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It really is amazing how much the superhero genre has exploded over the last quarter of a century. Before 2000, the only cinematic releases under the Marvel banner were for C-list characters. Meanwhile, the more well-known names at most had direct-to-video or TV movies. Now, as the Marvel Cinematic Universe is about to return from […]

The post The Biggest Marvel Characters Yet to Show up in MCU Movies appeared first on Den of Geek.

When talking about RPGs, the first thing that usually comes to mind is a medieval-inspired fantasy setting full of dragons, magic, and armor-clad warriors. That’s not the exclusive definition of fantasy in fiction of course, but it’s a pretty good starting point.

But which fantasy RPGs are the best? There are literally hundreds out there, with all sorts of different takes on this broad idea, and numerous different gameplay styles. But ultimately, we narrowed it down to these 15 best fantasy RPGs of all time.

15. Dragon’s Dogma 2

A lot of gamers have expressed disappointment with Dragon’s Dogma 2. The biggest complaint is that it doesn’t do all that much different from the original game, even though there are 12 years between the two titles, and that’s actually kind of a fair point. In many ways, Dragon’s Dogma 2 feels like a remake of the first game.

But there are very good reasons why the first game is so beloved. A sequel didn’t need to reinvent the wheel. Dragon’s Dogma 2 brings back the Pawn system, smooths out the combat, and puts you in an even larger world you can explore however you see fit. It’s one of the most immersive fantasy RPGs around even if it didn’t change a whole lot from the original.

14. The Lord of the Rings: The Third Age

When it was released in 2004, The Third Age received quite a bit of criticism for its similarities to Final Fantasy X. Yes, the combat system is virtually identical, and it’s a very linear game. But Final Fantasy X is still widely hailed as one of the best games in the series, so why all the hate for The Third Age?

Lord of the Rings practically invented every single trope of the fantasy genre. The franchise certainly deserves to have a classic turn-based RPG, and The Third Age is an excellent one that’s aged better than most titles from the early 2000s. Maybe it would get a little more respect with a proper HD re-release.

13. Pillars of Eternity

The 2010s saw something of a resurgence in the long-ignored CRPG subgenre. Pillars of Eternity began as a Kickstarter project with the goal of making a spiritual successor to classics of the ‘90s like Baldur’s Gate and Planescape: Torment. And Obsidian absolutely nailed it.

Pillars of Eternity features deep and highly customizable combat in the vein of those games, but what really won players over was the strong writing. Every single character you meet has their own lengthy backstory and motivations. Playing through the game can almost feel like reading a lengthy fantasy series.

12. Fable II

It’s easy to knock the Fable franchise for what it isn’t. The early promises of series creator Peter Molyneux were of course ridiculously ambitious, and many probably couldn’t even be accomplished with modern hardware. But what we ultimately got with Fable II was a charming action RPG with a slightly off-kilter yet cozy aesthetic that’s still unlike anything else in the genre.

Admittedly, Fable II isn’t necessarily for everyone. The humor is unapologetically British, and the world vacillates between the melancholy and absurd in ways that can be disconcerting at times, but if it clicks for you, it’s a wholly unique fantasy RPG from a bygone era of gaming.

11. Metaphor: ReFantazio

It’s always tricky to put a newer game on a list like this because you don’t want to recognize another flavor of the week that will soon be forgotten. As of this writing, Metaphor: ReFantazio has only been out for a few months, but already it looks to be a game that will be replayed and analyzed for years to come.

At first, it might be easy to write it off as Persona in a fantasy skin, but the game is so much more than that. Metaphor: ReFantazio has one of the best stories in any RPG in recent years. Essentially, it’s about your role in choosing the successor to an assassinated king, but it weaves through so many more topics, such as racism, inequality, and extremism, yet never comes across as heavy handed or preachy.

10. Final Fantasy IX

Final Fantasy had to be somewhere on this list. It’s right there in the name of the series. But deciding which Final Fantasy is actually the best fantasy RPG was a bit difficult. The settings of several games like Final Fantasy VI and VII aren’t really traditional fantasy worlds, so that automatically disqualified them. Final Fantasy XVI is a technically impressive return to the series’ traditional fantasy roots, but the story and combat are far from the series’ best.

In the end, the best true fantasy game in the Final Fantasy series is Final Fantasy IX. It captured the spirit of the earlier games with a beautiful medieval setting and some of the best characters in any RPG ever. It also features some of the better traditional turn-based combat in the franchise before later games started straying from the series’ roots.  

9. Dragon Quest XI

While Final Fantasy has explored all sorts of different ideas and settings over the years, the Dragon Quest series has been a reliable fantasy RPG franchise since its inception. They’re all really great JRPGs to be honest, but it’s pretty well agreed upon by fans of the series that the most recent title, Dragon Quest XI is the best to date.

In terms of gameplay, this is about as traditional of a JRPG as you’re going to find. The turn-based combat and item management has barely changed since the first game. But this is also one beautifully crafted anime world, with a great cast of characters, and a lengthy story that manages to stay interesting to the end.

8. Suikoden II

Largely ignored by critics and gamers alike when it was first released due to graphics that looked dated even by the standards of the late ‘90s, Suikoden II has been rightfully reappraised as one of the greatest fantasy RPGs of all time. This is a game that thrives at telling both large- and small-scale tales. The story beautifully weaves an intimate story of friendship in a continent-spanning epic about war and political strife.

This philosophy extends to its gameplay as well. While most combat takes place among small parties in traditional turn-based battles, there are also one-on-one duels, and large-scale battles between armies. Suikoden II took a lot of risks that paid off, and the ideas here still haven’t shown up in many other titles.  

7. Divinity: Original Sin II

Upon its release in 2017, many outlets hailed Divinity: Original Sin II as an almost perfect CRPG for its deep customization, freedom of choice, and morally gray writing. Looking back at it now, Original Sin II maybe isn’t quite that good. Its complexity can sometimes lead to unfortunate and unpredictable outcomes both in storytelling and combat, and it can often be difficult to keep track of the game’s many quests. But it’s still a top tier fantasy RPG.

There are a wealth of ways to build your character and resolve situations, and dozens of hours of content here. If anything, it’s just that Larian Studios improved on the successor of Original Sin II so much that it’s made it easier to see some of this game’s cracks in hindsight. 

6. Elden Ring

We may never know exactly how much fantasy author George R.R. Martin contributed to the final Elden Ring product. It certainly doesn’t bear many similarities to A Song of Ice and Fire. Still, The Lands Between is still a unique and engrossing fantasy world full of both beauty and desolation. There’s so much to do and see, and the game gives you so much freedom from the start. It really is the pinnacle of everything FromSoftware has been working towards since Demon’s Souls.

Elden Ring is arguably the most accessible of any Soulsborne game to date. Sure, it’s difficult, but the game’s open nature means there are plenty of opportunities to level up fast and get some really strong gear early on, making it a much more manageable experience for most players than any previous FromSoftware RPG.

5. Dragon Age: Origins 

The Dragon Age series is apparently on hiatus after Veilguard failed to meet sales expectations. That’s not entirely surprising, though. The series spent years trying to chase the brilliance of the first game, but could never quite get there (even if Inquisition came close). 

Origins will always be well regarded for the complexity of its writing. Ferelden is an intricately designed world full of rival factions with deep histories. Every major character you meet has a compelling story, and then there’s the six very different origin stories you can choose from at the start of the game. Dragon Age: Origins was BioWare at the absolute peak of the studio’s creativity. 

4. World of Warcraft

Often imitated but never duplicated, World of Warcraft has reigned atop the MMORPG world for more than two decades now, fending off dozens of challengers to its crown by constantly reinventing itself. The current iteration of World of Warcraft now has 10 expansions worth of content, and has been retooled to be highly accessible to groups and solo players alike.

RPGs always like to tout how large their worlds are and how much there is to do, but given the sheer scale of what the game has become, with 13 classes, eight professions, and tens of thousands of quests, there’s almost too much content here for any single person to play through in a lifetime. And the game just keeps growing. 

3. The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim 

It’s still surprising that we haven’t had a new single player Elder Scrolls game in more than a decade, but Skyrim is so damn good that people still keep returning to it after all these years. The appeal of Skyrim is that it’s more of a fully featured fantasy world than just another RPG with a long to-do list. Sure, there’s a main story, and plenty of other quests to complete, but after the initial opening, you can ignore all of it. And most players do just that, exploring all of Skyrim’s wonders off the beaten path.

When discussing Skyrim, the thing that tends to stand out to most players are the emergent experiences, things like climbing a snowy mountaintop and suddenly encountering a dragon or an angry giant. Skyrim doesn’t feel like just another game, so much as an entirely different world that you’re visiting for hours at a time. 

2. Baldur’s Gate 3

It’s going to be a long time before we see another fantasy RPG with the depth of Baldur’s Gate 3. It may sound like an exaggeration if you haven’t yet played it, but it’s absolutely true: Larian Studios managed to make the closest video game approximation to a tabletop Dungeons & Dragons campaign ever seen. A year after release, gamers are still finding new ways to essentially break the game with the spells and abilities at your disposal.

But what’s really impressive about Baldur’s Gate 3 is the incredible replay factor. Each class and subclass opens up brand new ways to complete the campaign, and several choices can completely change how the story plays out. And that’s without playing as The Dark Urge character, which gives an entirely new perspective on the tale.

1. The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt

The Witcher 3 doesn’t necessarily do much different from a lot of the other games on this list, it just does all of those things so much better. There’s the obligatory massive fantasy world that takes many hours to fully explore, the fantastic story with dynamic choices and multiple endings, and a highly customizable real-time combat system to take on the game’s numerous enemies.

All of this is delivered in one of the most impressive triple-A presentations of all time. The Witcher 3 has some of the best voice acting in any game to date, and even though it looked great when it was released in 2015, it looks even better now with the most recent next-gen update. There really is no better fantasy RPG to get lost in for hundreds of hours.

The post 15 Best Fantasy RPGs of All Time, Ranked appeared first on Den of Geek.

If you go down certain internet rabbit holes, you’ll find that there was once something called “The Season 2 Curse” on television. A quick Google search will reveal several popular (even now considered classic) TV series in various listicles that give legs to this strange yet true theory that held for years in television. I […]

The post TV Shows With Fantastic First Seasons (That Shouldn’t Have Continued) appeared first on Den of Geek.

