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Post by Slam_Bradley on Apr 8, 2021 9:18:20 GMT -5
My only problem with Sienkiewicz's run is that it's too short. It's too short and he didn't have a decent writer.
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Post by Slam_Bradley on Apr 8, 2021 10:21:44 GMT -5
Working on a re-read of Scalped. There's a lot to like here, but it's hard to get past the fact that Jason Aaron, and by extension the characters in the book, don't understand the Double Jeopardy Clause of the U.S. Constitution. And that really effects the over-arching plot.
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Post by Farrar on Apr 8, 2021 16:19:44 GMT -5
Been making my way through Jim Shooter's run on the Legion of Super-Heroes and got to Adventure Comics #359-360 tonight. ... Up until now, the series has been pretty tame. Sure, Ferro Lad died saving the universe, but most of what followed has been pretty run of the mill, even if the sheer imagination of the very Legion concept still kept it readable, but this two parter (that's right -- a two parter in 1967!) really turned the tables, with the Legion suddenly branded as villains and, after finding it impossible to comply with the authorities who clearly have it out for them for unknown reasons, launch an insurrection against the establishment, even going so far as to kidnap the president. It's INSANE and very well done for the time period. I really got into this one and hope I can count on Shooter to bring more of this in the twenty issues he has left on this run. Two-parters were a natural for a series like the Legion with its large cast. IMO it's part of what made the Legion series in Adventure stand out among other DC mags of the time. Previous two-parters included #335-6 (Starfinger); #340-1 (Computo); #344-5 (Super Stalag of Space); #346-7 (Shooter's first); #350-1 (ENB and Weisinger try to remake the Legion, only to have to redo the remake on the last page of #351's story); #352-3 (Death of Ferro Lad); #354-5 (Adult Legion). #359 was the first time all of the then-active Legionnaires appeared in the same story. It was very appealing to me as a young reader to see all these colorfully-costumed characters in one mag!
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Post by Hoosier X on Apr 10, 2021 9:46:25 GMT -5
I finished the Super-Villain War in Iron Man #68 to #81 yesterday. I love it as much as ever! Especially the MODOK issues. I read this very early on as a comic book collector and (along with Hulk #168), it was my first exposure to MODOK. What a nut!
It’s a bit anticlimactic. Firebrand steps in at the last minute and wins the Black Lama’s stupid globe. Then they all go to another dimension for two issues, an alternate reality where Grand Rapids is its own separate kingdom!
Overall, it reminds me how much I adore Roxie Gilbert. If I was writing Iron Man, I’d bring back Roxie Gilbert so fast.
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Post by Hoosier X on Apr 10, 2021 9:51:18 GMT -5
And I’m still reading Spider-Man. I’m up to #54, where Aunt May rents a spare bedroom to Doctor Octopus. It’s hilarious! You have to keep an eye on Aunt May every second! She is a menace to society!
I wish this set-up had lasted a little longer. So much potential for Silver Age silliness. But Peter shows up and we only get a few panels of May and Otto having tea before the big fight starts.
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Post by profh0011 on Apr 10, 2021 16:46:00 GMT -5
I had no idea at the time, but ASM #56 was the last time that John Romita did full pencils (barring the odd occasion here and there). After that, he was doing story, layouts & re-inking faces while Don Heck & Mike Esposito did the pencils & inks (in my view, a TOTAL WASTE of Heck's time and talent)... followed by a growing list of other in those capacities (Jim Mooney, John Buscema, Gil Kane, Jim Starlin). The romantic soap-opera status quo changed after that, as well, when his boss told him to "have Pete & Gwen get serious". And I NEVER liked Gwen, so, I suppose in my view, the series went to hell right then and never recovered. Anybody who's ever read any of those Doc Ock stories back then and somehow thinks The Green Goblin was Spider-Man's "arch-enemy" has no idea what they're saying.
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Post by Batflunkie on Apr 10, 2021 17:09:24 GMT -5
Anybody who's ever read any of those Doc Ock stories back then and somehow thinks The Green Goblin was Spider-Man's "arch-enemy" has no idea what they're saying. I don't even read or particularly like Spider-Man and I agree with you! But the Green Goblin kind of fits into kind of a "Joker" mold if you watch the Sam Rami film
I also think that Mysterio is incredibly more interesting than the Goblin
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Post by Hoosier X on Apr 10, 2021 18:38:02 GMT -5
Anybody who's ever read any of those Doc Ock stories back then and somehow thinks The Green Goblin was Spider-Man's "arch-enemy" has no idea what they're saying. I don't even read or particularly like Spider-Man and I agree with you! But the Green Goblin kind of fits into kind of a "Joker" mold if you watch the Sam Rami film
I also think that Mysterio is incredibly more interesting than the Goblin
I’m only twelve issues away from that great Mysterio two-parter in, I think, ASM #66 and #67.
