Comics / Spotlight

Changeling

By The Reverend
May 10, 2004 - 11:42

WEB GEMS I have to admit that I'm pleasantly surprised to see that the leading voice of dissent over Spider-Man 2 advertising being featured on bases during games the weekend of June 11th is the cash cow New York Yankees. While plenty of other teams will fully participate in the promotion, the Yankees have limited their input to batting practice and one game. More than anything, I'm wondering exactly how effective this advertising is going to be during an active game. Okay, I could see the advertising getting observed by broadcast announcers while the game is in progress. Otherwise, what are we going to see other than a bright red square in the middle of the bases? The fact that this is happening under the Bud Light Selig regime doesn't surprise me in the least. If there are pennies to be squeezed out of America's pastime through coarse means of product placement, Bud's your man. "Wherever he is, Bart is spinning. It's a good thing he's not around." This was the response of Selig's predecessor, Fay Vincent, speculating on what the reaction would be the reaction if his own predecessor, the late Bart Giamatti, bore witness to this latest advertising campaign. By the way, did ANYONE need a reminder like this that the sequel to one of the most successful films of all time is coming out at the end of June?

[NOTE: As of this went to press, Sony Pictures and Major League Baseball announced that they are not going to use the movie ads on bases for games June 11th through the 13th. "We don't want to do anything that takes away from a fan's enjoyment of the game," said Geoffrey Ammer, President of Worldwide Marketing for the Columbia TriStar Motion Picture Group. "While we initially asked for the bases to be included in the MLB promotional package, they are only one element of a much larger family event with Major League Baseball.]

IT STARTS AT THE TOP Since the end of the last college football season, the University of Colorado's program has been maligned for recruiting practices among its student athletes that would make Hugh Hefner blush. Not to diminish the gravity of the accusations of rape and sexual assault, but the extent of the charges are unprecedented in athletics in general. Throughout all this, one person has been the face of this on-campus crisis: head coach Gary Barnett. While Barnett is not looking for a new job, yet, he has not run the football program since tactlessly commenting on rape allegations made by a female player on a squad of his almost three months ago. When this controversy periodically comes up in the news, Barnett is shouldering much of the burden, as he should as head of the program. If only that were the case with the Bush administration and the military as the latest chapter in al Qaeda's next recruitment video develops.

You aren't human, let alone American, if the pictures of torture and abuse by coalition soldiers (it wasn't only U.S. soldiers, mind you) in Iraqi prisons didn't make you sick. What clearly isn't making matters any better is the god-awful damage control being done by the Hand Puppet & the Puppeteers as we speak. Bush quickly goes on the air in Arabic networks to inform everyone that justice will be served to the men (and women!) responsible for the assault and humiliation, not to mention fatalities, that occurred while Iraqi detainees were held in U.S. custody. Bush acknowledged that abuse clearly occurred, he just wouldn't apologize for it until he took some harsh criticism that even included calling for his defense secretary's resignation. Same old, same old with this guy. Glad to know that the man running this country has to have people remind him that this sort of conduct requires an apology. Since September 11th, and the subsequent occupation of Iraq, rarely has anything happened in George W. Bush's eyes that would warrant an apology. Oh, and Bush privately exonerated Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld from any wrongdoing, though that ain't enough to keep the House and Senate off his back (as we speak). With the Bush administration, one thing is for certain, no matter what happens that displays a clear lack of solid leadership, the ones in the highest positions will always be the first ones to get absolved of blame. We keep hearing this week about the soldiers who are going to get prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law in a public setting, yet just recently when U.S. leadership was called into question in an ongoing investigation over how things were handled on September 11th - you know, when over 3,000 innocent people were killed?? - Bush administration officials had to be dragged kicking and screaming to congressional hearings just to answer some questions.

LESS IS MOORE If a two-hour snuff film on the last hours of Jesus Christ can enjoy global success through independent financing, I have to like the chances of success for Michael Moore's new documentary, Fahrenheit 911. The airwaves have been filled with the none-too-surprising news that Disney, stepped in to play Big Brother with the release the Miramax intended to distribute domestically. The film isn't even in the can yet, but Moore says it will be ready to debut soon at the Cannes Film Festival. The publicity for the documentary that details the familial connections between the George H.W., the president, and Saudi families, including the bin Ladens, is already extraordinary. Moore may be the first one to admit that he needs to send a fruit basket to Disney chief Michael Eisner for toeing the corporate line in the name of politics. Apparently a movie that disparages the Bush family would not go over well with Florida Governor Jeb Bush as his administration continually provides tax breaks to Orlando-based Disney World.

As disappointing as this story is, I fully believe we're getting this movie in its entirety before election time. I don't even think Disney is trying to prevent the release of this, because it's my understanding that Miramax is free to shop this around to another buyer. Disney just doesn't want to sdo it on their dime. If this is the case, logic dictates that Moore, with the help of the New York Times, merely decided to announce the fact that Disney was not going to allow Miramax to be the studio that releases Fahrenheit 911. In doing this, a bidding war has all but been announced. Documentaries naturally have small budgets, and the idea that a film that already has this much early buzz will make it's money back in tickets sales and DVD revenue is a given. Just watch. Another relatively independent pays Miramax handsomely for the film, it enjoys commercial success, and everyone's happy except for Republicans everywhere. Sounds good to me.

