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Post by Roquefort Raider on Jul 7, 2022 6:17:23 GMT -5
You don't have to beat Galactus as such. You just have to stop him from devouring your planet. Likewise, Dormammu. All you need to do is trap him in his own dimension. If the writer can figure out new and interesting ways to accomplish those things then the stories are viable. So basically treat them like Mr. Mxyzptlk without the derby... "Sutcalag" is easier to pronounce than Kltpzyxm, to be sure.
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Post by mistermets on Jul 7, 2022 10:13:11 GMT -5
Nine years ago, in a discussion about the Composite Superman on the Captain Comics site, I touched on this topic. I coined the term "the Galactus Syndrome". You know what I mean. The first time Galactus appeared, he had the Fantastic Four shaking down to the soles of their black booties. It was only through the Watcher's intervention and a genuine sweat-pumps-on-line tactic by Mr. Fantastic that enabled the Earth to survive the experience. The F.F. knew they had gotten lucky. Real lucky. Then, Galactus appears, again. And the F.F. manage to stave him off a second time. O.K., we'll buy that; it was a good enough plot to do so. But when the Big G kept returning and kept getting beaten away, then you have to start wondering just how all-powerful a threat is he, really? At the least, there's no longer that spine-freezing sense of "oh %$#@# we're screwed!" whenever he pops up. By contrast, the Composite Superman showed up only twice (in the Silver Age), and neither time did Superman and Batman actually beat him; rather, they simply managed to keep from getting killed by him. This maintained the C.S.'s cachet as a truly foreboding threat. No doubt Our Two Favorite Heroes felt a chill down their spines whenever they got reminded of him. That's how you maintain the mystique of a near-unbeatable foe. The hero doesn't defeat him---he just manages to survive the encounter. That's pretty much how they handled Galactus first time. I wonder how much of this is based on how people read the comics. If someone reads ten years worth of comics, Composite Superman will be special because he only appears twice and those stories are good. But if you stick around for a few years, you don't realize all the times that the Fantastic Four have defeated Galactus and Doctor Doom. This gets to be a bit different when Marvel starts publishing more reprints.
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Post by Prince Hal on Jul 7, 2022 10:57:30 GMT -5
By the time Marvel got it revved up in the mid-60s, it was clear that a good many readers were no longer observing the Weisinger Rule that the fan base essentially turned over every four or five years, but that didn't stop Stan and company from Dr. Doom in particular got quite the workout anyway. Doom appeared on at least a dozen FF covers in the first 86 issues plus annuals (unofficial count) alone; a few of those were one part of a two-part story, so he showed up in another few issues as well. A quick count shows him appearing 38 times between his introduction and late 1970. That's a lot for a supposed unrivalled threat to world peace, etc. DC did this many eons later with the Joker, even turning every title for a month or something into a Joker title, right? I only knw this from a distance, so correct me if I'm wrong. PS: As for Galactus, didn't he eventually wind up in a therapy/counseling session with Thor? Like Hitler showing up for a Dr. Phil intervention. (That's right, Galan, we must first admit we have a problem. What a breakthrough...)
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Post by mistermets on Jul 7, 2022 11:55:53 GMT -5
By the time Marvel got it revved up in the mid-60s, it was clear that a good many readers were no longer observing the Weisinger Rule that the fan base essentially turned over every four or five years, but that didn't stop Stan and company from Dr. Doom in particular got quite the workout anyway. Doom appeared on at least a dozen FF covers in the first 86 issues plus annuals (unofficial count) alone; a few of those were one part of a two-part story, so he showed up in another few issues as well. A quick count shows him appearing 38 times between his introduction and late 1970. That's a lot for a supposed unrivalled threat to world peace, etc. DC did this many eons later with the Joker, even turning every title for a month or something into a Joker title, right? I only knw this from a distance, so correct me if I'm wrong. PS: As for Galactus, didn't he eventually wind up in a therapy/counseling session with Thor? Like Hitler showing up for a Dr. Phil intervention. (That's right, Galan, we must first admit we have a problem. What a breakthrough...) When there's a recurring foe, the best approach might be some kind of way to keep them around the title, like how Loki is a standard Asgardian, Lex Luthor is a business leader, and Wilson Fisk claims to be a standard businessman. The confrontations with the protagonist will still be a big deal, but there isn't the expectation that the bad guy will go to jail at the end of each appearance. If anything, it makes them look tougher because other authorities aren't letting the hero take them out. There is the question of what to do next when it all comes to a head, when Lex Luthor is exposed as a madman or Loki does something that obviously goes too far. Although in that case, it's likely best for the villain to disappear for a few years.
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Post by Roquefort Raider on Jul 7, 2022 14:59:10 GMT -5
(That's right, Galan, we must first admit we have a problem. What a breakthrough...)
Ah, yes, that infamous meeting...
"Speaketh, Galactus! As an envoy of my heavenly sire, I would fain learn of thy origins!"
"I was a normal man transformed by radiation."
"Oh... Forsooth, I be somewhat disappointed."
At least they didn't slug it out.
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Post by Prince Hal on Jul 7, 2022 15:21:54 GMT -5
(That's right, Galan, we must first admit we have a problem. What a breakthrough...)
Ah, yes, that infamous meeting...
"Speaketh, Galactus! As an envoy of my heavenly sire, I would fain learn of thy origins!"
"I was a normal man transformed by radiation."
"Oh... Forsooth, I be somewhat disappointed."
At least they didn't slug it out.
And Thor didn’t say “Doth it appear that from the turnip cart I have tumbled of late?”
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Post by berkley on Jul 9, 2022 22:57:01 GMT -5
I think the best thing would be to out them on a strict diet and a high-intensity fitness program, you'd soon see results. And then - oh, sorry, never mind. I thought this was the 'How do you maintain the physique of a "nothing's uneatable" schmoe' thread.
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