This is just too cool, Kaiyodo has released its latest Revoltech Sci-Fi Series action figure and it’s no other than the Dark Knight himself, Batman! I saw this over the weekend at a toy store and while it’s going for USD 36.60, Play-Asia is actually selling it at a lower price of just USD 29.90. Interested? Click here to get him now!

Batman the Dark Knight has flown his way to the Revoltech studios. Modeled after the two newest movies, the hero of Gotham City is now an action figure ready to guard your collection of toys. With 16 joints installed in his body and 3 in his mantle, you can recreate many more scenes, such as the flying moves and all the fight poses.

The package comes with the Dark Knight’s handy tools: the grappling gun and the Batarang and optional face parts. Remove his mask part and put Bruce Wayne face onto the figure to create the scenes where Batman reveals himself.

I really love the fact that TRON Legacy is arriving to theaters by the end of the year. Not only do I like the TRON franchise (I liked the game, TRON 2.0 a lot!), the upcoming movie also features a soundtrack created by my favourite electronica duo, Daft Punk! Come this July 2010, the attendees of Comic-Con International 2010 are in a for a treat.

Returning for an unprecedented third year to the fans and Convention that “started it all,” Walt Disney Pictures is pleased to present a very special, insider look at its upcoming “TRON: Legacy” at this year’s San Diego Comic-Con International Convention. At 11:15 a.m. on Thursday, July 22, 2010, the panel presentation will be held in Hall H of the San Diego Convention Center.

On the dais will be filmmakers and talent from the film, including director Joe Kosinski, producers Sean Bailey and Steven Lisberger as wells as cast members Jeff Bridges, Garrett Hedlund, Olivia Wilde, Michael Sheen and Bruce Boxleitner. The panel discussion, to be moderated by Patton Oswalt, is set to include exclusive glimpses of the film, as well as a Q & A involving all panel participants, along with special surprise guests.

It was at the 2008 Convention that the vision of a 21st century TRON was born. When VFX test footage was shown to a packed hall of incredibly surprised convention attendees, it was met with such an overwhelmingly positive response—becoming the “it” moment of the Convention—that the studio gave the film an enthusiastic green light. In 2009  “TRON: Legacy” returned to Comic-Con with an expanded presence and this year, the filmmakers and cast are back with never before seen visuals and “scoop” for the Convention fans  who have been such an instrumental part of the story of “TRON: Legacy.”

Director Joe Kosinski comments: “When we made the teaser, we envisioned it as a sneak peek at the potential of this project. We set out to stay true to the characters, the vehicles, and the world established in the first film—then show its evolution. When it took off with the fans, we knew we were in the right place. Because they’ve been key to getting this story told, we’re back to keep them involved, and excited to finally present actual footage from the film to the audience that made it all possible.”

To add to the excitement of this extraordinary event, Disney will showcase an interactive TRON booth on the convention floor (located on aisle #3712), giving fans a first look at the all new “TRON: Legacy” inspired merchandise launching this fall. Capturing the action, light, and cool aesthetic style of the film, the display will include toys, electronics, collectibles, apparel, accessories, publishing and the “TRON: Evolution” video game from Disney Interactive Studios. Comic-Con exclusive products will also be on sale. Disney will also reveal exciting new mobile content at the event.

This is a pretty interesting premise that shows plenty of promise (hey, it rhymes). After being hit by Darkseid’s Omega Sanction beams at the end of Final Crisis, Batman a.k.a Bruce Wayne finds himself trapped in time with looks like to be no memory of who he is and in issue #1 of  Batman: The Return of Bruce Wayne, we find him in pre-historic times in confrontation with…pre-historic men.

Unable to communicate with the prehistoric tribe he bumped into and not recognizing the contents of the “delivery package” sent back in time by the Justice League, Bruce Wayne gets pawned by a rival tribe.With some help (funny how he always seem to gain a sidekick), he escapes and makes a cape/cowl out of the hide of a giant bat. He then proceeds to take the fight to the rival tribe’s chief.

After jumping off a cliff, things get rather “Quantum Leap” and by the end of the issue, he finds himself in another time, perhaps  in the Mid-West. Grant Morrison is coming up with something special with the Return of Bruce Wayne, but the tie-in symptom is there. I don’t understand why Superman mentions that if Bruce Wayne gets back to the 21st century on his own accord, everyone will die. Perhaps it was explained in another comic book? Hmm…

Brightest Day, the sequel to the awesome Blackest Night series is supposed to chronicle the twelve heroes and villains resurrected at the end of Blackest Night and Issue #1 tells readers that all is not well with some of them. Like in issue #0 the resurrected Deadman is still being brought around unwillingly by the white power ring on his finger. He, along with Mera bear witness to Aquaman exhibiting the same powers he had as a Black Lantern, summoning dead sea creatures to his bidding.

The resurrection of Aquaman also triggers the return of his arch enemy Black Manta who upon seeing Aquaman in the news, proceeds to slay several customers in a fish market. Aquaman’s problems aside, Ronald and Jason on the other hand are unable to separate once they are bonded in their Firestorm identity. On the surface of Mars, the Martian Manhunter gives a glimpse of his former Black Lantern guise when hit with some sort of telepathic attack.