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Post by profh0011 on Apr 12, 2021 7:13:18 GMT -5
Somebody once broke down exactly who did what on which issues during Jim Mooney's time on ASM. it got complicated, because it seems it was almost never the same frm issue to issue. Crazy enough, the 2-part Mysterio story actually had Don Heck & Mike Esposito on part 1, but Jim Mooney on part 2!
I've always had a soft spot for "The Madness of Mysterio" 2-parter, because it was adapted (fairly authentically) as one of the 10-minute 3rd season episodes of the cartoon show (with Gray Morrow doing the storyboards). It's also got one of my favorite bits of villain dialogue in it...
"SPIDER-MAN! So soon to face your final Waterloo? Or do you HAVE to rush, because you RENT that corny costume by the HOUR?"
Jim Mooney was one of the "DC" guys, along with Werner Roth, George Tuska & Ross Andru, who did NOT like writing his own stories (and doing the layouts). In the late 60s, it's noticable he only worked with JOHN ROMITA, was was writing the stories. Mooney never did his own layouts at Marvel until he was teamed with the likes of Roy Thomas, Gerry Conway, Len Wein. I much prefer the Romita-Mooney period to Romita-Heck-Esposito, or even Romita-Buscema. Buscema's art always looked good... but something about his visual storytelling always felt "wrong" to me on ASM. Then againb, I heard his heart was just not in the book... and he was outspoken in his hatred for Aunt May.
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Post by tonebone on Apr 12, 2021 17:30:15 GMT -5
His art is the only thing that makes that book worth reading. I adored this run when I read it in my 20s. Then I went back to do a review thread on it a few years back and couldn't believe how much less I enjoyed it. I stopped right before the Sienkiewicz era (which had been my favorite) because I couldn't bear (get it? Bear??) the idea of not liking it as much a second time around. I may still find the courage to give it another shake one of these days... Watch that New Mutants movie (which is the Demon Bear storyline) and you will think the comics are written by Shakespeare, and drawn by Leonardo.
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Confessor
CCF Mod Squad
Not Bucky O'Hare!
Posts: 9,541
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Post by Confessor on Apr 13, 2021 7:02:43 GMT -5
I been casually re-reading the Life and Death of Captain Marvel TPB over the past few weeks. The book collects Iron Man #55, Captain Marvel #25-34, Marvel Fanfare #12, Avengers #125, and the Death of Captain Marvel graphic novel. The regular comic book issues included here, all dating from 1973 and 1974, are some great Bronze Age comics generally, full of daring super-heroics, cosmic concepts, and outlandish costumes. In particular, Drax the Destroyer's costume is just the best... These early 1970s comics are bursting with energy and corny dialogue (in a good way!), with some highly memorable characters, like Thanos, Eon (who grants Mar-vell cosmic awareness), and the aforementioned Drax. As for Mar-Vell himself, I can't say I really took to the character that much; he's kind of bland. At this point in his continuity, Captain Marvel is joined together with Rick Jones by the Nega-Bands, with one or other of them residing in a protective bubble in the Negative Zone, while the other roams our world, depending on who has clanked the Nega-Bands together. For me, I found Rick to be the more interesting character of the two by far, although the whole thing of Rick and Mar-Vell simultaneously inhabiting one body got really wearing after a while. As an adult reader, I could've done without that, but I'm sure it must've appealed to kids at the time, in a similar way to the whole Billy Batson/Shazam thing. Jim Starlin's artwork is mostly great in these issues, but it can be a little uneven at times. Nevertheless, these are some classic '70s space opera comics and, overall, I found them to be much more enjoyable than Starlin's later Adam Warlock comics (which I first read a couple of years back). The Death of Captain Marvel graphic novel, which came out in 1982, is, frankly, quite depressing, but it's also pleasingly poignant. A whole host of Mar-Vell's superhero comrades appear at his bedside to pay their respects, along with an official from the Skrull Empire (Mar-Vell's sworn enemies) who conveys the Empire's respects for their "greatest enemy" -- a powerful moment. Overall, the Death of Captain Marvel is a great send off for the character and is written with great maturity, as Mar-Vell fights his battle against cancer – a fight he cannot win. Killing off a major superhero like this must've been a really big thing for regular readers back in 1982, I guess? Myself, although I was buying Marvel comics fairly regularly back then, I mostly kept to the Spider-Man, Daredevil, and Fantastic Four universes, so Mar-Vell's death passed me by.
