The Dark Knight Rises: What to expect?

Who's the MAN? B-A-T-M-A-N!

Yes, he is my favorite, he is everyone's favorite: The "Goddamn Batman". The conclusion to Nolan's Batman Trilogy will be hitting the cinemas within 3 days. Sometime back, while I was reading some Batman titles I realized that Chris Nolan had actually borrowed or umm....  lets say loosely adapted the screenplay from some of those story arcs. For instance, there were many scenes in 2005's Batman Begins, which had been taken from Frank Miller's "Batman: Year One". Then, again in 2008's The Dark Knight, Harvey Dent's character portrayal was very similar to that in "Batman: A Long Halloween". Coming to the 3rd installment of the superhit series, many experts have actually speculated that the plot has been taken from the 1993's 
"Knightfall saga".

THE KNIGHTFALL SAGA

It was a major Batman story arc, which added Bane into Batman's Rogue gallery. Bane played by Tom Hardy, also happens to be the main antagonist of the upcoming movie. The "Knightfall" storyline revolves around Bane who is hellbent on beating Batman both physically and mentally. To achieve his goal, Bane actually helps the inmates of the infamous Arkham Asylum to escape, and thereby weakens Batman. Then, Bane correctly deduces Batman's secret identity and after Batman is exhausted to the point of defenselessness, Bane storms into the Wayne Manor and then after a short brawl he breaks Batman's back leaving him paralyzed below the waist.

Wayne decides to hand over his cape and cowl to Azrael, a superhero-in-training under Batman and Robin. Azrael designs an armor for himself and single-handedly beats Bane. Meanwhile, some 15 issues later, Wayne fully recovers from his back injury, all credits to his lady love, Shondra Kinsolving's Metahuman healing talents, whereas Azarel goes rogue. The later half of the Knightfall focuses on Wayne's training under Lady Shiva who helps him regain his combat skills and reflexes. Finally, he beats Azrael to reclaim the mantle of the Batman: END OF THE STORY!

SPECULATIONS

• We haven't heard anything even remotely related to Azrael or Lady Shiva being in the movie, but, Liam Neeson is going to reprise his role as Ra's Al Ghul, leader of the eco-terrorist organisation "The League of Shadows" which in the film continuity trained Bruce in the arts of Ninjutsu, tried to destroy Gotham in Batman Begins and is believed to be involved in the murders of the Waynes.
• The trailers featured Bane introducing himself as "Gotham's Reckoning", which very much matches Al Ghul's own agenda further establishing somewhat a link between Bane and the league. And... this reminds me of the "Legacy" storyline in which Ra's decides to name Bane his successor instead of Batman (Remember Ra's Al Ghul wants Batman to lead his organisation!) thus justifying his I-am-going-to-judge-Gotham attitude!   
• Then again, Batman is shown to have retired 8 years ago after Harvey Dent and Rachel Dawes' deaths (in The Dark Knight). He decides to put on his cowl again to face Bane, so I expect some scenes inspired from yet another of Frank Miller's graphic Novels: "The Dark knight Returns".
• As depicted in the "Knightfall" saga Bane is expected to "break" Batman, not his back though, maybe just injuring his leg, but he definitely breaks his spirit! Enter Selina Kyle aka the Catwoman who will help him recover both physically and mentally. Ms. Kyle is expected to fill in the roles of both Shondra Kinsolving and Lady Shiva from the "Knightfall" saga.
• Although, I am unable to figure out the role Joseph Gordon-Levitt will be playing in the movie, but while I was watching the 3rd trailer to the movie, during a certain sequence I felt that it was actually Levitt wearing the cowl, so MAYBE his role is analogous to that of Azrael? But, that is ENTIRELY my hypothesis and I myself am not very sure about it!

Gosh, I'm so excited! The Legend ends! 3 more days to go! I'll be back with TDKR movie reviews next time. Till then goodbye!

The Pathan, the Patel and the Paggla: An Ahmedabad Experience

This summer I was a part of the "Summer Research Internship Program" at IIT Gandhinagar. I stayed there for exactly 50 days, made new friends there and promised them a post on my blog! This post entirely concentrates on their personalities and my experiences with them.

The Pathan

Imagine a Marwari who is also a bong, and speaks in a Pathani hindi dialect. Now, further imagine the same guy with a slightly weak constitution and an average height. Do not judge him by his appearance! Appearances maybe deceptive and Pathan's INTIMIDATING persona may just prove this old axiom true. Let me narrate an incident when we walked into a certain restaurant, and following was his conversation with the owner cum manager:

Pathan: Suniye...

