy the interplay between Alex and Amanda.

Fonseca: I love that!

IGN: Will there be more of that this year? Obviously, it’s more difficult, because they’re no longer co-existing inside Division.

Fonseca: Right. Yes, they’re definitely going to be in a storyline together, but we have not shot it yet. I know that it’s in the future for the season, but in all honesty, I don’t know how it’s going to come out. I think the writers are still figuring that out! [Laughs] But it’s going to be good, because she’s going to have a hold over Alex in some way… So it’s not going to be taken lightly. It’s not going to be fun thing. Amanda is going to go all out.

IGN: And we know Amanda can be very scary when she goes all out.

Fonseca: Oh my gosh… She’s so good!

IGN: How are things going for Alex and Sean?

Fonseca: Well, it’s funny, because at work today, the only scene that I have to do is to make out with Sean Pierce in a closet. It’s a very hard day at the office. [Laughs]

But no, it’s not going to be an easy relationship. There’s going to be this thing where Sean really puts it out there and makes an ultimatum and says, “It’s me or Division” and “Why are we here? What are we doing here? We have a life to live.” And I think that contrast is totally confusing for Alex. It’s like, “What do you mean? This in my life. What am I going to do? Go sit on a beach somewhere and drink Mimosa?” That’s not reality, you know? And that’s going to cause problems because they want different things, even though they want each other.

IGN: Meanwhile, it’s funny, because a sect of Nikita fans have been curious about this whole Alex/Owen dynamic, even though they’ve never met...

Fonseca: I know. It’s so weird how there are shippers for that, when we’ve never even met! It’s very flattering! It’s great. It’s so cool.

IGN: So that being said, this season they will finally meet and interact. What do they make of each other initially?

Fonseca: You know, it’s kind of cool… I made the decision that there’s always been this kind of animalistic part of Alex. There’s this kid that’s not a celebrity… the really down and dirty part. And I feel like Owen can be like that. This guy is very, very animalistic in many ways. And I think they kind of connect in that and sense that about each other. And I don’t mean that necessarily in a relationship kind of way. It’s more that he comes back in the picture and it’s like, “What is your deal, man?” There’s definitely sparks and some sort of understanding that they have with each other.

IGN: You mentioned Alex’s addiction issues. Owen recently got over his own addiction to the regimen. Could there be some bonding there?

Fonseca: There is that. We haven’t really touched on that topic as characters yet, but absolutely. That would be a really cool thing to play as well.

IGN: So at San Diego Comic-Con, you were crossing your fingers – has it worked out with your Nikita schedule to do Kick-Ass 2?

Fonseca: It has! CW and Warmer Bros. and the creators here at Nikita, they’ve been so wonderful about letting me out for a week to go to London and do a little bit in Kick-Ass. I’m very limited in my time that I can go there, but the fact that they let me do it at all… I actually leave on Saturday to go shoot for a week there. And I’m really excited!

IGN: My last question comes via your costar, Devon Sawa. When I asked on Twitter if anyone had questions or you, he asked if himself, Shane West, Dillon Casey and Aaron Stanford were Ninja Turtles… who would be Raphael?

Fonseca: [Laughs] Well, that’s funny, because they were having this major debate two nights ago over dinner. And honestly, I had no idea what they were talking about, because I’ve never seen Ninja Turtles! I don’t know… If I’d seen it, I’d have an opinion! Sorry!

Nikita airs Friday nights at 9pm ET/PT on The CW.

Eric Goldman is Executive Editor of IGN TV. You can follow him on on Twitter at @EricIGN and IGN at ericgoldman-ign.

Source : ign[dot]com

Gambit #4 Review

Marvel has launched a number of new solo series in the last year that have succeeded in offering clean, engaging, accessible takes on old characters. It's disappointing that Gambit hasn't been able to find the same creative success as books like Hawkeye and Captain Marvel. The fun factor is there, but beneath that veneer the series still seems strangely hollow after four issues.

James Asmus focuses more on action this month, as Gambit dives head first into a battle with dragon demons with little but the clothes on his back to serve as weapons. The scale is certainly bigger than I would have expected from the series. It's cool to see Gambit successfully battling monsters of the sort one would normally expect Thor to contend with. And our hero gets a few nice lines of narration in, including "I might as well die as I lived -- tryin' to impress a pretty girl that doesn't care." That's Gambit to a tee.

