Empire Online reports that Bryan Singer has met with Fox about possibly returning to the X-Men franchise.

“I’m still looking to possibly returning to the X-Men franchise. I’ve been talking to Fox about it,” said Singer. “I love Hugh Jackman. I love the cast.”

That indicates that Singer may be more likely to return to an “X-Men 4″ with the original film X-Men versus taking the helm of a reboot or an “X-Men First Class” set in the early days of Xavier’s school.

Click past the cut to vote on whether you think Singer should return to the X-Men.

Katie Couric talked with “X-Men Origins: Wolverine” star Hugh Jackman about the possibility of more “Wolverine” films. Jackman indicates, as he has in the past, that the next film will likely be based on the Chris Claremont-Frank Miller “Wolverine” miniseries. Katie Couric gives the impression that she wouldn’t be able to tell a comic book from a phone book.

See the entire interview after the break.


Watch CBS News Videos Online

Die Hard goes back to the 1970s in “Year One,” while Spider-Man revisits the 1990s in “Clone Saga.” The Guardian stars in Superman 692, and Wolverine Weapon X closes out its first story arc. Kyle Roberts and Matt Price discuss this week’s comics in the NewsOK Comics Podcast.

Kyle Roberts and Matt Price discuss how you can’t always judge a comic book by its cover, as they review Supergirl 44, X-Men Legacy 227, Wolverine Weapon X 4 and Archie 600.

The Hero Initiative officially has announced the Wolverine 100 project, which will feature 100 original covers of Marvel Comics’ most famous mutant.   The Hero Initiative is a charity that helps comic-book creators in medical or financial need.

Marvel Comics has donated 100 blank-covered cardstock copies of the Wolverine: Weapon X #1 to Hero.  Artists including Neal Adams, J. Scott Campbell, Frank Cho, Gene Colan, Ron Garney, Dale Keown, Adam Kubert, Leinil Yu, and John Romita Sr. and Jr. will create a cover for the issue.

“Marvel fully supports the Hero Initiative and its mission, and is proud to offer one of our premier characters in Wolverine to help their efforts,” said Marvel Publisher Dan Buckley in a release. “The amazing outpouring of support and creativity we see from the artists in this is a wonder to behold as well.”

All 100 original Wolverine covers will be published in a book set for release in November. A public viewing of all covers will also be held.

“Fasten your seat belts. From what I’ve seen, this is the craziest 100 project to date,” said Hero Initiative Board member Brian Pulido in a release. “The artists are very good at what they do and what they do is very awesome! They are pulling out all stops to deliver the goods on Marvel’s marauding mutant. You won’t be disappointed.”

Marvel is also hosting an informational video on the Hero Initiative, which you can see here.

- Matt Price

Wolverine’s not going to be out of the limelight anytime soon.

Hugh Jackman announced at the recent Teen Choice Awards that work has begun on a second “Wolverine” film, to be set in Japan.

Meanwhile, Wolverine is also very busy in animation. The second DVD of the animated series “Wolverine and the X-Men” arrived in stores last month, and selected episodes are available to watch online at Marvel.com or to download from iTunes. The series airs on Nicktoons.

An anime version of Wolverine is in development to air in Japan and the U.S. Also on the way is “Super Hero Squad,” which will co-star Wolverine, scheduled to air on the Cartoon Network.

“The great thing about Wolverine is that he can be in ‘Super Hero Squad’ and be for young kids, and he can be in ‘Wolverine and the X-Men’ and be like in the middle range, and then he can be in (the direct-to-DVD PG-13 animated film) ‘Hulk Vs. Wolverine,’” said Chris Yost, a writer for “Wolverine and the X-Men.”

“You immediately think, ‘This guy’s got knives on his hands; he’s really inappropriate for children.’ But you know, children respond to it. Children love Wolverine, and there’s a good reason for that. He’s a hero. There’s more to him than just violence.”

In “Wolverine and the X-Men,” Wolverine must take charge of the X-Men after an attack on the X-Mansion scatters the team. “With ‘Wolverine and the X-Men,’ we had an opportunity to show you the X-Men’s world as we know it,” Yost said in an interview at Comic-Con International in San Diego. “We know the mansion, we know the Danger Room. … And then immediately the show’s turned on its head by the events of the first episode.”

The attack on the mansion in the first episode is what resets the world from the X-Men we know into a world that shares similarities with the “Days of Future Past” story line from the comic books.

“Everything blows up, and everything is different,” Yost said. “Wolverine’s now in charge, and Scott’s all brooding, and Jean (Grey) and Xavier are gone. It was a very conscious decision to show normal, and then get into what the show is going to be.”

“Wolverine and the X-Men” follows a long, epic journey in Wolverine’s attempts to reunite the team as they deal with mutant prejudice and the threat of Magneto.

“I believe there are things you can do in animation, like with ‘Wolverine and the X-Men,’ the scope and the epic scale of that story, you’re never going to see that in a movie, ever,” he said.

Yost also co-wrote the “Hulk Vs. Wolverine” script with Craig Kyle, and writes the character in the monthly “X-Force” comic book, also with Kyle. Yost said he considers himself lucky to have been able to chronicle Wolverine’s adventures in various media.

“With the DVDs, with the comics, it’s being able to show different sides of this character,” Yost said. “At the end of the day, he’s always a hero.”

- by Matthew Price
From Friday’s The Oklahoman

Five more episodes of the “Wolverine and the X-Men” cartoon series come to DVD with “Deadly Enemies.” Logan still is attempting to re-form the X-Men after an attack left Professor Xavier in a coma.

Fortunately for Wolverine, Xavier now can communicate with him from the future. Xavier’s future gives Wolverine hints to events he must stop with his X-Men crew.

In “Overflow,” the Shadow King takes over the mind of Storm, and the X-Men must prevent the destruction of Africa by the powerful mutant. Cajun mutant Gambit makes his first appearance in “Thieves’ Gambit,” in which he’s hired by an anti-mutant group to steal a power-inhibiting device. And the blue, elfin mutant Nightcrawler comes to the forefront in the swashbuckling episode “X-Calibre,” which pays tribute to comic-book writer Warren Ellis’ take on the character. Bruce Banner and his alter ego guest-star in “Wolverine vs. The Hulk.” Finally, the team must work together to stop a dangerous, exploding mutant in “Time Bomb,” an episode that again brings the X-Men into conflict with the Brotherhood of Mutants.

“Wolverine and the X-Men” pays homage to classic X-Men tales like “Days of Future Past” while making a cartoon modern audiences also can enjoy.

- Matthew Price
From Friday’s The Oklahoman

Kyle Roberts and Matt Price discuss Wolverine 74, X-Men Forever 1, Toy Story 1 and Unwritten 2 in this week’s comics podcast.

“Wolverine” #72, featuring Old Man Logan vs. the Red Skull, has already sold out at Diamond Comic Distributors after its release this past Wednesday.  A second printing, featuring interior art from Steve McNiven as the new cover (and a nice homage to Captain America Annual #8) is on the way.  The second printing is scheduled to go on sale July 1.

- Matt Price

Kyle Roberts and Matt Price discuss this week’s comics, including Amazing Spider-Man 595, Spider-Man: The Short Halloween, Ultimate Wolverine vs Hulk 6 and Wolverine 72.

Kyle Roberts and Matt Price review some of this week’s comics, including Supergirl 41, Wolverine: Weapon X 2, Batman Battle for the Cowl 3 and Captain America 50.
Below, see an image gallery from “Wolverine: Weapon X” 2, written by Jason Aaron with art by Ron Garney.

THE NEXT LEVEL

Former Oklahoman Paul Benjamin is putting words in Hugh Jackman’s mouth.

Putnam City North graduate Benjamin wrote the “X-Men Origins: Wolverine” game for the Nintendo Wii and PlayStation 2. Benjamin, who now lives in Austin, Texas, talked to The Oklahoman about his X-perience recrafting Wolverine’s origin for game players.

Paul Benjamin

“The Wii/Playstation 2 version of X-Men Origins: Wolverine blends story elements from the Wolverine movie and the Xbox360/Playstation 3/PC version of the game with a dash of story elements unique to the Wii/PS2 version,” Benjamin said. “I don’t want to give away too much, but essentially, you play Wolverine’s origin as he loses his girl, goes after Sabretooth/Victor Creed for revenge, and gets his bones laced with the indestructible metal ‘adamantium.’”

Characters in the game include Wolverine, Sabretooth, Silver Fox, Deadpool, Blob, Wraith, Gambit and General Stryker. Because the Wii edition was aimed at more casual gamers, the amount of bloodshed in the game is less than what will be found in the “Uncaged” edition for Xbox 360, PlayStation 3 and personal computer, Benjamin said.

“Though both versions shared cinematics and followed similar storylines, many other elements of the game were taken in different directions,” Benjamin said. “Where the Uncaged Edition on the other consoles embraces the extreme violence of the Wolverine character, the Wii/PS2 version adopts a feel that is more in line with Wolverine from the three X-Men movies. There’s still plenty of fighting, but there’s almost no actual bloodshed portrayed in the combat.”

The Wii combat also took the specific advantages of the Wii controller into consideration.

“You use the Wii controller in a very kinetic fashion to throw doors open, for example, and to lunge across the room at an opponent in a way that is unique to the Wii,” Benjamin said. “Because this version was developed separately with these considerations in mind, many of the story details end up being different as well.”

