A Prince's Legacy Revisted

Hindsight's funny thing. I wrote the first chapter of A Prince's Legacy 6 years ago simply wanted to tell the story of Hunter Prince, and how Wonder Woman choosing to raise a son with the guidance and love of the Amazons wouldn't make her less of an Amazon herself after the comic book story arc where Hunter's character appears in wasted the potential of the of the idea pissed me off to no end. (It still does.) Honestly, I felt like I could give the idea the justice it deserves when I wrote the first chapter and I never anticipated this story to grow in popularity like it has.

But it's been a few years, and I've written so much fanfiction since, always feeling like I'm improving my writing style with each new chapter I post, so I wanted the story I still care very much about to reflect that. I have spent the last two weeks not rewriting the first 2 chapters of A Prince's Legacy, but revising them to add more dialog, more descriptive actions in scenes to help the story flow better, a greater understanding of what is going on in a character's thoughts in certain moments of the story, changing some aspects entirely that didn't make sense or stick the landing as well as I would've liked first time around,and I plan to continue the revision process with every chapter up to the most current one. The process is slow going through as I got an actual job in the big scary real world during the last two years that takes up most of my free time and energy more days than not, so I ask that fans of the series bear with me.

Some highlights of the first two chapters are:

A deeper conversation between Hippolyta and baby Hunter in the introductory scene of the first chapter.

A different scene between Diana and Hunter after the 15 year time skip.

A more fleshed out motivation for Lorena that dives deeper into her love for Arthur and Mera as well as Atlantis.

A deeper familial bond for Lorena with Arthur and Mera explicitly stating they consider Lorena to be their daughter, and Lorena stating she considers them to be her parents.

Showcasing Lorena's Aqua-Kinetic abilities way earlier in the story.

Longer and more detailed action sequences in chapter 2, and Lorena being more of a badass during those sequences.

Giving Mera more than two lines of dialog and an action sequence during chapter 2 instead of having her constantly worrying the children. (Like that meme from The Simpsons)

Mera challenging Diana directly about what they are willing to give up for the sake of their children.

Hopefully, the beginning of a more well-rounded story.

Link for chapter 1: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12471716/chapters/28385328

Link for chapter 2: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12471716/chapters/30147915

Lastly, I want to thank everyone who has continued to read this story and love the characters as much as I do, and I hope to keep entertaining you all as the story goes on. Thank you.

Dear Marvel Studios, A.C Bradley, and Bryan Andrews, I’d love to see a complete timeline of Captain Carter’s adventures in the modern day, please and thank you!

After rewatching the What If...? finale, two things are abundantly clear to me.

1. Stephen Strange is always the GOAT regardless of what universe he comes from.

2. I'd love more of Captain Carter going through the same adventures Steve Rogers went through in his original modem day timeline, because while the adventures will largely be the same, the excitement lies in how Peggy would differ in her approach and reaction to these events. Let me break it down movie by movie.

The Avengers: The What If...? finale picks up with Captain Carter in the modern day at the start of The Winter Soldier, but I believe there could vast changes in this universe's version of the Avengers movie. Obviously, Peggy would lead the Avengers because when a solider of her caliber shows up in modern day, you have her lead your team of superheroes against an alien Invasion, no question. Steve Rogers was very by the book in the first movie, but Peggy would throw the book out at whoever doubted her and carry her team through the situation to the best of her ability as a true wildcard similar to Tony Stark and Natasha Romanoff, maybe this is when Peggy and Nat begin their close (romantic) relationship. I think she and Tony would get along famously because each person can fulfill a role the other person lacks in their life. For Peggy, it's the way she still feels connected to her previous life in 1940's, her long lost friend Howard and his fantastical inventions through further adventures with his son. For Tony, it's the way he would gain a deeper understanding of Howard, including the negative aspect of his father, through the stories and memories of the person who knew him best, which is why I believe Peggy would join Tony in his investigation of SHIELD and how HYDRA has secretly infested into the organization.

The Winter Solider: Because of her preliminary investigation with Tony and Nat, Peggy would definitely shoot the whole HYDRA is secretly SHIELD thing in the foot before they had a chance to take off running, especially if she retains her memory of what Age of Ultron Nat said. Like Steve, Peggy would do everything in her power to free Bucky from his brainwashing as he is the strongest connection to her past life. I imagine Peggy would form a brother-sister bond with Sam Wilson like Steve does in the original movie, and deepen her (romantic) relationship with Nat. I would love to see Peggy's reaction to escalator kiss between the two.

Avengers: Age of Ultron: Peggy's role in Age of Ultron would be similar to Steve's role in the original movie, but Peggy would use her close bond with Tony to empathize with him more when everyone on the Avengers is angry with him about creating a killer robot A.I, maybe she tells him of her previous adventure with the Guardians of the Multiverse and the battle against Infinity Ultron to further warn Tony against creating Ultron in the first place.

Civil War: I'm not sure if the Civil War would happen in the Captain Carter universe because I always thought Peggy is better at forming friendships and being empathetic with people. She would stick to her morals like Steve, but she she's clearly a superior military strategist and use her abilities to prevent any civilian casualties and stop Crossbones' plan entirely in Lagos. Peggy would still reach out to Black Panther and the Wakandians for their help in permanently freeing Bucky from HYDRA’s mind control after working with Tony to discover that Zemo doctored footage of the U.N bombing, she would also be extremely sensitive in the way she tells Tony about Bucky assassinating his parents immediately after learning about it herself. If a Civil War does break out, Nat would switch teams to be close with her (girl)friend as everyone comes together to defeat Zemo stronger than ever. Side note: I can't get the image of Captain Carter mentoring the new hero Spider-Man in a extremely jovial big sister type role.