Clay Mann can certainly render a mean dragon or three. Some of the many battle scenes in this issue look spectacular, showing off Mann's talent for kinetic motion and power. But many panels are rough and haphazard as Leonard Kirk is called upon to fill in the gaps in Mann's work. Hopefully Mann will be allowed a bit of a breather and can return in top form again on a future arc.

Ultimately, what is the point of all of this tomfoolery? Asmus never reveals much about Remy's new partner, Joelle, or why she went through all this trouble on what was apparently a simple death wish. At the end of the conflict, Gambit is still in the exact same wayward emotional state he began the series. There's just too little sense of purpose, impetus, or clear direction to the book. Without those qualities, I can't picture myself following Gambit's solo adventures much longer.

Jesse is a writer for various IGN channels. Allow him to lend a machete to your intellectual thicket by following @jschedeen on Twitter, or Kicksplode on MyIGN.

Source : ign[dot]com

PlayStation All-Stars: No More New Characters

Sony has revealed that no more characters will be announced for PlayStation All-Stars Battle Royale’s launch. In a post on Twitter, PlayStation Blog senior social media specialist Sid Shuman wrote that “We have revealed the full launch lineup of characters,” confirming that All-Stars will ship with 20 fighters.

Keep in mind that All-Stars could easily add additional characters via downloadable content, so this doesn’t necessarily mean the roster will stay at 20 forever. For now, though, at launch you’ll have the following options:

1. Big Daddy
2. Cole MacGrath
3. Evil Cole MacGrath
4. Colonel Radec
5. Dante
6. Fat Princess
7. Heihachi Mishima
8. Jak and Daxter
9. Kratos
10. Nariko
11. Nathan Drake
12. PaRappa the Rapper
13. Raiden
14. Ratchet and Clank
15. Sackboy
16. Sir Daniel Fortesque
17. Sly Cooper
18. Spike
19. Sweet Tooth
20. Toro

Rumors in the past have suggested additional fighters such as Metal Gear Solid’s Snake and Kat from Gravity Rush, though neither has ever been confirmed by Superbot.

PlayStation All-Stars Battle Royale will hit stores on November 20th for PlayStation 3 and Vita, and buying the console version will get you the Vita version for free. For a look at all 20 launch characters in action, check out 30 minutes of expert videos from Superbot’s Seth Killian. For even more, be sure to see our official PlayStation All-Stars Battle Royale wiki guide.

Andrew Goldfarb is IGN’s associate news editor. Keep up with pictures of the latest food he’s been eating by following him on Twitter or IGN.

Source : ign[dot]com

PlayStation All-Stars: 30 Minutes of Expert Videos

IGN's hunger for new PlayStation All-Stars Battle Royale content knows no bounds. We pitch characters for the roster, grab rumors, and have the official PlayStation All-Stars Battle Royale wiki. This week we went so far as to nabbing fighting game guru Seth Killian -- a recent "get" for fighting games on PlayStation -- and had him play 13 matches as the game's newest characters. We even had him commentate over the bouts to give you an idea of what character is right for you.

Missing the older characters like Kratos and Sly Cooper? Check out the wiki for their videos, and then get to watching and check out our daily updates all this week on IGN.

MONDAY, 9/17

TUESDAY, 9/18

WEDNESDAY, 9/19

THURSDAY, 9/20

FRIDAY, 9/21

Greg is the executive editor of IGN PlayStation, cohost of Podcast Beyond and host of Up at Noon. Follow IGN on Twitter, and keep track of Greg's shenanigans on IGN and Twitter. Beyond!

Source : ign[dot]com

Sons of Anarchy: "Sovereign" Review

Note: Full spoilers for the Sons of Anarchy: Season 5 premiere follow.

Sons of Anarchy returned with its usual complex storylines and characters intact, introduced new twists and turns, and added intriguing new recurring cast members in Jimmy Smits (Dexter) and Harold Perrineau (Lost). As SAMRCO’s reigning President, Jax Teller (Charlie Hunnam) had to deal with threats on various fronts, from the business side of things to the personal. So, in other words, just a typical day for SAMCRO.

There was plenty of plot to go around between the deal with the cartel, Roosevelt still snooping around, the battle with the Niners, home invasions in Charming and the new danger from revenge-seeking Damon Pope. Add to that all the interpersonal drama after the fallout from the power shakeup in the last season, and you’ve got a packed episode that didn’t have any trouble filling up the extra time it had for the season premier. The confrontational scenes - Jax and Opie, Gemma and Tara, Roosevelt and Juice, to name a few - were given enough time to help us keep the various threads in mind, and none bogged down the episode's momentum.

