Episode 1619 Talkback - Comic Talk

Adam_Murdough

TV shows continuing on in comics; the 46th edition of the Overstreet Price Guide; spoiler-filled talk on Ghostbusters, Star Trek Beyond, Batman: The Killing Joke movie, and Batman v. Superman ultimate edition. All these topics and more tonight on Comic Geek Speak. (1:16:14)

Listen here.

fredzilla

The show goes off the rails right around 7 minutes. Is that a new record? I look forward to listening to the rest.

luckymustard

Just after finishing the segment on "continuing on in comics", I thought I'd point out there are comic books of the two Syfy shows you mentioned, Eureka and Warehouse 13. They very well may not have been "continuing on stories", but it seems difficult to me to investigate whether they were that or just stories as the shows were happening.

i_am_scifi

fredzilla said:

The show goes off the rails right around 7 minutes. Is that a new record? I look forward to listening to the rest.

Awesome! My favorite type of episode! :D

DAR

Stranger Things is a tv show that I think could translate well to comics.

nweathington

Of the Rebirth stuff, so far I've read the first three issues of Flash, and the first issue of Batgirl. Flash is very meh. The art is fine, but nothing special. The writing is fine, but nothing special. And the new big-bad’s name cracked me up—not in a good way. I may keep reading it, but only because I'm getting if for my son. I’d give it a C.

Batgirl is off to a decent start. I like Albequerque’s art well enough. The story is a little tropy, but I need to see a little more before I can judge it fairly. I’d give it a B. I got a subscription deal for 12 issues for $15, so I'm in for that long at least.

larry

Haven't posted in a while. As far as Shane saying Flash Forward should be continued in comic book form, it was originally a book by Robert J Sawyer. It was a very good book with a conclusion. I read the book a long time ago but never watched the show. It isn't that long so may fit into your schedule Shane.

Mark_Engblom

Interesting to hear the Overstreet Price Guide mentioned. It's one of those things you suspect is probably still around, but at the same time, wouldn't be too surprised to discover it was no longer being published. As Chris alluded to, I've found that checking eBay for what specific comics are selling for is a much more reliable guide than any printed price guide. Will the Overstreet Guide continue to be published? Probably...but I'm guessing its relevance will continue to diminish.

As for the podcast itself, let me make a friendly suggestion that the maximum number of geeks talking via remote connection (via Skype, phone, etc) be limited to two. Any more than that (like this episode's three remote talkers), the number of shrill, tinny voices gets to be difficult to listen to. I realize the schedules and locations of the gang can vary greatly, and I appreciate their willingness to contribute from wherever they are...but at the same time, if there are more than two remote callers, it gets to be a bit of a strain to listen.

JLIJesse

Another friendly suggestion, Dani really needs to get a better microphone. The obvious dip in sound quality when she speaks is jarring to me. I have a podcast and was able to to get a set up that sounds as good as the other geeks for only $30-$40 and we record everything over skype.

i_am_scifi

Yeah @ShaneKelly, there's a 4th Trek movie in the pipeline. And supposedly Chris Hemsworth will be back as Poppa Kirk, so expect something wibbly wobbly and timey wimey.

DAR

The sad thing about Beyond is it's kind of a bomb. So far it's only made 213 million worldwide against a production budget of 185 million, throw in marketing and you're probably looking at a total cost of 250+ million.

I have no doubt a 4th film will be made because Trek is a durable franchise overall but its budget should be drastically lowered

i_am_scifi

DAR said:

The sad thing about Beyond is it's kind of a bomb. So far it's only made 213 million worldwide against a production budget of 185 million, throw in marketing and you're probably looking at a total cost of 250+ million.

I have no doubt a 4th film will be made because Trek is a durable franchise overall but its budget should be drastically lowered

Mind you, it doesn't come out in China until September; same with Mexico, and not til October in Japan. That's going to be the biggest test for Beyond. If it can do well, especially in Mexico and China, it will boost its earnings significantly.

aquatroy

Does Penny Dreadful count on the TV to Comics list?

Also, I have to agree with the consensus on Dawn of Justice. I waited for the extended version to watch the movie. That was one shiny turd.

Finally, While I've enjoyed most of the Star Trek movies, that franchise works best as a "think piece", and IMO that format works best on TV.

bralinator

i_am_scifi said:

DAR said:

The sad thing about Beyond is it's kind of a bomb. So far it's only made 213 million worldwide against a production budget of 185 million, throw in marketing and you're probably looking at a total cost of 250+ million.

