If you're going to make a comic book film that will echo in the minds and hearts of moviegoers, you've got to have a villain that's as super as the hero. Heath Ledger will get an Oscar nomination for his role as The Joker in The Dark Knight, and he should — not because of Ledger's untimely death, but because his portrayal of the clown prince of darkness is what nightmares are made of. It doesn't take terror to make a good villain, though; some of the best comic book bad guys have been more clever than they are evil. Thing is: most of them have been men. So, here's my casting advice for the next set of superhero movie villains. And by "villain" you know I mean "villainess."

Talia al Ghul, Aishwarya Rai

Liam Neeson played Ra's al Ghul in Batman Begins. As imposing as his portrayal was, Neeson didn't really fit the build of the original comic book character. Aishwarya Rai, though? She would be the perfect actress to play al Ghul's daughter, Talia. In the comics, she is in constant turmoil between her devotion to her psychotic dad and and her moral compass, which seems to point in the same direction as Batman's. The actress who plays Talia as Ghul has to be, above all, a seductress. Here's a litmus test: Could Aishwarya Rai seduce you? Yeah, that's what I thought. Sign her up.

Catwoman, Selma Blair

I'm talking about something better than Michelle Pfeiffer's secretary-scorned Catwoman in Batman Returns. I'm talking about a villainess who won't play second-fiddle to Batman. I'm talking about a gorgeous feminist who has a social conscious, but just plain old like to rob things. Selma Blair would own that Catwoman. I've already developed the movie's tagline: Mrowr! … continue reading

Fresh from Planet Lexicon, there's a new superhero on the scene whose mission is to fight for justice and build your vocabulary. The Amazing Colossal Adventures of WordGirl debuted on PBS last year as a series of shorts within the PBS cartoon Maya and Miguel. It was enough of a hit to trigger a full development deal. A preview episode aired on Labor Day, and the show launches on Friday, Sept. 7.

WordGirl (aka fifth grader Betsy Botsford, when she's not fighting crime and poor word usage) is the newest superhero in PBS's battle against insufficient language development. With the help (or as she might say, "assistance") of her monkey sidekick, Captain Huggy Face, WordGirl uses her superpowers (super-strength, hearing, ability to fly at the speed of sound ... the usual) to overpower villains. But first she uses her super vocabulary (she knows all of the words in the dictionary, plus some hieroglyphics) to distract or confuse them.

For example, when WordGirl faces her archenemy the Butcher in the pilot, she distracts him by explaining that the free barbecue he provides to lure customers and security away from banks and jewelry stores is just a diversion. The dim-witted Butcher doesn't get (or "comprehend") it. But repeated and varied explanations teach the word "diversion" to the audience. (Eventually, she defeats the Butcher by luring him to a vegetarian restaurant. The patrons are not tempted by the free barbecue, and Captain Huggy Face is able to overpower the Butcher with tofu. And the audience learns what "vegetarian" means.)

Can I just stop to exclaim how great this is? … continue reading