After the events of last season, Clay (Ron Perlman) appeared to be a broken man, both physically and emotionally. But if you thought that losing his position of power would make Clay less dangerous, that was a mistake. Using a trick I wouldn’t have guessed Clay had in his arsenal, he played a version of the sympathy card. Feeding the club partial truths, he managed to spill enough facts to potentially be let off several hooks. That all of this happened under Jax’s disbelieving glare from the other side of the table made for a great scene. It will be interesting to see what happens next between these two perpetually sparring opponents.

Jax is not amused.

With an introductory scene that was memorable, to say the least, Smits joined the cast as Nero Padilla, who humorously described himself as a “companionator,” rather than the more mundane term of pimp. So far, Smits was a breath of fresh air, with his smooth talk and immediate affection for Gemma. And it was somewhat amusing that on this show the pimp character was the one portrayed as carefree and (comparatively) above-the-law.

Gemma’s state of mind was troubling, especially seeing the tough former queen of the club so confused about how she ended up at Nero’s. Gemma’s behavior was paralleled nicely with Tara’s situation. Tara may appear to be dealing with things, but the quick shot of her at the end of the episode contradicted that. Both Katey Sagal and Maggie Siff continued their excellent performances of two strong women navigating the tricky waters of SAMCRO, trying to control their situations the best they can, while things continued to unravel for both of them.

With a less flashy intro than Smits, Perrineau also made his first appearance count as Damon Pope, father of the girl Tig killed last season. Pope’s quietly powerful demeanor was convincingly menacing, even before he set in motion the object lesson for Jax and SAMCRO where the new head of the Niners was murdered in front of them. His ruthlessness combined with his desire to appear to be an upstanding member of the community was a bit reminiscent of Breaking Bad’s Gus Fring, one of the more frightening villains TV has given us recently. If there was any question that Pope is a force to be reckoned with this season, the horrific scene with Tig and his daughter should put that to rest.

With all the above in play this season, I almost laughed out loud at Tara’s exasperated, “Now what?” when the phone call came in that the police were looking to arrest Jax, Chibs and Tig. She should know by now that there is always going to be something going terribly wrong with this group of guys. If previous seasons are any indication, the mess SAMCRO is in so far is just the tip of the iceberg.

Source : ign[dot]com

Green Lantern #0 Review

While most of the other zero issues are serving to reflect on the past of its titular characters, Green Lantern #0 is instead looking at the future. Here, Geoff Johns introduces us to the mysterious new Green Lantern of Earth, Simon Baz. Happily, Johns builds a fantastic new representative of Sector 2814, constructing a stellar issue that uses the modern socio-political climate as a way to showcase Baz’s ability to overcome great fear. This issue is a triumph of not only character building, but turning a negative of the real world into an inspirational positive.

We’re introduced to Baz and his family as they are being persecuted for being Muslim in the wake of 9/11, and later, Baz himself accused of being a terrorist. This is, of course, untrue, but he falls deeper and deeper into the interrogation rabbit hole. Johns showcases Baz’s strength of character by allowing him to admit that he is, in fact, a criminal (he was stealing a car), and that upon learning the car he jacked carried a bomb on board, he had heroic intentions. Johns is able to rely on the very real climate of a post-9/11 America to let readers infer certain aspects of Baz’s younger years, leaving him ample space for a well-written interrogation scene that reveals more about both Baz and the agents interrogating him.

Green Lantern #0 is another example of Johns taking his epic Green Lantern run in a wholly unexpected direction that also serves as a stellar jump-on point for newbies. Though it’s only been one issue, I fully expect Baz – if he survives for a while, of course – to become another successful addition to Earth’s Green Lanterns. For continuing readers, yes, there’s also a brief one-page look at just what the hell happened to Hal Jordan and Sinestro in Green Lantern #12.

Dough Mahnke delivers a solid issue, and gets to explore some different territory outside the norm of his usual Green Lantern work. This is a book filled mostly with real-world situations (predominately the aforementioned interrogation scene), and Mahnke really gets to show off his knack for hitting dramatic beats and constructing solid facial emotions. Johns has an uncharacteristically dialogue-centric script, but Mahnke does a stellar job of pacing his pages so the visuals are still just as interesting as the words, where a lesser artist would struggle to make talking heads as dynamic as this.

