Four Colors Of Doom

Revamping the Uncanny X-Men

2012-01-16T15:37:00.000-08:00

It's a move that reeked of the usual sales desperation. The Uncanny X-Men had lost its way (again). Events in the mutant series of books dictated that this had to happen. So on and so forth. What it really boils down to is a fool and his money are soon parted, and I'm a fool missing some money.

I've been an Uncanny X-Men fan since the early 1980s. I've been through good. I've been through bad. And worse yet, I've been through the boring. I've been saddened by Claremont leaving, and horrified when he returned. I've seen Wolverine undergo about 936 different variations. I've watched my favorite characters killed ... and many brought back to life. I've witnessed some incredible storytelling and have watched Marvel pander to the almighty dollar. For a title that has been around in one form or another since the 1960s, this is not unexpected. To start its numbering over with issue one ... well, that is worth looking at. Let's look at some of the arguments that have been made.

"It's just a number." That's what one fellow fan said to me. He's right. It's just a number. It doesn't detract from the issues that have come before it. It erases none of those stories from my memory. It does, however, give new readers no clue as to what has come before them. Therefore a sense of history is erased almost like Orwell wrote it himself. Yes, the stories are still out there, and a search of eBay shows you can get all the back issues. But the days are gone when some new reader sees issue #143 and thinks, "Wow, what has gone before I got here?"

"The stories got too convoluted." Yes. Yes they did. All the X-titles became a huge mess, dictated by a publisher that cared more about squeezing out every last dollar than it did making sure writers stuck to something cohesive. All it takes, however, is good writing to fix those problems. A relaunch just guarantees the same thing will happen again ... especially when you have about 50 other X-titles going. It will get messy ... again. The titles do, it must be said, clean house from time to time without relaunching a book. It could've been done here, as well. Marvel just saw dollars and decided that a lame attempt to boost sales could make some people forget how lame the attempt would actually be in the grand scheme of things.

"The direction the various mutants split in made this a necessity." No it didn't. It made it so that there were new stories that could be told. Uncanny X-Men has been filled with direction changes. They have been handled with various degrees of success. Each time they have been done with a relaunch, they have not stuck and have been handled with all the finesse of a bull on meth. Will this time be different? Only time will tell, but I'm actually enjoying it so far despite all my complaints.

Yes, that's right, I'm enjoying the title. Just a few months into its run, and I have to say it isn't bad. It also didn't need to be relaunched, however. We could be at issue #548 telling the same story. This new direction didn't merit a total relaunch of the title. It was pointless and unnecessary. Perhaps a few new readers were picked up, but I can't help but wonder how many people said enough is enough and dropped it. Probably not many. If they are like me they know the title will go through cycles of various degrees of greatness, and when it's good it's really good ... and that's always worth waiting around for.

Besides, it'll probably revert back to its old numbering in a year or so anyway.

Cover Review: Doctor Tom Brent -- Young Intern #2

2011-12-27T20:27:00.000-08:00

Charlton put out a lot of comics I liked. They weren't always good comics, but I enjoyed them nonetheless. My guess, however, is that in 1963 there wasn't a single sane person who ever uttered this phrase: "Oh boy! It's the new issue of Doctor Tom Brent -- Young Intern!" Not a single one.

How many things can you count wrong with this cover? Let's start with the obvious -- the title.

Doctor Tom Brent -- Young Intern sounds about as exciting as watching Lawrence Welk on PBS with your grandmother as she starts to nod off. There is really nothing about the title that says, "Read me." If your parents hated you, this is the comic they bought you. "I know you wanted Detective Comics, but you've been a little bastard. Read this instead." Even Ned Flanders finds this boring.

A cover's job is to sell readers on the comic. The artists, of course, would have no control over the title or the story inside (in this case, the yawn-fest "A Doctor Heals in Many Ways"), so they had to make the artwork engaging on some level. They have, obviously, failed here. Instead of drawing a cover that pulls you, they decided to come up with something even more boring than the title. One doctor at a microscope, another one telling him that they had 12 hours to come up with some way of keeping a boy from going home to die. Our hero, Young Intern Brent, has no clue how to do this. Way to sell a book. The only thing that could have made it worse was a cover blurb stating, "Now with ten MORE pages of TEXT inside!!!" What were they thinking? Who was the audience for this? Who bought it? Tom Brent probably doesn't know.

I have none of these issues in my collection, and I doubt I ever will unless someone sends me the wrong item when I win something on eBay. This series could be the most exciting young intern series ever written for all I know. You can't tell by the cover, however. What you can tell is that there were probably quite a few kids who spent their twelve cents elsewhere.

Confession is Good For the Soul

2011-12-27T06:11:00.000-08:00

I have a confession to make, one that when made before seemed to take some people by surprise. I haven't read a single copy of the new DC relaunch, and I have really have no plans to do so at this current time.

I hear shrieks of "blasphemy" and general wonderment. How could I, a comics fan and writers of such stuff, not have read any of the relaunch and how could I not be planning on doing so?

Easy. I don't care.

I've been around long enough to know when a publisher is pulling off a promotional stunt or is engaged in outright desperation. This reeks of both, and I really don't want much to do with it.

I know all the reasons behind it, and some of them are actually valid. Discarding decades of history not only of characters but of titles is not only insulting to audiences both old and new, it's also a death blow to people who liked that sense of establishment. I was one of those people. With a business plan that seemed a tad more thought out than Marvel's Silent Month, DC invalidated me as a reader. So I returned the favor. That's not to say I'll never read any of the relaunches, but it is saying that as of right now I couldn't care less about them.

What's even more surprising is what I've heard about them. Some are winners. Some are losers. That is to be expected. In the good new titles, however, people are telling me there are good stories, but not a single one has been described as something that could only be done under the guise of a relaunch. So not only does this move seem like a gimmick and desperate, but it also seems lazy. Lazy in the sense that the publishers and writers (most likely just the publishers) couldn't think of any other way of bringing in new readers and having a major shake-up other than this bit of carefree nonsense. And those readers recommending the titles? They all tell me they think the numbering and titles will revert back to normal sometime in the near future. (No kidding.) So, yes, DC, not even your fans believe it, though the mainstream news medias seem to have bought it as they usually do.

DC's move to seem less isolationist has sort of ended up seeming that very thing in a sense. Unfortunately, it has also worked, with DC dominating sales charts. I can't picture that will be the case for much longer (and it may have already started to wane; I have yet to see current numbers for the past month). It's a short-term fix to a long-time problem, which is: attracting new readers. This was a half-hearted good idea. You can attract all kinds of new readers, but if you lose the old ones, you're sunk.

Wolverine and the X-Men #1

2011-12-26T08:18:00.000-08:00

This title got added to my pull list when Uncanny X-Men looked like it was no longer going to be published. (Yeah, that lasted long.) I decided to keep it on the pull list ... knowing nothing about it ... because I like Wolverine, and I like the X-Men. Plus, it added to amount of comics I needed to get to the next discount tier.

When the first issue arrived I looked at the cover and immediately thought I had made a mistake. Hideous. Luckily there was truth in advertising, as the story was just as stupid.

The premise is that Wolverine has taken over the job of running Professor Xavier's school. That is a good premise, which has promise. That said, the crux of the issue involves an inspection to make sure the school is safe for young mutants ... and it's all handled with comedy -- mostly of the slapstick variety.

Wow. That's all I can say. Wow.

Wolverine heading the school actually makes sense for his character, and it shows some good growth. Handling the situation as a comedy is a huge mistake. It really doesn't even make sense, and I doubt it will last all that long. I hope it won't last that long.

I may have issue two by now. (I think it's in my stack.) I'm in no rush to read it. I will, however, stick with it a few issues until I make the final decision on it. I think the premise has promise, so I'm willing to give it a chance. All it needs to do to fix the problems is get a new artist and writer team ... and keep Frank Miller away from it.

Mandatory FTC Disclaimer: I paid for this garbage.

Cover Review: Doc Savage #7

2011-11-28T10:29:00.001-08:00

I never read Marvel's Doc Savage series. Covers like this one, to issue seven, is why. It is bland, boring and bad.

The title logo is fine. It reeks of savagery. Everything else, though, just reeks.

First there is the werewolf. If it stood upright, it's head would be awfully tiny. And why does it look like it should have four arms? I do like the thick drool, however. I am a big fan of thick drool.

Savage himself is ordinary. If I knew nothing about the character or the title, I would know that Savage was oddly colored (bronze?), and liked to wear a vest, white pants, boots and little else. He also had weird sideburns. I would imagine he was some kind of werewolf hunter, based on what the werewolf is saying, and the fact that his name is Doc Savage.

What is stranger than the werewolf or the odd coloring of the cover, is the werewolf's prints in the snow. The footprints don't seem to resemble the werewolf's feet, they are drawn oddly, and it looks as if the werewolf was possibly hopping on one leg that those Oriental ghost vampire things. Perhaps this was part of the story. I have no idea. I never read the issue, and with this cover I never would.

One last note: How the hell are the clouds behind the sun or moon? (I can't really tell which it is. It resembles the sun, but there is little reason why a werewolf would be out in the sun since they traditionally turn into their namesake during full moons.) Has the moon/sun suddenly entered our atmosphere? If so, this cover should look radically different. Rick Butler, you've done better. I'm not sure you've done worse.

Mandatory FTC Disclaimer: Clicking on a link may earn me some cash. This issue was not sent to me to review.

Wish Fulfillment Personified -- The Punisher

2011-10-31T09:51:00.000-07:00

Marvel's character, the Punisher, is about as basic a character you can get. Overtly based on Mack Bolan in The Executioner series written by Don Pendleton, the Punisher, in the most basic of terms, is a man whose family is killed by bad guys and because of that he decides to kill all bad guys.

End of story.

The Punisher is a lone wolf. He listens to no authority, lets no one stand in his way. He rights the wrongs and does it with finality. If you are engaged in a crime, he will kill you. This is teenage male wish fulfillment at its finest.

The idea of doing harm to all the people who have done you wrong ... and then taking it further to make sure no wrong is ever done again is appealing. The notion that authority, be it law enforcement, your parents or school, cannot contain you is a fantasy second only to sex in a teenage boy's mind. When the Punisher steps into the fray he becomes symbolic of what every wronged teen boy has imagined at one time or another ... guilt-free, rampant vengeance. It's part of why he's so popular, and since teen boys grow up to be teen men, he remains popular.

If revenge were all the character had to offer, though, he would be soon relegated to second tier status, and that's being generous. Through the hands of various writers, however, Punisher has taken on something that goes beyond mere violent masturbation material. (Excluding, of course, those ill-conceived detours into the realm of angels and pseudo-Frankenstein monsters.) He has become an almost tragic figure. A twisted Christ. He wipes evil from the Earth, but is destined to do so alone (or with the help of a few select friends) and be alone. He has been resurrected (again, in those horrible storylines). He has attracted the ire of self-appointed protectors who find his methods too extreme and have punished him for it. Is he to be worshipped? Only by the psychotic, but there are plenty of readers who can understand and even sympathize with is actions.

There is something cathartic about ridding your world of evil. Not just locking it away with the hopes that he or she will be reformed. Sometimes your problems can only be solved by defenestration or massive explosions. Were you do to those things in real life, you would be hunted and most likely caught. You would have to hope a jury of your "peers" would understand that sometimes rapists have to be shot in the face. And you would hope they have pity on you. The Punisher has these concerns, but they don't matter much in the grand scheme of things. His titles sell well enough that readers know he will never truly be reformed or cancelled. He will live to kill another day ... once again brought back from the dead to show the world the error of its ways.

Cover Review: Bachelor Father

2011-10-13T15:41:00.000-07:00

Nothing screams fun to a young lad or lassy like a comic cover featuring John Forsythe. If that poor misguided child remained unconvinced, this second issue of Bachelor Father, which is reminiscent of those Mother Boy dances on Arrested Development, worked in a little more sugar to lure young readers in.

First thing you may notice is the daring use of dynamic colors. If that didn't make it jump of the rack, nothing would. But let's say the child was color blind and not a huge fan of Forsythe, what could publisher Dell possibly put on the cover to pull this wayward reader in? How about a creepy singing Asian man named Sammee Tong complete in some servant-type outfit? What about the world's most exciting musical instrument, especially when on the cover of a comic book? Done and done! Toss in Noreen Corcoran tickling those ivories, and you have yourself a winner. Combined, these images cause this cover to scream "fun!"

Or not ...

Photo covers using celebs is a risky gamble. On one hand, you have a built-in sale if any reader happens to be a fan of the celeb. On the other hand, anyone who isn't a fan isn't likely to buy the issue. Fans of Bachelor Father, a comedy that ended up running on all three of the major networks, may have been thrilled there was a comic of their show, but I have serious doubts anyone else cared ... despite Sammee Tong (whose very name seems racist).

I've never seen the television show, and have never read the comic. Covers like this don't make me want to experience them, either. One thing does have me perplexed, however. Is Tong singing ... or is he screaming for escape? If it's the former, I'll definitely pass, but if it's the latter ... it could be an interesting issue.

Falling In Love All Over Again?

2011-09-21T06:02:00.000-07:00

Marvel and DC have a problem. This problem is the rebooting of entire lines. A mulligan of titles, if you will. Both comics have done it in the past, though if you read the news about DC (covered in the mainstream press) it sounded as if this was the first time any comic book company had done any such thing. Granted, DC did it on a huge scale, as indicated by the cover on the left, but starting established titles over at number one is no rarer than changing the numbering system back to the old one later on.

When I first started reading comics, I liked the idea that I was reading #154 of a given issue. It gave me a sense that there was some history behind the title. There was a secret past that I could explore at some point. It signified stability, as well.

Action Comics started in 1938. 1938! How many other things have been around that long? It was a comics institution. Starting it over at issue one is desperate. It reeks of a gimmick to lure in new readers. Perhaps in our world, which has been molded by MTV and action movie edits, some people were afraid to read a title that had a history. Perhaps it was too much to absorb. I find that unlikely, though. Going from my own personal tastes, and from what I saw when I managed a comic book store, if you give readers a good story, they will come to the title no matter what issue number it is on.

The moves Marvel and DC have done over the past few years indicate two companies afraid of going under and/or becoming obsolete. They've sold the movie rights to characters, so now studios can make their own stories with them as they see fit. The things the companies have done (massive storylines, reboots, etc.) are done with the hopes of attracting a new crowd while at the same time keeping the old. What Marvel and DC should have learned from the times these things have been done in the past is that they don't work. There may be brief spikes in sales and some media buzz, but it doesn't last. Compelling stories last. Respect to the medium gathers an audience. Pandering to a non-existent crowd does nothing more than make one look like a huckster. If Marvel and DC wanted to be "contemporary" they would drop numbering all together and probably go straight to trade paperbacks, but I highly doubt either company would last long if that's what they did. Why? Because the money these companies make comes from the core comics fan, and those fans want the same things I do. Good stories and respect.

If Marvel and DC started treating their titles like art and less like commodities, the fan base would grow. It would grow slowly, but it would grow. It did so in the 1980s when magazines like Rolling Stone covered Frank Miller and Alan Moore's work. These men were creating art, and the companies (DC in this case) let them. The industry got respect. New readers flocked to it. The industry grew. It's a very simple formula, but it is one steeped in long term thinking. If the past few years have taught us anything, though, it is that the Marvel and DC are suffering from attention deficit disorder just as much as they believe their fans to be suffering from it.

The Walking Dead: Superheroes, Death and Culture

2011-09-05T11:21:00.000-07:00

I recently read Secret Avengers number 15, which is part of the "Fear Itself" storyline. It deals with the death of Captain America (again), and a tabloid that posts a story saying he is still alive. It's actually a fairly decent (if somewhat unsatisfying) story that tackles the issue of the death and subsequent resurrection of superheroes and what it means to the people who populate that universe. While it is a Marvel story, no comic book company that publishes superhero comics is immune to this scenario. For all of you who don't know the superhero paradigm, it is this: Some die and come back.

Recently I have been engaged in a series of e-mails with a female friend about this very subject, so reading this issue coming off those e-mails made me think that this is a great time to write about it. And in starting this post I remembered a conversation I had many years ago in Comic Castle (before it became a joke at the other end of town) in Eureka, California.

I was talking to a comic reader who was explaining why he stopped reading superhero comic books. "The heroes don't stay dead," he said. This is a serious complaint.

Comic books, like any artistic medium, are flawed. You have the business aspect of them, which is often at odds with the artistic side of them. Comic companies create these wonderful, endearing characters who become big money makers for them. They reach icon status. Sometimes they are killed in order to boost sales, but are brought back for the same reason. It's the same thing that drives Coca Cola. You can change the product, but you can't kill it off. For the writers of these comic books, this corporate mindset creates a unique set of problems. As a writer you typically don't own the characters you are writing. You may want them to grow, but the comic company and a lot of the readers don't want to read that despite what they say. If, as a writer, you take your story to its natural conclusion, it will often end in the death or retirement of a character. The story will have finality, as is the case with most stories. Again, this is at odds with what a comic company and its readership wants ... despite both of them saying they want progression and stories that keep up with the "times." As a writer, it's a hard line to tow, but many do it. Some better than others. And any writer who kills off a character does so with the understanding that the character could be brought back at any time.

There is, however, one other aspect to consider -- cultural. And this aspect is where the reader who stopped reading Batman and Captain America was caught.

I could understand him not wanting to continue reading the comics because characters he cared about didn't stay dead. Their deaths meant something to him. Bringing them back cheapened their deaths. I think that is perfectly acceptable ... or at least it would've been if he really lived his life this way.

"Aren't you Christian?" I asked. "Don't you believe in Jesus? He died and came back."

"That," he explained, "is different. Comics aren't real life."

No argument there. I do, however, find it profoundly disturbing that one would apply rules to real life that they won't apply to fiction. I can see someone taking the rules that apply to fiction and not applying them to real life. That makes sense. That's a sane and rational way to go through life. I love the Star Wars franchise, but I don't think The Force has any bearing on real life. If, however, I believed that people could move things with their minds but didn't like Star Wars because the concept of The Force seemed ridiculous, it would make me a hypocrite and irrational. Yet people do this all the time and don't see an issue with it.

There are plenty of people throughout the world who believe Jesus came back to life. Not only do they believe it, they also live their lives according to it (granted, often only when it is convenient). Many of those believers are also comic book readers. (Read the letters pages in back issues of Preacher if you don't believe me.) Some of those have turned away from comics because the idea of a hero's resurrection somehow offends their sensibilities. I can't be the only one to see a problem with this.

The opposing forces of capitalism and art are understandable and in many cases excusable. From acts of capitalism we sometimes get great art. From works of art there is often money to be made. The opposing forces of morality versus fiction should be less of a problem, and can be when handled properly. When you think a concept in fiction is unbelievable but yet live your life and establish your values under that same concept you have a serious problem. It means you aren't making decisions based on logic, rationality or any sense of seriously defined rules. I have no issue with people leading a life based on the concepts of religion, but when that person won't accept fiction with the same concepts because it isn't realistic it signifies to me that the person hasn't really thought about what he or she believes. They haven't examined it, and they surely haven't figured out how it really applies to them in real life.