I have no doubt a 4th film will be made because Trek is a durable franchise overall but its budget should be drastically lowered

Mind you, it doesn't come out in China until September; same with Mexico, and not til October in Japan. That's going to be the biggest test for Beyond. If it can do well, especially in Mexico and China, it will boost its earnings significantly.

Amateur analysis of box office earnings is always a lot of fun to speculate over, but in general I think the studios have a better idea of the real costs of these movies than even the best-informed fans, who often forget to take into account the hundreds of millions of dollars spent marketing a film, or that the theaters are keeping a significant amount of the box office take for themselves. And while I agree that a 4th film will probably be made, I question the veracity of @DAR's suggested that only $65 million was allotted for worldwide marketing costs. It's probably MUCH more.

The general rule of thumb in the modern age of Hollywood blockbusters is to take a film’s production budget and double it to factor in the monstrous price of advertising. And I don't think these international numbers are going to help significantly, since overseas distributors take much higher percentages of the gross. Every dollar made domestically is worth much more than a dollar made overseas. The studios on average see about 55% of the USA gross and much less than 50% of worldwide gross. So STB probably needs to end up north of $370 million worldwide gross to turn a profit.

When one looks at the international earnings that Star Trek Into Darkness did back in 2013 in those same countries that @i_am_scifi mentioned, STB will probably earn around $50 million in China, $10 million in Japan, and another $6 million in Mexico. This assumes an 8-10% drop in the revenues due to the film's current performance. Based on this performance, I just don't see it earning much more than $300 million total gross - making the movie not profitable.

Of course, all of this is purely academic. The licensing of the property will ensure the film shows SOME profit, eventually (hopefully), and clearly Paramount isn't cancelling Star Trek. Furthermore, another sequel has reportedly been green-lit. Of course, that can also change. Another major studio, Sony, prematurely announced another 'LadyGhostbusters' the weekend that it was released - and then, they unceremoneously dropped those plans.

All said, I don't believe the earnings of our favorite films should EVER be a metric for their considered quality or lack thereof. John Carpenter has released several movies that I love which did terribly at the box office. So, Star Trek fans who have enjoyed the last two films should definitely get out and see Beyond in theaters while you still can. Who cares how much it made?

i_am_scifi

True @bralinator, and we all remember how keen FOX was on making Fant4stic 2 until it came out and bombed worse than a first time stand-up comedian in front of a 2am crowd.

bralinator

i_am_scifi said:

True @bralinator, and we all remember how keen FOX was on making Fant4stic 2 until it came out and bombed worse than a first time stand-up comedian in front of a 2am crowd.

Yeah, I think it's just execs trying to show confidence. I can't imagine they are so out of touch. I'd keep my mouth shut until the first weekend BO has come in at least, if I were a studio exec.

aquatroy

i_am_scifi said:

True @bralinator, and we all remember how keen FOX was on making Fant4stic 2 until it came out and bombed worse than a first time stand-up comedian in front of a 2am crowd.

I'm stealing that line.

BionicDave

You know it's time to end a comics podcast when everyone is discussing his/her preferred fish to eat... :joy: :joy: :joy:

bralinator

Great OTR episode so far. Thanks @Pants

stu89

There was a show a few years ago called The Finder with Geoff Stults and Michael Duncan Clarke on Fox that I think would be perfect to move into the comic realm.

BionicDave

My vote for "This Dead TV Show Deserves To Continue - And An Ongoing Comic Of It Would Be Great" is...

SPACE: ABOVE AND BEYOND!

hauberk

BionicDave said:

My vote for "This Dead TV Show Deserves To Continue - And An Ongoing Comic Of It Would Be Great" is...

SPACE: ABOVE AND BEYOND!

I'd support that. I'd also like to see a return of EZ Streets.

alienal

Well, this was a fun episode...but I have to say my favorite part is when just Dani walks off leaving Pants hanging...and it's not like she had to do the wash or anything, just cooking dinner. Heheh.....Oh, and I'd like to second @DAR 's vote for Stranger Things to be continued in a comic IF it doesn't come back for a second season.

luke52

Anyone else unable to listen to any CGS shows at the moment through the podcasts app. I get this episode is currently unavailable. Been getting it for the last few days too!!!

Can't even play it through the CGS app.

I miss CGS!

luckymustard

The app works for me.

matchkitJOHN

@Pants I did three takes for Jamie's birthday please use the most coherent one!

johnnyhateschachi

'Buck Rogers in the 25th Century' would be a great show to continue in comic book form. Princess Ardala can conquer my planet any time.
'Thundarr the Barbarian'...maybe a separate DC line (even if digital only) in the DC Animated Universe continuity?