One of the biggest changes to come out DC Entertainment's big comics revamp this summer turned Superman's world upside-down: Lois Lane revealed his identity to the world, and then he lost almost all of his powers. 

We still don't know how or why these things have happened yet, but the story taking place as the mystery unfolds has led to some of the most compelling Superman comics in a long time — particularly in Greg Pak and Aaron Kuder's "Action Comics" #41-42. 

In this new status quo, Superman hasn't just lost his secret identity, but his costume and his heritage — locked out of the Fortress of Solitude, the one place on Earth with any connection to his homeworld, he has to contend with a world that knows who he is at a moment when he's most vulnerable. Most of his powers are gone — he's still superhuman, but at this point he's mostly just a really strong guy. 

Now that he's been outed, Superman's relationship with everyone around him has completely changed. Some are supportive, and grateful, surprised to learn that he's been living among them all along. Others, however, have a chip on their shoulder, resenting all the supervillains that he has attracted.

Unfortunately for him, most of the angriest folks are cops. 

This quickly escalates into open conflict by the end of "Action Comics" #41, when a welcome home block party for Superman is about to be stormed by police in full riot gear while the de-powered hero tries to take on a massive monster several blocks away.

It's a moment that echoes similar events that have unfolded across the country recently in cities like Ferguson and Baltimore, where law enforcement — primed to use excessive force — attempt to strong-arm peaceful citizens into submission. Like in those cities, the smallest miscalculation can lead to utter chaos. 

When a Metropolis citizen then gets unruly, the commanding officer sees it as an opportunity to march on those gathered, with batons and shields at the ready — and then Superman, absolutely exhausted from his fight, places himself in between the crowd and the cops.

It's a beautiful, arresting image by artist Aaron Kuder and colorist Tomeu Morey, a cathartic moment for anyone who saw the shocking imagery coming out of Ferguson and felt utterly powerless. But that's not even the real gut punch.

The cops march anyway, raining tear gas on the citizens and even attacking an officer who objects to the proceedings— while Jimmy Olsen photographs the entire ugly affair. 

And then Superman can't take it anymore. He breaks.

I still haven't caught my breath.

SEE ALSO: The problem with violence in 'Batman: Arkham Knight'

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NOW WATCH: Watch The Chilling Protests In Ferguson As Police Fire Tear Gas Into Crowds

Agent 007 is all set to return to movie screens around the world, but "Spectre" isn't the only place you'll find James Bond this fall. Comic book publisher Dynamite Entertainment has announced a new monthly comic book titled "James Bond 007," written by Warren Ellis with art by Jason Masters.

If you don't follow comics, what makes this a big deal is Ellis' contribution. Warren Ellis is the writer behind countless original series like "Transmetropolitan" and "Planetary," as well as numerous superhero books where he often completely revamps characters to tremendous success (the "Iron Man" movies, in particular, owe a massive debt to Ellis' work). Ellis has many strengths as a comic writer, but spies and sci-fi are his calling cards — one would be hard-pressed to find a better marquee writer to take on Bond in the mainstream comics industry.

He's also British, which is a plus when it comes to Bond stories. 

Here's the official description:

"James Bond returns to London after a mission of vengeance in Helsinki, to take up the workload of a fallen 00 agent... but something evil is moving through the back streets of the city, and sinister plans are being laid for Bond in Berlin."

While "James Bond 007" will be set in the present (and feature a Bond that's different from the cinematic ones), Dynamite Entertainment has plans for the entire Bond mythos. In an interview with Comic Book Resources, Dynamite Senior Editor Jason Rybandt details the publishers plans for even more Bond comics, including adaptations of Ian Fleming's novels and a series of prequels set before "Casino Royale."

"James Bond 007" #1 is scheduled to launch in November.

SEE ALSO: The 10 slickest Bond cars

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NOW WATCH: The first TV ad for 'Spectre' gives us our best look at the next Bond movie yet

San Diego Comic-Con's proper name is Comic-Con International: San-Diego, but most of what makes headlines is strictly domestic.

This is unfortunate, as there are hundreds of amazing comics that come from publishers all over the world — many of which have a presence at the annual convention.

Still, it's hard to get excited about things that are hard to find, and when you don't have the reach of Marvel or DC, it's easy to get lost in the noise. 

But one French publisher is boldly jumping out into the fray. On the Monday before Comic-Con, noted French comics publisher Delcourt Group announced a partnership with digital comics retailer Comixology to make more than 150 French titles available in English. 

In a statement announcing the news, Comixology CEO David Steinberger called it "the beginning of the 'French Invasion' of comics in the English-language market."

While time will tell if Steinberger's on to something or not, French comics have begun to slowly penetrate American pop culture over the past few years — critically acclaimed movies like "Blue is the Warmest Color" and "Snowpiercer" are both based on French comics, and graphic novels like "Beautiful Darkness" and "Last Man" have received overwhelmingpraise by the US comics press after being translated to English. 

It also helps when some of these French titles, like "The Curse of the Wendigo" (one of Delcourt's debut titles on Comixology) feature talent already well-known in America — like artist Charlie Adlard of "The Walking Dead" fame, who collaborated on the title with writer Mathieu Missoffe.

"It was difficult to do it in a subtle way," Delcourt CEO Guy Delcourt told Business Insider, laughing about the sudden blitz of titles on Comixology. "Either you do it or you don't. We have such a big well of comics which are unknown to the American public, so it's a pleasure to dig into it, and hopefully to have people realize how diverse and thrilling a lot of them are."

Delcourt is a 29-year veteran of the French comics industry, and has visited the crowded floors of San Diego Comic-Con many times in the past, mostly looking for English-language comics to publish in his home country. Delcourt's company is the French publisher for comics ranging from "Star Wars" to "Hellboy," with some Japanese manga thrown in for good measure.When asked about what makes French comics special, Delcourt gives a simple answer: They're all personal. 

"We don't have a main genre, like superheroes in the States, and we are very creator-oriented, so what probably makes them special is that each of them stems from the personality of the writers and artists," Delcourt told BI. "Also, the way they're created is probably — it's the least industrial thing you can imagine, I would say. Compared to comics or manga made in the studio way. It's very rare in France to have a penciller and an inker — usually the artist does it all most of the time, the color, too. So he or she would take one year to do fifty pages ... they try to make it as powerful and rich as possible. Not putting down American comics, I love them — but it's not the same approach."

It's this more intimate approach to comics that Delcourt hopes will resonate in the US and the rest of the English-speaking world. Choosing a digital partner like Comixology is certainly an excellent first step, since its the easiest way to reach new readers who aren't prone to wander into a comics shop — where the French comics format (called bandes dessinées) runs into another set of more logistical problems since they are larger than US comics and don't really fit standard comic racks.

"We know that it is not something that will happen overnight," says Delcourt. "We have a solid program for two years, and it will probably take more time. And I don't believe that French comics will work as a whole, because they are individual stories and have strong personalities. I don't see them as a global thing, like manga. Hopefully a few of them will work and will make people want to read more. And also, hopefully they will be read by professionals in the film industry. If some American films were created based on French comics, it would certainly be helpful, and it certainly is one of our indirect goals."

As for which title he has the highest hopes for, Delcourt mentions "Come Prima" by the cartoonist Alfred."I love the idea that you can have this story that is really heartfelt — it comes from his family, two brothers on a trip to Italy because their father has died," says Delcourt. "It is a road trip, something with feelings and emotions but it is also a very simple, straightforward story. So this is quite touching, and the artwork for me is also, for me, artistic, but also simple, very accessible. I do hope that it will reach quite a few people."

