The CW have released the following official trailer for the upcoming 10th and final season of Smallville entitled "Smallville Takes Off":

At a recent round-table interview about his upcoming film "Scott Pilgrim vs. The World", Brandon Routh spoke about how he would love to portray the Man of Steel again in the Christopher Nolan reboot.

"I certainly would [love to play Superman again]. As much as I say I'm working to shake that off or shake it up, I certainly don’t want to extinguish or get rid of it because it was a great honor and I would love to be able to return as that character.”

Routh went on to say that he would like the reboot to "turn into a tsunami," adding "I think the brothers Nolan are both very talented and so that makes it a different kind of film that would be than Bryan's vision, which I think was a very nice film that I'm very proud of."

Though Superman Returns didn't live up to expectations, Routh does seem to have genuinely loved playing the iconic role. However, time will tell if he is chosen to return to the cape and tights.

Warner Home Video have released the first official clip from "Superman/Batman: Apocalypse", the ninth entry in the ongoing series of DC Universe Animated Original PG-13 Movies.

ThinkMcFlyThink.com has indicated that sources have told them that Jon Hamm (Mad Men) is being "seriously considered" for the role of Superman in the upcoming franchise reboot:

With plans set for a December 2012 release, we've heard different names out in the open ranging from "Chuck" star Zachary Levi in the rumor mill department to "True Blood" actor Joe Manganiello publicly campaigning for the role. But who do the studios (in this case, Warner Brothers and Legendary Pictures) have their eye on for mild-mannered Clark Kent and his red-and-blue suit wearing alter ego, or is it the other way around?

At thirty-nine (he'd be past forty when "The Man of Steel" opens), he's certainly older than who's regularly looked at for these franchises. Then again, look at Robert Downey Jr. He's starring in the "Iron Man" and "Sherlock Holmes" films (and then there's "The Avengers") and he's a few years older. Not to mention, Hamm happens to have been a fan favorite for Kal-El for years now. Something that was suggested to him directly by MTV and it wasn't like he immediately dismissed the notion.

Dwayne McDuffie has announced (via his blog) that the twelve-issue comic book mini-series "All-Star Superman" will be made into an animated film:

"Warner Home Video revealed the title of my next project, so I can finally talk about it. It’s a feature-length animated adaptation of one of the greatest stories in comic book history. And it will be out next spring: Morrison and Quitely's All Star Superman."

All-Star Superman was written Grant Morrison and drawn by Frank Quitely and ran from November, 2005 to October, 2008.

The animated film is scheduled for release in Spring, 2011 and will join other Warner Bros. Home Video direct to DVD animated features such as "Superman/Doomsday", "Justice League: Crisis on Two Earths" and their most recent film "Batman: Under the Red Hood".

A recent article on KryptonSite reveals that Smallville star Tom Welling has attempted a number of methods to get Michael Rosenbaum to return to his role as Lex Luthor.

"I have tried a few things with Michael," he said. "I've twisted his arm, I've taken him to dinner, I've gotten him drunk. I'm trying everything that I can."

Welling confirmed at the San Diego Comic-Con that Rosenbaum is interested in making an appearance in the final season of the program, but that no deal has been made yet.

"Michael wants to come back, but there are just some things to iron out, and I think he understands that we can't end the show without Lex Luthor," said the star.

He added: "We're even teasing the idea that he's going to be on already, with the idea of clones, or [the idea] that Lex has developed these bodies that he could then tap into to heal himself later in life."

The tenth and final season of Smallville premieres at 8pm (EST) on September 24 on The CW.

Converse has joined forces with DC Comics to unveil a new line of shoes featuring Superman, Batman and Green Lantern. The shoes made their debut at the recent San Diego Comic-Con and were worn by crew members who worked the DC Comics booth during the convention.

"Part of a promotional effort with our friends at Converse, the shoes merge two of my favorite things - a pair of snazzy Chuck Taylor's and comics," said Alex Segura, who runs DC's The Source blog. "Don't take my word for it, though. Our very own James Robinson was among the creators showing off his new kicks at a signing hosted by Converse at the Horton Plaza Journeys store in San Diego yesterday."