As much as I’ve dug the buddy cop elements of Green Lantern as of late, Green Lantern #0 seems to be pushing the boundaries of the mythology much like the early days of the War of Light did a few years ago, but from a very new and very specific character-centric approach. Welcome to the DCU, Baz.

Joey is IGN's Comics Editor and a comic book creator himself. Follow Joey on Twitter, or find him on IGN. He loves superhero pets so hard.

Source : ign[dot]com

PlayStation All-Stars Battle Royale Dream Roster: Warhawk

Ever since PlayStation All-Stars Battle Royale was rumored, IGN's been pitching characters that need to be in the game. Well, after the leak, it appears developer SuperBot Entertainment isn't listening. So, IGN's Podcast Beyond is teaming with IGN reader Pandamusk to create videos for the fighters we think need to be in the game.

This week, we're pitching the plane from Warhawk. You read that right... it's Clements' idea.

Who do you think should be in PlayStation All-Stars Battle Royale? Let us know in the comments below. Plus, check out our past installments...

• Heavy Rain's Ethan Mars
• Crash Bandicoot's Crash Bandicoot
• The Sound Shapes Blob
• Mega Man

Greg is the executive editor of IGN PlayStation, cohost of Podcast Beyond and host of Up at Noon. Follow IGN on Twitter, and keep track of Greg's shenanigans on IGN and Twitter. Beyond!

Source : ign[dot]com

Nariko and Sir Daniel Confirmed for PlayStation All-Stars

Nariko from Heavenly Sword and Sir Daniel Fortesque from MediEvil are the 19th and 20th confirmed characters in Sony’s upcoming brawler PlayStation All-Stars Battle Royale.

A video distributed by GameSpot shows the two characters in action. You can see the footage below.

The reveal of Nariko and Sir Daniel mark the inclusion of every single character from the leaked data from All-Stars’ beta. Could these two characters therefore be the final reveal? It remains to be seen! But keep an eye on IGN for more information on PlayStation All-Stars Battle Royale as it develops.

Colin Moriarty is an IGN PlayStation editor. You can follow him on Twitter and IGN and learn just how sad the life of a New York Islanders and New York Jets fan can be.

Source : ign[dot]com

Invincible #94 Review

It's a sign of how large the Invincible universe has grown that the book can feature both Mark Grayson and his replacement, Zandale, and yet both characters are little more than guest stars in this issue. And it's a testament to how well Robert Kirkman has fleshed out some of these secondary characters that the relative absence of the Invincible family is barely felt.

More than ever, this has really become Robot and Monster Girl's story. With so many other heroes busy or out of commission, it's these two that are leading the fight against the resurgent Flaxans. Issue #94 also relies even more heavily on flashback sequences to their extended time exiled in the Flaxan dimension. Kirkman focuses a great deal on the evolution of their romance over the course of hundreds of years. Readers have known for a while where the two characters end up, but it's nice to finally see the journey that brought them to this point. This material generally works very well and adds an extra layer of emotional resonance to what would otherwise be another big, bloody battle for the fate of Earth. The problem comes at the end of the issue, where Kirkman drops a twist that is just a little too soap opera-y for my tastes.

Both Ryan Ottley and Cory Walker handle their respective sections well. Ottley has never been a slouch when it comes to epic action, and his various battle scenes are a feast of visual delights. Walker is arguably the standout artist this month, however, as he tackles most of the key emotional moments in his flashback scenes. It helps that colorist John Rauch is able to add more depth and richness to Walker's pencils than we've seen in his previous work. I'll probably never be happy with the odd, shimmery quality to Rauch's skin tones, but he does plenty right with this series as well.

Jesse is a writer for IGN Comics and IGN Movies. He can't wait until he's old enough to feel ways about stuff. Follow Jesse on Twitter, or find him on IGN.

Source : ign[dot]com

Animal Man #12 Review

With any episodic story there inevitably comes the “recap” installment where the characters spend a majority of the issue reflecting on the past and little else. Luckily, Jeff Lemire and Scott Snyder sidestep the painful parts of this necessary evil and add in just enough new content to set up for the long-brewing Rotworld storyline.

With so much build up to Buddy Baker finding Swamp Thing, their first meeting proves to be underwhelming. Both are some of the best written characters in DC’s current stable, but they wind up having a bland interaction that merely serves as a giant information dump. Where’s the friction and personality to these two heroes that have made their books so enthralling to read? The one highlight of their interaction comes when Swamp Thing lifts up a startled Buddy and leaps into the Rot-pond. The look on Buddy’s face is priceless.