Avengers: Infinity War & Endgame: Tony would likely confide in Peggy about his nightmares and visions on Thanos soon after first experiencing them and she would tell him of her experience with Infinity Stones and the Guardians of Multiverse due to their close relationship. So the entire Avengers team is ready to stand together with a well formulated plan when The Black Order shows up on Earth looking for Stones. Tony still goes into space to rescue Doctor Strange and willingly brings Spider-Man with him because since Peggy and Tony were able to find common ground in their differences and keep the Avengers together in this universe, Peter Parker received state of the art Stark tech from Tony and state of the at military training from Peggy, who has evolved her fighting style with the times to make the boy ready for the task ahead of him Peggy stays on Earth and uses her positive standing with the Wakandians to form a stronghold in the country as well as use their superior technology to get the Mind Stone out of Vision's and destroy it without killing him in the process long before Thanos arrives on Earth. I imagine the Infinity War movie proceeding as normal until Thor and Thanos arrive in Wakanda, where Peggy has a quick conversation with Thor and tells him how she faced other-worldly beings like Thanos before and how she lost absolutely everything to defeat the monster. She will not go through this pain a second time, so she tells him to focus his rage over Loki's death and straight for Thanos' head with Stormbreaker because she's not fucking around this time! After Thanos is defeated and the day is saved with the entire still alive, I'm not sure if Peggy would use the power of the Stones to go back in time to be with Skinny Steve, or choose to remain in the present to be with Natasha because I feel like Peggy has an unbreakable bond with both of them. Whatever path Peggy chooses, she will eventually choose to pass on the Captain Carter/Captain Britain mantle to another quick witted fast talking Brit who has been in the background of Peggy's story since she first arrived in the modern day, much like Sharon Carter was for Steve, and this particular Brit has venomous Spider-like powers to boot. Her name is Jessica Drew.

So, I let my uncontrollable love for Jessica Drew/Spider-Woman take over towards the end of this hypothetical timeline/mini fanfiction. I really enjoyed first season of What If...?, my favorite episodes are #4, #2, and #1 in that order, my favorite character is Superior Strange, but I also greatly enjoyed T'challa Star-Lord and Captain Carter. Peggy's Stealth Suit in the finale is straight up dope and I can't wait to see where the show takes the characters in season 2.

Another question, What do you think Hunter Prince's relationship with Donna Troy is ?

Okay, please forgive me if I misinterpret your question. I grew up reading comic books, and I distinctly remember reading the Teen Titans series from 2003 by Geoff Johns, where Cassie Sandmark is the main Wonder Girl, so I never had any exposure to the character of Donna Troy ironically until the Titans TV show.

When I was planning to write A Prince's Legacy, I wrote into the history of Diana and Hunter's relationship that Hunter takes on the role of being the sole partner in his mom's crime fighting efforts. But I still wanted to write Cassie Sandmark because she is the Wonder Girl I fondly remember so I made Diana and Cassie fraternal twin sisters.

Generally, I write Hunter treating his Amazonian culture with the utmost awe, respect, and admiration throughout the series so far to the point where he takes part in all cultural rituals of his people, most notably seen in chapter 2 and 8. Hunter thinks the world of his mother and grandmother and the entire Amazonian culture because Diana fought to have him raised among the kindness of his people instead of being disregard as nothing just because he was born a boy. So if Hunter was to meet Donna Troy, I'd say he'd treat her with the utmost respect as he would any other Amazonian. I would use that fact as a base for you to build the type of relationship you want them to have, whether you want them to have a friendly older sister and younger brother type relationship or a antagonistic rivalry that could turn into something different as the story goes on, etc. It's up to you.

I will be introducing a Wonder Girl of a kind with Lyta Prince, Hunter's cousin, the daughter of Cassandra, and a major character/love interest for Hector Hall in the upcoming sequel miniseries focused on his journey to understand and break his parents' reincarnation curse.

I hope this answer helps you, and please reach out to ask me anything else. I'm interested to read your story once it's done.

Hey I love your A prince's legacy fic, (better than canon), but who would you fancast as Hunter Prince.

Boy, oh boy, what a great question! And I'm sorry it's taken me so long to answer you because I went down the rabbit hole of fan casting to give you an answer, and I didn't just stop at Hunter Prince, but I have fan casting ideas for each major character of A Prince's Legacy. I gave myself some rules for this task:

1. I won't be recasting anyone who's already in the DC Cinematic universe because I generally agree with that everyone's a perfect fit for their roles.

2. I tried to find actors for the younger characters that are close in age and appearance to how I imagine them in the story. So you won't see someone in their 30s as Hunter or Lorena, as I imagine both of them being in their late 20s at the time of latest story chapter

Wonder Woman/Diana Prince: Gal Gadot. Character age: 5025, Actor age: 36

Wonder Woman II/Cassandra Prince: Alice Eve. Character age: 5025, Actor age: 39

Queen Hippolyta: Connie Nielsen. Character age: Greater than 5000, Actor age: 56

Wonder Boy/Atlas/Hunter Prince: Rahart Adams. Character age: growing from 18 to 28, Actor age: 25. I'm not entirely sure who I would cast as Hunter, I would likely choose Rahart Adams and give him height lifts with blue eye contacts or choose a complete unknown actor who more perfectly embodies Hunter's characteristics and appearance.

Aquawoman/Green Power Ranger/Lorena Marquez: Martina Stoessel. Character age: growing from 18 to 28, Actor age: 24

Yellow Power Ranger/Trini Prince: Becky G. Character age: growing from 17 to 25, actor age: 24

The Flash/Wally West: Jordan Fisher. Character age: growing from 23 to 30, actor age: 27

Hawkman/Prince Khufu/Hannibal Hawks/Carter Hall: Aldis Hodge. Character age: 30s, actor age: 34

Hawkwoman/Princess Chay-Ara/Katherine Manser/Kendra Saunders: Dina Shihiabi. Character age: 30s, actor age: 31

Doctor Fate/Hector Hall: Caleb McLaughlin. Character age: growing from 19 to 23, actor age: 19. I'm not married to that casting either. Ideally, I would like a black actor (similar to Hodge and Shihiabi in height and appearance) who can really grow into his role as the son of Hawkman and Hawkwoman and a possible future Doctor Fate.

J'onn J'onzz/Martian Manhunter: Harry Lennix. Character age: 3 million years, actor age 56

Wildcat/Ted Grant: Scott Bakula. Character age: 75, actor age: 66, or Avery Brooks, actor age: 72

There you go! I hope you like my choices and I'd love to hear if you agree or disagree

Could Eidos-Montréal and Marvel's Guardians of the Galaxy game be the next Mass Effect?

