This August, writer Kevin Smith returns to DC Comics for the new six-issue miniseries BATMAN: THE WIDENING GYRE!

Now, DC Comics details the variant covers for the debut issue of this hot new miniseries.

For every 25 copies of BATMAN: THE WIDENING GYRE #1 (JUN090143) ordered, with a cover by Bill Sienkiewicz, retailers may order one copy of the BATMAN: THE WIDENING GYRE #1 Variant Edition (APR098339), featuring a cover by Gene Ha.

For every 50 copies of BATMAN: THE WIDENING GYRE #1 (JUN090143) ordered, with a cover by Bill Sienkiewicz, retailers may order one copy of the BATMAN: THE WIDENING GYRE #1 Sketch Variant Edition (APR098340), featuring a pencils-only version of the variant cover by Gene Ha.


Penciled by Walter Flanagan, Smith’s collaborator on BATMAN: CACOPHONY, and inked by Art Thibert (TRINITY), WIDENING GYRE takes off when Batman encounters a new vigilante under his wing amid what Smith describes as a “backdrop of romance, intrigue, and geek-bait guest stars galore.”

BATMAN: THE WIDENING GYRE #1 is set to arrive in stores on August 26th. Comic shops can place their orders now. Both variants will be quite rare at those levels. The Stash will likely be your best method to collect them all, so we’ll keep you posted once we have an idea on pricing and inventory with the books.

A Couple of Dicks is the first movie you’re directing that you didn’t write. Did you feel the need to put your own stamp on the script?

Beautifully, [screenwriters] the Cullen brothers are dialogue crazy — the whole movie is like cops who are practically married but not actually, and, I mean, that’s right up my alley. It’s like Dante and Randall [from Clerks] as cops. That’s why I was attracted to it in the first place. We all feel like we’re trying to make a TNT classic — that movie that will just air ad nauseam forever once it hits TNT. I want it to be Road House. [My movies] all get cut to shit. I could never watch them [on TV]. Jersey Girl is the only one that doesn’t get hit hard, but that one’s tough to watch for a number of reasons. Television version or not.

Were you nervous about shooting action scenes for the first time?

The studio — it’s very cute — they try to not say the obvious. And the obvious is, “We are piss-scared you are going to fuck this up. You have never done anything like this.” So every step of the way everyone’s like, “It would probably be good to see some storyboards two months before you start shooting the sequences.” So we sat down with Dave, my DP, and the storyboard artist, and everybody breathed a sigh of relief.

And you’re still doing your “political horror film,” Red State, at some point?

I’m hoping. That’s about finding cash. And right now it’s the worst time in the world to go finding cash. I’ll just wait till the time is right and somebody ponies up, and maybe it’ll get to the point where I’ll just say, “Fuck it — I’ll do it.” But I’ve been in the business long enough to know that you should never risk your own money, particularly on a fucking Kevin Smith movie.

Take it all in at the New York Magazine website.

…”That dude is astounding. To be able to invoke Kirk without doing a Shatner impression? That performance was so electric and so wonderful to watch.

But it wasn’t just Pine that had Smith raving about “Trek.” “The opening 10 minutes of that movie are astounding,” he said. “It’s, like, everything could go downhill after that, and you would still leave that movie going, ‘That movie rocked.’ But, luckily, it doesn’t really go downhill. It maintains that energy throughout.”

Famous gossip site took the Pine-love a step further with one of his trademark doodles along with a story today.

In a related story, Kevin also suggests that the inevitable Trek sequel will need to find a villain that will do justice to the awesome Khan if he should be rebooted into the new time-altered mythology:

“It would have to be someone who can chew the scenery and [who] did a car commercial at one point in their career,” he said, referring to the ’70s era Chrysler Cordoba ad in which Montalbán appeared.

We suggested Joe Isuzu, otherwise known as David Leisure from the late ’80s sitcom “Empty Nest.”

That proposal got Smith thinking about the way other franchises have handled the task of reintroducing iconic characters with different actors. “Maybe they have to go another way with it,” he said. “With [Jack] Nicholson’s Joker, you had the scenery-chewing, over-the-top, wonderful Joker performance. And then Heath Ledger gives this 180-degree, creepy but wonderful Joker performance, so maybe they need to go that route. Like, if Ricardo Montalbán’s Khan is always beloved because it’s so over-the-top and operatic, maybe you get somebody who’s a little more coiled-spring.”

Just as important as who could play the new Khan, Smith told us, will be the power of the new Kirk, Chris Pine, to pull off Shatner’s memorable line about his enemy.

