ComicsAlliance Week in Review: April 14-20

Two of the most talked-about comics-related events so far this year have been the announcement of DC's Before Watchmen initiative, in which the publisher will release a suite of prequel books to the 25-year-old foundational graphic novel over the very loud objections of its co-creator, and the impending release of The Avengers film, in which the 50-year-old team created by Stan Lee and Jack Kirby will be adapted into perhaps the biggest superhero film ever.

Both projects point to major problems plaguing the American comic book industry's two leaders, and issues of ethical and moral-if not necessarily legal-failings that one imagines their leading IPs like Superman and Captain America would fight against rather than for. David Brothers tackles these issues head-on in a piece entitled "The Ethical Rot Behind 'Before Watchmen' and 'The Avengers'".

-Mark Waid is launching a new title, and a new digital comics site

-In their latest attention-seeking move, Archie Comics will swap the genders of their core love triangle, with a female Archie being pursued by male Veronica and Betty

-Boom's popular Adventure Time comic will get its first spin-off series, Adventure Time: Marceline and the Scream Queens, courtesy of Octopus Pie cartoonist Meredith Gran

-Here are the details of Topatoco's spring line-up of books

Reviews:

-Matt D. Wilson on Shia LaBeouf's self-published mini-comics

-CA's Smallvillains Chris Sims and David Uzumeri on Smallville: Season 11#1

-Andrew Wheeler on Avengers Vs. X-Men #2

-Lauren Davis on Cat Versus Human

Previews:

-Darke Horse Presents #11

-Prophet #24

-The Comic Book History of Comics

Interviews:

-Writer Matt Fraction on his upcoming Hawkeye monthly series

-Writer James Asmus on his upcoming Gambit monthly series

Film:

-Sims and Uzumeri continue watching Superman II

-Sims reviews Comic-Con Episode IV: A Fan's Hope

-Another week, another couple of teases about the long-gestating Sin City sequel

Animation:

-Here's the first teaser for Beware The Batman

-Bring It On and Buffy the Vampire Slayer actress Eliza Dushku has been cast as She-Hulk...sadly, she's only voicing the Jade Giantess in the upcoming Hulk and The Agents of S.M.A.S.H. cartoon, rather than being painted green for a Shulkie feature film

-Here are some new Plas and Teen Titans clips from the DC Nation programming block

Theater:

-You've probably heard a bit about the officially-sanctioned Batman Live stage show, but have you heard about Team Starkid's Holy Musical B@man! show? No? Then let Chris Sims tell you about it.

Toys:

-Look at some toys isnpired by The Avengers, including some Minimates

-Caleb Goellner and pal unpack Hasbro's The Avengers toy media kit

-Hot Toys has another frighteningly representational toy from The Avengers movie

-Warner Bros. won something of a legal victory over Marc Toberoff, the lawyer representing the heirs of Superman creators Jerry Siegel and Joe Shuster, this week

Art:

-David Creighton-Pester has drawn 207 Batman villains....so far

-Marco D'Alfonso's mash-up art needs to be seen to be believed

-Ted Naifeh's early sketches for AmeComi Girls

-Kerry Callen teams-up with Sims in order to team Batman up with Jay-Z

-Calvin & Hobbes mashed-up with...just about everything

-The Marvellini Brothers' vintage superhero portraits

-Oily Moss and Tom Whalen have created character-specific posters for The Avengers for the Alamo Drafthouse Cinema in Austin, Texas

-This week's Best Art Ever (This Week)