Brandon Routh in "Scott Pilgrim vs. the World"

Despite no longer being Warner Bros.’ Superman, actor Brandon Routh still had a strong showing in Nerdage’s actors with geek appeal, coming in at No. 8.

Routh appeared in two comic-book based films in the past year: Edgar Wright’s “Scott Pilgrim vs. the World” and Kevin Munroe’s “Dylan Dog: Dead of Night.”

- Matt Price
Click past the cut for more images of Brandon Routh, including images from “Dylan Dog.”

Here are my selections for the best 10 graphic novels of 2010. I’ve limited the list to stories that first appeared in a graphic novel format, as opposed to collections of periodically released comic books.

Next week, return for the top 10 periodical comics of 2010.

1. “The Outfit” by Darwyn Cooke (IDW).

IDW released the second adaptation of Richard Stark’s “Parker” novels by Cooke (“Justice League: The New Frontier).

When the syndicate gets wind that Parker has survived, they send someone after him. But Parker decides to take matters into his own hands and hit the Outfit himself.

Cooke perfectly translates the world of the “Parker” books into illustrated fiction.

2. “Scott Pilgrim’s Finest Hour” by Bryan Lee O’Malley (Oni Press).

Scott Pilgrim received a lot of hype this year for the film directed by Edgar Wright, but he also finished his story in the world of graphic novels this year, with O’Malley giving just the right touch to the final stanza of the 20-something slacker who found love.

3. “X’ed Out” by Charles Burns (Pantheon).

The “Black Hole” creator shows a “Tintin” influence in his latest sci-fi/horror epic. The first of several planned installments, “X’ed Out” follows Doug, a young man who wakes up with a head injury who can’t remember his past except in disjointed flashbacks.

4. “Acme Novelty Library #20/Lint” by Chris Ware (Drawn and Quarterly).

As part of his ongoing “Rusty Brown” storyline, Ware introduces us to Jordan Wellington Lint. Each page provides a glimpse at Lint’s internal life year by year, as he grows into a privileged businessman.

5. “Bodyworld” by Dash Shaw (Pantheon).

Dash Shaw creates a trippy, futuristic tale set after the second Civil War where a new drug allows the user to feel the reactions of others.

6. “Meanwhile” by Jason Shiga (Abrams).

An all-ages graphic novel with a story that can branch in multiple directions, “Meanwhile” is innovative in form and charming in content.

7. “Market Day” by James Sturm (Drawn and Quarterly).

Economic forces disrupt the career and life of an Eastern European rug-maker in a graphic novel by James Sturm set a century ago, with relevance today.

8. “Grandville Mon Amour” by Bryan Talbot (Dark Horse).

In an alternate 19th century where Britain lost the Napoleonic War, LeBrock is a detective in a world of talking animals. LeBrock attempts to recapture a former British patriot turned killer, and finds a conspiracy that goes deep into the government.

9. “Return of the Dapper Men” by Jim McCann and Janet K. Lee (Archaia Entertainment).

An art nouveau fantasy with elements of steampunk features 314 “dapper men” who fall from the sky to restart the world of Anorev.

10. “Picture This: The Near-Sighted Monkey Book” by Lynda Barry (Drawn and Quarterly).

A sequel of sorts to “What It Is,” “Picture This” is an examination of drawing and artwork with elements of memoir and a how-to book. Anyone can draw, and should, the book posits, to express our feelings, to deal with our emotions or just to have fun.

- By Matthew Price
WORD BALLOONS
From Friday’s The Oklahoman

Scott Pilgrim Blu-ray

Edgar Wright adapts Bryan Lee O’Malley’s six-volume graphic novel series into “Scott Pilgrim vs. the World,” a hyperactive romance with layers upon layers of influences.

The film stars Michael Cera as the titular Scott Pilgrim, a 20-something Toronto slacker who plays bass in the band Sex Bob-omb. Scott is dating Knives Chau (Emily Wong), 17, to the dismay of his friends; Scott hasn’t gotten over his bad breakup with Envy Adams (Brie Larson), who has rocketed to rock stardom since their breakup.

Scott’s trying to use his relationship with Knives to dull the pain of his breakup. The film takes a turn for the surreal as Scott falls for Ramona Flowers (Mary Elizabeth Winstead), a delivery girl using the subspace pathways in Scott’s head as a shortcut. In order to date Ramona, Scott discovers he must defeat Ramona’s seven evil exes.

