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Post by Cei-U! on Dec 17, 2023 5:56:30 GMT -5
Characters from animated cartoons have been translated into comics from the earliest days of both mediums. There's nothing special about that. What is unusual is when one of those cartoon-to-comics spawns a character so unique, so memorable, so (dare I say it?) iconic that it rivals and occasionally eclipses the original in popularity. Such is the case with 8. Uncle Scrooge
Debuting in the Donald Duck story “Christmas on Bear Mountain” in 1947, the wealthy but miserly Scrooge McDuck made several more appearances as a supporting player before starring in his own issue of Four Color (#386, 1952), a full-length tale titled “Only a Poor Old Man.” It sold like the proverbial hotcakes and before long Scrooge was given his own quarterly solo title. How popular was Uncle Scrooge? Well, in the late '50s and early '60s, in those months it was released, it replaced the monthly Walt Disney's Comics and Stories as the best-selling comic book in America. (It's been said that both titles sold a million copies an issue in subscriptions alone but that is almost certainly a myth.) All the above-mentioned success was due to the genius of Carl Barks, the cartoonist who worked in Disney-mandated anonymity throughout his career, known to his countless fans only as “the good duck artist.” And it was not enough that he created the wonderfully complex Scrooge, but all the characters and accoutrements that became part of his lore: the huge cubic money bin wherein he ecstatically swam through his heaps of riches; the lucky dime, acquired during the Yukon Gold Rush that started his fortune; the many enemies—the lookalike Beagle Boys, the sorceress Magica DeSpell, his financial rival Flintheart Glomgold—who sought to steal from or otherwise impoverish him. Barks created a world as rich and fraught with possibilities as any super-hero universe, a world that outlived him and continues to delight new generations of fans under the guidance of talents like the great Don Rosa. It is a creative legacy anyone would be justifiably proud of. Cei-U! I summon the miserly mallard! |
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Post by Icctrombone on Dec 17, 2023 6:11:29 GMT -5
I have never in my 62 years read a story containing Uncle Scrooge. I suspect I would hate him the way I hate Dr. Smith and Sheldon on Lost in space and the Big Bang theory , respectively.
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Confessor
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Post by Confessor on Dec 17, 2023 6:19:33 GMT -5
#8 – Jack of Fables (2006–11)  OK, full disclosure here: I've only read the first two TPBs of this series (which collect the first 11 issues) and I last read them so long ago that I have only very hazy memories of them. But I do remember really enjoying this spin-off series. Jack of Fables is written by Bill Willingham, who also wrote the main Fables series, of course. It follows the solo adventures of Jack (of "Little Jack Horner" fame) in the Mundy (human) world after he is banished from Fabletown for breaking several Fable laws in Fables #34. The series follows him as he hitchhikes away from Hollywood into various escapades, with a few million stolen dollars in his suitcase. The art in the issues that I'm familiar with is mostly by Tony Akins, with a little help from Steve Leialoha. It's a pleasing mix of the slightly cartoonish and the highly detailed, which works perfectly in a series such as this. In all honesty, Jack isn't always the most likable character – he's a conman, a womanizing git, and an all-round douche bag -- but he is, at least, an assh*le that you can root for. While Jack of Fables isn't as good as the main Fables series – not by a long shot! – it's still a fun read and well worth checking out if you are a fan of the main series.
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Post by Confessor on Dec 17, 2023 6:22:32 GMT -5
I have never in my 62 years have read a story containing Uncle Scrooge. I suspect I would hate him the way I hate Dr. Smith and Sheldon on Lost in space and the Big Bang theory , respectively. I'm constantly surprised by the amount of love Uncle Scrooge gets in the forum. He's obviously a cherished character to a lot of folks, but it must be very much an American thing, I guess. The character isn't known over here in the UK (though, the main Disney characters like Mickey, Donald, Goofy etc are, of course). |
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Post by EdoBosnar on Dec 17, 2023 7:08:43 GMT -5
I'm constantly surprised by the amount of love Uncle Scrooge gets in the forum. He's obviously a cherished character to a lot of folks, but it must be very much an American thing, I guess. The character isn't known over here in the UK (though, the main Disney characters like Mickey, Donald, Goofy etc are, of course). Yeah, no. Others here are probably more knowledgeable about this, but I can say off the top of my head that Uncle Scrooge is quite popular in a number of European countries like the Netherlands, Denmark, Italy, Spain, etc. In fact, I recall listening to a podcast interview with Don Rosa years ago in which he claimed that the Disney comics, and Scrooge in particular, are more popular outside of the US. |
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Post by EdoBosnar on Dec 17, 2023 7:12:20 GMT -5
8. Ka-Zar(specifically, Ka-Zar the Savage, 34 issues, 1981-1984) Ka-Zar (Kevin Plunder), lord of the Savage Land, first appeared in X-men #10 (1965), then made a number guest appearances in various Marvel comics; in the 1970s he had his own feature in the b&w magazine Savage Tales and in the four-color Astonishing Tales, which led to his first solo series that lasted for 20 issues. Then comes the reason why Ka-Zar is one of my picks: Ka-Zar the Savage, launched in 1981.  (the cover of the first issue I picked up) I had, of course, been familiar with Ka-Zar previously, and just thought of him as a generic Tarzan knock-off, complete with that stilted, noble-savage ‘jungle-man’ way of talking. But not here: the characterization was completely different from what I had seen before. All of a sudden, Ka-Zar is a laid-back, wise-cracking guy. And his girlfriend is Shanna!  (*I decided to just recycle this image that I used a few years back when Ka-zar and Shanna were among my picks for favorite comic-book romance/couples*) I just loved the make-over of his personality done by writer Bruce Jones, and of course, Brent Anderson’s lovely art in those first dozen-plus issues is gorgeous (although the guys who followed were no slouches, either). The only reason I ranked this so low is because I haven’t read any of this since the early/mid-1980s, so I couldn’t give it a thorough reassessment. But once I realized Ka-Zar is eligible for this year’s 12 days challenge, there was no way I wasn't going to include him, because for a time Ka-zar the Savage was simply one of my very favorite comics.