Maybe it's because I've spent the last month falling in love with the Mass Effect series through playing the Legendary Edition, but I think the Guardians of The Galaxy game could very much end up being similar to the Mass Effect games based on the small amount of footage from the first look gameplay. The most obvious similarity is the various dialogue options/approaches to missions, and based on what decisions players make, The Guardians will either agree or disagree with your choice and that's classic Mass Effect to a tee with the aspect of lasting consequences that Telltale Games was known for thrown in as well, Another aspect I noticed about the game is traveling to different planets. It's a game taking place in space, players are absolutely going to different planets to see strange ecosystems, cool aliens, and weird shit, but it's also a game where the protagonist is Peter Quill/Star-Lord and I'm wondering if there could possibly be a feature in the game that will us fly Peter's ship the Milano similar to what No Man's Sky eventually turned out to be. Am I expecting this feature? No, I just think it would be a feature to better immerse players into the game, but it's not going to be a deal breaker if the developers include a simple one button fast travel system between planets, I would rather the developers focus on the elements already present in the game and implement them well so fans won't be disappointed. Ultimately, I'm expecting Marvel's Guardians of the Galaxy to be most like the story and action of the Mass Effect series, the dialogue and consequences of Telltale, and the exploration and world building of Star Wars: Jedi Fallen Order. If you can't already tell, I have high hopes for this game because we're in uncharted waters in terms of the modern Marvel games, we've never seen the cosmos of the Marvel universe before, nor have we seen a version of the version of the Guardians so dysfunctional, even in the movies. (Except for Groot, he seems like he's there for the right reasons.) I believe I read in the main press release that this Guardians team is less than a year old, so it will be interesting to see a bunch of self centered space pirate assholes learn to truly be The Guardians of the Galaxy.

Chadwick Boseman - The voice of a people through his films.

I'm not much of a Black Panther fan, only because I wasn't exposed to the character until I was older and already formed my opinions on my favorite comic book characters, but that was before I saw Chadwick Boseman's charismatic and respected performance as T'challa/Black Panther for the first time and was convinced to explore the character in more depth. Like many of you, I was shocked and saddened by the news of Chadwick Boseman's sudden death from Colon Cancer at 43, because he was such an amazing talent with so much more left to do if his time wasn't cut short, and no more is that evident in the characters he played on screen and the person he was off the screen. I first became aware of him when he played baseball legend Jackie Robinson in the film 42, my awareness grew when he played Supreme Court Justice and civil rights lawyer Thurgood Marshall. In those films, Boseman not only proved to be one of the best actors to take on the historical biopic genre, but also proved that anyone, regardless of their race or gender can achieve greatness even if the odds are against them, as well as saying that the issue of equality for everyone is something that should still be discussed in today's world. I think everyone would agree with me that Boseman's most notable role was of King T'challa/The Black Panther in The Marvel Cinematic Universe. Though he only played T'challa in a handful of movies, his performance as the character had a certain charisma, wisdom, power, truly a king who deserves respect from his first moments in Captain America: Civil War, but it would be nearly two years before audiences were able to see Black Panther again in his own self titled solo movie, where T'challa rose to the mantle of king of the powerful utopian nation Wakanda. Whether you enjoyed the Black Panther movie or not, the cultural revolution it had on the world was undeniable, because it shows the nation of Wakanda as a powerful one, where prejudice is nonexistent, advancements in technology are abundant and celebrated, and anyone can achieve what they aspire to, but I think the movie's greatest message is that we as human beings should build bridges between the differences separating us rather than rather barriers. Thankfully, Boseman embodied the superhero he played off the screen as well in the way he performed the Wakanda salute for anyone who asked, his visit to Children's Hospital to help those kids feel just a little better despite the challenges they're facing, his commencement address at Brown University, or his appearance on SNL which shows how he was able to poke fun at himself as much as he's a serious actor.

With Boseman's unfortunate passing, it may bring Black Panther 2 into doubt or cancellation, but I really hope Marvel Studios will find a way possibly to move forward with a sequel in such a that will absolutely honor Chadwick Boseman's memory without having the role be recast as a new actor playing the same character like what happened to Rhodey because no one can ever play T'challa as well as Boseman had. I believe that Ryan Coogler and Marvel Studios should only have the Black Panther mantle be passed to someone like M'Baku since he has gained T'challa's trust and was seen among the Avengers fighting against Thanos in Infinity War and Endgame. But my first choice to take the Panther mantle would obviously be Shuri. Maybe something happens to T'challa in between movies and he passes to the Ancestral Plain, and this second movie is all about Shuri wondering if she's worthy of taking over the Panther mantle and becoming Wakanda's ruler in the face of a new enemy like Namor attacking their boarders for the glory of the unknown Kingdom of Atlantis, then Shuri takes the Panther mantle to honor the memory of her brother and father and upgrades the suit even further to truly make it her own while also being respectable to those who've come before. I know it sounds similar to the plot of the first movie, I just think it's the best way to make something positive out of an unfortunate tragedy.

Thank you, Chadwick Boseman, for an historic career and an incredible body of work. May you rest in power and peace.

Agent 77 Chapter 6

After over a year of waiting, the next chapter of Agent 77 is online, and includes a moment with the Hulk adapted from the comics which Jessica is known for. Enjoy! 

https://archiveofourown.org/works/16576505/chapters/45479647

The Batman - “A Scared boy crying for mommy and daddy.”

