George Michael

In a continued effort to bring you all that is important in the world of gay entertainment and ensure that you are being spoon-fed images of gorgeous, commoditized manflesh, we present the newly-minted AfterElton Briefs. Following the usual assortment of carefully-selected news items, interested readers can find a refreshing pic of a hot man in underwear after the jump. Yes, we're serious.

• Above, George Michael kicks off his "25 Live" North American tour in California, bouyed by recent high-profile appearances on Eli Stone and American Idol. It's great to have the out international star back onstage (and not in the tabs!) where he belongs.

• Lou Ferrigno reveals that "Bruce Banner" was changed to "David" for the Hulk TV series because execs thought it sounded "too gayish", adding, "I thought it was the most absurd, ridiculous thing I've ever heard." The part about playing a big green guy with a yak's hair wig, on the other hand? Totally reasonable.

• TIME's ten questions with David Sedaris.

• Be sure to mark your calendars for May 15, 2009: Sacha Baron Cohen's gay Austrian fashionista character, Bruno, will invade American theaters with an oversized man-purse filled with gay panic jokes. 

• According to the London Times Online, Little Britian's Matt Lucas to "divorce" his "husband," whom he "married" 18 months ago. Does anyone find that a bit "condescending?"

And today's Briefs are brought to you by...

Ah, summer. It's the time for having friends over in the back yard for some lemonade and barbecue, catching a game at the ballpark and meeting up at the local megaplex to catch the latest blockbuster film. 

Given that today is also the last day to cast your votes for the AfterElton Hot 100, we thought we'd provide you with a handy list of summer's box office hunks for inspiration.

Enjoy! 

Robert Downey Jr.
in Iron Man (In theatres now)

As a Marvel comics reader, I was never a big fan of Tony Stark (except for that issue of The Avengers where The Molecule Man destroyed his power armor and Tony spends the issue wearing only a blazer wrapped around his waist), but Robert Downey Jr. has me reconsidering. He certainly makes Tony Stark look good.

Emile Hirsch and Matthew Fox
in Speed Racer (In theatres now)

When I first heard that the Wachowskis were adapting anime classic Speed Racer for the big screen, my first reaction was my standard "remake shrug". I started paying attention, however, when I heard that Hirsh had been cast as the titular character; there's something about his features that make him perfect for playing a classic anime hero. Speed Racer also stars Matthew Fox (who came in at number 46 in our Hot 100 last year) who, sadly, will be covering his face up as Racer X. Still, you can still easily identify him by his strong jaw.

Ben Barnes
in Prince Caspian (Opens May 16)

When I read the Narnia books as a kid, I always imagined Prince Caspian as looking like one of those stiff and stern-faced guys from the Prince Valliant comics I tried to follow every Sunday. Well, the posters for the new Prince Caspian film certainly changed that. Barnes is a new name to most of us, having been in only a few other films, but I suspect we'll be hearing his name a lot, judging from the way I can't help but stop and stare every time I see a Prince Caspian poster.

Shia LaBoeuf and Harrison Ford
in Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull (Opens May 23)

At some point I blinked and that kid from Holes suddenly became a good-looking young man able to pull a film to the top of the box office (too bad one of those films was Transformers). Now he's getting a shot at the Indiana Jones torch by playing the sidekick in the latest Indy film. Shia's not the only hottie in the film, of course, as Harrison Ford has aged well and is still mighty nice to watch.

David Eigenberg, Evan Handler, Jason Lewis and Chris Noth
in Sex and the City: The Movie (Opens May 30)

When Sex and the City was one of the main reasons to have an HBO subscription, the show was a hot topic among gay men who liked to argue whether they were more like Carrie, Miranda, Charlotte or Samantha. When the series ended, all four of the SatC ladies had found a guy they could love for the long term. Since each guy represents a different type, both physically and in personality, that raises a new question: which boyfrind could you see yourself ending up with? Laid back regular guy Steve (Eigenberg)? Career-minded and emotionally guarded Mr. Big (Noth)? Sweet but sometimes schlubby Harry (Handler)? Hunky and supportive Smith (Lewis)?

We've gotten our grubby, gamma-radiated little mitts on the new trailer for the upcoming The Incredible Hulk movie, starring Edward Norton. The movie serves as a reboot/indirect sequel to the Hulk film series following the oddly dour Ang Lee film from 2003 (this decidedly more popcorn-ready incarnation comes from action helmer Louis Leterrier), and it looks like your standard superhero fare, complete with explosions, conflicted heroes, a sappy central love story and a teeth-gnashing villain (Tim Roth).

Considering that this Hulk stars the scrappy and generally rather petulant Norton as Bruce Banner (as opposed to the impossibly dreamy Eric Bana, who played Bruce in the previous film), this is probably the first time in history where I'd prefer to watch a CGI character over a human one.

But that's just me. Take a peek and see what you think...