When talking about RPGs, the first thing that usually comes to mind is a medieval-inspired fantasy setting full of dragons, magic, and armor-clad warriors. That’s not the exclusive definition of fantasy in fiction of course, but it’s a pretty good starting point.

But which fantasy RPGs are the best? There are literally hundreds out there, with all sorts of different takes on this broad idea, and numerous different gameplay styles. But ultimately, we narrowed it down to these 15 best fantasy RPGs of all time.

15. Dragon’s Dogma 2

A lot of gamers have expressed disappointment with Dragon’s Dogma 2. The biggest complaint is that it doesn’t do all that much different from the original game, even though there are 12 years between the two titles, and that’s actually kind of a fair point. In many ways, Dragon’s Dogma 2 feels like a remake of the first game.

But there are very good reasons why the first game is so beloved. A sequel didn’t need to reinvent the wheel. Dragon’s Dogma 2 brings back the Pawn system, smooths out the combat, and puts you in an even larger world you can explore however you see fit. It’s one of the most immersive fantasy RPGs around even if it didn’t change a whole lot from the original.

14. The Lord of the Rings: The Third Age

When it was released in 2004, The Third Age received quite a bit of criticism for its similarities to Final Fantasy X. Yes, the combat system is virtually identical, and it’s a very linear game. But Final Fantasy X is still widely hailed as one of the best games in the series, so why all the hate for The Third Age?

Lord of the Rings practically invented every single trope of the fantasy genre. The franchise certainly deserves to have a classic turn-based RPG, and The Third Age is an excellent one that’s aged better than most titles from the early 2000s. Maybe it would get a little more respect with a proper HD re-release.

13. Pillars of Eternity

The 2010s saw something of a resurgence in the long-ignored CRPG subgenre. Pillars of Eternity began as a Kickstarter project with the goal of making a spiritual successor to classics of the ‘90s like Baldur’s Gate and Planescape: Torment. And Obsidian absolutely nailed it.

Pillars of Eternity features deep and highly customizable combat in the vein of those games, but what really won players over was the strong writing. Every single character you meet has their own lengthy backstory and motivations. Playing through the game can almost feel like reading a lengthy fantasy series.

12. Fable II

It’s easy to knock the Fable franchise for what it isn’t. The early promises of series creator Peter Molyneux were of course ridiculously ambitious, and many probably couldn’t even be accomplished with modern hardware. But what we ultimately got with Fable II was a charming action RPG with a slightly off-kilter yet cozy aesthetic that’s still unlike anything else in the genre.

Admittedly, Fable II isn’t necessarily for everyone. The humor is unapologetically British, and the world vacillates between the melancholy and absurd in ways that can be disconcerting at times, but if it clicks for you, it’s a wholly unique fantasy RPG from a bygone era of gaming.

11. Metaphor: ReFantazio

It’s always tricky to put a newer game on a list like this because you don’t want to recognize another flavor of the week that will soon be forgotten. As of this writing, Metaphor: ReFantazio has only been out for a few months, but already it looks to be a game that will be replayed and analyzed for years to come.

At first, it might be easy to write it off as Persona in a fantasy skin, but the game is so much more than that. Metaphor: ReFantazio has one of the best stories in any RPG in recent years. Essentially, it’s about your role in choosing the successor to an assassinated king, but it weaves through so many more topics, such as racism, inequality, and extremism, yet never comes across as heavy handed or preachy.

10. Final Fantasy IX

Final Fantasy had to be somewhere on this list. It’s right there in the name of the series. But deciding which Final Fantasy is actually the best fantasy RPG was a bit difficult. The settings of several games like Final Fantasy VI and VII aren’t really traditional fantasy worlds, so that automatically disqualified them. Final Fantasy XVI is a technically impressive return to the series’ traditional fantasy roots, but the story and combat are far from the series’ best.

In the end, the best true fantasy game in the Final Fantasy series is Final Fantasy IX. It captured the spirit of the earlier games with a beautiful medieval setting and some of the best characters in any RPG ever. It also features some of the better traditional turn-based combat in the franchise before later games started straying from the series’ roots.  

9. Dragon Quest XI

While Final Fantasy has explored all sorts of different ideas and settings over the years, the Dragon Quest series has been a reliable fantasy RPG franchise since its inception. They’re all really great JRPGs to be honest, but it’s pretty well agreed upon by fans of the series that the most recent title, Dragon Quest XI is the best to date.

In terms of gameplay, this is about as traditional of a JRPG as you’re going to find. The turn-based combat and item management has barely changed since the first game. But this is also one beautifully crafted anime world, with a great cast of characters, and a lengthy story that manages to stay interesting to the end.

8. Suikoden II

Largely ignored by critics and gamers alike when it was first released due to graphics that looked dated even by the standards of the late ‘90s, Suikoden II has been rightfully reappraised as one of the greatest fantasy RPGs of all time. This is a game that thrives at telling both large- and small-scale tales. The story beautifully weaves an intimate story of friendship in a continent-spanning epic about war and political strife.

This philosophy extends to its gameplay as well. While most combat takes place among small parties in traditional turn-based battles, there are also one-on-one duels, and large-scale battles between armies. Suikoden II took a lot of risks that paid off, and the ideas here still haven’t shown up in many other titles.  

7. Divinity: Original Sin II

Upon its release in 2017, many outlets hailed Divinity: Original Sin II as an almost perfect CRPG for its deep customization, freedom of choice, and morally gray writing. Looking back at it now, Original Sin II maybe isn’t quite that good. Its complexity can sometimes lead to unfortunate and unpredictable outcomes both in storytelling and combat, and it can often be difficult to keep track of the game’s many quests. But it’s still a top tier fantasy RPG.

There are a wealth of ways to build your character and resolve situations, and dozens of hours of content here. If anything, it’s just that Larian Studios improved on the successor of Original Sin II so much that it’s made it easier to see some of this game’s cracks in hindsight. 

6. Elden Ring

We may never know exactly how much fantasy author George R.R. Martin contributed to the final Elden Ring product. It certainly doesn’t bear many similarities to A Song of Ice and Fire. Still, The Lands Between is still a unique and engrossing fantasy world full of both beauty and desolation. There’s so much to do and see, and the game gives you so much freedom from the start. It really is the pinnacle of everything FromSoftware has been working towards since Demon’s Souls.

Elden Ring is arguably the most accessible of any Soulsborne game to date. Sure, it’s difficult, but the game’s open nature means there are plenty of opportunities to level up fast and get some really strong gear early on, making it a much more manageable experience for most players than any previous FromSoftware RPG.

5. Dragon Age: Origins 

The Dragon Age series is apparently on hiatus after Veilguard failed to meet sales expectations. That’s not entirely surprising, though. The series spent years trying to chase the brilliance of the first game, but could never quite get there (even if Inquisition came close). 

Origins will always be well regarded for the complexity of its writing. Ferelden is an intricately designed world full of rival factions with deep histories. Every major character you meet has a compelling story, and then there’s the six very different origin stories you can choose from at the start of the game. Dragon Age: Origins was BioWare at the absolute peak of the studio’s creativity. 

4. World of Warcraft

Often imitated but never duplicated, World of Warcraft has reigned atop the MMORPG world for more than two decades now, fending off dozens of challengers to its crown by constantly reinventing itself. The current iteration of World of Warcraft now has 10 expansions worth of content, and has been retooled to be highly accessible to groups and solo players alike.

RPGs always like to tout how large their worlds are and how much there is to do, but given the sheer scale of what the game has become, with 13 classes, eight professions, and tens of thousands of quests, there’s almost too much content here for any single person to play through in a lifetime. And the game just keeps growing. 

3. The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim 

It’s still surprising that we haven’t had a new single player Elder Scrolls game in more than a decade, but Skyrim is so damn good that people still keep returning to it after all these years. The appeal of Skyrim is that it’s more of a fully featured fantasy world than just another RPG with a long to-do list. Sure, there’s a main story, and plenty of other quests to complete, but after the initial opening, you can ignore all of it. And most players do just that, exploring all of Skyrim’s wonders off the beaten path.

When discussing Skyrim, the thing that tends to stand out to most players are the emergent experiences, things like climbing a snowy mountaintop and suddenly encountering a dragon or an angry giant. Skyrim doesn’t feel like just another game, so much as an entirely different world that you’re visiting for hours at a time. 

2. Baldur’s Gate 3

It’s going to be a long time before we see another fantasy RPG with the depth of Baldur’s Gate 3. It may sound like an exaggeration if you haven’t yet played it, but it’s absolutely true: Larian Studios managed to make the closest video game approximation to a tabletop Dungeons & Dragons campaign ever seen. A year after release, gamers are still finding new ways to essentially break the game with the spells and abilities at your disposal.

But what’s really impressive about Baldur’s Gate 3 is the incredible replay factor. Each class and subclass opens up brand new ways to complete the campaign, and several choices can completely change how the story plays out. And that’s without playing as The Dark Urge character, which gives an entirely new perspective on the tale.

1. The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt

The Witcher 3 doesn’t necessarily do much different from a lot of the other games on this list, it just does all of those things so much better. There’s the obligatory massive fantasy world that takes many hours to fully explore, the fantastic story with dynamic choices and multiple endings, and a highly customizable real-time combat system to take on the game’s numerous enemies.

All of this is delivered in one of the most impressive triple-A presentations of all time. The Witcher 3 has some of the best voice acting in any game to date, and even though it looked great when it was released in 2015, it looks even better now with the most recent next-gen update. There really is no better fantasy RPG to get lost in for hundreds of hours.

The post 15 Best Fantasy RPGs of All Time, Ranked appeared first on Den of Geek.

When talking about RPGs, the first thing that usually comes to mind is a medieval-inspired fantasy setting full of dragons, magic, and armor-clad warriors. That’s not the exclusive definition of fantasy in fiction of course, but it’s a pretty good starting point. But which fantasy RPGs are the best? There are literally hundreds out there, […]

The post 15 Best Fantasy RPGs of All Time, Ranked appeared first on Den of Geek.

When talking about RPGs, the first thing that usually comes to mind is a medieval-inspired fantasy setting full of dragons, magic, and armor-clad warriors. That’s not the exclusive definition of fantasy in fiction of course, but it’s a pretty good starting point.

But which fantasy RPGs are the best? There are literally hundreds out there, with all sorts of different takes on this broad idea, and numerous different gameplay styles. But ultimately, we narrowed it down to these 15 best fantasy RPGs of all time.