As long as we're all sharing hot takes on 2021's The Batman, I'd like to give mine, 'cause holy hell, that is a good trailer and Robert Pattinson's Batman looks to be an angry man. Matt Reeves has described this Batman as broken, and I think the quote at the beginning of this post from Batman Beyond: Return of The Joker fits this version of Batman perfectly because he's clearly not over the death of his parents, judging by the way he moves with such speed and ferocity to not only subdue his enemies, but make sure they stay down and it'll be interesting to see how he'll adapt against an enemy who prefers brain to brawn, maybe we'll see more of a detective Batman like we've rarely seen in film before. Another thing I hope this movie focuses on is exploring the relationship between Bruce and Alfred, particularly the aspect of Alfred's character where he's complicit in Bruce's war on crime only because he's tried over and over to sway the young man who he has essentially raised as his own from this violent vigilante life, and I'd totally love to see a scene in the movie similar to the confrontation scene in Batman: Arkham Origins, where Alfred confronts Bruce about his overly violent methods about fighting criminals, saying Bruce is outmatched by these super criminals like the Riddler and Penguin and that violence for the sake of violence won’t solve anything, as well as that Alfred doesn’t want to see Bruce die at the end of a self destructive path. And just for a moment Bruce stops being the stoic loner he’s been all film long and becomes the scared little boy Alfred once knew, saying: “Alfred, something was taken from me that night my parents died, something that you, or the memories in this big Wayne Manor above our heads, or the few good cops in the  GCPD will never understand. Inflicting violence on the criminals of Gotham is the only way I can make sense of what I lost in the hopes that my trauma will never happen to anyone ever again.” I don’t know if a scene like this will happen, it’s just the conclusion I came to after watching the trailer and I think it would be cool to see the filmmakers take that approach with Bruce’s motivation to being Batman. Other than that, Zoe Kravitz’s Catwoman looks to be interesting take on her classic thief character and I wonder if she will become more of a antihero ally to and maybe even romantic partner to Batman by the end of this movie or its sequels if the first one is successful,which I hope it will be. If Wonder Woman 1984 is my most anticipated movie of 2020, then The Batman has quickly become my most anticipated movie of 2021.

DC’s Stargirl soars high and shines bright! (Spoilers.)

I logged into my DC Universe account last Monday totally ready to my hopes surpassed by the service’s newest original program Stargirl after I was pleasantly surprised by the complete balls to walls delightful wackiness of the Harley Quinn Animated Series. Now, I confidently say that DC Universe has hit another home run with Stargirl’s pilot episode, and I’d like to explain why. To say that I was simply interested in Stargirl by the end of the pilot is a vast understatement. No, I was completely captivated by the show’s superhero world and sophisticated action by the time the pre-credits sequence was over, I couldn’t to see what else the show had in store throughout the episode, to the point where I was actually sad that I had to wait a week when the end credits rolled.

 The pilot begins ten years ago on Christmas Eve with Luke Wilson’s Pat Dugan racing down a Los Angeles street in a retro red and white Chrysler as his superhero partner Starman/Sylvester Pemberton fights alongside the Justice Society of America battles against the evil Injustice Society of America led by the villain Brainwave in a knock down drag out fight for the ages,which the JSA is desperately losing. Unfortunately Pat arrives too late with Sandman, the Golden Age Flash, Dr. Mid-Nite, Wildcat, and Hourman dead or currently dying, meaning Pat has no time to worry about the rest JSA as he searches the battle site for Joel McHale’s Starman, who’s busy kicking the ISA’s asses with his Cosmic Staff, but Pat’s presence at the battle causes Starman to become distracted and be fatally wounded before Pat is able to drag to him to safety in his car, which is capable of more than meets the eye, because it can fly for a hot second until Solemen Grundy forces it down. The night ends with Pat’s car totaled and Starman dying in Pat’s arms, but not before telling his soon to be former sidekick that the JSA’s legacy must live on, and someone with honor, strength, grace, and heroism must carry the Cosmic Staff. 

Elsewhere in LA, a young five year old named Courtney Whitmore waits to give a Christmas present to what later will be confirmed as her absent father by Courtney’s mother Barbra played by Amy Smart, as the present remains unopened even up to the present day ten years later when Courtney and her mom are about to move cross country to Blue Valley, Nebraska with Barbra’s new husband Pat Dugan and his son Mike played by Trae Romano. Courtney mopes about missing her friends in LA and pretty much ignores her family in the process, especially Pat’s attempts to bond, until lunch time of her first day at Blue Valley High School when Courtney sits with a table of outcasts right before the school’s meathead jock Henry King Jr. begins slut shaming a girl who will become the new Wildcat alongside his band other meatheads, they even go so far as to steal the girl’s phone until Courtney steps for her and pushes Henry into a juice tray, an act that lands Courtney in detention on her first day, which isn’t a bad thing when you do it for the right reasons. and it’s shows Courtney as being someone with strength and heroism to stand up for others like Starman said, 

Long Summary kinda short, Courtney continues to mope about the move and be frustrated with Pat’s attempts to be fatherly to the point where she takes her frustration on a box of Pat’s stuff in the basement, where she discovers box of his old JSA stuff, including files on the ISA  a picture of the entire JSA team as well as Starman’s costume, which causes the Cosmic Staff to become  sentient to Courtney’s command, leading her and the Staff to teach the meatheads by kicking their asses and blowing up their ride home after the group is bullying some other kids at the town drive-in. Pat is able to catch Courtney and the Staff in the act as they return home through the basement window, which brings me to my favorite parts of the episode as Courtney and Pat confront one another about the secrets they hiding, and the two are finally able to bond over the lameness of Pat’s code name Stripesy, I do hope their bond continues growing in future episodes

The action-packed episode doesn’t end there, because Henry confesses that the car was blown up by a masked person with a glowing staff, catching the attention of Henry's father who just so happens to be Brainwave, still alive and even aniger. Another thing that I love about the first episode is the relationship between Courtney and Stafie, as I'm calling it, Stafie clearly adores Courtney and follows her around like a little puppy who is ready to take her on superhero adventures, even if that over excitement leads them directly to Brainwave before he easily trounces the girl with mastery of his telekinesis powers against the relative inexperienced Courtney, who struggles to get away from the villain, until Pat comes to her aid while sporting a gigantic robot mech suit in a cliffhanger to end the episode.

Now that the overly long summary is finished, I'd like to give some positives and negatives that I haven't mentioned yet. First, the positives.

Geoff Johns: It's clear that getting Stargirl on the air was a passion project for the character's co creator, Geoff Johns, who based Courtney off of his own sister of the same name after she tragically passed away in an airplane accident. Johns also has an affinity for the JSA, I mean, it's pretty obvious since he had notable runs writing about Stargirl and JSA, but that love doesn't hinder his ability to write a gripping episode of TV that pays respect to the past comic books with clever easter eggs, yet tells a new origin story for Stargirl than the one seen in the comic books, which is friendly to those unfamiliar with the character. Plus, some of the jokes in the script got an honest chuckle out of me, like Michael Dugan asking what sports team Gerald Ford played for and Pat's response.