Writing for a video game involves writing a lot of different dialogue for a lot of events that could transpire, depending on how the game is played out. While it’s complex, Benjamin, who also writes for Marvel Comics, says it’s very rewarding.

“You have to try to cover all bases,” Benjamin said. “Ultimately, the fun of writing for games is seeing how the gameplay designers apply your words to the game. The coolest part of writing for this game was hearing Hugh Jackman and Liev Schreiber delivering my dialogue as Wolverine versus Sabretooth.”

By Matthew Price
From Friday’s The Oklahoman

X-Men Origins: Wolverine for the Nintendo Wii

Writer Paul Benjamin, a Putnam City North graduate who now lives in Austin, Texas, is a writer of comic books and video games.  He was able to merge knowledge from both worlds recently, as the writer of the PlayStation 2 and Nintendo Wii version of “X-Men Origins: Wolverine.”  Benjamin recently talked to The Oklahoman about the experience.  Look for more from Benjamin in Friday’s Weekend LOOK section of The Oklahoman.

Matt Price: What kind of research did you have to do to write the game?

Paul Benjamin: Yeah, this is the worst part of my job. I had to read A LOT of comics. When people hear that I write comics and video games, they generally assume that I just sit around reading comics and playing video games all day. Mostly that’s not true, but when starting a new project I do have to do some initial research. I am, of course, very familiar with Wolverine, but before I got started on the game I had to make sure I really had his voice down. I read some of Marc Guggenheim’s Wolverine comics because all of the Wii/PS2 in-game movies (aka Cinematics) came from the version of the game that Marc had written. I also spent time with classic Wolverine comics, like the first Wolverine mini-series, his early X-Men appearances and Origin, the tale of Wolverine as a boy that is the basis of the beginning of the film. I also got to read a synopsis of the movie, though there wasn’t enough time for me to fly out to Los Angeles to read the actual script. It’s not unusual for film scripts to be held so tightly under wraps that you have to go to the studio to read it to prevent leaks.

MP: What types of changes have to be made when creating the Wii/PS2 version of a game?

PB: This can vary greatly depending on the project. In this case, the Wii/PS2 version was being developed by a different studio from the Xbox 360/PS3/PC version. Though both versions shared cinematics and followed similar storylines, many other elements of the game were taken in different directions. For example, because the Wii tends to be owned by more casual gamers and has a large family following, the Wii version is much more family-friendly. Where the Uncaged Edition on the other consoles embraces the extreme violence of the Wolverine character, the Wii/PS2 version adopts a feel that is more in line with Wolverine from the three X-Men movies. There’s still plenty of fighting, but there’s almost no actual bloodshed portrayed in the combat.

Also, the Wii team took the unique motion sensitive Wii controls into account when making the game. You use the Wii controller in a very kinetic fashion to throw doors open, for example, and to lunge across the room at an opponent in a way that is unique to the Wii. Because this version was developed separately with these considerations in mind, many of the story details end up being different as well. The game has to be fun first and foremost, so the story was tweaked and revised to fit the gameplay involved. Overall things are the same, but one console’s version may have more levels set in one location than on another console, creating differences in where the story goes and how much we see of one character or another.

MP: What’s a typical day of writing for a video game project entail?

PB: Writing video games is a very different exercise from writing for other mediums. For example, when I write a comic book or graphic novel, I’m creating a narrative that goes from beginning to end. When writing a video game based on a movie (and on another video game), much of the story is predetermined. In addition, the gameplay drives the story to a great extent. Some days I spent all my time writing contextual action sequences. Those are situations where a series of events happens and you press certain buttons to change the course of the action. For example, Sabretooth might be trying to throw Wolverine off a truck and a series of button presses will either allow Wolverine to toss Sabretooth overboard or result in Logan going under the wheels. It’s my job to write dialogue for both scenarios. Ideally, voice over is recorded for several different versions of the scenario in case the designers end up using the same set up more than once.

On other days, I spent all my time just writing lines of dialogue for various characters. For example, I might write ten different lines that a specific group of bad guys will say when they engage Wolverine, ten more for when Wolverine hits them, etc. This is a real challenge because you’re writing these lines in a vacuum. You never know how they will be applied. Those enemies could end up cut from the game entirely or they could end up being used far more than originally expected because they are fun to fight. You have to try to cover all bases. Ultimately, the fun of writing for games is seeing how the gameplay designers apply your words to the game. The coolest part of writing for this game was hearing Hugh Jackman and Liev Schreiber delivering my dialogue as Wolverine versus Sabretooth. That’s something you can’t get from writing comics!

It’s an UNlikely week for comics, as three comics starting with the prefix “UN” are released. Kyle Roberts and Matt Price discuss two of them: Unwritten #1 and Unthinkable #1. Also discussed in this week’s NewsOK Comics Podcast are “Fusion” No. 1 featuring a Marvel-Top Cow crossover, and Wolverine 73.

“X-Men Origins: Wolverine” takes the top spot in the GameFly Top 10 list for the third week in a row.  The following are the GameFly Top 10 Lists for the week ending May 11, 2009.  “Terminator: Salvation” makes a move to No. 4 on the list, and “Punch-Out!” for the Wii has a strong showing at No. 6.  The GameFly Top 10 List reflects gamers’ choices from more than 6,000 titles for the Wii, PlayStation 2, Xbox, Xbox 360, GameCube, Game Boy Advance, Nintendo DS and PSP consoles.

Most Popular Games Cross-Platform:

1   X-Men Origins: Wolverine – Uncaged Edition   PS3, Xbox 360   Action Adventure   Activision
2   UFC 2009 Undisputed   PS3, Xbox 360   Fighting   THQ
3   Infamous   PS3   Action Adventure   Sony Computer Entertainment
4   Terminator: Salvation   PS3, Xbox 360   Action Adventure   WB Games
5   Prototype   PS3, Xbox 360   Action Adventure   Activision
6   Punch-Out!!   Wii   Fighting   Nintendo
7   Velvet Assassin   Xbox 360   Shooter   Gamecock Media Group
8   Chronicles of Riddick: Assault on Dark Athena   PS3, Xbox 360   Shooter   Atari
9   Godfather 2   PS3, Xbox 360   Action Adventure   Electronic Arts
10   Bionic Commando   PS3, Xbox 360   Action Adventure   Capcom

More lists after the break.

Xbox 360 Most Popular Games:

1   X-Men Origins: Wolverine – Uncaged Edition   Action Adventure   Activision
2   UFC 2009 Undisputed   Fighting   THQ
3   Terminator: Salvation   Action Adventure   WB Games
4   Prototype   Action Adventure   Activision
5   Velvet Assassin   Shooter   Gamecock Media Group
6   Chronicles of Riddick: Assault on Dark Athena   Shooter   Atari
7   Godfather 2   Action Adventure   Electronic Arts
8   Bionic Commando   Action Adventure   Capcom
9   Resident Evil 5   Action Adventure   Capcom
10   Ghostbusters   Action Adventure   Atari

PlayStation 3 Most Popular Games:

1   X-Men Origins: Wolverine – Uncaged Edition   Action Adventure   Activision
2   Infamous   Action Adventure   Sony Computer Entertainment
3   UFC 2009 Undisputed   Fighting   THQ
4   Terminator: Salvation   Action Adventure   WB Games
5   Killzone 2   Shooter   Sony Computer Entertainment
6   Prototype   Action Adventure   Activision
7   God of War III   Action Adventure   Sony Computer Entertainment
8   Bionic Commando   Action Adventure   Capcom
9   Resident Evil 5   Action Adventure   Capcom
10   Batman: Arkham Asylum   Action Adventure   Eidos

Nintendo Wii Most Popular Games:

1   Punch-Out!!   Fighting   Nintendo
2   MadWorld   Action Adventure   Sega
3   X-Men Origins: Wolverine   Action Adventure   Activision
4   Klonoa   Action Adventure   Namco
5   Donkey Kong Jungle Beat   Arcade/Puzzle   Nintendo
6   House of the Dead: Overkill   Shooter   Sega
7   Mario Kart Wii   Racing   Nintendo
8   The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess   Action Adventure   Nintendo
9   Super Mario Galaxy   Action Adventure   Nintendo
10   Excitebots: Trick Racing   Racing   Nintendo

PlayStation 2 Most Popular Games:

1   X-Men Origins: Wolverine   Action Adventure   Activision
2   Ultimate Ninja 4: Naruto Shippuden   Fighting   Namco
3   God of War II   Action Adventure   Sony Computer Entertainment
4   Guitar Hero: Metallica   Arcade/Puzzle   Activision
5   Kingdom Hearts: Re-Chain of Memories   RPG   Square Enix
6   Shadow of the Colossus   Action Adventure   Sony Computer Entertainment
7   God of War   Action Adventure   Sony Computer Entertainment
8   Persona 4   RPG   Atlus
9   Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen   Action Adventure   Activision
10   Devil Summoner 2: Raidou Kuzunoha versus King Abaddon   RPG   Atlus

Nintendo DS Most Popular Games:

1   Rhythm Heaven   Arcade/Puzzle   Nintendo
2   Pokemon Platinum   Strategy/Sim   Nintendo
3   Grand Theft Auto: Chinatown Wars   Action Adventure   Take Two
4   Gardening Mama   Strategy/Sim   Majesco
5   New Super Mario Bros.   Action Adventure   Nintendo
6   Fire Emblem: Shadow Dragon   RPG   Nintendo
7   Professor Layton & the Curious Village   Arcade/Puzzle   Nintendo
8   Henry Hatsworth & the Puzzling Adventure   Arcade/Puzzle   Electronic Arts
9   Mario Kart DS   Racing   Nintendo
10   Kingdom Hearts 358/2 Days   RPG   Square Enix

