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Post by draculafan1 on Aug 13, 2016 15:35:17 GMT -5
I really enjoyed the continuity of Marvel during the 70's and just recently while reading the Essential line it all made sense. It was like a reporter's view from different angles, however it was important that you read them in order. When the cross-overs came on the scene it was a lot harder and that led to confusion for the reader. Clones, Civil wars, Inferno and even Planet Hulk it ended in over-kill.
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Post by Deleted on Aug 14, 2016 2:59:14 GMT -5
Marvel. It's not even close.
DC has the archtypes - Superman and Batman, but for the vast majority of their lives have done nothing worth reading with either of them (particularly Superman). On the other hand, it seems to have an unlimited ability to either make their characters very very boring (Hal GL and Barry Flash - I can't put my finger on why they're so boring, they just are) or to repeatedly shoot themselves in the foot - particularly with repeated and incomprehensible reboots upon reboots which mean (a) I have no idea what of their history actually happened and (b) they don't seem to have either
On the plus side for DC, they have a wider array of properties than superheroes, which they occasionally seem willing to try things with - war books, westerns, vampires, presidents, apes... The books aren't necessarily always good but they're not wall to wall capes and spandex.
On the other hand, for all that they've gone through some terrible periods, Marvel's characters have been fuller, more rounded, more interesting, less silly, more relateable - while certain characters are amped up to stupid heights (eg Wolverine's healing factor), their powers are not generally subject to continual rididulous inflation, whereas DC has a virtually limitless list - Superman towing planets, Batman having ultimate knowledge in every subject under the sun and being able to defeat anyone, Flash being able to run at multiple times the speed of light, which is so far beyond stupid it makes me rage, and which they've had to invent the whole ludicrous edifice of the Speed Force to justify.
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Post by tingramretro on Aug 15, 2016 6:29:40 GMT -5
I really enjoyed the continuity of Marvel during the 70's and just recently while reading the Essential line it all made sense. It was like a reporter's view from different angles, however it was important that you read them in order. When the cross-overs came on the scene it was a lot harder and that led to confusion for the reader. Clones, Civil wars, Inferno and even Planet Hulk it ended in over-kill. I originally read much of the sixties and seventies stuff in the 70s Marvel UK reprint anthology titles, where you were frequently reading material from slightly different eras in the same issue, and it was kind of like being given the pieces to a jigsaw-you had to figure out how it all fitted together, which utimately, it generally did pretty seamlessly. It was fascinating. |
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Post by Deleted on Aug 15, 2016 8:16:25 GMT -5
DC gets my vote--my first exposure to super heroes was Super Friends, the Batman tv show, Wonder Woman tv show, the Superman movies, and of course the comics. I have read lots of Marvel as well, but DC appeals to my nostalgia and reminds me of a very happy childhood. There have been periods where I have read more Marvel than DC and vice versa, but when comics are mentioned, my first thoughts are of DC.
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Post by draculafan1 on Aug 15, 2016 12:18:03 GMT -5
A fellow U.K member! yes that was the way I started reading with the reprints, DC never reprinted other than a few early sixties Batman. They did have the Superheroes line which had such beautiful painted covers but that only lasted for about 12 or so issues. I read them all at the time Pow, Smash, Terrific and Fantastic on to the Mighty World of Marvel and my personal favorite Spider-man comics weekly. Great times plus they were all in black and white.