15. Dragon’s Dogma 2

A lot of gamers have expressed disappointment with Dragon’s Dogma 2. The biggest complaint is that it doesn’t do all that much different from the original game, even though there are 12 years between the two titles, and that’s actually kind of a fair point. In many ways, Dragon’s Dogma 2 feels like a remake of the first game.

But there are very good reasons why the first game is so beloved. A sequel didn’t need to reinvent the wheel. Dragon’s Dogma 2 brings back the Pawn system, smooths out the combat, and puts you in an even larger world you can explore however you see fit. It’s one of the most immersive fantasy RPGs around even if it didn’t change a whole lot from the original.

14. The Lord of the Rings: The Third Age

When it was released in 2004, The Third Age received quite a bit of criticism for its similarities to Final Fantasy X. Yes, the combat system is virtually identical, and it’s a very linear game. But Final Fantasy X is still widely hailed as one of the best games in the series, so why all the hate for The Third Age?

Lord of the Rings practically invented every single trope of the fantasy genre. The franchise certainly deserves to have a classic turn-based RPG, and The Third Age is an excellent one that’s aged better than most titles from the early 2000s. Maybe it would get a little more respect with a proper HD re-release.

13. Pillars of Eternity

The 2010s saw something of a resurgence in the long-ignored CRPG subgenre. Pillars of Eternity began as a Kickstarter project with the goal of making a spiritual successor to classics of the ‘90s like Baldur’s Gate and Planescape: Torment. And Obsidian absolutely nailed it.

Pillars of Eternity features deep and highly customizable combat in the vein of those games, but what really won players over was the strong writing. Every single character you meet has their own lengthy backstory and motivations. Playing through the game can almost feel like reading a lengthy fantasy series.

12. Fable II

It’s easy to knock the Fable franchise for what it isn’t. The early promises of series creator Peter Molyneux were of course ridiculously ambitious, and many probably couldn’t even be accomplished with modern hardware. But what we ultimately got with Fable II was a charming action RPG with a slightly off-kilter yet cozy aesthetic that’s still unlike anything else in the genre.

Admittedly, Fable II isn’t necessarily for everyone. The humor is unapologetically British, and the world vacillates between the melancholy and absurd in ways that can be disconcerting at times, but if it clicks for you, it’s a wholly unique fantasy RPG from a bygone era of gaming.

11. Metaphor: ReFantazio

It’s always tricky to put a newer game on a list like this because you don’t want to recognize another flavor of the week that will soon be forgotten. As of this writing, Metaphor: ReFantazio has only been out for a few months, but already it looks to be a game that will be replayed and analyzed for years to come.

At first, it might be easy to write it off as Persona in a fantasy skin, but the game is so much more than that. Metaphor: ReFantazio has one of the best stories in any RPG in recent years. Essentially, it’s about your role in choosing the successor to an assassinated king, but it weaves through so many more topics, such as racism, inequality, and extremism, yet never comes across as heavy handed or preachy.

10. Final Fantasy IX

Final Fantasy had to be somewhere on this list. It’s right there in the name of the series. But deciding which Final Fantasy is actually the best fantasy RPG was a bit difficult. The settings of several games like Final Fantasy VI and VII aren’t really traditional fantasy worlds, so that automatically disqualified them. Final Fantasy XVI is a technically impressive return to the series’ traditional fantasy roots, but the story and combat are far from the series’ best.

In the end, the best true fantasy game in the Final Fantasy series is Final Fantasy IX. It captured the spirit of the earlier games with a beautiful medieval setting and some of the best characters in any RPG ever. It also features some of the better traditional turn-based combat in the franchise before later games started straying from the series’ roots.  

9. Dragon Quest XI

While Final Fantasy has explored all sorts of different ideas and settings over the years, the Dragon Quest series has been a reliable fantasy RPG franchise since its inception. They’re all really great JRPGs to be honest, but it’s pretty well agreed upon by fans of the series that the most recent title, Dragon Quest XI is the best to date.

In terms of gameplay, this is about as traditional of a JRPG as you’re going to find. The turn-based combat and item management has barely changed since the first game. But this is also one beautifully crafted anime world, with a great cast of characters, and a lengthy story that manages to stay interesting to the end.

8. Suikoden II

Largely ignored by critics and gamers alike when it was first released due to graphics that looked dated even by the standards of the late ‘90s, Suikoden II has been rightfully reappraised as one of the greatest fantasy RPGs of all time. This is a game that thrives at telling both large- and small-scale tales. The story beautifully weaves an intimate story of friendship in a continent-spanning epic about war and political strife.

This philosophy extends to its gameplay as well. While most combat takes place among small parties in traditional turn-based battles, there are also one-on-one duels, and large-scale battles between armies. Suikoden II took a lot of risks that paid off, and the ideas here still haven’t shown up in many other titles.  

7. Divinity: Original Sin II

Upon its release in 2017, many outlets hailed Divinity: Original Sin II as an almost perfect CRPG for its deep customization, freedom of choice, and morally gray writing. Looking back at it now, Original Sin II maybe isn’t quite that good. Its complexity can sometimes lead to unfortunate and unpredictable outcomes both in storytelling and combat, and it can often be difficult to keep track of the game’s many quests. But it’s still a top tier fantasy RPG.

There are a wealth of ways to build your character and resolve situations, and dozens of hours of content here. If anything, it’s just that Larian Studios improved on the successor of Original Sin II so much that it’s made it easier to see some of this game’s cracks in hindsight. 

6. Elden Ring

We may never know exactly how much fantasy author George R.R. Martin contributed to the final Elden Ring product. It certainly doesn’t bear many similarities to A Song of Ice and Fire. Still, The Lands Between is still a unique and engrossing fantasy world full of both beauty and desolation. There’s so much to do and see, and the game gives you so much freedom from the start. It really is the pinnacle of everything FromSoftware has been working towards since Demon’s Souls.

Elden Ring is arguably the most accessible of any Soulsborne game to date. Sure, it’s difficult, but the game’s open nature means there are plenty of opportunities to level up fast and get some really strong gear early on, making it a much more manageable experience for most players than any previous FromSoftware RPG.

5. Dragon Age: Origins 

The Dragon Age series is apparently on hiatus after Veilguard failed to meet sales expectations. That’s not entirely surprising, though. The series spent years trying to chase the brilliance of the first game, but could never quite get there (even if Inquisition came close). 

Origins will always be well regarded for the complexity of its writing. Ferelden is an intricately designed world full of rival factions with deep histories. Every major character you meet has a compelling story, and then there’s the six very different origin stories you can choose from at the start of the game. Dragon Age: Origins was BioWare at the absolute peak of the studio’s creativity. 

4. World of Warcraft

Often imitated but never duplicated, World of Warcraft has reigned atop the MMORPG world for more than two decades now, fending off dozens of challengers to its crown by constantly reinventing itself. The current iteration of World of Warcraft now has 10 expansions worth of content, and has been retooled to be highly accessible to groups and solo players alike.

RPGs always like to tout how large their worlds are and how much there is to do, but given the sheer scale of what the game has become, with 13 classes, eight professions, and tens of thousands of quests, there’s almost too much content here for any single person to play through in a lifetime. And the game just keeps growing. 

3. The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim 

It’s still surprising that we haven’t had a new single player Elder Scrolls game in more than a decade, but Skyrim is so damn good that people still keep returning to it after all these years. The appeal of Skyrim is that it’s more of a fully featured fantasy world than just another RPG with a long to-do list. Sure, there’s a main story, and plenty of other quests to complete, but after the initial opening, you can ignore all of it. And most players do just that, exploring all of Skyrim’s wonders off the beaten path.

When discussing Skyrim, the thing that tends to stand out to most players are the emergent experiences, things like climbing a snowy mountaintop and suddenly encountering a dragon or an angry giant. Skyrim doesn’t feel like just another game, so much as an entirely different world that you’re visiting for hours at a time. 

2. Baldur’s Gate 3

It’s going to be a long time before we see another fantasy RPG with the depth of Baldur’s Gate 3. It may sound like an exaggeration if you haven’t yet played it, but it’s absolutely true: Larian Studios managed to make the closest video game approximation to a tabletop Dungeons & Dragons campaign ever seen. A year after release, gamers are still finding new ways to essentially break the game with the spells and abilities at your disposal.

But what’s really impressive about Baldur’s Gate 3 is the incredible replay factor. Each class and subclass opens up brand new ways to complete the campaign, and several choices can completely change how the story plays out. And that’s without playing as The Dark Urge character, which gives an entirely new perspective on the tale.

1. The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt

The Witcher 3 doesn’t necessarily do much different from a lot of the other games on this list, it just does all of those things so much better. There’s the obligatory massive fantasy world that takes many hours to fully explore, the fantastic story with dynamic choices and multiple endings, and a highly customizable real-time combat system to take on the game’s numerous enemies.

All of this is delivered in one of the most impressive triple-A presentations of all time. The Witcher 3 has some of the best voice acting in any game to date, and even though it looked great when it was released in 2015, it looks even better now with the most recent next-gen update. There really is no better fantasy RPG to get lost in for hundreds of hours.

The post 15 Best Fantasy RPGs of All Time, Ranked appeared first on Den of Geek.

This article contains spoilers for Captain America: Brave New World. Upon first viewing, some fans may leave Captain America: New World Order feeling a bit let down. The final confrontation between Sam Wilson’s Captain America and President Thaddeus “Thunderbolt” Ross in Red Hulk form featured prominently in commercials and posters, pretty much spoiling the big […]

The post Captain America Brave New World Ending Explained: Adamantium, Vibranium, and the Red Hulk appeared first on Den of Geek.

This article contains spoilers for Captain America: Brave New World.

No one would argue that Captain America: Brave New World is a jam-packed movie. It’s stuffed with so many characters and subplots from The Incredible Hulk, Eternals, and The Falcon and the Winter Soldier that Sam Wilson doesn’t always feel like the main character in his own movie.

But it could have been featured even more Marvel characters. It’s no secret that Brave New World went through reshoots that radically changed the finished film, including by cutting several characters who originally had scenes in the movie. It’s a testament to the cast and crew that Brave New World ended up a pretty fun, slick action flick.

Still, it’s hard not to wonder what could have been had some of these cut characters made it into the finished cut. So let’s take a look at what almost was, and how these characters could have affected Brave New World.

Rosa Salazar as Diamondback

Rachel Leighton aka Diamondback probably got the furthest into production before the editor’s blade fell upon her. Not only are there photos of the character on set, but Diamondback even made it into some leaked Happy Meal promos before she was cut from the movie.

