Besides ‘Men In Black 3’, Barry Sonnenfeld has been associated recently with the movie and comic book versions of ‘Dinosaurs Vs. Aliens’ with Grant Morrison. However, it appears that that’s not the only comic book property that the director is working on. According to Vulture (via /Film), Sonnenfeld is currently working on a movie based on DC Comics’ team of elemental robots known as The Metal Men.
It took me a minute to realize who The Metal Men were exactly, but then I remembered that I had seen them in an episode of ‘Batman: The Brave and the Bold’! Man, I miss that show. But for those of you who didn’t watch the show, here’s a description of the team from their original incarnation back in 1962:
Created by scientist Dr. William “Will” Magnus, the six robots were field leader Gold, strong man Iron, slow-witted and loyal Lead, hot-headed Mercury, self-doubting and insecure Tin, and Platinum (also called “Tina”), who believed she was a real woman and was in love with her creator. The group’s personalities mirrored their namesake metals, being dictated by devices called “responsometers”. Each Metal Man also possessed abilities that reflected the traits of their namesake metal: Gold could stretch his form almost infinitely, Iron was super strong, Lead could block harmful radiation by morphing into thick shields, Mercury could melt and pass through small spaces before reforming and Platinum could stretch or flatten.
This is something totally up Sonnenfeld’s alley since it seems like it could be in the same vein as the ‘Men In Black’ franchise. In fact, the director might find himself in his element with this team of heroes (I couldn’t resist!). He can certainly handle all the action and comedy that are sure to emerge from these characters. And while this may not be the DC super-team that fans have been looking forward to seeing, I think a Metal Men movie would be a fun cinematic experience, despite the fact that robot action movies may be wearing out their welcome. But these robots aren’t giant, so that may be a sign that this could work out.
What do you think about DC making a Metal Men movie? Are they too obscure to introduce to the movie-going public? Sound off in the comments section!