Brec Bassinger as Stargirl: I was pretty unsure how to feel when DC Universe cast a relative unknown actress as the lead of one their shows. If you asked me what my reaction to the casting news was, I'd say that I was cautiously optimistic and wanting to see more, as it turns out, I wouldn't have to wait long for a first look, because Stargirl and The JSA had cameos at end of Crisis on Infinite Earths. Now that the show has premiered, I have nothing but positive things to say about Bassinger's performance of Courtney, she plays the character with an understated confidence which she grows into as the episode continues, and she also plays the role with a great deal of physicality and physical reactions to things happening around her, such as the reaction Courtney has in school ID photo, as well as the reactions she has when Stafie tries to drag her along for the first time. It will be interesting to see how the character will evolve over the first season.

The production and the world building: Maybe it's because the show is co production between DC Universe and the CW Network, but the budget has put to good use by the production team, I mean, they built an actual S.T.R.I.P.E robot for use in certain shots, the show should be commended for that alone. The costume design and special effects are all top notch, as usual in any superhero show nowadays, but I want to bring special attention to spectacular background details used in things like ISA's criminal files, the photos of the JSA, and the photo between Starman and Stripesy, pretty much everything in Pat's box of JSA memories gets a nerdy chief's kiss from me.

Luke Wilson as Pat Dugan: To put it simply, I can describe the way Wilson plays Pat Dugan as a good dad who rolls with the punches life throws at him and tries to do the best thing in every situation to keep his family safe, even when he's overwhelmed, but he doesn't let that fact dampen his positive and charming attitude. Honestly, I'm rooting for him to succeed as much as I am for Courtney.

Now, the negatives.

The New JSA: I wish the kids who will eventually become the new generation of JSA had more to do in the two episodes of Stargirl released so far, or at least had their characters set up. Only the new Dr. Mid-Nite played by Anjelika Washington has a small handful speaking lines over the two episodes and any character establishment as a girl named Beth Chapel, who is in need of friends so much that she talks with her parents over video chat at lunch instead of the other kids, while the new Hourman played Cameron Gilman only has one line before leaving the scene to probably get in trouble because he's in detention in the following scene, so I guess he's the bad boy/powerhouse of the team. The same one line treatment wasn't given to the new Wildcat played by Yvette Monreal, who must sit in shy silence as the meatheads bully her until Courtney steps to her defense. I know the new JSA members will become more confident and open up emotionally once they adopt their superhero personas, but I would've liked a hint of the heroes that the kids would become during these two episodes, or at least have the new Wildcat work up the courage to thank Courtney for what she did for her.

Travis: One of kids in Henry King Jr.'s band of meatheads has the audacity to besmirch the good name Travis with his repulsive douchey behavior, putting other people who just happen to have the same name to complete shame, but I want to tell you that not all people named travis are the alike.

For the last section of the post, I'd like to ask some questions brought to my mind after watching the first two episodes of Stargirl, which I hope will be answered in the remainder of the first season.

Is Sylvester Pemberton truly Courtney's Biological father? Sylvester seems like an obvious red herring, but I wouldn't be surprised if the show decided to change Courtney's Bio Dad from who he is in the comics, they changed Courtney's sport of choice from cheerleading to gymnastics.

If Sylvester isn't Courtney's Bio Dad, and Pat said the Cosmic Staff only worked for Starman, then why does it also work for her?

What's up with the janitor of Blue Valley High? Something's up with that bearded janitor who gave Courtney weird looks during her first day of school, like he knows more than he's letting on, maybe he's an old JSA member. My guess is he's Doctor Fate because he wasn't one of the confirmed dead on the night the original JSA team perished, I think he used his magical powers to peer into the future on that night and saw what Courtney and the new JSA would become, so Janitor Fate planted himself in Blue Valley to watch over them. Either that, or he's just a crazy man

Does Rick Tyler know what his father did with the JSA? In the second episode, it's revealed that the original Hourman, Rex Tyler also survived fight against the ISA, at least long enough for him and his family to follow the villains to Blue Valley before he and his wife are killed in a car accident, so does Rick have a clue about his father's superhero life, or was it hidden from him like Pat tried to do with Courtney? Does Rick become the new Hourman to get revenge for/honor his father?

What else could Pat be doing in Blue Valley? Is he following in Rex's footsteps and completing his mission to stop the ISA, or it just a fresh start for his family?

How will the different members of the new JSA assume they're superhero roles, and how they help Stargirl stop the ISA?

How does "The American Dream" initiative to help Blue Valley prosper factor into the ISA evil plans?

Do the ISA's children factor into their parents' plan as well?

Will the new Wildcat finally get to speak in episode three?

Suffice to say, I love the new Stargirl TV series quite a bit, it has quickly become my favorite thing DC is producing right now and it's even gotten me interested in the comic books Stargirl is based on, which I believe is the job of any adaptation from page to screen after delivering a compelling story and characters.

Thanks for your time.

I'm conflicted about Assassin's Creed Valhalla...

First, let me say that I'm super excited to raid, pillage, and plunder in AC Valhalla since the time period of vikings will be interesting to explore in depth and I'm curious to see how the viking people will be presented in the game compared to how they are portrayed in history texts and other media. Plus, the team behind Valhalla were also the team behind my favorite Assassin's Creed games, those being AC Black Flag and Origins, both of which had emotionally gripping stories and flawless ship combat, so I have high hopes.

No, my conflict with AC Valhalla is much more personal, should I play as a male or female Eivor? I chose to play as a female protagonist in AC Odyssey I felt the Kassandra performance was way more naturalistic and just down right fun. However, I'm wonder if I should play as a male in AC Valhalla since Thor's appearance in the MCU has made it look badass to be a viking king and lightning wielding God, and I'm getting that vibe from the male Eivor, along with the vibe that he's not one to be messed with if you get on his bad side. Now, I wonder if should play as the female Eivor since she is also someone who should be messed with and I find viking women to be incredibly attractive, I don't know, there's just something sexy about an extremely capable and confident woman who could definitely kick my ass and I'd probably thank her. I can't wait!

