Superman 43: Why does Lois reveal Clark's secret?

Jason Book and I discuss Superman #43 by Gene Yang and John Romita Jr. This is the landmark issue where (SPOILER ALERT) Lois outs Superman to the world.

There were some strengths to the issue, but we also discussed some miscues. And we talk about the report from BleedingCool that John Romita Jr will be leaving the title.

Check out our previous reviews of Superman issues (42, 41).

Rumors about Justice League movies (SPOILER ALERT)

I am pasting the following for posterity so that I can check back in a few years to see if any of this information turned out to be true. This was posted as purportedly leaked info by redditleaker6307. POTENTIAL SPOILERS BELOW

• A full screenplay written by Zack Snyder and Chris Terrio is definitely complete and will start filming by April 2016.
• The film will not feature Brainiac as a villain but instead will have Darkseid as the villain. Darkseid's presence will echo throughout films like Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice and Wonder Woman. Wonder Woman and Aquaman share a deadly connection to Darkseid's home planet, Apokolips.
• David S. Goyer's 2014 outline did feature Brainiac (http://screenrant.com/justice-league-movie-brainiac-rumor/) but ever since his controversial comments, Chris Terrio has taken his position in crafting the DC Extended Universe which may have been the reason of change of Brainiac to Darkseid. Goyer is still involved in some capacity.
• The script already has Victor Stone as Cyborg as opposed to an origin story. The plan for Cyborg (2020) is suppose to fill in the gaps of Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice and Justice League Part One. Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice will only feature Victor Stone in a cameo.
• Nightwing has an appearance in Justice League Part One. Warner Bros already have an actor set for Dick Grayson for multiple pictures.
• Unsurprisingly, Viola Davis will reprise her role as Amanda Waller in Justice League Part One and Two.
• Wonder Woman and Aquaman will have a major fight sequence in the film.
• Thanagar will be a planet destroyed by Darkseid in the film.
• Superman will be controlled by Darkseid in a scene which will cause the whole Justice League take him down. By the end of the film, Batman will have access to each of the Justice League member's weaknesses because of that event.
• Vicki Vale will be referenced heavily by Bruce Wayne as a sort of love interest.
• Gary Sinise is eyed to play General Wade Eiling for JL Part One even though rumors stated him in Suicide Squad.
• Superman and The Flash have a race in the film.
• Barry Allen and Victor Stone will be the comic relief of the team as they are younger. A bond between both characters will ensue.
• The climax will have Flash break the speed force and travel back in time after a major catastrophe.
• Lois Lane will only have a cameo in the introduction of Superman.
• The titles for Justice League Part One/Two may change as both films aren't necessarily a continuation of one another.
• Green Lantern will not be featured in Justice League Part One as Dan Ambroyer will not play Hal Jordan in Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice unfortunately but rather an extra. ^EDIT - Warner Bros is choosing to go with John Stewart as Green Lantern in the Justice League, yet he isn't featured in the finished screenplay. (DEFINITELY take this with a grain of salt), it is a possibility he may be included in Justice League Part Two.
• Take this with a grain of salt as drafts and outlines as early as this are a subject to change; Justice League Part Two has a four page outline by Snyder written. The outline will feature the return of Jesse Eisenberg's Lex Luthor forming a version of the Secret Society of Villains with villains like Deathstroke and Black Adam with the help of Amanda Waller.
• ^ Again, take it as a grain of salt but this adds credence to the time when Dwayne Johnson said that Black Adam "will join Justice League," and fight Batman and Superman (http://www.ign.com/articles/2015/02/12/dwayne-johnson-hints-that-black-adam-could-face-batman-or-superman-eventually). (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FH_S_RjT8bk) It's clear he knows something

Justice League 43: Darkseid War part three

Jason Book and I talk about the third issue of the Darkseid War story arc (there were also some lead-ups in Justice League #40 and the FCBD Divergence issue). In short, it remains solid and epic! (Previous review)

The issue culminates in the beginning of the big showdown we've been expecting all along -- Darkseid v. the Anti-Monitor. The developments with Superman and Lex are just as exciting (and leave us on a bit of a cliffhanger), and we're wondering what wrenches Kalibak and Metron are going to throw into the action. They both seem like loose cannons.

Batman 43: Mr. Bloom and the Reemergence of Bruce

Jason Book and I review Batman #43, by Scott Snyder and Greg Capullo. This is part 3 of the Superheavy story line which features Jim Gordon in the mech-batsuit.

As usual, there was a lot to like in the issue. But we were a little concerned by the introduction of Bruce's final (though incomplete) invention.

Top 5 Comic Book Movies (1998-2015)

Jason Book and I each run down our own list of our favorite live-action comic book movies from the era that began with Blade and recently ended with a whimper in Fantastic Four. But don't let the poor reviews of Fantastic Four fool you, there were way too many good movies in this timespan to fit into one video.

In the video we talk about our separate lists, which definitely contained some differences (only one of us had The Avengers, for example), but here is a rough version of our combined list:

1. The Dark Knight (2008), directed by Christopher Nolan
2. Spider-Man 2 (2004), directed by Sam Raimi
3. Man of Steel (2013), directed by Zack Snyder
4. Sin City (2005), directed by Frank Miller and Robert Rodriguez
5. The Avengers (2012), directed by Joss Whedon
6. Iron Man (2008), directed by Jon Favreau
7. X-Men (2000), directed by Bryan Singer
8. V for Vendetta (2006), directed by James McTeigue

We also mentioned some other honorable mentions in the video. Previously, we covered the Top 5 for the earlier era of 1978-1997.

Now let the new era begin! Deadpool and especially Batman v Superman will get us started off next year in a big way.

Top 5 Comic Book Movies (1978-1997)

Jason Book and I run down the list of our 5 favorite comic book movies from the era that started with Superman: The Movie and screeched to a halt with Batman & Robin.

Here's our list, which we discuss in detail in the video:

1. Superman: The Movie (1978), directed by Richard Donner
2. Batman (1989), directed by Tim Burton
3. The Crow (1994), directed by Alex Proyas
4. Men in Black (1997), directed by Barry Sonnenfeld
5. Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (1990), directed by Steve Barron

This era had as many bad CBMs as good ones, and even the good ones haven't all held up over time. But it paved the way for the surging era that was 1998 to 2015 (ended by the Fantastic Four bomb). The year 2016 will kick off an exciting new era, we think.

Superman 42: How does Lois find out about Clark?

Jason Book and I discuss issue #42 of Superman, which is part 2 of the "Before Truth" story arc that explains how Lois came to reveal Superman's secret identity, leading to the "Truth" stories in Action Comics, Batman Superman, and Superman Wonder Woman.

Overall, we felt the issue was adequate but not stellar. The art is always a liability with John Romita Jr. on the book, so that puts pressure on the writing to be superb. In this case, Yang was good but not great. But the villain is creative and explores some relevant themes, and the arc still has potential going into the final two issues. We also discuss the big moment between Lois and Clark.