PlayStation Portable Most Popular Games:

1   X-Men Origins: Wolverine   Action Adventure   Activision
2   Resistance: Retribution   Shooter   Sony Computer Entertainment
3   God of War: Chains of Olympus   Action Adventure   Sony Computer Entertainment
4   Dynasty Warriors: Strikeforce   Action Adventure   Koei
5   Crisis Core: Final Fantasy VII   RPG   Square Enix
6   Star Ocean: Second Evolution   RPG   Square Enix
7   Rock Band Unplugged   Arcade/Puzzle   Electronic Arts
8   Dissidia: Final Fantasy   RPG   Square Enix
9   Killzone: Liberation   Shooter   Sony Computer Entertainment
10   Monster Hunter Freedom Unite   RPG   Capcom

Xbox Most Popular Games:

1   Halo 2   Shooter   Microsoft
2   Star Wars Knights of the Old Republic II: The Sith Lords   RPG   LucasArts
3   Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic   Action Adventure   LucasArts
4   Star Wars: Republic Commando   Shooter   LucasArts
5   Halo   Shooter   Microsoft
6   Star Wars Jedi Knight: Jedi Academy   Action Adventure   LucasArts
7   Star Wars: Battlefront II   Action Adventure   LucasArts
8   Fable   RPG   Microsoft
9   Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas – 2nd Edition   Action Adventure   Take Two
10   Red Dead Revolver   Shooter   Take Two

GameCube Most Popular Games:

1   Legend of Zelda: Collector’s Edition   RPG   Nintendo
2   Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time   RPG   Nintendo
3   Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker   Action Adventure   Nintendo
4   Super Smash Bros. Melee   Fighting   Nintendo
5   Resident Evil   Action Adventure   Capcom
6   Pokemon XD: Gale of Darkness   Action Adventure   Nintendo
7   Super Mario Sunshine   Action Adventure   Nintendo
8   Resident Evil 2   Action Adventure   Capcom
9   Luigi’s Mansion   Action Adventure   Nintendo
10   The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess   Action Adventure   Nintendo

Game Boy Advance Most Popular Games:

1   Pokemon Emerald   Action Adventure   Nintendo
2   Pokemon Fire Red   Strategy/Sim   Nintendo
3   Pokemon: Ruby   RPG   Nintendo
4   Pokemon Leaf Green   Strategy/Sim   Nintendo
5   Pokemon: Sapphire   RPG   Nintendo
6   Mario & Luigi: Superstar Saga   Action Adventure   Nintendo
7   Super Mario Advance 4   Action Adventure   Nintendo
8   Legend of Zelda: Minish Cap   RPG   Nintendo
9   Super Mario World: Advance 2   Action Adventure   Nintendo
10   Final Fantasy VI Advance   RPG   Nintendo

Most Popular “E” Rated Games – Cross-Platform:

1   Punch-Out!!   Wii   Fighting   Nintendo
2   Madden NFL 10   PS3, Xbox 360, Wii, PSP Games, PS2   Sports   Electronic Arts
3   Major League Baseball 2K9   PS3, Xbox 360, Wii, PSP Games, PS2   Sports   Take Two
4   Tiger Woods PGA TOUR 10   PS3, Xbox 360, Wii, PSP Games, PS2   Sports   Electronic Arts
5   Fuel   PS3, Xbox 360   Racing   WB Games
6   NBA 2K9   PS3, Xbox 360, PS2   Sports   Take Two
7   Klonoa   Wii   Action Adventure   Namco
8   MLB ‘09: The Show   PS3, PSP Games, PS2   Sports   Sony Computer Entertainment
9   Night at the Museum: Battle of the Smithsonian   Xbox 360, Wii, DS   Action Adventure   Majesco
10   Little Big Planet   PS3   Action Adventure   Sony Computer Entertainment

Xbox 360 – Most Popular “E” Rated Games:

1   Madden NFL 10   Sports   Electronic Arts
2   Major League Baseball 2K9   Sports   Take Two
3   Tiger Woods PGA TOUR 10   Sports   Electronic Arts
4   Fuel   Racing   WB Games
5   NBA 2K9   Sports   Take Two
6   Night at the Museum: Battle of the Smithsonian   Action Adventure   Majesco
7   NCAA Football 10   Sports   Electronic Arts
8   NHL 09   Sports   Electronic Arts
9   Sonic’s Ultimate Genesis Collection   Arcade/Puzzle   Sega
10   Pure   Racing   Disney Interactive

PlayStation 3 – Most Popular “E” Rated Games:

1   MLB ‘09: The Show   Sports   Sony Computer Entertainment
2   Little Big Planet   Action Adventure   Sony Computer Entertainment
3   Fuel   Racing   WB Games
4   Madden NFL 10   Sports   Electronic Arts
5   Tiger Woods PGA TOUR 10   Sports   Electronic Arts
6   Ratchet & Clank Future: Tools of Destruction   Action Adventure   Sony Computer Entertainment
7   NCAA Football 10   Sports   Electronic Arts
8   NHL 09   Sports   Electronic Arts
9   Sonic’s Ultimate Genesis Collection   Arcade/Puzzle   Sega
10   FIFA Soccer 09   Sports   Electronic Arts

Nintendo Wii – Most Popular “E” Rated Games:

1   Punch-Out!!   Fighting   Nintendo
2   Klonoa   Action Adventure   Namco
3   Donkey Kong Jungle Beat   Arcade/Puzzle   Nintendo
4   Mario Kart Wii   Racing   Nintendo
5   Super Mario Galaxy   Action Adventure   Nintendo
6   Excitebots: Trick Racing   Racing   Nintendo
7   Mario Power Tennis   Sports   Nintendo
8   Boom Blox: Bash Party   Arcade/Puzzle   Electronic Arts
9   Sonic and the Black Knight   Action Adventure   Sega
10   Gold’s Gym Cardio Workout   Strategy/Sim   Ubisoft

PlayStation 2 – Most Popular “E” Rated Games:

1   Kingdom Hearts: Re-Chain of Memories   RPG   Square Enix
2   Kingdom Hearts II   RPG   Square Enix
3   MLB ‘09: The Show   Sports   Sony Computer Entertainment
4   Monsters vs. Aliens   Kids/Family   Activision
5   Sonic Unleashed   Action Adventure   Sega
6   Kingdom Hearts   RPG   Square Enix
7   Madden NFL 10   Sports   Electronic Arts
8   Spider-Man: Web of Shadows   Action Adventure   Activision
9   Ghostbusters   Action Adventure   Atari
10   LEGO Indiana Jones   Action Adventure   LucasArts

Nintendo DS – Most Popular “E” Rated Games:

1   Rhythm Heaven   Arcade/Puzzle   Nintendo
2   Pokemon Platinum   Strategy/Sim   Nintendo
3   Gardening Mama   Strategy/Sim   Majesco
4   New Super Mario Bros.   Action Adventure   Nintendo
5   Fire Emblem: Shadow Dragon   RPG   Nintendo
6   Professor Layton & the Curious Village   Arcade/Puzzle   Nintendo
7   Henry Hatsworth & the Puzzling Adventure   Arcade/Puzzle   Electronic Arts
8   Mario Kart DS   Racing   Nintendo
9   The Legend of Zelda: Phantom Hourglass   RPG   Nintendo
10   Chrono Trigger   RPG   Square Enix

PlayStation Portable – Most Popular “E” Rated Games:

1   MLB ‘09: The Show   Sports   Sony Computer Entertainment
2   Patapon   Action Adventure   Sony Computer Entertainment
3   LocoRoco 2   Arcade/Puzzle   Sony Computer Entertainment
4   Up   Kids/Family   THQ
5   Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen   Action Adventure   Activision
6   Final Fantasy   RPG   Square Enix
7   Secret Agent Clank   Action Adventure   Sony Computer Entertainment
8   DT Carnage   Racing   Agetec
9   NBA Live 09   Sports   Electronic Arts
10   Madden NFL 10   Sports   Electronic Arts

Xbox – Most “E” Rated Popular Games:

1   Sonic Heroes   Action Adventure   Sega
2   Madden NFL 09   Sports   Electronic Arts
3   Over the Hedge   Kids/Family   Activision
4   Need for Speed: Underground 2   Racing   Electronic Arts
5   SpongeBob SquarePants: Lights, Camera, Pants!   Kids/Family   THQ
6   AirForce Delta Storm   Shooter   Konami
7   Spongebob: The Battle for Bikini Bottom   Kids/Family   THQ
8   Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles   Action Adventure   Konami
9   Need For Speed: Hot Pursuit 2   Racing   Electronic Arts
10   Star Wars Starfighter: Special Edition   Action Adventure   LucasArts

Gamecube – Most Popular “E” Rated Games:

1   Legend of Zelda: Collector’s Edition   RPG   Nintendo
2   Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time   RPG   Nintendo
3   Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker   Action Adventure   Nintendo
4   Pokemon XD: Gale of Darkness   Action Adventure   Nintendo
5   Super Mario Sunshine   Action Adventure   Nintendo
6   Luigi’s Mansion   Action Adventure   Nintendo
7   Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door   Action Adventure   Nintendo
8   Mario Kart: Double Dash   Racing   Nintendo
9   Pokemon Colosseum   Action Adventure   Nintendo
10   Legend of Zelda: Four Swords Adventures   Action Adventure   Nintendo