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Post by MWGallaher on Dec 17, 2023 7:41:02 GMT -5
I have never in my 62 years have read a story containing Uncle Scrooge. I suspect I would hate him the way I hate Dr. Smith and Sheldon on Lost in space and the Big Bang theory , respectively. You have a very wrong impression of the character. I suspect that if you in your 63rd year would read some Carl Barks Uncle Scrooge, your reaction would be like mine: "Oh, wow, it's as good as everyone says it is." And with that... 8. Uncle Scrooge, as done by Carl Barks and by Don Rosa Spun of from, well you can read it at the top of this thread. I was much like Icctrombone once upon a time, thinking animated-style Disney comics like this wouldn't be of interest to me, but my favorite comics shop dealer kept pushing the Russ Cochran UNCLE SCROOGE by Carl Barks collection, and I finally bit the bullet. "Oh, wow, it's as good as everyone says it is." This is not as some might assume, a Richie Rich-style humor book about a crazy duck obsessed with money. Yes, obsessed he certainly is, but the character is an ingenious planner, an intrepid adventurer, an impatient, irascible and demanding but genuinely loving uncle, a perhaps-initially-off-putting but ultimately reliable and capable friend and ally. Of all American comic characters derived from animation, I don't think you could find another whose character, personality, and history were as richly developed, consistently portrayed, and genuinely complex as Scrooge McDuck's. Barks' and Rosa's Scrooge stories are as much adventure comics as they are humor comics. As adventure comics, their plots are more engaging and complex than your usual superhero slugfests; as humor comics, a single installment is more genuinely laugh-provoking than the entire collection of, say, the Atlas-era "funny" comics. Every list of "100 American Comics You Must Read", "Best American Comics", whatever broad-range top rankings you can come up, will have Uncle Scrooge up there. If you've never sampled them, you can certainly be excused for any presumptions. If you've read them and said "Nah, not so great", well, I'd be very puzzled. |
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Post by Confessor on Dec 17, 2023 8:13:26 GMT -5
I'm constantly surprised by the amount of love Uncle Scrooge gets in the forum. He's obviously a cherished character to a lot of folks, but it must be very much an American thing, I guess. The character isn't known over here in the UK (though, the main Disney characters like Mickey, Donald, Goofy etc are, of course). Yeah, no. Others here are probably more knowledgeable about this, but I can say off the top of my head that Uncle Scrooge is quite popular in a number of European countries like the Netherlands, Denmark, Italy, Spain, etc. In fact, I recall listening to a podcast interview with Don Rosa years ago in which he claimed that the Disney comics, and Scrooge in particular, are more popular outside of the US. Oh, OK. I stand corrected. I never come across the character as a kid in the '70s and I'm pretty sure I don't know anyone else here in the UK who would recognise the name of the character. The Disney cartoons were very popular over here in Britain, as I say, and I do recall reading comics featuring the likes of Mickey, Goofy, Donald Duck etc, but I don't ever remember reading Uncle Scrooge at all. I mean, I dare say some of his strips must've been published over here, but I don't think they made much impact on the public conciousness. |
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Post by DubipR on Dec 17, 2023 8:21:17 GMT -5
Piledriving your way on the 5th day #8- Whoa, Nellie! (1996) It's no secret that I consider Love and Rockets the greatest comic of all time. I buy any Los Bros Hernandez project in duplicate, sometimes triplicate; comics, trades and hardcovers. In 1993, Jaime's side of Love and Rockets, Chester Square, focuses on a split between Maggie and Hopey as they're trying to find out their lives. Maggie ends up in a fleabag hotel in rural Texas. Finding out, her aunt and legendary women's wrestler Tina Riananon, rescues her and sends to her ladies wrestling camp. There Maggie meets two of her other cousins, Xochitl Nava and Gina Bravo. Trying to figure out her life, Xo and Gina try their best to be the next champs while Maggie reassembles her outcome. Move forward a bit to 1996, and the brothers started putting these little side project comics telling extended stories of their own universes. Jaime, who brought the wonderful world of wrestling and ladies wrestling here with Whoa, Nellie! For those that don't know, that's the famous phrase from legendary sports broadcaster Keith Jackson. Here Jaime tells the story of Xo and Gino working their way up as a tag-team in the Texas division where they finally get a chance to go after the champs. Xo gets sidetracked and wants to be a solo champ, whereas Gina wants to be a tag team with her sister. Battle Royal ensues and WHOA, NELLIE! My love for anything Jaime and Gilbert runs deep. They're the ultimate in comics and storytelling. This 3 issue mini is a great non-stop action packed read.  |
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Post by shaxper on Dec 17, 2023 8:22:27 GMT -5
8. Black Panther in Jungle Action First appeared in: Fantastic Four #52 (1966), and subsequently in the pages of Avengers Spin-Off: Jungle Action (1973) It's hard to top what's already been said about this incredible run. Perhaps I'll just add that, whereas the goal of most spin-offs is to build a new cast of characters surrounding the protagonist that might prove almost as endearing as the original property, Don McGregor ended up giving us some of the most real and complex character and universe building ever seen in comicdom. I may have read the Fantastic Four and Avengers, but McGregor gave me the sense that I'd lived in Wakanda, and he accomplished this over such a brief stretch of issues.