"All in all," says Delcourt, "I think [French comics] gives readers a different flavor — although the American audience will find things with which they are familiar: Horror, thrillers, supernatural stories, sci-fi, fantasy, etc — but done in a different way. What I hope is that this different way will make them special and interesting."

SEE ALSO: The Superman comic that took on police brutality

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NOW WATCH: George Clooney Had The Perfect Response At Comic Con When A Fellow Actor Called Him Old

Most of us know Archie Andrews. The freckle-faced, red-headed teen from Riverdale has been a staple of grocery store checkout lines for generations, where people of all ages would enjoy (mostly) wholesome tales about Archie’s adventures with his pal Jughead and the love triangle with Betty Cooper and Veronica Lodge.

Recently, though, Archie Comics has gone through a phase of radical reinvention.

First there was Kevin Keller, the first openly gay character in the Archie-verse. Then came “Afterlife with Archie,” an ongoing series that features the entire Archie cast facing a legitimately scary zombie apocalypse. Then, in the pages of “Life with Archie,” an alternate-universe story featuring a grown-up, married Archie — who died at the series’ end. And then there’s that 60s-era horror comic starring Sabrina, the Teenage Witch.

All of these recent moves aren’t notable because they’re crazy and outrageous, but because they’re crazy and outrageous and also really shockingly good comics.

And today, Archie’s hot streak continues with the much-ballyhooed reboot of the publisher’s flagship title, “Archie” #1, by Mark Waid and Fiona Staples.

If you’re not immersed in the comics world, it’s hard to stress how huge those names are, but  just look at the comic:

Archie. So hot right now.

The gorgeous art is by Fiona Staples, who works almost exclusively on “Saga” with writer Brian K. Vaughn, one of the best and most popular non-superhero comics you can read. Her updated takes on the entire Archie cast are wonderfully expressive and smartly fashionable.

Everyone is also really, really, ridiculously good looking.Writer Mark Waid is pretty much a storytelling genius who has spent much of the last thirty years writing classic stories about almost every superhero you can think of — most recently on the can’t-miss “Daredevil” with artist Chris Samnee. In short, this is a dream team, and they deliver.

“Archie” #1 is a fantastic read and a great introduction to Archie Andrews and his world (quite literally — much of the issue features Archie breaking the fourth wall to introduce readers to everyone). It’s also further proof of how enduring the character is — really, Archie has always been a teen story where much of the comedy comes from giving its teenagers exactly what they want and gently making fun of them as they discover how things are always more complicated than they realize. It’s why the Betty/Veronica love triangle is such a cornerstone of the comics.

Speaking of Betty and Veronica, “Archie” is extremely clever in how it sets up that particular status quo. You’ll want to come back next month.

The first issue of the new “Archie” feels like the sort of teen sitcom that doesn’t get made anymore, a modern “Boy Meets World” but smarter, simpler, and hipper all at once. It’s effortlessly cool and charming, like a John Hughes movie without all the morose angst. It takes the classic Archie comics and makes them feel modern and relevant.

In short, it’s a perfect reboot that’s not just a great first Archie story, but a great first comic.

Have you ever been to Riverdale? It’s a nice place. I think I’ll stay a while.

SEE ALSO: The first James Bond comic in decades sounds fantastic

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NOW WATCH: The season two trailer of this hilarious animated series shows why it's this generation's 'Back to the Future'

On the eve of their 30th anniversary, Dark Horse Comics has a lot to celebrate. This past week, the independent publisher announced a huge cable TV deal headlined by a comic co-created by former My Chemical Romance frontman Gerard Way. This came shortly after the news that its titles are finally going to be made available on digital retailer Comixology (the publisher’s titles had long been only available digitally on the company’s own storefront, which meant you had to use a separate app to buy and read them).

Dark Horse has long been a steady powerhouse in the comics industry — few publishers have managed to stick around as long as Dark Horse has while remaining independent. If you’ve read comics over the past three decades, chances are you’ve read a Dark Horse book, and rightfully so: From longstanding series like “Hellboy” and “Sin City” to more recent books like “Mind Mgmt” and “Lady Killer,” Dark Horse has long been home to excellent work.

“When I say ‘independent,' I mean it in the truest sense of the word,” says Dark Horse co-founder and president Mike Richardson. “We still have the same people, the same owners, we are independent — although the word has been used in the comics business to mean ‘independent of Marvel and DC.’”And independence, Richardson stresses, has worked out extremely well for Dark Horse, citing a solid three years of broken sales records and growth, likely bolstered by smart business decisions such as expanding into collectibles with its Dark Horse Deluxe line and reaching out to the book market via a recent partnership with Penguin Random House.

In a world where Marvel Studios has helped turn comic books from niche entertainment to movie powerhouses, Dark Horse still seems resolutely old school. The company’s current TV and film ambitions — which include the SyFy series “Dark Matter” and a “Tarzan” film slated for 2016 — don’t mimic the mad dash to build multimedia mega franchises and cinematic universes seen in other companies.

At least, not yet. San Diego Comic-Con has just begun, and big announcements are a vital part of every big convention.

“We're a comics company, first and foremost, but for a long time our growth was sort of held up,” says Richardson. “When we sat down to discuss what we would do, there were a lot of great ideas that would come up and I would think 'how do we do that as a comic?’”

Over the years, Richardson has pivoted from that stance. “Even though comics are the love and core of our company, we’re really a content company,” he says. “And content has different forms of expression.”

That’s not to say that Richardson is any less enthused to be in the comics business — on the contrary, he’s still pretty excited.“When I was a kid comics were everywhere: They were in pharmacies and gas stations, they were in convenience stores. They were even in the meat market where my mom used to shop,” says Richardson. “That's not the case anymore, you don't see comics in very many places. So the digital distribution of comics puts them back in front of huge numbers of people, so if we can catch a tiny portion of those readers it actually makes a huge jump in the customer base for comics.”

And like any publisher, more readers is all Richardson really wants.

“Our ultimate goal is for Dark Horse to be available in every distribution channel, 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, 365 days a year in every country in the world that reads comics,” says Richardson. “That's our long term goal.”

SEE ALSO: Get ready for the French invasion of comics

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NOW WATCH: Behold, your first look at Mulder and Scully back together again

Superhero movies live and die according to hype. In the current box-office climate, movies with the names "Marvel" or "DC" attached to them aren't interested in building audiences based on post-release word-of-mouth. But instead in guaranteeing attendance months and years in advance via sprawling interconnected universes that always have one eye firmly fixed on the next film in the sequence. Hence, the hype. Hence, Comic-Con. 

So what about "Fantastic Four?"

In a recent LA Times feature, director Josh Trank was interviewed about the way his film is being received by fans so far, which has ranged from apathy to downright hostility. In that same piece, producer Simon Kinberg goes as far as to say some of those fans have "a chip on their shoulder."

Of course, no one has seen the film yet. Even just one month out, the promotional machine for "Fantastic Four" has been much quieter than those touting films from other studios like "Batman v. Superman" or "Suicide Squad," both of which are roughly a year away. In fact, superhero films from the same studio as "Fantastic Four"— namely, the upcoming slate of X-Men films such as "Apocalypse" and "Deadpool"— are getting plenty more attention. 

To his credit, Josh Trank sounds like he expected this. 

"I made every single choice knowing that people would question it," the director told the LA Times. "And what better reaction than to have people then go see the movie and understand it and feel like maybe they've learned something about the world, to not question the next thing they think is going to be stupid or weird."