The idea that superheroes can die and be resurrected will never go away. Green Arrow. Captain America. Bucky. Superman. Spider-Man. The list is endless. It will never go away because it generates money for publishers and readers, despite what they say, like it. It is part of the comic book culture. The idea of Jesus and his story will never go away, either. It will continue to influence people into the foreseeable future. I don't expect all followers of Jesus to be fans of comic books. There are plenty of other viable reasons for comics to lack appeal to them. I do, however, expect fans of comics who also believe in Jesus to either accept the fact that heroes die and are resurrected or seriously question what they believe when it comes to religion. If you are one of those people, how do you get through life with such directly opposing views? You either go through life thoroughly confused, or you haven't given your beliefs more than a few moments of serious thought. I must admit that the latter is far scarier to me than the former. Me? I don't believe in Jesus, but I do enjoy superhero comics. I know people don't die and get resurrected in real life, but I thoroughly understand the workings of capitalism and the idea that it can make for an engaging story. The fact that I may have given more thought to my genre fiction than some people have given to their own values and morals scares the crap out of me ... as it should you, too. If, of course, you're one to think of such things.

Mandatory FTC Disclaimer: Clicking on a link may earn me a small commission. Making a comment attacking me as some sort of heathen will only inspire more of this kind of thing

Bondage Masked Violence

2011-08-16T06:07:00.000-07:00

I've written about Marshal Law before. The violent, satrical, take-no-prisoners character is a favorite of mine. He wears a bondage mask, has barbed wire wrapped around his arm and kills people for a living. What's not to love? The various series he's been a part of have all been over-the-top when it comes to violence (see the panel here for an example). It's not meant to be real or even realistic. It's a satire. Nothing more. Nothing less.

When the series came out in the late '80s a friend of mine thought it was pretty ghastly and had called it the "downfall of comics." (I am reminded of this by him in a recent e-mail where he had read my original post online.) This observation comes from a person who had recently got into the art form and had no real knowledge of comic books' history with violence (something well-documented by writers better than I), nor the shifting tastes of what a public wants in entertainment. He made a casual observation based on his thoughts and feelings, and, as he is quick to admit, he made it without doing more than glancing at the first issue.

The world of Marshal Law is full of steroid-abusing men in tights who pummel each other until bones break from skin. People are set on fire at random, and gun violence is as common as candy in the schoolyard. Marshal Law is employed to take down wayward heroes, and he does it with all the violence one would expect. The entire concept is taking the idea of superheroes to what is really the next level, as seen in books like The Authority, which came well after Law and company. The only thing that makes Superman any different is the level of violence. The Man of Steel punches a guy and he goes down. His head doesn't go flying off into space. Why wouldn't it, though? Why wouldn't pumping an unstoppable behemoth full of bullets result in a wet mess of flesh still coming at you with a look of rage? The creators of the Marshal Law character, Pat Mills and Kevin O'Neill, asked those questions and showed the results of their findings. They did so in a way that was so outrageous, however, that you couldn't help but notice what they were trying to accomplish. Heavy-handed? Perhaps, but that was really a great way to tell the story.

The various titles starring Marshal Law didn't destroy comics, and nor did it have any real noticeable impact. It may have inspired a few creators (I hope it has), but it didn't change the art form in any way that is lasting. It didn't need to, however. It came onto the scene and made its point. That is far more than many comics do these days.

A Series That Needs Reprinting: Atari Force

2011-07-20T21:06:00.000-07:00

The latest issue of the Comics Buyer's Guide has a letter from someone commenting on which series they would like to see reprinted. One of them he mentioned was Atari Force. I couldn't agree more.

Atari Force sounds like a lame title. I thought so when it came out in the early '80s. It was originally shipped with Atari games in a smaller format, if memory serves me correctly, and then DC did it as a regular-sized comic book. I stumbled across the first issue at the news rack, read a page and got hooked just about instantly. Then I picked up every issue as they appeared, but for some reason the store stopped carrying it at issue four or five. I have since picked up some back issues here and there, but it's obvious to me that if the rights permit it, DC should definitely reprint this fine sci-fi series ... which really had nothing to do with Atari in any noticeable way.

I believe one of the reasons I liked this so much was the same reason I liked Marvel's Micronauts. It was rousing action with a science fiction twist (though Marvel's series was often based on Earth in modern times). It read like nothing else on the stands at the time, too. Sure, you could read about the Titans or their Marvel equivalent, but the stories of Atari Force stood out as unique.

Not every issue was a winner, however. Why it only lasted about twenty issues is beyond me, though. I can only think that this was a time period where everyone was so focused on superheroes that this easily fell through the cracks. DC can rectify this slight, and bring back a piece of comic's history ... in color. Is there a market to support it? Hell, if people are still reading Spawn I think anything is possible.

Mandatory FTC Disclaimer: Clicking on a link can earn me some cold, hard cash, yo!

The Best Trade I Ever Made

2011-07-03T08:54:00.000-07:00

I was excited when Marvel, via its Epic line, announced it would be reprinting Akira. This would be my chance to finally read the highly-praised Japanese series. I was picking up the issues on a regular basis, too. The comic book store I bought them from, The Encounter in PA, had ordered enough that it was doing store-made three packs of the first three issues at a special low price. I picked up one of these as an investment. It's an investment that paid off quite well.

A few months later I found myself at a comic book booth at a local flea market. The guy had some good stuff, primarily Silver Age and newer. One of the issues on the shelf was Marvel's Conan #1. Being a huge Conan fan, this was a find. It was also over-priced for its condition. He wanted something like $108 for it. That was insane.

I asked the guy who ran the booth, a man in his fifties, if he could come down any on his price, as it was way too high for its condition. He informed me that was not out of the question. He would drop it to $100. Still too rich for my teen blood.

We started the traditional haggling, and in doing so he revealed he was after the hottest series going right now: Akira. Brilliant.

Yes, Akira was hot, but it wasn't hard to find, and I had the first three issues. I asked the man what he would give for those issues.

"I'd give you that Conan."

"I'll be right back."

I raced home, fearful that at any given moment he would realize the mistake he had made, or that someone would swoop in and claim that issue for himself. I had never seen these issue in person before, and I knew it was fairly hard to find in Eastern PA. If the right person spotted it, and had the cash, I was out of something I wanted in the worst way.

Fortune was with me that day, and three comic books I paid between six and nine dollars for snagged me one of the more sought-after issues of that time period. I'm fairly sure this will remain the best trade I'll ever make, too.

Mandatory FTC Disclaimer: Clicking on a link could earn me a small commission.

Super Heroes Go To The Movies

2011-07-02T07:39:00.000-07:00

Being a fan of comic books, I'm often asked if I've seen the latest super hero movie. Inevitably, I haven't. I haven't seen one since Iron Man, which I actually enjoyed, and I'm not rushing out to get to whatever's playing at the local theatre.

Hollywood's latest and greatest super hero movies seem to be (from what I can tell) keeping with the spirit of the source material. When they do stray, it's not in any way that creates too much of a problem. They seem to cram a lot in, which is a problem, but people who typically digest Hollywood entertainment are used to that sort of thing. Hey, if one villain is good, thirty-five is even better. There is a bigger problem with these movies, though, and that is the one that concerns me.

They aren't telling new stories. Granted, I think the first Ultimate Avengers arc would make a great movie, as would the Born Again storyline from Daredevil, but I've read these, just like I've read about the origin of Thor and the first issues of the X-Men. Yes, the movies changed things, but the basic stories are the same, and if I read them in a form that has no budget issues, what do I gain from seeing it on the screen? Nothing. That, of course, is where the dilemma lies. If Hollywood did all new stories, it risks altering the character's history (not a big deal to people who don't read the comics), and it risks alienating the core fan base for whatever character it is doing.

This is a no-win situation for Hollywood, and it is one that has been created by those very vocal fans who cry foul the second a comic book is optioned. Hollywood has, in turn, taken the best course of action. It takes a beloved story and creates just enough change to make it work for Hollywood audiences and offer something a little new, but not new enough to turn away the fans ... excluding me. I can't say I blame Hollywood. After all, nobody wants to spend millions on a film nobody will watch.

Of course, if the Avengers film is that first arc from Ultimate Avengers I will probably watch it. The entire thing was written like a movie in the first place, and you got to admit that would be fun to watch on the big screen.

Mandatory FTC Disclaimer: Clicking on a link may earn me a small commission. Yea!

A Call From The Carrot ... Sort Of

2011-06-14T06:06:00.000-07:00

It wasn't actually the Flaming Carrot who called, it was its creator, Bob Burden. To say I was shocked is an understatement ...

It all started with this blog posting I wrote on my love of the surreal beauty of Flaming Carrot Comics. Nothing led me to believe that over a month later on a Sunday as I updated my anti-virus software and my daughter started loading her Hello Kitty backpack that my phone would ring and it would be Burden on the other end telling me how much he liked my piece.

Usually my writing results in angry e-mails or people getting their feelings hurt and needing to tell me how they misinterpreted my writing in person. And if it's someone of note contacting me? Well, usually they are pretty pissed. (To be fair, Burden did ask me to correct something in the original piece, which I did, but he was an incredibly friendly and polite man.) To have a pleasant conversation with someone whose work I admired just about pummeled me into stupidity.

Burden and I discussed blog issues, his work on the Gumby comics, an issue he is having with Marvel involving the use of the Mystery Men (I'll be writing something about that in the future), and more. It was a fascinating conversation, and I have to admit I have even more respect for the guy. He didn't have to take the time to call me. I've written praise about plenty of other artists who haven't contacted me. Hell, I wrote Brian Michael Bendis a long letter of praise and offered to interview him for Film Threat back when he was just starting to become a big name and he didn't so much as acknowledge the request. So now I even have more respect for the man who wrote the first comic book that made me laugh out loud.

At the end of the conversation, Burden asked me to drop him an e-mail sometime, which I will do. I just want to wait until the shock of the initial conversation wears off so I can think of something intelligent to say.

Mandatory FTC Disclaimer: Clicking on a link may earn me a small commission. Blah, blah, blah.

Flaming Carrot/Bob Burden Update!

2011-06-12T14:45:00.000-07:00

For those who enjoyed the original piece on Flaming Carrot, please click here. I have updated it after a great phone call by Mr. Burden. More on this later.

Between the Covers With Schwarzenegger

2011-05-23T22:16:00.000-07:00

When Arnold Schwarzenegger isn't busy making crappy movies, running California into the ground, or knocking up the staff, characters based on his likeness have appeared in comic books and comic book movies for quite a few years. In fact, before he took "responsibility" for a child he kept hidden for years, he was set to be the subject of a new comic book (the title of which is ridiculous and I will not give credit to here).

Conan. Terminator. Mr. Freeze. He was even attached to Sgt. Rock at one point. The only person I can think who has had more comic book appearances based on characters he's played is Harrison Ford.

I've always been a fan of Conan, both the novels and the Marvel and Dark Horse comics. There's something very primal about a character who just screws women, eats and kills. That said, I don't like the Conan movies starring Arnie and his Frankenstein-like skull. He destroyed the character, and I think if Conan were real he'd probably have Arnie's misshapen skull on a pike. Arnie is the exact opposite of Conan. He is deceitful, cowardly and little more than a rogue. Conan makes no apologies for what he is, and he does not lie about it. The Terminator, on the other hand, makes far more sense.

The Terminator started out in movies and then quickly moved into the realm of comics. The story was tailor made for the art form, so there's no surprise there. The character fits Arnie, too. He is a programmed killing machine, which is really just a fancy euphemism for a politician. While I enjoyed the first two films, the comic books never caught my interest. He's kind of boring.

Blue Water Comics did an actual comic book about the man who would break California. I have no idea what the sales were like on it, but I can't imagine it outsold many titles. (I wonder how many kids saw the cover and thought, "Dad?") Political comics, while covered in the press, rarely sell impressive numbers. The story of one's political life just doesn't make for engaging comic reading. Perhaps now that all the dirt is coming out on him, Eros can do one of its infamous "adult" comics. I would probably buy that title. No panels with Maria, though. There's only so much skull monster comic porn that I can take.

Teenage Girls in Hot Pants, Hitler's Boots, and a Flying Dead Dog

2011-05-02T21:27:00.000-07:00

Surreal. That's not often a word you hear used to describe a comic book. There really is no other word, however, to describe Flaming Carrot Comics. Superman sure as hell doesn't feature mice flying out of people's mouths and a pet potato bug. Spider-Man doesn't punch someone in the teeth while yelling, "I'm not going to pay a lot for this muffler!" It would be a totally different comic if he did.

Bob Burden created the Flaming Carrot back in 1979. The story of how FC came to be (an origin story, for all you non-comic readers) is really quite simple. He wasn't born with some special powers. He didn't see his parents gunned down. Nope. He read thousands of comics in one sitting to win a bet and became brain damaged. (Or he could be Jim Morrison!)

Throughout FC's stories, he has hung out with teen girls, staved off an invasion of marching Hitler boots, encountered a flying dead dog, and saved the world from aliens far too many times. The plots aren't as important as the journey, and what a journey it is. Strange art, strange characters, stranger storylines. If you are a fan of the bizarre, and you haven't read this book, you haven't read bizarre.

Years ago, while talking to friend about our mutual love of Flaming Carrot, he told me about a story he had read. Two guys had set up an interview with Burden, and they journeyed to his house early one Sunday morning. Burden was apparently caught by surprise. [Story is deleted, as Burden doesn't smoke cigars due to the fact they cause him headaches, has never owned a bathrobe, and would not be wearing a helmet of questionable nature. This was actually cleared up by Mr. Burden himself in a surprise Sunday phone call. More on that later.]

Flaming Carrot Comics have been collected in a series of trade paperbacks. I have a few of them, along with a statue and the action figure. I recommend them all. Fans of the surreal will especially appreciate them. Fans of "pure" superhero comic books will loathe them. Their loss.

I know a teacher who is a huge fan of FC, as well. He's actually drawn him on the kids' tests from time to time, too, and has hung posters of him the classroom. He understands the odd appeal of the character, and while it's doubtful the teens he teach get it, I find it kind of interesting to think they are being exposed to him and maybe someday will see a book on a shelf somewhere and recognize the carrot mask, which will in turn cause them to check it out.

Again, this isn't a comic book for everyone. Only the most open-minded need apply. It's not that it is offensive (you'd have to be utterly humorless to be offended by this book). It just requires some work from the side of your brain that you rarely use. You almost have to disengage yourself from reality in order to appreciate what is on the page. Otherwise, there is no way you'll ever get the humor in a scene like the one where the Carrot and a woman apply temporary tattoos to each other. FC gets Hannibal from The A-Team, while the woman gets Doc from The Love Boat. Is the scene important to the story? No. Not even close. But it is brilliant ... much like the series.

Mandatory FTC Disclaimer: Clicking on a link may earn me a small commission. I did not receive any free FC material. Horse.

Cover Review: Texas Chainsaw Massacre #4

2011-05-02T07:29:00.000-07:00

Being a fan of the original Texas Chainsaw Massacre movie there was really no reason for me to ever pick up the Wildstorm comic book series. It looked horrible. In fact, of all the covers, this is the only one that ever grabbed me.

Close-up covers usually work very well. They force the viewer to pay attention to them. They convey importance. The cover to The Texas Chainsaw Massacre #4 is no exception. It is a close-up of the upper left section of a female's face. You see an eye, a tear and an image reflected in the eye which is causing that tear -- Leatherface holding a chainsaw. Anyone who has seen the films know why this would cause someone to cry.

For a cover to put across so much emotion is a rare thing, especially for a horror comic. Subtlety does not usually sell issues. In this case, however, the cover transcends the usual horror comic trappings and instead focuses on raw feelings. The tear may look exaggerated, but that doesn't matter. You understand it. You sympathize. You fill in the missing pieces of her face. If every issue of this series did such a cover, it would've been worth picking up.

On a final note, you can see that the series was suggest for "mature readers." If a parent doesn't understand that a comic book called The Texas Chainsaw Massacre which features a man holding a chainsaw on the cover isn't for mature readers, he or she should not be a parent.

Mandatory FTC Disclaimer: Clicking on a link may earn me a small commission. Hell, I hope it does. I did not receive this issue to review, either. I chose it as an example of the only good thing in a cringe-worthy looking series.

Comic Book Cover Predicted Osama bin Laden's Downfall at Obama's Command

2011-05-02T06:23:00.000-07:00

I am no fan of Savage Dragon, and this patriotic cover is one of the reasons why I avoid the title. It's a variant cover for issue #145, and was available at Wondercon. As you can see, Osama is getting a right hook from a flag-wielding president while Savage Dragon looks on.

Seems ridiculous. Obama vs. Osama.

I'm sure there were people who really liked this cover when it came out. I'm sure nobody ever thought it would come true. (And in case you haven't heard the news, Osama bin Laden is dead. Obama didn't kill him with his own hands, but did order the attack that brought him down. Republicans are probably not happy, and Tea Party Parrots aren't going to believe it. Donald Trump will most likely take credit for it. Admittedly, when I heard there was an important announcement coming at 10:30 [it turned out to be much later] on a Sunday night, I thought Obama would be revealing that we had proof of UFOs. I'm not actually kidding.) It's true now, and this comic book is probably going to go up in value a bit.

The mind reels.

Donald Trump: Comic Book Villain?

2011-04-29T06:59:00.000-07:00

I was contemplating writing a serious piece about Donald Trump and his award-winning people skills over on my other blog, Cancerous Zeitgeist, when somebody said he reminds them of a comic book villain.

That somebody was right.

Which one, though? He's got Dr. Doom's ego. Red Skull's features. Granny Goodness' hair. (Well, not really, but when is the last time you thought of her?) But he doesn't fit those molds. If anything, he comes across as someone you would see going after Richie Rich's money, not because he needed it, but because he wanted to crush Rich.

When Trump isn't busy doing fake firings on his "reality" show or making birthers feel less insane, he's a capitalist through and through. He is, for all intents and purposes, the Ugly American.

He marries young, "beautiful" (by average standards) foreign women, he takes credit for work he doesn't do, he tries to dictate to other countries how they should run their affairs, he is afraid of black people, he loves money, and is totally blind to his own faults. Ugly American cares not for what other people think or feel. All that matters is the numbers in his bank account, his name, and the ruby red lips wrapped around his ... well, you know. He produces Mini Me versions of his badness to continue Ugly American's reign once he is defeated by the ultimate hero -- Death. (I always prayed/hope/fantasized about Ugly American's demise coming at the end of a partially chewed hot dog lodged in his throat. Eyes bulging, he reaches for his Blackberry, but has no idea how to use it because his minions do all his dialing for him.)

By all definitions, Ugly American makes the Kingpin look rational. Seriously.

I may still do my other piece on Ugly American because I realize a comic book blog has a very limited readership. When it comes down to it, though, Ugly American (Trump, for those not keeping track) is a comic book character of the worst, must stereotypical sort. He's missing that handlebar moustache to twirl, but the hair on his head more than makes up for it.

How long until we see the Marvel crossover event?

Speculating Hordes

2011-04-28T06:10:00.000-07:00

If you've been into comics for a while, you've dealt with speculators. Speculators are those people who may or may not be collectors (the ones who are collectors make out better in the long run) who buy comic books with the sole goal of making money off them. You typically see the ones who don't collect coming in to comic book stores after an article on a major comic event (the death of Robin, for instance) appears in the newspaper or on CNN. The speculators who collect comics know this is rarely where the long term money lies, and buy those highlighted issues for very short term gains. There's not a lot of difference between the two, but there is enough for me to say that education of the field you are speculating in makes a world of difference.

