New 'Man of Steel' Trailer Features Arrival of General Zod: VIDEO

A new Man of Steel trailer features a masked look at General Zod (Michael Shannon), who has "journeyed over an ocean of stars" to reach Earth, which is sheltering Kal-El (Henry Cavill, aka Superman).

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Remember Terence Stamp's Zod, from Superman II. One of best sequels ever.

Weekend Movies: Iron Man 3

 
Don't believe everything you see. Tony Stark is tops this time around.

BY NATHANIEL ROGERS 

When last we saw Tony Stark he was eating shawarma in New York City with his fellow superheroes in the stinger of Marvel's The Avengers (reviewed). When we last saw Iron Man, minutes before that, he was plummeting from a cosmic wormhole to his near-death having just saved the world from an alien apocalypse. (S.H.I.E.L.D's workman's comp insurance must be pricey.) I mention Tony Stark and Iron Man separately because the franchise's new writer/director Shane Black, who previously worked with Robert Downey Jr on the underappreciated comedy Kiss Kiss Bang Bang, seems more interested in Stark than Iron Man. This is a good sign, especially for a third picture. Time to flip this tin can around.

IRON MAN 3 takes great pains to make a distinction between the impenetrable suit and the man inside it. Tony Stark's first attempt to suit up is a comic misfire since he's engineered an Iron Man suit that comes right to him when he calls. He hasn't quite worked out the speed of his flying wardrobe -imagine a metal codpiece flying 60 mph right at your Andrew Christians. The second time we see Iron Man, if I'm remembering the sequence of events correctly, Tony Stark isn't in the suit at all. He's engaging in some prankster remote control business for girlfriend Pepper Potts (Gwyneth Paltrow, wonderful in this role but haters gonna hate). 

The film even opens with a flashback to Tony's pre-Iron Man days, further separating the man from his iron mask.

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Henry Cavill is 'Man of Steel': VIDEO

The new trailer for Man of Steel is here looking epic and Henry Cavill is looking Superbeefy.

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DC Comics Artist Refuses to Illustrate Homophobe Orson Scott Card's 'Superman' Comic, Leaves Project

Artist Chris Sprouse won't be illustrating a DC Comics story written by uber-homophobe sci-fi writer Orson Scott Card because of public outrage over Card's involvement, AND, the story has been pulled from the first issue, USA Today reports:

"It took a lot of thought to come to this conclusion, but I've decided to step back as the artist on this story," Sprouse said in a statement released Tuesday. "The media surrounding this story reached the point where it took away from the actual work, and that's something I wasn't comfortable with. My relationship with DC Comics remains as strong as ever and I look forward to my next project with them."

Due to the creative change, the Card story will not appear in the first collected issue out May 29. Instead, it will feature a story by writer Jeff Parker and artist Chris Samnee, as well as a tale by Jeff Lemire and one by writer Justin Jordan and artist Riley Rossmo.

DC is also looking for a replacement illustrator for Card's story.

DC Comics said it supported Sprouse's departure and is looking for a replacement.

Robert Downey Jr. and The New 'Iron Man 3' Trailer Have Arrived: VIDEO

Looking pretty boss.

Watch, AFTER THE JUMP...

More Shops Announce Boycott Of Anti-Gay Writer's Comic Book

Earlier this month Andy reported that Zeus Comics and Collectibles has decided to not carry the upcoming DC comic 'Adventures of Superman' comic book due to writer Orson Scott Card's extreme anti-gay views. The Whatever store in San Francisco quickly followed suit as did Maryland's Gorilla King Comics.

Now even more stores are joining the boycott. A Canadian store, the Comic Book Shoppe, has announced it will pull all of Card's previous books from their two locations and encourage their customers to boycott the Superman comic when it is published in May.

The CBC interviewed the owner of the store who explained why he felt he needed to take action:

"This is a man who wants to criminalize homosexuality," said Rob Spittall, the owner of The Comic Book Shoppe 2 location on Bank Street, not far from Ottawa's gay village.

"Superman is a very iconic character to a lot of the gay community. He's a character that stands for truth, justice and freedom for all, and to see and learn, like I had, about Orson Scott Card … I was astounded to find out that everything there was true," Spittall said.

He made the decision to make Card's work available by special order because some customers take collecting too seriously to stop because of someone's personal beliefs.

"I'm telling my customers I want to boycott this book. You have the freedom of choice whether you want to buy it or not, but we're saying, please don't," Spittall said.

An online petition demanding DC Comics fire Card is fast approaching 16,000 signatures. Click here to sign it yourself.