That's the sort of quote that makes you think Trank is the perfect guy to adapt the "Fantastic Four", a team all about learning and discovery. But no matter how thoughtful Trank sounds, it seems like he just can't shake the ghost of movies past. 

As ScreenCrush notes, the previous "Fantastic Four" movies, while blockbusters, are not fondly remembered. Even though the last film, "Rise of the Silver Surfer," came out in 2007, it feels like the product of another era with its kitschy family-friendly approach that you wouldn't see today. 

Still, there's that chip on fan's shoulders. While the second "Fantastic Four" film was legitimately terrible, the first one wasn't awful. Sure, it got some characters wrong (Dr. Doom), but mostly it was a case of a film attempting to appeal to everyone and really appealing to no one. But the strange thing about the failure of that first film franchise is that it seems to be projected onto the property as a whole —as if the Fantastic Four just aren't inherently interesting. 

That couldn't be more wrong. 

As Vulture's Abraham Riesman explains at length, if there's anything you love about Marvel comics or modern superheroes, they wouldn't exist without the Fantastic Four. They're also still relevant. "It has a core idea that never gets old," writes Riesman, "the struggles, compromises, joys, and agonies of being in a family."

That, right there, is what makes the Fantastic Four special. It's something that, frankly, the marketing behind the forthcoming film is pretty lousy at conveying: They're a family. Susan and Johnny Storm (played by Kate Mara and Michael B. Jordan) are siblings, while Sue and Reed (Miles Tellar) get married and have children.

This all happens extremely early in Fantastic Four history, by the way. The team debuted in 1961, and the marriage of Reed and Sue occurs in the fall of 1965. Franklin Richards, their first son, then shows up in 1968. So, for almost the entirety of their existence, the Fantastic Four has had a married couple at its core, with Sue's brother Johnny serving as a source of youthful energy and Reed's best friend Ben Grimm, aka The Thing, fulfilling the role of clear-eyed, blue-collared heart of the team. 

Granted, Trank's film seems to be adapting "Ultimate Fantastic Four," a newer take on the characters that significantly changes their origin, makes them all younger, and never has Reed and Sue marry. Still, family was important to that run too, albeit a more dysfunctional, Joss Whedon-style "found" family rather than one centered around matrimony.

The idea of family is so timeless and versatile that it gave us a hit Pixar film and transformed the "Fast and Furious" movies into one of the best crowd-pleasing franchises in existence. It's also something that the current crop of superhero movies refuses to come anywhere near — meaning that a good "Fantastic Four" movie has room to be truly unique, and not just a remix of things we've all seen before. 

This works on a visual level as well as a thematic one. The Fantastic Four go to impossible places and see incredible things. They're the relatable center of stories that take us to mind-bending places. They showed just how far superhero comics could take us, how much heart was hidden away in the comic books that were so often ignored by mainstream media.

The Fantastic Four matter. Let's hope they get a movie that treats them that way. 

SEE ALSO: Marvel comics you need to read

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NOW WATCH: Here's what X-Men would look like if Wes Anderson directed it

Like most modern blockbusters, Marvel movies often have stylish credits sequences filled with rousing music and cool imagery. 

For "Avengers: Age of Ultron," these credits took place as a camera swept over a grand ivory sculpture of the Avengers battling a horde of Ultron robots. It was unusual and rather stately for a Marvel movie, and no one would blame you for thinking that sculpture was a CG creation, like most credits animations. 

Turns out it's not! The folks at io9 spotted a Marvel exhibit showing off the actual sculpture used for filming the credits sequence in "Avengers: Age of Ultron," and took a video of it. Watch below!

Click here for more of the latest from San Diego Comic-Con. 

SEE ALSO: The coolest things to see and do at San Diego Comic-Con

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NOW WATCH: A 19-year-old will play Peter Parker in the next Spider-Man movie

The second "Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice" trailer debuted at San Diego Comic-Con this weekend, and it was absolutely jam-packed. 

Clocking in at nearly three and a half minutes, the trailer gives us our first look at the plot of the film alongside a plethora of Easter eggs and glimpses at what the wider DC Universe will look like in the movie. 

Let's dive right in.

They're addressing one of fans' biggest issues with "Man of Steel."

A big problem a lot of fans had was the widespread destruction in the big finale to "Man of Steel." The movie sort of acted like it was no big deal. "Batman v Superman" looks like it's going to take this head on, revealing that Bruce Wayne was at the scene, and he's very, very angry. 

We finally know Batman's big problem with Superman.

Now that we know Bruce was in Metropolis when it was nearly leveled, we learn the personal stake he has in it — one of his buildings was completely destroyed in the fight, and Wayne feels responsible for the people who died on his watch.

This Batman is kind of messed up.

Ben Affleck's portrayal of Batman is the angry, ruthless sort with none of the deep sadness that seemed to haunt Christian Bale. He also seems to take things a bit too far — it looks like he even brands criminals he apprehends!

Most of us know Archie Andrews. The freckle-faced, red-headed teen from Riverdale has been a staple of grocery store checkout lines for generations, where people of all ages would enjoy (mostly) wholesome tales about Archie’s adventures with his pal Jughead and the love triangle with Betty Cooper and Veronica Lodge.

Recently, though, Archie Comics has gone through a phase of radical reinvention.

First there was Kevin Keller, the first openly gay character in the Archie-verse. Then came “Afterlife with Archie,” an ongoing series that features the entire Archie cast facing a legitimately scary zombie apocalypse. Then, in the pages of “Life with Archie,” an alternate-universe story featuring a grown-up, married Archie — who died at the series’ end. And then there’s that 60s-era horror comic starring Sabrina, the Teenage Witch.

All of these recent moves aren’t notable because they’re crazy and outrageous, but because they’re crazy and outrageous and also really shockingly good comics.

And today, Archie’s hot streak continues with the much-ballyhooed reboot of the publisher’s flagship title, “Archie” #1, by Mark Waid and Fiona Staples.

If you’re not immersed in the comics world, it’s hard to stress how huge those names are, but  just look at the comic:

Archie. So hot right now.

The gorgeous art is by Fiona Staples, who works almost exclusively on “Saga” with writer Brian K. Vaughn, one of the best and most popular non-superhero comics you can read. Her updated takes on the entire Archie cast are wonderfully expressive and smartly fashionable.

Everyone is also really, really, ridiculously good looking.Writer Mark Waid is pretty much a storytelling genius who has spent much of the last thirty years writing classic stories about almost every superhero you can think of — most recently on the can’t-miss “Daredevil” with artist Chris Samnee. In short, this is a dream team, and they deliver.

“Archie” #1 is a fantastic read and a great introduction to Archie Andrews and his world (quite literally — much of the issue features Archie breaking the fourth wall to introduce readers to everyone). It’s also further proof of how enduring the character is — really, Archie has always been a teen story where much of the comedy comes from giving its teenagers exactly what they want and gently making fun of them as they discover how things are always more complicated than they realize. It’s why the Betty/Veronica love triangle is such a cornerstone of the comics.

Speaking of Betty and Veronica, “Archie” is extremely clever in how it sets up that particular status quo. You’ll want to come back next month.

The first issue of the new “Archie” feels like the sort of teen sitcom that doesn’t get made anymore, a modern “Boy Meets World” but smarter, simpler, and hipper all at once. It’s effortlessly cool and charming, like a John Hughes movie without all the morose angst. It takes the classic Archie comics and makes them feel modern and relevant.