Owner: Ji?

Pathan: Yeh tum humko kaisa dal deti?

Owner: Kya hua?

Pathan: Humko nai pasand aati! Le jao! (Wallah hum abhi bomb giraati!!)

The owner was so shocked that he asked for a spoon and tasted the Dal himself, he was so frustrated that he ended up fighting with a business associate of his. 

Then, there were times when Pathan told us about his adventures at NIT Calicut, including that one time when someone stole away his undergarments, to which the Paggla remarked:

"Abe jab tum apni chaddhi nai bacha sakte, toh izzat kya bachaoge?!!"

Despite his Pathani trigger happy attitude, he is also a Maadu (Marwari). His Maadu powers include the exact and precise calculation of how much each and everyone has to pay while paying dutch after a dinner. Imagine a guy who informs you:

"Kal maine tumhare 50 Rs pay kare the, aaj tumhara contribution 58.17 Rs banta hai! Aur parso tumne sabke paise diye the aur mera contribution tab 69.33 Rs. banta tha. Toh aaj main tumhare bache 19.33 Rs de raha hoon aur tumhe ab 38.84 Rs dene hain!"

But, our Pathan is very shy around girls. In fact, I and the other two proposed the concept of the Pathan Radius!

Pathan Radius: If a girl is within a certain minimum radial distance (called the Pathan Radius) from the Pathan, his body vitals exhibit an exponential increase, and he runs away!!

Pathan was the luckiest of us 4, he was the first to leave. He left us a very sentimental goodbye note, to which the Patel commented:

"Saala gay hai!! Love letter chhod gaya hai hum logon ke liye!!"

The Patel

A Patel who is NOT a gujju, lives in Odisha and speaks hindi in a Bihari accent! Interestingly, he was my roommate for the entire time period of 50 days. He has a slightly loud personality, more appropriately put, a Bindass one. 

We acknowledged him as our BABA, the spiritual Guru! He has this special way of his own to explain and correlate 2 entirely independent and unrelated events (which obviously left us awe struck!)!! Like any other contemporary Baba, Patel has a taste for girls (as a matter of fact I will not elucidate on that!) 

I and the Paggla devised the Baba Theorem:

Baba Theorem: Everything is a part of your life.

Yes! Everything is a part of your life, any catastrophe, any misfortune, always A PART OF YOUR LIFE!
Simply put, suffix each of your sentences with

"... Yeh bhi life ka ek part hai!!"

• "Aaj bathroom mein paani nai aa raha. Yeh bhi life ka ek part hai!"

• "Yaar mera shampoo khatam ho gaya. Yeh bhi life ka ek part hai!"

• "Arre dhatt... baarish ho rahi hai!! Yeh bhi life ka ek part hai!"

• "Ricky Martin gay hai! Yeh bhi life ka ek part hai!"

So... Everything is a part of your life!

The Paggla

No, actually he was the luckiest of us all. He was the last to arrive and the second to leave. While, the other 2 were busy with their Maadu and Babagiri antics respectively, the 2 of us had made a habit to observe them and record their exploits, and eventually it was him who constantly pushed me to write this post. I hope I haven't disappointed them.

Anyway, I'd be back with a Superhero themed post next time.

Superhero Zodiac Signs: Which one are you?

I have this strange habit of entering random search strings on Google and then further, googling related search results. For instance, today I happened to end up reading an article or two on the traits and personalities of various Zodiac signs. And an idea struck to me. What if, we could actually classify the zodiac signs according to the Superheroes exhibiting similar traits? This blogpost might be an answer. Also, interestingly only one DC Comics character ends up on the list, rest 11 being from the Marvel Universe. Check out for your birthdate and your own Superhero Zodiac. 

Aries: (Mar 20-Apr 20) The Invincible Iron Man

He is rich, arrogant, and a genius! Also, he is one of the fewer characters here who have all the qualities as listed in my source of reference. Highly energetic which is equally matched with his quick wit. Adventurous by nature, pioneering, courageous and not to forget slightly over confident at times. 

Also selfish, quick-tempered, very impulsive and impatient, leading to his frequent foolhardy and near fatal endeavors. 