I've witnessed speculators going nuts on three separate occasions. The death of Robin, the death of Superman, and the first issue of Spider-Man by that baseball collecting moron. I was in Pennsylvania for the first two, and New Jersey for the final one. In every cases people acted the same -- horde mentality, greed and a robust knowledge that the books they held in their hands was going to make them rich. Anyone who has paid attention to the price of those comic books knows that never happened.

The death of Robin got a lot of coverage. The idea, for those who don't know, was a bad one. Comic readers could call a special phone number and vote whether or not they wanted to see Robin die. It was a gimmick, and it took the storyline out of the hands of the writers for the most part, but it gained a lot of media attention. Most of this attention was incorrect, and because of that people thought the original Robin was the one who was passing away. As I heard one speculator say, "Burt Ward must be really unhappy about this." The speculators I saw hording these issues (one guy buying the last five on the shelf) were all doing it to "hold onto" and sell twenty years down the line so they could retire. Well, Robin came back, and none of those guys retired off those issues.

The death of Superman was equally insane. Honestly, it was even worse than the death of Robin. Only speculators who had no knowledge of comic books thought he was going to stay dead, but far too many people picked up multiple issues. The news covered it. Your grandmother knew about it. It was huge. It was also a publicity stunt, and DC published tons of issues, speculating on the speculators. It paid off for DC and left speculators with a comic that is, at best, a footnote.

Spider-Man didn't get as much coverage, but collectors knew it was coming. While in a shop in New Jersey, I witnessed the crowds eagerly anticipating the opening of the boxes. (I believe it was 1,000,000 Comics, but I can't be sure.) The store owner asked my friend and I if we wanted to join the masses to ensure we got ours, which were be limited to three per customer. We declined.

The box was cut open and people immediately began clamoring for it. The price being paid per issue out of the box? $20. Unheard of at the time for a new book. This was not even for the variant covers. $20 for a standard issue. Unbelievable. That said, some people made some very good money off the variants in the short and long term, and that shows the difference between speculators who know the industry and those who don't. Those who understand it know what will make them money and when to sell, those who don't are living off dreams. There's nothing wrong with that, really, unless you are playing a sucker, and that's what I witnessed far too many times.

Do I speculate? Rarely, but I do engage in that on occasion. For the most part I buy what I enjoy reading and hope that someday it will be worth money. So far so good, but then again I wasn't buying forty copies of the death of Robin.

Mandatory FTC Disclaimer: If you click on one of my affiliate links (or any link), I could earn a small commission. It should be noted that this will be the final column, too, as covered by CNN's own Clark Howard.

The Mighty Bored

2011-04-26T19:16:00.000-07:00

"I don't like him. He has hair like a girl." That's my daughter's take on Thor. I don't like him, either, but for totally different reasons. The chief reason being, The Mighty Thor always bored me. The character works fine as part of an assembly of heroes, but solo? I'd much rather dig into my Alf back issues.

Marvel tried. Much like it tried with the Silver Surfer, another character who annoys me. Marvel tried to make Thor seem god-like and otherworldly through the use to stilted dialogue (verily). The powers that be gave him a striking costume and good origin. His supporting characters were interesting. His lot in life led to stories that could almost write themselves. At the end of the day, however, he was still Thor, and he still bored me.

Superman. A character who, if taken at face value, is pretty damn tough to beat. Because of that, writers were constantly having to come up with ways to beat him that didn't seem contrived. They didn't often succeed. Thor faces the same problem. While not nearly as undefeatable as Superman, he's still a freakin' god. Sometimes his rogues gallery represents that (Loki, for instance). Other times ... not so much (Cobra and Mister Hyde come to mind -- Daredevil villains). That actually wouldn't be the downfall it is if Thor were just more interesting. Even the Ultimate Avengers version leaves much to be desired.

The upcoming movie, which looks about as exciting as the comics, will not be causing me to give the character another shot. I actually have no plans of seeing the film, though I'm sure if Loki somehow tricked me into it I would not be disappointed because I would have such low expectations going in. This, it should be said, is not the fault of the character, but with the writers who have tried to breathe life into him.

I haven't read every writers' run on Goldilocks, but I have kept my eye on the reviews. There have been writers who have been giving good critiques (J. Michael whatshisface is one), but not even the reviews of the series they did have sparked my interest. The stories sound stale and almost as if they try to hard. Honestly, this really is a character who should be able to stand on his own. I don't understand what the problem is with him where writers seem cursed to make him as pedestrian as possible.

I know fans of the Thunder God will be upset at me, but it's not my fault. I'm actually saying he has the potential to be a good character. No writer has made him that appealing yet, though. Maybe some day, but I'm not holding my breath. Instead, I'll be thankful my daughter has no desire to see the film.

Mandatory FTC Disclaimer: If thoust clicketh on a linketh, I may maketh some cash. Verily!

Planet of the Apes Fans Rejoice!

2011-04-09T08:44:00.000-07:00

Boom! Studios has published a five page preview of its new Planet of the Apes series due out 4/27/11. As if the comic book wasn't enough, Exhumed Films is running a marathon showing of the five Planet of the Apes films 7/31/11.

I'm not the biggest Apes fan. The "re-imaging" was not a highlight of cinema, and I'm not sure I understand the sudden resurgence in the franchise, but I will admit that the concept always seemed right for a comic book. DC knew apes sold comics, which is why there is a period of time where almost every DC comic had an ape on the cover. Boom! Studios, which houses a lot of licensed products, is onto something here, as is Exhumed (which makes me regret leaving the East Coast).

If you're an Apes fan I'd love to know what you think about all this, and I want to hear why it appeals to you. If you don't read comics, will you be reading this series? I have no affiliation with it, but I think any book that can bring more readers to the fold is a good thing.

Captain America Gets Me Banned!

2011-03-28T06:46:00.000-07:00

My posting on Captain America got me banned from the "comicbooks" section of Reddit.com. (Or maybe it was my X-Men piece. I wasn't told why, really. I'm assuming it was the Captain America piece, as that is the one that got negative comments, and the X-Men one got a favorable comment I couldn't comment on because by then I was banned.) Yes, I find it very ironic that my piece on a hero representing America (home of free speech, y'all) got me banned. I find it more alarming, however, that this does often seem to be how a certain segment of comic book fans react.

Having collected comics since the '70s and working in a couple different comic book stores in positions from clerk to manager, I have seen this type of reaction time and time again. Say something negative and feel the wrath of fanboys. They can't debate points, but they can pout and shout. They can't argue effectively, but they can take their ball and go home. It's hard to take someone seriously when that is the reaction you get.

My Captain America piece was written to inspire debate and raise questions. What happened was that people went off half-cocked. If you read the comments you see that someone thought I called America a dictatorship or some such nonsense. I actually wrote that America backs dictatorships, something that I thought was beyond debate. I guess not everyone watches the news. In fact, my entire piece was pretty tame. I called out reasons why Captain America as a character doesn't work for me, and why he is hard to write. I don't think I made any wild claims, but oddly enough, I am banned. (If it was the X-Men piece, I am even more puzzled because feedback I got on that were all positive.)

Other comments said that I was trying to stir up trouble. Again, what is with people thinking that voicing an opinion is trying to cause problems. Have we become so far removed from debate and opinion that we can't see them when they occur? This is not just a problem with comic book fans. I've heard this from other people, too. Expressing a "negative" opinion is "stirring the pot," and "making people feel bad." (Or even "pretentious," my personal favorite because I've been called that for writing positive pieces, too.) I review films for Film Threat. Sometimes, like my current Joy Ride 2 piece, they are negative reviews. If I only reviewed stuff I liked, I wouldn't be doing my job. I'm not trying to make people cry. I'm expressing an opinion. If I can't write about what I don't like, it gives zero weight to the things I do enjoy.

Perhaps this will get me banned from the "comics" section, but I hope not. I would have to resort to posting pieces on cute kitten pictures and other things that offer no debate and contribute little to the culture other than making someone smile (which is fine in and of itself, but I think as a society we deserve more). I am a fan of comic books. I believe they are a tremendous art form that gets little respect in the world. When stuff like this ban happens, I can see why. A great majority of the world treats them like "kid's stuff," and when people act like children you can't blame them.

Go read the original Captain America piece and seriously ask yourself if I wrote anything that was worth getting banned over. See if I wrote anything that was even that controversial. Of course, if having an opinion -- any opinion -- is controversial and ban-worthy, then I'm guilty ... and proud to be so.

Captain America: The Lame Avenger

2011-03-27T13:44:00.000-07:00

Captain America: The First Avenger is due out soon. Comic fans are, of course, excited. The rest of the world? Most likely a collective shoulder shrug, as Captain America doesn't click with people the same way as Spider-Man, Batman or Superman. Even his very name says nothing but boredom.

Cap originated in 1941, and was soon kicking Nazi ass. Symbolically, this image was what America wanted the world to see, and it was echoed in other comic books, and in movies. America kicking Nazi ass. As time progressed, so did the country. Captain America, however, always seemed to remain a few steps back. While never appearing quite as naive or as out of touch as Superman, he nonetheless always felt behind the times, even when writers tried to give him a current spin. Even Captain America's archenemy, the Red Skull, was a throwback to the Nazi age, something readers painfully remembered every time he made a Modern Age appearance.

I was never a huge Captain America fan, though I enjoyed the comic when he teamed up with The Falcon. (I'm sure the writers thought they were being topical as The Falcon was black.) The reasons he never resonated with me are the exact reasons why I think he fails to resonate with non-comic readers. A man who dresses in a red, white and blue costume and whose name is as subtle as a herpes sore? No thanks. America's values have no place in the America we know.

As a team member, such as in the Avengers, Captain America is tolerable. He provides a good balance to whatever team he is on. As a stand-alone character, though, he is, well, as American as apple pie and as boring as sliced bread.

Back in the 1940s, things could be black and white. Nazis were bad. America was good. Of course, history shows it wasn't that clear cut, but culturally that is the message that got through and was generally accepted. These days, when America backs dictatorships and routinely tortures prisoners, it's a bit harder to sink your teeth into a character who is supposed to epitomize America. After all, just what does he stand for? Whose America? What America? Chances are, whatever you would like America to be like, Captain America, rightly or wrongly, represents the exact opposite. Sort of like liberals saying the news networks are too conservative and vice versa.

The upcoming movie will probably do well. New superhero movies tend to do okay from the gate. I don't think it will click with viewers like other superhero films have, and the fact that it is set in World War II doesn't help that any. Like the beginnings of Captain America, his ideals will be clear and concrete, or so I think, and that will help viewers at least determine if he is the character for them. When the Avengers movie comes around, however, things will be far less clear. We expect quaint values from characters in quainter times, but when we transport them to the modern era with those same ideals intact, we risk making them seem silly and out of place. If we change them, however, we often lose the character. That is the dilemma of Captain America. What will you get, and how will you like it? If the comics are any indication, the character is in for a bumpy ride.

iZombie: Dead to the World

2011-03-15T06:26:00.000-07:00

The first iZombie trade paperback, iZombie: Dead to the World, is due out 3/22/11. I have not received a copy yet, but have read the issues this one covers, and I got to say that between the writing of Chris Roberson and Mike Allred's art, this is one great series.

With a cast that features zombies, vampire vamps, werewolves, vampire hunters, ghosts and whatnot who mainly sit around playing role playing games, dating and drinking coffee, this won't appeal to those whose comic book reading comprises mostly of men in tights battling it out over the skies of New York. That's not to say the comic has no action -- it does. It's just not the main focus of the story. This is a book where characters actually talk about their problems and turn to fists last (except in the case of the monster hunters).

I don't know how the series is selling. I have long since stopped paying attention to those sort of things. I do know I've enjoyed it, though I won't be picking up the trade because I already have the issues. (There are few comics where I have the story in both formats, Preacher being one.) I will recommend it to certain readers, however.

iZombie is never going to displace any of the superhero books as a top seller. It could easily lend itself to a movie or a television series, but I think its fanbase may be too small to make it profitable. That says nothing to the quality of the work. If you, like myself, don't live in a world where everything is quick edits and explosions, then you may enjoy taking the time to read a story where the characters actually develop and seem real ... despite being monsters. (There are humans in the book, too.) Then again, you may just want to stick to something which doesn't require too much attention on your part. If so, there are plenty of books out there for you. They're all about the same, too, so it really doesn't matter which one you pick.

*In an attempt to comply with stupid FTC "laws," the following post has affiliate links, which means if you click on them and order the item, I will earn a comission. I did not receive any copies of iZombie for free, and nor did I receive the trade paperback for free.

The Problem With Grading Comics

2011-03-06T10:23:00.000-08:00

If you collect, sell or read comic books, you've heard of the Certified Guaranty Company (CGC). It is the name when it comes to grading comics. A comic book is submitted to it, examined by trained professionals, placed in a special holder and then the collector and buyer can use this generally accepted grade in order to ascertain a value.

Comics graded by the CGC often sell for more than those that are not graded. That works out well for sellers, and buyers tend to agree that the everyone can understand and accept the grade. If you want to read the issue, you have to break open the holder, which negates the grade.

The pros and cons of grading have been discussed since the company became known, and while there was initially a lot of speculation and backlash, the company has earned its respect. Heck, even I accepted it, though I have never bought a graded comic or submitted one for grading. Reading issue #1675 of the Comics Buyer's Guide, however, made me start to wonder about the company again.

In the "CBG Trendwatcher" section there is a piece by Steve Mortenson of Colossus Comics. In his piece he writes about people buying CGC graded comics at conventions with the hopes of resubmitting a book to the company for "a possible higher grade." Wouldn't that mean the initial grade was faulty, and doesn't that negate the trust and respect the company has earned? Even if you would agree that the company can make a mistake and that would be the nature of the beast, doesn't it also say the general comics public doesn't trust the company as much? After all, if the company were totally trusted, the grade wouldn't change. So essentially all these people are submitting comics and buying comics at higher prices from a company where the grade isn't all that trusted.

That seems to be foolish.

Knowing that collectors, speculators and dealers are doing this forces me to take this into consideration for any price I would pay for a graded comic, and it means I won't be paying full price for one. Not even close. I haven't bought a graded one yet, but I haven't ruled it out for the future, but I do know if I do, the dealer is not going to get his asking price unless it's already well below what I would be willing to pay.

Charlton Comics

2011-03-01T19:15:00.000-08:00

As a kid I had a fascination with Charlton Comics. I mainly devoured the horror titles and The Six Million Dollar Man. Crappy printing and often crappy art (to sometimes match equally crappy stories) could not keep me away ... and still hasn't to this day.

Charlton books always felt kind of forbidden. I don't know if that was due to the printing process (which I recall had a real problem with colors), or if it were due to the weird '70s ads it ran. Reading one of the publisher's comics was almost like sneaking a peek at your father's Swedish porn. Undecipherable. Secret. Dirty. Of course, the comics weren't porn, but that didn't stop them from feeling that way. Scary Tales. Ghostly Haunts. The Many Ghosts of Dr. Graves. E-Man. What's not to love?

The war titles didn't do too much for me. I had a few titles, but they were always afterthoughts. The stuff I bought after everything else I wanted was gone from the rack. The small store where I purchased them usually had a smattering of the war comics left over. They were always badly bent. Attack! was a great name for a series, though it hardly lived up to its name.

The mid 1980s saw the end of Charlton. Gone were the badly printed comics and the reprints that were keeping the company breathing. To be honest, I barely noticed. The publisher's circulation had dropped to where I barely noticed the titles anymore. These days I buy them when I come across them on eBay. They still feel kind of dirty ... and I think that's why I still like them.

Our Sheriff Lobo

2011-02-21T07:51:00.000-08:00

I hope the Omega Men cover is here. I had a hell of a time getting it to load. It was a huge pain in the ass, which is much the same way I feel about the cover star, Lobo. As you can, the DC star who used to be as popular as Wolverine wasn't always a leather jacket wearing psycho with wild hair. He used to wear a purple and orange leotard.

I've written about Lobo before and my lack of understanding when it comes to his appeal. When he first started getting popular, however, I will admit to snatching up this back issue (#3, in case the image is not showing up) since it was his first appearance and I figured I would at some point cash in on it. The store that had it had no idea it was his first appearance. The back issue was priced at something like $2.00 in Near Mint condition. It seemed like a good idea.

I never read the issue, though I paged through it. Quite honestly, his hair freaked me out a bit. I promptly put the issue back in its sleeve and filed it away. The series wasn't one I was interested in, and Lobo's appearance in it wasn't enough to get me to read it.

Characters sometimes have some really strange beginnings. Wolverine was decent right from the gate. Batman, too. Lobo's first appearance isn't anywhere near as bad as Squirrel Girl's, but it's fairly close. It goes to show that first appearances can be turned around and made into something that falls just short of a phenomenon ... no matter how big of a pain in the ass it is.

Namor the Asshole

2011-02-15T06:15:00.000-08:00

What Marvel character is arrogant, has tiny wings and smells like fish? If you guessed Namor, you got it right. (If you guessed Captain America, give yourself some laugh points.) The first mutant, Namor is every bit the badass Aquaman wishes he could be all without Aqua's better personality. He's fought everyone from Daredevil to Wolverine, along with a host of various villains (he's been portrayed as both hero and villain), and he's spent a good part of his life trying to get a peek at Sue Storm's vagina.

I thoroughly dislike the character.

I don't loathe him because he's an asshole. There are plenty of characters who are assholes that I like (Batman comes to mind). It has everything to do with how he is portrayed. Granted, he's among some of Marvel's most three dimensional characters who is as complex as he is wet. I just have problems with whiny people in power.

Anakin Skywalker started out as an innocent kid who became a whiny teen. This whiny teen (who acted as all teens do, and had every reason to turn against the Jedi) became one of cinema's most loved villains who, it so happens, left the whining behind. Namor has power, prestige and the ability to actually put his plans in place, but his arrogance usually fouls him up somehow, and then he starts whining about it. He also doesn't learn from his mistakes. The "surface dwellers" have screwed him over roughly two billion times, yet he still deals with them instead of handing them their heads.

This can be looked at as complex writing in the hand of Marvel's creators, and normally I'd agree with that. I see it as kind of lazy, though. It seems as if the writers are afraid to really make this guy grow in any substantial way. Yes, his character has had marginal changes throughout the decades, but they aren't significant enough. Such is the nature of comics, I suppose, but that shouldn't stop someone from complaining about it especially when you see how other characters have changed (Guy Gardner, Daredevil, and Steve Rogers come to mind).

I understand that Namor's fans will have issue with a lot of this, and I accept that. I will contend, however, that the character will be so much better if the writers would really cut loose with him, and that's something I don't think anyone will argue against.

Fear and Loathing: Marshal Law

2011-02-10T23:39:00.000-08:00

That man to your left? The guy wearing the bondage mask and holding up sign asking if Public Spirit is a rapist? That's Marshal Law. In 1987 Pat Mills and Kevin O'Neill introduced him to the world through Epic Comics.

For me it was love at first sight. Bondage gear goes a long way with me, I guess. That and barbed wire wrapped around the arm and a job that involves hunting heroes didn't hurt any either. It was dark, funny stuff that was the antidote for titles like Web of Spider-Man.