Imagine this...

Does anyone remember the Malcolm in the Middle episode where the characters attend an extended family reunion, and Malcolm along with his brothers, Francis, Reese, and Dewie impulsively steal a golf cart and steamroll over the long banquet table of food before driving the cart into a swimming pool while keeping straight faces the entire time. That scene has always stuck with me more than any other from the series because of how absolutely bonkers and hilarious it is, now imagine if the scene plays out with the four main Robins of the Bat Family. Imagine if the Robins are attending some sort of gala with Bruce and Selena at Gotham's most prestigious country club in the wake of Alfred Pennyworth's death and some absolute rich snotty asshole like a Veronica Vreeland type is drunkingly besmirching Alfred and his importance as just the butler who just cleaned up messes around Wayne Manor and answered the door, not as the indispensable medic, father figure, and moral counsel he was to the Bat Family, and this is so upsetting to Bruce that's he's almost in tears with grief. So, the boys take it upon themselves to knock out any guests or country club employees who get in their way to wherever the golf carts are, but instead of doing the responsible thing and letting Dick drive the cart, they let Damian get behind the wheel because they're never coming back to this place, WHY NOT BURN AS MANY BRIDGES AS POSSIBLE AND LET THE 10 YEAR OLD DRIVE!!! Thanks to Tim and Jason hitting the banquet table's at the weak points with throwing knives, the table is collapsed right before the boys drive over it and drop the cart into the pool with a victorious splash, making sure the Go Pro camera they attached to the dash capture the boys' smug smiles until the cart is fully submerged. Bruce spends the entire car ride home chewing into the boys for the stunt while Selena drives sharing the same smug smile on her lips because she knows there is a special place in hell for those who are foolish enough to besmirch the name Alfred Pennyworth!

I've picture this scene in my head and I could see the Robins doing it if they were provoked. Now, I wonder if anyone could draw this

I can't be the only one, right...

I can't be the only one who imagines Nicolette Reed, the actress who voiced Jessica Drew in the Agent of Sword motion comic saying Jessica's lines whenever I read a Spider-Woman comic book, especially Jessica's dry wit and sarcasm. This phenomenon isn't unusual, I mean, some fans hear Kevin Conroy's voice whenever they read Batman comics because he's so iconic as the character. I guess Jessica won't have a definite voice until she gets more attention from movies or TV shows, until then, I will keep hearing Nicolette Reed in my head, I wonder if I'm the only one. What kind of voice do you hear when you read Jessica Drew in comic books?

Will the Spider-Woman 2020 series be a triumph or torment? If Jessica Drew getting a new book is somehow a dream, then no one wake me.

I’m way late to the party that Jessica Drew/Spider-Woman fans had when Marvel Comics announced her upcoming book due in March, but Jess is my favorite comic book character, so you can sure that I want to give my thoughts and a list of hopes of some of the things that I hope will happen in the series.

1. The new costume: I know people have mixed thoughts on her new costume, some people have loved it from the start, some people hate it for using too much of one color over another, and some people hated it initially and have warmed to it over time, I’m in the last camp, let me explain why. Jessica Drew is spy first and foremost, capable of every kind of espionage under the sun, as well as subduing anyone, fatally or otherwise, before they know which way is up, I always thought of her as the ultra deadly female James Bond who would royally kick his ass with her with Venom blast, gymnastics and more British sass then even he can handle. I see how the black and dark red can aid her in situations where absolute secrecy and keeping to the shadows are a must in order to execute her target, stealing treasured secrets without being noticed, or just saving the world with the rest of the Marvel Universe, plus the yellow on the hands and forehead serve to break up the costume so we’re not just seeing another Spider-Person in a black and red suit while also keeping things classically Spider-Woman, I only hope the costume has an invisible camouflage element.

2. The premise: From the synopsis, it sounds like we’ll open the first issue with Jessica just having gone through something world-shattering or currently going something world-shattering, it’s safe to say that she won’t be in a good place and has taken a new mystery job to clear her head, only find herself in deeper trouble with people coming after her, probably leading her to end them before they can end her, which is a good thing because it wouldn't be much of a superheroine action title without drama or conflict, but I want the series to be a mixture of James Bond meets Archie. I like action as much the next guy, but the most impressive action in the world won't mean a damn if we don’t care about the characters caught in that action, and that's what I believe the last Spider-Woman series did so well. The previous two series’ by Dennis Hopeless expertly balanced the fantastic with ordinary while still keeping Jess’s trademark sass and warmth, I want to bring particular mention to the first story arc of her 2016 series. This arc deals with Jess being nine months pregnant and coming to terms with becoming a mother when she once hated children, it also deals with Jessica letting go of certain aspects of her pervious life as she begins a new one by giving up her motorcycle for the time being, baby prepping her apartment, and trying to stave off the crushing boredom that comes from having her fast pace heroic lifestyle slowed down by maternity leave. Jessica’s best friend (and possible girlfriend) Carol Danvers assist her in her pregnancy by sending Jess to an alien maternity ward in outer space for a routine checkup just as a sect of hostile Skrulls show up to hold her and the rest of the women hostage as they storm the hospital looking for a child Prince, so Jessica is forced to stop the Skrulls against her own and her unborn baby’s wishes and find the Skrull kid before any harm can come to him. I really enjoyed  this arc because it showed a softer side to Jessica through her interaction with the Skrull Prince and her newborn son named Gerry Drew, but it also showed how ready to throw down at a moment’s notice she is as she does so immediately following giving birth, and I enjoyed what came after this arc even more because it wasn't afraid to slow down to show a slice of Jessica’s life and how she is adjusting to life with her son and the lengths she is willing to go in order to protect him. Long ramble short, I want to be a spy’s slice of life story, but Marvel please don’t make the thing bothering Jessica in the synopsis is that her son has been kidnapped, the girl’s been through enough trauma.

