There are four new matchups that have been revealed in addition to the Magneto vs. Iron Man battle that was revealed earlier this week.  The four match-ups are shown below with my opinions as to who would win the battle.  Feel free to let me know what you think in the comments though.  I’m always up for a spirited comic book debate.

The first match-up we’ll cover is Black Widow vs. Psylocke.  Both are highly trained martial artists and have notoriously been depicted as being able to stand toe to toe with anyone in physical combat.  From my perspective Black Widow probably has the slight edge in martial arts but Psylocke takes the fight with her mutant powers.

Avengers: 0

X-Men: 1

Second up we have the God of Thunder, Thor, against the Queen of Wakanda, Storm.  Now this is an interesting match-up just because of the parallels of both combatants being able to use thunder and lightning as weapons.  But how does a mutant beat a god?  I just don’t see Storm pulling out the win against Thor.  Thor can take just about anything Storm throws at him and his still has his hammer which can do tons of damage.  Thor gets the win here.

Avengers: 1

X-Men: 1

Next we have Spider-Man taking on his amazing friend Iceman.  I like this pairing if only for the play on the 80s cartoon.  Just add Firestorm and it will be a reunion.  Iceman is an Omega level mutant once of the most powerful of the X-Men.  Peter Parker is finally getting his due as one of the smartest minds of the Marvel Universe.  His close relationship with the Future Foundation/Fantastic Four allows him to exercise his mind and encourages him to think first and then act.  Both combatants have a history and familiarity with each other.  Spidey’s big brain saves him in the end as he comes up with a good plan or technology to defeat Iceman.

Avengers: 2

X-Men: 1

The final battle puts the leaders of both teams against each other.  Captain America takes on Cyclops in what I think will be a fun read.  Cap is the longtime leader of the Avengers and is a historical icon.  Cyclops is the longtime leader of the X-Men and now the leader of Utopia and a vast majority of the remnants of mutantkind.  Both men are well established leaders and strategists so I think this battle comes down to one thing… experience.  Cap has been fighting since World War II long before Cyclops was even born.  His experience gives him the edge here and he exploits Cyclops’ obvious weakness, his visor.  Cap’s shield can take anything Cyke throws at it… but one shot from Cap’s shield to the visor and Cyclops is down for the count.  Cap takes this fight.

Avengers: 3

X-Men: 1

I spoke about the match-up between Iron Man and Magneto last week but I didn’t give a prediction as to who the winner would be.  Its a toss-up between Reed Richards and Tony Stark in regards to who the smartest man in the Marvel Universe is.  Tony’s powers all stem from his creations and the Iron Man armor is a phenomenal piece of tech.  Magneto has reformed from his terrorist ways and has become a solid member of the X-Men.  But he’s still the master of magnetism and Tony Stark wears a metal suit.  That fact alone makes me lean towards Magneto as the winner.  Tony might come up with a way to make his suit non-magnetic but there are still lots of other things around that Magneto can control to combat Shellhead.   Also factor in the fact Tony is still recovering from falling of the wagon and I think in the end Magneto comes out victorious.

Avengers: 3

X-Men: 2

With a current score of 3-2 nobody is running away with the fight and the Avengers keeps a slim lead.  As more of these match-ups come out I will continue giving my fanboy analysis.  In the end I think the Avengers will just barely eke out the win… but I could be wrong.  If you disagree with my predictions let me know and lets start a debate on this.  One of the best parts about being a comic fan is arguing over who would  beat who in a fight.

After the end of these mega-events Marvel will be rolling into the brand-wide story entitled Shattered Heroes.  Presumably this is the aftermath of both Fear Itself and Schism and will show how the heroes are dealing with the radically changed world they find themselves in.  At the San Diego Comic Con it was announced that Shattered Heroes will consist of a series of one-shots focusing on the effects the currently ongoing events will have on Marvel’s superhero population.

Marvel has begun releasing promotion material in regards to Shattered Heroes but it really doesn’t tell us a whole bunch.  In addition Marvel has pitched the Twitter hashtag #ShatteredHeroes for fans to talk about their reactions to the series.  The first promo poster released is below as well as this accompanying quote from  Tom Brevoort.

“The war is over, and the warriors return home, carrying with them scars of battle, both physical and mental. Now the cost will be tallied, the casualties buried and mourned, the rubble swept up and carted away. But the damage to our heroes isn’t easily repaired, the wounds not easily healed. Decisions are made and lives are changed—can shattered heroes find renewed courage to go on?” – Tom Brevoort, SVP Executive Editor

Today Marvel released another poster promoting Shattered Heroes.  As a fan of John Romita Jr’s artwork I have to say I really like this promo.  If you look closely there are two heroes that might be unfamiliar.  Marvel has already announced that there will be a new God Of Thunder named Tanarua who can be seen on the top left side of the image.  The other hero, depicted in the red and black samurai armor, is new to the Marvel Universe and as debuted in promos for a new super group referred to as The Forgiven.  I’m curious to see what this team ends up being but for now I would guess they are a team of heroes if one of its members is shown with the rest of Marvel’s heavy hitters.

There are a couple of takeaways that come from this picture.  Firstly, Hulk is back and no longer the world breaker.  However, he looks pretty rough like he has been changed from his experiences.  Additionally, Cap’s shield looks to be intact once more.  The question is, is this the original shield repaired or one of Asgardian design?  This poster is also accompanied by a quote from quote from Marvel Editor-in-Chief Axel Alonso who asks the question:

“Our heroes’ lives are shattered. Can they pick up the pieces in time to face the coming storm?”

