This month marks the 50th birthday of everyone’s favorite Armored Avenger, Iron Man. One thing that made Shellhead so unique among the superheroes is that until recent years he was one of the very few superheroes to sport a new look.
Often, the change in suits was necessary since Iron Man faced constantly changing threats and situations. This upgrading of his armor is one way to showcase how Iron Man keeps up with technology and the times. It is hard to imagine Iron Man being the popular hero that he is if he still wore that clunky Mark II armor seen in the early Avengers comic books.
There are many variations of his armor, while some were best left forgotten, others were very captivating and quite cool.
Stealth Armor Mark I (Iron Man # 152, Vol. 1)
One thing that stood out about this armor was its jet black color scheme, which lent itself to its stealth capabilities that made Iron Man electronically invisible.
Hydro Armor (Iron Man # 218, Vol. 1)
As its name suggests, this particular oversized armor was used for underwater missions, namely deep-sea salvages.
Hulkbuster Armor (Iron Man # 304, Vol. 4)
This large-framed armor boosted Iron Man’s strength to allow hand-to-hand fighting with the powerful Hulk. This concept led to other variants like the Asgardian Armor for fighting Thor and Spider-Man’s Iron Spider suit seen in the Civil War mini-series. The Hulkbuster armor apparently makes an appearance in the new Iron Man 3 movie as seen at the end of the latest trailer.
Extremis Armor (Iron Man #5, Vol. 4) & Bleeding Edge Armor (Iron Man # 25, Vol. 5)
What made this armor so radically different was that it was actually part of its wearer Tony Stark. He was critically ill and injected himself with a techno organic virus, which bonded the suit to his body. Stark was able to store the armor in his bones and controlled it with his brain impulses. For all intents and purposes, this armor turned Stark into a cyborg, a true Iron Man. This wasn’t a state-of-the art armor, it was simply futuristic. The next stage of his armor was the so-called Bleeding Edge Armor. However, Stark had the armor surgically removed later on.
Mark I (Tales Of Suspense # 39)
Sometimes retro is the way to go. Yes, its clunky and not aesthetically pleasing but it did a most important thing. It was the first armor to save Tony Stark’s life. Using raw materials and under life-or-death pressure, Stark demonstrated his genius with this creation. While funky in its inelegant, steampunk-like design, the armor would be replaced in the next issue of Tales Of Suspense by a more advanced golden armor. The basic grey look made a comeback of sorts in Iron Man # 191 (Vol. I) when Stark was forced to cobble together a makeshift suit when his regular armor wasn’t available to him.
Mark III (Tales Of Suspense # 48)
The iconic, modern look of the red-and-gold armor was introduced in this issue and it set the design template for all future Iron Man armor. The Mark III differed from the first two designs in that it had a sleeker look and was more versatile. The design became a mainstay for Iron Man’s look (except for bulky alternates like the Hulkbuster or his Space Armor). The armor looked even sleeker and more formidable with the debut of the more modern Mark IV (Tales Of Suspense # 66) with the famous repulsor rays and the Mark V (Iron Man # 85, Vol. 1). This two-color, dynamic motif culminated, with his current Black and Gold Armor (Iron Man # 1, Vol. 5), which is made of a fluidic “smart metal”, mentally controlled by Stark and is a testbed for new tech.
*Note: The above art was done by John Romita, Jr., Bob Layton, Kevin Hopgood, Adi Granov, Jack Kirby, Don Heck and Greg Land
The rumors about who will appear in the upcoming Star Wars Episode VII are swirling faster than an TIE fighter spinning to its doom on an asteroid field after chasing the Millennium Falcon. There are reports that Mark Hamill and Harrison Ford will reprise their roles of Luke Skywalker and Han Solo respectively in the new film to be directed by J.J. Abrams. Carrie Fisher can’t be far behind to complete the triad.
