who would win in a fight superman or neo (from matrix)???? any answers email me at bodawg118@msn.com

Superman would win, unless Neo could conjure up Kryptonite. Remember that Superman is, outside Kryptonite's deadly power, definitionally indestructable, whereas Neo is definitely human and killable. Neo is getting more and more powerful, but I'm not sure he reached the stage of definitional indestructability yet.

Just saw the new Matrix this morning and loved it. It is a different sytle of SciFi than Bradbury does, but it deals with a lot of philosophical issues (ethics, metaphysics, epistemology, religious symbolism, free will vrs. determinism, etc.) that it are really interesting to me. When they first approached Keanu Reeves about the part, they wouldn't tell him any details until he had read three books: (1) 'Simulacra and Simulation' by Jean Baudrillard (2) 'Out of Control' by Kevin Kelby (3) 'Introducing Evolutionary Psychology (I don't know the author). (Not sure of spellings or anything.)

The movie sucked me right in, and when the closing credits started, I felt like I'd been in the theater for about ten minutes.

Hi, Mr. Dark,

I'm probably the only person in the world who doesn't have plans to see this movie anytime soon. Caught the first one on TV and read the script. Certainly different.

But what's of interest to me, and what ties into some of the discussions on some of the other threads, are some of the Christ-like attributes assigned to Neo i.e., his resurrection, his being annointed as The One etc. However, and I admit to not being as well-versed as I should be with the New Testament, I'm unfamiliar with Christ's dressing in cool clothes and sunglasses, using automatic weapons to mow down his enemies, fighting kung-fu style, and then, how shall we say, fraternizing with a hot babe dressed in leather.

Now THAT would make for an interesting Sunday school discussion.

Tongue-in-cheekly yours,

Pete

Maybe there's some modernistic translation making the NT accessible to those with less traditional tastes that could incorporate these elements!

In need of a writing project?

:-)

Hmmm. Now that you mention it. . .

I've never really dug Superman- just for the reasons that Mr. Dark mentioned. He's not human enough.

I liked Matrix II as well. I didn't expect anything new from the first, and wasn't surprised. It was pretty much the same thing, but bigger. And, I will freely admit, way cooler. I liked part with the Architect, in particular.

I don't know if anyone here reads The Onion. It's this humor/satire site. One of my favorites... Here's some Matrix II humor:
http://www.theonion.com/onion3918/infograph_3918.html

As is everything on the Onion, it's a little salty, just so you know and I don't unintentionally offended anyone.

Cheers,
Dan

Straying further from Bradbury (except that he has apparently done some comic-related topics and projects) I always prefered the Marvel Comic line to the DC line. Marvel's heroes were always more flawed and conflicted: Dr. Strange, Daredevil, Thing, Silver Surfer, Spiderman, etc . . . all of them had conflicts in their lives, weaknesses, etc. that made their stories and struggles far more interesting. The DC characters seemed "flatter" to me. The Marvel characters seemed much more complex, and as a result, more interesting.

RE: The Onion - hilarious. And right on target.

RE: Comics - I cut my teeth on Marvel and so preferred them. Spider-Man, Daredevil were my favorites, for very much the same reason as you say Mr. Dark.

Bradbury connection? Um, I think Ray would prefer Marvel super heroes over DC.

Pete

Economically, the tale of Marvel comics is the tragedy of my life. When I graduated from High School I went and lived two years on Sioux and Mandan Indian Reservations in North and South Dakota. As a way to make some money for the experience, I sold my comic book collection to some lucky dog in Los Angeles. I had the entire Spiderman set - from number one on -- and several other complete sets (Silver Surfer, Captain Marvel, Dr. Strange, Nearly complete: Thor, a lot of Daredevil, Fantastic Four, Hulk.). I sold them to this collector -- my complete collection -- for about $200.00. If I had them all to sell now, I could pay off my house and live a life of relative ease, sitting around reading Bradbury. Bummer!

Mr.Dark:

Don't fret...at least THAT much, about selling your comic collection. Here's why:

Strange as this may seem, I've been in correspondence with Steve Ditko, who many consider the person who came up with the look of Spider-Man... and illustrated most of the comics, since I was in about 6th grade. (About the time I discovered Bradbury). And if you think selling your comic books was terrible, I wrote Steve last year to get the first-hand low-down on what financial gain he made from Spider Man. He wrote back...
explaining it like this:

"Not enough to buy a cup of coffee".

You see, Steve sold all the rights when he was very young, working for Marvel. When Spider Man, the movie, came out last year, there is this gigantic name coursing across the screen: STEVE DITKO. Like the creators of Superman, not a single penny gained in all this Movie fuss...

Years ago, I tried to get Steve to seriously consider illustrating some Bradbury stories...but he was totally unfamiliar with Bradbury's works. Tried twice over several years. He claimed then it just wouldn't work. I still think, and always will consider....that Steve Ditko is the greatest living illustrator of comic books, and would be the perfect illustrator of many of Ray's stories....

click on, or type into finder: http://www.ditko.comics.org/ditko/covers/




[This message has been edited by Nard Kordell (edited 05-21-2003).]

Actually, Nard. That DOES make me feel better. I remember Ditko's name on a lot of the comics. I think he did some work on Thor and Fantastic Four, as well. He was (is, I suppose) very talented.

It is a shame about him not getting any kind of on-going recompense from the work he did.

Bowdawg118 is probably waiting for our emails to him on the Neo/Superman contest.

The "Superman II" movie was good in showing his human side in a memorable way. The first movie was also good, after the second they went downhill fast. This question recalls the immortal exchange between Vern and Teddy in "Stand by Me."
Vern: If Superman and Mighty Mouse had a fight, who would win?
Teddy: Superman and Mighty Mouse could never have a fight 'cause Mighty Mouse is only a cartoon and Superman is a real person.
Vern: Yeah...but it would sure be a great fight, wouldn't it?

While I hate to yield anything to DC, you're right. The two Superman movies DID do a good job humanizing Superman. Good point.

I Always Thought "The Hulk" Was An Interesting Super Hero. He's A Reluctant One And Has No Control Over His Alter-Ego. He Doesn't Charge Into A Phone Booth, Have A Bat Cave, Or Even A High Tech Suit. I'd Like To See The Movie On The Big Screen, But My Spouse Is Claustraphobic And I Boycott Blockbuster And Hollywood Video So I'll Have To Wait Until It Comes Out At Long's Drugstore To See It.