The battle sequences draw influences from video games, anime, graphic novels and more. Each fight teaches Scott something about himself, but will it be enough to face Ramona’s final evil ex?

Excellent in supporting roles are Kieran Culkin as Scott’s gay roommate, Wallace Wells, and Anna Kendrick as Scott’s sister, Stacey, who plays something of a Jiminy Cricket to Scott’s Pinocchio. The music, including songs composed by Beck, accentuates the film’s caffeinated humor.

Scott’s labors of Hercules are a meld of 1980s and 1990s influences from “Battle of the Planets” to “Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles”; watching the four audio commentaries gives insight into the film’s many layers and visual metaphors.

Blu-ray extras: featurettes, preproduction footage, Scott Pilgrim animation for Adult Swim, deleted scenes, music videos and more.

— Matthew Price

Paul Levitz with his book, "75 Years of DC Comics."

WORD BALLOONS

With Black Friday upon us, those with comic book fans in their lives might be considering what items relating to the hobby would make good holiday gifts. There are several items, from archival reprints to art books and histories, that might make good selections.

2010 marks the 75th anniversary of DC Comics, so several items are available celebrating that landmark. Paul Levitz has written the enormous “75 Years of DC Comics: The Art of Modern Mythmaking” ($200) from Taschen, recounting the company’s history with lots of beautifully presented art. The hardcover book “DC Comics Year by Year: A Visual Chronicle” ($50) takes fans on a chronological tour through important events in DC Comics’ publishing history.

For those who may be fans primarily of DC Comics’ artwork, “DC Comics: The 75th Anniversary Poster Book” ($40) provides a look at some of DC’s greatest covers, which can be pulled out as posters if desired.

Another DC Comics-related book of interest is “Icons: The DC Comics & Wildstorm Art of Jim Lee” ($39.95), which recounts the post-Marvel comics art of the DC Comics co-publisher, who has drawn story lines including “Superman: For Tomorrow” and “Batman: Hush.” Fans of classic comics may want to try out “Shazam!: The Golden Age of the World’s Mightiest Mortal” ($35), which looks back at the phenomenon of Captain Marvel from comics’ Golden Age.

Aspiring comic book artists might be interested in “Stan Lee’s How to Draw Comics” ($24.99), which covers essential elements in comic book creating, or “Bryan Hitch’s Ultimate Comics Studio” ($24.99), which shows the techniques of the popular comic book penciller.

If your comic fan’s taste runs more toward the indie, Oni Press has released a complete box set of all of the “Scott Pilgrim” graphic novels. Called “Scott Pilgrim’s Precious Little Box Set” ($72), this slipcased collection contains all six of Bryan Lee O’Malley’s “Pilgrim” graphic novels, in which a slacker must defeat all of his new girlfriend’s evil exes.

Marvel Comics fans may enjoy “Marvel Avengers: The Ultimate Character Guide” ($16.99), which gives a rundown on the various characters that were part of “The Avengers” over the years.

- Matt Price
From Friday’s The Oklahoman

Scott Pilgrim vs. the World, starring Michael Cera and based on the graphic novels by Bryan Lee O’Malley, opens in theaters this week.

In “Scott Pilgrim,” the title character, a Toronto 23-year old bassist, discovers he must defeat his new girlfriend’s seven evil exes in order to date her.

Knuckleheads by Brian Winkeler and Robert Wilson IV

Excellent in supporting roles are Kieran Culkin as Scott’s gay roommate Wallace Wells and Anna Kendrick as Scott’s sister, Stacey. Ellen Wong is fantastic in her first feature film role as the high schoolgirl friend, Knives Chau. The music, including songs composed by Beck, is excellent throughout.

Rifftrax on Aug. 19

Rifftrax live event taking place at theaters throughout the country (and three in Oklahoma) on Aug. 19. There will be an encore presentation on Aug. 24.

The former “Mystery Science Theater 3000″ stars Michael J. Nelson, Kevin Murphy, and Bill Corbett will reunite on the big screen to live-riff the 1936 cult classic that warns of the dangers of marijuana. Audiences will also receive free digital items after the event.