Played by Rosa Salazar of Alita: Battle Angel and the Short Treks standout “The Trouble With Edward,” Diamondback debuted during writer Mark Gruenwald’s defining run on Captain America. 1985’s Captain America #310, penciled by Paul Neary, introduced Rachel Leighton as a member of the Serpent Society. Although immediately attracted to Captain America, her affections weren’t returned until she and Sidewinder enlisted his help after the villain Viper overtook the Society.

Eventually, Rachel and Steve Rogers became lovers, albeit in a conflicted relationship. While Steve wanted to see the best in her, he couldn’t help but take issue with her connections to unsavory characters, especially the mercenary Crossbones. Rachel, for her part, resented Steve’s mistrust, especially since Crossbones was her abuser. The relationship came to an end after Rachel killed fellow Serpent Society member Snapdragon, and while the two have had brushes ever since, they never fully reconciled.

It’s entirely possible that Diamondback would have been a romantic interest for Sam in the finished film. While she’s most often associated with Rogers, Sam’s counseling background would have made him a natural to help her move from villainy to heroism. However, with Sam’s usual comic love interest Leila Taylor added to the film, played by Xosha Roquemore, and Giancarlo Esposito added as Serpent Society leader Sidewinder, Diamondback was probably deemed redundant and removed late in the process.

Seth Rollins as Serpent Society Member

Speaking of the Serpent Society, perhaps the most high-profile addition and removal from Brave New World was WWE star Seth Rollins, who is featured in the set photo above. Although we knew that he would be playing a member of Serpent (as the team is called in the movie, giving it more of a James Bond Spectre feel), no one has yet released specifics, not even Rollins. Judging by the set photos of Rollins in costume, most assume he played a variation of Cobra or Anaconda.

Neither Cobra nor Anaconda are particularly rich characters, which suggests that Rollins would have just had the role of henchman or heavy, somebody who gives Sam some trouble in a single set-piece, but doesn’t affect much of the plot. However, rumors suggested that Rollins’s character would connect to plot involving the U.S. government stealing adamantium as its own counter to vibranium (more on that later).

That theory is supported by the fact that a Serpent heavy does remain in the finished film. Icelandic strongman Jóhannes Haukur Jóhannesson appears as Copperhead, and does get to tangle with Sam for a few minutes. Given that Copperhead remains and Cobra/Anaconda does suggest that Rollins got to be more of an evil genius, making his loss a bit more of a substantial plot change.

Logan Kim as Amadeus Cho

Like Kamala Khan and Miles Morales, Amadeus Cho points to Marvel’s future, an exciting young character created within the past 20years. Cho made his first appearance in 2005’s Amazing Fantasy #15 by Greg Pak and Takeshi Miyazawa, where his mighty intellect won him the title of 7th Smartest Person in the World. His smarts also drew the attention of a jealous supergenius, who attacked Cho’s house and left his parents dead. Cho palled around with the Hulk and Hercules for a while, before gaining his own gamma powers and becoming the Totally Awesome Hulk aka Brawn, a key member of the Champions.

According to insider DanielRPK, Logan Kim, best known as Podcast from Ghostbusters: Afterlife, appeared in the an early screening of Brave New World as Cho. Sam encountered Cho working for Stark Industries, and Cho would later help Sam develop a counter to the Red Hulk. Although you should of course take this leak with a grain of salt, the rest of DanielRPK’s descriptions of the film match the finished version, lending some credibility to his claims.

At any rate, Cho doesn’t make it into Brave New World, but that doesn’t mean he’s off the screen. He can currently be seen in the excellent animated series Your Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Man, where he works as a junior scientist at Oscorp.

Elijah Richardson as Eli Bradley

The omission of Eli Bradley particularly stands out in the finished version of Brave New World. As portrayed by Elijah Richardson in The Falcon and the Winter Soldier, Eli lives with his grandfather Isaiah Bradley, the disavowed former Super Soldier. Played wonderfully by Carl Lumbly, Isaiah plays a major role in Brave New World. And yet, Eli neither appears on screen nor even gets a mention.

As producer Nate Moore explained, Eli did appear in early drafts of the script. “[B]ut we started to feel like there were too many characters to track and we want to make sure if a character is in the film, they have something to do,” Moore said. Seemingly getting in the way of Isaiah’s relationship with Sam, Eli got cut.

In the comics, Eli is a founding member of the Young Avengers. Created by Allan Heinberg and Jim Cheung, Patriot claims to have inherited the same powers as his grandfather and leads the team as Patriot. However, he later admits that he used a Mutant Growth Hormone to simulate the powers. Eli retired from the role of Patriot after the Young Avengers disbanded, but we’re sure to see a version of him as the MCU’s version of the team comes together.

Julia Louis-Dreyfuss as Valentina Allegra de Fontaine

Given how often she’s popped up in recent MCU entries, it’s almost shocking that Valentina Allegra de Fontaine didn’t show up to meddle in Sam Wilson’s first Captain America outing. As reported by the generally reliable insider Jeff Sneider, Val figured in early versions of Brave New World. Frustrated by her failed attempts to get vibranium in Black Panther: Wakanda Forever, Val saw adamantium as a solution to her problem and worked hard to secure it. Her efforts involved the Serpent Society, which probably involved Seth Rollins’s character.

Adamantium certainly matters in the finished film, and there is a lot of talk about needing a new set of Avengers. However, Thunderbolts* gets set up through a cameo by Bucky, now apparently a U.S. Senator, and not by Val’s machinations.

Mark Ruffalo as Bruce Banner

Perhaps the most tenuous of Brave New World potential characters, Mark Ruffalo indicated that he would be in the movie during an interview at the 2024 Santa Barbara Film Festival. It didn’t take long for other sources to clarify he wouldn’t be in the movie, but the confusion makes sense. Brave New World operates as a sequel to The Incredible Hulk as much as it does a Captain America movie. Even though Edward Norton and not Ruffalo portrayed Banner in that film, it is a bit odd that Brave New World would spend so much time talking about President Ross’s attempts to kill the Hulk without having the Hulk show up.

Still, it’s probably good that Banner didn’t drop by, making the movie even less of a Sam Wilson film than it already is.

Captain America: Brave New World is now in theaters.

The post Captain America 4: Diamondback, Seth Rollins, and the Marvel Characters Cut From the Movie appeared first on Den of Geek.

The 50th anniversary of Saturday Night Live has reminded even lapsed and casual fans of their love for the sketch comedy institution. For 50 years, SNL has helped shape culture. Even when its contributions have been as small as a sketch you don’t catch until the next day, it has offered multiple generations a rallying […]

The post The 20 Best Saturday Night Live Cast Members Ranked appeared first on Den of Geek.

This article contains spoilers for Captain America: Brave New World.

No one would argue that Captain America: Brave New World is a jam-packed movie. It’s stuffed with so many characters and subplots from The Incredible Hulk, Eternals, and The Falcon and the Winter Soldier that Sam Wilson doesn’t always feel like the main character in his own movie.

But it could have been featured even more Marvel characters. It’s no secret that Brave New World went through reshoots that radically changed the finished film, including by cutting several characters who originally had scenes in the movie. It’s a testament to the cast and crew that Brave New World ended up a pretty fun, slick action flick.

Still, it’s hard not to wonder what could have been had some of these cut characters made it into the finished cut. So let’s take a look at what almost was, and how these characters could have affected Brave New World.

Rosa Salazar as Diamondback

Rachel Leighton aka Diamondback probably got the furthest into production before the editor’s blade fell upon her. Not only are there photos of the character on set, but Diamondback even made it into some leaked Happy Meal promos before she was cut from the movie.

Played by Rosa Salazar of Alita: Battle Angel and the Short Treks standout “The Trouble With Edward,” Diamondback debuted during writer Mark Gruenwald’s defining run on Captain America. 1985’s Captain America #310, penciled by Paul Neary, introduced Rachel Leighton as a member of the Serpent Society. Although immediately attracted to Captain America, her affections weren’t returned until she and Sidewinder enlisted his help after the villain Viper overtook the Society.

Eventually, Rachel and Steve Rogers became lovers, albeit in a conflicted relationship. While Steve wanted to see the best in her, he couldn’t help but take issue with her connections to unsavory characters, especially the mercenary Crossbones. Rachel, for her part, resented Steve’s mistrust, especially since Crossbones was her abuser. The relationship came to an end after Rachel killed fellow Serpent Society member Snapdragon, and while the two have had brushes ever since, they never fully reconciled.

It’s entirely possible that Diamondback would have been a romantic interest for Sam in the finished film. While she’s most often associated with Rogers, Sam’s counseling background would have made him a natural to help her move from villainy to heroism. However, with Sam’s usual comic love interest Leila Taylor added to the film, played by Xosha Roquemore, and Giancarlo Esposito added as Serpent Society leader Sidewinder, Diamondback was probably deemed redundant and removed late in the process.

Seth Rollins as Serpent Society Member

Speaking of the Serpent Society, perhaps the most high-profile addition and removal from Brave New World was WWE star Seth Rollins, who is featured in the set photo above. Although we knew that he would be playing a member of Serpent (as the team is called in the movie, giving it more of a James Bond Spectre feel), no one has yet released specifics, not even Rollins. Judging by the set photos of Rollins in costume, most assume he played a variation of Cobra or Anaconda.

Neither Cobra nor Anaconda are particularly rich characters, which suggests that Rollins would have just had the role of henchman or heavy, somebody who gives Sam some trouble in a single set-piece, but doesn’t affect much of the plot. However, rumors suggested that Rollins’s character would connect to plot involving the U.S. government stealing adamantium as its own counter to vibranium (more on that later).

That theory is supported by the fact that a Serpent heavy does remain in the finished film. Icelandic strongman Jóhannes Haukur Jóhannesson appears as Copperhead, and does get to tangle with Sam for a few minutes. Given that Copperhead remains and Cobra/Anaconda does suggest that Rollins got to be more of an evil genius, making his loss a bit more of a substantial plot change.

Logan Kim as Amadeus Cho

Like Kamala Khan and Miles Morales, Amadeus Cho points to Marvel’s future, an exciting young character created within the past 20years. Cho made his first appearance in 2005’s Amazing Fantasy #15 by Greg Pak and Takeshi Miyazawa, where his mighty intellect won him the title of 7th Smartest Person in the World. His smarts also drew the attention of a jealous supergenius, who attacked Cho’s house and left his parents dead. Cho palled around with the Hulk and Hercules for a while, before gaining his own gamma powers and becoming the Totally Awesome Hulk aka Brawn, a key member of the Champions.