Gameboy Advance – Most Popular “E” Rated Games:

1   Pokemon Emerald   Action Adventure   Nintendo
2   Pokemon Fire Red   Strategy/Sim   Nintendo
3   Pokemon: Ruby   RPG   Nintendo
4   Pokemon Leaf Green   Strategy/Sim   Nintendo
5   Pokemon: Sapphire   RPG   Nintendo
6   Mario & Luigi: Superstar Saga   Action Adventure   Nintendo
7   Super Mario Advance 4   Action Adventure   Nintendo
8   Legend of Zelda: Minish Cap   RPG   Nintendo
9   Super Mario World: Advance 2   Action Adventure   Nintendo
10   Final Fantasy VI Advance   RPG   Nintendo

Most Popular Sports Games Cross-Platform:

1   Madden NFL 10   PS3, Xbox 360, Wii, PSP Games, PS2   Electronic Arts
2   Skate 2   PS3, Xbox 360   Electronic Arts
3   Major League Baseball 2K9   PS3, Xbox 360, Wii, PSP Games, PS2   Take Two
4   Tiger Woods PGA TOUR 10   PS3, Xbox 360, Wii, PSP Games, PS2   Electronic Arts
5   NBA 2K9   PS3, Xbox 360, PS2   Take Two
6   MLB ‘09: The Show   PS3, PSP Games, PS2   Sony Computer Entertainment
7   NCAA Football 10   PS3, Xbox 360, PSP Games, PS2   Electronic Arts
8   NHL 09   PS3, Xbox 360, PS2   Electronic Arts
9   Shaun White Snowboarding   PS3, Xbox 360, DS, PSP Games, PS2   Ubisoft
10   NBA Live 09   PS3, Xbox 360, PSP Games, PS2   Electronic Arts

Xbox 360 Most Popular Sports Games:

1   Madden NFL 10   Sports   Electronic Arts
2   Skate 2   Sports   Electronic Arts
3   Major League Baseball 2K9   Sports   Take Two
4   Tiger Woods PGA TOUR 10   Sports   Electronic Arts
5   NBA 2K9   Sports   Take Two
6   NCAA Football 10   Sports   Electronic Arts
7   NHL 09   Sports   Electronic Arts
8   Shaun White Snowboarding   Sports   Ubisoft
9   NBA Live 09   Sports   Electronic Arts
10   Tiger Woods PGA Tour 09   Sports   Electronic Arts

PlayStation 3 Most Popular Sports Games:

1   MLB ‘09: The Show   Sports   Sony Computer Entertainment
2   Madden NFL 10   Sports   Electronic Arts
3   Tiger Woods PGA TOUR 10   Sports   Electronic Arts
4   Skate 2   Sports   Electronic Arts
5   NCAA Football 10   Sports   Electronic Arts
6   NHL 09   Sports   Electronic Arts
7   FIFA Soccer 09   Sports   Electronic Arts
8   NBA 2K9   Sports   Take Two
9   NBA Live 09   Sports   Electronic Arts
10   Tiger Woods PGA Tour 09   Sports   Electronic Arts

Nintendo Wii Most Popular Sports Games:

1   Mario Power Tennis   Sports   Nintendo
2   Mario Super Sluggers   Sports   Nintendo
3   Tiger Woods PGA TOUR 10   Sports   Electronic Arts
4   EA Sports: Grand Slam Tennis   Sports   Electronic Arts
5   Tiger Woods PGA Tour 09 All-Play   Sports   Electronic Arts
6   We Ski & Snowboard   Sports   Namco
7   Mario Strikers Charged   Sports   Nintendo
8   Major League Baseball 2K9   Sports   Take Two
9   Skate It   Sports   Electronic Arts
10   Shaun White Snowboarding Road Trip   Sports   Ubisoft

PlayStation 2 Most Popular Sports Games:

1   MLB ‘09: The Show   Sports   Sony Computer Entertainment
2   Madden NFL 10   Sports   Electronic Arts
3   NBA Live 09   Sports   Electronic Arts
4   Madden NFL 09   Sports   Electronic Arts
5   Major League Baseball 2K9   Sports   Take Two
6   NCAA Football 10   Sports   Electronic Arts
7   Shaun White Snowboarding   Sports   Ubisoft
8   Tiger Woods PGA TOUR 10   Sports   Electronic Arts
9   NHL 09   Sports   Electronic Arts
10   The Bigs 2   Sports   Take Two

Nintendo DS Most Popular Sports Games:

1   Polar Bowler   Sports   Mumbo Jumbo
2   Mario & Sonic at the Winter Olympic Games   Sports   Sega
3   Madden NFL 09   Sports   Electronic Arts
4   Mario Hoops 3 on 3   Sports   Nintendo
5   Skate It   Sports   Electronic Arts
6   Tony Hawk’s Proving Ground   Sports   Activision
7   MLB Power Pros 2008   Sports   Take Two
8   FIFA Soccer 09   Sports   Electronic Arts
9   Major League Baseball 2K7   Sports   Take Two
10   Little League World Series 2009   Sports   Activision

PlayStation Portable Most Popular Sports Games:

1   MLB ‘09: The Show   Sports   Sony Computer Entertainment
2   NBA Live 09   Sports   Electronic Arts
3   Madden NFL 10   Sports   Electronic Arts
4   NBA 09 The Inside   Sports   Sony Computer Entertainment
5   Madden NFL 09   Sports   Electronic Arts
6   Major League Baseball 2K9   Sports   Take Two
7   Tony Hawk’s Underground 2 Remix   Sports   Activision
8   FIFA Soccer 09   Sports   Electronic Arts
9   NCAA Football 10   Sports   Electronic Arts
10   Tiger Woods PGA TOUR 10   Sports   Electronic Arts

Xbox Most Popular Sports Games:

1   Madden NFL 09   Sports   Electronic Arts
2   BMX XXX   Sports   Acclaim
3   Tony Hawk’s Underground (THUG)   Sports   Activision
4   SSX 3: Out of Bounds   Sports   Electronic Arts
5   Tony Hawk’s American Wasteland   Sports   Activision
6   ESPN NFL 2K5   Sports   Sega
7   Tony Hawk’s Underground 2   Sports   Activision
8   NHL 07   Sports   Electronic Arts
9   Fuzion Frenzy   Sports   Microsoft
10   Kelly Slater’s Pro Surfer   Sports   Activision

Gamecube Most Popular Sports Games:

1   Super Mario Strikers   Sports   Nintendo
2   Mario Superstar Baseball   Sports   Nintendo
3   Mario Power Tennis   Sports   Nintendo
4   Mario Golf: Toadstool Tour   Sports   Nintendo
5   NBA Street Vol. 3   Sports   Electronic Arts
6   SSX Tricky   Sports   Electronic Arts
7   Tony Hawk’s Underground 2   Sports   Activision
8   NFL Street 2   Sports   Electronic Arts
9   SSX On Tour   Sports   Electronic Arts
10   Madden NFL 08   Sports   Electronic Arts

Gameboy Advance Most Popular Sports Games:

1   Mario Tennis: Power Tour   Sports   Nintendo
2   Mario Golf: Advance Tour   Sports   Nintendo
3   Backyard Sports: Baseball 2007   Sports   Atari
4   Killer 3D Pool   Sports   DSI Games
5   Madden NFL 2005   Sports   Electronic Arts
6   Ten Pin Alley 2   Sports   XS Games
7   Virtua Tennis   Sports   THQ

“X-Men Origins: Wolverine” hangs on to the top spot in the GameFly Top 10 list for the second week in a row.  The following are the GameFly Top 10 Lists for the week ending April 27, 2009.  The GameFly Top 10 List reflects gamers’ choices from more than 6,000 titles for the Wii, PlayStation 2, Xbox, Xbox 360, GameCube, Game Boy Advance, Nintendo DS and PSP consoles.  Source: www.gamefly.com.

Most Popular Games Cross-Platform:

1X-Men Origins: Wolverine – Uncaged EditionPS3, Xbox 360Action AdventureActivision
2UFC 2009 UndisputedPS3, Xbox 360FightingTHQ
3Velvet AssassinXbox 360ShooterGamecock Media Group
4Chronicles of Riddick: Assault on Dark AthenaPS3, Xbox 360ShooterAtari
5InfamousPS3Action AdventureSony Computer Entertainment
6Godfather 2PS3, Xbox 360Action AdventureElectronic Arts
7Resident Evil 5PS3, Xbox 360Action AdventureCapcom
8PrototypePS3, Xbox 360Action AdventureActivision
9WheelmanPS3, Xbox 360RacingUbisoft
10Ninja BladeXbox 360FightingMicrosoft

More lists after the break.