The shoes are available at any Journeys store or online.

Jamal Igle, the popular artist on the Supergirl series and the man who destroyed New Krypton (in Superman: War of the Supermen #1), comes to Dewey's Comic City, Madison NJ, on Saturday, August 7th, from 1 to 3pm! Jamal will be meeting fans and signing copies of his current Supergirl run and all his work!

Igle started as an intern at D.C. Comics, worked as an artist for DC, Marvel, Image and other comic companies and is now an exclusive artist for DC Comics! His pencils have graced such books such Firestorm The Nuclear Man, Nightwing, New Warriors and many others. But perhaps Jamal's most impressive achievement has been his work on the Supergirl series, where he redefined and re-focused the image of the character, making her one of the most popular heroes in the DC Universe!

"It's been a lot of fun working on Supergirl with Sterling [Gates, Supergirl writer]" said Igle. "I'm proud to be associated with the character right now."I feel like we keep pushing each other to do more than we thought we would have been able to pull off creatively before. Sterling is a talented, talented writer".

Dewey's Comic City is located at 13 Park Avenue, Madison New Jersey 07940. Call 973-593-0042 or check out their site at www.deweyscomiccity.com for more information and directions.

Sony Online Entertainment have released a new 6 minute long cinematic trailer for DC Universe Online.

The new trailer features an epic, apocalyptic battle between Justice League members Batman, Green Lantern, Wonder Woman, and the Flash against Lex Luthor, Deathstroke, The Joker, Black Adam, and more.

Noel Neill's good friend and biographer Larry Thomas Ward has informed us that Noel is currently in the hospital after suffering a broken hip from a fall:

"Noel is not well. This past Friday, July 23rd, Noel somehow tripped as she was walking across her living room and hit the ground hard. An ambulance was called and she was rushed to the Tucson Medical Center Emergency Room (Noel permanently moved to Tucson in April). The resulting x-rays confirmed that Noel broke her hip, the same hip she badly bruised back in March. Surgery was performed yesterday morning. While it was a successful surgery, and she survived the ordeal well, the lingering pain from that surgery is overwhelming.

She is on morphine and other pain medication. I am honestly not sure Noel will be able to survive the aftereffects of the surgery and the fall. The one good thing she has going for her is her determination - along with the fact she has been athletically sound all these years. The big thing she has against her is her age - 90 in November.

At this point all we can do is keep her comfortable and hope the pain subsides soon. If that occurs, she'll be transferred to a rehab facility for physical therapy, which might take months in order for her to recover. But at this point it is day to day.

On a lighter note, and talk about ironies, while I was in the emergency room with Noel on Friday, I was standing next to her bed chatting with her doctor when I suddenly collapsed and passed out. They plopped me into a bed close to Noel and hooked me up to a bunch of machines. Eight hous later I was released. Owe it to exhaustion, fatique and stress. Noel and I have shared a lot of things together over the years, but I never thought we'd ending up sharing the same floor at the ER.

If you have any questions, please contact me directly at my email address: larrythomasward@yahoo.com

Take care,
Larry"

Thanks to Newsarama, we have all the latest news that was discussed during the Smallville Comic Con panel in San Diego:

Geoff Johns, CCO of DC Entertainment is moderating the panel today, and promises a surprise or two for the final season.

A tease of the costume... and it looks like we have FLIGHT folks!

Lois said "Superman!" it's all coming to a head.

We do have a costume, guys.

And now we know what that Blue Beetle test footage may have been for...Geoff Johns is writing a Blue and Gold episode.

Blue Beetle and Booster Gold will be on this season of Smallville.

Cassidy Freeman, Erica Durance, Justin Hartley, and Tom Welling came out on stage, along with the producers. And we've confirmed that Darkseid is this year's big bad!

Darkseid will be a bit different from the comics however, to fit in with this world better.

The Superman costume is a slightly altered version of the one in Superman Returns.