3. Gerry Drew: Marvel and the Spider-Woman 2020 writer, please don’t forget about Gerry Drew. I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again, Gerry Drew has a become a big part of Jessica’s life, I don’t want him to just become a plot device for her to save, I want him and the relationship between his mother to be warm and realistic. Marvel is supposed to be the world outside our window, so it wouldn't be remiss if Jessica and Gerry had a real mother and growing son dynamic to be reflect the real world. I also wouldn't hate if we saw cute scenes where Jessica spends time with her son like the issue of the 2016 series when Jessica takes Gerry to the beach for the day, I would honestly take more scenes like those more than straight up action because those scenes humanize Jessica further.

4. Caroljess: I know the possibility of Caroljess becoming cannon is a total pipe dream, but that’s a pipe I will never stop smoking because Carol and Jessica are too cute together and have too much lesbian subtext in other books to not become cannon already. Come on, Marvel!

5. Going the distance: I hope beyond anything I have before that this upcoming Spider-Woman series will be popular and well written enough to go the distance beyond 20 issues because no series staring Jessica Drew has advanced past that milestone since the 1970′s. That’s a damn shame for fans Jess who have been starved for anything staring the character for so long, so if you’ve become a new fan of Jess through her appearances in the Strike Force series or my ramblings here, then I'm asking you to give Spider-Woman 2020 a shot once the first issue releases in March. 

Gerry Drew a mutant?

A thought came to me while I plotting the future of my Jessica Drew fanfic called Agent 77 last night, is Jessica's infant son Gerry a mutant like the X-Men are?

Let me explain. In the last issue of the most recent Spider-Woman comic series (still waiting on new the possibility of a new Jessica Drew Spider-Woman solo series, btw.) Gerry Drew is shown to share his mother's superhuman abilities of wall-crawling and green Venom Blasts, but unlike Jessica, who was normal person and given her abilities by injection into her own mother womb or injection by her father when she was a young girl in order to stop her radiation poisoning, depending on the continuity, Gerry seems to developed his abilities naturally shortly after being born, a similar thing happened to Annie Parker in the Spider-Man: Renew Your Vows ongoing series and it's not unheard of for a mutant to manifest their abilities earlier or later than puberty. Ultimately, no writer has given a definite answer whenever Gerry is seen in a comic and I doubt ever will, unless he's kidnapped for a story arc in the Strikeforce series. (Side note: Marvel, please don't write a story arc where Gerry Drew is kidnapped for some reason. Jessica's been through enough trauma.)

Is Gerry Drew a mutant? Does this mean Jessica should drop him off for daycare at the Xavier School when he comes of age? If she ever does, he shouldn't be allowed near Cyclops, Professor X, or Magneto, those three will be a bad influence on the kid. Does this even really matter? I'd love to hear your thoughts as well

Batwoman: Elegy by Greg Rucka and J.H Williams III proves that Kate Kane is just as fucked up as her Bat-themed cousin. (If not more so.)

I recently bought a new edition of Batwoman: Elegy by Greg Rucka and J.H Williams III, mostly because it had a picture of Ruby Rose as Batwoman on the cover to promote her upcoming show, but the book soon proved to me that the book soon proved itself to be more than just fuel for my love of redheaded woman within its first few pages.

First, let me say that I’m in no way an expert on the character of Kate Kane/Batwoman, I mean, the only stories I've read with her as a main character is this one, and the first two volumes of Dc Comics: Bombshells, but after reading Elegy, I feel as if Batwoman grabbed me by my shirt collar, told me to shut up and listen as she told me her own tragically dark tale in such a way that I never want her let go. But what is that tale? Like her cousin, Kate Kane as Batwoman is born from tragedy of being kidnapped alongside her mother and twin sister because her family are members of Gotham's wealthy elite, resulting in a rescue made by Kate's militaristic father Jacob with help from his Army unit, but not before Kate is traumatized by the sight of the corpse of her sister as she is carried to safety by her father

A deep sense of justice was in instilled in Kate, complemented only by her anger as she followed in her father’s footsteps and went to West Point, using the school’s code of honor stated as: A cadet shall not lie, cheat, or steal, nor suffer others to do so, as a personal mantra to guide her through to becoming top of her class with high accolades, until Kate begins a romantic relationship with her roommate and fellow female cadet, Sofie Moore. Thusly, Kate is put under investigation for misconduct by her superiors, and rather than betray West Point’s code and lie about her sexual orientation, Kate outs herself as gay and effectively discharges herself from the military in the process. 

 After leaving West Point, Kate returns to Gotham and pretty much sleepwalks through life without a purpose to drive her while her father has plans to remarry another woman, causing Kate act out in defiance by throwing lavish parties and doing all sorts of reckless things one would expect from a rich socialite, not even a heated relationship with city beat cop and future vigilante, Renee Montoya would shake Kate out of her state of apathy. No, it would take Kate becoming a victim of a random mugging and the timely intervention of a certain Bat to give her the purpose she had been wanting for so long, but it would take her help from her father’s wealth and military expertise to make the dream of becoming her own hero in Batwoman

In the present, the similarities between her cousin doesn't end with their propensity to dress up as their favorite winged rodent and beat the shit out of criminals rather than address their personal trauma, for Kate must overcome a new threat to Gotham in the form of the Cult of Crime, whose leader has modeled herself after the title character of Alice in Wonderland, while also having a personal connection to the heroine in such a way that the search for answers as to Alice's true identity will shake Kate to her core and destroy everything she knew about her past.

Now that I've gone over a summary, I would like to discuss the things I really enjoyed about the book in bullet points because this post is already long enough.

The relationship between Kate and Jacob Kane - I would say the best relationship in the book isn't a romantic one, but a familal one between Kate and Jacob. While their relationship has become strained enough to become very much a work relationship since they've taken paths in life and the fact of kate not being fond of her stepmother and vise virsa, it's clear the pair still love one another deep down and Jacob is supportive of his daughter in every aspect of her her, including crime fighting.

Batwoman meeting Batman - An interesting development in the book is the fact that Batwoman and Batman don't know who the other is under the mask. In fact, their one interaction in the book is filled with this tension since they're kinda stepping on the other's turf, Batman even gives Kate some vital advice that she doesn't follow and comes to bite her later on, which makes me wonder if that dynamic changes once they do learn about one another's secret life.

Kate's coming out - Kate is exposed as a lesbian is less than ideal, to say the least, but rather than deny it and lie in order to continue at West Point one week before she would have graduated, she stays true to who she is and leaves the school on her own terms, even gaining the loving approval of her father as a result.