In short, it’s a perfect reboot that’s not just a great first Archie story, but a great first comic.

Have you ever been to Riverdale? It’s a nice place. I think I’ll stay a while.

SEE ALSO: The first James Bond comic in decades sounds fantastic

Join the conversation about this story »

NOW WATCH: The season two trailer of this hilarious animated series shows why it's this generation's 'Back to the Future'

It's easy to think that making a Superman movie is very hard. Just ask the people making it.

“He’s a tough character," Superman actor Henry Cavill told Entertainment Weekly when talking up "Batman v. Superman: Dawn of Justice."  "People like the darker vigilante." Then he offered a possible reason why:  "I think it speaks to the human psyche more easily rather than the god-like being that we can’t really understand."

That's a load of nonsense. 

To be clear, we really shouldn't blame Cavill for saying any of this. He's an actor, and a great one for Superman, with what looked like buckets of charisma utterly hamstrung by the dour script driving "Man of Steel." It's also his job to fully understand and portray the character that is in the script, not the one from the comics. 

It's a shame then, that the story he's given simply doesn't get Superman. It also totally buys into some of the worst assumptions about the character. There are two popular reasons for why Superman can't succeed in modern movies: They are (1). He's too powerful and (2.) He's a not interesting, because he's just a big ol' goodie two-shoes. 

People are often skeptical that a Superman movie can be good because stories need conflict, and conflict seems pretty hard to come by when your hero is a person who always does the right thing and can't be hurt. That, however, is a reductive way of looking at the character, and the secret to why Superman stories are so great: They're never really about him. They're about us.

This is something Snyder and his team almost get, but they come at it from an angle that totally misses the point of Superman. They treat him as a god among mortals, our greatest fear or our great salvation. The problem with this, though, is that it strips the character of his humanity, and makes him downright unapproachable. 

There's a great anecdote that legendary comics writer Grant Morrison — the man responsible for one of the best Superman stories in recent memory, 2005's "All-Star Superman"—  tells about Superman in his memoir "Supergods." In the memoir, he mentions the inspiration for his story — he was at a convention, and he saw a handsome man in a Superman costume just sitting down and relaxing on a stoop. 

That was Morrison's epiphany: The most powerful man alive wouldn't be tortured, but instead would be the friendliest, most relaxed person you ever saw. Thus this famous cover to "All-Star Superman" #1 by artist Frank Quitely.And this, one of the most iconic, touching scenes in all of superhero comics, where Superman stops everything to hug a teenager who thinks life isn't worth it.Superman isn't good or special because he's an alien who crashes on Earth and ends up being incredibly powerful. He's special because after all that he becomes someone who always does the right thing because he was raised by a couple of decent people from Kansas. That's it.

He is someone with the power to be the most selfish being in all of existence, and decides to be selfless because he was raised by a couple of kindly farmers. And the beautiful idea behind him is that we don't need to be bulletproof to be that way — we just have to be decent people. 

This is something that's been coming up again and again as I've read through some recent Superman comics lately, particularly Greg Pak and Aaron Kuder's stellar run on "Action Comics." The current story has Superman with almost none of his signature powers taking on police brutality, but just before that Pak and Kuder were working with a more classic Superman, complete with cape and powers. In those stories, they kept coming back to this basic, beautifully simple idea: Superman doesn't try to beat his foes, he tries to understand them. Even when it doesn't make sense to those around him.He literally does everything he can to turn his foes into friends. That's a million times more important to understanding Superman than knowing how much he can lift or fast he can fly or whether or not Batman could beat him in a fight.  

That's also a perfect source of tension: When someone or something is out to not just hurt you, but everyone around you ... can you intervene in time to achieve these goals before someone else gets hurt?

As for his simplistic morality, the rebuttal to that is a simple one: Captain America is pretty much the literal definition of a Boy Scout, and he's the guy at the center of two of the very best Marvel movies so far. 

In order to make a good Superman story, you have to embrace a few unpopular notions about what makes good superhero stories: Dark doesn't always mean better or more complex, characters fighting for good because it's right is a compelling enough reason, and that a hero's powers isn't their most important aspect (but certainly don't be afraid to show them off).

Unfortunately, that's not where movie makers have been headed so far. And with the next installment, 'Batman v Superman,' it looks once again like we won't get close.

SEE ALSO: 12 things we learned from the 'Batman V. Superman' trailer

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NOW WATCH: Here's the new 'Batman v Superman' trailer that just got a standing ovation at Comic-Con

One of the show-stoppers of 20th Century Fox's big San Diego Comic-Con panel was the trailer for the X-Men spinoff film "Deadpool." Fans reportedly loved it — so much so that the trailer was shown twice! 

But who is Deadpool, and why is this a big deal?

Created in 1991 by Fabian Nicieza and Rob Liefeld, Deadpool was originally an antihero in the Punisher mold, a scumbag antihero with big guns and two swords. But in 1997 writer Joe Kelly and artist Ed McGuiness decided to reinvent the character completely, and it's thanks to those two that Deadpool is famous. 

The Deadpool Kelly and McGuiness depicted was a parody machine, lambasting every trope of action heroes and superhero comics with an extra fourth-wall breaking twist: Deadpool knew he was a comic book character, and talked about it all the time. Since then, that's been a defining trait of the character, who has since become the hero of numerous violent action-comedy comics, each more ridiculous than the last (The recently concluded series by Brian Posehn, Gerry Duggan, and Tony Moore kicked off with Deadpool taking on zombie US Presidents).

That's what people love about Deadpool: Over-the-top action and crazy meta-comedy. 

And from the trailer screened at San Diego Comic-Con, it looks like this new movie is getting everything right. While it will take the studio three weeks to officially release the trailer (star Ryan Reynolds says that's because the visual effects aren't done yet), what was shown at Comic-Con is remarkably faithful to the source material. We're introduced to Ryan Reynolds character, Wade Wilson, a man with cancer in his "liver, lungs, prostate, and brain," promptly quipping that they are  "all things I can live without."

Humor? Check. 

Wilson then submits himself to a military experiment that promises to make him "a superhero" and heal him. In the comic books, this is the same Weapon X project that gave Wolverine his metal skeleton and claws.  Just before the procedure begins, Wilson requests that they "please don't make the super suit green. Or animated!"

Meta-humor? Double check.

Then, an action sequence that looks like a pretty close live-action approximation of the leaked CGI test footage that fans adored — only with a sudden, surprise cameo by Colossus. 

Not-very-subtle connection to the X-Men? Check.

Then Deadpool tells the camera to "cue the music."

Breaking down that fourth wall? Definitely.

Oh, and then they reveal the side-effect to the experiment that turned Wade into Deadpool — his skin is horribly scarred and disfigured, and there are several very descriptive and filthy jokes traded between Wade and his pal about how ugly he now looks. "Like an avocado had sex with an older avocado" is probably the tamest one, I swear. Then there's a bunch of stylish and gory violence, complete with headshots.

R-rated comedy and violence? Totally there. 

Deadpool is a character you sort of have to experience for yourself to understand why he has such ardent fans, but it's hard to miss the appeal of an exuberantly irreverent R-rated superhero comedy. It's something that we haven't really seen before outside of maybe the first "Kick-Ass," and as we become more and more accustomed to the spectacle of superheroes onscreen, "Deadpool" could prove to be an extremely fun palate cleanser. 

At the very least, it's a heartfelt apology for the first time Reynolds played Deadpool in "X-Men Origins: Wolverine." Because that was horrendous.

SEE ALSO: Why can't Hollywood ever get Superman right?