According to insider DanielRPK, Logan Kim, best known as Podcast from Ghostbusters: Afterlife, appeared in the an early screening of Brave New World as Cho. Sam encountered Cho working for Stark Industries, and Cho would later help Sam develop a counter to the Red Hulk. Although you should of course take this leak with a grain of salt, the rest of DanielRPK’s descriptions of the film match the finished version, lending some credibility to his claims.

At any rate, Cho doesn’t make it into Brave New World, but that doesn’t mean he’s off the screen. He can currently be seen in the excellent animated series Your Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Man, where he works as a junior scientist at Oscorp.

Elijah Richardson as Eli Bradley

The omission of Eli Bradley particularly stands out in the finished version of Brave New World. As portrayed by Elijah Richardson in The Falcon and the Winter Soldier, Eli lives with his grandfather Isaiah Bradley, the disavowed former Super Soldier. Played wonderfully by Carl Lumbly, Isaiah plays a major role in Brave New World. And yet, Eli neither appears on screen nor even gets a mention.

As producer Nate Moore explained, Eli did appear in early drafts of the script. “[B]ut we started to feel like there were too many characters to track and we want to make sure if a character is in the film, they have something to do,” Moore said. Seemingly getting in the way of Isaiah’s relationship with Sam, Eli got cut.

In the comics, Eli is a founding member of the Young Avengers. Created by Allan Heinberg and Jim Cheung, Patriot claims to have inherited the same powers as his grandfather and leads the team as Patriot. However, he later admits that he used a Mutant Growth Hormone to simulate the powers. Eli retired from the role of Patriot after the Young Avengers disbanded, but we’re sure to see a version of him as the MCU’s version of the team comes together.

Julia Louis-Dreyfuss as Valentina Allegra de Fontaine

Given how often she’s popped up in recent MCU entries, it’s almost shocking that Valentina Allegra de Fontaine didn’t show up to meddle in Sam Wilson’s first Captain America outing. As reported by the generally reliable insider Jeff Sneider, Val figured in early versions of Brave New World. Frustrated by her failed attempts to get vibranium in Black Panther: Wakanda Forever, Val saw adamantium as a solution to her problem and worked hard to secure it. Her efforts involved the Serpent Society, which probably involved Seth Rollins’s character.

Adamantium certainly matters in the finished film, and there is a lot of talk about needing a new set of Avengers. However, Thunderbolts* gets set up through a cameo by Bucky, now apparently a U.S. Senator, and not by Val’s machinations.

Mark Ruffalo as Bruce Banner

Perhaps the most tenuous of Brave New World potential characters, Mark Ruffalo indicated that he would be in the movie during an interview at the 2024 Santa Barbara Film Festival. It didn’t take long for other sources to clarify he wouldn’t be in the movie, but the confusion makes sense. Brave New World operates as a sequel to The Incredible Hulk as much as it does a Captain America movie. Even though Edward Norton and not Ruffalo portrayed Banner in that film, it is a bit odd that Brave New World would spend so much time talking about President Ross’s attempts to kill the Hulk without having the Hulk show up.

Still, it’s probably good that Banner didn’t drop by, making the movie even less of a Sam Wilson film than it already is.

Captain America: Brave New World is now in theaters.

The post Captain America 4: Diamondback, Seth Rollins, and the Marvel Characters Cut From the Movie appeared first on Den of Geek.

Between the past and present timelines of Yellowjackets, a lot can happen in a season. Season 2 saw the surprising return of Lottie (Simone Kessell) in the present day as well as a cold and unrelenting winter for the Yellowjackets to survive in the past. From cannibalism to cultish behavior, there’s a lot to remember […]

The post Yellowjackets Season 2 Recap: Who is the New Antler Queen? appeared first on Den of Geek.

This article contains spoilers for Captain America: Brave New World.

No one would argue that Captain America: Brave New World is a jam-packed movie. It’s stuffed with so many characters and subplots from The Incredible Hulk, Eternals, and The Falcon and the Winter Soldier that Sam Wilson doesn’t always feel like the main character in his own movie.

But it could have been featured even more Marvel characters. It’s no secret that Brave New World went through reshoots that radically changed the finished film, including by cutting several characters who originally had scenes in the movie. It’s a testament to the cast and crew that Brave New World ended up a pretty fun, slick action flick.

Still, it’s hard not to wonder what could have been had some of these cut characters made it into the finished cut. So let’s take a look at what almost was, and how these characters could have affected Brave New World.

Rosa Salazar as Diamondback

Rachel Leighton aka Diamondback probably got the furthest into production before the editor’s blade fell upon her. Not only are there photos of the character on set, but Diamondback even made it into some leaked Happy Meal promos before she was cut from the movie.

Played by Rosa Salazar of Alita: Battle Angel and the Short Treks standout “The Trouble With Edward,” Diamondback debuted during writer Mark Gruenwald’s defining run on Captain America. 1985’s Captain America #310, penciled by Paul Neary, introduced Rachel Leighton as a member of the Serpent Society. Although immediately attracted to Captain America, her affections weren’t returned until she and Sidewinder enlisted his help after the villain Viper overtook the Society.

Eventually, Rachel and Steve Rogers became lovers, albeit in a conflicted relationship. While Steve wanted to see the best in her, he couldn’t help but take issue with her connections to unsavory characters, especially the mercenary Crossbones. Rachel, for her part, resented Steve’s mistrust, especially since Crossbones was her abuser. The relationship came to an end after Rachel killed fellow Serpent Society member Snapdragon, and while the two have had brushes ever since, they never fully reconciled.

It’s entirely possible that Diamondback would have been a romantic interest for Sam in the finished film. While she’s most often associated with Rogers, Sam’s counseling background would have made him a natural to help her move from villainy to heroism. However, with Sam’s usual comic love interest Leila Taylor added to the film, played by Xosha Roquemore, and Giancarlo Esposito added as Serpent Society leader Sidewinder, Diamondback was probably deemed redundant and removed late in the process.

Seth Rollins as Serpent Society Member

Speaking of the Serpent Society, perhaps the most high-profile addition and removal from Brave New World was WWE star Seth Rollins, who is featured in the set photo above. Although we knew that he would be playing a member of Serpent (as the team is called in the movie, giving it more of a James Bond Spectre feel), no one has yet released specifics, not even Rollins. Judging by the set photos of Rollins in costume, most assume he played a variation of Cobra or Anaconda.

Neither Cobra nor Anaconda are particularly rich characters, which suggests that Rollins would have just had the role of henchman or heavy, somebody who gives Sam some trouble in a single set-piece, but doesn’t affect much of the plot. However, rumors suggested that Rollins’s character would connect to plot involving the U.S. government stealing adamantium as its own counter to vibranium (more on that later).

That theory is supported by the fact that a Serpent heavy does remain in the finished film. Icelandic strongman Jóhannes Haukur Jóhannesson appears as Copperhead, and does get to tangle with Sam for a few minutes. Given that Copperhead remains and Cobra/Anaconda does suggest that Rollins got to be more of an evil genius, making his loss a bit more of a substantial plot change.

Logan Kim as Amadeus Cho

Like Kamala Khan and Miles Morales, Amadeus Cho points to Marvel’s future, an exciting young character created within the past 20years. Cho made his first appearance in 2005’s Amazing Fantasy #15 by Greg Pak and Takeshi Miyazawa, where his mighty intellect won him the title of 7th Smartest Person in the World. His smarts also drew the attention of a jealous supergenius, who attacked Cho’s house and left his parents dead. Cho palled around with the Hulk and Hercules for a while, before gaining his own gamma powers and becoming the Totally Awesome Hulk aka Brawn, a key member of the Champions.

According to insider DanielRPK, Logan Kim, best known as Podcast from Ghostbusters: Afterlife, appeared in the an early screening of Brave New World as Cho. Sam encountered Cho working for Stark Industries, and Cho would later help Sam develop a counter to the Red Hulk. Although you should of course take this leak with a grain of salt, the rest of DanielRPK’s descriptions of the film match the finished version, lending some credibility to his claims.

At any rate, Cho doesn’t make it into Brave New World, but that doesn’t mean he’s off the screen. He can currently be seen in the excellent animated series Your Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Man, where he works as a junior scientist at Oscorp.

Elijah Richardson as Eli Bradley

The omission of Eli Bradley particularly stands out in the finished version of Brave New World. As portrayed by Elijah Richardson in The Falcon and the Winter Soldier, Eli lives with his grandfather Isaiah Bradley, the disavowed former Super Soldier. Played wonderfully by Carl Lumbly, Isaiah plays a major role in Brave New World. And yet, Eli neither appears on screen nor even gets a mention.

As producer Nate Moore explained, Eli did appear in early drafts of the script. “[B]ut we started to feel like there were too many characters to track and we want to make sure if a character is in the film, they have something to do,” Moore said. Seemingly getting in the way of Isaiah’s relationship with Sam, Eli got cut.

In the comics, Eli is a founding member of the Young Avengers. Created by Allan Heinberg and Jim Cheung, Patriot claims to have inherited the same powers as his grandfather and leads the team as Patriot. However, he later admits that he used a Mutant Growth Hormone to simulate the powers. Eli retired from the role of Patriot after the Young Avengers disbanded, but we’re sure to see a version of him as the MCU’s version of the team comes together.

Julia Louis-Dreyfuss as Valentina Allegra de Fontaine

Given how often she’s popped up in recent MCU entries, it’s almost shocking that Valentina Allegra de Fontaine didn’t show up to meddle in Sam Wilson’s first Captain America outing. As reported by the generally reliable insider Jeff Sneider, Val figured in early versions of Brave New World. Frustrated by her failed attempts to get vibranium in Black Panther: Wakanda Forever, Val saw adamantium as a solution to her problem and worked hard to secure it. Her efforts involved the Serpent Society, which probably involved Seth Rollins’s character.

Adamantium certainly matters in the finished film, and there is a lot of talk about needing a new set of Avengers. However, Thunderbolts* gets set up through a cameo by Bucky, now apparently a U.S. Senator, and not by Val’s machinations.