Taurus: (Apr 21-May 21) Wolverine

Definitely ox-headed, fairly stubborn! But, patient and reliable in his own way. Also, Logan is warm-hearted and loving which is not quite evidently portrayed, but holds true. He is jealous of Cyclops and possessive regarding Jean Grey. The feral X-Man and Avenger is as adamant as his Adamantium laced skeleton and at times very inflexible and difficult to deal with. Known for his ox like rage Wolverine is a true Taurus.

Gemini: (May 22-Jun 21) Nightwing

Dick Grayson aka Nightwing, who was the first Robin and has even donned the cape and cowl while his mentor was presumed dead at the end of the Final Crisis. Very adaptable and versatile. Excellent at communication skills and fairly intellectual. Well known for his wisecracks. Even, the caped crusader has admitted that were it not for Robin lightening things up for him, it would have pushed him off his edge. Despite his confidence, Nightwing is nervous on occasions largely due to the fact that his mentor's are pretty big shoes to fill in.

Cancer: (Jun 22-Jul 22) Ms. Marvel

Carol Denvers, was an agent of S.H.I.E.L.D. prior to a freak accident which merged her physique with the Kree physiology. She adopted the name of Ms. Marvel and became an Avenger. Emotional, loving and intuitive. Being an ex S.H.I.E.L.D. operative, she is a very shrewd and a cautious adversary. Unfortunately, owing to her Cancerian traits, she is very temperamental and moody. And, her adamancy is comparable to that of a Tauran.

Leo: (Jul 23-Aug 21) Thor

Thor the thunderer, Prince of Asgard and protector of the earth realm, Midgard. Lion-hearted and generous. Bravest of the brave, yet arrogant and pompous. He was banished to earth for his arrogance and lack of humility. But, he learnt his lesson and Thor still remains to be one of the greatest and most fearless warriors in the Marvel Universe.

Virgo: (Aug 22-Sep 23) Mr. Fantastic

Reed Richards, unarguably one of the smartest men in the Marvel Universe is the leader of the Fantastic Four. Very modest and reserved by nature. Reliable, meticulous, practical and highly analytical. Also, very fussy and a worrier. Richards is overcritically harsh at times owing to his perfectionist nature.

Libra: (Sep 24-Oct 23) Jean Grey

Jean Grey, is one of the original X-Men. She is also the host to a cosmic entity, the Phoenix Force. Diplomatic, charming, easy going, sociable and idealistic. Although she has a fairly balanced personality, but she is indecisive, gullible and easily influenced, which directly resulted in the emergence of the Dark Phoenix.

Scorpio: (Oct 24-Nov 22) Magneto

Once a Gobal threat, Magneto has switched sides too many a times. The Master of Magnetism is determined and forceful to the extents of genocide to achieve his goals. One of the most powerful beings in the Marvel Universe. Like a true Scorpion he is both obsessive and compulsive to achieve mutant supremacy over the humans.

Sagittarius: (Nov 23-Dec 22) Wasp

Janet Van Dyne aka Wasp, wife to the scientist superhero Henry Pym, was an avenger and she has even served as their chairman for a brief period of time. The Wasp is optimistic, fun-loving, jovial and honest. In fact she is blindly optimistic, to the extent of carelessness and irresponsibility. Like Sagittarians, Janet lacks tactfulness and she has a very restless persona.

Capricorn: (Dec 23-Jan 20) Cyclops

Practical, prudent, ambitious, disciplined and patient. Reserved by nature, Cyclops is one of the best strategists and tacticians in the Marvel Universe. Leader of the X-Men, Cyclops projects concussive blasts (and not heat rays or lasers!!) from his special Ruby-Quartz visor. Like any Capricorn, Cyclops is a bit insensitive at times and focuses only on his goals despite what his teammates think.

Aquarius: (Jan 21-Feb 19) Deadpool

Wade Wilson aka Deadpool, the merc with a mouth. Friendly in his own way, Wilson is very original and inventive when it comes to killing. Perverted to the utmost extents of imagination, Deadpool is very unpredictable owing to his unstable psyche. Further, he is a cold blooded assassin, unemotional and detached by nature! (But, Deadpool is simply AWESOME!!!) 

Pisces: (Feb 20-Mar 20) Spiderman

Imaginative, sensitive, compassionate and kind. Time and again Peter Parker aka Spiderman has proved his selflessness with his heroic deeds. But, owing to his so called Parker Luck, Peter has grown into an escapist and he is very secretive when it comes to his super-hero life. Spiderman is unarguably the greatest hero in the entire Marvel Universe. 