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Amongst all the Marvel movies released thus far, "Ant-Man" may be the first without an obvious fan base. There's no iconic emblem on his chest that we can emblazon onto T-shirts, the cartoons he has appeared in pre-Marvel Cinematic Universe aren't well-known or beloved, and his powers are pretty spectacularly unsexy. Shrinking and talking to ants? C'mon. 

Add to that a very complicated comic book history and some highly-publicized behind-the-scenes creative shuffling, and it's easy to assume that "Ant-Man" is far from a safe bet. 

Summer blockbusters trade in expectation, but it's hard to figure out what to expect from "Ant-Man" other than the prerequisite visual effects and Paul Rudd charm. Its trailers are too busy trying to explain Ant-Man's powers and convince you that they're cool to spend any time selling you on the fun heist story at the movie's center, or the charming comedic ensemble that glues everything together. 

In fact, the movie takes a while before the best things about it come together in any meaningful way. The first half of the film feels strangely off — it starts with a prologue set in the '80s that introduces Michael Douglass as Hank Pym, a scientist with a remarkable formula for shrinking matter who decides to hide it from the government agents that want it as a weapon (there are also quite a few Easter eggs for Marvel fans in those first few minutes).

Then it jumps to the present day and introduces Scott Lang (Paul Rudd), a Robin Hood-esque thief with a code who's just out of lockup and is trying to go clean. 

These are the unlikely pair that "Ant-Man" throws together when Darren Cross (Corey Stoll), the power-hungry young man now in charge of Pym's company, announces he's figured out his former mentor's secret, and plans to sell it to the military. The premise is simple: Pym wants Lang to steal his techology back from Cross. 

It's hard to articulate what it is about the first half of the movie that feels so strange, but much of it comes down to pacing. While "Ant-Man" doesn't take very long getting Paul Rudd in the incredible suit, there's a very real lack of momentum that undermines the talents of the cast and the fun of the central conceit. 

However, midway through, the film just clicks, and it's wonderful. The action is exciting and imaginative, the cast really starts to gel together, and the jokes get really, really funny. 

Marvel films have a reputation for not entirely sticking the landing — they start strong, but generally end with big, dumb fights. Sure, there's a fight at the end of "Ant-Man" as well, but it's genuinely thrilling, the best action sequence in a movie where action sequences get better and better as the film goes on. In this sense, the film suffers from the inverse problem of most Marvel films — its first act is a bit weak, but the back half sings.

There are other problems with "Ant-Man," as well — the villain, Darren Cross, is pretty cartoonishly evil, but actor Corey Stoll totally relishes the role. Evangeline Lilly has a few great moments as Hank Pym's daughter Hope Van Dyne, but she's sidelined for much of the film. While "Ant-Man" goes out of its way to make this an important plot point, it doesn't make up for it with other female characters, because there really aren't any outside of Scott Lang's disapproving wife and adorable daughter. 

What's most refreshing about "Ant-Man," then, is probably its scope. Finally, here is a Marvel movie about something other than the destruction of worlds. Cities don't get leveled in "Ant-Man," just a building does. It's a story almost exclusively about a small, personal thing: Fathers who have looked at their lives and realized they have failed their children. 

Like those fathers, "Ant-Man" is a flawed, yet earnest attempt to win over those who might not believe in it. 

Give it a shot.

"Ant-Man" is in theaters Friday, July 17.

SEE ALSO: Why Ryan Reynold's 'Deadpool' won over Comic-Con

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One of the best moments of this year's San Diego Comic-Con didn't involve Hall H, Hollywood movies, or costumed superhumans, but an aging Congressman who marched alongside countless others during America's struggle for Civil Rights in the '60s — even in the face of brutal beatings and countless arrests. 

Congressman John Lewis is the last living member of the "Big Six" of the Civil Rights movement's March on Washington — a group that included Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. in its members.

In recent years, he's also become a regular attendee of comic book conventions, most notably San Diego Comic-Con — which he appeared at for the second consecutive year last weekend. 

The reason? His gripping, award-winning graphic novel trilogy "March," an autobiographical account of Lewis' life and how he became involved in the Civil Rights movement. Co-written by Lewis' assistant, Andrew Aydin, with art by Nate Powell, two volumes have been released so far — and they bear the distinction of being the first comic book ever written by a sitting Congressman. Lewis — who cites a comic book about Dr. Martin Luther King as a big reason he became an activist — has been heavily involved in his book's promotion over the last two years because he doesn't see it merely as history, but a guide meant to inspire a new generation towards inciting real social change through nonviolent resistance. Hence, Comic-Con. 

He even cosplayed as himself. 

Congressman Lewis went to Comic-Con wearing a jacket and backpack identical to what he wore during the "Bloody Sunday" march from Selma to Montgomery, Alabama — the events at the center of the film "Selma."

It didn't end there, though.

According to The Washington Post's Michael Cavna— whose account of Lewis' Comic-Con appearance is worth reading in full — a group of local third graders were brought to the convention to see Lewis speak. 

When the time came to leave the room and cross the convention to the booth Lewis had to find a way to cross the crowded convention with his young audience.

So Lewis decided to recreate another little bit of history at Comic-Con. Hand-in-hand, from the panel room to the show floor, Lewis and the children did exactly what Lewis did when he last wore a coat and backpack like those on his back at the convention.

They marched. 

SEE ALSO: The best costumes from San Diego Comic-Con 2015

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If you didn't go to San Diego Comic-Con, you might've missed why "Deadpool"— 20th Century Fox's upcoming "X-Men" spinoff starring Ryan Reynolds — is such a big deal. While it'll be a few more weeks before footage is shown to people outside of the convention's crowded auditoriums, Fox just released a few new photos giving our best look at one of Marvel's weirdest heroes — along with some of the equally strange people he'll meet.

But first, a shot of Deadpool performing a variation on The People's Elbow.

Meet Negasonic Teenage Warhead.

Played by Brianna Hildebrand, Ellie Phimister, aka Negasonic Teenage Warhead, is a pretty obscure character in X-Men comics who only appears briefly before dying in an attack on mutants. As such, she's pretty much a blank slate— although, given the uniform, she's definitely an X-Man and likely trying to hunt Deadpool down. 

Fun fact: Co-creator Grant Morrison named her after this 1995 Monster Magnet song:

 And Ajax, who will probably be on the hunt for Deadpool.

Otherwise known as simply Francis, the Ajax is an enforcer for the man responsible for creating Deadpool. Since Deadpool wants revenge on the guy who made him what he is, chances are they'll fight a bunch. Francis/Ajax will be played by Ed Skrein.

Here's a shot of Deadpool, just chillin'.

Look closely at his stereo and it's labeled Wade.

Here's a shot of him before his transformation, as Wade Wilson with love interest Vanessa.

Vanessa Carlysle (played by Morena Baccarin) is a huge part of the Deadpool comics as the mutant Copycat. We don't know much about the movie version of the character, other than that she's already involved with Wade before his transformation.

And one final mutant, Gina Carano's Angel Dust.

A mutant with the ability to trigger adrenaline rushes on demand, we don't really know what role Angel Dust plays in the grand scheme of things, except that she doesn't seem to like Wade's best friend Weasel (played by T.J. Miller).

"Deadpool" is scheduled to premiere in theaters on February 12, 2016. 

SEE ALSO: The real-life hero that went to San Diego Comic-Con

AND: Ryan Reynolds' raunchy "Deadpool" crushed Comic-Con for one simple reason — it looks like they nailed it

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Warning: If you haven't seen "Ant-Man," there are major spoilers ahead!

