Not to be confused with the several existing pages created by fans, Warner Bros. launched the one, true, official Facebook profile for Man of Steel yesterday — and unveiled the glorious banner you see above.

Sean and Josh and I discussed it last night on the new Modern Myth Media podcast, and you can also read about it on the MMM site here.

I love it. Remember when costume designer Michael Wilkinson discussed the “neo-medieval” aesthetic of Krypton and the costume worn by our new Superman, Henry Cavill? The new banner is right in line with that and, like Cavill himself, is equally regal and rugged. Everything we’ve seen from this film so far hits a handsome balance between classic and space-age, and hopefully we’ll see more soon.

As Sean and Josh and I discussed last night, we’d love to see a teaser soon, a trailer before The Dark Knight Rises on July 20, and an IMAX prologue before WB’s The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey in December.

After all, our friends at Think McFly Think reported in December that special effects work was already underway, which means there’s bound to be some finished footage for the studio to show off when it’s ready.

Please be sure to “Like” the official Facebook page. I hope Warner Bros. uses it to its full potential and gives us some news soon. Perhaps we’ll even get some new photos. Russell Crowe, who’s playing Kal-El’s father, Jor-El, posted on his Twitter that he participated in a Man of Steel photo shoot on March 25 involving a fog machine that set off the fire alarm. (Is he sure it wasn’t the presence of Amy Adams that did that?) With any luck, we’ll see some of those photos soon.

If I were Warner Bros., I’d also get an official site up soon. ManOfSteel.com already points back to WB’s main hub. Just put up the new banner, the shot of Cavill in costume, and a link to the official Facebook, and you’re good to go. That would also cut down on the chances of people accidentally hitting “Like” on one of the fan sites rather than on the official one.

Man of Steel takes us up, up, and away on June 14, 2013! And that’s way, way, way too far away.

(I wrote this for Modern Myth Media)

Though he’ll undoubtedly be bringing the full weight of General Zod’s menace and might against Henry Cavill’s Superman in Man of Steel next year, actor Michael Shannon has nothing but nice things to say about his co-star and the film’s director, Zack Snyder.

In a recent interview with The Playlist, Shannon said of Cavill, “Henry is a fantastic Superman. He’s got a little edge to him, and he’s smart, clever, and I had fun working with him.”

But his praise of Snyder is garnering much more attention per Shannon’s comparison of the director to a certain legendary filmmaker.

“I think Zack is the master stylist, visually, I mean he’s up there with Scorsese in my book in terms of visual composition, orchestration, etc.,” he told Playlist writer Christopher Bell, adding that “the whole thing is edgy in a way like when Nolan took over the Batman franchise.”

Being mentioned in the same breath as Martin Scorsese and Christopher Nolan (who’s producing Man of Steel and had a hand in its story) is high praise indeed, and it’s not the first time Shannon has spoken highly of Snyder. Back in September, he told The Province that Snyder is “a prince, one of the sweetest people I’ve ever met in this business. Very warm-hearted individual and very creative.”

And he didn’t stop there, adding, “He doesn’t wear a suit to work, which is nice. He blends in, he likes to feel, to be one of the guys, one of the crew, but he’s able to do that without losing his authority. He doesn’t really crack the whip. He’s friendly, and because he’s friendly, people want to make him happy.”

And in case your inner cynic is secretly wondering if Shannon’s only saying such things because he feels like he has to, his penchant for brutal honesty makes his comments about Cavill and Snyder seem all the more sincere.

Case in point? Shannon recently told Glenn Whipp at Hero Complex that he doesn’t always understand fan culture, can’t even figure out how to read comic books, and doesn’t always get what the characters are talking about. He also says he was “signaled” by the higher-ups at Warner Bros. not to speak so openly about the film’s plot in interviews, which he’s always gladly and cheerfully done.

But don’t think for a moment that Shannon’s not taking the job seriously. From Mr. Whipp’s article:

Which is not to say that Shannon isn’t enjoying himself as Zod. Well … except for the special effects scenes (‘that really ugly green [screen] is everywhere … it starts to slowly drive you insane”) that require him to wear a motion-capture suit (“a unique form of humiliation, I must say”). He’s happy (but, again, a bit baffled) that director Zack Snyder thought of him for the role and more than a little daunted by the prospect of following Terence Stamp’s iconic performance from the Christopher Reeve films in 1978 and 1980.

“Stamp was really smart about it,” Shannon says. “He created a sense of gravity by doing very little. It’s hard to feel like you’re not twirling your mustache when you’re playing a villain. Me and Zack are constantly trying to bring as much variety and complexity as possible. He’s very good about that. No matter what I come up with on the first take, he comes up with a good way to explore it and change it up to keep it interesting. You don’t want it to be: ‘I’m a bad guy. I hate you!’

“One thing we’re doing …” And then Shannon stops himself. “You know, I think I’ve already said too much. I don’t want to be getting another one of those phone calls. I have to go back to work on this Monday …”

It’s dedication like this from Snyder and his team that keeps us Gentlemen here at Modern Myth Media very excited about Man of Steel.

Don’t forget to read Sean Gerber’s superb editorial about Cavill’s casting here and our recent entries in the ever-growing Henry Cavill Kindness Compendium here and here.

Man of Steel is up, up, and away to a theater near you on June 14, 2013!