You may also like to read:

How to form a Super-hero team of your own?

The Not-So-Amazing Spiderman

In 2001, came the very first Spiderman movie. Toby Maguire, played Peter Parker/Spiderman. It was a blockbuster, and thus came the 2 sequels. 11 years hence, director Marc Webb has cast Andrew Garfield as the AMAZING Spiderman! Garfield played Eduardo Saverin, in 2010's The Social network.

Andrew Garfiled played Eduardo Saverin in "The Social Network" (2010)

While Maguire appeared to be a bit overgrown for a school going teenager, Garfield's look perfectly matches with his role.

What remains the same?

The origin remains the same: the accursed spider-bite, in the comics it was a radioactive one, in the 1994 cartoon series it was again a radioactive spider only charged with radiation from a Neogenic Recombinator, in the 2001 movie it was a genetically enhanced spider and here we have another genetically enhanced spider (developed by Peter's own father! Wait for the "What's new?" section) which bites him and leaves him with a spider like agility, wall crawling (and annoyingly sticking to everything) ability along with the PROPORTIONATE strength of a spider! Uncle Ben, does die owing to Peter's own irresponsible behavior very much like Stan Lee's original story back in 1961. Flash Thompson is yet again a jerk who bullies other students, only that we see a milder version than that from the 2001 movie. And, lastly Spiderman's creator Stan Lee does a cameo, like all the other Marvel Comics movies. (except for The Blade, and Punisher maybe? No.. wait.. Ghost Rider too!)
Now, the whole Spider-bite thing, isn't it a bit too cliche? They could've come up with a rather more innovative origin for Spiderman. A freak gene splicing accident maybe, or maybe the use of a neogenic recombinator?

What's new?

Peter Parker here, is the son of a brilliant biochemist Richard Parker, who along with his friend/colleague Dr. Curtis Connors develops an effective gene splicing technique to transfer one species' traits to another. The very first scene shows a very young Peter being dropped in at his Uncle's place, where his parents leave him under Ben and Mary's supervision. Fast Forward: 15 years. Peter is a high schooler, a great photographer and an electronics whiz with a prowess in robotics as well. In the 2001 series Spiderman had an organic webbing, but this time round Parker develops his own uber-cool LASER-GUIDED web shooters!! (thwipp)

Killer Croc: A recurring foe of Batman

I definitely missed J.Jonah Jameson, but Captain George Stacy stepped into the foul mouthed publisher's shoes by playing an equally obnoxious part, and prejudiced Spiderman for being a two-bit criminal. Stacy, also turns out to be Gwen Stacy's father, Peter's love interest. Speaking of Gwen, everyone's favorite red-head Mary Jane Watson was not featured in the movie. Although, a cameo role from Irfan Khan, and a mention of Norman Osborn along with the mysterious plane crash killing Peter's parents suggest a sequel! And, hopefully we will see JJJ and MJ both in the sequel.

Curt Connors is a good doctor by day and a lizard mutate by night. Mutated into the LIZARD pursuing his obsession to grow back his amputated arm after splicing his DNA with the reptilian DNA, he is stopped by Spiderman, who helps him revert back to normal. Also, the lizard character largely resembles the Killer Croc from the DC Universe, and not even remotely resembling Marvel's Lizard, except for the regenerating tail!

The Costume

Ben Reilly's Spidey outfit

The costume is loosely based on the newer outfit designed by Ben Riley (a clone of Spiderman, a very looooooong and confusing story! Leave it for some other blogpost) during the brief time he donned the mantle of Spiderman. It is kinda good, and fairly realistic, but I simply hate the VISORS in his mask!!

Sequel: If any?

I have a very strong feeling regarding the production of a sequel. Many questions remain unanswered, Irfan's role, Osborn's mysterious illness and the deaths of the Parkers under suspicious circumstances.

Verdict

A one time watch, I watched Maximum a couple of days ago. The Amazing Spiderman, is not as amazing as the name suggests, but waaay better than Maximum! And, I was quite disappointed with the plot. Being, a devout Spiderman fan, it was a little awkward to see Peter Parker without his usual caustic humor. Surprisingly, Ben Parker never utters those lines which have immortalized him in the comic book history! Need I remind you? Oh C'mon!

"With Great Power..

Comes Great Responsibilty"

Also, the screenplay stands nowhere compared to the 2001 series. I sincerely hope that if they make a sequel, it turns out to be better. Needless to say I am waiting for THE DARK KNIGHT RISES!