Art of the Day: Psylocke (X-Men: Apocalypse)

Artwork: Psylocke by Erlan Arya

Art of the Day: Jubilee (X-Men: Apocalypse)

Artwork: Jubilee by zinst

Lana Condor

It's still disappointing how little screen time Jubilee got in X-Men: Apocalypse, 20th Century Fox had this rising star Lana Condor and completely wasted an opportunity to give her more scenes. She was barely in the movie.

Which is why I was happy she was cast as Lara Jean in the Netflix movie "To All The Boys I've Loved Before" which is based on the book by Jenny Han. And the movie is considered one of the most watched movies on Netflix. According to reports it was noted as being the "most viewed original films ever with strong repeat viewing".

To All The Boys is such a cute little romantic comedy, I would totally recommend watching it if you haven't.

Photography: The Riker Brothers

DVD Tuesday: Preacher Season One and X-Men: Apocalypse

I really enjoyed watching Preacher so it's a given that I was going to buy the first season when it came out. However for X-Men: Apocalypse I had been mulling over buying it, for one thing the trailer never sparked any interest in me which is why I didn't see it when it was in the theatre. And I also heard a lot of bad reviews for it and not just from critics but from other comic book fans.

I think my curiosity has taken over making me want to see just how bad this really is. Perhaps it will surprise me and not be a total mess but actually turn into something that's interesting to watch. Yes, I am trying to be optimistic, the same as I was with Batman v Superman which unfortunately did turn out to be a total mess.



Preacher

Description:

Fulfilling a promise to his deceased father, one-time outlaw Jesse Custer (Dominic Cooper) returns home to West Texas to take over his dad's church. Jesse's mission, however, becomes twisted when his body is overcome by a cryptic force that unleashes within him a highly unconventional power. Together with hell-raising ex-girlfriend Tulip (Ruth Negga) and Irish vagabond Cassidy (Joe Gilgun), the preacher-in-training embarks on a journey to find God in a world inhabited by holy, hellish, and everything-in-between characters.

The darkly comedic "Preacher" is based on Garth Ennis and Steve Dillon's popular 1990s comic book franchise of the same name. Executive producers include Sam Catlin ("Breaking Bad"), and Seth Rogen and Evan Goldberg ("Superbad," "Neighbors").

X-Men: Apocalypse

Description:

After the re-emergence of the world's first mutant, world-destroyer Apocalypse, the X-Men must unite to defeat his extinction level plan.

The X-Men: Apocalypse Poster, was the Controversy Warranted?

The controversy of this X-Men Apocalypse poster has turned into several think piece articles around the internet and sparked many of conversations about domestic abuse. I would like to try to discuss both sides of the issue, first I would like to speak in defense of those who found the X-Men poster to be offensive. Perhaps Fox should not have used that image from the movie as a promotional tool. For some, the image of Apocalypse choking Mystique although fictional may be a trigger or evoke bad memories for some who may have undergone attacks or abuse.

Many of the complaints spoke of the image promoting violence towards women. The complaints did cause Twentieth Century Fox to issue a statement of apology and to remove the posters. Here is the statement:

"In our enthusiasm to show the villainy of the character Apocalypse we didn't immediately recognize the upsetting connotation of this image in print form. Once we realized how insensitive it was, we quickly took steps to remove those materials. We apologize for our actions and would never condone violence against women."

Now for the other side of the coin, the poster was just marketing that Fox used to promote the movie. Where some say the image shows violence towards women with Apocalypse choking Mystique others see it as a standard if not cliché comic book scene. Case in point in Avengers: Age of Ultron, Thor lifted up Tony Stark by the neck nearly choking him.

Also in Captain America: The Winter Soldier, Steve Rogers was getting choked by the Winter Soldier.

After pointing out both sides, my opinion is I don't necessarily see the X-Men poster as promoting violence against women. Granted neither scene from Avengers: Age of Ultron or Captain America: The Winter Soldier were used to promote either movie. However, I found the X-Men image to be no different than the others, therefore it almost feels as if there is a double standard. Violence affects both men and women. I've seen comments where many have painted Mystique as this powerless female being choked by the domineering Apocalypse. Meanwhile, you could use that same defense for Thor vs Tony Stark. Because without his Iron Man suit, Tony is powerless. I can make the same claim for Steve Rogers vs Winter Soldier.

I'm trying to look at this in an objective way, I do think it was good that Fox apologized and removed the posters. However, if people continue to see women as helpless victims we will never be able to move past that stereotype. When I look at that X-Men poster, I see a Mystique that has this defiant look on her face like she's about to kick his butt. Since, I have not seen the movie, I have no idea what happens in this scene.

A few years ago, that image probably would have been overlooked but with society becoming more aware of negative things happening in the world and social media giving them a way to voice their opinions. Marketers and businesses need to be more conscientious of the images they choose to put out into the world. Because not everyone sees the same thing when they look at an image.