If you hadn't heard already, John Schneider will be back as Pa Kent a bit this season, and he just came on stage!

They're really playing up the idea of Clark finally becoming the big hero we know from comics, and it looks like that will actually happen during the season, not just at the very end.

"The door is open" for Michael Rosenbaum to return as Lex Luthor, but nothing has been locked down yet.

No chance of Wonder Woman or Batman though.

A family were recently able to avoid foreclosure on their home after discovering a copy of Action Comics #1 that had been boxed away with other comic books since the 1950s in their basement.

The discovery was made when the anonymous family began packing up their belongings due to the foreclosure proceedings. Realizing what they had found, the family contacted Stephen Fishler who is co-owner of New York's ComicConnect and Metropolis Collectibles.

"They said they came across a box that had magazines in it and some old comic books," Fishler told Asylum.com. "And that they came across what appears to be an Action #1." Fishler points out that "99.9 percent" of similar calls he receives turn out to be about reprints, so at first he was dubious. "They took a cell phone picture of the book and texted it to me, and I realized it was an Action #1," he says.

Fishler is no stranger to this title, having brokered the record-breaking sale of an Action #1 in February (for $1 million), only to break that record a month later by selling another copy for $1.5 million. This copy will go on display at this weekend's Comic-Con in San Diego, where it will also be officially graded. Fishler figures it will garner a VG+ (Very Good) rating and should fetch upwards of $250,000 when it goes up for auction on ComicConnect.

Asylum.com spoke with the comic's owner, who said through Fishler that the family was "still a little shell-shocked about finding this book. I was so nervous when I realized what it was worth. I know I am very fortunate but I will be greatly relieved when this book finds a new home."

James Marsters will be reprising his role of Brainiac for the final season of Smallville.

During the Caprica panel at the San Diego Comic-Con, Marsters confirmed the news that he would be returning to the popular series for the first time in several seasons. Marsters will be in Smallville's 200th episode, airing this fall.

The 10th and final season of Smallville will also see the return of other of familiar faces such as John Schneider (Jonathan Kent) and Laura Vandervoort (Supergirl).

Marsters is also set to star on CBS's new Hawaii Five-0, playing the villain whose crimes set the story in motion and bring lead character Steve McGarrett (Alex O'Loughlin) to Hawaii in the first place.

HeroicWorld Productions proudly announces the release of the new superhero entertainment documentary Heroic Ambition. Executive produced by Scott Cranford and released by HeroicWorld Productions, Heroic Ambition is slated for release to DVD on July 27, 2010.

The film was written and directed by Scott Cranford, founder of HeroicWorld.com and former official "Superman" of Metropolis, Illinois. Using character types found in the world of Superman, Cranford has created a film that gives an entertaining and revealing look behind one of the biggest superhero entertainment events in the country.

An actor from Los Angeles, Cranford was selected to play the Man of Steel in a nationwide casting search held by the Metropolis Chamber of Commerce for their annual Superman Celebration.

“For eight years, I flew from Los Angeles to Metropolis to portray the Man of Steel for the annual Superman Celebration,” Cranford remembers. “Since the first year I portrayed Superman, I wanted to make a documentary [about it]. However, I didn't feel it was appropriate to be making a movie while doing my job. Asking a kid to redo a high five just didn't seem cool.”

Cranford gathered film footage of his Superman-related activities while wearing the requisite blue uniform and red cape for Metropolis. Before the end of his tenure as the Man of Steel, Cranford’s thoughts turned back to his original inspiration.

“A month before my last year playing Superman, I felt it was the right time to pursue the documentary,” says Cranford.

The director put out an online call for footage from the Superman Celebration to add to his documentary project. Cranford was soon contacted by Kevin James, a Boston film student and Superman fan. James and fellow film students and Superman enthusiasts Craig Schaffer and Matt Sinclair drove out from Boston, Massachusetts to Metropolis, Illinois and shot most of what would become Heroic Ambition.

The documentary uncovers the ambition of the city of Metropolis, Illinois and the people surrounding the Annual Superman Celebration. The city of Metropolis holds the title of being the official city of Superman and has been celebrating the Man of Steel annually for 32 years.

