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One of the things we talked about this week was the ousting of Edward Norton from the Avengers movie by Kevin Feige in a not so diplomatic announcement. Quoting here from the press release…

“We have made the decision to not bring Ed Norton back to portray the title role of Bruce Banner in the Avengers. Our decision is definitely not one based on monetary factors, but instead rooted in the need for an actor who embodies the creativity and collaborative spirit of our other talented cast members. The Avengers demands players who thrive working as part of an ensemble, as evidenced by Robert, Chris H, Chris E, Sam, Scarlett, and all of our talented casts. We are looking to announce a name actor who fulfills these requirements, and is passionate about the iconic role in the coming weeks.”

Strong words any way you slice it. It was pretty well documented that Norton and Feige clashed heads over the final cut of the Incredible Hulk film two years ago and we all know how that ended. So maybe Norton was right? Maybe Feige blames Norton for the Hulk’s middling box office returns? (IMHO the movie relied way too much on CGI trickery and action at the expense of character and story) Who knows? Fact is Norton is out and now we’ll get the 3rd actor in 7 years to play the part of Dr. Bruce Banner.

Honestly it’s too bad. I think Norton brought a lightness and charm to Banner that had been missing since the Original TV series and is only now being rediscovered in the comics. Also, I’d rather have an actor who willing to fight for a better movie than one who’s just willing to play ball. That said, I’m typing on a blog and don’t have to make multi-million dollar decisions. So, there’s that.

We also talk about some other stuff but if you’re reading this you’ve probably listened to the podcast already.

(I would like a DVD release of Norton’s cut of the film, BTW)

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New podcast, recorded on Easter Sunday because we are just that dedicated to bring our opinions to you on a regular basis. You can now click on that sexy little box up there to listen to it, or your can go right here and do it the old fashioned way. Be aware that we start off with a big conversation about comic books, so if you don’t care about that, skip ahead like 22 minutes to hear me complain about Lost some more.

There’s no news this week, partially because I don’t think anything actually happened but also because we were hit with the end of Blackest Night, the long-awaited (by me, anyway) return of Stargate Universe (I don’t understand why it’s called that), another mediocre episode of Lost, and the triumphant return of Doctor Who. At least in the U.K. If you are in America, you can see it on BBC America in two weeks. But we’ll be way ahead of you by then, you hippie.

This weeks show we talked a great deal about all kinds of stuff this week, but we talked a little bit about reality TV and some of the recent rumblings that Michael Vick and Rod Blagojevich are either looking to be on a reality show or will be on a reality show in the coming months. When major networks are casting alleged and convicted felons in their TV shows for ratings it’s time to storm the studios with flaming pitchforks. One step closer to Armageddon.

Oh and here are some things we talked about this week.

Pilot School

GI Joe : Resolute

Warren Ellis

I saw this great cover for the Doctor Who comic from IDW and just felt I had to share. Ben Templesmith is a great artist. Everything from him that I’ve seen allways has great character and a singular unique look too it. For more check out his great work on the Warren Ellis book Fell.