The character has jumped from company to company and cross-over to cross-over. Original output has been pretty scarce, however. Perhaps it was too dark. Perhaps it was because it poked fun of many sacred comic book icons. Or maybe it was the cross-overs. It doesn't really matter. The stories have all but stopped, and that's a shame for the fans of this character.

Marshal Law is no Superman, Batman, Spider-Man or even Iron Man. That said, he is unforgettable. His unapologetic way of dealing with the heroes he has had to go up against sets him apart from most of the pack. His costume also does the same. Just looking at him is painful. He needs a regular book, and he needs it now.

Until that day comes, I have my back issues ... and violent, violent memories.

X-Men #5 Revisited: Merry Marvel Madness of the Worst Sort

2011-01-23T18:40:00.000-08:00

If your only knowledge of the X-Men comes from the three movies and the current run of comics, you may not realize that the title, which started in the 1960s is far different from what you read today. The core team of Marvel Girl, Angel, Beast, Cyclops and Iceman didn't really come to their own until issue five, when they graduated Professor Xavier's final exam of sorts.

X-Men, as the series started off before becoming Uncanny X-Men, was not always popular, and it wasn't always good, either. Issue five, which was written by Stan Lee and illustrated by Jack Kirby, found the heroes battling Magneto, Mastermind, Scarlet Witch, Quicksilver, and Toad on Asteroid M in order to get back a kidnapped Angel. At this point in the history of the title, Quicksilver and Scarlet Witch were not known to be Magneto's children. Professor Xavier, who was injured last issue, did not join his students on their mission because he was said to have lost his mental powers from that injury. Of course, typical to Professor Xavier, that was all a lie.

Professor Xavier, as has been said in the past, was a jerk. At that time he was a pompous, stern taskmaster who hid a secret love of Marvel Girl (very disturbing), and commanded his students to be at his side within a set number of seconds lest they get demerits. Lying about losing his mental powers was not out of character. Using that lie to cause the team to go into space and almost losing teammate Cyclops all under the guise of a final exam doesn't seem that out of place, either. And in hindsight, looking at what the X-Men were to face throughout the decades, it is a thoroughly acceptable final exam of sorts, but taking this into story at its face value at the time, it seemed a bit harsh even for the professor.

By the time this issue hit the spinner racks, the X-Men title was far from the two-dimensional work coming out of DC. Marvel was known for characters with problems, and these first five issues proved no exception. What stands out the most, and is moved forward here, is the plight of Quicksilver and Scarlet Witch. They have joined sides with the evil Magneto, not because they share his views, but because Magneto saved Scarlet Witch's life. The loyalty the two siblings (Quicksilver and Scarlet Witch are established as brother and sister) have toward the master of magnetism is tested throughout issues four and five, and when Cyclops makes a plea to Quicksilver in this issue to switch sides, you can understand Quicksilver's conflicting feeling (as well as buy his explanation why he won't turn traitor to Magneto). Such character development, however rudimentary it was, happened to be standard in Marvel's output at the time. DC eventually played catch-up, and now it is status quo for most of the comics industry.

Reading this when it came out in the Sixties must have been a heck of an experience. The plot twists we take as mandatory today weren't not the norm. Villains were not typically so conflicted. (And like most things, the villains are far more interesting than the heroes in this issue.) It was probably senses-shattering to a young reader, and felt edgy to an older reader. Unfortunately, it still has its flaws.

The contrived way in which Magneto uses Toad to help capture/trick the X-Men is flawed thinking at its best. Toad, in disguise, somehow enters a live, televised track meet (this plan was apparently put together at the spur of the moment, so I'm not sure how this would be possible) that just happens to be watched by the X-Men on television at their academy. I don't know how Magneto would know the heroes would be watching, but his logic was apparently spotless, as the X-Men crashed the track meet after the crowd became unruly. As far as grievances go, this is a fairly major one as the entire plot hinges on it. Magneto apparently just wanted to find the X-Men's "secret" location, and once Toad's identity was made, he and his evil henchmen stepped in to save him, capturing Angel in the process. The capture of Angel was not the crux of the plan, but it became an added bonus that inadvertently led the X-Men to Magneto's secret base of operations. In other words, a plan that should have never worked in the first place because it was built too much about random happenstance, actually ended up working the exact opposite of how the criminal mastermind envisioned it. This is poor storytelling, though it does make for a grand adventure.

Having what is otherwise a solid story rest upon such a flimsy foundation denigrates the entire work. It is fine for moving the action along, but as soon as you start to think about it, it falls apart. So does the X-Men graduating.

Did Professor Xavier somehow know this was going to happen? He had taken himself out of the mix the previous issue. How long would he have kept his "lost" powers a secret? Would they have returned had the threat been minor? Or did he suspect Magneto would attempt something fairly quickly? We don't know because the readers were kept in the dark to the professor's plans the entire time. We know now they came back, but the readers who delved into this issue when it first came out had no idea that was going to occur. For all they knew, he would remain powerless forever. Again, a major plot point (the X-Men graduating) hinged upon uncontrollable circumstances ... or at least that is how it seems.

Stan Lee and Jack Kirby are considered masters. Their influence upon comic books is not even a subject of debate. Lee is not, despite the accolades, a master writer. He is the George Lucas of comic books -- a man with great ideas that are often poorly executed. Kirby, however, is deserving of all the praise. If this issue were to be presented as something new in 2011, however, it would not pass muster. Even Kirby's art is subdued for this issue. Considering the time period when it came out, it is a thoroughly enjoyable read ... as long as you don't think about the plot too much.

Marvel's Battlestar Galactica

2011-01-16T16:53:00.000-08:00

Being a Marvel fan, a sci-fi fan, and a fan of the Battlestar Galactica television series (the original one that ran on ABC), it's not surprising that I picked up a copy of Marvel's comic book series. I only ever had two issues of it that I can remember (and one of those was gotten in trade with my brother), but I distinctly remember not liking it.

The only other sci-fi comic I was reading at the time was Star Wars, also from Marvel, and I loved that one. That comic had everything I would expect from a comic book based on the series, while the Battlestar Galactica one just seemed boring.

Looking back on it, remembering what I did of the television series, I always found the ideas more interesting than the characters, which is almost exactly the opposite way I feel about Star Wars. I remember Battlestar Galactica as a stale read, and that is what kept me at so few issues. Marvel only did 23 regular issues, so it seems I wasn't the only one who felt this way. Apparently an ending to the series had always been envisioned by Marvel, but I would imagine that if sales were strong enough Marvel would have kept the title afloat, as the company has never been one to turn down money. Star Wars as a means of comparison, ran 107 issues with three annuals. That doesn't even count the four-issue limited series for Return of the Jedi.

The Marvel series has its supporters, as does any sci-fi franchise, and other companies have brought Battlestar Galactica to a comics format since. I've tried to read some of the stuff from Maximum Press but found it impossible to get into.

Someday I may actually revisit the Marvel series and see if my mind has changed on it. For the moment, however, there are far too many other titles begging for my attention, and I'm fairly confident I'll be able to pick up this entire series at bargain prices for some years to come.

Superman Registers on Megan's Law Website

2011-01-04T20:31:00.000-08:00

I like Action Comics. I really do. It is an iconic title. The first appearance of Superman? What could be more iconic? So, you can imagine my horror upon stumbling upon this cover when I was doing research on a piece about the iconic series.

Superman, taking off his shirt. Clark Kent glasses pushed up on his forehead. Too busy to take them off. He's got work to do. Work in the form of ...

Young Timmy (that looks like it would be his name). On his stomach. On his bed. Tears moistening his pillow.

What the hell was the editor thinking? Is this a joke? I've seen some strange comic book covers before, but this really takes the cake. "In This Issue: Superman Battles His Inner Demons!"

I don't own this issue. Someday I will possibly track it down to add to my collection. I'm fairly sure the tale inside is far less menacing than the cover. I really have to question the mindset of anyone who gave this the okay, though. There is no era "innocent" enough where this could come out looking fine. Superman, no matter the decade, looks like a child molester.

Supes, as the kids he doesn't molest call him, has never been a favorite of mine. He's always been a little too clean cut ... or so I thought. Had I known the man who stands for truth, justice and the American Way had more in with NAMBLA I would have found him less clean cut but far more creepy.

Makes you sort of wonder what the hell happened to Jimmy Olsen, doesn't it?

The New Mutants

2010-12-31T10:40:00.000-08:00

The issue pictured at left, The New Mutants #16 was my first issue of the first true spin-off of the X-Men franchise. I found it on a spinner rack at a PA Laneco store, where I happened to buy a lot of my comics at the time. Looking at the cover, and knowing my tastes at the time, it's easy to see what attracted me to it.

First was the use of the word "mutants." The X-Men were mutants, and I liked them, so it seemed a natural I would give this a try. Then there were the characters.

Two animal-like creatures. One guy who was all black with spots around him. A guy with a jet pack. A woman who looked like she was made of lava. Kitty Pryde. I'm sure my young mind asked, "What the hell is this?" So I grabbed it, (most likely) paid for it, and marched my butt home to read it.

I was hooked.

Eventually I got all the issues of the series. Many were great (the Demon Bear saga artwork alone). Some were horrible (Bird-Brain, or whatever the hell he was called, comes to mind). The team dynamics were firmly in place by this issue, and while Pryde may have thought of the newbies as "X-Babies," it was clear these cats could hold their own. In fact, the issue I first picked up featured a battle with the Hellfire Club's own young ones, and I seem to recall it being fairly brutal.

The series has been revamped a couple times since it first ended. I don't think the revamps have ever been as good, however. They lack a certain spark and freshness, which is kind of to be expected when you think about it. When this title first came out, X-fever had not totally overtaken the industry yet, and the idea of a new group of mutants emerging as a powerhouse was a unique concept in the Marvel universe. Their age guaranteed the problems would be different, and their lack of skill gave it the feeling that anything could happen at any time. (Magneto taking over their training and introduction of Cable come to mind.)

If Marvel is intent upon dominating all media, as it seems to be, the concept of the New Mutants could make for a good television show or even a movie (if handled properly). Not that I'd watch it, as I think most of the comic book properties that have floated over to TV and the silver screen have been lacking, but I think the teen and older child market would have a field day with it.

One of My Cover Obsessions

2010-11-20T20:25:00.000-08:00

Glowing skeletons or skeletons that were on fire have always managed to grab my attention. This 1977 Amazing Spider-Man cover is just one example. I loved this issue as a kid. Dinosaur skeletons and Stegron? Sign me the hell up.

The mid-to-late '70s covers for this series were always pretty good, but this one really stood out for me, and I wasn't a huge Spider-Man fan.

Another cover that had me grabbing the book is this one from Detective Comics. This isn't a pure skeleton, but it is close enough. Comparing the two shows some similar color themes and composition. The hero, at the mercy of a fiery skeleton seems to be symbolic for the hero's death, which is always a way to catch a potential consumer's eye. We all know it's a ploy, but you can't help but want to know what the hell is going on.

If you liked flaming skeletons, you couldn't help but be a fan of Ghost Rider. A flaming skull. A flaming motorcycle. If you were male, that was damn cool. (I imagine a few females liked it to.) Johnny Blaze, the Ghost Rider from my youth, was motorcycle stunt rider (cool job) who turned into this flaming skull superhero (cool idea) and fought guys with like the one who had a giant eyeball for a head (not cool at all).

With Ghost Rider you no longer had to wait for your favorite cover to have a flaming skeleton character. You got it every month in the form of Marvel's own supernatural hero. Oddly enough, I was a huge Ghost Rider fan.

Most people remember whatever decade they got into comic books as being the best decade in the industry's history. I got into them in the 1970s, though I would not call that the industry's best. It was, however, the decade of some of the best freakin' covers. These flaming skulls and skeletons are just a small part of it. The covers were more dynamic than anything you see now even. Don't believe it? Look at the Ghost Rider cover to the right, and then compare it to the one from the 1990s below this.

It's a passable cover, but it lacks the dynamics of the three previous ones. Yes, the concept is still kind of cool, but it doesn't scream, "Read me."

We'll never see an era quite like the 1970s when it comes to comic covers again. And while the concept is still being used, it lacks the excitement these covers had decades ago. It's a shame, too, because if these covers still had the same visual punch, perhaps there'd be more readers today.

Secret Avengers Revisited

2010-11-09T06:16:00.000-08:00

A few posts back I wrote about my disappointment with Marvel's new Secret Avengers title. One of the things that bothered me, which I don't think I mentioned, was the Nick Fury character. I couldn't understand why he was acting the way he was in the story as it seemed totally out of place. Granted, I don't keep up with all the events in the Marvel universe, but it seemed odd. Issue five cleared all that up and has redeemed the series for me.

Titled "The Secret Life of Max Fury," this stand-alone issue explains (maybe -- you know how these things go) just why Mr. Fury seemed to be acting out of character these past few issues. In fact, the story goes back about ten years to explain these things. And while it was no action-packed fisticuff orgy, it was a highly interesting story (which some totally fitting art by David Aja, who is fast becoming one of my favorites) of intrigue and suspense that sets the stage for future stories that seem like they could be incredibly promising. At this point I'm glad I gave the book a chance, as I get the feeling I would be missing out on some prime Avengers stories had I dropped it.

Of course, everything could go wrong and writer Ed Brubaker could be replaced for some reason and all his storylines handed to an intern. That would be disaster, but we all know things like that happen in the world of comics. Hopefully, for the sake of this title's fans, that won't be the case here.

Cover Review: Peter Parker, The Spectacular Spider-Man #101

2010-10-31T20:10:00.000-07:00

If you take out this comic's title, you are left with a simple, yet dynamic black and white cover that catches the eye and doesn't let go.

The covers for this series were typically full of action and usually centered on Spider-Man and whatever villain he faced that issued. This cover goes the more artistic route, and in doing so may have attracted more glances than the other titles surrounding it on the rack at the time.

The year was 1985, and John Byrne was the cover artist. This is obviously before his artistry went totally south.

If you're looking at the cover trying to figure out what doesn't look quite right, you wouldn't be alone. At first you are taken in by the excellent lack of color, but the more you stare at it the more something seems off. It's the buildings, and it's brilliant.

The layout of the buildings makes no rational sense. If this were a photograph, it would be doctored, as there is no place where buildings would be laid out like this. It's almost reminiscent of Germany's own Expressionist masterpiece The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari.

Byrne wasn't going for realism. Here he was using pure art. He was playing with the standard poses readers were used to seeing Spider-Man in, and then he used the black costume and made something that could easily grace a museum's wall. Imagine if he had done the same thing in red and blue using Spider-Man's standard costume. It would not have worked.

I've given Byrne plenty of flack in my writing, but I will admit that with this cover he shines. Would it have made me pick up the book to read? No, but it would've caught my eye, and it still does. In a series that had few truly memorable covers or moments, this one stands out, and it's all due to Byrne.

The Walking Dead on AMC

2010-10-27T06:49:00.000-07:00

The Walking Dead television series has its Halloween debut on AMC. As I'm sure most of you reading this know, it is based on an Image comic book series.

I've been asked by a hell of a lot of people if I am going to watch this. The basic line of questioning goes something like this, "It's from a comic book. It's got zombies. You like both things. You gonna watch?"

Probably not.

I never read the comic book despite the generally positive reviews. I simply had no interest in it. Mistake? Maybe, but I'm still not going out of my way to get it.

I also don't watch a hell of a lot of episodic television. I don't find myself having enough time to do that, and if I were going to, I would actually go to the source material first (in this case the comic or trade paperbacks). It's not like it is impossible to find. Don't misunderstand me -- I'm fairly sure the show will be worth watching. I just don't plan on being one of the audience members. If I come across it, I'll probably tune in, but I doubt I'll even have the television on at that time.

What I'd love to see is the people who are excited about the television series actually becoming comic book readers. By all accounts (though not mine), the industry is dying. That means all these incredible franchise ideas will have to come from elsewhere -- something Hollywood has never been really good at doing. (Outside of the Star Trek and Star Wars franchises, I can't think of too many franchises that have solely been the creation of the movie/television industry. James Bond came from books, as did Harry Potter.)

It seems doubtful that all these viewers will turn into readers, but if I were a comic book store or publisher (that means you, DC and Marvel) I'd be taking out ads in order to expose potentially new readers to what you have to offer.

In the meantime, I'll continue to field the questions, reminding people of the television show's source material. And that material is always going to be better than what can be shown on the screen.

Dirty Deeds Done Dirt Cheap

2010-10-19T06:44:00.000-07:00

Any good Garth Ennis tale (and by extension that includes artist Steve Dillon) will involve topics like honor, truth and justice ... along with a healthy dose of bullets to the head and jaws blown off. Such is the nature of the 2003 Punisher story arc called "Brotherhood."

Originally presented in the Marvel Knights imprint of The Punisher, the three issue story is about cops gone bad, coke deals gone bad, priests gone bad, domestic violence (already bad) and how the world views someone based on the actions of a few bad apples. Frank Castle (Punisher) has vowed to never cross the line and kill a cop, but the two cops he runs into push him to the very edge. Their addictions have mired them in a world of wife beating, gambling and stealing evidence. When Castle enters the picture, the cops' world is already spiraling out of control and people are dying.

Before this was a Max title, The Punisher had to watch the language and nudity (nobody really worried about the violence), so this isn't as nasty as it could be. It still makes its point without the use of words you'd normally find in this sort of tale. That is the mark of a good group of storytellers, which as we know from Preacher, is exactly what Ennis and Dillon are.

Marvel's 2003 universe is far different from the one of the past few years, and this was its darkest title at the time. Oddly enough, it was also its most realistic. If you take the Punisher out of the equation, most of what the creators did was from real life, whether it be drug deals or IRA terrorism. It was a far cry from the X-Men or Spider-Man, and for that I appreciated it.

"Brotherhood" will never be considered a classic tale. With Ennis and Dillon, everything they do is grand, but to standout at this point it really needs to be spectacular. It will, however, be a prime example of a strong tale that will never age. Someone reading this ten years from now will recognize the themes and issues at hand, and they will in no way be alien to the reader. Try saying that about some of the other stories we've witnessed as of late. You can't. And three issues was all it took. Concise, but with about three times the dialogue of your average current comic, and well-paced. It may not be a classic, but it should be studied.

Steve Rude Selling Original Art to Avoid Home Foreclosure

2010-10-08T06:10:00.000-07:00

I'm not a huge Steve Rude fan (Nexus), but will admit that he has a place in comics history. Unfortunately, the banks don't respect that, and now, in an effort to keep his home he is selling his original art on eBay. You can click here to see it.

I think original art is a good investment, but I only buy stuff from artists whom I happen to enjoy. If you are a fan of Rude, I'd recommend at least checking this out. In an age where people think artists deserve nothing for their trouble (with the concomitant outcomes when your revenue is taken away), giving something back is a great way to show your appreciation ... especially if it keeps someone from being homeless.

Wonder Woman Needs Your Help!

2010-10-05T20:16:00.000-07:00

I'm not going to reprint my entire piece here, but Jennifer Wenger, an incredibly talented actress, is making a push for the role of Wonder Woman in the upcoming television series. If you are at all interested, just click here to read the piece on my other blog.

I posted the main piece there because, quite frankly, more people read that blog than they do this.