Mark Ruffalo as Bruce Banner

Perhaps the most tenuous of Brave New World potential characters, Mark Ruffalo indicated that he would be in the movie during an interview at the 2024 Santa Barbara Film Festival. It didn’t take long for other sources to clarify he wouldn’t be in the movie, but the confusion makes sense. Brave New World operates as a sequel to The Incredible Hulk as much as it does a Captain America movie. Even though Edward Norton and not Ruffalo portrayed Banner in that film, it is a bit odd that Brave New World would spend so much time talking about President Ross’s attempts to kill the Hulk without having the Hulk show up.

Still, it’s probably good that Banner didn’t drop by, making the movie even less of a Sam Wilson film than it already is.

Captain America: Brave New World is now in theaters.

The post Captain America 4: Diamondback, Seth Rollins, and the Marvel Characters Cut From the Movie appeared first on Den of Geek.

This review contains spoilers for Yellowjackets season 3 episodes 1 & 2. The third season of Showtime’s Yellowjackets has left the harsh, unforgiving winter behind in favor of the warm comforts of summer, and with this change in seasons comes an incredibly strong dual episode season opener. The first episode begins with what looks to […]

The post Yellowjackets Season 3 Episode 1 and 2 Review: It’s a Feral Girl Summer appeared first on Den of Geek.

This article contains spoilers for Captain America: Brave New World.

No one would argue that Captain America: Brave New World is a jam-packed movie. It’s stuffed with so many characters and subplots from The Incredible Hulk, Eternals, and The Falcon and the Winter Soldier that Sam Wilson doesn’t always feel like the main character in his own movie.

But it could have been featured even more Marvel characters. It’s no secret that Brave New World went through reshoots that radically changed the finished film, including by cutting several characters who originally had scenes in the movie. It’s a testament to the cast and crew that Brave New World ended up a pretty fun, slick action flick.

Still, it’s hard not to wonder what could have been had some of these cut characters made it into the finished cut. So let’s take a look at what almost was, and how these characters could have affected Brave New World.

Rosa Salazar as Diamondback

Rachel Leighton aka Diamondback probably got the furthest into production before the editor’s blade fell upon her. Not only are there photos of the character on set, but Diamondback even made it into some leaked Happy Meal promos before she was cut from the movie.

Played by Rosa Salazar of Alita: Battle Angel and the Short Treks standout “The Trouble With Edward,” Diamondback debuted during writer Mark Gruenwald’s defining run on Captain America. 1985’s Captain America #310, penciled by Paul Neary, introduced Rachel Leighton as a member of the Serpent Society. Although immediately attracted to Captain America, her affections weren’t returned until she and Sidewinder enlisted his help after the villain Viper overtook the Society.

Eventually, Rachel and Steve Rogers became lovers, albeit in a conflicted relationship. While Steve wanted to see the best in her, he couldn’t help but take issue with her connections to unsavory characters, especially the mercenary Crossbones. Rachel, for her part, resented Steve’s mistrust, especially since Crossbones was her abuser. The relationship came to an end after Rachel killed fellow Serpent Society member Snapdragon, and while the two have had brushes ever since, they never fully reconciled.

It’s entirely possible that Diamondback would have been a romantic interest for Sam in the finished film. While she’s most often associated with Rogers, Sam’s counseling background would have made him a natural to help her move from villainy to heroism. However, with Sam’s usual comic love interest Leila Taylor added to the film, played by Xosha Roquemore, and Giancarlo Esposito added as Serpent Society leader Sidewinder, Diamondback was probably deemed redundant and removed late in the process.

Seth Rollins as Serpent Society Member

Speaking of the Serpent Society, perhaps the most high-profile addition and removal from Brave New World was WWE star Seth Rollins, who is featured in the set photo above. Although we knew that he would be playing a member of Serpent (as the team is called in the movie, giving it more of a James Bond Spectre feel), no one has yet released specifics, not even Rollins. Judging by the set photos of Rollins in costume, most assume he played a variation of Cobra or Anaconda.

Neither Cobra nor Anaconda are particularly rich characters, which suggests that Rollins would have just had the role of henchman or heavy, somebody who gives Sam some trouble in a single set-piece, but doesn’t affect much of the plot. However, rumors suggested that Rollins’s character would connect to plot involving the U.S. government stealing adamantium as its own counter to vibranium (more on that later).

That theory is supported by the fact that a Serpent heavy does remain in the finished film. Icelandic strongman Jóhannes Haukur Jóhannesson appears as Copperhead, and does get to tangle with Sam for a few minutes. Given that Copperhead remains and Cobra/Anaconda does suggest that Rollins got to be more of an evil genius, making his loss a bit more of a substantial plot change.

Logan Kim as Amadeus Cho

Like Kamala Khan and Miles Morales, Amadeus Cho points to Marvel’s future, an exciting young character created within the past 20years. Cho made his first appearance in 2005’s Amazing Fantasy #15 by Greg Pak and Takeshi Miyazawa, where his mighty intellect won him the title of 7th Smartest Person in the World. His smarts also drew the attention of a jealous supergenius, who attacked Cho’s house and left his parents dead. Cho palled around with the Hulk and Hercules for a while, before gaining his own gamma powers and becoming the Totally Awesome Hulk aka Brawn, a key member of the Champions.

According to insider DanielRPK, Logan Kim, best known as Podcast from Ghostbusters: Afterlife, appeared in the an early screening of Brave New World as Cho. Sam encountered Cho working for Stark Industries, and Cho would later help Sam develop a counter to the Red Hulk. Although you should of course take this leak with a grain of salt, the rest of DanielRPK’s descriptions of the film match the finished version, lending some credibility to his claims.

At any rate, Cho doesn’t make it into Brave New World, but that doesn’t mean he’s off the screen. He can currently be seen in the excellent animated series Your Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Man, where he works as a junior scientist at Oscorp.

Elijah Richardson as Eli Bradley

The omission of Eli Bradley particularly stands out in the finished version of Brave New World. As portrayed by Elijah Richardson in The Falcon and the Winter Soldier, Eli lives with his grandfather Isaiah Bradley, the disavowed former Super Soldier. Played wonderfully by Carl Lumbly, Isaiah plays a major role in Brave New World. And yet, Eli neither appears on screen nor even gets a mention.

As producer Nate Moore explained, Eli did appear in early drafts of the script. “[B]ut we started to feel like there were too many characters to track and we want to make sure if a character is in the film, they have something to do,” Moore said. Seemingly getting in the way of Isaiah’s relationship with Sam, Eli got cut.

In the comics, Eli is a founding member of the Young Avengers. Created by Allan Heinberg and Jim Cheung, Patriot claims to have inherited the same powers as his grandfather and leads the team as Patriot. However, he later admits that he used a Mutant Growth Hormone to simulate the powers. Eli retired from the role of Patriot after the Young Avengers disbanded, but we’re sure to see a version of him as the MCU’s version of the team comes together.

Julia Louis-Dreyfuss as Valentina Allegra de Fontaine

Given how often she’s popped up in recent MCU entries, it’s almost shocking that Valentina Allegra de Fontaine didn’t show up to meddle in Sam Wilson’s first Captain America outing. As reported by the generally reliable insider Jeff Sneider, Val figured in early versions of Brave New World. Frustrated by her failed attempts to get vibranium in Black Panther: Wakanda Forever, Val saw adamantium as a solution to her problem and worked hard to secure it. Her efforts involved the Serpent Society, which probably involved Seth Rollins’s character.

Adamantium certainly matters in the finished film, and there is a lot of talk about needing a new set of Avengers. However, Thunderbolts* gets set up through a cameo by Bucky, now apparently a U.S. Senator, and not by Val’s machinations.

Mark Ruffalo as Bruce Banner

Perhaps the most tenuous of Brave New World potential characters, Mark Ruffalo indicated that he would be in the movie during an interview at the 2024 Santa Barbara Film Festival. It didn’t take long for other sources to clarify he wouldn’t be in the movie, but the confusion makes sense. Brave New World operates as a sequel to The Incredible Hulk as much as it does a Captain America movie. Even though Edward Norton and not Ruffalo portrayed Banner in that film, it is a bit odd that Brave New World would spend so much time talking about President Ross’s attempts to kill the Hulk without having the Hulk show up.

Still, it’s probably good that Banner didn’t drop by, making the movie even less of a Sam Wilson film than it already is.

Captain America: Brave New World is now in theaters.

The post Captain America 4: Diamondback, Seth Rollins, and the Marvel Characters Cut From the Movie appeared first on Den of Geek.

“Paddington tries to make toffee”, “Paddington makes a mess cleaning the chimney”, “Paddington investigates the disappearance of Mr Brown’s prize marrow”. Such are the types of adventure that Paddington creator Michael Bond wrote for his fuzzy creation. The Bond books are filled with stories of the bear as an unwitting agent of chaos in small, domestic […]

The post Paddington 4 Needs to Keep the Bear in London appeared first on Den of Geek.

This article contains spoilers for Captain America: Brave New World.

No one would argue that Captain America: Brave New World is a jam-packed movie. It’s stuffed with so many characters and subplots from The Incredible Hulk, Eternals, and The Falcon and the Winter Soldier that Sam Wilson doesn’t always feel like the main character in his own movie.

But it could have been featured even more Marvel characters. It’s no secret that Brave New World went through reshoots that radically changed the finished film, including by cutting several characters who originally had scenes in the movie. It’s a testament to the cast and crew that Brave New World ended up a pretty fun, slick action flick.

Still, it’s hard not to wonder what could have been had some of these cut characters made it into the finished cut. So let’s take a look at what almost was, and how these characters could have affected Brave New World.

Rosa Salazar as Diamondback

Rachel Leighton aka Diamondback probably got the furthest into production before the editor’s blade fell upon her. Not only are there photos of the character on set, but Diamondback even made it into some leaked Happy Meal promos before she was cut from the movie.

Played by Rosa Salazar of Alita: Battle Angel and the Short Treks standout “The Trouble With Edward,” Diamondback debuted during writer Mark Gruenwald’s defining run on Captain America. 1985’s Captain America #310, penciled by Paul Neary, introduced Rachel Leighton as a member of the Serpent Society. Although immediately attracted to Captain America, her affections weren’t returned until she and Sidewinder enlisted his help after the villain Viper overtook the Society.

Eventually, Rachel and Steve Rogers became lovers, albeit in a conflicted relationship. While Steve wanted to see the best in her, he couldn’t help but take issue with her connections to unsavory characters, especially the mercenary Crossbones. Rachel, for her part, resented Steve’s mistrust, especially since Crossbones was her abuser. The relationship came to an end after Rachel killed fellow Serpent Society member Snapdragon, and while the two have had brushes ever since, they never fully reconciled.

