Stumbled onto Warner Bros further losing the Superhero game

 

I tried to pretend it wasn't so, but the superhero genre is in crisis. If I haven't been to see Black Panther and yet have not heard any spoilers, then it must be a fast-withering genre. Maybe it's true, maybe it has become saturated. Maybe Endgame was just the conclusion that made us all, um, conclude. There are still interesting developments; the Disney+ series, the Spiderman movie, Batman I suppose. But Warner Bros seems to keep getting it wrong, alienating critics and now fans as well.

It has been a turbulent week. Wonder Woman 3 has been cancelled which is probably the best idea the studio has had in some time considering Wonder Woman 1984 was that 'Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban' spell; Expecto Patronum. However, cancelling a project already underway and having the creator, Patty Jenkins, clear the air with a statement so pacific you want to hire whatever lawyer Warner Bros has writing up their contracts, I have doubts this is a positive indication for the studio going forward.

Even more turbulent, a short while back there was a Black Adam post-credit scene that indicated Henry Cavill who had previously broken his Superman contract because it was a piece of crap, would return as Superman. I am not sure what said indication was, because if I did not watch Black Panther, I most certainly did not watch the Rock starring in a DC movie. Then, Henry Cavill announced he would return as Superman and around the same time he would have to leave the role of the Witcher. These two might be independent decisions, but fans certainly do not see it as such. Today Cavill stated he would actually not return as Superman; he had been encouraged to announce his return prior to signing a contract. The studio and James Gunn are apparently interested in a younger Superman at this time, but not severing all relationships with Cavill for the future. The Henry Cavill-Warner Bros off-again-on-again relationship is worse than that of Elliot and JD; I am tired of everyone going the Ross and Rachel example. 

Is Henry Cavill a bit of a dum-dum to do whatever actions he did without a contract? Possibly. Can he kick my ass for calling him a dum-dum? Certainly. As much as I love James Gunn, this is probably the least I have liked him and this is a man that has been cancelled for pedophile jokes. A friend suggested that he is most likely focused on elongating his own contract, hence the younger Superman storyline. prepubescent Superman will certainly be a new approach. Looking forward to that seismic voice crack.

My hope for DC has taken many hits, the remedy for which has long been James Gunn. I therefore chose to blame the studio entirely, remaining objective as always, and hope that he will sparkle some of that soundtrack magic onto these projects. But it seems a lot of people have been fucked. Thankfully, they are all super rich, so mourning is only necessary for the Witcher casting the second hottest Hemsworth sibling, when the eldest would not need a blonde wig!

Stumbled onto murder crimes solved by the elderly

 

Blah blah, humorous excuse for not having posted in nine months, blah blah, passive aggressive comment to my friends who don't bother to read this, blah blah declaration that I will now do this more regularly. And now the post.

I do not like gore. I also seldom like psychotic mysteries that suggest at least one of my acquaintances is likely to murder me with a ladle. That is how much I dislike gore; the best murder weapon I could consider for this hypothetical scenario is a ladle. I like to trust people. Trusting people has sometimes backfired but to nothing life-threatening as of now. This is the reason I have not managed to indulge in the ever-growing genre of true crime. Not much of fake crime either. But I have recently come across a lovely symbiote, an accompanying genre that manages to take a lot of the negativity out of the equation. Even though murder mysteries solved by elder people sounds quite niche and specific, I somehow found myself both reading such novels and watching such a series at the same time. Richard Osman's 'Thursday Murder Club' book series and 'Murders in the building' series series came to me at the same time, as if to provide a gateway to the current zeitgeist and an odd feeling of comfort when the rest of the world is disgusting. 

Is it because elderly heroes further allow me to distance myself? I am certainly not elderly, even though my habits might suggest otherwise. But I think it is that these characters are allowed to show compassion in a non-turbulent manner. For example, the Thursday Murder Club books show a group of four people that might not have crossed paths otherwise enjoy themselves and focus on their companionship rather than their differences. There is also plenty of room for dad-joke comedy for this dad-joke enthusiast. These characters have less to lose, as if reaching that old age is an opportunity to revert themselves to beautifully childlike reactions. They are also the most inconspicuous detectives, an undetected threat. And the greatest of opportunities to laugh with boomers. Martin Short, for example, is a joy to watch, a comedic genius ready to poke fun at himself at all times and enjoying the hell out of it. So is Steve Martin and Ron, Abraham, Elizabeth and Joyce, but Martin Short has the boyish enthusiasm that perfectly explains this sentiment that I got from the subcategory of this otherwise gruesome genre. 

This is a plea; join me in a cosiness provided by this unlikely pairing. It is almost Christmas, a time most fitting for a sweet novel about four misfits in a retirement village or two grandparents who enter the world of podcasting. And Selena Gomez.