With that, here at Starloggers, our contributors were asked which characters they would like to return in Star Wars Episode VII. These are their replies…
José Soto: Luke Skywalker and Han Solo are excellent choices, but you need Leia too so that the baton can be effectively handed off to the new generation of characters. While they’re at it, throw in Chewbacca, Admiral Ackbar and a force ghost appearance by Yoda. Oh, and don’t forget the droids!
C.S. Link: The droids, of course, you can’t have a Star Wars film without C-3P0 whining away and R2-D2 being the heroic droid/mobile Swiss army knife. Boba Fett would be nice, as well as Lando Calrissian and Chewbacca. They’re cool.
GEO: I would like J.J. Abrams to recast Luke, Han and Leia, just like he did with the Star Trek reboot. But at the end of the day, the must-have character to appear in Star Wars Episode VII should be Luke.
Jennifer Drucker: I’d love to see Princess Leia and Lando Calrissian again. Also, it would be great if the people making the upcoming film were to include Qui-Gon Jinn and Ewan McGregor’s Obi-Wan Kenobi as blue Jedi ghosts.
Annette DeForrester: Yoda’s my favorite Star Wars character of all time. Even though he died in Return Of The Jedi, Yoda can appear as a ghost. For the villains, Boba can stay in the sarlaac pit, but they should bring back the sith villains as evil ghosts.
Jim McLernon: They should include the droids, R2-D2 and C-3P0 since they appeared in all six Star Wars films. The rest doesn’t matter to me, but J.J. Abrams should just make sure the characters are well developed no matter who appears in the film.
Lewis T. Grove: Like everyone else I think the droids R2-D2 and C-3P0 must be part of Star Wars Episode VII. Just have them appear more worn and beat up, it would be a realistic touch. Also they should consider Obi-Wan Kenobi. Like the droids, he appeared in all six films and can provide a sense of continuity.
One thing not really being talked about in the movie trades and news regarding the movie Argo winning the Oscar for Best Picture is Argo’s sci-fi angle. It’s the first time this has happened with a Best Picture winner.
For the unaware reader, the movie is about the CIA’s efforts during the Iran Hostage Crisis to rescue six Americans hiding in a Canadian embassy in Tehran. A crucial sub-plot in Argo has to do with Ben Affleck’s character of CIA operative Tony Mendez coming up with the off-the-wall idea of entering Iran to rescue the American hostages by posing as a film producer. This scheme involves him supposedly producing a fake “science fantasy adventure” movie called Argo and he wants to film the project in Iran because of its exotic location. Unbelievably this scheme works as Mendez is given permission by Iran to enter the hostile country for location scouting.
Actually Argo the fake movie was based on a never-made sci-fi movie called Lord Of Light (based on a book of the same name). Lord Of Light went far enough into pre-production that legendary comic book artist Jack Kirby was commissioned to draw some concept art for the film project.
The whole thing with the fictitious movie is just a gimmick while Argo is devoted to the efforts to smuggle out the Americans. The movie cannot be considered sci-fi at all, yet it has a sliver of a sci-fi connection. This is the closest that the disrespected genre (in Hollywood’s eyes) has come to date for being part of a movie that is a Best Picture winner. Not much, but it’s a first step.
Perhaps one day a genuine sci-fi movie will earn that Best Picture honor on Oscar night.
Traditionally, genre films have been snubbed by the Oscars, that is a given. But in recent years, such films have snuck into the list of nominees. A few years back Avatar, Inception, District 9 and the film versions of The Lord Of The Rings received Best Picture nominations. Most know that the fantasy epic The Lord Of The Rings: The Return Of The King actually won for Best Picture in 2003.
While that is all well and good, there are numerous worthwhile sci-fi, fantasy, animated and horror films that were ignored by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences at least when it comes to the most valued prize, the Best Picture pick. The following are notable genre classics throughout the decades that should’ve at least received a nomination for Best Picture.
1930s-1940s:Frankenstein (1931) is still revered today as a genuine horror and sci-fi masterpiece with Boris Karloff’s iconic performance as the Creature. King Kong (1933) was a groundbreaking film that influenced many generations of filmmakers to this day with its unforgettable, dreamlike scenes that transported viewers into a lost world filled with a giant gorilla and dangerous dinosaurs.