The (Not So) Great and Secret Show

2010-08-13T06:43:00.000-07:00

I was excited to put Secret Avengers on my subscription list. I liked the idea of an Avengers team that went in to do the dirty work and stop problems before they happened. I liked the team, as it has a few characters I really like (Moon Knight and Black Widow come to mind) and some I definitely enjoy (Beast, Valkyrie). When I had the first two issues sent to me, I sat down and read them after letting them sit for about two weeks.

I was ... disappointed.

The story, which deals with a search for a new Serpent Crown, was lackluster at best. The characterization was non-existent. These could have been any characters, quite honestly. It seemed like it was a thorough waste of potential and money, and I almost dropped it from my pull. Why waste the time?

Well, long story short, I have not dropped it yet. I am going to give it a chance. Sometimes it takes a few issues for a creative team to get into their rhythm. My fear, however, is that this title will never realize its full potential. By the second issue, when the team goes to Mars, I thought there could be possibilities ... and there were some ... but not enough. What will the next few months bring? I'm not sure, but if the writers don't let the characters shine (which should be anyone's reason for reading this), they will have a dead series on their hands, and they will be losing readers at a record pace ... myself included.

Brain Eaters

2010-08-07T21:04:00.000-07:00

I will admit that the first thing that attracted me to iZombie (not the way the title is shown here) was the Mike Allred art. I am a huge fan of his work and someday hope to own some original stuff. A tale of a zombie girl who has to eat brains every thirty days or she goes all shambling, coupled with vampires and ghosts -- well, it can only be a good thing.

The first three issues from Vertigo have not disappointed me. The art, as to be expected, is top notch. The story has its humor, and it is something you can easily see being made into a television series, as is everything comic book related these days. It's not the best series I've ever read, but it is holding my interest.

Zombies have been huge for the past couple of years. There are too many titles to list, and the it seems like there are more being published each month. It is -- no pun intended -- over kill. At least it's not vampires, though.

I'm all for a good zombie tale. I like my zombies slow and methodical. With that in mind, it seems strange that I like this series. The zombie is portrayed as a normal woman. The horror is almost non-existent (as of the first three issues), and there is a little too much humor for my usual tastes. Somehow, however, writer Chris Roberson makes it work. He keeps me reading it despite it firmly falling into the land of things I don't normally like.

Time will tell if this will be a series worth watching or just another one taking up space. (I have far too many of those for my liking.) My guess is the former, but if I'm wrong I'll at least have some nice art to appreciate.

Giant Sharks, Mutated Animals and Dinosaurs

2010-07-24T16:26:00.000-07:00

I am currently reading the (so far) wonderful Art in Time, which features reprints from comics the editor, Dan Nadel, finds to be interesting for one reason or another. The stories aren't ones that have been reprinted often in the past, so reading them has been a rare treat. One of the more pleasurable stories in the group has been from Kona issue three, and features Kona, the white-haired caveman, trying to find a solution to a very vexing problem. He is in a cave with some travelers from the present time period (Sixties). This cave is quickly filling with water. The waters have some toxin in them that has caused the sharks in the water to grow bigger than the dinosaurs that populate the cave. This, of course, spells trouble for Kona and his people. He does remember, however, that there is a cave nearby that has been blocked off because the other side of it contains hideously mutated animals.

You have to love these comic book premises. Could a book throw in anymore of the kitchen sink? Cavemen, dinosaurs, giant sharks, mutated animals (like giraffes with bull bodies or some such insanity). When you think those kinds of storylines wouldn't fly today, remember that just recently the Uncanny X-Men has these weird alien predator things dropped onto their Utopia island by a wayward mutant in a plane. Perhaps not as outlandish as what Kona faced, but the concept is the same.

Reading the old stories is a lot like watching old movies. The dialogue sometimes doesn't sound right, and the ideas sometimes seem almost quaint, but you are witnessing a product from a bygone time. They, quite honestly, don't make them like that anymore. Is that a good or bad thing? I don't know. More people read comic books back in those days, and while few would argue about the quality of our stories today, where are the readers? Perhaps they want those crazy stories from the days of yore where logic took a backseat to ... just about anything else.

Me? I like both periods. And to be frank, we wouldn't be where we are at today without those stories from decades ago.

The Vampire Verses #2

2010-07-15T19:27:00.000-07:00

CFD Visual Anarchy's The Vampire Verses issue 2 came out way back in 1996. Its creators are the ever controversial Joe Monks and Hart D. Fisher. Helping out here was also artist Frank Forte, Mike Bliss and Bob Murdock. As to be expected with anything associated with Monks and Fisher, there is blood ... and bare breasts ... and bodies torn in half. Throw in lots of cursing, sacrificed babies and threats of rape, and you have a comic that earns its mature readers label.

But is it any good?

If black and white art is something you run from, you will hate this. The cover is the only bit of color. If vampires who look like those kids in Twilight are your thing, you'll also hate this. There are no cute teens in the stories presented here. Just vampires, thugs, demons and razor blades run down tongues. Obviously, it's not for the weak-of-heart ... and nor is it for discerning tastes.

The art is appropriate for the types of stories presented here. The stories, however, are full of usual genre trappings you've come to expect, as well as cookie-cutter dialogue and characters. It often seems that the only thing original here is the gleeful love of violence that permeates nearly every single scene. (That said, the baby sacrifice is not exactly shown. It seems that even these creators have limits.) Heck, the text piece has a character named Lucien. Have you ever read a good story with a character named Lucien? Doubtful.

When this was first published it had a $2.95 cover price. The cover alone probably sold quite a few people on it. Today I suspect it is in the dollar boxes at best (if retailers aren't too timid to carry it).

In 2001, Asylum Press was re-releasing the 12 issues of this maxi-series. If you go to the website you will find some of the original issues still for sale, though this issue has sold out for some reason. It should be noted, too, that as of this writing, eBay had several issues of the series up for grabs. Whether or not there are any takers remained to be seen.

Vampires are hot right now. In 1996 they weren't nearly as universal in their appeal. It wasn't exactly a guaranteed sale to do this type of comic, so the creators deserve some credit. Unfortunately, they took what could have been a stand-out series and made it almost a replica of all that has come before it ... only with more gore and boobs. That may work as a distraction, but as a story device it falls awfully short.

Perhaps people should stick with Twilight. At least that has werewolves.

He's Dead, Jim

2010-07-04T23:02:00.000-07:00

It is no longer news. Nighcrawler is dead. (Well, as dead as dead can be in the comic book world.) I have some mixed feelings about this.

As of late, Uncanny X-Men, the only X title I keep up on, has had this feeling of dread hanging over it like diseased mistletoe. Ever since Scarlet Witch uttered those infamous words that wiped out most of the mutants, things have been tense for the ones who remained alive. The phrase "kill or be killed" has never felt more real.

There were going to be casualties. There always are. The X titles are not immune to it. The X-Men have died individually and in groups. They usually come back. In time, Nightcrawler will be back, too. Nobody stays dead for long.

Nightcrawler has always been my favorite mutant. Honestly, it had everything to do with his look at first. The visual appeal of the character got me into him. As I read stories with him in it, I grew even fonder of him. His first limited series in the 1980s was utter crap. It captured his freewheeling attitude, but boy did it suck. It was actually fairly embarrassing. At least at the time Uncanny didn't suck, too.

About the only writer whom I felt ever really had a good grasp of the character was Chris Claremont. It seemed like over the years other writers have shown an appreciation for him, but rarely seemed to get him right. Of all the mutants on that core team, he was the one who had the best outlook on life, but who also hid great pain. He was the optimist, but held onto that glimmer of realism if only to never forget how bad people could be.

And now he's dead ... for now ... for right now.

Yeah, his death means something in the comic, but it strikes me as hollow. It's not that I expected it (I've been expecting it for years, and then kind of thought it would never happen). It is because I just didn't expect to feel so unmoved by it.

Nightcrawler will be back. There will be controversy. There will be celebration. But for comics it will be business as usual ... and then he'll be killed again.

It's never the ones you hate, is it?

Cover Review: Satanika #11

2010-07-01T06:27:00.000-07:00

I've never been a fan of this series, but I have usually enjoyed the covers. This one, for issue eleven, is, quite simply, boring.

Jason Blood is the artist, and his artwork here looks like something you would find in his high school chemistry notebook. It tells you nothing about the comic, the character or the story, and nothing screams, "Read me!" In fact, the only new reader I can see picking this up is the one who is interested in naked demon chicks.

Unfortunately, the naked demon chick pictured here lacks any kind of erotic appeal, and she sure as hell doesn't appear to be "evil." The guy behind her looks a little more threatening ... in a He-Man villain sort of way.

I've seen more of Blood's artwork and remain unimpressed by what I've witnessed. This cover being no exception. Lackluster in art style and even color, it summons not demons, but boredom.

Atlantis Attacks Nonsense

2010-06-06T22:08:00.000-07:00

Uncanny X-Men. Annual. Prophetic number 13. It's an "Atlantis Attacks" crossover, as all the annuals were that year. This one, as you can see by the cover, pitted the X-Men against the Serpent Society (cool) and Mr. Jip (not cool). As you can see from the cover, it was a crappy story.

Marvel did these events in its annuals for a couple of years. I can't remember really liking any all that much. Most of the ones I read (and I only read the ones that ran in books I normally read) felt forced. If you wanted to read the entire storyline you had to buy 14 issues. Granted, that doesn't seem like a big deal now, but in 1989 that meant something. That was a commitment.

Since I didn't read every issue, and I haven't revisited what I did read since it came out, my memory of the "event" is a bit hazy. I seem to recall that it had very little to do with Atlantis attacking, but did involve Set and the Serpent Crown. It also reeked of gimmick, which annoyed me then as much as it does now. Something of this nature begs to have the big guns like the X-Men and Avengers involved, so it made sense for this to cross over into those annuals. When it was in the Daredevil annual, however, was when the stench of exploitive gimmick really assaulted the senses. Daredevil. Really?

Annuals are rare things these days. I used to look forward to them. When Marvel started doing crossovers amongst them all is when my interest started to wane. For some reason it made them feel less special. I'm sure Marvel wanted the exact opposite effect, but it failed as a company to do that.

At least the title-wide crossovers now, while still gimmicks, are more entertaining.

Cover Review: The Eternals #14

2010-05-29T07:39:00.000-07:00

Jack Kirby strikes again! For a man I didn't appreciate as a kid (mainly because his art freaked me out), I definitely appreciate him now. This is not, obviously, his best cover, but it works.

The Eternals was a weird series, and I never picked it up, but seeing the Hulk on the cover would have caused a curious Hulk fan to at least page through this. It also has all the Kirby standards, which definitely doesn't hurt.

The first thing that catches the eye is the imposing figure of a red-clad man flying off the cover courtesy of the Hulk. A cover that shows off action like this begs to be investigated regardless of whether or not you know who the characters are. There are no word balloons. There is a cover blurb, however, which pretty much details the cover with one exception -- this is a "cosmic powered" Hulk. Attention grabbed; curiosity peaked. Mission accomplished.

Cover artists of today could take more than a few lessons from Kirby. He did every cover as if his career depended on it. You can argue about whether they all worked, but you can't argue with the creativity put into them. He knew what worked, and used it. Perhaps if more artists followed his lead sales would be better these days. Then again, Kirby was one of a kind ...

Band of the Hand

2010-05-05T21:14:00.000-07:00

If you are a regular reader of Daredevil you know that he now leads The Hand, that group of ninjas who have run roughshod over the lives of Elektra, Wolverine, and others. It is a plot development not without controversy, but I applaud it.

One of the reasons I have stuck with this title since the 1970s (and there are a lot of bad issues between then and now) is because it never really seems static and has had a sense that anything can happen (especially since the late '80s). As of late he has had his identity outed, been jailed, and has (once again) gone off the deep end. Now this.

Obviously there is a plan for ol' Hornhead. He hasn't, as some people have said, "gone criminal." He is, however, dancing on that razor's edge, and that's what makes the series exciting. If you want a safe read where you are hardly ever challenged on what you can expect from a superhero comic, you can read any number of titles. Daredevil has never been about conventions.

This plot twist could very well fail in an awful way. If that happens, it will be a shame, but the title will live on. There have been other plot lines that have fallen flat in their execution (Mike Murdock, working for S.H.I.E.L.D, etc.), but that's the joy of reading a title that is not one of Marvel's flagships. It can be tweaked. It leaves room for experimentation. That will inevitably lead to some failures, but it will also produce incredible stories.

Only time will tell what this storyline turns out to be, but I'm betting that before it is over many of the critics will change their minds. And if I'm wrong? Eventually there will be a new writer who will bring new problems to Daredevil's life, and if the past few years are any indication -- it could be a very wild ride.

Enemy Mine

2010-04-08T21:08:00.000-07:00

I just got done reading Enemy of the State Volume 1 by Mark Millar and John Romita, Jr.. I read the issues when they originally came out (who hasn't?), but this was the first time I read it since then. It actually holds up well, and reading it in trade paperback format actually made it a better. It was also nice to see Romita, Jr. back to drawing Daredevil again, and it made me realize just how much I enjoy his art.

A few friends I know think that Romita, Jr.'s work is too square looking. I admit that I can kind of see that, but I would argue that his art fits the hero genre quite well. His Ultron, Wolverine and Elektra all look deadly, which is more than I can say for some artists who have worked on those characters.

I've had the pleasure of have some instant message exchanges with Romita, Jr. in the past, and he came across as a very nice guy who was happy to discuss comics and his work. I don't claim a friendship with the man or anything, and I doubt he even remembers those chats (as I'm sure he's engaged in thousands of those with fans), but it meant something to me. Art is a skill I don't have but desperately wish I did, and when I come across an artist I like, I tend to have a lot of respect for them.

Romita, Jr. is one of those artists. His father, a comics legend, isn't bad, either, but Romita, Jr., I have to say, has a style all his own that stands out in an art form where imitation is far too often the norm.

West Coast Avengers -- Why?

2010-03-24T20:18:00.000-07:00

I have every single issue of this series, including the limited series that preceded it. The West Coast Avengers was, and I can't believe I'm going to say this, hot for a time.

I can't remember why.

The line-up was pretty good. Iron Man, Hawkeye, Tigra, Wonder Man and others made for a good core group. If I recall correctly, however, the stories were often less-than-ideal. In fact, some were downright horrible. (As an aside, the entire "No more mutants" had its start in the pages of WCA.)

I remember wanting to read the series because of Iron Man and Hawkeye, two characters I enjoyed in The Avengers. Tigra was a nice addition, too, because the writers actually portrayed her as she should be. Once I actually read it, however, I started thinking, "Well, maybe the next issue will be better."

The series could have been worse. (Heck, it could have been Dazzler.) It should have been better, though. It had all the trappings of a good series, it had some good talent (John Byrne was on it before he totally sucked), and some passable art. It squandered all that, though, and attacked readers to crap like Master Pandemonium and Firebird.

Why?

Marvel, in the mid-Eighties, was enjoying quite a bit of popularity, and it tried its hands with some new ideas. Some were horrible. Some were pretty good. Some, like WCA, were misfires. WCA had enough potential and popularity, however, to last until 1994. I can only attribute that to idiots like me who kept giving it second chances (and third and fourth ones, too).

Looking back on the series now, I can't help but think it's like the old television shows I used to dig, but now, when looking back, I can't figure out why I ever watched them in the first place. Some still hold up, but aren't nearly as good as my memories make them out to be. Some seem like they were never good in the first place, but I never realized it until much later. WCA falls into the former category, as I'm sure I'd still enjoy some of the issues, but the majority of them would make me wish I never bought any issues in the first place. I still think the idea has merit and could've worked. Unfortunately, the team and the book was treated as second tier goods. The heroes fought moronic villains, and at the end of the day the clout the Avengers name has in comic book history was tarnished by the series.

One thing I can say about the series that is in its favor is that it never felt like a cash-in on that Avengers name. I believed the creators were trying to do something new, something to set it apart from the main series. It never felt exploitive, like all those X-Men spin-offs, and it never read like the core title with different characters. In the end, though, it just wasn't worthy of that Avengers title. The Avengers had tales that were epic in scope (most of the time). They were, after all, Earth's mightiest heroes. The West Coast Avengers, which had some tales that were pseudo epics, was not the Earth's mightiest heroes.

At least we got a decent Scarlet Witch story out of it years later.

Correction

2010-02-07T15:18:00.003-08:00

In the first paragraph of the last post, "none" should be "known." For some reason I cannot edit it. Stupid Vodka and mescaline.

The Joke's on You, Jack

2010-02-07T13:33:00.000-08:00

Few comic book villains are as none by the non-comic book reading public as the Joker. Granted, he's never been my favorite villain, but when he's done well (think Alan Moore's The Killing Joke) he's incredible. Unfortunately, like a lot of popular characters, he is often overused (though nowhere near as much as Wolverine) and often poorly written.

Frank Miller's done the character justice, as have a few others. Without the Joker, Batman wouldn't be nearly as effective a hero. The Joker is his polar opposite. While Daredevil has the Kingpin, those two characters work because they are both very similar to one another. Joker and Batman is a totally different story.

Decades ago the Joker had his own comic book series. It lasted about nine issues if memory serves me correctly, and seemed like an odd idea for a series. I have an issue or two somewhere and will someday collect them all. He's not my favorite character, but I will admit to taking some pleasure in reading his exploits. There's something very refreshing about an off-kilter psychopath in make-up. Sort of like a less sinister Rush Limbaugh or something.

Joker has already cemented his place in comic book history. There's no doubt he deserves his spot, too. Years from now, if our culture continues upon this path, the Joker will still be around, and he won't have changed much. There's no need to upgrade a character that works so well from the start. (Yes, he has changed a bit since his inception, but the course he's been on for quite some time now is the one he'll be staying on as far as I can see.) That's what makes a character like him timeless and a character like, say, Darkhawk a toss-off to be used sparingly at best.

Now if Alan Moore would agree to do a Joker series, I'd be getting that every month without question. Until then, however, I'll take the good stories when they come up and ignore the vast majority of them out of fear they'll be exactly as exploitative as I know they will be.

Steve Ditko Killed Indiana Jones

2010-02-04T20:41:00.000-08:00

When Marvel's The Further Adventures of Indiana Jones came out, I was thrilled. I was a huge fan of the movies, and now there was a comic book.

It wasn't very good.

It wasn't horrible, but the comics lacked the energy of the movies. Some things just don't translate to other mediums well. This was one of those things.

I stuck with the book, but when artist Steve Ditko took over, I found myself reading it simply to ride it out until the end. Ditko's art, which was passable in his younger years, destroyed what little life was left in the book.

Look at it. That's one of the better pages.

Ditko's art was ... freaky. Eyes were too wide. People were in strange poses. Nothing looked right. His run lasted less than 10 issues if I remember correctly, but one issue was too much.

Dark Horse picked up the license years later, but my view of the comic was so skewed that I pretty much stayed away from it. People told me it was a fine read, but the horror that was Ditko burned itself into my psyche, and there was no way I was going to destroy the Indie comic memory even more. Hell, if the Dark Horse comics were bad it could ruin my movie and novel memories, too, through some sort of weird cultural spillover.

So now I stay away from all Indiana Jones comic books. It's necessary in order to keep my sanity. And as for Steve Ditko ... I don't want to say he was on some sort of future recall diet drug that caused hallucinations, but Jesus his art was bad.

