The man fanboys (and girls) love to hate has landed another comic book property. Variety reports that Paramount has purchased the rights to Jim Shooter's Harbinger, with an eye to giving Brett Ratner the franchise. He's looking for the chance to start a franchise from scratch -- and probably regain the goodwill of comic fans everywhere.
Harbinger is a story about superpowered people, humans who are the next stage in evolution. But unlike the mutants of X-Men, their powers must be activated by the Omega Harbinger. The series follows one Harbinger teen, Peter Stanchek, as he teams up with others to bring down Toyo Harada, the Omega, who has used his powers to slowly conquer the world. I think it's pretty much faded into obscurity, though at one point, it was popular enough to boast a Frank Miller cover on one of the issues.
Will the Harbinger fans be up in arms at the choice of Ratner? Will people just be annoyed in general, X-Men 3: The Last Stand being too dreadful a sin to be forgiven? Or will this be his way back into the fold? I know what annoys me -- producer Alexandra Milchan's Blade Runner comparison! "The movie is in the vein of a young Blade Runner, as this 17-year-old gifted kid helps other kids tap into these parts of their brains." Has no one in Hollywood actually sat down and watched Blade Runner?
1. Dear Mr. Ratner,
Fall off a cliff. Do not survive.
F*ck your mother,
The Addict
Posted at 12:46PM on Mar 11th 2008 by The Addict