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Post by MRPs_Missives on Dec 17, 2023 8:29:49 GMT -5
The Fifth Day of Christmas: Sing the Song of Red SonjaRed Sonja originally appeared in the pages of Conan the Barbarian and spun off into her own series, first in Marvel Feature, then a few eponymous series with Marvel, a one shot with Cross Plains and several series with Dynamite. Having recently reread all the Marvel stuff, they are NOT my recommended Sonja series. While entertaining, there's just a lot of cringe in those books. Some of the later stuff suffers form that too, but some rise above it. My absolute favorite Sonja series (by Mark Russell) is not yet eligible by date, so I will go with my favorite of the eligible series, and that is the 2013 Red Sonja series by Gail Simone and Walter Geovani (#1-6 were published in 2013), presenting a Red Sonja who is both a strong and a flawed character in a story that managed to avoid some of the cringe factors that lingered in a lot of the Bronze Age Sonja tales. Geovani has returned to Sonja in the current series by Torunn Grobekk (which is also very good) but the Simone/Geovani series was a benchmark by which most modern Sonja is measured.   -M
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Post by commond on Dec 17, 2023 8:57:48 GMT -5
#8 Bob Burden's Original Mysterymen Comics (1999)Spun out of Flaming Carrot Comics   I absolutely love Bob Burden. As far as I'm concerned, he's a national living treasure, and Flaming Carrot is a work of genius that should be inducted into the Smithsonian as a pillar of modern American cartooning. And I'm only half-joking. There is sometimes a perception among comic book fans that there was an "us vs. them" mentality among indie creators in the 80s and 90s. To an extent that was the case when it came to distribution and the business side of comics, but it's important to remember that the majority of the creators were reared on superhero comics. The difference is that instead of doing work-for-hire for Marvel, they created Cerebus, Love and Rockets, and Flaming Carrot. There's no way that Bob Burden could have created such a loving pastiche of superheroes if he hadn't been a fan in his youth. This isn't the nasty deconstruction of a Pat Mills, Rick Veitch or Garth Ennis. These are working class, blue collar superheroes. Strange, weird, second string superheroes with mediocre powers. Right up my alley, and hopefully yours too! And for the record, I've never seen the Bill Stiller film.
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Post by coke & comics on Dec 17, 2023 9:07:08 GMT -5
8. Gotham Central
Gotham Central #1-40, 2002-06, by Ed Brubaker, Greg Rucka, Michael Lark et al.  Before we even properly met Batman, we met Gotham City's Commissioner Gordon. Over the decades we've met other members of the Gotham City Police Department, notably Harvey Bullock and Renee Montoya. This series gave them a chance to take the center stage, with Batman in the background. It had just the right creative team for a police drama. I spent a bit of time on how many Batman spin-offs to have. Ended up with just this one. I also love Brubaker's Catwoman work, particularly the Slam Bradley (the character, not Tim) focused Detective back-ups with Darwyn Cooke. But it missed the cut. I thought about various Robin or Nightwing or Batgirl or Birds of Prey series, but they all fell off. If we didnt have this "classic" rule, the amazing recent Nightwing work by Tom Taylor would certainly be a contender!
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Post by coke & comics on Dec 17, 2023 9:08:37 GMT -5
I have never in my 62 years have read a story containing Uncle Scrooge. I suspect I would hate him the way I hate Dr. Smith and Sheldon on Lost in space and the Big Bang theory , respectively. I'm constantly surprised by the amount of love Uncle Scrooge gets in the forum. He's obviously a cherished character to a lot of folks, but it must be very much an American thing, I guess. The character isn't known over here in the UK (though, the main Disney characters like Mickey, Donald, Goofy etc are, of course). My impression is the comics are bigger in Europe than America. I've been to cons in Germany, Poland, Italy, and found them obsessed with Barks and Rosa. |
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Post by commond on Dec 17, 2023 9:14:35 GMT -5
I mostly know Scrooge from Duck Tales. Did it not air in the UK?
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