Cover Review: ACG's Halloween Horror

2010-01-23T18:47:00.000-08:00

You have to hand it to ACG: This cover is creepy.

ACG's Halloween Horror came out in 1998, though this cover reminds me of something from the late 1960s or '70s. The witch-like person, possible Klansmen, and a cowering captive/cave dweller/hobo practically demand you read this issue. Hell, if I would've have seen it on the rack I would have got it instead of whatever other garbage I was reading at the time.

As most of my readers and friends (not a big crossover group) know, I'm a big horror fan. Horror comics are part of that. Essential to the horror comic reading experience is the cover. Most of my cover reviews rip apart a cover for failing to do its job (get a reader to pick up the issue). ACG hits it out of the ballpark here. This cover is, quite frankly, disturbing. Though it looks like an old block print, the inclusion of the Klan-like element makes it a bit more modern, but also lends it a hint of discomfort (much like that infamous EC cover). I don't know if the Klan is involved in the story, but the picture is enough to case the association.

Brilliant.

Tales of Terror: The Fate of EC Archives

2010-01-09T09:09:00.000-08:00

Gemstone, as many know, is no longer putting out the incredible EC Archives. All hope is not lost, though, as Russ Cochran's latest newsletter, which details a brush with death, states that while a new publisher has yet to be picked, he is confident it will happen soon. God, I hope so.

The EC Archives line was set to be the best thing to happen to comics since Jim Shooter left Marvel. They were going to be the definitive reprints of some the most influential comic books of all time. George Lucas, Steven Spielberg, Stephen King, George Romero and many others got inspiration from these fantastic and sordid tales. To have the series just disappear would be a crime of the highest degree.

I have very few of the original issues, as my budget doesn't allow me to collect them on an easy basis, so the series was my way of getting to read all those stories at a decent price. There was care given to the art and coloring, and the introductions were fascinating. Hell, those stories stand the test of time and many can still be considered edgy today.

I would hope Dark Horse would get the license, as I know that company will probably do a fine job with it. Here's to hoping. And if it falls through ... well, I can always hope to win the lottery.

Cover Review: The Rifleman #10

2009-12-25T19:39:00.000-08:00

Oh shit, what can't you say about this cover? I mean, it speaks for itself. It's the kind of thing NAMBLA members go ape shit over. Granted, I'm sure it was an innocent mistake. The Rifleman is a wholesome comic. It was made to appeal to young boys ... and apparently work as a recruiting tool for aging homosexual cowboys. "You see, son, how that boy is holding that log? Let me show you how I want my wood handled."

Where were the concerned parents over this one? Screw EC. This stuff is scary. The only thing that could make it worse is if the kid had milkshake residue dripping down his chin and the cover blurb said, "Holding this log sure made me thirsty, but I'm satisfied now!"

And just what is this "mysterious bag" that holds a "secret"? Jesus, one guess to that one. "That, son, that's my man bag." The threat isn't the bag, either. It's the log in this kid's hands and the knowing smile from Mr. Connors. I guess if I were into young boys I'd be pretty happy about this, too.

What did kids at the time think when they saw this cover? Did pedophiles see the title and cover and think, "Finally! A comic for me!"? Did any fans of the comic question this? I've got plenty of questions myself, and I've never read the damn thing. My main question is: Whatever happened to that boy?

Yeah, this cover is a failure ... unless it was going for the creepy child molester crowd. If that is the case -- job well done, Dell.

Punishment

2009-12-11T06:45:00.000-08:00

Marvel has a real knack for fucking up characters. Whether it's exploiting Wolverine or ruining a classic character like Spider-Man, Marvel has proved time and time again that it can take a decent concept and run it through the wringer all while thinking the outcome was a great idea.

Enter Punisher.

He's been a vigilante ... and that's what he needs to stay. In DC's hands he probably would keep to his role. In Marvel's miserable, miserly mitts, however, he's been an angel, black and a Frankenstein-style creation. What. The. Fuck?

What the powers-that-ruin don't understand at Marvel is that Punisher works best when he's either in his own little world, untouched by the usual Marvel universe fodder, or he's on the outskirts of the Marvel universe. Granted, many of the stories he's been in while in vigilante mode have sucked (that taxi war storyline is a great example), but at least he's true to character. When he's donning tubes, forehead wards, or a "black" nose he's no longer Punisher. He's a cartoon creation. A roadrunner to the criminal coyote. In other words: He's a joke.

Money, obviously, drives Marvel's desire to screw with the character. What Marvel fails to remember, however, is that what really drives up sales for the long term is solid writing with a character that stays true to its roots.

Marvel has done this from time to time and has enjoyed success. It needs to stick with that plan, though. No more gimmicks (and that's all those things are). Readers see through them, and some, like myself, are resentful. Solid stories. Solid characters. No cartoons.

Save that shit for Wolverine.

Not to be Sold to Minors ... Or Anyone Else

2009-11-21T14:44:00.001-08:00

It used to be that comic books were thought as a child's medium. These days it's fortunate if you can get anyone to remember they exist. Because some comic books used to be geared to children, the entire industry was lumped into that. If it had sequential illustrations and used word balloons to convey dialogue, it was for children.

Comic book readers know that just was not the case. And these days, comics that aren't meant for children are the norm, and a child's comic is as rare as an unbiased Fox newscast.

I have no problem with comic books geared to children. I also have have no problem with comic books meant to appeal to adults. What I do have an issue with is people who think adult comics (whether or not they are porn or just have a more complex storyline) should not exist. Having worked in a few different comic book stores, I have encountered those people (often parents, not very often comic book readers).

These unenlightened souls would come into the store and pick up a comic book that looked like it appealed to them -- an adult. As soon as they saw it was for an adult (which is why they picked it up in the first place), they would put it back and say, "They shouldn't sell these things to kids or anyone else." I would have to correct them and state that we don't sell them to kids, but it would be pointless to argue. The mature-subject matter book that appealed to them because they were an adult should not be made for adults or anyone else, and that was that.

It always pained me to see those people with children. It made me wonder what they were teaching those kids.

When I worked the stores in various capacities, I was careful as to what I sold. Comic book store owners and employees often find themselves to be targets to zealots looking to burn a cross or two on the medium's lawn. I never had any incidents where angry parents came back demanding a refund because I sold their sixteen-year-old a Preacher issue, but it was always at the back of my mind.

When a person decided to get into a more in-depth discussion with me about why those comic books should not exist, I was quick to point out that there were novels meant for adults and novels meant for children, but nobody was arguing that adult novels shouldn't exist. Somehow they never got it. Comic books, they said, are different.

No. They are not.

Comic books are an equally valuable entertainment and artistic choice. They enlighten, amuse and educate. To say that comics geared to adults should not be published is akin to saying you don't want to be challenged by any sort of artistic medium. The statement is a badge of ignorance, and far too many adults wear it with pride.

And want to know the kicker? Even if a child had somehow become exposed to a comic book meant for an adult, guess what would happen? Nothing. Absolutely nothing. Yes, there would be questions. It's a parents job to answer those things whether or not you are ready to. But I have never seen anything in any adult comic book that would either scar a child for life or flat out destroy them.

Adults are sometimes bigger children than the children they are supposed to support. It's a frightening thought, but that was just your average day in the comic book store.

Cover Review: The Elongated Man #3

2009-11-17T06:28:00.001-08:00

What does it say about a mini-series when your title character is in the background? To me it says, "lack of confidence." The fact that the cover, like all the covers in this series, is done as a mock postcard, too, which can work every once in a while, but for all four issues? No.

The Elongated Man has always been a pointless DC character. Not much has made him stand out (though Identity Crisis made him tolerable). This cover is part of that problem. Nothing about it screams "must read" or even "fun." Yeah, it looks like it might be amusing, but also that it is instantly forgettable and not very important in the grand scheme of things. The pun, "From Bad to Wurst," is also a groaner -- again like the character.

All four issues of this series had covers that failed to catch anyone's attention. If you are one of three Elongated Man fans, you probably were overwhelmed at the possibilities of this series, and probably also really enjoyed the covers. You may also enjoy watching paint dry and old sitcoms on TV Land.

The rest of us are left wishing this character would have never been created in the first place.

This Die Hard May be Dead

2009-11-14T19:24:00.000-08:00

As I write this, "What's The Frequency, Kenneth?" is playing. You may remember the R.E.M. song. The more astute among you will remember it as something that was asked of Dan Rather before being attacked by a random thug. (Or was it more than one?) The phrase is cryptic at best. Pointless at the very least. It's much like the new Die Hard Year One comic book series.

I got the first two issues of this series for two reasons: the movies and the writer, Howard Chaykin. Both have had some misses in their respective careers, but overall tend to be entertaining.

The verdict is still out on whether this will be a hit or miss, but with two issues read so far I kind of think it will be the latter.

Spotty art, less than authentic dialogue, and a storyline that is going somewhere but taking its time getting there. Those are the first impressions of these two issues. Honestly, it doesn't even feel like Chaykin's behind the wheel, and the Bruce Willis-marine-turned-cop could be any cop. He doesn't have the feel of McClane. Granted, this is his first year as a cop, but McClane is a strong enough personality that some of that would appear in his first year in the uniform. Instead, we're given generic cops and stereotypical cops. Generic wives and stereotypical husbands. In fact, it all feels so generic and stereotypical.

I'll stick with it to see how it plays out. I'm not expecting big things. By this point I'm not expecting anything if truth be told. I am perplexed, however. Why did anyone green light this story? Is it the Die Hard franchise or Chaykin's name that sold it? One had to do it, so why not utilize it?

As I finish this up, Scritti Politti is playing. "Perfect Way." Does anyone remember this band? Does anyone care about this song? Exactly. The Die Hard Year One comic book is bound to end up the same way if it continues on this instantly forgettable path.

Annoying Store Owner

2009-11-11T10:42:00.000-08:00

Michael Tierney, owner of Collector's Edition in Arkansas, is a man who has always annoyed me. His Trendwatcher write-ups in the ever-shrinking Comics Buyer's Guide and letters in the same place have made him seem like a reluctant moral crusader who is out to protect children from upsetting comic books (which is, when it gets down to it, the parent's job). Granted, since parents are lazy and since comic books have a bad history when it comes to "harmful matter" and children, some may see Tierney's advice and wisdom as a blessing. I differ.

In the December 2009 issue of Comics Buyer's Guide Tierney is once again featured in the CBG Trendwatchers section. Apparently he was profiled by his "state" newspaper. This brought him all kinds of publicity, which is great for a store owner. What really filled his heart with wholesome glee, however, was the parents.

"Most gratifying were all the parents," he wrote, "who came in to thank me for my efforts to provide them better content information. I felt like The Hulk on the cover of Incredible Hulk #279, where he's carried on the shoulders of a cheering crowd." I think that swelled head makes him more like the Leader, but I'll grant him his small victory. After all, he is in Arkansas and those people probably need someone to tell them what is safe to read.

When I managed Comic Castle I often had parents asking me what was "safe" for their children. I would give recommendations, but only after saying something like, "Well, I don't know your child, or even how mature he or she is. I can recommend some titles and tell you why I recommend them, but you need to look at what I'm recommending before you buy it because you know your child better than I do."

Parents seemed to appreciate that, and I had parents turn down Uncanny X-Men but at the same time pick up The Filth. (The mother who did that said she did so because the violence in the Marvel title seemed exploitive and there for no other reason then that's what heroes did, while the Vertigo title at least had a story with substance behind it. Interesting, as I enjoyed both titles.) I didn't feel like a crusader or hero, though. I was just doing my damn job. Tierney, it seems, likes his role as a moral barometer, and based on the recommendations he often gives, I would say he's knows what's safe if only because he is very familiar with boring.

I have never stepped foot in either of the man's stores, and probably never will. If the man runs his shops like I think he does, you will find nothing all that thought provoking or even erotic. It's his store. He doesn't have to stock those kinds of titles. They exist, however, and some comic book fans like them. Again, he may stock those types of things, but I strongly suspect that Vertigo and a few indie titles are about as thought provoking as he gets. (I doubt he ever carried Skinheads in Love, for example, but I could be wrong.)

Thanks for keeping America's children safe, Mr. Tierney. All the mouth-breathing parents sure appreciate it.

Cover Review: Daredevil #36

2009-10-04T09:37:00.001-07:00

I'm a huge fan of the Daredevil character. No secret there. The above issue is #36 in his original Marvel series. As you can see, twelve cents was it all it took for about twenty minutes of entertainment. My how times have changed.

This is a mediocre Daredevil cover, and this series had plenty of those. Gene Colan, an artist I've never really liked because he makes everyone look a little deformed, did the pencils and Paul Reinman went crazy on the inks. The result is a cover that could've been really good, but instead looks unkempt.

The use of the single light to spotlight the unconscious Daredevil is a great touch. Looking at the man's face who is holding him, however, gives the reader the sense this guy just came across our hero. He doesn't look like the type who could take down the Man Without Fear. In fact, he looks a little mentally disabled. If that was supposed to give readers a sense of danger, it didn't work. If it was to get us to question what was going on -- mission accomplished.

"The name of the game is ... MAYHEM!" reads the cover blurb. Is mayhem what is going on, or is it the name of the man who is holding Daredevil's limp body? Good questions again, and one can only hope the former is true because this guy looks to be light years away from Mayhem. Maybe it's that goofy outfit which makes him look like he should be a figure on a futuristic playing card from Bicycle. ("I got the Joker, and he's wild!") It leads to questions, and since I think Daredevil readers tend to demand a little more from their comic book stories, this is a good thing.

With all respect to Colan, too, this is one of his more reserved works. Nobody's collar is flying out of control, no coats are whipping around, lips aren't distorted, no hair is askew. Daredevil's limp, outstretched hand seems to be pleading for our help, too, which is a great ploy on Colan's behalf. It gives the reader a stake in the outcome of the tale. Regular readers can't help put to pick it up. First time readers may just be curious enough to see what is going on. It will not, however, attract a reader who has never had a desire to read the title before.

This isn't the worst Daredevil cover ever done. Nor is it the best. It kind of matches what often happens with this title. When it's good, it's really good. Otherwise, it just tends to sit there until a capable writer (like Frank Miller, Brian Michael Bendis or Ed Brubaker) comes along.

Woe is Me

2009-10-03T14:51:00.000-07:00

I recently finished Essential Silver Surfer Vol. 1, which a co-worker gave me, and I can't say I'm impressed. First some thoughts on the Essentials line.

The idea behind the Essentials books is a good one. They are the size of phone books and reprint a whole lot of issues (which would usually cost a small fortune to get individually) for around $16.99. A great price for that big of a book. The only problem is that they are in black and white. I have no problem with black and white comics, but I do have a problem with reprinting comics in black and white that were originally meant to be in color. It loses something. It's like making a color movie black and white or even colorizing a black and white film.

That rant is over.

The Silver Surfer is not a character I ever really cared about. He was fine guest-starring in stories, and that '90s Ron Lim series wasn't too terrible, but overall he's always been a whiner. Shedding a tear (literally) over his lost love and the cruelty of humanity. I always looked at him as what Marvel considered to be its Jesus figure (when in reality that is my favorite hero, Daredevil). The Surfer was a mass of twisted, poorly handled contradictions (he won't steal from Reed Richards, but has no problem stealing from a bank in the same issue) when his first solo series first started, and to solidify that Jesus angle, a recurring villain was none other than Mephisto.

I've kind of like Mephisto in the Marvel Universe. Face it, he just looks cool. And his mission when it comes to Surfer is to get him to give up his soul. Pretty straightforward. Could make for engaging reading with another hero and a better writer's hands. (Oddly enough, later in the Surfer series they both end up donning the same disguise to blend in with humans: trench coat and hat.) In these first 18 issues (and on Fantastic Four annual) the red one (though you wouldn't be able to discern that from the Essentials book) makes several appearances, none of which are truly memorable (though him getting Surfer to attack SHIELD was pretty cool).

Surfer is such a whiner, however, that I kept wishing every villain he went up against, whether it be Yetis or the U.S. Army, would tear him in half. His constant sorrow is not only depressing, but it actually serves as a reminder that while pathos can work well for some, on Surfer it is about as appealing as it was with Kurt Cobain. One just wishes Surfer would have checked out the same way.

In these first 18 issues, humanity is shown as the beast it is. I agree with Stan Lee's depiction. What I don't agree with is how humans treat Surfer, and how Surfer reacts to that. Humanity wouldn't hate Surfer because he was different or misunderstood. It would hate him because here he is, essentially a god, and all he can do is lament. He has the Cosmic Power, which enables him to heal the sick and wounded (except when it really counts), and all he can do is think about how he wishes humans would understand him. I get the fact that he is trapped far away from the woman he loves, but he seems incapable of moving beyond that. Why even venture to Earth then? Especially after the first time humans attack him? Why not just stay in space? I know it's because the writers need to write stories, but it makes the Surfer come across as a pathetic idiot who doesn't learn from his mistakes. I would attack him, too, especially when he refused to reduce the attackers to steaming puddles of bubbling flesh.

Before reading these stories I didn't understand the Surfer's appeal. After reading them, however, I think I got it. Surfer appeals to armchair intellectuals who thought they were deep in the 1960s because they smoked pot, read some philosophy and still were into pop culture enough to read highbrow comics like Silver Surfer. They thought they were special because they could somehow misinterpret the Kronstadt rebellion and find imaginary parallels to the Surfer's plight on planet Earth. They'd drop acid and then proclaim that real revolutionaries read of the Surfer's exploits and "the Man" and his apologists stuck to capitalist drivel like Detective Comics. Every adult over 40 I've ever met who likes the Surfer has kind of fallen into that category, and they haven't changed. "Surfer is deep, man. He, like, points out all our problems and shows us what is wrong with the world ... and he surfs ... the sky!"

Silver Surfer is a baby with a bazooka. He knows not what he can do. Thank God I was only given the first volume.

Marvel Zombies

2009-09-21T06:49:00.000-07:00

I am a fan of horror movies, as anyone who has read my other blog, The Last Picture Blog, can attest to. I also like zombie films. When it comes to comics, I do enjoy the horror ones, especially EC and, of all things, Charlton's horror lines from the days of yore. I do not, however, read the current crop of horror and, most notably, zombie comics.

I don't know why I don't read these titles like Walking Dead, which has gotten all kinds of acclaim. I've never given them a chance, and I really have no desire to. It's not that I don't think they're any good. In fact, the one I did read, the first Marvel Zombies series, was actually quite enjoyable. It did not make me want to pick up the other series in that line, and nor did it get to me to explore other titles. So why the hesitation to read these?

I'm picky when it comes to new titles (not that these are new now, but if I didn't get them when they started it is doubtful I will pick them up now). I'm also very random. When the zombie books first started getting big, I was doubtful of whether or not they would last. I didn't want to start a series that would be around five months and end without a formal conclusion. Therefore, I avoided them. When it was obvious they weren't going anywhere, it was already too late. I stayed away despite my friends telling me how good these books were (and some amazing covers). The Marvel book I did read was fine, but it also came across as a novelty with no real bearing in the Marvel Universe (why this should matter is obvious -- I'm also big on continuity). It was a big What-If that made me ask, "What if it mattered?"

In the future I may pick up the back issues of various series on the cheap (when I no longer have to worry about car repairs, plane tickets and the like). There are great deals to be had on eBay, but I really have enough to read now at the moment (nine short boxes or so). Until then, I've got the films. At least I know those won't end halfway through.