Steve Pugh ups his game for this crossover issue and provides more minute details to the setting than ever before. Vines creep up a railing, haunting figures are showcased in front of an apocalyptic backdrop, and the first journey into the Rot has a sickening amount of bones, teeth, and flies. A montage detailing the interactions between the Green, the Red, and the Rot looks stunning with its veiny structure not unlike Yanick Paquette’s plant-paneling in Swamp Thing. With the marrying of both art style and story concepts, the Animal Man and Swamp Thing creative teams have set up a crossover that I can’t wait to read. Given general hate for crossovers, that is a strange feat indeed.

Joshua is a writer for IGN. Follow him on Twitter or IGN, where he is hell-bent on making sure you know his opinion about comic books.

Source : ign[dot]com

Kotobukiya Explores the DC Universe

Though DC Comics still has its DC Collectibles branch, we're seeing a number of other collectibles companies increase their focus on characters like Batman and Superman. Kotobukiya is one such company to increase their DC output in recent months, particularly through their Bishoujo line of PVC statues. The company provided us with new pics and details about some of their upcoming DC products.

Justice League ArtFX Statues

Koto first introduced the ArtFX+ format as part of their Star Wars line, and the heroes of the Justice league are the next to make the jump. Compared to the regular ArtFX format, ArtFX+ statues are smaller (1:10 scale or about 7.5 inches tall) and more affordably priced. Koto will focus on the New 52 Justice League first, with statues based on Jim Lee's artwork and character designs.

Superman and Green lantern will be the first two characters out of the gate. Both statues were sculpted by artist Atelier Bamboo. Both will cost $39.99 and are expected to hit stores in January 2013. Koto also had an unpainted Wonder Woman prototype on display at SDCC, so we expect to at least see the core seven League members included in this line.

Huntress Bishoujo Statue

The Bishoujo line continues to be one of Koto's more popular series, expanding to include everything from Tekken to Mass Effect to Star Wars. The next DC-themed Bishoujo statue after Harley Quinn (which we previewed here) will be Huntress. Like the other DC Bishoujos, Huntress is based on her classic appearance rather than the New 52 look. This statue was sculpted by Masahiro Takashi and measures about 9.5 inches tall. She'll retail for $64.99 and is expected to ship in December 2012.

Justice League X Korejanai Mini Figures

Koto's newest DC line is a bit more unusual. The Justice league X Korejanai figures are inspired by the "Korejanai Robot" illustration style. These heavily stylized figurines have limited articulation but can actually transform into cars by adjusting the limbs.

Each figure is about 2.5 inches tall and will retail for $5.99. The first series includes both regular and metallic variants of Superman, Batman, Wonder Woman, Green Lantern, and Flash. Series 1 is expected to hit stores in November 2012.

Jesse is a writer for IGN Comics and various other IGN channels. Follow Jesse on Twitter, or find him on IGN.

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Arrow Will Face DC Comics Villain Deadshot

Arrow is not holding back on the DC Comics characters. Another DC villain has been revealed for the new series – based on Green Arrow – in the form of Deadshot.

KSiteTV.com confirmed the news, revealing Deadshot would appear in the third episode of the series. No casting is known as yet.

This will be the second live-action version of Deadshot in the last couple of years, after a rather different, sort of modern cowboy version, was seen in Smallville’s final season. There will be no characters with superpowers in Arrow, but someone like Deadshot – an assassin first introduced as a Batman villain – make sense in the more grounded world of the series.

It’s already been revealed that Green Arrow villain China White will be introduced in the second episode of the series, played by Kelly Hu.

Arrow premieres October 10th on The CW.

Source : ign[dot]com

Warehouse 13: "A New Hope" Review

Note: Full spoilers for the Warehouse 13: Season 4 premiere follow.

Warehouse 13 has grown up in many ways. It has more action, the characters have transcended their archetypes, the special effects have improved dramatically, and the scripts aren't afraid to raise the stakes and put the lead cast into mortal danger. This season premiere proves again that this show just keeps getting better.

When last season left us with the destruction of Warehouse 13 and the death of Mrs. Frederics and H.G. Wells, it was shocking and amazing. But Artie has a habit of conveniently having a artifact handy, and it wasn't hard to guess that the watch that survived last season's finale was going to make everything right again.