Although Walt Disney received a special Oscar for Snow White And The Seven Dwarves (1937), the film failed to be nominated for Best Picture. What was nominated instead of the groundbreaking first full-length animated film? Such well-regarded classics like Test Pilot and Alexander’s Ragtime Band–note the sarcasm. Disney’s followup animated masterpieces Pinocchio (1940) and Bambi (1942) were also ignored by the Academy when it came to announcing the Best Picture nominations.
But the Academy wasn’t too dense, in this time period a few fantasy films received Best Picture nominations starting with Lost Horizon (1937), The Wizard Of Oz (1939) and It’s A Wonderful Life (1946).
1950s-1960s: Many nominated films in these two decades were either musicals or dramas. Unlike the previous decades there weren’t any genre films recognized with the exceptions of Walt Disney’s Mary Poppins, Doctor Doolittle (both of which are really musicals) and Stanley Kubrick’s Dr. Strangelove Or: How I Learned To Stop Worrying And Love The Bomb. Horror and animated films were for the virtually absent among the list of Oscar nominees. Sci-fi films in this time period began to grow out their zero-budget, infantile trappings. There was an explosion of sci-fi films in the 1950s, many of them worthy of recognition by the Academy like The Day The Earth Stood Still (1951),War Of The Worlds (1953), Forbidden Planet (1956) and The Incredible Shrinking Man (1957). But the Academy members failed to see the merit of these films, which are still fondly revered.
Kubrick’s next film after Dr. Strangelove is considered by most people as the greatest sci-fi film ever made. Yet 2001: A Space Odyssey (1968) was largely ignored by the Oscars. The other important sci-fi masterpiece that came out in the same year Planet Of The Apes was also snubbed by the Oscars except for a special makeup Oscar. By the way, does anyone know what won that year for Best Picture? Oliver! Another musical snoozefest and films that were nominated included Rachel, Rachel and The Lion In Winter. Are any of these films venerated by film lovers today? Thought not. Continue reading →
This past January marked the twentieth anniversary of perhaps the most underrated Star Trek show Star Trek: Deep Space Nine. It differed from the other Trek shows in that it took place on a space station (the titular Deep Space Nine or DS9) near a wormhole and the characters often had to deal with the political and social ramifications of galactic events and alien first contact. In so many ways, Star Trek: Deep Space Nine is arguably the best Trek show and certainly the best spinoff of the original Star Trek. Many episodes were exciting, thought provoking and best exemplified the spirit of Star Trek. Being that it’s the show’s 20th anniversary, here’s a top 20 list of their very best episodes.
20. “The House Of Quark” A white lie about killing a Klingon warrior to boost business leads resident DS9 bar owner Quark (Armin Shimmerman) to unwillingly marrying the Klingon’s headstrong widow (Mary Kay Adams). Later Quark must fight another Klingon for her honor in this humorous social clash of Klingons and Ferengi cultures.
19. “Homefront/Paradise Lost” This two-part episode is an eerie predictor of the besieged, mistrustful mentality that hit the U.S. after 9/11. A Changeling terrorist attack on Earth leads to worldwide paranoia that Changelings are everywhere and infiltrating the Federation. Ultimately this brings about an attempted coup by rogue Starfleet officers.
18. “What You Leave Behind” The final episode of Star Trek: Deep Space Nine brings the show to a proper conclusion as the Dominion War finishes in an epic throwdown involving an armed uprising on the Cardassian home planet, the major space powers in a pyrotechnic space battle and Captain Benjamin Sisko (Avery Brooks) has a final confrontation with his arch nemesis Dukat (Marc Alaimo) and ultimately discovers his destiny.
17. “The Jem’Hadar” What a way to introduce an enemy race! Sisko, his son Jake (Cirroc Lofton), Quark and his nephew Nog (Aron Eisenberg) are captured while camping on a planet in the Gamma Quadrant by the Dominion’s belligerent military force, the Jem’Hadar. Ruthless, deadly and formidable, the reptilian-like soldiers proved their extreme fanaticism by destroying a Galaxy-class starship fairly easily.
