Today was a big day for genre fans. Trailers for The Wolf Man and James Cameron's Avatar - two highly anticipated genre flicks - each made their debut online. Social networks are buzzing with reactions, so I felt compelled to weigh in.

The Wolf Man - There's one thing that really struck me and that's the few seconds of transformation footage that we see. With all the talk of the troubled production and FX guru Rick Baker butting heads with crew on how the transformations SHOULD look, I have to say that the transformation looks EXACTLY how I would imagine nearly 30 years after Baker's work on An American Werewolf in London (which arguably featured the best werewolf transformation in film, ever). We only catch a glimpse of what's in store, but it was enough for me to realize that, mayhaps, The Wolf Man very well could deliver the goods. As far as the rest of the trailer is concerned? Hopkins looks to be in top form, del Toro still has some convincing to do, the sets and costumes look pretty badass.

Avatar - While many may argue that this is a film we shouldn't be covering on FEARnet (and to be fair, we haven't been covering it extensively) I think it's worth talking about. Every genre fan, horror or otherwise, would have to admit to having some level of curiosity when it comes to Avatar. After watching the trailer for Avatar, I have only one word...Elfquest. How long has Cameron been birthing this baby? 4 years? 5 years? 6 years? I was expecting to see something that I've never seen before. An advancement in computer graphics that would blow me away. Not the opening scene to a video game.

That being said, note that my issue isn't that the film is full of CGI, my issue is that for a film that took so long to make, so much money and so much hype, it just didn't impress me. The story could be great, it could be epic, but first impressions are everything, and my first impression of Avatar is that it does NOT live up to the hype...visually, especially after having been recently transported to a new world with the $30 million epic D9.

Too much bark, not enough bite. As one of my co-workers so graciously pointed out (thanks Gavin) the spaceships do indeed look 'cool', and I'd have to agree. I just don't get all the effort...yet. Maybe my mind will change when I've seen some footage in 3-D...maybe not.

What's blowing me away here is the fact that folks seem to be genuinely excited for Avatar now that the first footage has been released. Now maybe it's brilliant and Cameron is a genius, and I'm just an idiot. But if that's the case, then someone is going to have to explain to me why I should be excited. Maybe I'm missing something. I'm not trying to be a hater, I just don't get it. Feel free to weigh in, not necessarily in comparison mode, but check out both of the trailers for yourself and let me know if you're excited for either of them...maybe you're looking forward to both, and that's OK. Me? I'm holding out for The Wolf Man.

Check out the Avatar trailer here, The Wolf Man below.