Grant Morrison Does it Again

A while back I wrote about how I felt DC needs to pull away from its multiverses and follow Marvel's idea of more consistency.

This feeling remains unchanged, but the recent Multiversity guidebook almost made me change my mind.

Multiversity is the brain child of the incredible Grant Morrison.

Morrison stands as a truly great writer of graphic novels along with Sandman creator Neil Gaiman.

It was Grant Morrison who, in the early 90s, ended his reboot of Animal Man, by making the titular character meet up with himself as the author of the comic book.

The surrealistic ending still stands as one of the best ending to a series arc in history.

Now, DC has given Morrison the task of teaching everyone about the Multiverse.

And, not unusual for Morrison himself, he's also teaching the characters within the Multiverse itself.

Every issue of the current series includes comic books left for characters to find which are the very same comic books the reader is currently reading.

The issues have been somewhat confusing... until now!

On Wednesday, DC released The Multiversity Guidebook by Morrison.

This amazingly extra-long issue contains not only the best story and the best artwork, but also the best explanations of the 52 universes which have sprung up since the Crisis on Infinite Earths.

The best part of the massive graphic work is the description of each of the individual universes.

(While the following aren't necessarily spoilers, I highly recommend picking up this issue at your local retailer)

First off there's Earth-0 which is what we are currently reading in the New 52.

There are a few universes which are being told now like Earth-2.

Still others have played out in previous graphic novels like Earth 30: the story line Superman: Red Son where Superman lands in Soviet Russia rather than Smallville, Kansas.

Still others come directly from the genius mind of Grant Morrison like gender-bender Earth-11, Steampunk Earth-19 and groovy Earth-47.

Morrison even left seven Earths unknown which could certainly play into the current and upcoming television and film superheroes.

The most interesting aspect of Morrison's Multiversity Guidebook comes from the realization it is truly a handbook I can't put away.

My habit as a comic book collector is to bag and board each issue upon reading it.

Not so with this one.

Grant Morrison's The Multiversity Guidebook will remain on my shelf as a much needed reference for what I expect to be a mind-blowing dive into the future of DC Comics.

While I still question DC's choice to double-down on the inconsistency in its works along print, TV and film, I'm excited to see there this leads.

Any thoughts? Please leave me a comment below...

Year of the Geek Part Two: Star Wars

The end of 2015 brings Star Wars: The Force Awakens, but, also this year, there are other options to get your fix of stories from the galaxy far, far away.

First off there's the current ongoing series "Star Wars: Rebels" on Disney XD.

If you haven't checked this one out, I highly recommend it.

The creators are the same who won awards for "Star Wars: The Clone Wars", so you don't want to miss it.

There are great options for readers both young and old.

Starting this month, Star Wars returns to Marvel Comics!

Marvel is releasing three titles over the next three months beginning with Star Wars #1 on January 14th.

The first issue could be the biggest comic book seller ever!

Two more titles, Star Wars: Darth Vader and Star Wars: Princess Leia will follow.

Also exciting is Marvel's Omnibus release of the first 44 issues of Star Wars which came out in the late 70s.

Another great addition to the new Expanded Universe includes the novel Heir to the Jedi.

The story fills the gap of what happened to young Luke Skywalker between blowing up the first Death Star and the battle on Hoth.

All of these will be canon and possibly laying the groundwork for The Force Awakens.

Finally and possibly most exciting is the summer release of books retelling the story of the original trilogy.

These books will be perfect for the young people who only have memories of the prequels.

All in all, its a wonderful opportunity to whet our appetites until December.

So, what are you looking forward to in the Star Wars Universe this year? Let me know in the comments...

2015: The Year of the Geek

That's right folks, I'm going out on a limb here: 2015 is going to be the year of the Geek.

OK, I know that's not really a stretch and several other people are saying it as well.

But I can't help but be excited.

Most people know the year will end with the most anticipated movie of all time: Star Wars: the Force Awakens.

But before then there are many juicy bits of geekdom on the silver screen.

Some are going to be obvious hits like Avengers: Age of Ultron.

And some we will just have to wait and see.

I am exited about the return of Mad Max in Fury Road and Pixar's Inside Out.

Meanwhile, there are a few pieces which I am concerned about like Marvel's Ant Man.

Although I was just as concerned six months before Guardians of the Galaxy, and it turned out pretty well (hehe).

And, I have my certain doubts for some shows like Terminator: Genisys (I had to check that title six times to make sure I spelled it right!), Jurassic World and, possibly the worst, Fantastic Four.

There are also some wonderful opportunities outside of the theater.

Marvel is not just doubling down on it's Cinematic Universe, it's going all in.

This year sees the spin-off of Marvel's Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.: Agent Carter.

Marvel is also getting ready to start its partnership with Netflix with the release of Daredevil in May as well as Marvel's Jessica Jones later in the year.

This all sets up for later releases on Netflix of "Luke Cage", "Iron Fist" and eventually, "Defenders".

There are likely other major geek events to come in the next 12 months, and I, for one, am looking forward to it.

Did I miss anything? Let me know in the comments...