So this episode starts off kind of on the wrong foot since we know what's going to happen. Artie and his team will of course reverse time, undo past wrongs, and all will be well so we can continue the season. Despite the inevitable time reversal, one of the reasons this episode works is that past events have shown us that this series isn't afraid to inflict dramatic physical and mental harm on its cast. Jinks, H.G. Wells, and Mrs. Frederics all bought the big one in the past few episodes. And the opening of this episode shows a hopeless world and everything going to hell in a handbasket (expertly narrated by news personalities Ed Schultz and Lester Holt - thanks, NBC!). It's enough to make you forget that things are supposed to end well here.

Along with Schultz and Holt we have Brent Spiner, who will be forever immortalized in geek lore as Data on Star Trek: The Next Generation. He makes an appearance in a role that doesn't really show off his talents. But SyFy says the Brother Adrian character will be around for at least six episodes, so Spiner has time to grow into the character and hopefully produce something special.

The pace in this story is face and furious which creates exactly the kind of urgency this season opener needed. The stakes are incredibly high and the tension is strong, but it's all tempered by the usual Warehouse 13 humor. As usual, this episode has a number of cheesey moments. If you're a fan of the show you've surely gotten used to this by now. This series has always used old TV tropes (the rapid-fire clue guessing game being one of my most hated), but it doesn't lean too heavily on them and the humor has gradually gotten better over the years as the writers and actors molded these characters. Pete Tebowing was perfect for the character, and the dynamic between Claudia and Artie is hilarious and feels perfectly natural.

The second half of the story is a lot darker though, and this again shows how much this series has matured. It can be all lighthearted and irreverent but still hit hard. A battle with the bad guys leaves Pete on the ground choking on his own blood, and dead. This scene is potently dramatic, with Pete spending his last words asking if he'll remember dying once Artie fixes everything. Yes, we all know Pete can't die. But the writers tucked in a clever little plot piece: Artie will remember everything, and it's going to haunt him.

The end wraps up everything nicely, and as an added bonus Sykes, our villain from last season, gets a moment of peaceful redemption. Add to that the apparent pardon of H.G. Wells and all does indeed seem to be back to normal, except for the foreboding words of Brother Adrian and the strange vision of Claudia poking a dagger-sized hole in Artie's chest. This season's villain may be Claudia herself, and that could make for lots of drama.

This is undoubtedly a great start for WH13. So far this is already looking like the most complex and thrilling season of the series to date. It's rare for a sci-fi show to start hitting its stride so late in the game, but it can't be denied that Warehouse 13 is better than it's ever been.

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Thomas Was Alone Review

Thomas Was Alone does an incredible thing: it makes you care about characters that are nothing more than coloured rectangles. It’s a great example of the way decent writing can elevate the simplest of games to something really memorable. As a puzzle-platformer, Thomas Was Alone is unique and entertaining, but it’s the confluence of art, sound, narrative texture and gameplay that makes it something more.

Narrated by Danny Wallace and made by Mike Bithell, Thomas Was Alone tells the story of the emergence of the first self-aware artificial intelligence. Each of its ten chapters begins with a fictional quote or two from newspapers, spokespeople and commentators at the time of the Event, but the narrative texture comes from the internal monologues of the cast of jumping rectangles as they navigate their way through minimalist, geometric levels.

You begin the game with a single red jumping quadrangle – Thomas – and pick up friends along the way, all of whom are different personalities with different abilities. One shape can float on water, one acts as a bouncy trampoline; smaller, nimbler rectangles can be stacked to create staircases for larger, more ungainly ones, many of whom have complexes about their size. Some are devious, some cantankerous, some mildly evil, but most are pleasant characters reacting with mild bemusement to their newfound consciousness. The aim, in every level, is to get every shape to a portal; once they’re all in place, they’re zapped to the next level.

Thomas Was Alone is only ever gently challenging, but it does quickly start bending your brain in ways it’s not supposed to bend, playing with gravity, perception and Portal-like ability-changing paints before it’s finished. Over the course of the game’s three or four hours, Bithell squeezes about as much novelty and variety out of its elegantly simple systems as humanly possible. Some levels are more tedious than others – the ones that involve a lot of precise staircasing and dangerous jumps will make you hammer your keyboard in rage more often than the more puzzle-orientated scenarios – but the pacing is clever enough to pull you through the game in just one or two sittings. Though it never exactly builds to a sense of urgency, your curiosity about the Event (and about what happens to Thomas and his friends) intensifies towards the end.

