Legendary Pictures Launches Legendary Comics

Legendary Pictures, the studio responsible for recent films such as "Clash of the Titans," "The Dark Knight," "300" and "The Hangover," is following the trend (albeit it's reversed) of Disney and Warner Brothers by jumping into the comic market.

In a press release, the company announced the formation of Legendary Comics with acclaimed comic book editor Bob Schreck joining the fold as Editor-in-Chief. Schreck, most recently of IDW Publishing, will oversee the publisher's intention to "publish four to six graphic novels a year for both digital and traditional print distribution."

The first project is planned to land in the first half of 2011.

“Bob is an iconic editor and one of most highly-regarded curators and editors of comic culture in our industry. He is the perfect leader with the right balance of passion and editorial skills to spearhead Legendary Comics,” said Thomas Tull, the chairman and CEO of Legendary Pictures. “Legendary Comics is committed to being a new home for groundbreaking artists and the characters and stories they create, in an art form we love.”

“Thomas and the Legendary team have a proven track record of cultivating talent and delivering unparalleled entertainment experiences, and I am looking forward to building Legendary Comics into a world-class label for the best writers and artists we know,” said Schreck. “We have a real opportunity to deliver hard-hitting characters and exciting, innovative storylines to comic book aficionados. We are in the fortunate position of already having major support from the community and collaborations lined up with world-class creators.”

via:  LA Times

Christopher Nolan's Batmobile Golf Cart is Amazing

The City Council where we live is currently debating the idea of allowing residents to travel the city streets by golf cart.  We were already in favor of that idea, but now that we've seen Christopher Nolan's golf cart, we are the proposal's biggest cheerleader.  Driving around our neighborhood in a Batmobile Golf Cart would make us the coolest people in town.  Plus, crime rates would certainly go down. 

First Look: Teaser Page to Batman #700

Hot Damn Gfest loves Batman (the real Batman, Bruce Wayne) and this month DC’s ongoing Batman title hits a major and rare milestone: 700 issues.

According to the Source, all this week, they'll be taking readers into the pages of the amazing BATMAN #700, featuring a story by innovative and kinetic writer Grant Morrison and an all-star cast of artists that include Frank Quitely, David Finch, Andy Kubert, Tony Daniel and more.

The story, which touches on every aspect and era of Batman is the perfect centerpiece for an issue that celebrates the past, present and future adventures of the Dark Knight.

Christopher Nolan Says NO Joker in Batman 3

Director Christopher Nolan has said that the Joker will not be returning in Batman 3 or any other subsequent bat-films as long as he's helming the franchise. From the latest issue of Empire Magazine:

"'No,' says Nolan emphatically and unhesitatingly. He resists elaborating simply because, quite understandably, he says, 'I just don't feel comfortable talking about it.'"

Gfest is very happy that the Joker will not return in Batman 3. Heath Ledger did a wonderful job and it would have been disastrous to recast the Joker.  Kudos to you Christopher Nolan.

Let the debate begin.  Who will be the next Batman villain?
Image via (ign.com)

DC Comics 'Fringe' Amazing Alternative Earth Covers

Late last week, DC Comics The Source, revealed a series of amazing covers that were created specifically for the season finale of the sci-fi show Fringe.

These beautifully creative covers each represent a direction that the DC editorial staff might have taken in an alternate universe

Gfest has all the covers below, side-by-side with their alternate counterparts.  Thanks to our friends at geekosystem.  Original covers are on the left; Fringe alternate covers are on the right.

Batman: The Dark Knight Returns: Frank Miller’s seminal graphic novel.

The Crisis on Infinite Earths: the issue where Supergirl died.

The Death of Superman: one of the biggest events in DC history.

Justice League #1: Guy Gardner replaced with Jonah Hex. 

Green Lantern/Green Arrow #76. Red vs Green.

Full Scale Working Replica of Dark Knight Batpod on Ebay

This Gfestastic Batpod was created by eBay user badrobot2002.

The item is described as "a full scale 1:1 working replica of the famous 'Batpod' ridden by Batman in ... 'The Dark Knight,'" completely created by hand and "scaled from the original bike for superior accuracy and feel." It comes equipped with "grappling hooks, grenade launchers, and 40 caliber machine guns for those traffic jams on the freeway," though all of these weapons are thankfully non-functional.

Gfest would love to own the Batpod, but we understand that we would probably kill ourselves within a matter of minutes.  So for all you avid bikers here's your chance to win yourself this one-of-a-king batpod, head on over to eBay.

