Movie producers know a good thing when they see one. There's nothing that fires up a fanboy's interest more than to see his (or her) favorite superhero come alive as a comic book movie on the big screen. Put an A-List celebrity in a spandex suit and you have a sure fire hit on your hands.

Okay, it's not that simple. There have been terrific duds like Watchmen and Hulk (the 2003 one). And I am not putting spoofs like "˜Superhero Movie' on the Golden Raspberry worthy list.

Whatever the final outcome, films based on superheroes are eagerly anticipated. Whole fan sites come up around sneak peeks and inside scoops. Just check out the rave that's around the next Batman or Spiderman movie.

Where should a superhero fan go to check out the next big thing in a cape and hope to see it fly out of the screen? Maybe these eight websites can help him or her get the scoop on comic book movies.

Superhero Hype

Captain America is in Liverpool. He is going to be in an upcoming movie on the Marvel Universe. Catch the set and costume photos here on this site along with a lot of other news around superheroes and comic books. The site can be browsed according to the superheroes you are a fan of. You can jump into the forum and a sub-forum talking about your kind of crusader and chitchat with likeminded fans or gawk at the photos in the gallery.

Comic Book Movie

Captain America is the talk of the town. That's what I learned from ComicBookMovie.com. The site comes up with breaking news on mainstream movies starring your favorite superhero. The site also covers sci-fi, fantasy, video games, animation, anime and horror genres. The site has an active discussion board, but if you are a true blue fan, you should set up your own fansite. The site has a huge lineup of user created fansites. To get after your interest, the site also holds occasional fun contests and sweepstakes.

Comic Book Resources

This site covers all angles and lives up to its name of being a great resource for fans of comic books and superhero movie adaptations. Features are the blogs that look into the niches of comic books and also movies/TV shows based on them.

For instance, the Spinoff Online blog has thoughts on What Is the Best Superhero Movie Ever with a poll. The Comics Should Be Good blog is on history, trivia and contests. Also check out the CBR Events Calendar for upcoming comic book events.

Mania [No Longer Available]

Mania.com is all about giving comic book, anime, movie fans with news and feature stories. Features like Behind the Scenes, Profiles & Interviews, A View from the Aisles, are for the fan who loves to go deep. I for one loved the articles 6 Superheroes Who Completely Lost Their Shit [No longer available] sourced from Cracked.com in the Weekly Cracked List archive.

Splash Page (MTV)

This is a MTV blog that talks about "˜comic inspired flicks'. You can get a lot of inside scoop here on the next big thing that's around the corner. News items sourced from other sources get bytes. Fans will love the exclusive tidbits and star interviews done in the usual MTV style.

Newsarama

The more than a decade old site is all about comic books. With film adaptations coming in thick and fast, it's also now a lot about the silver screen and the idiot box. Catch the latest headlines via the news features or the community discussions. The site also has a video channel that you can check out for trailers, teasers, and talks.

eFavata's Comic Book Movies [Broken Link Removed]

The movie and film blog is worth a look for the way it covers nothing but comic book movies. Of course, it sources some of the breaking news from the sites we have covered earlier, but it is interesting in the way it distills the news from the other websites. Catch the list of upcoming comic book movies on the left column. The image galleries are worth a dekko too.

Marvel

The Marvel universe is huge with a great lineup of super heroes and villains. There are a lot of movies planned on them too. So why not get the straight dope from the horse's mouth? There's an entire section on movies and TV. Each released, upcoming, or released movie gets a page of its own with news, photos, and other tiny details like comic book links. Don't overlook the tiny grey arrows to expand the selections and sideswipe the view.

Movies based on comic book superheroes have made comics cool again. Importantly, it has given the adult the chance to relive his mind dramas on the large screen.

What's your rating on the fan meter? Do you like movies that have been churned out on superheroes or did you prefer them in the comics? Also, let us know if you know of any other cinematic website that's based on the guys "˜n gals with the special powers and higher purposes.

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