DC Entertainment Marvels at Disney

2009-09-14T06:48:00.000-07:00

First came the entire Disney buys Marvel, and now Warner Bros. has decided to tighten up control on DC Comics (to be known as DC Entertainment). And while nobody knows exactly how all this will play out, I am starting to fear the worse.

If you're reading this blog, chances are you a comic book fan. If you are a comic book fan you know that comic books just aren't selling like they used to. Disney and Warner Bros. are not ignorant to this fact. This is where things start to get sketchy.

Disney and Warner Bros. want these properties (characters) to make them money. There is money there to be made, as successful video games and movies have shown. What hasn't been making money is comic books. If I were the head of either project I would have some tough decisions to make. The people going to the movies and buying the video games aren't buying the comic books in the same numbers, which makes me wonder: Why are the comics necessary?

We fans know why we love them, but if there is money to be gained and a company can cut out something that isn't making a profit -- why not? People going to see an Avengers movie won't care if there isn't an Avengers related comic book out there (and there is plenty of material to keep in reprints). Screenwriters have shown they are more than capable of turning out a good comic book movie using only the skeleton of the comic books. So why not cut out the comic books -- the least profitable part of the chain?

A friend of mine pointed out that comic books are cheap R&D for the companies -- testing what works and doesn't. I'm not so sure I agree with that, but I can see the logic in it. And then there's the fact that comic book movies are probably going to end up more like Westerns, eventually dying out only to appear a decade or so later.

Having corporate fingers in artistic pies (and comic books still have not become total entertainment despite how it feels -- but it is close) never produces good results. Best case scenario is the comics keep going (if not being available in more outlets), and the companies do everything to turn those other fans into comic book fans. Worst case scenario the companies end that which is not making a profit and leaves it up to "better minds" to exploit these characters for all they are worth.

I'm keeping my fingers crossed, but I don't have much hope.

Cover Review: Defenders #51

2009-09-10T20:48:00.000-07:00

For some strange reason I remember The Defenders as having plenty of "floating head" issues. As you can see, this is no exception.

I am a fan of this comic book. I've always like the title in its original form, even though I never thought the characters were the greatest. They just seemed to work well together. Hellcat is my favorite on this cover. Nighthawk, who is being tormented by the Ringer, seems weak. I don't care how many rings there are or who is causing them to float -- rings are weak, and that is not a good way to sell a superhero comic. It's also the reason the Hulk isn't pictured in the rings. (Doctor Strange may have been a good choice because he's a cowardly magician no matter how you cut it. Those gloves! That mustache! Wong!)

To someone unfamiliar with the concept of the book or the heroes therein, they may be fooled into thinking Hellcat and company are gods looking down on the Blue Falcon's brother as he is killed by an American Gladiator. Unfortunately, that is not the comic book here. This actually just screams, "Boredom!" Imagine how that conversation by the comic rack went. "Cool! Look at this issue of The Defenders!"

"Who's the villain?"

"The Ringer."

"Who?"

"The Ringer."

"What's he do?"

"I don't know. Control rings."

"Star Wars out yet?"

This title had far better covers and far better villains. (Elf with gun!) This cover is a failure of Hulk-like proportions.

You Can Tell a Lobo Fan by His Erection

2009-09-07T11:20:00.001-07:00

Guy Richie directing a Lobo movie? Say it ain't so. The guy who used to fuck Madonna? (Well, who hasn't?) A movie about a character only twelve-year-old boys and Insane Clown Posse fans care about? Lobo? Really? Why not The Web or Hourman?

I know people will probably think this is a grand idea, but think about it. It's Lobo. It's Guy Richie. We'll get plenty of zooms and convoluted plot twists, but will it do anything for the character or comic books?

I don't hate Lobo. I just think he's overrated (or was and still is in some minds). I also don't hate Richie. The two together, though, leaves plenty to be desired.

Lobo? Really?

How is this possible? How did Lobo rank a movie? How did anyone think this was a good idea?

I rally about the stupidity of Hollywood on my other blog, The Last Picture Blog. I get how Hollywood works. I understand it. Anything that can make money should. Blah, blah, blah. But Lobo? Is Richie a Lobo fan? Is he fucking some other Hollywood senior citizen? What is going on?

Hate mail can be directed at me. I'll take it. I stand behind my initial shock, though. Who knows? It could be a great movie. I doubt it, though. I like Richie's movies enough, but he is not suited to this role. Want to give him something he may be able to pull off? 100 Bullets.

You fuckers know I'm right.

Disney Buys Marvel

2009-08-31T11:34:00.001-07:00

Celebrity Watchdog George Anthony Watson traced me to my home. The phone call coming from official government lines. This was news. Big news. Disney bought Marvel to the tune of $4 billion and stocks.

Punisher vs. Donald Duck. Spider-Man teaming up with Mickey. Pluto and Lockjaw fight Magneto and that turncoat Pooh. Oh, the humanity.

What this means is that Disney will now be bringing all those wonderful Marvel characters you know and love like Squirrel Girl and Speedball to its theme parks, television networks and its new line of marital aids. What this means for the tone of Marvel's books is uncertain, but Marvel was never cutting edge like Vertigo or a host of other independent publishers anyway, so I doubt it will have much impact on storylines. It could mean more comic book exposure, or even the demise of a publishing empire -- with Disney instead focusing on established characters and licensing. (Seems doubtful, but you never know.)

Marvel has been an enigma to me for many years. I don't understand some of the moves it makes, and it often seemed very anti-retailer. There is huge potential there, however, for more stuff like the Iron Man movie. Disney, which has had the market on the young girl demographic almost completely now, saw its potential and has now put itself in position to grab the male audience before it turns to Maxim. Or so it thinks. Most Marvel readers, though, are men over the age of 20, so what good this will do Disney is yet unknown, but knowing the company it saw dollar signs and little else.

The coming months should prove to be interesting, though I don't know what this means for the comics world because any major blow to one of the big two could spell disaster for the entire art form.

Red Haired Sex Goddess With A Sword

2009-08-19T07:30:00.003-07:00

As a young man who liked Conan, Marvel's Red Sonja was, well, mind blowing. She was basically Conan with long red hair, breasts and a vagina. It's easy to see why she appealed to male comic book readers. But why, in this era of bad ass female heroes and villains, does she still have appeal?

There are Red Sonja books still being published. I haven't read any of the new ones, and I haven't even read many of the Marvel ones. I don't think the Marvel series was a huge seller when it came out, but I could be wrong. I do know, however, that the character remains popular because of what she represents.

Red Sonja is sex holding a sword. Her armor, what little of it there is, protects those parts of her body that make her female and nothing else. The rest is bare skin. The fact that she isn't covered in scars says she's not only good offensively in a fight, but defensively as well. The parts of her body armored against attacks from blades tells readers that her femininity is firmly in place, but the rest says she's all male. Even her name evokes masculinity. Red is primarily a male's name, despite it being used to describe her hair here.

There is a theory out there that says much of genre fiction aimed at young males just experiencing their first sexual desires often features a female in the lead role that has a masculine role. She's still a woman, but is seen in a traditional male light. This, the theory goes, is to let young boys who are starting to get interested in the opposite sex get those desires while at the same time appealing to the latent homosexuality in many males and/or the "girls are yucky" remnants. A perfect example of this is Jamie Lee Curtis' character in Halloween.

Red Sonja's exaggerated sexuality is matched only by the exaggerated violence. It lets boys take interest in a female without seeming "gay" to their friends (though if you believe the theory, it is almost the exact opposite). She is "safe" reading for boys who just discovered masturbation.

Today's fans of Red have far more characters to choose from. They don't have to read her adventures. So what makes her special? Dominance, perhaps. Being unique in her genre may be another reason. She's been around for decades, and she's maintained her name in a genre not exactly none for strong female leads. It could be that, deep down, these readers subconsciously respect the power of the female.

Or they could just be waiting for her top to fall off. Either way, she's still around and probably will be thirty years from now. As long as the stories don't get old, she should be just fine.

Google Gets In On The Act

2009-08-12T22:57:00.001-07:00

The more astute among you may have noticed that Google now offers comic themes for its website. You can choose from things like Vertigo, the Incredible Hulk and Daniel Clowes (which I use). It's nice to see something as big as Google (I know a few people who use the search engine) acknowledge the world of comic books. The themes themselves are fairly unobtrusive, too, which makes the idea all the more pleasant.

The themes listed are kind of across the board, too, which shows that someone somewhere knows what he or she is doing. There are the ones you would expect (mainstream heroes) and then there is stuff like Jim Woodring. Oddly enough, Spider-Woman is also one of them (no complaints here, either).

My hat is off to Google on this one. It's important to note when the mainstream does comic books right, and this is one time where the respect for the medium is obvious and done so well that you can't help but want to see all the themes. (I think I'll be changing to that Spider-Woman one soon.)

Cover Review: Domination Factor -- Fantastic Four #2.3

2009-08-10T22:56:00.000-07:00

Wow. Just the awkward title of this issue makes me want to stay away from it. (And what the hell is up with the numbering system? Decimal points do not make for a fun comic book experience.) Why would I want to read it? Maybe because I'm a fan of the Fantastic Four? Maybe because I was collecting this series? Well, if I wasn't collecting it, I wouldn't want to buy it. If I was, however, a fan of the FF, the fact that the Human Torch was turning tail would not do wonders to my excitement factor. It just seems unlikely, so that's not fooling anyone.

The cover itself looks to be one of those that was inspired by Jack Kirby. Mr. Fantastic is wrapped around the monster so much that it actually looks like he is its outfit. That's just creepy, and the art just isn't dynamic. What is the Thing actually doing? Is he going to pummel someone? It looks as if he isn't even trying.

I will say that I like the word balloon, though. I miss those on covers. I just wish this said something better, something more believable. Perhaps, "Take off, Johnny, and bring back reinforcements! We can't take this beast down alone!" That would at least seem plausible.

Truly a crappy title and cover. What was Marvel thinking?

Modern Gods

2009-08-05T23:06:00.001-07:00

You can kind of guess that anyone who would devote a blog to comic books has some kind of love of the medium. I'm not a late comer to the art form. In fact, I've been reading comic books since I was old enough to remember. I used to store them in a huge box that I would pull out from under my bed and spend rainy summer days laying out on the floor and reading. Ghost Rider, Daredevil, Justice League of America, Batman, Uncanny X-Men, Star Wars, Amazing Spider-Man, Beyond the Grave, Scary Tales, and many more. Some of the ones still in my collection still have the spine rolls to prove it.

As a kid, my favorite titles were in the superhero and horror genres. I still enjoy those. To me, superheroes are our modern mythology. The Greeks had their gods. We have Superman, Wolverine and Nova. But even more than being mythology, they teach us lessons.

Morals, values and mores are learned through various sources. You've got family, church, school and popular culture (which probably makes quite a few people uncomfortable). Comic books -- especially superhero comics -- teach those things. Superman teaches us about truth. Batman teaches determination. Wolverine teaches rugged individualism (an American quality). Spider-Man teaches responsibility. Or at least they used to. Some of the core lessons are now absent from these books, and that's okay. As their readership changed (and it has), the stories had to keep up with it (and they have). Frank Miller's take on Batman couldn't have happened in the Sixties. The Watchmen may have been based on older characters, but the story was quite modern for the time. The medium has evolved with the times and readership, and I wouldn't have it any other way ... despite its potential isolation of younger readers.

Books like the late great 100 Bullets or Preacher had their own value systems. Readers could easily see the sometimes time end road of revenge or revisit with the importance of truth and the value of friendship, or they could just read some really cool stories and never touch upon their deeper meanings. That's the beauty of how this medium, which is a bridge between books and movies, has evolved. No longer just the realm of children and teens, this art now appeals to adults and the stories prove it.

There are, however, readers who wish the medium would return to the past with simpler stories that were much more black and white. I think there is a place for both nostalgic type tales and more modern ones, but the former's audience is bound to be smaller. It's also highly doubtful that those stories would bring in any new readers, and that is a problem.

For years, people have been questioning the viability of the comic book medium. Some say it is here to stay. Others say trade paperbacks will be all you can get. Still others say both will be gone. I tend to think the future will be much like it is now, with both the traditional comic book and trade paperbacks co-existing. It's obvious that the comic book format is a feeder to trade paperbacks (and that is also somewhat annoying), but I don't think that's worth worrying about.

I'd like to think that twenty years from now some kid will be pulling a big box out from under his bed and start paging through a 22 page “booklet” featuring his favorite hero teaming up with the Hulk. The rain will be falling outside, some old sitcom playing on the television in the background. He won't hear it, though, because he'll be absorbed in the adventure he's reading. That's how I was, and that memory, along with a love of comic books, has stayed with me to this day.

The Most Under Used Character: Wolverine

2009-07-30T22:30:00.001-07:00

Most of you probably detected the sarcasm in this blog post title. Wolverine, simply put, is the most exploited character Marvel's got. It wasn't always this way.

Those of you old enough to remember recall a time when Wolverine wasn't associated with every fucking book Marvel published. You remember when he was just a funny-looking, short guy with a bad costume that made no sense. He started out in the Incredible Hulk book, and then continued in the Uncanny X-Men.
He wasn't the star of his own solo series. He did not co-star in every single book on the planet. There was one X title, and he was in it. There were no origin stories.

Simpler times.

There was a mini-series that came out. It was pretty decent and fairly well received. That series, which featured a great scene with a bear, was not the start of the overkill. I think, however, the excellent Kitty Pryde and Wolverine mini-series was ground zero for Marvel's merry mutant. It was the moment the light bulb went off and Marvel fully realized what a cash cow it had.

The mini-series was good. It came out of an era when the mini-series meant something. The character of Kitty Pryde changed forever. Wolverine went on to co-star/cameo in any new series, any series that needed a sales boost, and any series with a mutant in it. This, of course, led to his own series which had bad ideas (Madripoor) and brilliant ones (like when he was an enemy of the state). He became a member of the Fantastic Four along with Punisher and Ghost Rider. (Someone should have been shot over that one.) He was the image Marvel used when money was needed and was needed quickly. All of this only served to take a hero who was once mysterious and interesting and make him pedestrian and a bit of a joke.

Wolverine isn't my favorite X-Men. That would be Nightcrawler. I do think, however, that he has plenty of potential in him. I wish the origin would have never had been written, but I can understand the mindset behind it. I know he draws readers in, and I know many of them have been disappointed with the stories. Marvel would do well by relegating him back onto co-star status, though. Make him mysterious again. Make him a character worth reading instead of the joke he has become.

Stolen

2009-07-22T22:56:00.001-07:00

Okay, not really stolen, but borrowed. A friend of mine has gotten a gig with The Press Democrat and is doing a comic blog there called "Four Colors." He liked my name and did his own take on it. (I'm far more negative them him.) I'm proud of the guy, and it's good to see comic books get exposure on more mainstream sites.

Way to go Trevor.

You can all find the link to the side of the posts in The Batcave.

Cover Review: Uncanny X-Men #258 Marvel Legends Reprint

2009-07-17T07:25:00.001-07:00

I imagine if you're already buying a Marvel Legends toy you are familiar with the X-Men. This cover would not make me a fan, however.

Psylocke is featured. You either love her or hate her. This image doesn't really portray her as the bad ass she can be. Instead, it's a little overly sexualized (which is something she always was), but also makes the comic seem like it's meant to appeal either to boys who haven't had the courage to talk to girls yet, or girls with power fantasies. Nothing wrong with either, but it doesn't represent the X-Men.

The background images fade into the background and if you stop looking at the cover for more than sixty seconds you end up forgetting about them. You do remember that "Not for Resale" blurb, as it breaks up the overall theme of the piece, but is apparently necessary (and often ignored).

Uncanny X-Men have had some terrific covers. Many are iconic and are featured on many top cover lists. This will never make those lists as it is as forgettable as it is boring.

Marvel's Star Wars

2009-07-11T00:09:00.001-07:00

If you were a Star Wars fan and a comic book fan in the late 1970s and early 1980s, you knew of and most likely read Marvel's Star Wars comic. Three annuals, 107 issues and the four-issue adaptation of Return of the Jedi, Marvel's series was the only fix fans had outside the movies and lame television specials. There were the novelizations, three Han Solo novels, three Lando Calrissian novels, and Alan Dean Foster's Splinter of the Mind's Eye (later adapted by Dark Horse), but the comic books felt right (even when they were oh-so-wrong).

Marvel gets some jabs now for the series. Jabba the Hutt in those early issues? Hideous. Jax? What were they thinking? But there were some great moments, too, like Boba Fett surviving his fate ... the first time. The hunt for Han Solo. The new Sith Lord. For me, the comic books kept the movies alive. Hell, it was one of two titles I first subscribed to. (And I never got that last issue, and it took me years to find. Thanks, Marvel, you bastard.) Getting it every month in the mail was just about as exciting as seeing The Empire Strikes Back. I never knew what I'd expect, but I knew it would be enjoyable.

I still read some of the Dark Horse titles today, but they don't feel the same. Sure, I like them, but that sense of wonder is gone. Perhaps its due to all the novels and video games. Maybe it's because the new films took some of that joy away. Looking back at my old Marvel comics, though, brings those old feelings right back. There are some great covers, stories, characters. Jo Duffy was my favorite writer. Solo my favorite character. Even Luke was a pleasure to read.

Purists balk at much of the comic's content, rightly claiming that the Dark Horse series is canon and maintains a much more even interpretation of the mythos. That's fairly true. After all, are there any fans who want to see those little furry creatures called Lahsbees show up in novel after novel, but who among us didn't thrill to see Solo try to save Boba Fett?

Marvel, as mentioned earlier, takes some good-natured ribbing over the series, but all of that criticism is also tempered with love. Any fan old enough to have read that series loved it. It was all we had, and we ate it up. We can joke about some of the strange and utterly crappy alien races the creators wrote stories around, but we didn't care then. We accepted it and had a good time reading it. It, like the movies, was fun ... and isn't that what you want out of a comic book series?

Sarah Palin -- Comic Book Hero

2009-07-05T23:06:00.001-07:00

Few female politicians have been honored with a comic book. Now, I haven't read this one and see no real reason to, as I am not a fan of the woman, but I imagine it's a toss-off job that reads exactly as one would expect it to. What I have discovered is that Palin (the real one, not the one competently drawn on this cover) is actually a composite of female heroes and villains.

First and foremost, Palin is as nutty as one of my favorite female characters -- Scarlet Witch. In fact, I can easily picture her whispering, "No more democrats." Poof! All but a handful are left. (If that every becomes the case, I hope the Kennedy Klan is not Left Behind.)

Palin's glasses also bring to mind Oracle. Put Palin in a wheelchair (please!), give her a headset and a Macbook Pro, and that bitch be laying down some important info to Limbaugh.

Overall, Palin's demeanor reminds me of the Goblin Queen. Can't you see her with a chalice ordering people (most likely her neighbors the Russians) captured and brought to her realm? I can, and it scares me.

