Wonder Woman Enters The Great War...and Debuts a New Trailer

Wonder Woman has a mission and it involves stopping "The Great War." There is a certain sense of irony present with setting Wonder Woman's debut film in World War I. Perhaps World War II would have connected the Amazonian heroine a bit too much to Marvel's Captain America. Or maybe the creative minds at D.C. Entertainment and Warner Bros. just wanted to craft a movie that is a bit different. Considering the previous critical disappointments of the prior D.C. Comic releases, a more creative approach was needed for the Wonder Woman film.

So World War I is selected for the backdrop and the irony emerges - a tragic irony of sorts. Several 100-year anniversaries connected to the First World War passed with virtually no mention outside of historical or specialty cable channels. Glancing through social media, topics related to World War I history were totally ignored. No, ignoring them would require a conscious act. Major events and anniversaries were not mentioned because people knew nothing about them in the first place.

World War I was a pivotal event in world history and set in motion incredible global changes that resonated throughout the 20th century. Yet, the Great War is casually dismissed by those living today. The shadow of World War II further buries notoriety about the Great War.

Wonder Woman's history in comic books has also been overshadowed and ignored. Her comic book series has had a number of ups and downs throughout the decades. This is somewhat sad considering how iconic the character was in the 1940's when she debuted.

Until recently, she had been stuck as a supporting player finding difficulty connecting with readers in her own title. And if Linda Carter had not played the character in the classic TV series, Wonder Woman could have ended up a totally forgotten character. (Although the Super Friends animated series helped a bit, too)

The arrival of Wonder Woman in Batman v. Superman helped return the heroine to mainstream pop culture status. Hopefully, the new Wonder Woman film will reinvigorate major interest in the character...and in the history of World War I.

The Magical Arrival of the Doctor Strange Trailer

I consider Doctor Strange the most interesting of all the superhero movies slated for a 2016 release. Along with Suicide Squad, Doctor Strange is pretty unique, and unique sometimes comes with questions about ticket sale potential. Suicide Squad features Batman & The Joker so box office gold is pretty much unavoidable for that film - at least for the first two weekends.

The character of Doctor Strange has been around for 50-odd years, but Batman he is not. The big question is can a hero who is so far removed from the typical suit/mask/secret identity mix catch on with mainstream audiences?

The history of Doctor Strange does not reflect a very successful publishing life. In the 1960's, the books Strange Tales and Doctor Strange sold fairly well  as cult publications. Sales on college campuses among the counterculture set were strong due to (misplaced) perceptions of Doctor Strange  being a nod to psychedelic contraband.

Doctor Strange's title was cancelled time and time again over the years even though many of the story arcs were downright excellent. As a supporting character, Doctor Strange has been used quite well. Carrying his own book has proven tough. Can he carry a movie?

Why wouldn't he? Superhero movies are almost like Beatlemania these days.

At this stage, pretty much every hero movie draws people into theaters unless it is exceptionally bad. Fantastic Four pulled in about $50 million despite being a disaster of epic proportions.

Maybe the time is right for a Doctor Strange movie right now. An "atypical" hero could end up being what audiences want. The hunger for more hero fare is out there, but there is probably a want for something different as well.