16. “Past Tense, Part I and II” Sisko, Dr. Julian Bashir (Alexander Siddig) and Jadzia Dax (Terry Farrell) are accidently transported to San Francisco in the 2020s and become involved in a calamitous social movement called the Bell Riots. When the leader of the movement is killed, Sisko must assume his identity in order to preserve the timeline, while trying to keep himself and hostages safe.
15. “Favor The Bold” The first few episodes of DS9’s sixth season had the Federation on the defensive in the Dominion War with the Dominion occupying the station. Tired of defeat, Sisko devises a bold battle plan to take back DS9 and gathers his forces. Meanwhile tensions boil over in DS9 as First Officer Kira Nerys (Nana Visitor) confronts the Changeling Security Chief Odo (René Auberjonois) over his divided loyalties.
14. The Circle Trilogy (“The Homecoming”, “The Circle”, “The Siege”) Bajoran politics start off the second season with Star Trek’s first three parter. A legendary Bajoran freedom fighter (Richard Beymer) is found in a Cardassian prison by Kira, who frees him. This causes a chain of events that culminates in a plot by an anti-Federation, reactionary political group to overthrow the Bajoran government. Guest stars Frank Langella and Louise Fletcher played exceptional villains.
13. ” The Quickening” Dr. Bashir learns a lesson in the limits of his medical skills when he and Dax struggle to help a planetary population infected by the Dominion with a deadly and incurable disease. An allegory to the AIDS epidemic, the scenes of Bashir’s tireless efforts to ease the suffering and cure people were powerful and touching.
12. “Crossover” Kira and Bashir return to the infamous Mirror Universe last seen in the original Star Trek episode “Mirror, Mirror”. This time humanity has been conquered by the Klingons and Cardassians and the duo get to see a radically different DS9 with once familiar characters like Quark and Garak (Andrew J. Robinson) now complete strangers. Plus, it gave the actors plenty of opportunities to chew the scenery with their over-the-top performances of their doppelgangers.
11. “The Way Of The Warrior” Worf (Michael Dorn) from Star Trek: The Next Generation joins the station crew in this fourth-season opener that sees the impact that the shape-shifting Founders have had with their infiltration of the Alpha Quadrant. The Klingons and the Federation break ties with each other and become adversaries. The climatic space battles between the station and a Klingon fleet and the intense fighting inside DS9 were an adrenaline rush of excitement!
10. “In The Pale Moonlight” One of the most controversial episodes of Star Trek: Deep Space Nine has Ben Sisko desperate over the state of the war against the Dominion, committing very questionable and treasonous actions to influence the Romulans to join the war on the Federation’s side. These nebulous actions by a Star Trek lead hero best illustrate the murkiness of DS9’s main characters.
9. “In The Cards” This very funny episode showcases Jake and Nog as they go through many headaches and make complicated deals just to obtain a rare Willie Mays baseball card for Jake’s father. Highlights include the mad Dr. Giger (Brian Markinson) and his alleged immortality machine. Meanwhile on an ominous note, on the eve of war, negotiations fail between the Federation and the Dominion.
8. Emissary” The pilot episode introduces the cast of characters and the Cardassian-built space station orbiting the ravaged planet of Bajor. Intrigue and self-discovery abound as the intricacies of Bajoran society and the characters’ quirks are revealed, especially Sisko’s tortured soul. Still mourning over his dead wife and on the verge of leaving Starfleet, Sisko faces a moment of truth after discovering a nearby stable wormhole and the non-corporeal aliens inhabiting it.
7. “In Purgatory’s Shadow”/”By Inferno’s Light” Major changes happen in this two parter when the Cardassians, led by Dukat, unexpectedly join the Dominion. One of the show’s biggest shocks came when it was revealed that one of the major characters was actually a Changeling during several previous episodes and out to decimate the Alpha Quadrant powers.