I cannot prove any of this, but I think her dropping out of politics has everything to do with her wanting to put on tights (beware the camel toe, guvner) so she can fight crime in style. I picture her in some overpriced, yet modest get up (think Power Girl without the circle exposing her cleavage) that features yellow as its primary color with a red cape and thigh-high black boots. "She's dropping jaws and criminals! She's Alaskan Avenger! Defender of truth and pipelines. Advocate for victims and special needs children. She not only proves that crime doesn't pay, but that it can be painful. She's Alaskan Avenger! Friend to the downtrodden. Pal to the poor. And if you mention you vote democrat ... well, she'll help you, too! Heck, you may need even more help from ... the Alaskan Avenger!"

Either that or she is possibly the target of a much-needed criminal investigation.

More Than Meets The Senses

2009-06-29T06:52:00.001-07:00

I never played with the toys, and I haven't seen either movie, but Marvel's Transformers comic was something I read from time to time. I didn't pick it up monthly like I did with Star Wars, and I didn't enjoy it as much as G.I. Joe, but the book had some sort of appeal to me. I suspect, however, if I cracked open one of my back issues after reading this I would be less than impressed.

I never understood the fanatics when it comes to this franchise. I know a lot of people who love the movies without having been exposed to anything else. I also know plenty of people who can quote episodes of the cartoon. The Transformers comic book, though, seemed different. When talking about the Marvel series, giant robot fans don't seem to get excited about it, though they all agree they were fond of it when they were reading. (I also suspect those people, if honest, would have a different view of it if they read those back issues now). If memory serves me correctly, it was supposed to be a limited series that grew into a series because of a large fan base.

A few years ago comics reintroduced the transforming money makers and comic fans responded kindly. This led to many discussions of the old Marvel series, though I don't recall anyone referencing any storyline, and I realized I couldn't remember one, either.

So what is it about these robots that invokes such passion?

Giant robots that destroy things are cool. Giant anythings that destroy things are cool. But these robots are treated like Godzilla in some circles. They are sacrosanct. (I remember one fan being upset that I wouldn't read his Transformers fan fiction. Jesus, why would I do that?) I suppose the Transformers are our Gundam, which also has a feverish fan following in Japan. To me, however, the whole franchise seems kind of lackluster and -- get out the boards and nails -- silly.

I don't begrudge anyone their love of this juggernaut. I like a lot of things that society would deem less than worthy. I'm just saying I don't see the hype. Maybe I'll go dig up some of my old issues and see if I change my mind.

I have my doubts, though.

Whatever Happened to Comic Castle?

2009-06-22T06:08:00.000-07:00

Every once in a while I run into a person I haven't seen in years, someone I remember from my days managing Comic Castle (Eureka, CA), and they want to know what happened to their favorite comic book store. The truth of the matter is that it was sold to the competitor, who has a less-than-stellar reputation. It's also a real basic story. Business wasn't doing well (I had a new job before the store was actually sold), and the owner had to get rid of it fairly fast. The only person he knew who had the money to buy it so quickly was the competition, which now runs it out of his role-playing game store. By all accounts it's just not the same.

I ran into one of those people this weekend. I don't remember his name, but he remembered me, and he asked about the store. He knew it was running out of a new location, but since he refuses to enter that store, he didn't know what had happened. When I explained it to him the best I could (and I do my best to not let my feelings into it), he said he was sad it had to happen, but wished it could've been anyone else who bought it. After it closed, he said, he stopped buying comics.

I mentioned to him that I go through SciFi Genre for my comic needs, as well as eBay, and that there were some pretty cool things happening these days. I mentioned Secret Invasion, the end of 100 Bullets, the Final Crisis, new Conan series and so on. He seemed interested and expressed that his only connection with comic books these days were his back issues and whatever Hollywood was dishing out. Still, he would not go to Comic Castle's new location because it was a matter of trust.

I totally understand that. It's the same reason I and several others won't go there. Some longstanding customers have decided to give the new owner their business, and that's fine, too (though I hear several complaints from them and have to wonder why they continue to give him their hard-earned dough). When it comes to comic books, there is loyalty and there is addiction. Sometimes it's hard to find a balance.

I don't think I'll ever step foot in the new location. My greatest fear is that I'll need supplies and won't be able to get them through my usual channels or whatever reason. So far, however, that has not been an issue.

Before the old customer and I parted ways he asked, "Do you think we'll ever get another store?"

There had been talk of that. I don't think anything ever came of it. "I don't know," I said, "but if you ever decide to do it, look me up. I'll be happy to lend my knowledge to it."

Then we were done. I hope another store comes into the area some day. Competition is a good thing, and I actually miss going into a store and seeing what new items are out. If I had the money, I'd do it. In the meantime there's still SciFi Genre.

Thoughts On The Punisher

2009-06-06T18:06:00.000-07:00

9/11. New York. Punisher's stomping ground. Under the Marvel Knights imprint, The Punisher issue six was to see light around two months after 9/11, a fact noted by the comic's writer, Garth Ennis. Ennis and artist Steve Dillon (who also teamed up on the incredible Preacher series, one of the best stories of all time) made this issue an examination of the Big Apple's spirit, and since it was written well before 9/11, it does not focus on that event.

In this issue the Punisher is hunting a man he knows, a man he served with in Vietnam, a man who has killed his own family. Punisher wants him before the cops get him, and we all know why. Throughout this, though, the character of the city, its nature, its mores are ruminated on. It seems like the City That Never Sleeps is also the City That Doesn't Care, a fact brought home in the issue's final panel. Frank Castle, the Punisher, as we expect, gets his guy. That was never in doubt. What was in doubt was his reaction to it and his reasoning beyond the norm. Yeah, Punisher kills the guilty, but here he shows heart (though some may say I'm being morbid about that).

Marvel Knights stories were supposed to be grittier than the standard Marvel fare, and they were for the most part. This issue is no different. What is different that the people involved in it decided that since 9/11 was still in everyone's minds (and would not be gone for some time), they would have to comment on it on the text page. They realize they do a comic filled with over-the-top violence, and now America has experienced that up close. What do you do? Apologize for it? Brush the comic off as mere entertainment? Ignore it? No. You do what they did here. You write about it. You don't apologize for a violent comic book (the comic book did not cause 9/11 or even the mentality behind it). As artists, which is what comic creators are, their job is to create, comment, and examine. Ennis and Dillon do that here. What they didn't know when they created the story is that their take on New York would somehow become even more meaningful (or damning, depending on your worldview) in light of the terrorist attacks.

The Punisher has never been known as a subtle character, this tale being an exception. Those who haven't ever read his adventures, however, probably will never understand his appeal. His fans know that he is justice without apology, swift and sure. It is something a lot of people wish would happen more in this world. They also understand why it can't. This tale, which opens with a tragic homeless man begging for money as people do their best to pretend he doesn't exist, shows why Punisher fans are right in claiming him as their own. Those who don't get it, won't have their minds changed by it, though. There is nothing in it that will turn on that bulb in their heads. The end, however meaningful it is, will be seen as nothing but violence.

That, too, mirrors the outcome of 9/11, in a way that could have never been predicted. Violence meets violence. One act not really understood at anything other than a base level. The other done for what is looked at as humane reasons. Terrorist attack. War. Unlike the end of this tale, however, the war that ensued has not reached any kind of emotional conclusion. There hasn't been a moment that brings the story full circle. The war hasn't end, but the tale has. My guess is that by the time this war does end, the conclusion of this Punisher story will be far more heartfelt and honest than anything that could possibly transpire overseas.

Cover Review: Blowjob #10

2009-05-24T20:52:00.000-07:00

This cover is one of the better Blowjob covers. While the comic series was full of hit or miss moments,the covers were mostly misses. This one, however, stands out, and it does so because of what it doesn't show.

Most comic book stores would not put this comic out in the open, so the covers weren't necessarily used to draw readers, and the publisher, Eros, had to know that. Therefore the covers should have been artistic. Most of them were just plain bad and weren't all that graphic. (It was almost as if the publisher was afraid to be graphic on the cover.) While they weren't graphic, they were suggestive. This one is suggestive in all the right ways.

First of all, this cover puts the viewer in the role of the guy getting the hummer. That's always a good position to be in no matter what you are doing. And while the thong is tasteful, I could do without the blond hair (just my personal preference). The cover says a lot. Any guy would know what is going on without seeing the comic's title. The title, however, when mixed with the cover art lets the reader know exactly what kind of stories they are going to get.

Other covers in the comic series had females with milk splashed on them, glory hole shots (which was one of the most terrifying covers on a comic I have ever seen), and generally juvenile moments. This one stands out because it is tasteful, subtle (for the series) and erotic. In fact, I'd bet most females wouldn't have a problem with this cover, either, as it is erotically done.

Beware The Architects!

2009-05-21T19:41:00.000-07:00

The Doctor 13 trade paperback Architecture & Morality was loaned to me by a friend who thought I might enjoy it. His taste in comics, while not the same as mine, is close enough for me to take what he says seriously. I thought the concept (obscure DC characters meet Doctor 13 who makes normal skeptics seem too accepting) sounded interesting. When he gave me the book and I saw that Brian Azzarello was the writer, I figured I was in for something good.

Azzarello does one of my favorite comic series, 100 Bullets. I'll admit it can be confusing at times, but I love the characters (especially Lono), and the story keeps me interested. His name on a book is a plus for me. Then there's the artist.

The artwork is by Cliff Chiang. I don't really care for his work one way or another (he seems like a poor man's Mike Allred), but here it really fits the story, and in hindsight may be the best part of the book.

If you couldn't guess by that last paragraph, I wasn't super impressed. It's not that I hated it. I was just expecting more. The concept is sound. The characters obscure enough to make it interesting, and the final act was a clever take on what has been going on not only in the DC universe, but comics as a whole. Azzarello is making a statement here (one I can't really give away without ruining things), and it is a bold one, but his message is tempered by a story that doesn't quite live up to what he's trying to say. Yes, it was cool to see Infectious Lass, but Doctor 13 bothered the hell out of me.

When you get to the end of the story and you realize what Azzarello is trying to say, you will either agree with him or disagree. Your stance kind of mirrors what you think about comics today. Are you a purist, a realist, or just along for the ride? Azzarello makes you question that, and for that I applaud him. I just wish it would've been ... better.

Ironically, considering the story, I think Grant Morrison could've pulled this off better. Azzarello, as proven with 100 Bullets, is at his best when he is doing something gritty, violent and vile. This book is none of those things. He's holding back and that feels forced, which is usually the opposite complaint when it comes to writers.

I like this book's art, message and the attempt to actually make a statement with it. I respect that and appreciate it. In the end, however, I think the effort kind of falls flat. The points it raises are fine and worthy of debate, the way they are raised fails to impress, and that's an assertion even Doctor 13 could believe in.

Supernatural Is Embararssing

2009-05-19T19:53:00.000-07:00

A woman with whom I work had a secret. She tried to hide it. Made remarks that I'd think she was "weird." (I really like this woman, and there are few things she could do to make me say that.) She slipped something into her desk and said, "You'd make fun of me for my comic books."

This woman had no idea I liked comics.

After I assured her that was not the case, I asked to see what she had. She produced two Supernatural trade paperbacks from Wildstorm.

I'm not a fan of the show. Have never seen it, actually. I do know it has a large fan base, and this woman was one of them. She explained, as if I had no concept of a trade paperback, that the books were originally single issues of comics, but these books collected them.

I actually found it pretty neat.

This woman is a bit older than me (I'm 38), and she was kind of proud of what she was reading, despite the fact that she hid it from me.

I wish American culture was more like Japanese culture insomuch that comic books were not objects of shame, but widely accepted forms of entertainment and literature. That's starting to change somewhat and probably will be the norm in another ten to twenty years, but I wish it were now. I wish adults could read something like Preacher in public without having to explain. Granted, there are those who would say their special little books were no longer so special since everyone liked them, but it's not punk rock -- it's fucking comic books! They're meant to appeal to the masses. Hence the popularity of Supernatural and its translation to comic book form.

When I read the Lady Snowblood books in public I often had to explain. The cover color scheme had people asking me if it had anything to do with Kill Bill, and that leads to more explanation. I don't hide my entertainment/artistic choices in shame, however. I feel like it's my duty to be ambassador for things I like. If I don't do it, who will?

The woman was pretty damn excited about her purchases. She was going to take them home and devour them, most likely in one sitting. And I hope she caught an ad or two in the back of the book for other books that looked intriguing ... though it's Wildstorm, so you can't get your hopes too high.

Cover Review: Alpha Flight #110

2009-05-16T16:33:00.001-07:00

One word comes to mind when looking at this 1992 cover: typical. Typical bland art and typical bland team shot. Everyone has a glint of evil, which is fine, but all the evil comes out in their eyes because all the eyes pretty much look the same.

I dislike boring covers. This cover would never get me to pick up the book. Alpha Flight was never a favorite of mine, and this cover would not have changed anything. Did anyone pick up this book because of the cover? Does it tell you anything about what is going on inside? What makes it stand out on the stand? Nothing. The colors are unappealing, the characters generic. And in 1992 every other cover had the same vibe, same art style. While it house an excellent story, the art tells potential readers to stay away unless they want more of the same.

Back when this series first started, the covers were something that were talked about. Remember the one that was almost all white? The one with all the rods? The one with Wolverine about to go nuts? Those were good covers, exciting covers. They were covers that made you want to at least look inside the issue. This cover does the exact opposite. By all accounts, the series was horrible at this time, and this cover presents no hope for the story inside. Pat Broderick was the artist behind it. The art lover in me says he should be shot. The comic fan in me thinks he should have been banned from ever doing another cover. The human in me wishes he would have picked another career. I wonder what he is doing now?

I hope it's not working on any new covers.

Moonstone

2009-05-08T21:05:00.000-07:00

Moonstone. When I first came across her she was fighting the Hulk. I don't remember much more than that, and I haven't kept up on her adventures with the Thunderbolts, but I've always been interested in the character.

First there's this costume. I can't put my finger on why it works, but it does. Especially with the hair. If the hair were any other color it wouldn't work. The entire thing looks almost alien. Kree, perhaps?

I don't remember much about her powers or origin. Actually, I'm not even sure I ever knew her origin. All I remember is that she looked cool, gave the Hulk a run for his money, and had something about her that has stuck with me all these years.

Of course, Moonstone could be a lot like my "love" of the TV show "Get A Life." I remember thinking that show was great, and then years after it went off the air I ended up getting home copies of every episode from a guy. You know what? The show sucked. I couldn't figure out what I liked about it in the first place, and maybe that's why I haven't been too keen to read much with Moonstone in it. I know Daredevil will always be good, and so will Batman. Those characters change, but the core is solid. Moonstone? I didn't know her that well in the first place, so maturity may have tarnished my decidedly sketchy memories.

Either way, the costume's still cool.

Scary Tales#18 -- A Cover Review

2009-05-07T23:19:00.001-07:00

Forgive me, Lord, but I have a soft spot for Charlton Comics, and while Scary Tales was not one of my favorite series, it was sometimes enjoyable.

This cover, however, is not.

Comic book covers have to catch your eye. They have to grab you and not let go. To stand out from the other comics on the rack/shelf, they have to be something special. The cover pictured here is so fucking far from special that I had to wonder what someone was thinking.

Not a single thing about this cover says, "Buy me!" Especially not to some kid. You got some chap telling these weird looking people that this moment wasn't in the script. I don't have this issue of the comic, so I can't even tell you if this is in the comic script, but I would hope not.

At what point does this cover say it may be scary? Because the four misfits are advancing in a semi-threatening manner? Because they look funny? Because there is a weird, out-of-time pop art feel to part of it? Beats the holy hell out of me. If I was a kid enountering this issue I would have stayed the hell away.

Charlton was never known for quality, but this is substandard even by that company's ... well, standards. Honestly, it feels like the publisher didn't want anyone buying this issue. "Let's make the cover as bland as humanly possible. It's the choice between this one and the black cover. Black says too 'arty.' Let's go with this one."

Come to think of it, the first issue's cover wasn't much better, either.

Archers

2009-05-04T19:52:00.001-07:00

My friend and I have this common fondness for archer superheroes. We both are fans of Hawkeye and Green Arrow. I don't know where his love of these characters came from, but I think I've pinpointed mine.

I used to use a bow to hunt. Due to that, I had to do a lot of target practice with the weapon. There is something methodical and primitive about pulling back the string, aiming, holding steady and then letting go. I never killed anything with the bow, and I have long since given up hunting, but that bloodlust remains.

These archer characters have something a lot of other heroes lack: realism. Superman could never happen. Wolverine is a myth. But Hawkeye and Green Arrow are (essentially) guys with bows fighting crime. Granted, they do some amazing things, and well know most of those trick arrows would never fly straight, but at their core these are just guys in suits with a weapon that is by all standards fairly archaic. (How many armies use bows and arrows these days? None. They all died.) Going into a fight against Ultron with only a bow and superhuman aim takes guts. That is why these characters appeal to me.

Hawkeye, in my opinion, was at his best leading the West Coast Avengers. For some reason I thought he always worked better as a team player, even though he always felt like an outsider there. I think of Green Arrow in the exact opposite way. In a team he tends to get overshadowed by just about everyone else. His solo series from Kevin Smith, who later left it, was pretty damn good despite some art that took a little getting used to.

I never cared too much about characters with big guns. I am more attracted to the ones who seem more honest, more real. Daredevil, Batman, Hawkeye, Green Arrow, Silver Surfer (that one is a joke). Their characters, when written properly, give the story something a Cyclops story can never have. A feeling of realistic urgency. Yes, comic books are largely about escape, but an escape based in reality is a far more therapeutic escape than one based in fantasy. And that works for me any day.

Discovering Nightcrawler

2009-04-26T22:42:00.000-07:00

I don't even think I have this issue of Amazing Spider-Man anymore, but this is the one that made me appreciate Nightcrawler. I don't remember much about the story, either, other than the Punisher was involved and someone on that rollercoaster got shot (and of course there were a few fights along the way). If I had an issue of Uncanny X-Men with the fuzzy elf in it, I don't remember, as it was this story that made him my favorite X-Man.

I don't have a deep answer as to why Nightcrawler is my favorite mutant. It's not that he's a great, interesting character, and nor are his powers that impressive. No, my reasons were much more base.

I just really liked the way he looked.

Nightcrawler is a hero, yet he looks kind of evil. Sharp teeth. Blue, fuzzy skin. A tail. Three fingers and toes. Those eyes. He looks like a demon, which is often mentioned when people reference him.

The second X-Men film got his powers down pretty good, but thoroughly fucked up the look with that scarification. He no longer looked all that scary to me. Instead, he looked kind of goofy, though I know a lot of people liked his character. I can't complain about anything other than the look when it comes to his movie character, though, because most everything else was done right.

Later on, as I read more storylines showcasing him, I became more appreciative of the character's flaws, inner-strength and faith. My focus shifted from looks to actual character, and I ended up liking him even more. Of all the X-Men he is probably the most actualized.

The first Nightcrawler limited series was a bust. His solo series that came out a few years ago wasn't garbage, but it wasn't so hot, either. He remains, however, far more interesting than Wolverine, Cyclops, Emma Frost or Deadpool. Or at least that's my opinion. Wolverine may get all the attention, but Nightcrawler will always be the number one mutant to me.

Intoductions ...

2009-04-19T20:09:00.000-07:00

All right, this is like blog number five or so that I'm doing, and this one will be dedicated to comic books/graphic novels and the like. I'm a fan of almost all the comic book publishers (even Image, though that wasn't always the case) and like everything from superheroes to indie stuff. Enjoy.