At the SXSW Film and Interactive festival over the weekend, Marvel took the wraps off of several new digital initiatives during the company’s panel. Among the items highlighted were new content that will tie the company’s film, animation, comics, and web programming together with reality programming, news and documentaries.

All of these will be anchored by the newly announced program Marvel’s Earth’s Mightiest Show, a weekly pop culture program covering all-things Marvel and the world. Former G4 star Blair Butler will host the show, which will cover movies, comics, video games, and television with celebrity interviews and first looks at upcoming Marvel Studios films.

So yeah, you know that’s gonna be amazing. To see just how amazing, check out the preview for the show after the break.

In addition, the company also announced it is offering free downloads of more than 700 first issues of many of the company’s favorite superhero comics at no charge. The promotion began Sunday and runs until 11 p.m. ET on Tuesday.

Historic issues based on classic characters in the Marvel Universe including Spider-Man and Iron Man will be available, as well as contemporary titles like Civil War and Astonishing X-Men.

X-Men: First Class is supposed to be a return to form for Fox’s mutant franchise. First, they brought in franchise hero Bryan Singer to shepard the project, then they hired up and coming director Matthew Vaughn to direct, both of whom were in line to helm X3 back when the franchise was golden. So there has been a conscious effort from the execs to tap into the memories of happier times.

That trend is continuing now that the marketing team has their hands on the movie. The two most recent international posters have been released and they share some stark similarities to some of the finer X-Men works of the last decade.

The first new poster shows most of our main characters walking towards the viewer from a dutch angle. This is a clear homage to the one of the most famous panels from Joss Whedon’s ‘Astonishing X-Men’ run. Also, the general design with all of the main characters on a single plane with the more important characters standing progressively more forward is extremely reminiscent of a popular X-Men 2 poster.

More analysis after the jump!

Even with all the cool ways to be entertained these days, sometimes its just nice to sit down and read a few new comics. Speaking of new comics, as usual, this week sees the release of a bunch of new ones from our friends at Marvel.

Let’s take a look at what they have for us. Among the new ones coming out, we’re most interested in Astonishing X-Men #36, Avengers #10, Iron Man 2.0 #1, X-Men #8 and Secret Avengers #10.

As with most weeks, new comics arrive on Wednesday, so hit your nearest comics book store early for best selection.

Don’t know where your nearest comic store is? Use this handy guide to find one.

Comics On-Sale:
AGE OF X ALPHA #1 AOX 2ND PRINTING VARIANT
AGE OF X ALPHA #1 CONRAD 2ND PRINTING VARIANT
AMAZING SPIDER-MAN #655
ASTONISHING X-MEN #36
ASTONISHING X-MEN #36 KALUTA VARIANT
AVENGERS #10
CAPTAIN AMERICA #615
DEADPOOL #33
DEADPOOL CORPS #11
DEADPOOL TEAM-UP #884
FANTASTIC FOUR #587 2ND PRINTING VARIANT
FANTASTIC FOUR #588
HALO: FALL OF REACH – BOOT CAMP #4

Another week and more comics coming out from our pals at Marvel. This week we’re pretty excited for new ones like the latest Avengers, Astonishing X-Men #35, Secret Warriors #19, Spider-Man #5 and the debut of Namor: The First Mutant.

Like most weeks, comics are on sale this Wednesday so head on over to your favorite comics shop early for best selection. Don’t know where your nearest comic store is?

Use this handy guide to find one. Also, be sure to check out covers for some of these books after the break.

Comics On-Sale:

ALL-NEW WOLVERINE SAGA
AMAZING SPIDER-MAN #638 2ND PRINTING VARIANT (OMT)
AMAZING SPIDER-MAN PRESENTS: AMERICAN SON #4
ASTONISHING X-MEN #35
AVENGERS #4
AVENGERS #4 JRJR CHARACTER VARIANT
AVENGERS #4 WOMEN OF MARVEL FRAME VARIANT
BLACK WIDOW #5
CAPTAIN AMERICA #609
CAPTAIN AMERICA #609 WOMEN OF MARVEL FRAME VARIANT
CAPTAIN AMERICA: THE 1940S NEWSPAPER STRIP #3
DARK WOLVERINE #90
DEADPOOL TEAM-UP #890
DREAM LOGIC #2
FANTASTIC FOUR #582 (HA)

One of the nice things about the weekly grind is that each week brings some fun in the form of new comics. This week is no exception as our friends at Marvel have a whole slew of new books for us to enjoy.

Some of the titles we are looking forward to this week include X-Men: Curse of the Mutants Saga, Doomwar #5, Iron Man: Kiss and Kill, Secret Avengers #2 and Astonishing X-Men #34.  Remember, comics come out on Wednesday this week so be sure to head on over to your favorite comics store early for best selection. Don’t know where your nearest comic store is? Use this handy guide to find one.

Comics On-Sale:

AGE OF HEROES #1 2ND PRINTING VARIANT (HA)
AMAZING SPIDER-MAN PRESENTS: AMERICAN SON #2
ASTONISHING X-MEN #34
ASTONISHING X-MEN #34 DEADPOOL VARIANT
CAPTAIN AMERICA #607 (HA)
CAPTAIN AMERICA: THE 1940S NEWSPAPER STRIP #1
DEADPOOL TEAM-UP #892
DEADPOOL: WADE WILSON’S WAR #2
DEATH OF DRACULA #1
DOOMWAR #5
HERALDS #5
INVINCIBLE IRON MAN ANNUAL #1
INVINCIBLE IRON MAN ANNUAL #1 IRON MAN BY DESIGN 2.0 VARIANT
IRON MAN: EXTREMIS DIRECTOR’S CUT #4

Here you are Marvel fans, all the great comics, trades and whatnot coming out from your favorite publisher this week. Of course, there’s lots of Iron Man related comics such as Black Widow #2 and a host of actual Iron Man Titles. We’re also interested in the new Astonishing X-Men: Xenogenesis, Siege #4, Hulk #22 and the latest The Marvels Project.

