[UPDATED] The first News Round-up of 2013 kicks off with updates on Peter David’s condition, the 2013 Vancouver Fan Expo’s guest list, a new look for the X-Men’s Beast, and more.
Peter David post-stroke update
As we previously reported, fan-favorite writer Peter David suffered a stroke while on holiday in Florida with his family recently, and he initially presented with symptoms of partial right-sided paralysis and difficulty in seeing.
David’s wife Kathleen has been posting regular updates regarding his condition on PeterDavid.net and her own blog, No Strings Attached, and it seems like they are seeing incremental but nonetheless positive gains, with Kathleen recently reporting that he has sensation on his right side and that he has been able to voluntarily move his right hand and stand briefly. The road to post-stroke rehabilitation is a long one, and the struggle can seem lonely at times, so keep sending Peter, Kathleen, and their family the good vibes, guys!
Stan Lee, Neal Adams, Bob Layton, added to Fan Expo Vancouver 2013
2012′s inaugural Fan Expo Vancouver was an unmitigated hit, and organizer HSM, Inc. is looking to capitalize on last year’s success by having even bigger names headline this year’s event. Early confirmations for the comics guest list include industry legends Stan Lee, Neal Adams, and Bob Layton as well as artists Steve Epting (Captain America, New Avengers), David Finch (Justice League of America, Batman: The Dark Knight), Alex Maleev (Daredevil, Moon Knight), and Shane Davis (Superman: Earth One).
Other confirmed guests include Sean Astin (The Lord of the Rings, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles), David Prowse (the Star Wars trilogy), James Marsters (Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Angel), Norman Reedus (The Walking Dead, The Boondock Saints), Juliet Landau (Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Angel), and Sean Patrick Flanery (The Boondock Saints, Young Indiana Jones).
Fan Expo Vancouver 2013 is set for 20–21 April at the Vancouver Convention Centre.
Hank McCoy resolves to no longer be a pussy(cat)
The new year brings a new look for founding X-Man Hank McCoy, also known as the Beast, as revealed in an MTV Geek exclusive. The character re-design by Stuart Immonen moves away from the “Cat-Beast” look introduced by artist Frank Quitely in 2001 and seems to split the difference between the original, ape-like Jack Kirby design and the gray (later blue)-furred design by artists Tom Sutton and Syd Shores that first appeared as drawn in 1972′s Amazing Adventures (Vol. 2) #11:
Stuart Immonen’s new Beast design
In retrospect, it does seem rather surprising how long the “Cat-Beast” design lasted as the character’s official look, given how a lot of the trappings associated with Grant Morrison’s somewhat abbreviated run on the book—things like the standardized costumes and story devices like secondary mutations—were either quickly jettisoned or allowed to fade into irrelevance after his departure from Marvel in the mid-aughts to assume a creative director role with DC Comics.
The new-ish Beast makes his debut in this week’s All-New X-Men #5.
David Cronenberg still doesn’t like The Dark Knight Rises
“I was just responding to a question that involved an assumption that I was questioning… “
IGN recently ran an interview with David Cronenberg spotlighting his supposedly controversial comments on Christopher Nolan’s Batman films.
It’s not all that notable, really, but for the tabloid-ish, TMZ-style turn the interview takes when it came time to address Cronenberg’s previously-stated opinions on The Dark Knight Rises. You could practically smell the flop sweat coming off of staffer Roth Cornet as he doggedly pursued the loaded line of questioning and attempts to bait Cronenberg into saying something to revive the fanboy agita his NextMovie.com interview generated last year—which was really quite silly, like something out of The Onion‘s entertainment section (“Internet uproar as extensively-marketed movie’s fans learn that area man doesn’t like it”). Cronenberg doesn’t bite, however, which just exposes the “controversy” for the non-story that it is.
Take a deep breath The Dark Knight Rises fans, it’s okay, we can all like different things and still be friends. Or maybe not.
Joseph Gordon-Levitt in the running for Star-Lord role?
Deadline.com is reporting that Joseph Gordon-Levitt—whom we still primarily identify with the role of 3rd Rock from the Sun‘s Tommy Solomon, by the way—is in the running to play the character of Star-Lord in the upcoming Guardians of the Galaxy movie.
“Funny thing about this helmet… Could be anybody inside…”
The film, based on a Marvel Comics property, recently grabbed entertainment news headlines when an old blog post by director James Gunn drew the ire of the Internet Assembled for what Gunn eventually apologized as a “poorly worded” and “offensive” satire of superhero sexual politics.
The Snark-free Zone
While only somewhat tangentially connected to comics, we can’t help but feel like sharing this story about how director JJ Abrams granted a terminally ill patient’s wish by setting up a special private screening of an unfinished cut of Star Trek Into Darkness.
UPDATE: The patient, New York Asian Film Festival co-founder Daniel Craft, passed away late Friday evening.
Editor Joe Milone says: Beautiful gesture by Abrams. Wonder if he’d seen the film Fanboys before.
That’s your NEWS Round-up for this week. Until next time, don’t forget to READ BETWEEN THE HYPE!
