Tingly With Anticipation

With the start of a new year, the internet is rampant with people getting excited about the cool new things to look forward to in 2012. Lists are everywhere. A common theme I keep seeing is "most anticipated movies of 2012."

Now, I don't get to the movies nearly enough (by my reckoning, at least) now that I have a kiddo. It is possible this will be the year that changes that--she's growing up and soon we'll be able to do our mommy/daughter movie lunches together. I am really looking forward to that, but it won't come to pass probably until at least the back end of the year.* Even when it does, we'll be limited in what we can see together, because I know there will be a higher chance of her sitting still (and quietly) throughout if she is also engaged in the story. I don't think she'll be ready yet when this is released, but, if she is, this is probably the first thing I'll take her to see:



I'll be going to see Brave in theaters regardless, but it would be awesome if I could enjoy it with Baby Girl. We shall have to see.

Other than Brave, there are three other movies that I know I will be making the effort to see in theaters this year. I am super excited for each one of these.



The Avengers should, I hope, be a super fun romp. I absolutely adored Thor, found myself surprisingly engaged by Captain America, and also enjoyed the Iron Man films more than I expected. Add to this the fact that Joss Whedon is directing and I (and most of geekdom) have high hopes that this is just going to rock, pure and simple. Marvel has really done an amazing job with these one-universe films and I think that The Avengers will be the deciding factor on whether or not they keep it up. I hope they do. It's nice to have these things all tied together just a little bit. It makes the story feel a little bit more complete in my mind.

Next up, there's this:



John Carter, based on A Princess of Mars by Edgar Rice Burroughs. This...this is something I have been waiting for for a long time. I discovered Burroughs when I was about ten or eleven, picking up the first Tarzan book and becoming completely captivated by the world that Burroughs created on the page. I picked up many of his other series, and while the John Carter books aren't my favorites by a long shot, I have grown to appreciate them more in my adulthood, despite the problems arising from the fact that Burroughs was a man writing at the turn of the twentieth century with many of the outlooks and prejudices of his times. Still, his heroes always do feel like true heroes to me, and his world-building is absolutely phenomenal. I am very pleased to know that the movie is keeping the original era of the books (post-Civil War) intact, and I am quite curious to find out how this adaptation plays out. "Squee" doesn't even begin to cover my reaction to the approach of this film.

Finally, I am also waiting on tenterhooks for:



The Hobbit just squeaks past John Carter as the movie I am most looking forward to. Mostly because I am not really worried about it letting me down like I am with John Carter. Peter Jackson has more than earned my trust in regards to this franchise. I am not entirely sure I even need to explain why I am so excited about this one, but I'll try. Martin Freeman! Dwarves! Dwarves singing! I think every card-carrying geek on the planet is looking forward to it at least a little.

Honestly? I don't even care what else comes out this year. Let these four films entertain me, and I will be more than satisfied.

What movies are you guys most looking forward to this year?

*Yes, I know that many theaters have "child-friendly" viewings, where parents are welcome to bring their young kids and the lights aren't turned down all of the way and whatnot. I personally have no desire to attend one of those. For me going to the movies is a special kind of experience. I don't even like to get up to take a bathroom break during the film. I like to nip down in my seat and just let the movie take me away. Hence my personal decision not to take my daughter to the theater until she is able to at least sit more or less still and quiet throughout the film.

I Can't Be The Only One Who Thinks It Should Have Opened On A Thursday

Does anyone else remember the movie Adventures in Babysitting? It was one of my favorites when I was a kid. It is the classic 80's teen movie, though I think it appealed much more to people who were my age when it came out than to people who were actual teenagers at the time. But whatever.

In that film, there is a character who is obsessed with the comic book character of Thor. The movie even features a crazy young Vincent D'Onofrio as a possible Thor. (More power to this movie for making the character obsessed with a superhero a little girl, by the way. Way ahead of their time in acknowledging the geekiness of girls. I approve.)

I have a small confession to make. I have seen that movie oodles of times (I do, in fact, own it on DVD). While as a kid the only comic book characters I was really familiar with were Archie and Superman, I have since college been getting more into comic books. Even if I haven't been reading the standard Marvel titles, I have been getting to know all of the different characters contained within that universe. Yet somehow, by some strange fate, it never occurred to me until yesterday that the Thor from Adventures in Babysitting was actually a real line of comics, or to connect the comics talked about frequently in that movie to the big summer action flick that is opening today. Huh.

I think it is just one of those things. When I was a kid I assumed they had just made up their own line of comic books, as television shows and movies were wont to do. I was quite familiar with Norse mythology (I was that kind of kid--books of myths and fairy tales were my comic books--when I wasn't reading Archie and Jughead of course. I loved Jughead.). I just assumed, if I gave it any thought at all, that someone said "Hey, we need a superhero for this kid to be obsessed with. How does a Norse god sound?"

So, yeah, I have gone through the whole of my life pretty much unaware that Thor has somehow had a long and varied life as a superhero in the Marvel universe until word of the movie came out. I guess I should feel a little bit ashamed about that but...it happens, right? But this leaves me woefully unprepared for the comic-book version of Thor that the movie is based on.

Did I mention I am going to see Thor today? No? Oh, yeah, hey, guess what, I get to go see a movie today! Thor! With one of my best friends who is a huge fan of Norse mythology (and has a little bit of viking blood running through her veins)! I am really excited about this! It seems like the universe is as well, because yesterday I got a couple of crash courses in the Marvel version of Thor sent my way. How nifty is that?

First, there was this article on io9: Everything You Wanted To Know About Thor (But Were Too Afraid To Ask)

It's a pretty groovy primer on the basic background of the comics v. the original mythology so you have a point of comparison for the characters that actually show up in the movie. It's also spoiler-free for the movie, yay!

Even more serendipitous, however, was the bonus item in my stack of comic books that arrived in the mail yesterday. There exists in this world a wonderful event known as Free Comic Book Day, and that day is this Saturday, tomorrow, in fact. Now, I don't have a local comic book store that I shop at (shame on me, I know, I have been considering rectifying this though), so I don't usually get to partake in the festivities. Things From Another World, the online shop from whence my comics come, however, does want to share the Free Comic Book Day love, so in the packages that get mailed out the week of the event, they do include one of the freebie titles.

What was my freebie title this year? The Mighty Thor Saga. I kid you not. Basically, it is a synopsis of the whole run of Thor comics to date. It features images from various comics and tells the tale in a lovely linear fashion. It is wonderful! Hands down the coolest Free Comic Book Day offering I have ever received. Also, the timing could not have been more perfect.

So I am off to get my viking on. Have a fantastic weekend! I certainly plan to.

Oh, and Happy Mother's Day to all of you moms and moms-to-be out there. I hope you have a lovely time on Sunday.

Oh, oh! I know I have been slacking on linking, but don't forget to check out this week's new Gronk! It is just over a year old, and still as wonderful as ever!

Ciao!

Oh, oh, oh! One more thing! Even though it took me far too long to connect the Thor comics from Adventures in Babysitting to the Thor of the upcoming movie, others were much quicker on the uptake, and now there exists this. Enjoy.

Okay, laters for reals this time, folks. See ya Monday.