I’m willing to bet that these 12 are living on borrowed time, but it’s still too early to guess.

Batman & Robin #12 slightly disjointed story showcases a fight between Batman and Robin (Damian Wayne, remotely controlled by Slade). Having freed Robin of Slade’s control, issue 12 features 2 confrontations, first with Talia, and aptly in the final page, the Joker! The Clown Prince of Crime is back, having last seen him in Batman RIP, just as the dynamic duo get proof that Bruce Wayne is indeed stuck in the past.

Brightest Day is here! Having read issue #0, I couldn’t help but feel it is like a primer for things to come. The story (in the first issue at least) is told from the perspective of Deadman, who was brought back to life near the end of Blackest Night #8.

Teleported around, seemingly against his will by his white power ring, he revisits the 11 other heroes and criminals brought back to life at the end of BN #8. This makes for an interesting recap of those who were raised from the dead and emphasizes on the fact that the 12 were raised for a purpose.

No spoilers here, but those expecting an explosive issue, particularly those who can’t get enough of Blackest Night will have to temper their expectations as this issue doesn’t start off with a bang, after all it’s a issue #0. Anyways, the epilogue to BD #0 answers the question on who will find the White Lantern power battery first. The answer? A familiar face from Korugar.

One thing though, does anyone realize that the cover for Brightest Day #0 doesn’t look  any different from the cover of X-Men comic books.

The Blackest Night storyline started with some shocking moments and brought readers through the carnage of the dead (both superheroes and villains alike) powered by black power rings. After seven amazing (and horrifying issues), the final issue, Blackest Night #8 closes with a bang!

With a temporary alliance of all Lantern corps and a little help from Deadman, Hal Jordan and gang destroy Nekron with the interesting side effect of bringing the dead truly back to life. The repercussions will definitely be felt not only in future GL books but also the rest of the DC universe. Brightest Day should be pretty damn interesting.

Deadman, Aquaman, Martian Manhunter, Captain Boomerang…they are all back.

Aside from the cool storyline, which sometimes fell foul to some convenient plot devices (#8 has several too, see whether you can spot them), the hallmark of the Blackest Night series has always been the artwork. In #8, it is simply amazing!

In any case, do pick up a copy as soon as possible. I can’t wait for the trade paperback. I leave you with one of the funnier lines in BN #8, courtesy of Deadman:

Badass: A person whose extreme attitudes and behavior are admirable/cool.

I guess that when one has a website that features badasses from the past and also from the present, one should also proceed to write a book about badasses throughout history, a book that sheds light not only onto historical luminaries but also to the obscure ones as a reminder that badassery is one for the ages.

That one such person is Ben Thompson (http://www.badassoftheweek.com/) and his book is aptly titled Badass. With a title like that, it surely succeeded in attracting my attention in bookshelf filled with General Interest books.

Being a history buff, I’m pleasantly surprised that Mr. Thompson decides to kick off a book of badasses with those from Antiquity. Julius Caesar, Alexander and that 300 dude, Leonidas are presented here in their respective chapters with prose that mixes history fact and badass hyperbole. It’s adopted through the entire book and one example of such a mashup would be:

“Once upon a time there was this place called Sparta, and everyone who lived there was a total badass”

There are also guys and girls like Xenophon and Aggripina, which I bet you’ve not heard before, but Ben Thompson assures that they are badasses in their own right.

There are a total of 4 sections, right up to the modern era and despite the frequent abuse of badass vocabulary, I never got tired of reading Mr. Thompson’s unique take historical figures.

Overall, Badass a fun romp and an enjoyable read. Even though you might have some trouble separating historical fact and hyperbole in some instances, there’s Wikipedia you know…if you want the sterile, know-it-all facts, and that’s just not badass in my book.

I like the covers for both Green Lantern #51 and Green Lantern Corps # 45. Both feature a fallen Green Lantern going against his team mates/allies. In the case of GL #51, it’s Hal Jordan as Parallax versus the bunch of new Lanterns from the emotional spectrum.

GLC on the other hand, shows Guy Gardner in his Red Lantern form taking on his GLC team mates and allies. Fortunately, both Green Lanterns revert back to normal by the end of their respective books.  Oops.  Should have added a spoiler tag.

I don’t like The Sentry character introduced some time back by Marvel. A neurotic, schizophrenic hero with the power of a million exploding suns with a serious split personality disorder? Give me a break.

Having said that, I found Ares’ death at the hands of The Sentry in Siege #2 to be a little over the top. If Batman taught us that you can shoot a god (a comic book one) to death, The Sentry does one better by tearing him into gibs.

Did you know that there’s a Final Fantasy XII manga out there? One Manga has the unofficial English translations for the first 3 chapters. Here’s the description of the manga, taken from the site:

This is the story of a world called Ivalice. It is a time when the existence of magick is still commonplace, and soaring airships cover the vast sky. Princess Ashe has vowed to restore her ruined country. Together with a few companions, she waits for an opportunity to strike back. A direct adaptation of the hit RPG!

Click here to start reading.