“It’s really going to come down to if Pine can sell, ‘Khaaaaan!’ ” said Smith. “And I’m sure he will be able to.”

For the people who had property damaged during the flood there’s a lot of talk of what was lost.

Furniture. Carpet. Televisions. Entire houses. Bootleg videos of “BJ and the Bear.”

Whatever the flood stole from you – your ambivalence toward the Red River – there’s something to be gained from this ordeal; a career as a semi-famous filmmaker who just might be the voice of a generation.

Lost in the discussion about his movies is the fact that auteur Kevin Smith started his career because of a flood.

The guy who made low-budget film chic with his 1994 movie “Clerks” paid for part of that movie’s production expenses with FEMA money that was given to him after a flood destroyed some of his well-worn Volkswagen vehicles.

Smith used that money, the ransom from selling some comic books and credit cards to finance “Clerks,” the dialogue-heavy movie about lazy convenience store employees that became a benchmark of ’90s culture.

Since then, Smith has made several feature films, become a slacker icon and, at least to me, proved he – not Kurt Cobain – was the voice of the generation that came of age in the ’90s.

Would Smith have attained that stature without a flood and some FEMA cash? Probably. But with basements that still smell like the Red River puked in them, it’s more fun to think that the flood made the man.

Moral of the story: Grab that FEMA money and make a movie. Or write a book. Or design a video game. Or get the stink out of your basement.

Which Kevin Smith duo is your favorite? (Suggested by “Zombie-Kermit”)

Check out all the choices at the IMDB Poll site, with choices including “Zack & Miri”, “Loki & Bartleby”, “Dante & Randal”, and, of course, “Jay & Silent Bob”.

The film “Zack and Miri Make a Porno”, starring Seth Rogen and Elizabeth Banks, was advertised by Entertainment Film Distributors on posters on the side of buses.

Many complainants were concerned with the use of the word “porno” in the title, and the fact that the poster could be seen by young children, who may then ask what it meant.

The ASA, however, said the ad did not contain any explicit imagery, and did not in itself breach any rules.

The ASA said: “We did not consider that the ad would cause widespread or serious offence or harm to children.”

Complaints not investigated.

For the full list, see BBC News — You might be surprised to see what else shows up.

“I got home, chipped for about 10 minutes, did a three song Rockband duel against Patty who dropped off Mushu for me, and then I did my workout that I was supposed to do in the morning. Tonight I’ll probably watch some TV and talk some trash with the kids in the forums. I’m really having fun with the smack talk! It reminds me of that scene in Jay and Silent Bob where they read all the bad things people say about their movies online. They freak out, and in the end of the movie, they go door to door and beat the crap out of every 14 year old who was smack talking them. Classic scene.”

Reading that’s sure got the hold’em itch going…it’s a sickness!

Comic book legends may be nerds, but it doesn’t mean they don’t get lucky in the romance department — Lee cited his ”running tally” with rocker Mick Jagger while imparting some romantic advice to Brodie (Jason Lee) in Kevin Smith’s sophomore film. (Lee, apparently, was in the lead).

Thailand’s film censors block ‘Zack and Miri Make a Porno’

The National Film Board is standing by its decision to ban “Zack and Miri Make a Porno” in Thailand, citing that its explicit sexual content goes against moral principles here.

The Motion Picture Association of America (MPAA) initially gave “Zack and Miri Make a Porno” an NC17 rating (banning viewers under 17) for “some graphic sexuality”. However, director Kevin Smith appealed and the film finally got an R with no cuts. The R, or “Restricted” rating, requires viewers under 17 years old to be accompanied by an adult.

Set in the United States, the comedy tells the story of friends embarking on a project to make a porn movie.

‘May encourage copycats’

“The screening of this film may encourage copycats here,” Culture Ministry permanent secretary Vira Rojpojchanarat said yesterday.

The film’s distributor, M Pictures, argued that “Zack and Miri Make a Porno” was a satirical take on contemporary US society and was suitable for viewers aged over 18.

When the National Film Board decided to ban the film during its meeting on Monday, M Pictures appealed and a panel was set up to review the board’s ruling.

After viewing the film, the panel upheld the decision to ban “Zack and Miri Make a Porno” from Thai screens.

Well, we’ve been working on this site for almost 12 years now, and this is the FIRST major banning we can recall - At least in a really long time. It may be time to go fire up the Bluray on this Devils/Flyers/Lost-free evening — it just feels so subversive now…