It’s entirely possible that Diamondback would have been a romantic interest for Sam in the finished film. While she’s most often associated with Rogers, Sam’s counseling background would have made him a natural to help her move from villainy to heroism. However, with Sam’s usual comic love interest Leila Taylor added to the film, played by Xosha Roquemore, and Giancarlo Esposito added as Serpent Society leader Sidewinder, Diamondback was probably deemed redundant and removed late in the process.

Seth Rollins as Serpent Society Member

Speaking of the Serpent Society, perhaps the most high-profile addition and removal from Brave New World was WWE star Seth Rollins, who is featured in the set photo above. Although we knew that he would be playing a member of Serpent (as the team is called in the movie, giving it more of a James Bond Spectre feel), no one has yet released specifics, not even Rollins. Judging by the set photos of Rollins in costume, most assume he played a variation of Cobra or Anaconda.

Neither Cobra nor Anaconda are particularly rich characters, which suggests that Rollins would have just had the role of henchman or heavy, somebody who gives Sam some trouble in a single set-piece, but doesn’t affect much of the plot. However, rumors suggested that Rollins’s character would connect to plot involving the U.S. government stealing adamantium as its own counter to vibranium (more on that later).

That theory is supported by the fact that a Serpent heavy does remain in the finished film. Icelandic strongman Jóhannes Haukur Jóhannesson appears as Copperhead, and does get to tangle with Sam for a few minutes. Given that Copperhead remains and Cobra/Anaconda does suggest that Rollins got to be more of an evil genius, making his loss a bit more of a substantial plot change.

Logan Kim as Amadeus Cho

Like Kamala Khan and Miles Morales, Amadeus Cho points to Marvel’s future, an exciting young character created within the past 20years. Cho made his first appearance in 2005’s Amazing Fantasy #15 by Greg Pak and Takeshi Miyazawa, where his mighty intellect won him the title of 7th Smartest Person in the World. His smarts also drew the attention of a jealous supergenius, who attacked Cho’s house and left his parents dead. Cho palled around with the Hulk and Hercules for a while, before gaining his own gamma powers and becoming the Totally Awesome Hulk aka Brawn, a key member of the Champions.

According to insider DanielRPK, Logan Kim, best known as Podcast from Ghostbusters: Afterlife, appeared in the an early screening of Brave New World as Cho. Sam encountered Cho working for Stark Industries, and Cho would later help Sam develop a counter to the Red Hulk. Although you should of course take this leak with a grain of salt, the rest of DanielRPK’s descriptions of the film match the finished version, lending some credibility to his claims.

At any rate, Cho doesn’t make it into Brave New World, but that doesn’t mean he’s off the screen. He can currently be seen in the excellent animated series Your Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Man, where he works as a junior scientist at Oscorp.

Elijah Richardson as Eli Bradley

The omission of Eli Bradley particularly stands out in the finished version of Brave New World. As portrayed by Elijah Richardson in The Falcon and the Winter Soldier, Eli lives with his grandfather Isaiah Bradley, the disavowed former Super Soldier. Played wonderfully by Carl Lumbly, Isaiah plays a major role in Brave New World. And yet, Eli neither appears on screen nor even gets a mention.

As producer Nate Moore explained, Eli did appear in early drafts of the script. “[B]ut we started to feel like there were too many characters to track and we want to make sure if a character is in the film, they have something to do,” Moore said. Seemingly getting in the way of Isaiah’s relationship with Sam, Eli got cut.

In the comics, Eli is a founding member of the Young Avengers. Created by Allan Heinberg and Jim Cheung, Patriot claims to have inherited the same powers as his grandfather and leads the team as Patriot. However, he later admits that he used a Mutant Growth Hormone to simulate the powers. Eli retired from the role of Patriot after the Young Avengers disbanded, but we’re sure to see a version of him as the MCU’s version of the team comes together.

Julia Louis-Dreyfuss as Valentina Allegra de Fontaine

Given how often she’s popped up in recent MCU entries, it’s almost shocking that Valentina Allegra de Fontaine didn’t show up to meddle in Sam Wilson’s first Captain America outing. As reported by the generally reliable insider Jeff Sneider, Val figured in early versions of Brave New World. Frustrated by her failed attempts to get vibranium in Black Panther: Wakanda Forever, Val saw adamantium as a solution to her problem and worked hard to secure it. Her efforts involved the Serpent Society, which probably involved Seth Rollins’s character.

Adamantium certainly matters in the finished film, and there is a lot of talk about needing a new set of Avengers. However, Thunderbolts* gets set up through a cameo by Bucky, now apparently a U.S. Senator, and not by Val’s machinations.

Mark Ruffalo as Bruce Banner

Perhaps the most tenuous of Brave New World potential characters, Mark Ruffalo indicated that he would be in the movie during an interview at the 2024 Santa Barbara Film Festival. It didn’t take long for other sources to clarify he wouldn’t be in the movie, but the confusion makes sense. Brave New World operates as a sequel to The Incredible Hulk as much as it does a Captain America movie. Even though Edward Norton and not Ruffalo portrayed Banner in that film, it is a bit odd that Brave New World would spend so much time talking about President Ross’s attempts to kill the Hulk without having the Hulk show up.

Still, it’s probably good that Banner didn’t drop by, making the movie even less of a Sam Wilson film than it already is.

Captain America: Brave New World is now in theaters.

The post Captain America 4: Diamondback, Seth Rollins, and the Marvel Characters Cut From the Movie appeared first on Den of Geek.

Mr. Miyagi didn’t know Karate at all. Noriyuki ”Pat” Morita, who immortalized Mr. Miyagi into a cultural icon with his signature “wax on, wax off” lessons, had not studied the Japanese martial art prior to taking on the role. Neither did Daniel LaRusso (Ralph Macchio) or Johnny Lawrence (William Zabka). The Karate Kid is the most prominent […]

The post The Best Karate Movies with Actual Karate (Sorry Cobra Kai) appeared first on Den of Geek.

This article contains spoilers for Captain America: Brave New World.

No one would argue that Captain America: Brave New World is a jam-packed movie. It’s stuffed with so many characters and subplots from The Incredible Hulk, Eternals, and The Falcon and the Winter Soldier that Sam Wilson doesn’t always feel like the main character in his own movie.

But it could have been featured even more Marvel characters. It’s no secret that Brave New World went through reshoots that radically changed the finished film, including by cutting several characters who originally had scenes in the movie. It’s a testament to the cast and crew that Brave New World ended up a pretty fun, slick action flick.

Still, it’s hard not to wonder what could have been had some of these cut characters made it into the finished cut. So let’s take a look at what almost was, and how these characters could have affected Brave New World.

Rosa Salazar as Diamondback

Rachel Leighton aka Diamondback probably got the furthest into production before the editor’s blade fell upon her. Not only are there photos of the character on set, but Diamondback even made it into some leaked Happy Meal promos before she was cut from the movie.

Played by Rosa Salazar of Alita: Battle Angel and the Short Treks standout “The Trouble With Edward,” Diamondback debuted during writer Mark Gruenwald’s defining run on Captain America. 1985’s Captain America #310, penciled by Paul Neary, introduced Rachel Leighton as a member of the Serpent Society. Although immediately attracted to Captain America, her affections weren’t returned until she and Sidewinder enlisted his help after the villain Viper overtook the Society.

Eventually, Rachel and Steve Rogers became lovers, albeit in a conflicted relationship. While Steve wanted to see the best in her, he couldn’t help but take issue with her connections to unsavory characters, especially the mercenary Crossbones. Rachel, for her part, resented Steve’s mistrust, especially since Crossbones was her abuser. The relationship came to an end after Rachel killed fellow Serpent Society member Snapdragon, and while the two have had brushes ever since, they never fully reconciled.

It’s entirely possible that Diamondback would have been a romantic interest for Sam in the finished film. While she’s most often associated with Rogers, Sam’s counseling background would have made him a natural to help her move from villainy to heroism. However, with Sam’s usual comic love interest Leila Taylor added to the film, played by Xosha Roquemore, and Giancarlo Esposito added as Serpent Society leader Sidewinder, Diamondback was probably deemed redundant and removed late in the process.

Seth Rollins as Serpent Society Member

Speaking of the Serpent Society, perhaps the most high-profile addition and removal from Brave New World was WWE star Seth Rollins, who is featured in the set photo above. Although we knew that he would be playing a member of Serpent (as the team is called in the movie, giving it more of a James Bond Spectre feel), no one has yet released specifics, not even Rollins. Judging by the set photos of Rollins in costume, most assume he played a variation of Cobra or Anaconda.

Neither Cobra nor Anaconda are particularly rich characters, which suggests that Rollins would have just had the role of henchman or heavy, somebody who gives Sam some trouble in a single set-piece, but doesn’t affect much of the plot. However, rumors suggested that Rollins’s character would connect to plot involving the U.S. government stealing adamantium as its own counter to vibranium (more on that later).

That theory is supported by the fact that a Serpent heavy does remain in the finished film. Icelandic strongman Jóhannes Haukur Jóhannesson appears as Copperhead, and does get to tangle with Sam for a few minutes. Given that Copperhead remains and Cobra/Anaconda does suggest that Rollins got to be more of an evil genius, making his loss a bit more of a substantial plot change.

Logan Kim as Amadeus Cho

Like Kamala Khan and Miles Morales, Amadeus Cho points to Marvel’s future, an exciting young character created within the past 20years. Cho made his first appearance in 2005’s Amazing Fantasy #15 by Greg Pak and Takeshi Miyazawa, where his mighty intellect won him the title of 7th Smartest Person in the World. His smarts also drew the attention of a jealous supergenius, who attacked Cho’s house and left his parents dead. Cho palled around with the Hulk and Hercules for a while, before gaining his own gamma powers and becoming the Totally Awesome Hulk aka Brawn, a key member of the Champions.

According to insider DanielRPK, Logan Kim, best known as Podcast from Ghostbusters: Afterlife, appeared in the an early screening of Brave New World as Cho. Sam encountered Cho working for Stark Industries, and Cho would later help Sam develop a counter to the Red Hulk. Although you should of course take this leak with a grain of salt, the rest of DanielRPK’s descriptions of the film match the finished version, lending some credibility to his claims.

At any rate, Cho doesn’t make it into Brave New World, but that doesn’t mean he’s off the screen. He can currently be seen in the excellent animated series Your Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Man, where he works as a junior scientist at Oscorp.

