Science Fiction, the Spirit, and the Mechanical Flesh: Major Kusanagi and Ghost in the Shell

It seems that the idea of an encased human (brain, in this case) within another form is an obsession - it dates through the ages, from human souls trapped in animals, to empty armor, and now, in mechanical form.

Lately, the more interesting (for me) versions of these are Robotman from DC's Doom Patrol team, and Major Motoko Kusanagi from the manga/anime franchise Ghost in the Shell.

It is, I think, a major philosophical and spiritual concern. And as the time comes nearer when we may be able to transfer our consciousnesses to virtual storage without a break in the stream of thought, it seems that we all will need to ask ourselves: can we survive as ghosts in the machines?

And will this lead to questions of who is really human?

Batman and the Shadow

Batman has obviously been influenced by the pulp heroes, so it's nice to see a mash-up series where Batman and the Shadow can clash. I wouldn't say team-up, since these two are not the sort - unless it would involve the likes of Ra's Al Ghul.

As you can see in the art below, there's a lot of fighting. I am in between on the concept of it (though I love the artwork), since I'm a fan of the creepy/cheesy Kyle Baker Shadow era. The idea that the only thing you hear is the laughter and see are the muzzle flashes makes it much better.

Source: http://io9.gizmodo.com/batman-is-teaming-up-with-one-of-his-biggest-comic-book-1791529816

Justice League Dark

My issue with Justice League Dark, is that some of the characters (John Constantine) have narratives that aren't suited for teenagers - anyone reading the Hellblazer run, or some of the truly horrific Deadman stories, would probably be viewing the idea of an animated Justice League Dark with some suspicion.

However, I'd love to see how they pull it off, if only to marvel at the adaptation they would have to do.

Sandman should be a TV series, not a movie

After reading the article - and being a Sandman fan myself, from the very first issue of the Vertigo run - I find that the notion of turning it into a movie ignores the fact that what made Sandman such a cultural phenomenon is that it has such long, interesting story arcs, with many sub arcs happening all at once. Sandman is much better suited, really, to having at least four to five seasons on TV/Netflix/whatever.

http://www.newsarama.com/31873-new-line-s-sandman-screenwriter-drops-out.html