The art by J.H Williams III and colors by Dave Stewart - I feel like it's a travesty if I don't mention the art by J.H Williams lll and colors by Dave Stewart because it's outstanding how well they work together. Williams has a way of drawing Batwoman with a right amount of sharp scary edge that makes her appear as the mysterious creature of the night she should be, complimented by Stewart's use of muted colors and heavy shadow, but the art and colors take on a softer and more human tone once Kate is out of costume and back among normal society. I want to bring particular mention to Alice's design as she appears like a version of Lewis Carroll's character that was completely broken by the madness of Wonderland with her white dress, blonde hair, pale makeup, and eternily running mascara, who mainly speaks in quotes from the original book, which really adds to her character created by Greg Rucka.

Greg Rucka - I don't have much to say on Rucka, but that doesn't mean he did a bad job. He has a proven track record with writing woman superheroes with critically acclaimed run on Wonder Woman, as well as writing gripping crime dramas like his work on Gotham Central, so I had complete faith in his ability to write another intriguing mystery and he didn't disappoint. He masterfully crafts a mystery of who Alice truly is, and how Batwoman will overcome her reign of terror that kept me glued as I read the book cover to cover in one sitting.

In conclusion, Batwoman: Elegy did its job of making me excited for the show and then some, which I'm watching the premiere of as I write this, the book made me a lifelong fan of the character who wants to see more from her in comics and where the TV show takes her for however long it lasts. I even preordered the Batwoman Funko Pop, and learned the definition of elegy, so the book must be something right.

Heads up, Y’all

I have returned from my fanfic hiatus with a newly written story focusing on how I would introduce the Fantastic Four into the Marvel Cinematic Universe as a team in the 1960s in much the same way I introduced Jessica Drew. In fact, this story will eventually serve a prelude to how the FF wound up in that lifeboat during the fourth chapter of Agent 77. Enjoy

https://archiveofourown.org/works/20349793/chapters/48252805

Power Rangers 2017 is to be rebooted instead of being given a sequel, and I’m saddened, even though it makes perfect sense.

I will be the first to admit that I was wrong and jumped the gun when I made a post celebrating the possibility that Power Rangers 2017 might get a sequel, but that no longer appears to be the case. Yes, reports on the internet say Hasbro has plans to give Power Rangers another try with a rebooted movie instead of continuing with the plot and characters set up in the 2017 movie. While I love every aspect of the Power Rangers franchise from MMPR to Beast Morphers and everything to do with Rangers between, (I even own the commemorative Green Ranger Build a Bear.) a reboot makes sense if we look at the facts of the first movie.

Power Rangers 2017′s troubles first arose when the picture of the Ranger team in their updated suits was released to the public and the overly complicated suit designs largely alienated older fans of the original MMPR show, the movie wasn't given much a break when designs for Alpha 5 and the Zords were shown to share the same overly complicated aesthetic, and fans were turned off further once they learned that a product placement was a vital plot point, thus most people didn't show up for the movie during the opening weekend and the subsequent weeks afterwards, resulting a poor box office run and the movie was simply lost in the dust of other high profile movies like Beauty and the Beast and Logan, and the director says the film’s biggest disadvantage at the box office is its PG-13 rating, making parents uncertain if they can bring their young kids to the movie in the first place.

Moving on to the actors involved in the movie. The actors who portrayed the Rangers went from relative unknowns to high profile stars after the movie was released, Dacre Montgomery is in Stranger Things, Noami Scott is a live action of a Disney Princess in Aladdin and will go on to star in Charlie’s Angels, Ludi Lin went on to have a part in Aquaman and an episode of Black Mirror, Becky G is music superstar who has had parts in Empire and AXL, and RJ Cyler starred in White Boy Rick, Sierra Burgess is a Loser, and a couple episodes of Black Lighting. My point is, each actor has become bigger names than they were at the time of the first movie and if Hasbro was to green light a sequel to the 2017 movie, it likely would've been more costly than the first film to cover everyone’s paychecks with the possibility of the movie not making its money back due to the reasons listed above.

Ultimately, I’m sad that Power Rangers 2017 won’t be getting a sequel, it’s a guilty pleasure of mine, even though I understand its problems, but I believe a sequel could've addressed and solved these problems. Jason could’ve learned how to be a better team leader and stop solving his problems with violence, Kimberly could've been set on a path of redemption and peace with herself after her criminal past with the naked photo of her former friend, Trini could've come to terms with her sexuality and be comfortable enough to come out to her family, (maybe become romantically involved with Kimberly, but that’s just me.) Zack could've come to terms with the inevitably of his mother’s death with her own help and the help of his friends, he could’ve come out of the experience a stronger and wiser person, and Billy could've become a more socially confident person while living with his Autism, but I believe the biggest tragedy to come out of the 2017 movie is Tommy Oliver. Whether Tommy Oliver would've been a boy or girl remains a mystery, there’s no doubt they would’ve found Rita’s Green Coin and become the Green Ranger, this could've led to Zordon going over Rita’s fall into darkness and the deaths of his original Ranger Team in greater detail as the modern Team tries to stop Tommy from causing chaos and bring them to the light, In the end, I believe a sequel could've added to the Power Rangers mythos in a way fans have only dreamed of.

What are my hopes for the Hasbro reboot? I hope the movie focuses on a Ranger Team other than MMPR because honestly the MMPR Team is kind of over played in media with countless comics and videogames focusing on the Team. Maybe focus on a Ranger Team like RPM, SPD, Jungle Fury, or Dino Thunder, I personally like the teams with three members to start with because I believe it allows for more character growth. If Hasbro decides to reboot with the MMPR Team, then they should keep a focus on the characters like the 2017 movie, but design the Ranger Suits similar to the designs drawn by comic book artist, Dan Mora on Instagram. He updates the suits in a way that they are enticing to new fans while keeping recognizable aspects as to not alienate old fans in the process. Like the Boom Comics, this reboot must balance what’s old and new, childish and serious to truly become successful in the eyes of everyone.

Goodbye, Power Rangers 2017. I’ll remember you in therapy. (And fanfiction.)