Two weeks ago, Scott Weinberg and I sat down to discuss the DVD release of The Incredible Hulk. It proved to be a popular conversation starter among readers, and I had planned on doing it again the next time there was a big movie release to theaters or DVD. I don't want to abuse the format, and I hardly think everyone wants to just read my goofy AIM conversations. But with the news that First Avenger: Captain America finally had its director in Joe Johnston, I decided that the news was worthy of sitting down with the biggest Captain America fan I know, Wes Robinson. Robinson is the steady first mate of Enchanted Grounds, arguably my favorite place in Colorado. Robinson is one of the best Dungeon Masters in the state, pulls the coolest comics for me, is a maker of fine food and coffee, and an all around awesome guy.

What I think is particularly key about a conversation like this is how quickly it destroys the notion that devoted fans are impossible to please. We really are an enthusiastic and optimistic group of people, badly represented by a few rabid nuts with online access. Don't get me wrong -- I know they exist and I've written about them, but this notion that "the fans will hate it anyway, so who cares" really ignores the normal, happy-go-lucky fans that I know and write for. So, more than a goofy AIM conversation, think of this yet another effort to knock down that Berlin Wall of bad reputation. And I hope you enjoy, and pick up the conversation where it left off.

Wes: Captain America!!!

Elisabeth: Yeah! Let's talk Captain America!

Wes: Okay!

Elisabeth: So, what do you think of the choice of director?

Wes: Well I was a big fan of The Rocketeer ...I think he will be able to capture the feel of a period piece Cap movie for sure. I mean, that's really the only way to do the first Cap movie -- set in WWII. I am happy they chose someone who is familiar with doing period pieces. So overall, I am very optimistic about the choice.

Continued after the jump

Confession time – I didn't see The Incredible Hulk in theaters. I was short on funds and friends to go with, and before I knew it, it was gone. I know most of you out there are better geeks than I, and probably have seen it twice over already. But there's probably a bunch of people out there who had to wait around until last week's DVD release, and might like a chance to talk about it. Hulk out, if you will. To get you all going, Scott Weinberg and I held our own spirited discussion -- or as spirited as one can be at 2am. (4am his time -- he has more stamina than Emil Blonsky!)

Hopefully, you're all still out there after last week's emotional revelations. I didn't mean to make that quite as depressing as it turned out – but insomnia and Two Mules for Sister Sara can do that to a girl, I guess. This week, we're going to tackle the intriguing topic of a Daredevil reboot.

While I want to hate the "reboot" trend, I can't. I write too many of those "If they had just done it right!" rants. For a studio to offer the chance to see a movie done right is just too tempting – and it's not as though it obliterates the original attempt, the fans of that film can still go geek out over it and pretend the rest of us are collectively insane. It's not a trend that I would want to see expand beyond comic book films, though – unless there's some classic novel that's been totally bastardized onscreen or something. It really only works if there's source material to go back to, and treat right. And given that comic books are an industry that is built on revision, retro-con, rewriters, and alternate universes, I can't really complain when movie studios try to do the same thing.

It's a desert of geek movie news out there, and my muse is obviously on vacation with a Spartan, leaving me high and dry. So, I thought I would do something a bit twee, and interview my mom. Many of you know her, she was the subject of a very popular Mother's Day column. She's becoming an interesting test subject, as she slowly gets sucked into the world of comic books, their movies, and conventions. Until now, she's been largely dismissive of the genre because "they were a kid thing." What follows are the impressions of a comic book newbie, who has been bombarded with Marvel and DC movies until they give in -- or at least what happens when you mention Iron Man to my mom. My questions, as few and bland as they were, are in bold. (And after this was over, she took my copies of Astonishing X-Men, Mark Millar's Wolverine, and Weapon X to further her education.)

I think you should start by telling everyone the first comic book you read was.
You threw me into the fire with Watchmen. It was like sink or swim. Not just a comic book – a graphic novel of epic proportions.

And did you like it when you finally finished it?
Yeah. I did end up liking it a lot, even though I bitched through the entire thing. The story reeled me in far enough that I was forced to keep going back and reading it. I couldn't let it go, even though I abhorred just about everything about it. I hated the art, I hated the colors, I hated the characters, although I came to like some of them at the end. The story kept me going.

With the DNC (three cheers for my hosting hometown, by the way!), holiday weekends, and hurricanes, there's not much to spin a column out of this week. I spent my holiday overdosing on back issues of Wolverine and Warren Ellis' Astonishing X-Men because oh happy day, I have a comic slot again! My supply line has been cut off for the last year, and as I refuse to pay anyone (even independent publishers) $6.00 to ship a single issue, I've lived in a drought.

In the midst of all this overdosing, I stumbled across this charming article by Brad Meltzer about why he loves Superman. Immediately I thought about what I would answer if posed a similar question by USA Weekend, and realized to my horror that I lacked such a lifelong bond. Everyone knows my favorite hero is the one with the admantium skeleton, but I can't pretend that he's been a lifelong love affair. Why, I never really had a superhero in my childhood. Why not?