Dark Knight Meets Toy Story 2 in this Brilliant Mashup Trailer

Gfest finds trailer mashups to generally be dissapointing.  This one, which mixes footage of Toy Story 2 with the audio of the trailer for THE DARK KNIGHT, is extremelly well done.

Where this one succeeds is in the "casting" department.  Woody is the Joker, Buzz Lightyear is Batman, and T-Rex is Alfred.  It will all just seems so natural once you watch it below.

Avatar Has Now Crossed the $3 Billion Mark

Bluray.com is reporting that Avatar has now sold 6.2 million Blu-ray copies in the first three weeks since launch—that's a steady climb since the 2.7 million sold in the first four days.  On top of that, there's another 13.5 million in DVD sales. 

Let's just take a second and mull over the money machine that is Avatar.  Let's be conservative and use the current price at Amazon for these items, even though most sales would have been for more than this price.

• 
  
  6.2 million blu-rays at $19.99 each = $124 million
• 
  
  13.5 million DVDs at $15.99 each = $216 million
• Domestic Box Office = $748 million
• 
  
  International Box Office = $1.97 billion

Grand Total -- $3 billion dollars in sales so far.

Just to put those numbers in perspective, Christopher Nolan's The Dark Knight racked up 16 million sales of both Blu-ray and DVDs together.

James Cameron's epic is now the top-selling Blu-ray release of all time worldwide, and it has no signs of slowing down.

Batman's New Bat-Boat-Mobile

Citizens of Gfest, how cool is this?  It's definitely cool enough for the Dark Knight or at least someone with a lot of money that wants to pretend to be The Batman.

The Aquada is a revolutionary showcase of High Speed Amphibian (HSA) technology. Entry to the water is via beach, boat ramp, slipway or directly from the water's edge. Once afloat, the transition from road vehicle to High Speed Amphibian (HSA) is effortlessly achieved.

Batcopter: New & Improved Luxury Helicopter

Here is a helicopter fit for Bruce Wayne but could easily be utilized by the Dark Knight himself in times of need.

The Eurocopter Mercedes-Benz EC145 Helicopter is a medium-sized, twin-engine 'copter sports a yacht-like interior with high-end upholstery, wood for the floor and ceiling panels, three multi-function boxes offering a cool box, cup holders, tables, monitors, and DVD player, extra storage drawers, a windowed partition wall between the cabin and the passenger area, and ambient lighting.

First Look at Clayface in Batman 3?

We apologize upfront.  We couldn't help ourselves.  Especially after reading an article in popcrunch about how the star of Precious, Gabourey Sidibe is apparently a HUGE (pun attended) diva. 

Gfest had many, many more humorous headlines to utilize but decided to allow you good folks to post some of your own witticisms in the comment section.  We will happily post some of them on Monday along with this picture of chocolate Grimus (see we couldn't help ourselves).  

Batman Sets July 2012 Release Date - Funny Cartoon

The Dark Detective will protect the streets of Gotham City once again.

Warner Brothers set a July 20, 2012 release date for the third in the latest series of Batman films early Sunday.

The highly-anticipated follow-up would come four years after the release of "The Dark Knight," the block-buster sequel that earned Heath Ledger a posthumous Oscar for his twisted turn as the villainous Joker, and more than $1.3 billion worldwide.

Read more at New York Daily News

Could Batman Win a Tony Award?

Loyal citizens of Gfest, does it get any better than the possibility that a Batman stage show soon might be swooping to a town near you?

According to the Hollywood Reporter, Warner Bros. and DC Comics are in the early stages of developing a tour, tentatively titled "Batman Live" and starring the Caped Crusader, working with Nick Grace Management and Water Lane Prods., companies behind the popular "Walking With Dinosaurs" and "Mamma Mia!" touring shows.

Is this Filipino Batman & Robin Movie Better Than Dark Knight?

Damn right its better! We have been waiting our whole lives for a Filipino Batman & Robin Bootleg Movie.  I mean who hasn't right? But the bizarre ending to this bootleg foreign Batman film shown below is fascinating, horrifying and impossible to turn off all at once.

The movie features an unmasked Batman and Robin singing a parody of At The Hop with Joker and Penguin. It also features a cameo by a dancing spider-little-person. 

Kevin Conroy Says Christian Bale's Batman Voice "sounds ridiculous"

Kevin Conroy, the voice of Batman on Batman: The Animated Series, had some choice words for Christian Bale's gravelly Bat-voice. Although he went out of his way to praise Bale's acting performance, Conroy noted that Bale "just got steered wrong" in the voice department, and said his Batman "sounds ridiculous."

Batman - The Complete Animated Series
The Dark Knight: Limited Edition with Batpod (+Digital Copy and BD Live) [Blu-ray]