6. “Far Beyond The Stars” Sisko finds himself in an alternate reality where he is a struggling science fiction writer in 1950s New York and must contend with racism as he tries to get his story published about a space station commandeered by a black officer. It was unforgettable and refreshing to see the show’s actors, many without makeup, portraying distinctly different characters, some good and some bad. Brooks deserves many kudos for captivating performance as Ben Sisko and writer Benny Russell.
5. “Trials And Tribble-ations” In this tribute to the original Star Trek, the crew of the Defiant (the Starfleet ship posted to DS9) time travel back to Captain Kirk’s (William Shatner) era and wind up part of the classic Star Trek episode “The Trouble With The Tribbles”. The scenes where the DS9 characters interact with the original Enterprise crewmembers are still jaw-dropping and fun to watch. Some highlights include seeing the original Enterprise, Worf’s abrupt non-explanation about the classic era’s Klingons and when Sisko got to meet Kirk, one of his heroes.
4. “…Nor The Battle To The Strong” Jake and Dr. Bashir are stranded on a Federation outpost under attack by Klingons. This episode focuses on Jake (one of the few by DS9 to do so) and his impressions of war as he is recruited to be a medic and meets several characters who react differently to battle situations. He sees up close how filthy and demoralizing war is and is strongly shaken by its brutality and its senseless nature. This episode was one of the grittiest ever shown on Star Trek and the realistic elements such as the Starfleet officer who wounds himself and Jake’s scared reactions added much to the story.
3. “Call To Arms” The fifth season of Star Trek: Deep Space Nine closes with this exciting episode that is about the eve of war between the Federation/Klingons and the Dominion. Tensions boil over and negotiations break down leading to open warfare between the two powers. The episode’s writers skillfully set up many cliffhangers for the coming season and had astonishing multiple endings that could’ve each ended the season effectively. Still, that final shot that has the Defiant joining a massive Starfleet/Klingon armada makes one cheer.
2. “Sacrifice Of Angels” This epic conclusion to the storyline about the Dominion occupation of DS9 rivals any big-screen sci-fi spectacular with its amazing special effects. Outnumbered and outgunned on board the Defiant, Sisko leads an armada of Starfleet ships against combined Dominion and Cardassian battle ships. It’s a race against time to break through the formidable fleet to reach DS9 before the mined wormhole can be opened to send through Dominion reinforcements. Meanwhile, Kira, Quark, Jake and other Federation loyalists on the station try to stay one step ahead of Dominion forces as they try to sabotage the enemy. After seeing the good guys losing ground in the episodes leading up to “Sacrifice Of Angels” it was a cathartic to see them finally confronting the enemy.
1. “The Visitor” One of the best time travel stories shown on any Star Trek series is ultimately about the bond between a father and his son. Sisko and Jake are on board the Defiant when a freak accident apparently disintegrates the captain. During his mourning Jake discovers that his father is actually alive but trapped in a timeless limbo. Life and time goes on while Sisko never ages and helplessly watches as Jake grows older, marries and then gives up his marriage and writing career to help him. The performances by Avery Brooks and Tony Todd (who plays Jake as an adult) will touch a soft spot in any viewer’s heart. The ending of “The Visitor” will be sure to leave a lump in one’s throat. More importantly, the episode illustrates how feelings and relationship trump any obstacle. These themes are why Star Trek: Deep Space Nine stood apart from the other Star Trek shows.
Other memorable episodes that just missed the list include in no order: “Explorers”, “The Siege of AR-558”, “Waltz”, “A Time To Stand”, “For The Uniform”, “The Magnificent Ferengi”, “Our Man Bashir”, “Inquisition”, “The Die Is Cast” and “Duet”.
Stealth Armor Mark I (Iron Man # 152, Vol. 1)
Extremis Armor (Iron Man #5, Vol. 4) & Bleeding Edge Armor (Iron Man # 25, Vol. 5)
Mark III (Tales Of Suspense # 48) 
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