“This documentary is my Superman film,” says the writer/director. “From the onset, my goal was not necessarily to make a great documentary but to make a great Superman movie and I feel I have achieved this.”

Thousands visit the real city of Metropolis annually to celebrate the world's first Superhero -- Superman, The Man of Steel. Witness the ideals of several archetypes within Superman's Universe. Meet the residents of Metropolis and the visitors to one of the biggest superhero entertainment events in the country.

Share the excitement, the controversy and the ambition as expert insights offer different sides to what goes on behind the scenes of the celebration for the world's most legendary comic book hero.

Visit www.heroicambition.com for more information.

Coaster-Net.com has reported that a sign recently posted outside of "Superman: The Escape" at Six Flags Magic Mountain indicates that the ride will remain closed until the 2011 season. To build up speculation, the sign also says that “Something BIG is happening at Superman: The Escape.”

There is much speculation as to what may happen to the coaster until next season. The most common rumor is that the ride may be receiving the “Bizarro” treatment this year, much like Medusa at Six Flags Great Adventure and Superman at Six Flags New England.

This year, those coasters received new purple and blue color schemes, sound systems, and fire effects to enhance the ride experience; speculators assume the same could happen here, especially since the Superman figure at the top has been removed for “repainting.” Along with this, one rumor speculates that one side of the coaster will be re-themed to Bizarro, with the train being turned around and launched in reverse.

Many families traveling through the midwest to get to the sandy beaches in the South means we have been extremely busy around the Super Museum. Everyday at least 200 families stop in to see The World's Largest Collection of Superman in our Super Museum and of course our world famous Superman Statue. In the past a lot of people have asked where they can find Lois Lane and this year we have an answer.."Two blocks down on the right".

The Metropolis Tourism recently added some signage to the information kiosk located to the right of the Superman Statue to help tourist easily find our new addition. All the local politics aside, the new Lois Lane statue is located two blocks down from the Super Museum on the right. "You can't miss her", as I like to tell people.

Since the "first lady of Metropolis" is only a couple blocks away, most people make the trek and check out the shops and other businesses along Market Street. This has been a great boost for the merchants along Market Street in these tough economic times, as we all are very aware of by this point. I talked to one shop owner that said that during the celebration the worst thing that happened was all the people lined up in front of his store waiting for autographs from the Smallville stars and blocking part of his entrance. I'm not sure I'd be complaining about that, but you can't make everyone happy I guess. This was his first year being in business during the celebration so it was a learning experience, but I'm sure next year that store will include more Superman related things to keep people busy while they wait.

I'm sure that the trend of more people taking the time to see what Metropolis has to offer will continue and it can only increase with time. There is even talk of local restaurants giving discounts to families looking for a bite to eat while in town for the day or for the hour. Of course when details of the promotion are made available I'll be sure to publish that information for people wanting to travel to Metropolis to find online.

The next time you and your family are traveling south for the winter, don't forget to look for the signs on Interstate 24 at the southern most tip of Illinois, Exit 37.

Congratulations to Erica Coker who was chosen as the winner of the May contest for one (1) Two-Disc Special Edition DVD copy of "Batman: Under the Red Hood". Your prize will be on it's way to you soon!

For our July contest, we have teamed once again with Warner Home Video to give away one (1) DVD copy of "Super Friends!: Season One, Vol. Two".

Synopsis:
The series featured the adventures of DC Comics book heroes Superman, Batman, Robin, Wonder Woman, and Aquaman. These five superheroes along with superheroes in training Wendy, Marvin, and Wonder Dog focused their abilities on putting away criminals, saving lives, and stopping terrible disasters. Each episode of the SuperFriends was geared to present, not only action, but also some lesson of educational value. A number of other famous DC comic book heroes appeared: Plastic Man, The Flash, and Green Arrow Eight 1-hour timeless adventures in a Deluxe 2-Disc Collector’s Edition showcase the universe’s greatest heroes paving the way for a brighter future.