As any of the trailers will show you, Thomas Was Alone complements its simple gameplay with some beautifully minimalist music by David Housden – an ethereal piano score dotted with chiptune flourishes that evokes a kind of spaced-out loneliness, and works very well as a complement to your mental self-wrangling as you try to work out a level. Its use of colour and shadow, too, elevates it aesthetically from what you might expect of a one-man game at this price point. It’s a sophisticated disguise, in a way; Thomas Was Alone turns the enforced simplicity of a game made by one person into a design choice.

Thomas Was Alone never over-exploits any of its ideas, giving each the space it needs to breathe; if there’s a particular type of level that infuriates you, you can be happy in the knowledge that you won’t have to play through 20 near-identical ones.  This does lead to a relatively short run-time, but the £5.99 ($9) purchase price is still more than justified by the overall quality of the experience.

Source : ign[dot]com

Batman: The Dark Knight's TV History

The Caped Crusader. The Dark Knight. Batman has been reinvented many times since his creation in 1939, having at times represented all that is goofy about comic book characters and then all that is dark and serious about comic book characters.

With the super-mega-off-the-charts anticipated The Dark Knight Rises opening in theaters, we figured it was time to take an updated look at the history of Batman on TV. The character has been the focus of a huge amount of animated series that have been wildly divergent in styles. And of course, he’s also appeared in live-action on TV, including in a series that remains one of the most iconic comic book adaptations ever. Hey, that sounds like a good place to start!

Batman (1966)

This show holds a complicated place in the history of both Batman and comic book adaptations in general. Batman was a hugely popular series, and it's the reason Batman became one of the most recognizable and popular comic book characters in the world. Beyond that, it also made icons out of several Batman villains – The Riddler was an almost forgotten character until Frank Gorshin's gleeful portrayal and thanks to this show everyone soon knew who The Joker, Catwoman and Penguin were.

Of course where this show causes problems for modern fans is the tone – the epitome of camp, Batman, didn't take the title character, his "chum" Robin, or anything else in Gotham City seriously. While Batman was played with mock seriousness by Adam West, this was clearly a very jokey, very tongue in cheek series. Let's put it this way: is there any other incarnation of Batman where the Caped Crusader and the Joker are in a surfing contest with each other?

Because of this show and its popularity, comic book heroes would be perceived by many in the mainstream as very silly creations, something it's taken years to undo – and there are still articles about Batman that can't resist a "Holy something, Batman!" or "Bam!" joke in the headline.

The thing about the 1960s Batman though is that it's a very well done and very funny show. The show was intentionally played a certain way, and in that respect, it's a success. There are some completely hysterical, wacky sequences throughout this show, which is very much a product of the '60s, in all its trippyness. We all now know Batman as The Dark Knight, and that's how it should be these days. But this series showed that if you did play Batman for comedy, it could be legitimately funny. (Unlike, say, Batman & Robin).

The Batman/Superman Hour (1968)

With the Adam West TV series making Batman a household name, an animated series was the next natural step to capitalize on the Caped Crusader’s popularity. And while the Superman segments of this series were previously produced, the Batman segments were brand new – and featured many of the villains familiar to viewers of the live-action series, such as Joker, Penguin and Riddler, plus some like Scarecrow who never appear on the West series.

Batman and Robin were voiced by Olan Soule and Casey Kasem – and it wouldn’t be the only time famous radio personality Kasem would play the Boy Wonder. Ted Knight provided several voices again – again reflecting the live-action series – Commissioner Gordon and Batgirl had prominent roles.

The Batman segments of The Batman/Superman Hour would be repackaged many times on their own, including under the titles Batman with Robin the Boy Wonder and The Adventures of Batman.

The New Scooby-Doo Movies (1972)

The New Scooby-Doo Movies was the second series starring the ever-popular paranormal investigating dog and his human friends. The episodes were an hour long – certainly unusual for a cartoon, though still a bit questionable to be called a "movie." On this show the Scooby gang teamed with a different guest star each week – some were real life celebrities, some were fictional characters.

An example of the latter is when none other than the world's greatest detective teamed up with Scooby-Doo. It's a bizarre pairing, and it actually happened twice – Batman and Robin were among a handful of repeat guest stars on The New Scooby-Doo Movies.

In both episodes, the villains were Joker and Penguin, both now widely known thanks to the Adam West series. That show's influence is certainly still felt here, as Batman & Robin don't act that dissimilar to the Adam West/Burt Ward incarnations.