Xbox 360 Most Popular Games:

1X-Men Origins: Wolverine – Uncaged EditionAction AdventureActivision
2UFC 2009 UndisputedFightingTHQ
3Velvet AssassinShooterGamecock Media Group
4Chronicles of Riddick: Assault on Dark AthenaShooterAtari
5Godfather 2Action AdventureElectronic Arts
6Resident Evil 5Action AdventureCapcom
7PrototypeAction AdventureActivision
8WheelmanRacingUbisoft
9Ninja BladeFightingMicrosoft
10Terminator: SalvationAction AdventureWB Games

PlayStation 3 Most Popular Games:

1X-Men Origins: Wolverine – Uncaged EditionAction AdventureActivision
2InfamousAction AdventureSony Computer Entertainment
3UFC 2009 UndisputedFightingTHQ
4Killzone 2ShooterSony Computer Entertainment
5Batman: Arkham AsylumAction AdventureEidos
6God of War IIIAction AdventureSony Computer Entertainment
7PrototypeAction AdventureActivision
8Terminator: SalvationAction AdventureWB Games
9Godfather 2Action AdventureElectronic Arts
10Chronicles of Riddick: Assault on Dark AthenaShooterAtari

Nintendo Wii Most Popular Games:

1Punch-Out!!FightingNintendo
2MadWorldAction AdventureSega
3X-Men Origins: WolverineAction AdventureActivision
4House of the Dead: OverkillShooterSega
5Mario Kart WiiRacingNintendo
6KlonoaAction AdventureNamco
7Super Mario GalaxyAction AdventureNintendo
8Excitebots: Trick RacingRacingNintendo
9The Legend of Zelda: Twilight PrincessAction AdventureNintendo
10Deadly CreaturesAction AdventureTHQ

PlayStation 2 Most Popular Games:

1X-Men Origins: WolverineAction AdventureActivision
2Ultimate Ninja 4: Naruto ShippudenFightingNamco
3God of War IIAction AdventureSony Computer Entertainment
4Guitar Hero: MetallicaArcade/PuzzleActivision
5Kingdom Hearts: Re-Chain of MemoriesRPGSquare Enix
6Shadow of the ColossusAction AdventureSony Computer Entertainment
7God of WarAction AdventureSony Computer Entertainment
8Sonic UnleashedAction AdventureSega
9Monsters vs. AliensKids/FamilyActivision
10Kingdom Hearts IIRPGSquare Enix

Nintendo DS Most Popular Games:

1Rhythm HeavenArcade/PuzzleNintendo
2Pokemon PlatinumStrategy/SimNintendo
3Grand Theft Auto: Chinatown WarsAction AdventureTake Two
4Fire Emblem: Shadow DragonRPGNintendo
5Gardening MamaStrategy/SimMajesco
6Professor Layton & the Curious VillageArcade/PuzzleNintendo
7New Super Mario Bros.Action AdventureNintendo
8Mario Kart DSRacingNintendo
9Chrono TriggerRPGSquare Enix
10Final Fantasy Crystal Chronicles: Echoes of TimeRPGSquare Enix

PlayStation Portable Most Popular Games:

1X-Men Origins: WolverineAction AdventureActivision
2Resistance: RetributionShooterSony Computer Entertainment
3God of War: Chains of OlympusAction AdventureSony Computer Entertainment
4Dynasty Warriors: StrikeforceAction AdventureKoei
5Crisis Core: Final Fantasy VIIRPGSquare Enix
6Dissidia: Final FantasyRPGSquare Enix
7Star Ocean: Second EvolutionRPGSquare Enix
8Tenchu: Shadow AssassinsAction AdventureUbisoft
9Rock Band UnpluggedArcade/PuzzleElectronic Arts
10Killzone: LiberationShooterSony Computer Entertainment

Xbox Most Popular Games:

1Star Wars: Knights of the Old RepublicAction AdventureLucasArts
2Halo 2ShooterMicrosoft
3Star Wars Knights of the Old Republic II: The Sith LordsRPGLucasArts
4Star Wars Jedi Knight: Jedi AcademyAction AdventureLucasArts
5Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas – 2nd EditionAction AdventureTake Two
6Star Wars: Republic CommandoShooterLucasArts
7Conker: Live and ReloadedShooterMicrosoft
8HaloShooterMicrosoft
9Star Wars: Battlefront IIAction AdventureLucasArts
10FableRPGMicrosoft

GameCube Most Popular Games:

1Legend of Zelda: Collector’s EditionRPGNintendo
2Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of TimeRPGNintendo
3Pokemon XD: Gale of DarknessAction AdventureNintendo
4Legend of Zelda: The Wind WakerAction AdventureNintendo
5Resident EvilAction AdventureCapcom
6Super Mario SunshineAction AdventureNintendo
7Resident Evil 2Action AdventureCapcom
8Super Smash Bros. MeleeFightingNintendo
9Metal Gear Solid: Twin SnakesAction AdventureKonami
10Resident Evil 3: NemesisAction AdventureCapcom

Game Boy Advance Most Popular Games:

1Pokemon EmeraldAction AdventureNintendo
2Pokemon Fire RedStrategy/SimNintendo
3Pokemon: SapphireRPGNintendo
4Pokemon Leaf GreenStrategy/SimNintendo
5Pokemon: RubyRPGNintendo
6Legend of Zelda: Minish CapRPGNintendo
7Golden SunRPGNintendo
8Super Mario Advance 4Action AdventureNintendo
9Super Mario World: Advance 2Action AdventureNintendo
10Classic NES Series: Super Mario Bros.Action AdventureNintendo

WORD BALLOONS

As “X-Men Origins: Wolverine” is released, local comic book stores will give away a “Wolverine” comic book as part of the eighth annual Free Comic Book Day.

Thousands of comic book stores worldwide will give free comic books to patrons Saturday as part of the annual celebration.

Free Comic Book Day was the idea of California comic book retailer Joe Field, and it is implemented through comic book distributor Diamond Comics.

Diamond Comics estimates more than 2 million comic books will be given away worldwide.

DC Comics will kick off its largest 2009 event, “Blackest Night,” with a free “zero” issue on Free Comic Book Day. The issue includes a lead story that leads directly into “Blackest Night” No. 1.

“The first half is by me and Ivan Reis,” Johns said at the recent ComicsPRO annual meeting in Memphis. “It’s a 12-page story that’s a lead-in to the DC Universe through Hal Jordan (Green Lantern) and Barry Allen (Flash).” The second half of the issue is by artist Doug Mahnke and Johns, and is a guide to the different organizations that will play into the “Blackest Night” storyline.

Other comics will feature Disney/Pixar’s Cars, the Avengers, Star Wars, Transformers, and Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles.

Giveaway books may vary by location and are available while supplies last.

In addition to the participating comic book stores, Metro Library Systems will participate in Free Comic Book Day.

For more information, go online to www.freecomicbookday.com.

By Matthew Price
From Friday’s The Oklahoman

The X-Men have returned to television screens with “Wolverine and the X-Men,” the first three episodes of which are presented on DVD with the “Heroes Return Trilogy.”

In “Wolverine and the X-Men,” a catastrophe has struck the X-Men, destroying Professor Xavier’s School for Gifted Youngsters. The X-Men have disbanded, and mutants face persecution and imprisonment.

Wolverine (voiced by Steve Blum) begins to track down his former teammates, including Beast, Cyclops, and Rogue.

While Wolverine hasn’t taken a leadership role often in “X-Men,” circumstances dictate that he’s the only choice to lead this team. Supervising producer Craig Kyle points out in the commentary that the show’s creators intentionally switched the typical roles of Cyclops and Wolverine, that of leader and loner.

Some fans have complained that, at only 68 minutes, the DVD doesn’t provide enough value for its $14.98 retail price. While a full-season release would be preferable, there are multiple commentaries on each episode, and it allowed Lionsgate to have a “Wolverine” property available as the “X-Men Origins: Wolverine” theatrical film is released.

- Matthew Price

THE NEXT LEVEL

Voice actor Steve Blum heard Wolverine’s voice in his head from a young age, when he sat in his grandfather’s book store sorting comic book collections purchased by his uncle.

Today, he voices the character in “Wolverine and the X-Men,” the first three episodes of which have just been released on DVD. Blum first voiced the character of Wolverine in 2004 in the “X-Men Legends” video game. He’s since returned to Wolverine in additional video games, and in the “Hulk Vs. Wolverine” DVD film from earlier this year.

“Initially my take on Wolverine was based on what I had been hearing in my head since I was a comic-book kid,” Blum said in a recent phone interview with The Oklahoman. “I didn’t really base it on anything but that. I really tried to divorce myself from all of the other animated incarnations. And though I love Hugh Jackman’s on-camera version of Wolverine, I have a different voice in my head for sort of a comic book/animated representation of him.”

In “Wolverine and the X-Men,” the X-Men have been disbanded after an attack on Professor Xavier. Wolverine, known as a loner, must regroup the team under his leadership. The character of Wolverine is as high-profile as ever, with appearances in comics, the animated series, and a big-budget movie, “X-Men Origins: Wolverine,” starring Jackman. Wolverine wasn’t necessarily the most likely multimedia star, first appearing as an antagonist to the Hulk in “Incredible Hulk” No. 181. Blum’s path to voice acting was also somewhat circumspect.

Blum broke in as a voice actor almost by accident, while working as a driver for a low-budget sci-fi film company.

“In the mailroom, we had a lot of time to just banter around and tell awful jokes,” Blum said. “I just happened to mess around with voices.”

A friend who was casting an anime production for a new company heard Blum’s voices, and asked if he’d be interested to come in and create some monster voices.

“He’d pay me $7 a line for doing it and feed me breakfast and lunch, and I thought that was the best deal I ever heard of,” Blum said.

Blum said the timing of voice-over for anime came to him very naturally.

