Crimebuster
CCF Podcast Guru
Making comics!
Posts: 3,958 
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Post by Crimebuster on Dec 20, 2014 23:17:50 GMT -5
Great pick! I'm a huge Jughead fan. They were really throwing stuff at the wall with this series, trying to find a way to keep Jughead relevant (as if he could ever be anything else). This was the third different paradigm shift in the series by my count - first they tried having Jughead like girls and gave him his own romantic triangle, then they scrapped that and made him into a sk8er boi, and then they scrapped that and tried the baby sister angle. I think it was the most successful of the three.
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Post by cattysquaw on Dec 20, 2014 23:45:49 GMT -5
Great pick! I'm a huge Jughead fan. They were really throwing stuff at the wall with this series, trying to find a way to keep Jughead relevant (as if he could ever be anything else). This was the third different paradigm shift in the series by my count - first they tried having Jughead like girls and gave him his own romantic triangle, then they scrapped that and made him into a sk8er boi, and then they scrapped that and tried the baby sister angle. I think it was the most successful of the three. I agree that it was the most successful of the three, the Sk8er boi one was a little to extreme for jughead I thought. The triangle one was better than the sk8er boi one, a little more plausible for Jughead. I found it interesting that in Life of Archie he ended up with Midge. Did not see that coming. |
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Post by The Captain on Dec 21, 2014 7:29:32 GMT -5
I never made it that far in my reading of that Hellstorm series. I read the first few issues, found them terrible, and never went back. I may have to give some of the later issues a try. Start with #12, when Ellis took over. He did a much better job. |
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Post by JKCarrier on Dec 22, 2014 1:56:00 GMT -5
 6) American Flagg! #1 (1983) In 1983, I was in my senior year of high school, and getting a little bored with a lot of what Marvel and DC were offering. Luckily, I had access to a small but well-stocked comics shop (R.I.P., Phantasy Emporium), and started seeing all these interesting new books from publishers like Eclipse, Pacific, and First. They superficially resembled Big Two books (and often featured Marvel and DC creators), but were told with a little more maturity and a lot more personal style. These were my "gateway books", leading me away from being just a superhero fanboy into the wider world of comics. And none moreso than Howard Chaykin's American Flagg!, stylish, sexy, and smart. Washed-up actor Reuben Flagg finds himself in the unlikely role of a "Plexus Ranger", trying to bring some law and sanity back to a thoroughly-corrupted future Chicago. But Reuben's no saint, and the compromises he makes along the way leave you wondering if he's really all that different than the regime he's trying to topple. Chaykin's layered, complex scripts and densely-packed pages really drove home to me how lazy and dumb a lot of the mainstream fare was. Or maybe I just liked all the girls in garters. |
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Post by berkley on Dec 22, 2014 4:10:43 GMT -5
6) American Flagg! #1 (1983) In 1983, I was in my senior year of high school, and getting a little bored with a lot of what Marvel and DC were offering. Luckily, I had access to a small but well-stocked comics shop (R.I.P., Phantasy Emporium), and started seeing all these interesting new books from publishers like Eclipse, Pacific, and First. They superficially resembled Big Two books (and often featured Marvel and DC creators), but were told with a little more maturity and a lot more personal style. These were my "gateway books", leading me away from being just a superhero fanboy into the wider world of comics. And none moreso than Howard Chaykin's American Flagg!, stylish, sexy, and smart. Washed-up actor Reuben Flagg finds himself in the unlikely role of a "Plexus Ranger", trying to bring some law and sanity back to a thoroughly-corrupted future Chicago. But Reuben's no saint, and the compromises he makes along the way leave you wondering if he's really all that different than the regime he's trying to topple. Chaykin's layered, complex scripts and densely-packed pages really drove home to me how lazy and dumb a lot of the mainstream fare was. Or maybe I just liked all the girls in garters. I read this for the very first time just a month or two ago. I was hugely impressed and of course now wonder how the hell I missed it at the time, as I was already a pretty big Howard Chaykin fan back then from his sporadic work for Marvel and Heavy Metal. I've only read the first story so far, the first 3 issues. I read somewhere that it dropped off a bit after #12, so I'm trying to savour that initial 12-issue run. |
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Post by MWGallaher on Dec 23, 2014 16:51:41 GMT -5
#7. Swamp Thing #1 by Len Wein and Berni Wrightson Swamp Thing...the teasers had been running at the bottoms of DC letters pages for a few months, and I knew I was going to love it. I hadn't read Swampy's original House of Secrets story, all I knew was the intriguing title and the tiny picture. It was monsters that got me into the comic book game, and by golly, this was clearly a monster after my own heart. Swamp Thing #1 did not disappoint me in the slightest. It was beautiful, it was exciting, it was heart-breaking. From the instant I spotted a copy in the Memphis Airport newstand, I was thrilled like I'd never been over a comic book. Even today, its artwork, coloring, and script stands up competitively to the best from mainstream publishers today, I think. Oh, that cover...is that not magnificent? It's like everyone involved with this knew it was something special, and that sense was truly infectious. I' m still a little bit excited by the sight of this cover, looking at it on my screen now. A perfect start to one of my all-time favorites.