Obviously, viewed now this is all ridiculous – It's Batman teaming up with Scooby-Doo! Of course, if you're a little kid, this is kind of the best, most amazing thing ever - It's Batman teaming up with Scooby-Doo!

Super Friends (1973)

For years the general public's main perception of Batman came from the Adam West TV series and this Saturday morning animated show. Of course, both portrayals of the Caped Crusader were just about as far removed from the popular Dark Knight incarnation of today as you could get, and yet the cheeseball, kindly, father-figure style Batman remains near and dear to many a viewer's heart for those of us who were a certain age when Super Friends aired over its long run, from 1973-1986.

Featuring an eponymous version of the Justice League called the Super Friends, because, you know, these guys are all friends, the show starred Superman, Wonder Woman, Aquaman, Batman, and Robin, the latter of whom the show's creators apparently felt was inseparable from his mentor. Debuting in 1973, the program was no doubt barely tolerable for adult comic-book fans -- and this in a time when superhero programming was much harder to come by -- but the kids loved it. Variations on the program would air with different titles and an ever-widening range of heroes and baddies, including some infamous inclusions like Wendy, Marvin and the Wonder Twins.

Many of Batman's enemies found their way onto the show, including the Penguin, the Scarecrow, and the Joker. Adam West voiced the character in the final two seasons of the show, though Olan Soule (reprising the vocal role he originated on The Batman/Superman Hour) and his stentorian-yet-gentle delivery handled the vocal chores for the bulk of the show, with Casey Kasem again voicing Robin.

The New Adventures of Batmn (1977)

This Filmation-produced animated series had Adam West and Burt Ward revisiting their roles as Batman and Robin. The Dynamic Duo were joined by Bat-Girl (voiced by Melendy Britt, who would later be the voice of She-Ra) and a completely bizarre character named Bat-Mite (voiced by Lou Scheimer, who would go on to voice many characters in Filmation's He-Man and the Masters of the Universe, such as Orko). Bat-Mite was an annoying little creature from another dimension who considers himself Batman's biggest fan, sometimes helping him but most often just getting in the way. Not appearing in the series at all is Alfred (Bat-Mite probably drove him away).

Featuring a lot of the same campy humor and cheesy dialogue as the live-action 1966 series, The New Adventures of Batman is a far cry from The Dark Knight of today. Did we mention Bat-Mite had a prominent role!?

This series would be another that would get repackaged and integrated into other series in later years, with segments appearing in The Batman/Tarzan Adventure Hour, Tarzan and the Super 7 and Batman and the Super 7.

Legends of the Superheroes (1979)

Some Batman fans hate the 1960s Adam West series for its campy nature. Well, if you don't like that show, you might well implode when watching this. Adam West and Burt Ward donned the tights one last time for this bizarre pseudo-variety show, which does for the DC heroes what The Star Wars Holiday Special did for that franchise. And yes, that means horror beyond imagination.

Batman and Robin are joined here by a large group of other DC heroes and villains here, for what could be seen as the first-ever live-action incarnation of the Justice League. Green Lantern, Hawkman, The Huntress, The Flash, The Atom and Black Canary all got their live-action debuts, joining Captain Marvel on a show that for some of the above is still their only time to date appearing outside of comics and animation.

But don't get excited, because Legends of the Superheroes, which only aired two episodes, is truly, mind-numbingly awful. It's all played as broad, pun-filled comedy and not a lick of it works. There's one groaner after another, and seeing West, Ward (way too old to be playing "The Boy Wonder") and Frank Gorshin (back as the Riddler) doing such terrible material, it only elevates the legitimately funny '60s Batman series they appeared in more.

The first episode is at least watchable in a train wreck sense, as the heroes go outside and into action to try to stop a team of villains -- including Riddler, Solomon Grundy and Sinestro -- from their plan to blow up the entire world… a plan which the villains don't seem to have thought through, all things considered.

The second episode is even worse and watching it may cause harm to your soul. The episode is all contained on the shoddy set of the show, with a seemingly never-ending superhero roast, featuring Ed McMahon as MC. We only wish we were making this up.

How bad is this show? Well, there's a black superhero featured on the second episode, who goes by the name of Ghetto Man. Yes, really. Bad, stupid and offensive! It's a superhero trifecta! This would be the last time Batman would be seen in live-action until Tim Burton's first film – much like Batman & Robin, a long rest was greatly needed for Batman after this disaster.

Continue to Page 2, as Paul Dini and Bruce Timm create perhaps the greatest Batman adaptation of all time...

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