It would seem that there is something dangerous in the distance for the heroes of the Marvel Universe.  The question is, what is it and will the heroes be able to win?  After all the battles that have taken place in the last few years, story-wise, will the heroes be able to cope with yet another massive battle?  I bet we’ll find out in Shattered Heroes and to be honest I’m looking forward to seeing what happens in October when everything kicks off.

Captain America director Joe Johnston has hinted that the lead role of Steve Rogers was set to be cast soon for the Cap movie.  There are a few rumors floating around the net regarding who might portray the Star-spangled Avenger.  However, one thing to keep in mind is that Johnston has said that he planned on announcing the role by March 1.  Regardless of our speculation we’ll see in just a couple week.  We’ll talk about a couple of the names floating around on the web.

1. Chris Pine – Thats right, Pine might be moving on from being Captain Kirk to Captain America.  What a sweet deal for Pine getting to be in three mega-franchises if this is the case.  Pine is also set to star in the next Tom Clancy movie based on Jack Ryan, he’ll be filling Harrison Ford’s shoes.  In addition to that Pine has done a pretty damn good job playing the role of Captain Kirk in the rebooted Star Trek.  As for whether he’s the best choice, I’m undecided personally.

I think he’s got the acting chops to pull it off, however I’ve never seen him play a character like Steve Rogers.  Captain Kirk was a cocky a-hole and Captain America is the opposite.  Cap needs to start out being unsure of himself and growing into being self-assured.  Thats a different character than we’ve seen Pine play so far.  He’s definitely got the look of Steve Rogers once he’s taken the Super Soldier formula, but he’s probably just a couple inches shorter than the ideal Cap.  However,  alot of that can be circumvented by creative filming angles.

2. Ryan McPartlin – If you aren’t familiar with the name let me give you another way to reference him, just think of the word awesome.  McPartlin plays the role of Devin “Captain Awesome” Woodcomb on the show Chuck.  It amuses me we’ve got another ‘Captain’ up for the role of Captain America.  To be honest, I’ve only seen McPartlin in Chuck and it’s probably not the best way to evaluate how he would play Steve Rogers.  It has been confirmed that he has read for the role of Steve Rogers though.  I’m an interview with Moviehole McPartlin was quoted as saying:

“The one thing I can’t stand are these actors that are twittering about auditioning for Captain America. It’s really tacky. With that said, it is in the casting process and like many other actors, I read for it, so we’ll wait and see what happens. Regardless, I’m pretty psyched to be Captain Awesome for the time being.”

There are some rumors that McPartlin has made a strong case for taking the lead role.  Additionally, McPartlin was on the red carpet for the premiere of Joe Johnston’s move The Wolfman, despite not being in the movie.  Whats the reason this conspiracy theory is taking off?  Both Chris Pine and Zachary Quinto attended the premiere of JJ Abrams’ produced Cloverfield and were not in the movie.  This was right around the same time they were cast in Star Trek also which was directed by Abrams.  It’s more than likely a coincidence, but it sure is fun to speculate.  He definitely has the look down for Steve Rogers and probably the right height.  But in my opinion he’d have to bulk up a good deal to be Captain America.  McPartlin and pretty tall and not built like Cap is portrayed, but enough time in the weight room could probably fix that.

3. Other Names – Johnston also said that they had narrowed down the selection process to 5-6 individuals and through scattered reports, these names include Chad Michael Murray,  and possibly Jensen Ackles.  I’m familiar with Ackles from Dark Angel and Smallville and those were both roles I enjoyed.  Also, he’s the lead in the CW’s Supernatural.  But with Supernatural getting renewed for a 6th season I’d put low odds on Ackles taking the mantle of Captain America.

One thing to keep in mind is that nothing has been set in stone at this point.  Everything is speculation at this point and until we find out for sure who lands this role there’s bound to be a ton more rumors.  As soon as anything is made definite I’ll be sure to pass along what I’ve heard.  At this point, I’m just excited they are making a Cap movie.

Marvel has released some promo art to gain interest in the new Heroic Age which is posted below.  Seems like an odd mix of people, I wonder if its intended to be the newly reformed Avengers?

The director of The First Avenger: Captain America, Joe Johnston has been giving out some details about the upcoming film.  He says the film at this early stage will begin “in 1942, 1943″ during World War II. “The stuff in the ’60s and ’70s [comic books] we’re sort of avoiding. We’re going back to the ’40s, and then forward to what they’re doing with Captain America now,” Johnston revealed.

Sounds good to me.  I’m all about seeing Cap kick some Nazi ass.

Via: Film Journal

Possible Cap #600 Spoilers Ahead!

Don’t say I didn’t warn you…..

So based on the events of Cap #600 its starting to look like Cap’s coming back.  That being said it looks like one helluva lame plot device.  The gun used to shoot and temporarily kill Cap has the potential to bring him back to life…  Really that’s how they’re going to undo it?  Personally I thought they’d delay the return of Cap until the movie was released in 2011.  I’m really shocked they pulled the trigger so soon.  That being said I’m willing to give it a chance and see what happens with the return of Cap.  Hopefully they can pull it off without making it seem lame.  Below is a copy of the future cover art for Reborn #1.

Preview of the covers for Reborn #1

End Possible Spoilers!