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Post by berkley on Dec 23, 2014 17:53:10 GMT -5
#7. Swamp Thing #1 by Len Wein and Berni WrightsonSwamp Thing...the teasers had been running at the bottoms of DC letters pages for a few months, and I knew I was going to love it. I hadn't read Swampy's original House of Secrets story, all I knew was the intriguing title and the tiny picture. It was monsters that got me into the comic book game, and by golly, this was clearly a monster after my own heart. Swamp Thing #1 did not disappoint me in the slightest. It was beautiful, it was exciting, it was heart-breaking. From the instant I spotted a copy in the Memphis Airport newstand, I was thrilled like I'd never been over a comic book. Even today, its artwork, coloring, and script stands up competitively to the best from mainstream publishers today, I think. Oh, that cover...is that not magnificent? It's like everyone involved with this knew it was something special, and that sense was truly infectious. I' m still a little bit excited by the sight of this cover, looking at it on my screen now. A perfect start to one of my all-time favorites. The Wein/Wrightson Swamp Thing #6, "A Clockwork Horror", might make it onto my list. Whether it does or not, glad to see that classic run represented somewhere in this year's 12-Days. |
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Post by benday-dot on Dec 23, 2014 19:33:12 GMT -5
#7. Swamp Thing #1 by Len Wein and Berni WrightsonSwamp Thing...the teasers had been running at the bottoms of DC letters pages for a few months, and I knew I was going to love it. I hadn't read Swampy's original House of Secrets story, all I knew was the intriguing title and the tiny picture. It was monsters that got me into the comic book game, and by golly, this was clearly a monster after my own heart. Swamp Thing #1 did not disappoint me in the slightest. It was beautiful, it was exciting, it was heart-breaking. From the instant I spotted a copy in the Memphis Airport newstand, I was thrilled like I'd never been over a comic book. Even today, its artwork, coloring, and script stands up competitively to the best from mainstream publishers today, I think. Oh, that cover...is that not magnificent? It's like everyone involved with this knew it was something special, and that sense was truly infectious. I' m still a little bit excited by the sight of this cover, looking at it on my screen now. A perfect start to one of my all-time favorites. The Wein/Wrightson Swamp Thing #6, "A Clockwork Horror", might make it onto my list. Whether it does or not, glad to see that classic run represented somewhere in this year's 12-Days. I agree with berk (and of course with Michael's pick). I struggled to find a place for the original Swamp Thing on my list (really Moore's ST belongs there as well), but alas it got squeezed out. Hurray that MWG and berk both think so highly of it. |
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Post by Reptisaurus! on Dec 23, 2014 20:42:38 GMT -5
Kid Colt Outlaw 127 March, 1966  This wasn't a life changing comic, I've got no nostalgic affection - It was one of my dad's comics I got when he died, but it was one of 2-3,000.  Nah, this book is just one that represents how goofy and FUN comics can be. This weird mish-mash of superhero and western comics has the titular outlaw fight a fat dude with boomerangs, a magician who uses magnets (because as any Stan Lee fan knows, magnets can do ANYTHING - and an evil gunslinger with a shockingly Doctor Doom-esque face mask... the CIRCUS OF CRIME! Many Silver Age comics try for the perfect ratio of "goofy" to "exciting" but very few hit the mark... But KC 127 - nicely drawn by Jack Keller and scripted by Roy "The Boy" Thomas - hits both targets dead cenner, offering an exciting and unpredictable adventure enlivened by entertainly lame-zo villains. This is just one of my go-to "enjoyaboe pick me up" comics that always plasters a smile on my face.