Elijah Richardson as Eli Bradley

The omission of Eli Bradley particularly stands out in the finished version of Brave New World. As portrayed by Elijah Richardson in The Falcon and the Winter Soldier, Eli lives with his grandfather Isaiah Bradley, the disavowed former Super Soldier. Played wonderfully by Carl Lumbly, Isaiah plays a major role in Brave New World. And yet, Eli neither appears on screen nor even gets a mention.

As producer Nate Moore explained, Eli did appear in early drafts of the script. “[B]ut we started to feel like there were too many characters to track and we want to make sure if a character is in the film, they have something to do,” Moore said. Seemingly getting in the way of Isaiah’s relationship with Sam, Eli got cut.

In the comics, Eli is a founding member of the Young Avengers. Created by Allan Heinberg and Jim Cheung, Patriot claims to have inherited the same powers as his grandfather and leads the team as Patriot. However, he later admits that he used a Mutant Growth Hormone to simulate the powers. Eli retired from the role of Patriot after the Young Avengers disbanded, but we’re sure to see a version of him as the MCU’s version of the team comes together.

Julia Louis-Dreyfuss as Valentina Allegra de Fontaine

Given how often she’s popped up in recent MCU entries, it’s almost shocking that Valentina Allegra de Fontaine didn’t show up to meddle in Sam Wilson’s first Captain America outing. As reported by the generally reliable insider Jeff Sneider, Val figured in early versions of Brave New World. Frustrated by her failed attempts to get vibranium in Black Panther: Wakanda Forever, Val saw adamantium as a solution to her problem and worked hard to secure it. Her efforts involved the Serpent Society, which probably involved Seth Rollins’s character.

Adamantium certainly matters in the finished film, and there is a lot of talk about needing a new set of Avengers. However, Thunderbolts* gets set up through a cameo by Bucky, now apparently a U.S. Senator, and not by Val’s machinations.

Mark Ruffalo as Bruce Banner

Perhaps the most tenuous of Brave New World potential characters, Mark Ruffalo indicated that he would be in the movie during an interview at the 2024 Santa Barbara Film Festival. It didn’t take long for other sources to clarify he wouldn’t be in the movie, but the confusion makes sense. Brave New World operates as a sequel to The Incredible Hulk as much as it does a Captain America movie. Even though Edward Norton and not Ruffalo portrayed Banner in that film, it is a bit odd that Brave New World would spend so much time talking about President Ross’s attempts to kill the Hulk without having the Hulk show up.

Still, it’s probably good that Banner didn’t drop by, making the movie even less of a Sam Wilson film than it already is.

Captain America: Brave New World is now in theaters.

The post Captain America 4: Diamondback, Seth Rollins, and the Marvel Characters Cut From the Movie appeared first on Den of Geek.

This article contains spoilers for Captain America: Brave New World. Captain America: Brave New World finds Sam Wilson on his heels. A vast conspiracy has entangled Sam’s mentor Isaiah Bradley, and Sam doesn’t know who to trust. He certainly can’t trust President Thaddeus Ross, nor can he trust Ross’s new aide Ruth Bat-Seraph. He can’t […]

The post Captain America Brave New World Just Introduced the Most Pathetic Avenger to the MCU appeared first on Den of Geek.

This article contains spoilers for Captain America: Brave New World.

No one would argue that Captain America: Brave New World is a jam-packed movie. It’s stuffed with so many characters and subplots from The Incredible Hulk, Eternals, and The Falcon and the Winter Soldier that Sam Wilson doesn’t always feel like the main character in his own movie.

But it could have been featured even more Marvel characters. It’s no secret that Brave New World went through reshoots that radically changed the finished film, including by cutting several characters who originally had scenes in the movie. It’s a testament to the cast and crew that Brave New World ended up a pretty fun, slick action flick.

Still, it’s hard not to wonder what could have been had some of these cut characters made it into the finished cut. So let’s take a look at what almost was, and how these characters could have affected Brave New World.

Rosa Salazar as Diamondback

Rachel Leighton aka Diamondback probably got the furthest into production before the editor’s blade fell upon her. Not only are there photos of the character on set, but Diamondback even made it into some leaked Happy Meal promos before she was cut from the movie.

Played by Rosa Salazar of Alita: Battle Angel and the Short Treks standout “The Trouble With Edward,” Diamondback debuted during writer Mark Gruenwald’s defining run on Captain America. 1985’s Captain America #310, penciled by Paul Neary, introduced Rachel Leighton as a member of the Serpent Society. Although immediately attracted to Captain America, her affections weren’t returned until she and Sidewinder enlisted his help after the villain Viper overtook the Society.

Eventually, Rachel and Steve Rogers became lovers, albeit in a conflicted relationship. While Steve wanted to see the best in her, he couldn’t help but take issue with her connections to unsavory characters, especially the mercenary Crossbones. Rachel, for her part, resented Steve’s mistrust, especially since Crossbones was her abuser. The relationship came to an end after Rachel killed fellow Serpent Society member Snapdragon, and while the two have had brushes ever since, they never fully reconciled.

It’s entirely possible that Diamondback would have been a romantic interest for Sam in the finished film. While she’s most often associated with Rogers, Sam’s counseling background would have made him a natural to help her move from villainy to heroism. However, with Sam’s usual comic love interest Leila Taylor added to the film, played by Xosha Roquemore, and Giancarlo Esposito added as Serpent Society leader Sidewinder, Diamondback was probably deemed redundant and removed late in the process.

Seth Rollins as Serpent Society Member

Speaking of the Serpent Society, perhaps the most high-profile addition and removal from Brave New World was WWE star Seth Rollins, who is featured in the set photo above. Although we knew that he would be playing a member of Serpent (as the team is called in the movie, giving it more of a James Bond Spectre feel), no one has yet released specifics, not even Rollins. Judging by the set photos of Rollins in costume, most assume he played a variation of Cobra or Anaconda.

Neither Cobra nor Anaconda are particularly rich characters, which suggests that Rollins would have just had the role of henchman or heavy, somebody who gives Sam some trouble in a single set-piece, but doesn’t affect much of the plot. However, rumors suggested that Rollins’s character would connect to plot involving the U.S. government stealing adamantium as its own counter to vibranium (more on that later).

That theory is supported by the fact that a Serpent heavy does remain in the finished film. Icelandic strongman Jóhannes Haukur Jóhannesson appears as Copperhead, and does get to tangle with Sam for a few minutes. Given that Copperhead remains and Cobra/Anaconda does suggest that Rollins got to be more of an evil genius, making his loss a bit more of a substantial plot change.

Logan Kim as Amadeus Cho

Like Kamala Khan and Miles Morales, Amadeus Cho points to Marvel’s future, an exciting young character created within the past 20years. Cho made his first appearance in 2005’s Amazing Fantasy #15 by Greg Pak and Takeshi Miyazawa, where his mighty intellect won him the title of 7th Smartest Person in the World. His smarts also drew the attention of a jealous supergenius, who attacked Cho’s house and left his parents dead. Cho palled around with the Hulk and Hercules for a while, before gaining his own gamma powers and becoming the Totally Awesome Hulk aka Brawn, a key member of the Champions.

According to insider DanielRPK, Logan Kim, best known as Podcast from Ghostbusters: Afterlife, appeared in the an early screening of Brave New World as Cho. Sam encountered Cho working for Stark Industries, and Cho would later help Sam develop a counter to the Red Hulk. Although you should of course take this leak with a grain of salt, the rest of DanielRPK’s descriptions of the film match the finished version, lending some credibility to his claims.

At any rate, Cho doesn’t make it into Brave New World, but that doesn’t mean he’s off the screen. He can currently be seen in the excellent animated series Your Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Man, where he works as a junior scientist at Oscorp.

Elijah Richardson as Eli Bradley

The omission of Eli Bradley particularly stands out in the finished version of Brave New World. As portrayed by Elijah Richardson in The Falcon and the Winter Soldier, Eli lives with his grandfather Isaiah Bradley, the disavowed former Super Soldier. Played wonderfully by Carl Lumbly, Isaiah plays a major role in Brave New World. And yet, Eli neither appears on screen nor even gets a mention.

As producer Nate Moore explained, Eli did appear in early drafts of the script. “[B]ut we started to feel like there were too many characters to track and we want to make sure if a character is in the film, they have something to do,” Moore said. Seemingly getting in the way of Isaiah’s relationship with Sam, Eli got cut.

In the comics, Eli is a founding member of the Young Avengers. Created by Allan Heinberg and Jim Cheung, Patriot claims to have inherited the same powers as his grandfather and leads the team as Patriot. However, he later admits that he used a Mutant Growth Hormone to simulate the powers. Eli retired from the role of Patriot after the Young Avengers disbanded, but we’re sure to see a version of him as the MCU’s version of the team comes together.

Julia Louis-Dreyfuss as Valentina Allegra de Fontaine

Given how often she’s popped up in recent MCU entries, it’s almost shocking that Valentina Allegra de Fontaine didn’t show up to meddle in Sam Wilson’s first Captain America outing. As reported by the generally reliable insider Jeff Sneider, Val figured in early versions of Brave New World. Frustrated by her failed attempts to get vibranium in Black Panther: Wakanda Forever, Val saw adamantium as a solution to her problem and worked hard to secure it. Her efforts involved the Serpent Society, which probably involved Seth Rollins’s character.

Adamantium certainly matters in the finished film, and there is a lot of talk about needing a new set of Avengers. However, Thunderbolts* gets set up through a cameo by Bucky, now apparently a U.S. Senator, and not by Val’s machinations.

Mark Ruffalo as Bruce Banner

Perhaps the most tenuous of Brave New World potential characters, Mark Ruffalo indicated that he would be in the movie during an interview at the 2024 Santa Barbara Film Festival. It didn’t take long for other sources to clarify he wouldn’t be in the movie, but the confusion makes sense. Brave New World operates as a sequel to The Incredible Hulk as much as it does a Captain America movie. Even though Edward Norton and not Ruffalo portrayed Banner in that film, it is a bit odd that Brave New World would spend so much time talking about President Ross’s attempts to kill the Hulk without having the Hulk show up.

Still, it’s probably good that Banner didn’t drop by, making the movie even less of a Sam Wilson film than it already is.

Captain America: Brave New World is now in theaters.

The post Captain America 4: Diamondback, Seth Rollins, and the Marvel Characters Cut From the Movie appeared first on Den of Geek.