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Post by dbutler69 on Apr 13, 2021 7:37:55 GMT -5
I been casually re-reading the Life and Death of Captain Marvel TPB over the past few weeks. The book collects Iron Man #55, Captain Marvel #25-34, Marvel Fanfare #12, Avengers #125, and the Death of Captain Marvel graphic novel. The regular comic book issues included here, all dating from 1973 and 1974, are some great Bronze Age comics generally, full of daring super-heroics, cosmic concepts, and outlandish costumes. In particular, Drax the Destroyer's costume is just the best... These early 1970s comics are bursting with energy and corny dialogue (in a good way!), with some highly memorable characters, like Thanos, Eon (who grants Mar-vell cosmic awareness), and the aforementioned Drax. As for Mar-Vell himself, I can't say I really took to the character that much; he's kind of bland. At this point in his continuity, Captain Marvel is joined together with Rick Jones by the Nega-Bands, with one or other of them residing in a protective bubble in the Negative Zone, while the other roams our world, depending on who has clanked the Nega-Bands together. For me, I found Rick to be the more interesting character of the two by far, although the whole thing of Rick and Mar-Vell simultaneously inhabiting one body got really wearing after a while. As an adult reader, I could've done without that, but I'm sure it must've appealed to kids at the time, in a similar way to the whole Billy Batson/Shazam thing. Jim Starlin's artwork is mostly great in these issues, but it can be a little uneven at times. Nevertheless, these are some classic '70s space opera comics and, overall, I found them to be much more enjoyable than Starlin's later Adam Warlock comics (which I first read a couple of years back). The Death of Captain Marvel graphic novel, which came out in 1982, is, frankly, quite depressing, but it's also pleasingly poignant. A whole host of Mar-Vell's superhero comrades appear at his bedside to pay their respects, along with an official from the Skrull Empire (Mar-Vell's sworn enemies) who conveys the Empire's respects for their "greatest enemy" -- a powerful moment. Overall, the Death of Captain Marvel is a great send off for the character and is written with great maturity, as Mar-Vell fights his battle against cancer – a fight he cannot win. Killing off a major superhero like this must've been a really big thing for regular readers back in 1982, I guess? Myself, although I was buying Marvel comics fairly regularly back then, I mostly kept to the Spider-Man, Daredevil, and Fantastic Four universes, so Mar-Vell's death passed me by. Cool! I'm in the process of reading The Death of Captain Marvel TPB which includes several other Captain Marvel comicsm in addition to the The Death of Captain Marvel graphic novel.
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Post by Hoosier X on Apr 13, 2021 7:39:38 GMT -5
My brother was quite a Captain Marvel fan and he had most of the issues from around #45 to the end (#61, I think). And he also had a lot of back issues. Of course I read them!
He didn’t have the Trial of the Watcher issues! (#38 and #39) I thought that sounded intriguing so I picked up those two issues for myself. It’s a lot of fun! I still have them and I used to read them every year or so. I’m going to have to dig them out and read that storyline again because it’s been a while.
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Post by badwolf on Apr 13, 2021 19:25:44 GMT -5
I just read the second Marvel Universe by John Byrne omnibus. I used to think there was nothing he did that I didn't at least enjoy but man, Star Brand was awful. Loads of metaphysical nonsense that drags. The only amusing bits were the ones with himself and his Marvel colleagues (at one point he explains to Star Brand that his disguise doesn't really hide his identity.) I'm not sure why it was even in this collection, since the New Universe is explicitly not part of the MU.
The book has some great stuff though. Hulk Annual #7 which I read to pieces (well not quite literally) when I was a kid and still love. A bit of Avengers. A Ghost Rider/Daredevil crossover.
And the complete series of Marvel: The Lost Generation, which I never read before. Interesting experiment.
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Post by tonebone on Apr 14, 2021 9:13:58 GMT -5
I just read the second Marvel Universe by John Byrne omnibus. I used to think there was nothing he did that I didn't at least enjoy but man, Star Brand was awful. Loads of metaphysical nonsense that drags. The only amusing bits were the ones with himself and his Marvel colleagues (at one point he explains to Star Brand that his disguise doesn't really hide his identity.) I'm not sure why it was even in this collection, since the New Universe is explicitly not part of the MU. The book has some great stuff though. Hulk Annual #7 which I read to pieces (well not quite literally) when I was a kid and still love. A bit of Avengers. A Ghost Rider/Daredevil crossover. And the complete series of Marvel: The Lost Generation, which I never read before. Interesting experiment. I would love for some enterprising someone to put together a collection of Byrne's Charlton stuff.. Space 1999, Emergency, Doomsday +1, even Wheelie and the Chopper Bunch. A lot of that stuff was pretty good. Well worth a look.
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