"Ant-Man" is finally here, and with it one of the new summer blockbuster traditions returns: The Marvel post-credits scenes. 

If you're heading out to see the new film this weekend, don't head out right before the movie ends. 

Unlike "Avengers: Age of Ultron," which only featured one scene after the stylish main credits, "Ant-Man" has two: One after the main credits (the "mid-credits" scene), and another after the long crawl.

If you headed out early or were left scratching your head, here's what you should know.

The Mid-Credits Scene

What happens:

In probably the most puzzling choice for a Marvel post-credits scene, the first rejoins Hank Pym (Michael Douglas) at home with his daughter Hope (Evangeline Lilly). Pym tells her there's something she should see. 

Pym reveals the wall at the back of the vault where he kept the Ant-Man suit he gave to Scott Lang was in fact false, and behind it lies a newer, more advanced suit modeled after the one her mother, Janet Van Dyne, wore as The Wasp. (We never see Janet in the movie, but she briefly appears in costume during a flashback scene. Janet's Wasp costume, however, was identical to the one Hank wore — just with wings). 

The new suit is predominantly blue and silver, and the tech powering it looks far more advanced. Pym tells Hope that it was a "prototype" that he and Janet were working on together. He says he thought they were working on it for Janet, but he supposes that they were really working on it for Hope. 

Hope, meanwhile, tears up with validation, before saying the final line in the scene:

"It's about damn time."

What's so puzzling about this scene:

Frankly, it has no business taking place after the credits. It's such a clear conclusion to Hope's arc throughout the film — who spends most of it resenting Hank for not letting her wear his suit and take on Cross herself (while also demonstrating that she's far more capable a choice than Scott) that it deserves to be part of the film proper. It certainly is a better place to leave Hope than her actual last scene — which is making out with Scott. As for the future of the Marvel Universe ...

It seems like it's clearly setting up Hope Van Dyne as another hero in the Marvel Universe. But which one? Smart money says she assumes her mother's code name and becomes the Wasp, much like Scott Lang took on Hank Pym's old Ant-Man alias. 

But.

"Ant-Man" is extremely careful to never show Janet Van Dyne's face. Even in photographs! That, taken in conjunction with an Easter egg director Peyton Reed hinted at that sharp-eyed viewers should be able to see during Scott's climactic trip into the Quantum Zone seems to suggest that Marvel has plans for Hank Pym's lost love, plans that might even result in someone being cast to play her in the future. 

If that's so, then it adds an interesting wrinkle: If Janet Van Dyne returns, will she be the Wasp? And if so, what will Hope be? 

It should be noted that Hope Van Dyne does not really exist in the comics. There is a Hope Pym that resides in an alternate universe where all the Marvel heroes have grown old and their children have now taken over, but there she's the villainous Red Queen.

She looks like this:

Given that Marvel's plans for the next few years are pretty thoroughly laid out, it's doubtful we'll see this — but given the studios penchant for remixing the greatest hits of the comics, don't be surprised if it's referenced somehow. 

The Second Scene

Remember "The Winter Solider?" The next scene is brief, and a bit unclear as to what's happening.

We see Anthony Mackie as Sam Wilson/The Falcon (who appears in one of  the very best scenes in "Ant-Man") meeting up with Steve Rogers in a garage somewhere. They're in a jam — they've found Bucky Barnes (Sebastian Stan), who went missing at the end of "The Winter Soldier." 

It looks like he's in bad shape, but we don't know why. Cap and the Falcon (in their civilian garb) need help, but they can't call Tony Stark — they say he'll be busy with something called "the accords." They have to go off-book for whatever it is they need to do. But it's no problem, because Falcon says "I know a guy," right before the message "ANT-MAN WILL RETURN" appears on-screen. 

What this means:

The next post-credits scene is a cryptic nod to the next Marvel movie, 2016's "Captain America: Civil War," but also picks up a plot thread from the previous Cap movie. 

There's not nearly as much to unpack here, other than the first notion of what may cause a rift between Steve Rogers and Tony Stark: Steve goes on a mission without any oversight, and Tony is working on some sort of policy. The center of it all then, will probably be Bucky Barnes. 

It's a hunch, but I feel pretty good about it. 

SEE ALSO: The most obscure 'X-Men' characters ever come to life in new 'Deadpool' photos

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NOW WATCH: Marvel celebrates the release of ‘Ant Man’ with a microscopic art show

Ant-Man is the latest obscure comic book superhero to make the leap to the big screen this week, and his movie is pretty fun! You might even like it enough to want to read some Ant-Man comics.

But recommending where to dive into Ant-Man comics? That's a bit harder than you might think it is. 

Unlike more popular heroes like Spider-Man or Captain America, Ant-Man has never really starred in his own long-running comic book, despite the fact that he was created way back in 1962 by Jack Kirby, Stan Lee and Larry Lieber, and that he's also a founding member of the Avengers. 

Add to that the fact that the first guy to call himself Ant-Man would go on to take no less then half a dozen other alter-egos in addition to the roughly half-dozen other people who would assume the Ant-Man identity over the years, and well, yeah. Things get confusing. 

Lucky for you, there are really only two Ant-Men you need to concern yourself with, and they're both in the movie version: Hank Pym and Scott Lang. 

Unfortunately for you, they're also the most troublesome of the bunch. Don't worry, though. We're going to help.

The first Ant-Man

Much like in the movie, Ant-Man's story begins when a scientist named Hank Pym creates what he calls Pym Particles — a miraculous substance that allows matter of all kinds to shrink. In conjunction with his special helmet that allows him to control ants, he becomes Ant-Man. 

As you might imagine, this didn't quite set the comics world on fire, and eventually Pym would discover his eponymous Particles could also be rigged to make himself grow as well. Thus, he renamed himself Giant Man (not a subtle one, that Hank Pym) and with his exciting new powers he finally measures up to heavy-hitters like Thor.

This is followed by a parade of personal tragedies, psychotic breaks, and identity crises so extreme they resulted in the creation of a small army of alter egos and a certain unstoppable killer robot named Ultron (in comic book land, it was Hank Pym, not Tony Stark, that created Ultron). Through it all, Hank Pym endures, although often wracked with guilt by the things he has done and the people he has hurt — most notably his wife, Janet Van Dyne, who often adopted similar powers to team up with Pym and the Avengers as The Wasp.

Comic book Hank Pym, you see, is a much more tragic figure, and despite being the original Ant-Man, that identity isn't nearly as important to his character as the creation of Ultron is, or his various struggles as Yellowjacket — this list of the best Hank Pym stories barely mentions Ant-Man.

Finding those stories will take some work, but isn't impossible if you subscribe to Marvel Unlimited or peruse digital comics retailer Comixology. 

Scott Lang, the good thief

Like with Hank Pym, the movie is remarkably faithful to the most important beats of Scott Lang's character. Created by David Michelinie and John Byrne in 1979, Lang is an electrical engineer who wasn't able to make ends meet and turned to burglary, got caught, and did time. He gets out and reforms, but when his daughter Cassie Lang falls ill, Lang returns to a life of crime. 

There are a few differences between Lang of the comics and the one we see in the movie, but they're mostly minor: In the comics, Scott knows about Hank Pym and Ant-Man, and steals the suit so he can use it to get a cure for his daughter. In the movie, he's recruited by an older Pym and trained to replace him as Ant-Man. In the comics, Pym quickly becomes aware of why Lang stole his technology and tells him to keep it — as long as he uses it to be a hero. 

