I’m the king. Christmas present highlights-

-I always get some Star Wars crap, but Star Wars Operation is gonna be dope. Also, I’ve wanted to read The Making of Star Wars for a while now, and Shadow Games, despite having a terrible cover, is about Dash Rendar from Shadows of the Empire, his first significant appearance since, and, because he’s one of my favorite expanded universe characters, that makes it worth reading. The calendars are also pretty cool.

-The original Planet of the Apes novel, as well as the animated series Return to the Planet of the Apes.

-I Am Better than Your Kids by Maddox- Wasn’t a huge fan of his first book, but I’ve flipped through this, and it’s already the funniest thing he’s written in ages (though I find he’s almost always still a good source for amusement).

-Chas: The Knowledge- a minor Hellblazer storyline. Should be fun.

-Roger Ebert’s memoir Life Itself.

-Brian Selznick’s The Invention of Hugo Cabret and Wonder Struck- I loved Martin Scorsese’s Hugo, so I’m expecting greatness.

-The Autobiography of Mark Twain and The Best Short Stories of Mark Twain- Mostly unread (by me) work by the king.

-Orbiter by Warren Ellis and Colleen Doran- Already read this—it’s pretty amazing. Full write-up coming soon.

-The Time Machine Did It by prolific Simpsons writer John Swartzwelder- If the first chapter is any indication this is pure Swartzwelder craziness. Every other line is a joke and pretty much all of them land.

-The Visible Man by Chuck Klosterman- Although I prefer his non-fiction, I did really like Downtown Owl, so I’m looking forward to Klosterman’s second novel.

-Community season 2- My favorite current sitcom’s (so far) best season. Started listening to the commentaries- they are fun and informative, but I wish Dan Harmon was on every one like he was for season one.

-Habibi by Craig Thompson- Can’t wait to dig into this beast. Love Blankets to death, and I’ve heard this is better.

As you can probably tell, I mostly asked for books, and I look forward to a great deal of reading.

How?

Rise of the Planet of the Apes (Rupert Wyatt; 2011)

Rise of the Planet of the Apes functions as a both a reboot and a sort-of in continuity prequel to the venerable Planet of the Apes franchise. Telling the story of how the apes came to take over the planet Earth in Planet of the Apes (1968), Rise covers much of the same ground as the fourth and second best film in the series, Conquest of the Planet of the Apes.

Conquest followed Escape from the Planet of the Apes, which essentially rebooted the franchise and turned it into a circular narrative time paradox, similar to The Terminator. Rise simply ignores all of the films past Beneath the Planet of the Apes (the second installment), and tells its origin anew.

James Franco plays Will, a scientist who has developed a possible miracle cure for Alzheimer’s disease. The drug is tested on a chimpanzee named “Bright Eyes” (a clever nod to the original film). She reacts violently and is put down, but not before having a baby, who Will names Caesar and takes home with him. Will lives with his father (played wonderfully by John Lithgow), who is suffering from Alzheimer’s. After noticing Caesar’s increased intelligence, Will tests his drug on his father, with excellent results.

After eight years, Caesar attacks Will’s neighbor and is taken away by animal control. He is sent to an ape “sanctuary,” where he exposes the rest of the population to Will’s drug and leads a revolt.

There are many nods to the original film, most of which are clever (the aforementioned “Bright Eyes,” an orangutan named “Maurice” after Maurice Evans, who played Dr. Zaius, the retro title card), some of which are forced. Particularly clunky is a reprisal of the classic “IT’S A MADHOUSE” line by Tom Felton (who has a pretty convincing American accent, but is otherwise just playing Draco Malfoy).

The motion capture work in the film is perhaps the best I’ve ever seen. Andy Serkis is fucking brilliant as Caesar, communicating every emotion with incredibly subtle facial expression. I miss the old make-up, but Rise simply has some of the most incredible and noteworthy special effects I’ve seen in years.

The ending of the film is a bit problematic, as it reeks of the same studio interference which tainted the ending of Conquest. It’s a bit too happy for an Apes movie, but at least the mid-credits coda (will this ever stop? Just put it at the end, BEFORE the credits) is fittingly gloomy.

Even so, Rise of the Planet of the Apes is my favorite franchise film of the summer, far outpacing all the superhero films and (by a lesser margin) the last Harry Potter movie. It’s the best Apes film since Conquest (let’s pretend 1973’s embarrassing Battle for the Planet of the Apes and Tim Burton’s pathetic 2001 remake never happened), mostly because it returns the series to it’s serious-minded roots. It’s a smart, character driven, ’70s style environmentalist science fiction movie.

Most licensed comics are trash. Aside from Star Wars and Buffy the Vampire Slayer, most comic books based on movies or TV shows are sad corporate tie-ins, failing to add new dimension to the franchise, and, most of all, failing to provide even remotely acceptable artwork.

Keeping that in mind, Boom Studios’s new Planet of the Apes series comes as a great surprise. An obvious tie-in to this August’s Rise of the Planet of the Apes, I was wary of the book, making a last minute decision to pick it up in the store.

Three issues in, and this new Planet of the Apes is everything except a shameless advertisement for Rise. If fact, it’s completely reliant on knowledge of the original film franchise and its continuity (even, quite prominently, the horrendous Battle for the Planet of the Apes).

Set 1200 years before the original film (so roughly 800 years after Battle—yes, Planet of the Apes chronology is convoluted as fuck), this series is telling the story of the final downfall of the human race, when we went from the lesser, if poorer, species seen at the end of Battle to the subservient, mute animals we are in the original movie.

Writer Daryl Gregory totally gets what makes Planet of the Apes one of the best and most significant science fiction films ever made. This series fills in the gaps, providing more information on the vast, centuries-spanning mythos of the franchise.

Remember how I said licensed comics usually had horrible artwork? Well, Planet of the Apes defies that tradition yet again. Carlos Magno’s pencils are utterly gorgeous, recalling the great works of Geoff Darrow or Frank Quietly.

Planet of the Apes is one of the best new comics I’ve read in quite some time. If you’re a fan of the films (and, it should be said, you really should check them all out—even Battle—if you want to get the most enjoyment out of the book), check it out. I only hope that, regardless of its quality (I’m not crossing my fingers), Rise of the Planet of the Apes does well so this series can continue.