Local Knuckleheads

Oklahoma comics creators Brian Winkeler and Robert Wilson IV are the creators of “Knuckleheads,” a “sitcomic” that explores what happens when a slacker is granted access to a superpowerful weapon.  It’s Green Lantern mixed with the Big Bang theory, according to Winkeler, who writes the series.

Reviews
Matt Price and Kyle Roberts review Emerald Warriors #1, Archie and Friends #146, Incredible Hulk #611 and X-Men #2.

Michael Cera in "Scott Pilgrim vs. the World"

“Scott Pilgrim vs. the World” is a high-energy romantic comedy for the attention-deficit generation, and while it has its share of flaws, it’s entertaining and funny throughout.

Directed by Edgar Wright (“Shaun of the Dead”), “Scott Pilgrim” stars Michael Cera as Scott Pilgrim, “Rating: Awesome” a text box informs us. Scott is the 23-year-old slacker bassist of Toronto band Sex Bob-omb, who is dating a high schooler, much to the dismay of his friends. Scott’s still distressed over a previous bad breakup and is using the relatively simple relationship his “fake high school girlfriend” provides to attempt to heal.

But then, as the movie begins to get all the more surreal, Ramona Flowers (Mary Elizabeth Winstead), an Amazon.ca delivery person, begins appearing in Scott’s dreams. Scott falls for her, but to date her, he must defeat her seven evil exes.

The movie then becomes even more frenzied, as Wright uses techniques from video games, anime and even Bollywood musicals to create hyperactive action sequences. Wright also pulls several techniques directly from the graphic novels on which “Scott Pilgrim” is based, a six-volume set by Canadian Bryan O’Malley.

Scott uses skill and guile to combat the exes, each time learning more about his girlfriend and himself. But will what he’s learned be enough when he must face Ramona’s final evil ex?

Excellent in supporting roles are Kieran Culkin as Scott’s gay roommate Wallace Wells and Anna Kendrick as Scott’s sister, Stacey. Ellen Wong is fantastic in her first feature film role as the high school girlfriend, Knives Chau. The music, including songs composed by Beck, is excellent throughout.

The main problem with “Scott Pilgrim” is that the film is so frantic that it’s hard to get a feel for the relationship at the heart of it. Without much time to develop, the reason for all these battles kind of gets lost in the shuffle. Cera is a slightly different Scott Pilgrim from the books, but he makes the character his own. Perhaps anticipating some amount of comparison, Wright has a character mention in a crowd scene that the comics are better. And that’s true — the graphic novels on which “Scott Pilgrim” is based are transcendent, whereas the movie is simply entertaining and visually inventive. Nonetheless, “Pilgrim” is a fun movie with many great moments and certainly never bores its audience.

- By Matthew Price
From Friday’s The Oklahoman

Scott Pilgrim promotion: Found via io9, this great Atlanta promo of Jason Schwartzman and Michael Cera doing the weather at the Atlanta Fox affiliate.  Really funny stuff!

“Scott Pilgrim vs. the World” opens on Aug. 13. It’s based on the series of Oni Press graphic novels by Bryan O’Malley; Cera stars as Scott Pilgrim.

- Matt Price

More than 150 participating stores have “Scott Pilgrim” vol. 6 on sale today.  It’s a fantastic finish to what has been an amazing story.  It’s filled with humor, emotion and growth.   I think “Scott Pilgrim” will go down as one of the finest comic-book series of the ’00s, and I recommend it highly.   One of the hardest things to do in comics – perhaps because of their typically ongoing nature – is to completely nail an ending, and I think Bryan O’Malley does that here.

- Matt Price

I really dig the international trailer for Scott Pilgrim vs. The World. “Scott, if your life had a face, I would punch it.” Really hope this movie lives up to the hype. The books are fantastic, and the trailers so far have me pumped.  The film stars Michael Cera and opens on Aug. 13.

- Matt Price

New Scott Pilgrim vs the World trailer, starring Michael Cera as Scott Pilgrim. Directed by Edgar Wright. How fantastic does this look?

You can also see the original teaser trailer here.

- Matt Price

A quick note to let people know that slashfilm has posted the Scott Pilgrim vs. the World teaser trailer.  Scott Pilgrim is now a trending topic on twitter, so it seems that many people are excited about the upcoming Edgar Wright film.  The film, starring Michael Cera, is based on the Oni Press graphic novel series.   Apple also has the trailer online. EDIT: The trailer is now embedded below, via YouTube.