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Post by Deleted on Dec 23, 2014 22:14:56 GMT -5
7. Teen Titans #14 "Requiem for a Titan" Cover date April 1968 Script by Bob Haney; art by Nick Cardy This is probably the comic I most wanted to include in my original 2005 list that wound up not making the cut ... & the reason was that I hadn't actually read the comic in decades, & I wouldn't let myself go purely on vague memories from grade school. Besides, there's no way that an issue of the original Teen Titans could be anywhere near as grimly riveting as my memory insisted it was. A year or so later, though, the first Showcase Presents Teen Titans volume showed up, & of course I raced right to the reprint of #14. And damn if it wasn't as funerally gripping nearly 40 years after the fact. This is one I came thisclose to including in my Halloween best-of; I'm pretty sure I could've made a convincing case that it qualified.  |
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Post by thwhtguardian on Dec 23, 2014 22:21:14 GMT -5
7. Teen Titans #14 "Requiem for a Titan" Cover date April 1968 Script by Bob Haney; art by Nick Cardy This is probably the comic I most wanted to include in my original 2005 list that wound up not making the cut ... & the reason was that I hadn't actually read the comic in decades, & I wouldn't let myself go purely on vague memories from grade school. Besides, there's no way that an issue of the original Teen Titans could be anywhere near as grimly riveting as my memory insisted it was. A year or so later, though, the first Showcase Presents Teen Titans volume showed up, & of course I raced right to the reprint of #14. And damn if it wasn't as funerally gripping nearly 40 years after the fact. This is one I came thisclose to including in my Halloween best-of; I'm pretty sure I could've made a convincing case that it qualified. Another great choice! I only recently read that Show Case collection myself and I found that I loved nearly that whole run of Titans work. |
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Post by Deleted on Dec 23, 2014 22:48:49 GMT -5
So did I, & it was a very pleasant surprise, because I'd read only 4 issues or so when they were coming out.
In fact, both volumes are among my favorite Showcases. And of course the B&W format suits Cardy's work wonderfully.
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Post by wildfire2099 on Dec 23, 2014 22:53:45 GMT -5
It's funny, I really just didn't like that issue... though I do like most of that Showcase volume.. I remember when I posted some thoughts on it as I was reading it Dan commented he did like it, but I didn't know it was THAT much...crazy stuff.
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Post by berkley on Dec 24, 2014 0:46:12 GMT -5
The Wein/Wrightson Swamp Thing #6, "A Clockwork Horror", might make it onto my list. Whether it does or not, glad to see that classic run represented somewhere in this year's 12-Days. I agree with berk (and of course with Michael's pick). I struggled to find a place for the original Swamp Thing on my list (really Moore's ST belongs there as well), but alas it got squeezed out. Hurray that MWG and berk both think so highly of it. This reminds me that I hope we have a thread later on for honourable mentions or near-misses from our individual lists. Re Dan's pick of Teen Titans #14, I've never liked Robin or his costume, and I suspect I'll never read this comic, but that is one nice cover. |
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Post by Paste Pot Paul on Dec 24, 2014 5:18:43 GMT -5
This reminds me that I hope we have a thread later on for honourable mentions or near-misses from our individual lists. please, please, please. Me votes for that too. Week -1 #100: The... |
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Nah, this book is just one that represents how goofy and FUN comics can be. This weird mish-mash of superhero and western comics has the titular outlaw fight a fat dude with boomerangs, a magician who uses magnets (because as any Stan Lee fan knows, magnets can do ANYTHING - and an evil gunslinger with a shockingly Doctor Doom-esque face mask... the CIRCUS OF CRIME! Many Silver Age comics try for the perfect ratio of "goofy" to "exciting" but very few hit the mark... But KC 127 - nicely drawn by Jack Keller and scripted by Roy "The Boy" Thomas - hits both targets dead cenner, offering an exciting and unpredictable adventure enlivened by entertainly lame-zo villains. This is just one of my go-to "enjoyaboe pick me up" comics that always plasters a smile on my face. 