“I was able to fall in step with the sounds that they needed for their creatures, and eventually that evolved into actual acting and creating voices for human-like characters,” he said. “I kind of learned on the job, I really had no acting training. Just doing it for 15 years in anime was really my schooling.”

Blum said working on “Wolverine and the X-Men” is an incredible ride, as more and more characters from the X-Men’s world are brought to life.

“It’s really the realization of a fanboy’s dream, it’s amazing for me,” Blum said. “In the studio, when we were recording the series, for me to sit and listen to the other characters come to life around me was just as exciting as doing the voice itself.”

By Matthew Price
From Friday’s The Oklahoman

Matt Price and Kyle Roberts review X-Men Origins: Wolverine and talk about a few of the best comics that came out this week, including the one-shot with the same title, X-Men Origins: Wolverine; Batman Battle for the Cowl: The Underground, and Final Crisis: Legion of Three Worlds #4.

Kyle Roberts heads down to Warren Theatre in Moore for the midnight showing of Wolverine to see how much trivia X-fans know.

The beginnings of Wolverine are explored in “X-Men Origins: Wolverine,” a tight, just-under-two-hours action thriller.

It takes pieces from the graphic novels “Wolverine Origin” and “Weapon X,” but the heart of the film is the Wolverine-Sabretooth relationship.

Hugh Jackman returns as Wolverine, who starts the film as a sickly young boy named James Howlett.   A family dispute leaves him fatherless and homeless, and his only companion is another youngster, the violent and dangerous Victor Creed.  James’ life through the ages as a hard-bitten fighter and warrior, with Victor Creed (Liev Schreiber), aka Sabretooth at his side, is shown as the film opens.  Eventually, Victor’s sadistic and violent proclivities get the pair in trouble. However, their unusual talents are of special interest to Col. William Stryker (Danny Huston), who recruits them for a special mutant task force.

This black ops task force doesn’t always have the best interests of the innocent in mind, and James eventually tires of the killing, leaving Victor alone for perhaps the first time ever. James retires to Canada, where he’s known as Logan and works as a lumberjack. He’s seemingly at peace for the first time. But his past can’t leave him alone. It haunts his dreams — and eventually it returns in his waking life, as well.

When it appears someone is hunting down his old task force comrades, Logan agrees to have a possibly fatal procedure performed, melding the unbreakable metal adamantium to his bones and claws.  But, he discovers, not all is as it seems, and his enemies may not be who he thought they were.

The final quarter of the film, where Wolverine seeks to put and end to an mutant experimentation project, drags a little and doesn’t entirely make sense.  But until then, “X-Men Origins: Wolverine” is a sleek superhero action film.  The cool Cajun mutant Gambit (Taylor Kitsch) seems a likely spinoff star, as does Ryan Reynolds’ Wade Wilson, a member of the black ops squad.

- Matt Price

“X-Men Origins: Wolverine” has sold out close to 300 performances, according to MovieTickets.com.
That sounds pretty good, but “Wolverine” is trailing “Transformers” by 2-to-1 at the same point in the sales cycle. “Transformers” is MovieTickets.com’s No. 25 pre-seller of all-time.

“Wolverine” accounts for 73 percent of tickets sold at the site Thursday as of 12 p.m. ET.

- Matt Price

The “Weapon X” storyline was serialized in “Marvel Comics Presents” in eight-page installments that were written and drawn by Barry Windsor-Smith, who became a comics superstar with another barbarian, Conan.
Windsor-Smith is a favorite of mine, and his “Weapon X,” now available as a premiere hardcover from Marvel, is another of the great Wolverine stories.

This series explains how Logan, who would later become Wolverine, ended up with the unbreakable metal adamantium bound to his bones.  It’s more than that, as well, it examines the difference between man and animals and a soldier and a weapon.  Beautiful art, incredibly violent.

- Matt Price

- Matt Price

MARVEL, X-Men, all related characters: TM & © 2009 Marvel Entertainment, Inc. and its subsidiaries. Licensed by Marvel Characters B.V. www.marvel.com. All rights reserved.

Writer Antony Johnston has handled everything from romantic comedy to the apocalypse, and in between, as an in-demand comic-book writer.  This month, he takes a new spin on Wolverine, creating Del Rey’s manga version of the character in “Wolverine: Prodigal Son.”  Drawing the series is Filipino artist Wilson Tortosa, best known for his work on Top Cow’s “Battle of the Planets.”  Johnston talked to The Oklahoman about his take on the mutant hero.

Matt Price: Your Wolverine takes an “all-new, all-different” spin from the classic Wolverine character. How did you decide what to keep, and what to jettison, from the regular Marvel Comics Wolverine character?

Antony Johnston: I started with the aim of removing as much baggage from the existing character as I could; to strip him down to his essentials, without removing the things that make him who he is. So the costume, him being a superhero, the X-Men, his rogues’ gallery… all those were dropped. That left us with the core essence of the character – his personality, his claws, his healing factor, and of course his crazy hairdo.

It’s important to realize that this isn’t about taking Wolverine, the superhero, and shoehorning him into a story where he doesn’t fit. This is about taking Logan, the man, and building him into a manga hero. That was the biggest influence on those decisions, and I was pretty ruthless about it.

MP: Tell me about your artist on the series.

AJ: His name’s Wilson Tortosa, a Filipino, and he’s best known in American comics for drawing the “Battle Of The Planets” book from Top Cow a few years back. I hadn’t worked with Wilson before, but as soon as I saw his first few pages of “Wolverine” layouts I knew he was perfect for the book. His pages are very kinetic, and he also has a good sense of storytelling dynamics for when the art needs to be more contemplative. I especially like how you can clearly see that manga has been a big influence on his work, but he’s not aping anyone. He has his own unique style.

MP: What was harder: writing a book that would appeal to Wolverine fans, or writing a book that would appeal to manga readers?

AJ: We didn’t really think of this book as trying to appeal to existing Wolverine fans at all. There are a few references, little nods, that sort of thing, for those fans to recognize and raise a smile. But our main concern was writing for manga readers. Yes, it was challenging at times, because we knew we’d have an uphill struggle to convince them that actually, they really do want to read a book about Wolverine! But it’s a good challenge, and one I relished.

MP: What is the long-term plan for “Wolverine: Prodigal Son”? Is it ongoing, or is there a definitive ending in mind?

AJ: The original agreement with Marvel was for two volumes. But everyone hopes they’ll succeed, so we can go on to do more and make it a longer series. I’m certainly keeping my fingers crossed, I’d love to keep the series going. I’ve even left a few small threads dangling that we can return to…

MP: What influenced you in creating your Wolverine?

AJ: A combination of things. Obviously there’s the original Marvel version of the character. Without that, you don’t have Wolverine at all. But in bringing him over to this story, and “rebuilding” him into a manga hero, the main influences were manga both old and new – from “Lone Wolf & Cub” to “Naruto” – and modern boy’s YA adventure fiction, such as the “Alex Rider” and “Cherub” series. That may sound like chalk and cheese, but it was important to me that “our” Wolverine was firmly contemporary.

MP: Why do you think the Wolverine character has been so enduring, and so popular?

AJ: I think he taps into something that we all appreciate in our heroes. He doesn’t suffer fools gladly, he doesn’t trust easily, he questions authority and he’s self-sufficient. But once you earn his respect, you know he’ll stick by you till the bitter end. Sure, he’s got the claws and he can kick your ass, but I really think his personality is the biggest draw, because we all feel the world could use more people like that. Everyone hopes that when it all comes down, they’d be brave enough to take a stand. With Wolverine, we don’t have to hope.

MovieTickets.com is reporting more than 150 sold out performances for “X-Men Origins: Wolverine,” which kicks off the summer blockbuster season Friday. “Wolverine,” which stars Hugh Jackman and is based on the Marvel comic, accounts for 35 percent of all tickets sold this week at MovieTickets.com.

- Matt Price

“X-Men Origins: Wolverine” takes down “Godfather 2″ atop the GameFly Top 10 list this week.  “UFC 2009 Undisputed” holds down the second spot. The following are the GameFly Top 10 Lists for the week ending April 27, 2009.  The GameFly Top 10 List reflects gamers’ choices from more than 6,000 titles for the Wii, PlayStation 2, Xbox, Xbox 360, GameCube, Game Boy Advance, Nintendo DS and PSP consoles.  Source: www.gamefly.com.

Most Popular Games Cross-Platform:

1 X-Men Origins: Wolverine – Uncaged Edtion PS3, Xbox 360Action Adventure Activision
2 UFC 2009 Undisputed PS3, Xbox 360 Fighting THQ
3 Chronicles of Riddick: Assault on Dark Athena PS3, Xbox 360 Shooter Atari
4 Godfather 2 PS3, Xbox 360 Action Adventure Electronic Arts
5 Wheelman PS3, Xbox 360 Racing Ubisoft
6 Resident Evil 5 PS3, Xbox 360 Action Adventure Capcom
7 Ninja Blade Xbox 360 Fighting Microsoft
8 Wanted: Weapons of Fate PS3, Xbox 360 Shooter WB Games
9 Left 4 Dead Xbox 360 Shooter Electronic Arts
10 Prototype PS3, Xbox 360 Action Adventure Activision

More lists after the break.