Like Hank Pym, Scott Lang also has the unfortunate problem of never really having a comic series to call his own throughout his thirty-plus years of being in the Marvel Universe. However, unlike Hank Pym, it's much easier to go out and find a few good Scott Lang stories immediately without having to wade through decades of Marvel minutiae.

Diving into the comics

If you just saw the movie and want more, all you really have to do is jump aboard Marvel's new  "Ant-Man" series by Nick Spencer and Ramon Rosanas. The first volume, "Second Chance Man," is a really fun comic book and the perfect jumping-on point for new readers. Also, since Marvel is wont to capitalize on movie hype, new paperback collections of classic Scott Lang stories are also easy to come by these days. 

But there's a bit of a problem if you dive into those older Ant-Man comics: Scott Lang is a totally different guy. While his motivations are the same, he's portrayed as more of a rough-and-tumble guy in the hero biz for the thrill of it. The Paul Rudd-esque lovable screw-up isn't anywhere to be found in the comics outside of Spencer and Rosanas' new series — and even that's a new development.Scott Lang never really had a defining story. Hank Pym has Ultron, but Lang has no comparable calling card. In fact, he doesn't become truly interesting until he dies in the cataclysmic "Avengers: Disassembled" story by Brian Michael Bendis and David Finch. 

In the fallout of his death and the dissolution of the Avengers, his daughter Cassie finally gets the chance to shine when she discovers she has absorbed her father's powers. In an attempt to live up to his legacy, she becomes the hero Stature and joins the ragtag Young Avengers.

(This is where I pause to tell you "Young Avengers" is amazing. Read "YoungAvengers.") 

However, this is short-lived. In a bit of wibbly-wobbly, timey-wimey weirdness, the Young Avengers go back in time and save Scott Lang (among other things), but at great cost: Cassie dies. 

On the one hand, this was really lousy. Cassie was shaping up to be a fantastic addition to the Marvel Universe, a great new female hero in a lineup that really needed them. On the other, it paved the way for the actual best Scott Lang story thus far: Matt Fraction and Michael Allred's "FF."

Why a "Fantastic Four" spinoff is the best Scott Lang story

Little-read but much-loved, "FF" was a story about a replacement team the Fantastic Four puts together to keep an eye on the motley crew of child geniuses they've assembled as a part of a program they call the Future Foundation, while they're away on a crazy inter-dimensional road trip. Of the four people they ask to step in, Lang is the one in charge — a job he doesn't want to take, as he's still grieving over Cassie's death and doesn't feel cut out for the responsibility of watching out for children when he couldn't keep his own daughter safe. It's a touching exploration of grief and family rarely seen in comics, and Scott's grief and recovery is the beating heart of "FF" set against the backdrop of one of Marvel's most delightful series in recent memory — perhaps the closest they've come to doing Pixar-level storytelling that really has something for everyone. 

It's also relatively self-contained. Soon after "FF" concludes, much of Lang's circumstances are undone: His daughter is brought back to life (younger, and not as Stature) and Lang is recast from the somber-yet-responsible man we saw in that series to the down-on-his-luck guy who can't keep a job or make his ex-wife happy that appears in Spencer and Rosanas "Ant-Man" comic (and, consequently, the movie). 

There are more Ant-Man comics, and more Ant-Men (including one created by "The Walking Dead" mastermind Robert Kirkman),  but much like Hank Pym and Scott Lang, they're all tangled in the fabric of the Marvel Universe, rarely cast in a lead role but often very important. 

They're kind of like the insects they're named after in that way: Never really in the spotlight, but always there, doing their part to make sure the world spins on. 

SEE ALSO: Marvel comics everyone should read

AND: There are two end-credits scenes in "Ant-Man"— Here's what they mean for the future of Marvel movies

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Hitting the big screen shortly after "Batman vs. Superman,""Suicide Squad" is based on DC Comics' supervillain team of the same name. The first trailer was shown at San Diego Comic Con, and fans went nuts for how amazing everyone looks. The movie has some big named attached – including Jared Leto, Will Smith, and Margot Robbie. Here's what they look like compared to their characters.

Produced by Matthew Stuart

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"Fables" is a comic book that crept up on me, one that I didn't know I loved until it was too late and I was 60 issues in and the story broke my heart. 

Years ago, someone handed me a copy of the first volume, subtitled "Legends in Exile," and insisted that I read it. It's hard not to read "Fables" once it's in front of you —  the series is about characters from fairy tales of yore secretly living among us, and the volume that introduces them is a murder mystery where the Big Bad Wolf has reformed, taken human shape, and is a detective investigating the violent death of Snow White's sister Rose Red. 

That's a pretty good hook. 

Then you meet the rest of the fairy tale characters, and see how they live once happily ever after is over and done with, and it's fascinating. Prince Charming is an unrepentant womanizer, Cinderella pretends to be an airheaded narcissist but is secretly a deadly superspy, and Goldilocks is straight-up homicidal — the list goes on.

There's also Boy Blue, Flycatcher the Prince who was once a frog, and a little girl named Therese but you need to read their stories yourself. Those are the ones that broke my heart, and would probably do the same to yours, too.

The series was not so much a reinvention of these characters as it was a close read of them, positing the petty rivalries and implied dysfunctions that would be brought to the surface if they all knew each other and were exiled from their magical homelands to our mundane world.  

That's what they call us, by the way. "Mundies." It's short for "mundane," which I suppose is accurate. 

Created by writer Bill Willingham and artist Lan Medina (who left the series after its first story arc — Mark Buckingham would do the art on the next arc and then go on to become synonymous with the series and Willingham's storytelling partner), "Fables" kicked off in the summer of 2002, and told the story of Fabletown, the invisible neighborhood in the center of Manhattan where fairy tale characters lived among us after a villain known as "The Adversary" exiled them from their homelands. 

Part of what made "Fables" interesting was that it pulled its characters from far and wide — the old stalwarts from "Grimm's Fairy Tales" got plenty of play, but the Willingham and co. also looked to nursery rhymes and folk tales  from all over the world — everything from "The Thousand and One Nights" to L. Frank Baum's "Oz" books was fair game. 

"Fables" would go on to win 14 Eisner awards (that's the comic book equivalent of the Oscars) over the next 13 years, garnering praise and acclaim for just about every aspect of the craft. A lot of those awards were for cover artist James Jean, whose stunning portraits were the first thing many readers saw for the first 81 issues of the series. They're simply beautiful pieces of fine art. 

This week, it's all coming to an end. 

On Wednesday, July 22, "Fables" will take a bow with its 150th issue, which is a full-sized, 178-page graphic novel (that doubles as the series 22nd volume). Titled "Farewell", the graphic novel will wrap up the story Willingham and Buckingham have been telling alongside a deep roster of other talented creators like Steve Leialoha and Andrew Pepoy for over a decade.  

Few comic book series last very long. In superhero comics, this is a supply-and-demand thing: The two most prominent superhero publishers, Marvel and DC, have roughly 50-something monthly titles each, and at about four dollars an issue, not everything can be a huge success. Books are canceled all the time, usually within a year, in order to make room for something else. 

For a series  like "Fables"— one controlled wholly by its creators — the book will last as long as the people making it want to keep telling stories.  This can mean anything from three issues to 60 (a few months or five years). Rare is the series that makes it to 100 issues, and rarer still are the ones that surpass it by a large margin. 

I'll miss "Fables", not because I had any particularly strong attachment to the characters it culled from songs older than anyone I'll ever meet and stories first told by people we no longer remember, but because it understood why those characters mattered.