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Confessor
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Post by Confessor on Aug 15, 2016 16:07:45 GMT -5
A fellow U.K member! yes that was the way I started reading with the reprints, DC never reprinted other than a few early sixties Batman. They did have the Superheroes line which had such beautiful painted covers but that only lasted for about 12 or so issues. I read them all at the time Pow, Smash, Terrific and Fantastic on to the Mighty World of Marvel and my personal favorite Spider-man comics weekly. Great times plus they were all in black and white. There are a few of us UK'ers here, including myself, tingramretro, Simon Garth and Tolworthy. |
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Post by Pól Rua on Aug 16, 2016 3:02:34 GMT -5
(what was that Gulacy thing about the aliens reforming Earth?) Spanner's Galaxy? |
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Post by Deleted on Aug 16, 2016 3:04:51 GMT -5
I think he was thinking of Slash Maraud by Moench and Gulacy. -M |
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Post by tingramretro on Aug 16, 2016 4:19:10 GMT -5
A fellow U.K member! yes that was the way I started reading with the reprints, DC never reprinted other than a few early sixties Batman. They did have the Superheroes line which had such beautiful painted covers but that only lasted for about 12 or so issues. I read them all at the time Pow, Smash, Terrific and Fantastic on to the Mighty World of Marvel and my personal favorite Spider-man comics weekly. Great times plus they were all in black and white. actually ran to 19 issues in total, 12 in volume one and a further 7 in volume two. There were also three Super-Heroes Annuals published from 1981-1983 (dated 1982-84), and two Super-Heroes Presents Superman Spectaculars, as well as Superman and Batman Pocket Books, both of which ran for at least 18 issues. All were published between 1978 and 1983 by Egmont. Later, the Egmont imprint London Editions Magazines published a much more extensive line of DC reprints in the late eighties and early nineties, including Batman Monthly, Superman, DC Action, Heroes, Shockwave and Zones (the last two titles reprinted mature readers material such as Hellblazer and Black Orchid, while Heroes was a weekly aimed at younger readers, featuring reprints of LSH, Blue Devil and The Brave & the Bold). And, of course, there was Super DC, published by Top Sellers back in 1969-70. There have actually been more British DC reprints than a lot of people realise. Follow the link for more info. britishcomics.wikia.com/wiki/DC_Comics_(British_Reprints)And for Marvel UK, britishcomics.wikia.com/wiki/Marvel_UK |
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Post by tingramretro on Aug 16, 2016 4:39:53 GMT -5
Spanner's Galaxy was by Tom Mandrake and Nicola Cuti. It appears to have actually been a part of the DC multiverse after all, since in the 52 series, the words "where is Spanner's Galaxy?" appeared on Rip Hunter's chalkboard. |
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Post by hondobrode on Aug 16, 2016 10:59:42 GMT -5
The point of this is quite the opposite of choosing an allegiance and clinging to it like a "grade schooler." It's to critically evaluate the output of both companies as a whole, putting aside personal preferences and attempting to be objective. A nearly insurmountable task (Intentionally so) designed to provoke good discussion. Are we justifying our personal preferences ? From what viewpoint are we critically evaluating the output ? How good are the stories and / or media interpretations ? Quantitatively speaking, from a sales perspective ? Who was has been better for the market ? Which branding has been most successful ? Name recognition ? |
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Post by shaxper on Aug 16, 2016 11:02:14 GMT -5
The point of this is quite the opposite of choosing an allegiance and clinging to it like a "grade schooler." It's to critically evaluate the output of both companies as a whole, putting aside personal preferences and attempting to be objective. A nearly insurmountable task (Intentionally so) designed to provoke good discussion. Are we justifying our personal preferences ? From what viewpoint are we critically evaluating the output ? How good are the stories and / or media interpretations ? Quantitatively speaking, from a sales perspective ? Who was has been better for the market ? Which branding has been most successful ? Name recognition ? BEFORE YOU ANSWER...
...understand the enormity of the question being asked. You're being asked to evaluate these two companies in their entirety -- the good years AND the bad, the good licensed films and the disasters, the characters and properties you cherish most and the ones you cannot stand. Every editor, every company policy and marketing decision, every innovation and stagnant retread -- the brilliant and the absurd. And we're not necessarily just talking superhero titles either.
Considering the entirety of these two companies' outputs, which would you argue is objectively better
(and not necessarily your favorite!). Are we justifying our personal preferences ? NoFrom what viewpoint are we critically evaluating the output ? How good are the stories and / or media interpretations ? yesQuantitatively speaking, from a sales perspective ? yesWho was has been better for the market ? yesWhich branding has been most successful ? yesName recognition ? yes |
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Post by Ish Kabbible on Aug 16, 2016 13:40:57 GMT -5
I find this poll impossible to answer since both companies have existed for close to 80 years with conditions changing by the decade. it encompasses too much for too long for one answer from me
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Post by dupersuper on Aug 16, 2016 23:26:16 GMT -5
DC has the archtypes - Superman and Batman, but for the vast majority of their lives have done nothing worth reading with either of them (particularly Superman). I could not agree less if you said water is red... |
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Post by Nowhere Man on Aug 17, 2016 0:16:48 GMT -5
I like both DC and Marvel, but I've always cared more about the Marvel Universe as a whole. This doesn't really apply to today (Though I am enjoying Waid's DD, Slott/Allred Silver Surfer and Aaron's Thor on Marvel Unlimited. There are always bright spots.) and mainly covers Marvel circa 1961-1991 in terms of just the comics. I choose Marvel because Marvel and DC have always been about superhero comics first and foremost and I think, overall, Marvel is better at this than DC. They have had better runs when you tally up the score. When it comes to the best creators creating their superhero line: Lee, Kirby, Ditko, Thomas, Buscema, Englehart, Starlin, Claremont, Byrne, Miller, Simonson, etc; I feel they all did their best work at Marvel.
With DC, I find that my favorite interpretations of their two icons, Batman and Superman, come from other media in BTAS and Superman: The Movie respectively. I will say that Marvel has never done anything, from a pure storytelling perspective, on the same level as Watchmen and The Sandman, so I give DC the nod in terms of popularizing "literary" comics to the masses.
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