Xbox 360 Most Popular Games:

1 X-Men Origins: Wolverine – Uncaged EdtionAction AdventureActivision
2 UFC 2009 UndisputedFightingTHQ
3 Chronicles of Riddick: Assault on Dark AthenaShooterAtari
4 Godfather 2Action AdventureElectronic Arts
5 WheelmanRacingUbisoft
6 Resident Evil 5Action AdventureCapcom
7 Ninja BladeFightingMicrosoft
8 Wanted: Weapons of FateShooterWB Games
9 Left 4 DeadShooterElectronic Arts
10 PrototypeAction AdventureActivision

PlayStation 3 Most Popular Games:

1 UFC 2009 UndisputedFightingTHQ
2 InfamousAction AdventureSony Computer Entertainment
3 X-Men Origins: Wolverine – Uncaged EdtionAction AdventureActivision
4 Killzone 2ShooterSony Computer Entertainment
5 Chronicles of Riddick: Assault on Dark AthenaShooterAtari
6 Godfather 2Action AdventureElectronic Arts
7 Resident Evil 5Action AdventureCapcom
8 WheelmanRacingUbisoft
9 God of War IIIAction AdventureSony Computer Entertainment
10 PrototypeAction AdventureActivision

Nintendo Wii Most Popular Games:

1 Punch-Out!!FightingNintendo
2 MadWorldAction AdventureSega
3 Excitebots: Trick RacingRacingNintendo
4 House of the Dead: OverkillShooterSega
5 Mario Kart WiiRacingNintendo
6 Super Mario GalaxyAction AdventureNintendo
7 The Legend of Zelda: Twilight PrincessAction AdventureNintendo
8 Mario Power TennisSportsNintendo
9 Gold’s Gym Cardio WorkoutStrategy/SimUbisoft
10 Monsters vs. AliensKids/FamilyActivision

PlayStation 2 Most Popular Games:

1 Ultimate Ninja 4: Naruto ShippudenFightingNamco
2 Guitar Hero: MetallicaArcade/PuzzleActivision
3 God of War IIAction AdventureSony Computer Entertainment
4 X-Men Origins: WolverineAction AdventureActivision
5 Kingdom Hearts: Re-Chain of MemoriesRPGSquare Enix
6 Persona 4RPGAtlus
7 Monsters vs. AliensKids/FamilyActivision
8 God of WarAction AdventureSony Computer Entertainment
9 Sonic UnleashedAction AdventureSega
10 Shadow of the ColossusAction AdventureSony Computer Entertainment

Nintendo DS Most Popular Games:

1 Pokemon PlatinumStrategy/SimNintendo
2 Grand Theft Auto: Chinatown WarsAction AdventureTake Two
3 Rhythm HeavenArcade/PuzzleNintendo
4 Professor Layton & the Curious VillageArcade/PuzzleNintendo
5 Gardening MamaStrategy/SimMajesco
6 Fire Emblem: Shadow DragonRPGNintendo
7 Henry Hatsworth & the Puzzling AdventureArcade/PuzzleElectronic Arts
8 New Super Mario Bros.Action AdventureNintendo
9 Mario Kart DSRacingNintendo
10 Final Fantasy Crystal Chronicles: Echoes of TimeRPGSquare Enix

PlayStation Portable Most Popular Games:

1 Resistance: RetributionShooterSony Computer Entertainment
2 X-Men Origins: WolverineAction AdventureActivision
3 God of War: Chains of OlympusAction AdventureSony Computer Entertainment
4 Crisis Core: Final Fantasy VIIRPGSquare Enix
5 Star Ocean: Second EvolutionRPGSquare Enix
6 Dynasty Warriors: StrikeforceAction AdventureKoei
7 Rock Band UnpluggedArcade/PuzzleElectronic Arts
8 Killzone: LiberationShooterSony Computer Entertainment
9 Dissidia: Final FantasyRPGSquare Enix
10 LocoRoco 2Arcade/PuzzleSony Computer Entertainment

Xbox Most Popular Games:

1 Halo 2ShooterMicrosoft
2 Star Wars Knights of the Old Republic II: The Sith LordsRPGLucasArts
3 Star Wars: Knights of the Old RepublicAction AdventureLucasArts
4 Star Wars Jedi Knight: Jedi AcademyAction AdventureLucasArts
5 HaloShooterMicrosoft
6 Star Wars: Republic CommandoShooterLucasArts
7 Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas – 2nd EditionAction AdventureTake Two
8 Star Wars: Battlefront IIAction AdventureLucasArts
9 FableRPGMicrosoft
10 Conker: Live and ReloadedShooterMicrosoft

GameCube Most Popular Games:

1 Legend of Zelda: Collector’s EditionRPGNintendo
2 Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of TimeRPGNintendo
3 Resident EvilAction AdventureCapcom
4 Super Smash Bros. MeleeFightingNintendo
5 Legend of Zelda: The Wind WakerAction AdventureNintendo
6 Super Mario SunshineAction AdventureNintendo
7 The Legend of Zelda: Twilight PrincessAction AdventureNintendo
8 Resident Evil 2Action AdventureCapcom
9 Metal Gear Solid: Twin SnakesAction AdventureKonami
10 Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year DoorAction AdventureNintendo

Game Boy Advance Most Popular Games:

1 Pokemon EmeraldAction AdventureNintendo
2 Pokemon Leaf GreenStrategy/SimNintendo
3 Pokemon: SapphireRPGNintendo
4 Pokemon Fire RedStrategy/SimNintendo
5 Pokemon: RubyRPGNintendo
6 Super Mario Advance 4Action AdventureNintendo
7 Legend of Zelda: Minish CapRPGNintendo
8 Super Mario World: Advance 2Action AdventureNintendo
9 Kingdom Hearts: Chain of MemoriesRPGSquare Enix
10 Golden SunRPGNintendo

Most Popular “E” Rated Games – Cross-Platform:

1 Punch-Out!!WiiFightingNintendo
2 Major League Baseball 2K9PS3, Xbox 360, Wii, PSP Games, PS2SportsTake Two
3 MLB ‘09: The ShowPS3, PSP Games, PS2SportsSony Computer Entertainment
4 FuelPS3, Xbox 360RacingWB Games
5 Little Big PlanetPS3Action AdventureSony Computer Entertainment
6 Excitebots: Trick RacingWiiRacingNintendo
7 NBA 2K9PS3, Xbox 360, PS2SportsTake Two
8 Mario Kart WiiWiiRacingNintendo
9 NHL 09PS3, Xbox 360, PS2SportsElectronic Arts
10 Sonic’s Ultimate Genesis CollectionPS3, Xbox 360Arcade/PuzzleSega

Xbox 360 – Most Popular “E” Rated Games:

1 Major League Baseball 2K9SportsTake Two
2 FuelRacingWB Games
3 NBA 2K9SportsTake Two
4 NHL 09SportsElectronic Arts
5 Sonic’s Ultimate Genesis CollectionArcade/PuzzleSega
6 Tiger Woods PGA Tour 09SportsElectronic Arts
7 Monsters vs. AliensKids/FamilyActivision
8 Trivial PursuitKids/FamilyElectronic Arts
9 Tiger Woods PGA TOUR 10SportsElectronic Arts
10 NBA Live 09SportsElectronic Arts

PlayStation 3 – Most Popular “E” Rated Games:

1 MLB ‘09: The ShowSportsSony Computer Entertainment
2 Little Big PlanetAction AdventureSony Computer Entertainment
3 Ratchet & Clank Future: Tools of DestructionAction AdventureSony Computer Entertainment
4 FuelRacingWB Games
5 Tiger Woods PGA TOUR 10SportsElectronic Arts
6 Sonic’s Ultimate Genesis CollectionArcade/PuzzleSega
7 NHL 09SportsElectronic Arts
8 FIFA Soccer 09SportsElectronic Arts
9 Trivial PursuitKids/FamilyElectronic Arts
10 NCAA Football 10SportsElectronic Arts

Nintendo Wii – Most Popular “E” Rated Games:

1 Punch-Out!!FightingNintendo
2 Excitebots: Trick RacingRacingNintendo
3 Mario Kart WiiRacingNintendo
4 Super Mario GalaxyAction AdventureNintendo
5 Mario Power TennisSportsNintendo
6 Gold’s Gym Cardio WorkoutStrategy/SimUbisoft
7 Monsters vs. AliensKids/FamilyActivision
8 Sonic and the Black KnightAction AdventureSega
9 KlonoaAction AdventureNamco
10 Final Fantasy Crystal Chronicles: Echoes of TimeRPGSquare Enix

PlayStation 2 – Most Popular “E” Rated Games:

1Kingdom Hearts: Re-Chain of MemoriesRPGSquare Enix
2Monsters vs. AliensKids/FamilyActivision
3Sonic UnleashedAction AdventureSega
4Kingdom Hearts IIRPGSquare Enix
5MLB ‘09: The ShowSportsSony Computer Entertainment
6Spider-Man: Web of ShadowsAction AdventureActivision
7Kingdom HeartsRPGSquare Enix
8Pimp My Ride: Street RacingRacingActivision
9Madden NFL 09SportsElectronic Arts
10GhostbustersAction AdventureAtari

Nintendo DS – Most Popular “E” Rated Games:

