I like making lists.

Yep. I'm a big King fan so maybe a little biased, but I'm also a big DC fan and I think Shazam! has the potential to be a dud.

What else are you reading thebtskink?

I'm looking forward to the "Doctor Sleep" adaptation. I liked that more than most did I think.

Re-reading The Stand, Skeleton Crew, and The Long Walk.

I'm pumped for an adaptation of The Long Walk if it gets through pre-production.

The unabridged Stand is one of my favorite books

Yeah one of the knocks against The Long Walk was internal dialogue, but I think the Netflix Gerald's Game adaptation proved that you can get over that hump fairly easily.

Hell if they turned The Jaunt into a Black Mirror episode I'd be stoked.

I still need to read a lot of his more recent stuff. Mr. Mercedes on my shelf, 11/22/63 on the list, and I've heard good things about Liseys Story and Dr. Sleep.

6. Godzilla: King of the Monsters (May 31st)

The new story follows the heroic efforts of the crypto-zoological agency Monarch as its members face off against a battery of god-sized monsters, including the mighty Godzilla, who collides with Mothra, Rodan, and his ultimate nemesis, the three-headed King Ghidorah. When these ancient super-species – thought to be mere myths – rise again, they all vie for supremacy, leaving humanity's very existence hanging in the balance.

Truth be told I really debated back and forth on where to position this one – on the one hand, I actually really disliked the 2014 film from Gareth Edwards and now recent (within the last day or two) rumors are pointing toward the movie being mostly a disaster. Those things said, on the other hand I really loved the recent Kong: Skull Island and it sounds like this is going to feel more like that with Godzilla battling some classic foes front and center, like a classic Godzilla picture, and not being a total background character in his own film until the last 20 minutes. The powers that be seem to be injecting a little mystery into the proceedings with Vera Farmiga’s character setting up what seems to be some kind of cult following for the monsters. The trailer also looked very visually appealing and frequently these early rumors are inaccurate, so this could potentially be one of the best of next summer.

5. Wonder Woman 1984 (November 1st)

Diana Prince comes into conflict with the Soviet Union during the Cold War in the 1980s, and finds a formidable foe in the form of the Cheetah.

2017’s Wonder Woman was one of the most surprising superhero films in recent memory in the sense that I flat out expected it to be bad, and not only was it not it was arguably one of the best of the decade. Gal Gadot is the best casting decision to come out of this current iteration of the DC Universe, and with her, director Patty Jenkins, and Chris Pine all returning, what’s not to love? I really liked the casting of Kristen Wiig as the primary antagonist Cheetah here – haven’t seen much of a villainous side out of Wiig but it’ll be a good exercise to see her play against type here. I’m glad the film is set in the past again and not in the modern era given how much untapped potential there is there. Not much more to say, I fully expect it to be one of the most enjoyable movies of 2019.

It was certainly overrated by some people, but people did seem to more or less come to their senses about it after the hype died down.

I agree with everything you said Doom.

I like Wonder Woman, Black Panther, and Infinity War. I just leave it at that.

They're no Howard the Duck though.

I just finished King's The Outsider. If you liked any of the above, I recommend. I loved The Long Walk, and I'm right there with you on the unabridged Stand. I've read that a few times.

4. It: Chapter Two (September 6th)

Taking place 27 years after the events of the summer of 1989, the Losers' Club have grown up and moved away until a devastating phone call forces them to return to Derry, Maine when their ancient, shape-shifting nemesis It (Bill Skarsgård) returns. As the group fulfill their childhood promise to reunite and destroy It once and for all, they are unaware the creature has returned stronger than ever and is awaiting their arrival, waiting to exact its wrathful vengeance on them.

As the Stephen King fan that I am, I never expected these films to be great adaptations of the 1100 page novel, but I came away from 2017’s first chapter feeling fairly pleased with the film – it’s not perfect, but it a good job of establishing the friendships between these characters and also dealing with It/Pennywise/Bob Gray/whatever you’d prefer to refer to him as. The film also did a wonderful job of portraying the terrible-ness of the town of Derry, NH, a crucial part of the novel and something I wasn’t sure how well would translate. It did, at times, embrace being a horror film made in 2017 a bit much with the over-the-top visuals that made the film seem unfaithful to the source material at times, but It works.

The children portions of the book are better than the adults, but with the incoming cast – Jessica Chastain, James McAvoy, Bill Hader, and Bill Skarsgård returning – I think there’s a good chance this second half ends up being the better of the two. I think I’ll also be better prepared for the changes from the source material this time around and end up enjoying this more on a first watch than I did its predecessor. Pennywise growing massive and popping out of the photo reel really pulled me out of the film, as did all of the fast-motion/scary clown type of modern-day horror techniques. That’s not King and that’s not the book, so either I’ll be more prepared for the deviations this time around or there won’t be as much of it.

3. Avengers 4 (May 3rd)

The untitled Avengers film, colloquially referred to as Avengers 4, is an upcoming American superhero film based on the Marvel Comics superhero team the Avengers, produced by Marvel Studios and distributed by Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures. It is intended to be the direct sequel to 2018's Avengers: Infinity War, as well as the sequel to 2012's Marvel's The Avengers and 2015's Avengers: Age of Ultron and the twenty-second film in the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU). The film is directed by Anthony and Joe Russo, with a screenplay by the writing team of Christopher Markus and Stephen McFeely, and features an ensemble cast with many actors from previous MCU films.

I think Avengers: Infinity War is arguably the best comic book movie ever. It’s dramatic and theatrical, it’s got a good sense of humor, it’s big and bold and has reason to be, it has a massive cast of characters that is balanced exceedingly well, and it ends on a significantly dour moment that feels earned and not forced. It feels so long ago that we were concerned about, “could Captain America, Iron Man, and Thor co-exist on screen together?” My god, it feels like a hundred years ago instead of just six. The movie works, and it works really well.

Now, leading into Avengers 4, there are a lot of questions worth asking – how are the now dead heroes (Spider-Man, Doctor Strange, the Guardians, etc.) going to be revived? How can Thanos be defeated? What will the Avengers look like by the end of the film? What fate awaits our original characters in this universe – Stark, Rogers, and Thor? Can it live up to the expectations firmly planted in audiences’ minds walking out of the third film? I think Avengers 4 has the chance to be the biggest film ever – cost, scope, cast, everything, etc. When you add in the fact that this is the culmination of (as of A4) a 22-deep film series, it’s hard not to be excited.