Because we've always been telling stories, and we always will. Because stories are the one real form of magic we have — where we all dream of a Happily Ever After although the only thing we're really promised is a Once Upon a Time.

SEE ALSO: The real-life hero who stole the show at Comic-Con

AND: "Fables" creators look back on the series and share their biggest regret in the series' 13-year history

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After 13 years, "Fables", a landmark comic book series about fairy tale characters secretly living among us, has finally come to an end Wednesday. Available now, the series' graphic novel-length final issue, "Farewell", by Bill Willingham and Mark Buckingham (with contributions from a small army of some of the biggest names in comics) is a big moment for many comics fans.

"Fables" is fondly remembered, not just because it was a moving story that got adults to care about fairy tales, but because it had a reputation as a series that convinced many people to give comics a try — particularly women.

"I think the fact that we've been an entry-point to comics for so many female readers has been a particular delight for me," artist Mark Buckingham tells Business Insider. "I've had many comic book artists and comic book fans thank me at [conventions], because 'Fables' is the series that their wife or girlfriend or sister had picked up, and it's the one that really got them excited and got them reading comics — and now they are very excited about the medium as a whole and are checking out lots of other stuff, and that's a good feeling." 

Buckingham attributes this to the unique accessibility afforded them by the fact that they're using characters from folklore that everyone knows from childhood nursery rhymes and fairy tales. "Fables" is warm and familiar, but with a "twist that we then give to the material," says Buckingham, "that keeps you hooked and drags you in."

"These are characters that you fell out of touch with like beloved childhood friends," says writer Bill Willingham. "They show up one day and you're going to sit around the kitchen table and catch up on what's happened lately. The 'what's happened lately' — that's where the crux of the story is, that's the surprising thing — The 'oh the minister's daughter became a stripper, and the patriotic kid is now an underground rebel.' It's like, 'Oh I'm surprised that you changed that much. That's where the 'Fables' story is told." 

As a series published by DC's mature-readers imprint Vertigo (where it was the longest-running series), "Fables" was also frank in a manner that fairy tale characters are rarely portrayed. It was mature, but not salacious, there was violence, but it wasn't gratuitous. For much of "Fables", good taste seemed to be the rule of thumb — and this delicate balance was likely a big part of its success.

But early on, there was some indecision about just how 'adult' "Fables" would be. 

"When we talk about regrets or things that we would've done differently — without changing much of the story, I would've stuck to my guns that Vertigo should have published it as an all-ages series," says Willingham. "The reason Vertigo didn't want to do this, and I think it's a legitimate reason, was: If we had one all-ages series, those same kids will grab other Vertigo books and then be shocked and surprised by the maturity of their content."

Like Willingham asserts, this is a reasonable assumption — throughout the '90s, Vertigo established itself as a home for groundbreaking, provocative work, regularly publishing seminal series like "The Sandman" and "Y: The Last Man"— books that changed the landscape of comics with deft storytelling and layered themes but refused to shy away from frank depictions of sex and violence. 

"I thought we kept Fables mature in the sense that there were adult issues and jeopardy and considerations constantly in play, but we did not need to have so much of the naughty stuff," says Willingham. "I might have been the very first writer or writer/artist team where there was pressure to put more of the dirty stuff in, rather than 'You're going too far we need to take some of this stuff out.' Not a lot of pressure, but there were a lot of questions where it was like, 'Is there any chance they're getting naked soon?'"

When asked for comment about the early days of "Fables", the publisher offered this counterpoint:

"Vertigo is a creator-driven imprint and for the past 13 years we’ve been proud to champion Bill's distinctive vision for 'Fables'," says Shelly Bond, executive editor of Vertigo. "Vertigo titles like 'Fables' and 'The Sandman' have a long history of garnering the support of readers from all walks of life, from young adults onward."

That's not to say early "Fables" stories were hedonistic jaunts, but those early issues — where "Fables" was still trying to figure itself out — did feature more "on-camera sex and vulgarity," to use Willingham's words. But once "Fables" found its groove (and it won awards in its first year, so it found its groove pretty quickly), it soon became apparent the series was most comfortable in a less gratuitous place. 

"I always felt that 'Fables' should be a series that should reach the widest possible audience," says Mark Buckingham. "When it comes to violence and when it comes to intimacy, I always go for less is more ... you need to lead the reader to a point and let them fill in the blanks, and I think that's what we did very successfully during our run. "

With it's impressive collection of awards and accolades, and a readership that stretches far beyond those who read comics for typical superhero fare, "Fables" has had a remarkable run, one that created a whole universe full of spinoffs like "Fairest" and "Jack of Fables" and often was the only comics project that either creator has worked on for over a decade. So what happens to "Fables" now that it's another bit of folklore, another storybook on a shelf next to the countless other stories it loved so much?

"I hope that it's got legs, in that long after Mark and I are gone from this lovely place, 'Fables' as a series still exists and is available to people," says Bill Willingham when asked about his hopes for "Fables" now that it's over. "Having such a long-running series, we've gotten to see new people as they come of age are coming to 'Fables' for the first time, all the time."

"We live off stories, as a people," adds Willingham. "Our entertainment is to have stories told to us in various media, from song to cinema. Work [needs stories] — a house doesn't get built without the story of what we want being told first. So that is the bedrock of who we are as a species, so of course they're going to be important. Being able to be a storyteller by profession is a joy, and I think, a pretty big responsibility." 

SEE ALSO: 'Fables' was a comic that showed why fairy tales matter to adults

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If you're the type who follows superhero movie news, you'll know that Marvel doesn't have the film rights to all of the characters that appear in its comics. In fact, two of the biggest parts of its comic book universe — the Fantastic Four and the X-Men — are licensed by 20th Century Fox, and all the characters with ties to them are contractually forbidden from appearing in movies made by Marvel Studios.

This is why popular characters like Wolverine won't ever appear in an "Avengers" film, and why the news that Spider-Man has joined the Marvel Cinematic Universe was such a big deal. But since Fox has the rights to both the Fantastic Four and the X-Men (both huge properties with loads of characters and worlds unto themselves), it stands to reason that they would build their own mini-Marvel Cinematic Universe, since that sort of thing is so hot right now — and also because screenwriter/producer Simon Kinberg has worked on both rebooted franchises (there's also a comic book precedent).

In a recent video Q&A with Yahoo Movies, "X-Men: Apocalypse" director Bryan Singer answered a number of fan questions — and one of them was about the presumed crossover. 

"That would be a natural match-up because they’re both ensemble films and there is a natural mechanism by which to do it," said Singer. "It deals with time — that’s all I’m going to say.”

Singer didn't say anything else about the potential project, but based on the films as they stand now, time travel is probably the only way to bring both casts together in a way that makes sense — it was used in "Days of Future Past" to effectively reboot the "X-Men" movies and turn them into period pieces ("Apocalypse" is set in the 1980s), while "Fantastic Four" looks like it's set in the present day. So time travel is a nice convenience, and probably a necessity from a plot perspective.

Singer also makes sure to hedge his bets when talking about the potential crossover, noting that it's important to make sure both movies do well before getting too deep into speculation about a potential crossover.

The whole Q & A is worth a watch — Singer spends most of it answering questions about the recently-released "Rogue Cut" of "X-Men: Days of Future Past", but also drops a bunch of other great "X-Men" tidbits — like briefly teasing that "Apocalypse" might have feature the X-Men in their iconic comic book costumes at some point.

Check it out below.

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