- Matt Price

Oni Press has announced the title and release date of the final Scott Pilgrim volume: Scott Pilgrim’s Finest Hour will be released on July 20.

That is a Tuesday, and typically comics come out on Wednesday, so does Oni have some kind of special Tuesday release plan for comic shops? I hope so.  That could be a lot of fun.     Check out the full release from Oni below:

Six years, five volumes, and 1,000 pages. Now the long anticipated finale to Bryan Lee O’Malley’s hit Oni Press graphic novel series has finally arrived. On Tuesday, July 20th, 2010 comic shops and bookstores across North America will celebrate the release of SCOTT PILGRIM VOL. 6: SCOTT PILGRIM’S FINEST HOUR.

“It’s been quite a ride, and I couldn’t have gotten here without the support of the fans and the retailers,” said O’Malley. “It feels great to be in the home stretch, and I think this is going to be the best Scott Pilgrim book ever!”

Bryan Lee O’Malley and the SCOTT PILGRIM series have both been honored with multiple awards including the Harvey, Doug Wright, Joe Shuster, and National Cartoonists Society Reuben awards, in addition to being named Entertainment Weekly and Wizard Magazine’s Independent Comic of the Year. Series Editor and Oni Press Editor-in-Chief James Lucas Jones gave additional praise to O’Malley, “it’s been an honor working with Bryan over the years. He’s got such a unique voice and I’ve been fortunate to witness him develop a style unlike anyone working in the industry today; a style that I feel will influence many future generations of comic professionals. I’m so proud that Oni has been a part of that.”

Oni Press will be rolling out a series of event announcements in the weeks and months leading up to the release, including Bryan Lee O’Malley signings at this year’s sold out San Diego Comic Con. Oni Press Publisher Joe Nozemack said about the works, “I’m convinced that Scott Pilgrim will go down as one of those series that changed comics forever. When I’m out and see someone wearing a Scott Pilgrim t-shirt or sitting in a cafe reading one of the books, I get so excited about comics entering the mainstream and to know that Oni Press’ books are helping lead the way, it’s an indescribable feeling. I can’t wait to see the reaction to the final volume!”

Bryan Lee O’Malley’s SCOTT PILGRIM VOL. 6: SCOTT PILGRIM’S FINEST HOUR, is published by Oni Press and features 248 pages of evil-ex butt-kicking in the easily digestible digest format for the low, low price of $11.99. Available at your local comic shop or bookstore Tuesday, July 20th, 2010.

Scottpilgrimthemovie.com shares the first look at the teaser movie poster for the film based on the series of graphic novels by Bryan Lee O’Malley.   Via twitter, O’Malley said the Scott Pilgrim Vol. 6 graphic novel’s full cover, title and release date will be announced Friday.

- Matt Price

Slashfilm has the first official photos from “Scott Pilgrim vs. The World,” based on the Bryan O’Malley graphic novels from Oni Press.  More discussion and info at The Beat and MTV Splash Page. I love the graphic novels – I named them the decade’s best, recently – so I’m really looking forward to this film.

- Matt Price

Video blog from Edgar Wright on the training the actors are doing on “Scott Pilgrim vs. The World.” Wright points out this film has three things that are difficult to do by themselves — music, action, and comedy — and “Scott Pilgrim” attempts them all.

- Matt Price

Michael Cera stars in the upcoming film adaptation of the graphic novel ” Scott Pilgrim.” Matt Price and Kyle Roberts discuss the graphic novel series and film.

The Hollywood Reporter announced that Brandon Routh (“Superman Returns”) and Chris Evans (“Fantastic Four”) have joined the cast of “Scott Pilgrim vs. the World.”
Director Edgar Wright (“Shaun of the Dead”) is adapting the Oni graphic novel by Bryan Lee O’Malley to the screen.

“Scott Pilgrim” is about a slacker twentysomething in a band who must battle his new love interest’s seven evil ex-boyfriends to win her hand.   Michael Cera plays Scott Pilgrim.

Evans and Routh will each play ex-boyfriends: Evans will portray Lucas Lee, a pro skateboarder-turned-movie star. Routh plays Todd Ingram, a superpowered vegan rocker.

– Matt Price

“Most of the first book appears in the film…near verbatim” O’Malley said, who notes production is scheduled to begin in September.

– Matt Price