1 Pokemon PlatinumStrategy/SimNintendo
2 Rhythm HeavenArcade/PuzzleNintendo
3 Professor Layton & the Curious VillageArcade/PuzzleNintendo
4 Gardening MamaStrategy/SimMajesco
5 Fire Emblem: Shadow DragonRPGNintendo
6 Henry Hatsworth & the Puzzling AdventureArcade/PuzzleElectronic Arts
7 New Super Mario Bros.Action AdventureNintendo
8 Mario Kart DSRacingNintendo
9 Final Fantasy Crystal Chronicles: Echoes of TimeRPGSquare Enix
10 The Legend of Zelda: Phantom HourglassRPGNintendo

PlayStation Portable – Most Popular “E” Rated Games:

1 LocoRoco 2Arcade/PuzzleSony Computer Entertainment
2 MLB ‘09: The ShowSportsSony Computer Entertainment
3 PataponAction AdventureSony Computer Entertainment
4 Secret Agent ClankAction AdventureSony Computer Entertainment
5 Final FantasyRPGSquare Enix
6 DaxterAction AdventureSony Computer Entertainment
7 Madden NFL 09SportsElectronic Arts
8 Ratchet & Clank: Size MattersAction AdventureSony Computer Entertainment
9 LEGO Indiana JonesAction AdventureLucasArts
10 LEGO BatmanAction AdventureWB Games

Xbox – Most “E” Rated Popular Games:

1 Need for Speed: Underground 2RacingElectronic Arts
2 Madden NFL 09SportsElectronic Arts
3 LEGO Star Wars II: The Original TrilogyKids/FamilyLucasArts
4 Need for Speed: UndergroundRacingElectronic Arts
5 Sonic HeroesAction AdventureSega
6 Ice Age 2: The MeltdownKids/FamilyVivendi Universal
7 SSX 3: Out of BoundsSportsElectronic Arts
8 Crash TwinsanityAction AdventureVivendi Universal
9 LEGO Star WarsKids/FamilyEidos
10 Over the HedgeKids/FamilyActivision

Gamecube – Most Popular “E” Rated Games:

1 Legend of Zelda: Collector’s EditionRPGNintendo
2 Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of TimeRPGNintendo
3 Legend of Zelda: The Wind WakerAction AdventureNintendo
4 Super Mario SunshineAction AdventureNintendo
5 Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year DoorAction AdventureNintendo
6 Pokemon XD: Gale of DarknessAction AdventureNintendo
7 Luigi’s MansionAction AdventureNintendo
8 Legend of Zelda: Four Swords AdventuresAction AdventureNintendo
9 Mario Kart: Double DashRacingNintendo
10 Pikmin 2Strategy/SimNintendo

Gameboy Advance – Most Popular “E” Rated Games:

1 Pokemon EmeraldAction AdventureNintendo
2 Pokemon Leaf GreenStrategy/SimNintendo
3 Pokemon: SapphireRPGNintendo
4 Pokemon Fire RedStrategy/SimNintendo
5 Pokemon: RubyRPGNintendo
6 Super Mario Advance 4Action AdventureNintendo
7 Legend of Zelda: Minish CapRPGNintendo
8 Super Mario World: Advance 2Action AdventureNintendo
9 Kingdom Hearts: Chain of MemoriesRPGSquare Enix
10 Golden SunRPGNintendo

Most Popular Sports Games Cross-Platform:

1 Skate 2PS3, Xbox 360Electronic Arts
2 Madden NFL 10PS3, Xbox 360, Wii, PSP Games, PS2Electronic Arts
3 Major League Baseball 2K9PS3, Xbox 360, Wii, PSP Games, PS2Take Two
4 MLB ‘09: The ShowPS3, PSP Games, PS2Sony Computer Entertainment
5 NBA 2K9PS3, Xbox 360, PS2Take Two
6 NHL 09PS3, Xbox 360, PS2Electronic Arts
7 StokedXbox 360Destineer
8 Tiger Woods PGA Tour 09PS3, Xbox 360, PSP Games, PS2Electronic Arts
9 Mario Power TennisWii, GCNintendo
10 Tiger Woods PGA TOUR 10PS3, Xbox 360, Wii, PSP Games, PS2Electronic Arts

Xbox 360 Most Popular Sports Games:

1 Skate 2SportsElectronic Arts
2 Madden NFL 10SportsElectronic Arts
3 Major League Baseball 2K9SportsTake Two
4 NBA 2K9SportsTake Two
5 NHL 09SportsElectronic Arts
6 StokedSportsDestineer
7 Tiger Woods PGA Tour 09SportsElectronic Arts
8 Tiger Woods PGA TOUR 10SportsElectronic Arts
9 NBA Live 09SportsElectronic Arts
10 FIFA Soccer 09SportsElectronic Arts

PlayStation 3 Most Popular Sports Games:

1 MLB ‘09: The ShowSportsSony Computer Entertainment
2 Madden NFL 10SportsElectronic Arts
3 Skate 2SportsElectronic Arts
4 Tiger Woods PGA TOUR 10SportsElectronic Arts
5 NHL 09SportsElectronic Arts
6 FIFA Soccer 09SportsElectronic Arts
7 NCAA Football 10SportsElectronic Arts
8 Tiger Woods PGA Tour 09SportsElectronic Arts
9 NBA Live 09SportsElectronic Arts
10 NBA 2K9SportsTake Two

Nintendo Wii Most Popular Sports Games:

1 Mario Power TennisSportsNintendo
2 Mario Super SluggersSportsNintendo
3 Tiger Woods PGA Tour 09 All-PlaySportsElectronic Arts
4 We Ski & SnowboardSportsNamco
5 Tiger Woods PGA TOUR 10SportsElectronic Arts
6 Shaun White Snowboarding Road TripSportsUbisoft
7 Major League Baseball 2K9SportsTake Two
8 Mario & Sonic at the Winter Olympic GamesSportsSega
9 Skate ItSportsElectronic Arts
10 EA Sports: Grand Slam TennisSportsElectronic Arts

PlayStation 2 Most Popular Sports Games:

1 MLB ‘09: The ShowSportsSony Computer Entertainment
2 Madden NFL 09SportsElectronic Arts
3 Madden NFL 10SportsElectronic Arts
4 Major League Baseball 2K9SportsTake Two
5 NBA Live 09SportsElectronic Arts
6 NCAA Football 10SportsElectronic Arts
7 Tiger Woods PGA Tour 09SportsElectronic Arts
8 NCAA Basketball 09SportsElectronic Arts
9 Tiger Woods PGA TOUR 10SportsElectronic Arts
10 NCAA Football 09SportsElectronic Arts

Nintendo DS Most Popular Sports Games:

1 Polar BowlerSportsMumbo Jumbo
2 Mario & Sonic at the Winter Olympic GamesSportsSega
3 Mario Hoops 3 on 3SportsNintendo
4 Tony Hawk’s American Sk8LandSportsActivision
5 Madden NFL 09SportsElectronic Arts
6 Skate ItSportsElectronic Arts
7 Tecmo Bowl KickoffSportsTecmo
8 Elf Bowling 1 & 2SportsIgnition Entertainment
9 MLB 2K9 Fantasy All-StarsSportsTake Two
10 Tony Hawk’s Downhill JamSportsActivision

PlayStation Portable Most Popular Sports Games:

1 MLB ‘09: The ShowSportsSony Computer Entertainment
2 Madden NFL 09SportsElectronic Arts
3 NBA Live 09SportsElectronic Arts
4 Tiger Woods PGA TOUR 10SportsElectronic Arts
5 NBA 09 The InsideSportsSony Computer Entertainment
6 Tiger Woods PGA Tour 09SportsElectronic Arts
7 FIFA Soccer 09SportsElectronic Arts
8 Shaun White SnowboardingSportsUbisoft
9 Madden NFL 10SportsElectronic Arts
10 Tony Hawk’s Underground 2 RemixSportsActivision

Xbox Most Popular Sports Games:

1 Madden NFL 09SportsElectronic Arts
2 SSX 3: Out of BoundsSportsElectronic Arts
3 NBA Live 07SportsElectronic Arts
4 NBA Street Vol. 3SportsElectronic Arts
5 Fuzion FrenzySportsMicrosoft
6 SSX TrickySportsElectronic Arts
7 NBA BallersSportsMidway
8 Amped 2SportsMicrosoft
9 Tony Hawk’s Underground 2SportsActivision
10 Tiger Woods PGA Tour 07SportsElectronic Arts

Gamecube Most Popular Sports Games:

1 Super Mario StrikersSportsNintendo
2 Mario Superstar BaseballSportsNintendo
3 Mario Power TennisSportsNintendo
4 Disney Sports SoccerSportsKonami
5 NBA Street Vol. 3SportsElectronic Arts
6 Beach SpikersSportsSega
7 NBA Street Vol. 2SportsElectronic Arts
8 1080: AvalancheSportsNintendo
9 Tony Hawk’s Underground 2SportsActivision
10 Madden NFL 08SportsElectronic Arts

Information from Movietickets.com seems to indicate a lot of pre-release interest in the upcoming films “X-Men Origins: Wolverine” and “Star Trek.”

As of Wednesday, MovieTickets.com is reporting that “X-Men Origins: Wolverine” is currently outpacing ticket sales for “Iron Man” 3-to-1 at the same point in the sales cycle (nine days prior to the film’s release).

“X-Men Origins: Wolverine” releases Friday, May 1, 2009. “Iron Man” released in 2008 on Friday, May 2.

“Star Trek” is moving at even a faster pace. Despite releasing a week later, “Star Trek”  has already sold 25% more advance tickets at MovieTickets.com than “X-Men Origins: Wolverine.”

- Matt Price