Remember, comics go on sale this Wednesday so get to your nearest comics store early for best selection. Don’t know where your nearest comic store is? Use this handy guide to find one.

Comics On-Sale:
AGENTS OF ATLAS MGC #1
AMAZING SPIDER-MAN #631
AMAZING SPIDER-MAN #631 HEROIC AGE VARIANT
ASTONISHING X-MEN: XENOGENESIS #1
ASTONISHING X-MEN: XENOGENESIS #1 FOILOGRAM VARIANT
AVENGERS: THE INITIATIVE #35 (S)
BLACK WIDOW #2 (HA)
BLACK WIDOW #2 HANS VARIANT (HA)
BLACK WIDOW #2 HEROIC AGE VARIANT (HA)
DAREDEVIL: CAGE MATCH #1
DARK AVENGERS #16 (S)
DEADPOOL TEAM-UP #893
DEADPOOL TEAM-UP #893 HEROIC AGE VARIANT

Here’s another preview of the Astonishing X-Men motion comic from our pals at Marvel. This time around its Episode 4, written by Joss Whedon with art by John Cassaday. Here’s the info directly from Marvel.

Marvel is proud to unveil your first look at episode 4 of the Astonishing X-Men Motion Comic! Based on the acclaimed story by superstars Joss Whedon (Buffy The Vampire Slayer) and John Cassaday (Captain America), the X-Men are faced with a mysterious new villain and a possible cure for the mutant gene!

Now Cyclops, Wolverine and all your favorite mutants must face the greatest threats of their lives and, before it’s all done, experience one of the most jaw-dropping moments in Marvel history!

Welcome to another edition of The Pull List Comic Reviews! We’ve got a lot off good issues to get through, so let’s get to it. As always, WARNING: SPOILERS AHEAD.

PULL OF THE WEEK:

S.W.O.R.D. #1 – Marvel Comics – $3.99 US
Writer: Kieron Gillen
Artists: Steven Sanders, Jamie McKelvie
Score: 9.0

Spinning out of Joss Whedon and John Cassaday’s seminal Astonishing X-Men run, S.W.O.R.D. is the new title focusing on the organization entrusted to ensure that alien invasions are kept to a minimum. The Sentient World Observation and Response Department’s co-commander, Abigail Brand, has enough on her plate as it is, but having Henry Peter Gyrich – yes, THAT guy – as your co-commander simply can’t be a good thing.

After making a name for himself with the critically acclaimed Phonogram series, Marvel thought that writer Kieron Gillen would be able to handle the launch of a new, ongoing series that has a lot of ties to it, and boy were they right. The juggling parallels between what Agent Brand must endure and the various plot threads that Gillen must keep going wasn’t lost on me; in fact, I’d say it only added to the story’s flow. Imagine Men In Black done up right.

So new that he could be considered a rookie, artist Steven Sanders is anything but. Sharp, clean pencils fill this issue from cover to cover, and while his interpretation of how Beast looks takes a little getting used to, ultimately it’s nit picking on an otherwise near-perfect comic. His rendition of Gyrich, especially, should be noted, as the character has never looked more dick-ish.

About as entertaining as an issue can be, this first issue manages to draw you in with quirky moments – Beast’s lovesick commentary, Lockheed’s binge drinking – and stunning revelations – hello, Kitty! – made this an incredibly easy selection for our Pull of the Week.

OTHER PULLS:

As we’ve done previously, we’ve got a preview of the brand new Marvel motion comic Astonishing X-Men: Gifted. Featuring the talents of Joss Whedon and John Cassaday, this project offers fans a cool way to enjoy a great comic story on their favorite portable device like an iPhone or iPod Touch.

Even though I’m a fan of reading paper comics and I hope they don’t go away any time soon, this is just another way in which new fans can potentially be brought into the fold. Which is a good thing. Plus, with this kind of story and the talent involved, you have to expect this to be a pretty big success for Marvel. Hopefully, that will mean more comics will be getting the “motion” treatment.

So, check out this preview and enjoy it. Also, as we agreed to do in order to bring you cool things like this, following is Marvel’s “official” info about this project and this preview.

Marvel is proud to unveil your first look at episode 2 of the Astonishing X-Men Motion Comic! Based on the acclaimed story by superstars Joss Whedon (Buffy The Vampire Slayer) and John Cassaday (Captain America), the X-Men are faced with a mysterious new villain and a possible cure for the mutant gene! Now Cyclops, Wolverine and all your favorite mutants must face the greatest threats of their lives and, before it’s all done, experience one of the most jaw-dropping moments in Marvel history!

Excelsior! Sorry, couldn’t resist. Actually, that word completely applies in this case seeing as how the X-Men were created by the great Stan “The Man” Lee and Jack “King” Kirby. Still, its a pretty good day today and a pretty cool thing we have to share with you right now.

Our pals at Marvel have provided us with a new video showing a bit of behind the scenes with the folks who make the Astonishing X-Men motion comic. Hosted by producer Kristine Stone, you get a tour of the production facility and get to meet many of the people responsible for putting this cool project together. All in all, not a bad way to spend a few minutes.

You get to learn some things and have a little fun too. What could be better than that? Not much, so be sure to check out the video after the jump. The Astonishing X-Men MOCO is available now at iTunes and on Hulu.