I don't think Moore fans have a thing to worry about, though this latest bit of post-9/11 creative control has me praying for an end to the Bush cartel in November. Between the politically motivated censorship we saw last week with Sinclair Broadcasting Group over ABC's Nightline and their episode solely devoted to reading the names of the U.S. soldiers killed in Iraq and Afghanistan, and the puritanical behavior over sexual content on the airwaves since Janet Jackson's "wardrobe malfunction," I'd be worried about how much freedom we as Americans are being allowed to maintain. Anyone who truly appreciates the arts and creative freedom should ponder these issues when voting in November. Please remember that we still get to in this country.

CH-CH-CH-CH-CH- CHANGELING!!! Recently, the Teen Titans have received some choice treatment as action figures, thanks to DC Direct. Fanboy wishes everywhere were realized when they finally produced a Deathstroke the Terminator figure, and the other highlight is a Tim Drake Robin figure that may very well compliment the BATMAN HUSH figures also getting released this year. We've seen four Titans figures so far: Deathstroke and Robin, along with Wonder Girl, and a yet-to-be-seen-in-the-comics Blackfire (new design). Official word is that the next four will be Superboy, the former Impulse now known as Kid Flash, Brother Blood, and the Trickster. The Trickster is the one I probably disagree with in getting made for this line, and that's for a couple reasons. One, this character should've been part of a Modern Age Flash wave, since that was where we've seen this version of this character the most, in The Flash. Two, DC Direct should've taken the opportunity to rectify one of their bigger P.R. disasters: the Changeling, a.k.a. Beast Boy.

Last year, after a long time coming, DC Direct released what some saw as the final piece of the New Teen Titans puzzle. But after coming out with serviceable renditions of Kid Flash, Starfire, Raven, and Cyborg, at least three years went by before fans got a chance to add the Changeling to their Titans collection. When they did release it, it was part of a repaint collection of Starfire (untouched, actually), Raven in white, and Cyborg in gold. To get Changeling, or as they called him in the release, Beast Boy, many were basically asked to repurchase what they already owned to complete their collections. It was like the action figure equivalent of watching those pitiful Subway ads on American Idol. You'd be hard-pressed to find anyone who was pleased with this situation.

Personally, I have a couple ideas that might satiate the justified grumblings going on since last summer. The first is contingent on the idea that DC Direct has not figured out a third wave of Contemporary Teen Titans. This idea, if it's not too late, is to replace the Trickster (use it elsewhere for Flash fans) with an all-new Beast Boy figure as he appears currently in Teen Titans. Simple, and more likely to sell in Wave 2 than the Trickster, I promise you. The second suggestion is another option, and invokes a term I'm usually reluctant to use: an "apology figure." But here's a time, if any, when the term applies. I propose a Beast Boy deluxe set that essentially celebrates the Garfield Logan character in multiple incarnations. The set could have two fully-articulated figures: (1) an all-new Changeling that makes up for the lackluster one that came in the original Teen Titans deluxe box set; and (2) the contemporary figure I proposed for Wave 2, if it's already too late to replace the Trickster. There are some other possibilities for rounding out the set: some green animals for Logan's transformations, and, in the style of Oberon for the Mr. Miracle/Big Barda deluxe set, a little Billy Batson-sized original Beast Boy figure with limited articulation. Anybody who collects figures based on the Teen Titans would buy this set, along with Doom Patrol fans if we see anything on that front in the next year or so, and it would give DC Direct the ultimate chance to make up for their earlier botch job on the character. Georg Brewer, I hope your reading this.

THE 80s ARE BACK! Notice a trend?
13 Going On 30, starring Jennifer Garner? Big.
Mean Girls , starring Lindsay Lohan? Heathers.
New York Minute, starring Mary Kate and Ashley Olsen?
Ferris Bueller's Day Off.

I'm just waiting for the inevitable remake of Red Dawn financed by Disney to get Americans psyched up for the current Iraqi occupation we're running. Yes, I am anxiously awaiting a change come November, if you haven't already figured it out. Say what you will about the eight years of Clinton. I was in Cuba during the Elian Gonzales fiasco, and even then I didn't have to apologize to the locals for being an American. Since September 11th, 2001, is the only time I've ever felt the need to do so.

PARIS, ANYONE? I noticed that at least three shows chose to incorporate a "girl goes to Paris" theme in their series or season finale. Lana (Kristin Kreuk) on Smallville, Holly (Amanda Bynes) on What I Like About You, and Rachel (Jennifer Aniston) on Friends. Did these writers bother to check with each other? Thought that was kind of funny. Did any other shows throw this idea into their finale?

Last Updated: August 31, 2023 - 08:12